President’s Message As we look back over the events of the past few months, I am reminded of the many long and colorful traditions held so dearly at Montevallo. I wonder if those who originated these traditions had any idea at the time how much a part of university life these practices would become. Would Solomon Bloch, Capt. Henry Clay Reynolds and Julia Tutwiler recognize the institution they founded in 1896, as, each fall, we honor the current year’s outstanding faculty, staff and alumni and “robe” our seniors in preparation for their flight into the future? Would the young women who first played in Montevallo’s athletic programs in the 1920s foresee the Falcons competing for the National Championship in the NCAA Division II playoffs in men’s basketball? Would the young women who, in 1919, “took up college stunts” and began the 94-year institution we now know as College Night, marvel at the event in its present form? From a competition in the dining hall among the four classes, this tradition has evolved over the years into one of the most unique homecoming celebrations in the nation. All of Montevallo’s traditions are fi lled with meaning, and most have evolved over the years from the original context, much like the University has evolved from an all-girls technical institution to a co-ed university with four colleges teaching the liberal arts. With 21st century topics such as management information systems, game studies and design, speechlanguage pathology, mass communication and sports/fitness management, Montevallo has adapted in order to be competitive in the higher education market while honoring long-standing traditions that connect us to those who came before us. Our students continue to build on the foundations laid by their predecessors as they embrace courses of study that concentrate on service to others. Beyond the pursuit of wealth, many of our graduates will enter professional fields that will improve our world – education, counseling, social work, speech pathology, civil service and many others. They follow in the footsteps of many who have gone before, but armed with innovative techniques and methods. The single tradition that overshadows all the rest, however, is excellence. The University of Montevallo has long been known for its high academic standards and the quality of its graduates. Because students in small classes still engage with professors who, in almost all cases, hold the Ph.D. or the highest degree in their field, because those students ask questions of their professors and discuss course material in class, understanding is ensured, and real education takes place. Now that’s tradition.
MONTEVALLO TODAY Vol. CI, No. 1 Spring 2012 Montevallo Today (ISSN 1052-3634) is published three times a year by the University of Montevallo, Alumni Relations/Public Relations, Reynolds Hall, Highland St., Montevallo, AL 35115. Periodicals postage paid at Montevallo, AL, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER, send address changes to Montevallo Today, Station 6215, P.O. Box 6000, Montevallo, AL 35115. Text, photographs and graphic images included in this publication may not be reproduced without written permission from the editor. The University of Montevallo does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age or disability in employment or in the provision of services.
Montevallo Today University of Montevallo alumni magazine EDITOR Tiffany Roskamp-Bunt ’00 bunttr@montevallo.edu
ASSOCIATE EDITORS Susan Howard ’11 prnews@montevallo.edu Diane Kennedy-Jackson kennedyd@montevallo.edu
CLASS NOTES EDITOR Marsha Littleton littletonm@montevallo.edu
ALUMNI EDITOR Jeremy Ward ’05 jward7@montevallo.edu
PHOTOGRAPHERS Matt Orton, Andrea Echols ’12, Brittany Headley ’14, Ashlynn Postell ’13
DESIGNERS John Nicholson ’11, Janessa Mobley ’12, Tiffany Roskamp-Bunt ’00, Hannah Stein ’13
CONTRIBUTORS Brenda Aldridge, James Bessette, Fred Cooper, Hollie C. Cost, Jim Day, Sean Forrester, Carey Heatherly, Mercedes Jones, Tracy Payne, Cynthia Tidwell, Ruth Truss, Elaine Webb
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION UMNAA President—Jim Methvin ’73 President-Elect—Michael Malone ’69 Past President/Parliamentarian Kit Waters ’78 Alumni Council Representative Laurl Self ’94 Admissions Representative Greg Embry ’96 Faculty Representative Carolyn Miller-Kirby SGA President Sherrod Hall ’12 UMNAA Vice Presidents Barbara Bonfield ’58, Cynthia Cephus ’88, Sandi Falkenhagen ’68, Wadia B. Josof ’79, Larry Peevy ’67, Laurl Self ’94, Keith Shoemaker ’98 Members at Large Jeffery J. Adams ’85, Matthew Arnold ‘93, Glenda L. Bland ‘89, Barbara J. Bradford ‘56, Vera S. Cox ‘56, Anne Caley Hamilton ‘64, Claudia Sue Harrell ‘73, Toni Leo ‘80, Andy Meginniss ‘68, Jalete J. Nelms ‘90, Megan E. Randolph ‘06, J. Corey Stewart ‘03, David W. Thomas ‘97, Warwick M. Woodall ‘82 Ex-Officio John W. Stewart III Jeremy Ward ’05 Patrick McDonald ’99
In this Issue 4
Hometown Homecoming The UMNAA recognized three alumnae at Homecoming who have excelled in their professions. Pictured (from left): Lesley Ann Ross ’01, recipient of the Nathalie Molton Gibbons Young Achiever’s Award; Suzanne Durham ’68, recipient of the Distinguished Alumna Award; and Pamela Smith Meitl ’74, recipient of the Nathalie Molton Gibbons Alumni Achievement Award.
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Spotlight on publishing professionals Joe Crowe ’92, copy editor for The Birmingham News, wields a red pen as he proofreads copy prior to publication. Crowe and other alumni who are professionals in the field of publishing are spotlighted on page 28.
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Farewell to Racheal Brantley Banks UM’s director of development and alumni affairs departs for Mobile where she will serve as director of health sciences development at the University of South Alabama. Fellow alumni and co-workers look back on Racheal’s impact on the university and her contributions to alumni programs.
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Departments 4
Campus News
16 Montevallo Profile
13 Guest Essay
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14 Sports
24 Alumni Activities
On the cover D. J. Rivera dunks another shot as the Falcons compete in their first-ever NCAA Division II Championship game. A delegation of fans noisily supported the team throughout the Elite Eight, played in Highland Heights, Ky., and all the way to the final game, where the Falcons lost to Western Washington University 72-65. The team also participated in a community outreach program at a local elementary school. Here, the team is pictured outside the arena at Highland Heights, Ky. PHOTOS: MATT ORTON
From Left: President Stewart, Lesley Ann Ross, Suzanne Durham, and Pamela Smith Meitl enjoy the awards dinner in their honor.
|2012 Homecoming Awards| Three women were honored with UM National Alumni Association awards at the homecoming luncheon on Saturday, Feb. 11. Suzanne Durham was the recipient of the 2012 Distinguished Alumna Award, Pamela Smith Meitl received the Nathalie Molton Gibbons Alumni Achievement Award, and Lesley Anne Ross received the Nathalie Molton Gibbons Young Achiever’s Award. Durham is the chief executive officer of the YWCA of Central Alabama. She earned the bachelor of science from UM in 1968 and attended graduate school at Texas Women’s University in Denton, Texas. In her more than 30 years of service to the YWCA, Durham has been widely recognized by the community for her efforts. Among her honors and awards, she was named to B-Metro magazine’s “A” List in 2011. She was the 2010 William S. Roth Fundraising Executive of the Year. In 2005, Durham received the Birmingham chapter of Jack and Jill’s 50th Anniversary
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Children’s Legacy Award. Birmingham Business Journal named Durham Business Woman of the Year in 2004. She was one of Birmingham magazine’s 25 Influential Women in 2002. The Birmingham News named her one of the Top 10 Most Influential Women in Birmingham in both 1995 and 1999. Durham’s major initiatives at the YWCA include two capital campaigns, 1996–1999 and 2007–2009, that each raised more than $14 million. One nominator explained that these campaigns have allowed for “the opening of two new shelters in Woodlawn and St. Clair County, offering a safe haven for homeless women.” Durham has led expansions of affordable housing and senior rental housing as well as the formation of YW Homes, a community housing development organization. Additionally, she has helped to create transitional housing. She spearheaded the development of a nationally accredited childcare and after-school program for homeless children.
According to one nominator, “Her tireless work for those with less has provided our community with the resources and partnerships to help make this small piece of our world a better place. Additionally, Suzanne has developed an extraordinary network of community collaboration between agencies and other social service organizations to the end of creating a more caring community.” Another nominator said of Durham, “I am constantly amazed at her energy, work ethic and attitude that get things done! Her compassion and dedication to the families the YWCA serves are never-ending.” Former classmates recalled Durham’s leadership as an undergraduate: “We knew her in the classroom, intramurals and College Night. It was clear then that she had endless capacity to achieve and lead.” They suggested that Durham’s achievements “speak clearly to the ‘value-centered’ leadership she nurtured at her alma mater.” Likewise, a YWCA colleague noted that “She is extremely proud of being a Montevallo graduate and often says this is where
Suzanne Durham, recipient of the 2012 Distinguished Alumna Award, prepares for her speech. Suzanne is a 1968 alumna and chief executive officer of the YWCA of Central Alabama.
she got her leadership development opportunities.” As one nominator explained, Durham’s success is not measured by her personal wealth. “Had she applied her quest for excellence, vast resourcefulness, innate intelligence and untiring effort to some other field, she would, no doubt, be very wealthy by now, at the pinnacle of her field. As a matter of fact, she is at the pinnacle of her field, but hers is truly a field of dreams for those hungry for a better life, for opportunities for an education, a real home and hope for a brighter future.” Meitl has served as a speech-language pathologist for public schools in Kansas since 1979. She earned both the B.S. and the M.S. in speech pathology from UM in 1974 and 1975, respectively. Meitl is a member of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) and the Kansas SpeechLanguage-Hearing Association. She holds the ASHA’s certificate of clinical competence. She was named the 2009 Kansas Speech Pathologist of the Year. In addition to her work in public schools, Meitl has served the geriatric population in various home health settings since 1995.
One nominator described Meitl’s commitment to her students, saying, “Pam is totally dedicated to helping children with speech and language impairments and to the discipline of speech and language pathology. She is unsurpassed in South Central Kansas in terms of her knowledge of pragmatics, articulation and language strategies for special needs children.” Another nominator noted Meitl’s UM education as a contributor to her success: “Pam demands high standards of excellence from herself and challenges others to meet those standards as well. She often quotes professors from Montevallo…and how they influenced her professional skills.” The nominator continued to explain how Meitl’s personal experience as the parent of a child with spinal meningitis has affected her ability to relate to students with special needs. “I will always remember her and her husband’s attitude about the challenges they faced. Instead of asking ‘Why us?’ they simply said, ‘Who better than us?’ This experience has given her a unique awareness of the emotional needs of families with a student receiving special education services.” A former colleague described Meitl’s first job after graduation as a speech-language pathologist in Colquitt County, Ga. The nominator said Meitl “began her professional career serving 16 schools, all of the schools in the system, as the only SLP. What an undertaking! There was no established speech-language program, there was no other SLP in the system nor an administrator who knew anything about speech-language pathology. Pam was definitely up to the challenge. She laid the foundation for the speech-language program in this county which now employs 10 SLPs serving 14 schools.” “I have never met another speechlanguage pathologist of Pam’s caliber and character,” one nominator said. “She is my idea of the consummate SLP.” Meitl has been married to her husband Bill for 33 years, and they have two children, Doug, 25, and Ben, 23. Ross currently serves as an assistant professor in the University of Alabama at Birmingham psychology department
and Center for Research on Applied Gerontology. Ross graduated from UM summa cum laude in 2001. She earned a double major in psychology and French. She earned the M.Ed. from Montevallo in 2003. Ross went on to complete the M.A. in lifespan developmental psychology and the graduate certificate in gerontology from UAB in 2006. In 2007, Ross earned the Ph.D. in lifespan developmental psychology at UAB. She completed her postdoctoral fellowship in 2009 at Australian National University. A former UM professor nominated Ross for the award. Recalling time spent with Ross in the classroom, the nominator said, “She was always prepared for every class, and we could count on her to be a class leader in active learning. She asked thoughtful and penetrating questions far beyond her years and sought out the faculty for their advice and mentoring as she went through her psychology major.” Ross has published 24 peer-reviewed articles with additional publications pending. She has delivered more than 60 national and international conference presentations and has received a number of grants and fellowships. A colleague at UAB called Ross “a valued member of our psychology department and of our research program at the UAB Edward R. Roybal Center for Research on Applied Gerontology.” The nominator explained that through Ross’s research, a “database of 50,000+ older adults spanning 15 years was harmonized from nine original contributing studies. This database is now being used to identify factors contributing to disability and death in older adults so that interventions and programs to lessen such factors can be developed.” Another nominator called Ross “a rare combination of ability, maturity and motivation.” He recalled her work as a research assistant and tutor at UM, as well as her involvement in undergraduate research. “I recommend her without reservation of any kind and am certain that she would be an outstanding recipient and constant reminder of what a UM education can do for someone,” he said.
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|College Night| On Saturday, Feb. 11, SGA President Sherrod Hall took the stage following the closing performances of the 94th annual College Night and spoke about the University’s national reputation for social awkwardness. Cheers from the audience expressed pride in the reputation, and Hall concluded his message about his journey to this “socially awkward” institution saying, “It was just meant to be.” Recognizing their catch phrase, the Gold Side erupted in celebratory cheers for a Gold Victory. College Night athletics scores were evenly split, but the Gold Side had a 6-point preproduction lead. The final scores were 523.5 Gold and 501.5 Purple. The Gold show, “Three Ring Ransom,” followed the Ruebacker Mayhem circus, in which Araxia, the ringmaster and owner of the circus, plotted the kidnapping of Emmaline, daughter of a wealthy stockbroker. Araxia planned to take the ransom and leave the circus behind to fulfill her dreams of becoming a showgirl. She nearly succeeded, but her dimwitted husband spoiled the plan by misplacing the ransom note. Ultimately, Araxia’s son
Albert saved the day, coming to Emmaline’s rescue. Albert and Emmaline fell in love and took over care of the circus. In the Purple show, “Skin Deep,” Queen Franzjula was in search of a husband. Her subjects had never seen her but praised her famed beauty. Her guards kidnapped Bonofasio, Fuchsia County’s most eligible bachelor, and brought him to Franzland, offering him the best of everything, provided that he take Franzjula’s hand in marriage. When he saw the queen, Bonofasio was unimpressed and did not propose. Bonofasio and his “unfortunate looking” best friend Edgar were thrown in prison and sentenced to execution, but Edgar managed to escape and win over Franzjula, teaching her that beauty is “more than just skin deep.” Recently retired Director of Student Life Robyn Boyd was the recipient of the 2012 College Night dedication. Because Boyd was unable to attend the performances, Hall, along with Purple leaders Todd Campbell and Hannah Jean Farris and Gold leaders JR Burt and Lindsey Bristol, presented the award to her earlier in the week.
the 94th Annual
COLLEGE NIGHT 2012 Video Order Form Name Address City State Zip Code Email Address Number of copies at $20 each. This amount includes shipping and handling. Total amount of your order $ . My check made payable to the UM Foundation is enclosed. MasterCard® VISA® Discover® American Express® Exp. Name on card Card No. 3-digit (4-digit for AMEX) Signature security code
Previous Videos:
(Circle year) 2008 2009 2010 2011
Number of copies at $20 each. This amount includes shipping and handling. Total amount of your order $ . My check made payable to the UM Foundation is enclosed. MasterCard® VISA® Discover® American Express® Exp. Name on card Card No. 3-digit (4-digit for AMEX) Signature security code Please mail order form to: College Night DVD • University of Montevallo • Station 6292 • Montevallo, AL 35115
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1. Alumni gather for the first-annual minority student reunion. 2. Gold wins for a second consecutive year. 3. Jim Wilkinson and Susan Jackson ’84 (Outstanding Alumna in Kinesiology) socialize at the Kinesiology reception. 4. President Stewart visits with Rachel, Shirley and Knox Reynolds at the Flowerhill reception. 5. Leisha LaRiviere ’90 accepts the 2012 Outstanding Alumna Award in Family and Consumer Sciences. 6. Will Boyd tearfully accepts the College Night dedication on behalf of his mother, Robyn Boyd. 7. The Gold Side performs “Three Ring Ransom.” 8. Lindsey Bristol ’12 and Joshua Womack ’12 are crowned Ms. and Mr. Montevallo. 9. Members of the Purple Side perform “Skin Deep.” 10. Current and former Montevallo Masters gather on the steps of Main Hall.
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|Campus News| |University advancement – an opportunity for alumni| BY JIM METHVIN, UMNAA PRESIDENT AND JOHN W. STEWART III, UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT
All former undergraduate and graduate students of Alabama College and the University of Montevallo are considered alumni. We are confident that your education or personal experiences at Montevallo have played a part in your success in your community, personal or professional lives. College experiences and friendships continue to be important in the lives of alumni today. Alumni play a vital, supportive role in the success of the University of Montevallo by supporting scholarships, capital fund projects, athletic activities, the fine arts and educational or student admission programs. Other ways alumni
stay connected include maintaining friendships with classmates, creating partnerships with the University and supporting a department or college. The University of Montevallo continues to “shout from the rooftops” the successes of its alumni, faculty and emeriti. There are many leaders still to be recognized. Such recognition provides a wonderful opportunity for UM to tout its achievements. One of the University’s responsibilities, according to the strategic plan, is to keep alumni informed of ways to support its mission and tap into the leadership amongst alumni. We envision a University-wide promotion of identifying opportunities for alumni participation and the sharing of leadership. “Paying it forward” is a concept about sharing one’s talent or success in a non-obligatory and appreciative manner.
We have walked these brick streets together, and as the University identifies opportunities for alumni, they will respond by helping to advance the University.
Mission Statement of the UM National Alumni Association The Association is the corporate body representative of all alumni of the University of Montevallo. The mission of the Association is to serve as the primary and principal organization to: 1. enhance alumni ties to and support of the University; 2. promote active and effective participation of alumni in the Association and the University; and 3. advocate, promote, and support the University of Montevallo and its unique mission to be a vital part of Alabama’s future.
|Foundation undertakes campus improvements| In an effort to continually improve the campus atmosphere, the University of Montevallo Foundation has recently undertaken a number of revitalization projects. Carmichael Library is one venue that has seen major changes. The J. A. Brown Jr. and Eleanor Brown Collaborative Learning Room is now open on the main floor. The archives have been relocated to the Anna Crawford Milner Archive Room, made possible by Eleanor M. Miller and Fred C. Crawford. An archive reading room will be established and named the William and Jeanetta Corbett Keller Archive Reading Room. The new entrance and patio area on the ground floor are nearing completion. The Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Alabama Fitness Trail is now complete at the College Lake and Eco Park. Con-
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struction is underway on pavilions and restroom facilities on the site. Donations have been made to Bloch Hall to benefit both family and consumer sciences and art. A sub-kitchen in the electric kitchen lab has been renovated and named the Rena Frego Celani Home Economics Lab. An art department computer lab has been named the William and Jeanetta Corbett Keller Computer Lab. In addition to building and renovation projects, the annual fund and the UM Foundation have established a student internship with Dr. Richard Cummings ’74 at Emory University School of Medicine, endowed and established the Ella J. Stewart Future Health Care Professionals Scholarship, supported undergraduate research and provided funding for numerous scholarships.
|Academics + service = the perfect marriage| BY HOLLIE COST
• Jennifer Lawley’s education graduate students have committed to support the summer Nature Camp. • Stephanie Puleo’s counseling students assisted in storm relief efforts. • Ted Metz’ art students have proposed and are designing bike rack sculptures for functionality and campus beautification. • Stephen Craft’s marketing students developed Montevallo Parks Trail marketing campaign. • Michele Bunn’s business students are designing a marketing plan for the Montevallo Golf Course. • Adjunct Jim Farris’ political science students provided more than 300 hours of service to a multitude of agencies. As the service learning coordinator for the University of Montevallo, I am honored to be a small part of these efforts and am constantly amazed by the dedication and commitment of my esteemed colleagues, our professional and support staff and our altruistic and visionary student body. For more information on these and other initiatives and to identify ways you can become involved, please contact the University of Montevallo’s Office of Service Learning and Community Engagement at 205-665-6006 or servicelearning@montevallo.edu.
Michele Bunn’s class gathers at the Montevallo golf course to present their new marketing plan.
Central to the University of Montevallo’s vision is a commitment to community service and global awareness. While this has clearly been exemplified by student organizations and athletics throughout the years, service is now rapidly moving to the forefront of academics in many disciplines. This is due in small part to the spring 2011 approval of the “Service Learning Across the Curriculum” proposal, but is primarily due to university faculty, staff and students’ overwhelming commitment to the local and global community. Traditional course models might entail a talking head “professing” to students his or her wisdom about a content area as it relates to the world, providing textbook examples to their students who sit patiently “thirsting” for knowledge. As we all know, UM students, faculty and staff rarely ascribe to traditional models. Rather than simply desiring to profess, our faculty members strive to engage. Rather than serving as knowledge sponges, UM students desire to apply their knowledge to positively impact the world, and they are not satisfied with waiting until graduation for that opportunity. The service learning instructional model provides a platform for faculty to engage students in community support that leads to social change. These services not only fill a
great need for agencies with inadequate staffing and minimal budgets, they also provide university students with invaluable professional opportunities. The following is a sample of service learning initiatives during the 20112012 academic year that exemplify the university’s commitment to supporting our community through academic engagement. • Leonor Vazquez’s “Spanish for the Professions” students provided 25 hours of translation services ranging from translating telephone calls from concerned parents at a school to translating a Drug-free Coalition brochure for the school district. • Ray Ozley’s communication studies students provided communication effectiveness training for a municipal office. • Teacher education students tutored local at-risk elementary students in reading comprehension and decoding skills. • Laurel Hitchcock’s social work students mentored high school students in a college access initiative program. • Laura Bloom’s family and child studies students provided free vision screening to preschool students. • Carolyn Miller-Kirby’s kinesiology students supported our local Boys and Girls Club and our ValloCycle bike share initiative.
Service Learning Coordinator Hollie Cost (center) visits with graduate students Rachel Daniel and Carla Smith in the Global and Community Outreach Building on the UM campus.
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|Campus News|
|From bricks to Bahn| My name is Mercedes Jones, and I am a McNair Scholar and art major at the University of Montevallo and am now studying art in Dortmund, Germany, at TU Dortmund. Being accepted into the McNair program was an honor that has since affected my life academically, professionally and personally in more ways than I could have imagined since turning in that application and sitting down for my interview with Dr. Tracy Payne and Ms. Tonya Giddens. I completed my McNair summer research internship, art installation and research project titled “Being Multiracial in America” in the summer of 2011. This project pushed me further than I have ever pushed myself. We learned together that you get out of something
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BY MERCEDES JONES
what you put into it, and were putting into practice valuable lessons we had learned from seminars all year long and through practicing at conferences. I learned strength and self-confidence in my capability to be a scholar and research what I love through unending support and guidance from the other McNair Scholars, McNair staff, and my faculty mentor, Dr. Kelly Wacker. And when I say unending, it is not a figure of speech! At one point, when I was installing my project in the gallery, I needed a staple gun. It was 1 a.m. and my faculty mentor came to campus to give me a staple gun so I could keep working. And at any given point, I think every McNair Scholar has shown up in the McNair office distressed or
on the verge of tears, and we knew that was a place we could go to calm down, get advice, regroup, and pick up a snack before we got back to work. Pushing myself to these lengths and completing a successful project gave me confidence that I have applied in so many ways since moving to Germany. After completing my project, I used the majority of the grant money/stipend to fund traveling to Munich, Paris, and Barcelona before I got to Dortmund to study. As an art major, seeing the contents of my art history textbook up on a wall two feet away from me was definitely a surreal experience. Having that extra funding gave me the ability to not only read about the importance of the Louvre Museum, but to walk it’s halls and experience the history myself. I marveled at the Gothic architecture of Notre Dame and was overwhelmed by how beautiful it was. I climbed the
steps of many of Gaudi’s most famous architectural works in Barcelona, and walked the Japanese bridge in Monet’s gardens while watching the reflections in the water lily pond change from morning to noon. After seeing one of Monet’s water lily paintings at 5 years old, I remember pointing to the book saying, “Mommy, I want to go there!” so being able to go was a dream come true. I could have done none of this without the funding from my McNair Research Summer Internship. And the scope of my long-lasting benefit from being a McNair Scholar is by no means just monetary. When faced with difficult situations, I, now more than ever, have the selfconfidence in my intellectual ability and strength to say, “Yes, I can do that.” I took that lesson, as well as how to behave in a professional and academic environment, to go on a job interview and get employed as an English tutor at a local college here in Germany. I also am in a constantly changing and new environment since I am living and studying in an unknown country where I do not know the language. As McNair Scholars, we are constantly told to work as hard as we can, but to be ready for change and to adapt accordingly. That is probably the best advice to anyone participating in a study abroad program, or for life in general. The lesson we learn as McNair
Scholars isn’t that we wouldn’t be afraid of our summer research project, or the GRE, or graduate school. And it was never promised that it wouldn’t be difficult.
The lesson was that we are scholars, and capable. We are taught repeatedly in many ways as McNair Scholars that plans may change or situations may be unfamiliar, but prepare and educate yourself using all your previous experiences, resources and mentors. Studying abroad, being a McNair Scholar is still a large part of my life. Living in Germany and traveling has given a new dimension to my ongoing studio project that was the result of my McNair Summer Research Internship. This project included internalizing
and questioning the role of race and multiracial identity in myself in the context of American cultural history and my community and translating that into an audiovisual art installati I have added a new tion. element to this project el by experiencing race relations in Germany re aand the other countries I visit. And an added bbenefit of taking this ttime to be an exchange sstudent in Dortmund is tthat I have time to take tthe tools I have learned tthrough McNair and re-examine graduate school programs in art history, museum studies and studio art and see where I will apply when I return to America. These experiences and travels have been vital to my academic career and personal development. Much like when I started the McNair program, I cannot imagine how many ways this year in Germany will affect the rest of life. I feel the hard-earned title “McNair Scholar” is one that I am proud to have and proud to share with so many hardworking intelligent people past and present. Mercedes will stay in Germany for a second semester of her Study Abroad experience.
|Study abroad & study away |
“Anny” Ting Su ’12 sits overlooking the downtown area of Toledo, Spain.
The study abroad and study away progams offer students opportunities far beyond the classroom. More than fifty students have been involved recently in UM’s study away program. A long-standing partnership with Dortmund University continues—three UM students will study in Germany this year, and three Dortmund students will be at UM this fall. Two students benefited from the National Student Exchange, studying in Canada and California. Two other students will serve as interns in Washington, D.C., this summer, thanks to a burgeoning affiliation with The Washington Center. Eighteen students traveled to Italy during Spring Break, and summer Study Abroad courses in France and Guatemala will serve 11 and 14 students, respectively.
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|Undergraduate Research| One way Run for Research funds The sixth annual Run for Research took place the afternoon of Thursday, benefit the UR Program is through a March 29, on and around the Univernew student travel policy initiated in sity campus. Participants in the 5K-run 2011-2012 allowing students to presand one-mile walk paid an entry fee to ent their research projects at conferbenefit Undergraduate Research and ences. Faculty had expressed interest Creative Endeavors. in discipline-specific conferences as a First-, second- and third-place better experience for students, especially finishers were recognized among male for those interested in graduate school. and female runners. First-place finThus, students now have the opporishers in the one-mile walk were also tunity to apply for travel grants (up to acknowledged. Aaron Bush and Jenifer $500) to help cover travel and registraMoore were the first-place 5K finishers. tion expenses associated with presenElliot Simpson and Taylor Kerr came tation of research at any academic in second. Clark Hultquist conference. Faculty and and Karli Morris finished students have responded in the third-place slots. enthusiastically to Brian Motii and Mary the new policy. Since Beth Armstrong were the mid-October 2011, 27 first-place finishers of the students have applied one-mile walk. for travel grants to assist The Department of attendance and presenGraduate Admissions and tations at conferences. Records was recognized as These 27 students repthe only campus department with 100 percent resent three colleges and participation in the Run seven departments. for Research event. Brett Noerager Students plan travel The Run for Research cheers as he to conferences such as committee includes Dean runs in the Run NCUR, the Georgia Unof the College of Arts for Research. dergraduate Research in and Sciences Mary Beth Psychology Conference, Armstrong, Administrathe Alabama Academy of Sciences and tive Secretary of the Dean of the Colthe South Eastern Theatre Conference lege of Arts and Sciences Tonja Battle, in cities from Ogden, Utah; Louisville, Cross Country Head Coach Tommy Ky.; Kennesaw, Ga.; and Jacksonville Barksdale, Chair of the Department of and Tuskegee, Ala. As Catherine Walsh Behavioral and Social Sciences Clark (Art) noted in her letter of support for Hultquist, Professor of Kinesiology Melissa Frennea and Jessica Richard, Carolyn Miller Kirby, Elementary students “will have the benefit not only Education Program Coordinator Jenifer of presenting . . . research to advanced Moore, Assistant Professor of Biology students and professors within these Brett Noerager, Associate Professor of fields and of gaining their feedback, but Chemistry Cynthia Tidwell and Profesalso of networking, of being exposed sor of History Ruth Truss.
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to a range of research within these fields through attending sessions, and, generally, of experiencing other cultural opportunities.” Student recipients of travel grants have also provided positive feedback. Ashleigh Jones gave the following report from her recent attendance at a discipline-specific conference: “I presented my project entitled “Multivariate Statistics and Mathematical Modeling” at the Troy University MathFest in Montgomery. Undergraduate and graduate students along with faculty members from all over the southeast brought their mathematics research to share. Presenting research is vitally important to mathematicians, as communication of new ideas is key in the field. Although the research itself is enough of a reason to present, learning to communicate ideas with others clearly and concisely and in a way that they can fully understand is a skill that is refined by presenting at such conferences. The environment of learning and asking questions that is fostered by these conferences is unparalleled in all of academia. Although this Undergraduate Research project was the most challenging task I have tackled in my stint at UM, it was also the most rewarding. This project was the first time I was presented with an open-ended problem with no conceivable solution. The first method I tried to solve this problem failed miserably. However, after continued work, we found a result that does help to solve the problem, and we hope to continue to advance in this project. The applause and nods from the Ph.D.s in the room after I finished my talk let me know that all of my hard work was definitely worth it.”
|Guest Essay|
The University of Montevallo’s Archives and Special Collections was started by librarians collecting and hoarding bits of institutional history. There are no official dates or announcements for when this trend began, but one has to assume it started in the earliest days of librarianship on the Alabama Girls’ Industrial Institute campus. Many have contributed to the archives, both in donating materials and in gathering and storing these historical items. However, three individuals deserve credit for the beginning of UM’s archival program: Rosemary Arneson, Jason Cooper and Kathy Lowe. Over the past decade, these people played an integral part in laying the foundation for today’s archival program. Years ago, Mr. Cooper, Carmichael Library’s Emerging Technologies Librarian, and his Technical Services team began organizing and de-cluttering the storage area. The goal was to discard unnecessary materials while giving important documents a more prominent place. Ms. Arneson and Ms. Lowe are the former and current Directors of Carmichael Library, respectively. Arneson asked for and wrote the job description to hire a faculty member devoting fifty percent of his or her time to archives work. Lowe continued leading in this area by enhancing the number of hours spent highlighting archives materials and the need for physical growth, compensating for the increases in research requests and items acquired. Also, she authorized the beginning of two scanning projects, one highlighting the course catalogs/bulletins and yearbooks, the other focusing on The Alabamian, our student newspaper.
|The history of our history| BY CAREY HEATHERLY
In November 2007, I was fortunate enough to be hired as the faculty member responsible for UM’s Archives and Special Collections. Over these few short years, many student workers, graduate assistants and interns, including a former faculty member, helped me create and shape the agency that
serves as the interpreter and gatekeeper of campus history. Items accomplished include things like placing the Presidential Papers collection in archivalquality folders and boxes and recording their contents, information that provides access to researchers and will eventually appear online. Other tasks
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include cleaning, boxing, moving and reassembling the entire collection to our new home in the old computer lab on Carmichael Library’s ground floor. The new space represents approximately 60 percent more space than our original home, plus an additional area which will serve as a reading room for researchers. Finally, the crew performed a great deal of work coding, packing, shipping and doing quality control checks for our digitization program. The program has been a great success with users and can be viewed online at http:// www.archive.org/details/ universityofmontevallo. For several decades, UM’s history has served researchers well. Now, this information is more accessible than ever. Though there is no exact “beginning” date for our repository, elements of the special collections date back to our first library collections, assembled around 1900. The archives trace their beginning to the 1895 board of trustees minutes, the official record of AGIS’s beginning, and to the earliest photographs of Montevallo as a Civil War-era hamlet. Both instruments document the education of young women in the rural South and the sources they used. Both areas have evolved along with the Alabama Girls’ Industrial Institute, Alabama Girls’ Technical Institute, Alabama College and the University of Montevallo. In addition to caring for and digitizing our current holdings, we are thinking about the future by actively seeking to add new collections, developing a web presence and founding an oral history program. www.montevallo.edu/alumni
|Sports Update|
|Falcons make it to NCAA Championship| Head coach Danny Young and the University of Montevallo men’s basketball team had a tremendous 2011-12 season as they advanced further than any team in UM history. The Falcons made an astounding run in the postseason, winning eight consecutive games to advance to the NCAA Championship. The game was broadcast live on CBS to an estimated audience of 3.1 million viewers. An impressive play by senior Antoine Davis made ESPN Sportscenter’s Top Ten Plays. The Falcons fell just short of the national championship title, losing to Western Washington University 72-65. UM will hang four banners inside BankTrust Arena commemorating attainment of Peach Belt Conference West Division Champions, Peach Belt Conference Tournament Champions, Southeast Region Champions and NCAA National Finalists. The fan support throughout the run was overwhelming as the UM community packed BankTrust Arena for the Southeast Region Tournament, which the Falcons hosted as the number one seed. The crowd stormed the court after the Falcons’ semifinal
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Montevallo Today
and championship victories, creating an electric atmosphere inside the arena. Once the Falcons advanced to the NCAA Championship, more than 200 fans traveled by bus to Highland Heights, Ky., to cheer on the team. During the Falcons’ Elite Eight trip, the men’s basketball team participated in a community outreach program at a local elementary school in Highland Heights. The team traveled to Crossroads Elementary School to interact with some local children. The students at Crossroads had been following the Falcons since they were announced as hosts of the Southeast Regional Tournament. All the classes made signs for the different players and were excited to finally meet the team. The UM players opened the event by introducing themselves; then Coach Young allowed the students to ask questions. Players spoke to the group about what it takes to be a college athlete and the importance of staying in school and listening to your teachers and parents. Then, to the students’ excitement, the players gave a basketball demonstration. The Falcons and a few CES students participated in some “minute to win it” games. Senior DeMarcus Catchings and junior Danny
Cummins also teamed up for a danceoff with two CES students. The Falcons ended the season with a 29-8 record, the most wins since the 2005-06 season, when the team finished 29-5. The trip to the Elite Eight marked the third time in the last seven years that the Falcons have advanced past the regional round. Senior D.J. Rivera spent just one season with the Falcons but left his name in the record book as he broke the UM NCAA record for most points in a season with 755, which bested the previous record of 694 held by Greg Brown (2005-07). Rivera also broke the UM record for most free throws in a game with 14, as well as the free throw percentage record in a game as he went 14-of-14 against Clayton State University. Rivera was named an AllAmerican by three different rankings including The National Association of Basketball Coaches, Daktronics and Basketball Times. The Falcons had five seniors on the 2011-12 squad including Davis, Catchings, Rivera, Jervan Jackson and Chauncey Thompson. UM will return three of its five starters from the national championship game, including junior Drico Hightower, junior Marvin Fitzgerald and freshman Ryan May.
Women’s Basketball: The women’s basketball team wrapped up its first season under head coach Cindy Hilbrich. The Falcons advanced to their secondstraight Peach Belt Conference Tournament and ended the season with an 11-16 record. The Falcons lost just four seniors of the squad and will return their leading scorer, freshman Taylor Beverly, next season. The women’s basketball staff is hard at work recruiting the next class of talented Falcons to compliment the returning players from this past season. Baseball: The baseball team is off to a strong start to the 2012 season. At press time, the Falcons are 16-16 overall, but they have already won three Peach Belt Conference series, tying last season’s results. UM still has four series to play and three are against the lowest-ranked teams in the division. The Falcons already have seven wins over top-25 competition and sit in second place in the Peach Belt Conference West Division. The top four teams from each division advance to the PBC Tournament.
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Women’s Tennis: The women’s tennis team has just six matches left on its schedule. The Falcons have already bested last season’s win total of four, and they sit at 6-10 overall. Head coach Mark McGuigan is in his second year and is developing a competitive program at UM for the years to come. Men’s Golf: The men’s golf team is nearing the end of its 2011-12 season. The Falcons have competed in eight tournaments so far with their best finish coming at home at the Full Moon Bar-B-Que Invitational, played at UM’s home course, Timberline. The Falcons finished third in the six-team field and have been improving throughout the season. Women’s Golf: The women’s golf team is also nearing the end of its 201112 season. The Falcons have competed in six events so far this season with their best finish coming at the Coastal Georgia Invitational where they finished third out of an eight-team field. UM is being led by freshmen Ashlee Beck and Megan Clyne.
www.montevallo.edu/alumni
|Montevallo Profile|
The legacy continues: Fred Knox Reynolds III ’62 and wife, Shirley Beavers Reynolds ’61, visit with granddaughter and current UM student, Rachel Reynolds.
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Montevallo Today
Your name: Fred Knox Reynolds III Your home: Moody, Alabama Your hometown: Birmingham, Alabama Profession: Retired from Eastern Airlines, Inc.; former owner of Mr. K’s, Inc. What is your secret for success? In a word, tenacity. Almost all problems have a
solution – it seems to me that the key to finding it is having the strength of will to pursue that solution until it is found. What is the best advice you have received? Take advantage of completing as much education as possible and spend considerable time with things that matter most – family and friends. How did Montevallo affect your career path? Montevallo gave me a wonderful lib-
eral arts education which enabled me to secure my job with Eastern Airlines which was a most enjoyable and successful career for 25 years. Favorite Montevallo memory: Several favorites: friendships (especially those all-night
dorm room confabs); a leading role in a winning Purple College Night production; and last, but not least, I found a Montevallo girl who became my wife over 50 years ago. Tell us about your family and its connection to the University of Montevallo: Of
course the connection starts with my great-grandfather, Capt. Henry Clay Reynolds, who was one of the founders and first President of the college. Several of his offspring stayed and made Montevallo their home. I have many fond memories visiting with them as a child in Capt. Reynolds old home (running up and down the steep winding stairs that led to a cupola overlooking main street and the Baptist church.) Everyone in the family was very proud to have that special connection to the college. Now, over a hundred years later, the great-great-great-granddaughter of Capt. Reynolds, Rachel Reynolds, is a student at the University of Montevallo. Naturally, her grandmother and I were thrilled that our only granddaughter chose our alma mater as the place to continue her education. As a descendant of one of the founders of the University of Montevallo, do you feel a special “ownership” of UM? Certainly being in such a position gives one a sense
of connection that few other alumni have. There is not only a feeling of pride in knowing that the Reynolds name is so well known and respected on the campus of the University but also a sense of responsibility to carry on the legacy of excellence created by my great-grandfather and the other founders. Some people believe that Capt. Reynolds still walks the halls in the building that bears his name. Do you agree? And if so, why do you suppose he does this? It certainly makes for a good story, doesn’t it? Who knows, maybe he really does. If so, I would like to think it’s because he still cares deeply about this thing that meant so much to him while he was alive. Being a part of something from its inception that ultimately becomes as important and positive a contributor to the lives of people of this state and beyond as the University of Montevallo has, would have to be a tremendously gratifying experience. On the other hand, maybe it’s to get away from the spirits of his three wives! (Just kidding). What do you suppose Capt. Reynolds would think (today) about the school he helped to establish? Aside from marveling at the changes brought on by more than a century’s worth of progress in science and technology, I believe he would be quite pleased with the current state of the University. I believe the same qualities that attract new students today—dedication of the faculty, small class sizes, a feeling of community, and the ability of the campus itself to project a traditional college “feel”—would provide him with a sense of pride and satisfaction.
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www.montevallo.edu/alumni
|Class Notes| 1940 Geraldine “Gerry” Camp Byars, 92, of Sheffield writes that she has taught violin and viola since 1972 and has played with the Chattanooga, Knoxville and Huntsville symphonies as well as the Shoals Symphony, which she helped establish approximately 30 years ago.
1941 Helen-Hope Balch Martinson celebrated her 92nd birthday recently with family and friends. She says she is still “plying her trade” as assistant organist at Emmanuel’s Lutheran Church in Seguin, Texas.
1952 Class Reunion see page 24 for photo
Dot Davis Moore of Montgomery has had her latest book, No Remorse: the Rise and Fall of John Wallace, published by NewSouth Press. A prior book, Oracle of the Ages, Reflections on the Life of Fortune Teller Mayhayley Lancaster, received the award for Best Book of Local History for the State of Georgia by the Georgia Historical Society.
1957 Class Reunion see page 24 for photo
1962 Class Reunion see page 25 for photo
1967 Troy University honored Douglas Patterson M.Ed. ’71 recently by naming an academic building on the Troy campus in his honor. Doug had served Troy as a senior administrator in a number of positions for more than 20 years prior to his retirement. Jack Hawkins ’67, M.Ed. ’71, chancellor of the Troy system, said, “Education in Alabama never had a better steward than Dr. Doug Patterson. He is one of the best administrators and leaders in higher education.” Larry A. Peevy M.Ed. ’71, president of Tallulah Falls School in northeast Georgia, was honored recently with a University of Montevallo scholarship in his name. The Larry A. Peevy Leadership Award will be available to a TFS
18
graduate who meets the scholarship requirements and who will attend UM. Larry is a current member of Montevallo’s alumni board.
1968 Linda Buck Stewart and husband Bill are completing 32 years as missionaries in South Korea. They minister to American military members at Haven Baptist Church and Servicemen’s Center in Kunsan.
ter, Corrie Dortch ’04, is a teacher in Duval County, Fla. Mona McClendon of Springville writes that she is semi-retired and enjoying her grandchildren. She spends off-days creating stained glass windows, knitting and raising horses.
Erica Burquist Khalsa and husband Gurupreet have relocated from Los Angeles to Mobile where Erica is pursuing a Ph.D. in instructional design at the University of South Alabama.
1972 Class Reunion see page 25 for photo
1973 Henrietta Presley M.Ed. ’79 has retired and now serves as a substitute teacher and driver’s education teacher at McKenzie High School in Butler County.
1975 Wayne Harper has retired as the chief of police in Athens after a 46year career in law enforcement. He served as Athens’ chief for 23 years. Dennis Pennington of Nauvoo writes that he has retired. He and his wife, Susan, have a daughter in the military.
1976 J. Douglas Dortch and wife Judy recently relocated to Mountain Brook when Doug was named pastor of Mountain Brook Baptist Church near Birmingham. Prior to this appointment, he had served as pastor of Tallahassee First Baptist Church for 17 years. The Dortches’ daugh-
Montevallo Today
Sheila Gray of Bay Minette is a textbook specialist with the Baldwin County schools. She writes that she has a new grandson who lives with his parents in Ozark.
1982 Class Reunion see page 25 for photo
1971 Kathy Darnell of Hueytown has retired from the Jefferson County Family Court where she served as a probation officer and senior probation officer for 32 years. She has begun a new career as an instructor in the legal studies department at Virginia College in Birmingham.
Teacher of the Year for the county.
Mona McClendon and her grandchildren
1977 Robert Davis and his wife, Sonya Gamble Davis ’79, reside in Little Rock, Ark., where Bob is a manufacturer’s representative in home furnishings. The House on Dirty-Third Street, a picture book by Jo Kittinger, was released recently by Peachtree Publishers. Another of Jo’s titles, Rosa’s Bus: The Ride to Civil Rights, has received a Crystal Kite award by the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. Barbara J. Mann, assistant director for public services and instruction and information literacy libararian at the University of Maryland University College, is the winner of the Association of College and Research Libraries Instruction Section’s Miriam Dudley Instruction Librarian Award. Barbara was recognized for her leadership of an information literacy program which will serve as a model for other programs nationally and internationally.
Terry Morton M.Ed. and his wife, Tammy McDaniel Morton ’86, M.Ed. ’89, reside in Centreville where Terry is head basketball coach at Bibb County High School. He has been teaching and coaching for 30 years, and Tammy has served as a reading coach for 25 years. Terry’s participation in UM’s most recent Olympics Day marked his 500th race.
1984 Ann Bailey, director of housing and residence life at Mississippi State University since 2000, has been elected secretary of the Southern Association for College Student Affairs Foundation Board. Ann has served SACSA in several leadership roles including president of the association in 2005-06 and as vice president for partnerships and a foundation board trustee.
1986 Fairhope attorney Henry L. “Max” Cassady Jr. has been selected by peer lawyers for the 2012 edition of Best Lawyers and also has been appointed to the board of editors of The Alabama Lawyer, the official periodical of the Alabama State Bar.
James Stuckey has been promoted to associate director of the nursing home audit section of Alabama’s Medicaid agency.
Leslie Horn Dennis has accepted the position of professional development assistant coordinator with the Council for Leaders in Alabama Schools (CLAS). An educator since 1987, Leslie also has worked with the YMCA in its Blue Ridge Assembly Alumni Association and in its ambassadorial program, traveling and evaluating programs in Great Britain and Western Europe.
1981
1987
Margaret Morelock Arnold, a music educator in the Santa Rosa County, Fla., school system for 27 years, recently was named Fine Arts
Clay Busby is a marketing design manager with Network Communications Inc. in Lawrenceville, Ga. He and his partner, Wayne Palmer,
recently celebrated 21 years of domestic partnership.
1988
Land Institute where she leads funding and research initiatives for land use and development best practices for the Richmond region.
1992 Class Reunion see page 26 for photo
Steve Sanders receives Better Life Award from Regions Financial Corp.
Steve Sanders has received the Better Life Award from Regions Financial Corp. where he is employed as management information system manager of the consumer credit policy department in Birmingham. This is the highest award given by Regions Financial to associates for outstanding dedication and job performance as well as exemplary involvement and commitment to the community.
1990
Leada Devaney Gore of Madison, display advertising manager for The Decatur Daily, was recently elected president of the Alabama Press Association. Leada began her almost-20-year career in the newspaper business at the Shelby County Reporter. She also serves as vice president of the UM Foundation.
Leada Devaney Gore is elected president of the Alabama Press Association.
1993 Jennifer Cleere has been named assistant principal at Helena Middle School in Shelby County. She had previously served as the gifted education lead teacher for the Shelby County school system.
1994 Leisha Garner LaRiviere receives the 2012 Outstanding Alumna Award in Family and Consumer Sciences.
Leisha Garner LaRiviere of Richmond, Va., received the 2012 Outstanding Alumna Award in Family and Consumer Sciences from UM’s College of Education during Homecoming Week in February. Leisha was also named the Ruth Stovall Distinguished Alumna, which honors an alum who has significantly impacted the lives of individuals and families. While in Montevallo, she spoke to a group of more than 50 FCS students about the versatility of and opportunities for the COE degree in the professional environment. Leisha serves on the executive board of the Urban
Mechele Moore Mosley of Scottsboro recently accepted the position of teacher of the hearing impaired and visually impaired for Jackson County Schools.
1995 Jennifer Sims recently received a master’s degree in education from the University of Phoenix. She is a special education teacher at Bing Elementary School in Tampa, Fla.
1997 Timothy Dollins has been named Alabama business development officer for Wells Fargo Small Business Administration lending. Timothy and his wife, Sara Simone Dollins ’05, reside in Alabaster.
1998 Tiffany Rogers-Alexander M.Ed. ’06 is the owner of Alexander Counseling Services in Mountain Brook. She is a professional counselor specializing in adolescent and early adulthood counseling.
Linda Veazey is an assistant professor of political science at Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, Texas. She also serves as general secretary on the board of directors of Amnesty International USA.
2002 Brent Byars M.Ed. ’07 has been named principal of Creek View Elementary School in Shelby County. He had previously served as assistant principal of Helena Elementary School.
Michelle Little Shoemaker (second from left) of Douglasville, Ga., and her quartet, Martini, were crowned International Quartet Champions of Sweet Adelines International in October. Since their victory, they have traveled extensively, appearing in Germany, Canada and in numerous locations in the U.S. as they complete their reign as “Queens of Harmony 2012.”
1999 Brian Baugh and his wife, Stephanie Jaap Baugh ’99, both teach art classes at Monmouth College in Illinois. Brian recently received tenure as an associate professor, and Stephanie is pursuing an MFA in interdisciplinary art at Goddard College. They plan to teach visual art workshops at the University of the Highlands and Islands in Perth, Scotland, in the fall, and Brian expects to be teaching a course called “Florence through the Eyes of the Victorians” in Florence, Italy, in 2013. Paul Dompieree has relocated from Las Vegas to Hoover where he is employed as a crisis counselor with the Jefferson, Blount, St. Clair Mental Health Authority. He works with Project Rebound assisting survivors of the April 27 tornadoes. DeAnna McCarley Smith, UM’s vice president for business affairs, was recognized by Birmingham Business Journal as one of Birmingham’s “Top 40 Under 40” for 2012. These annual awards go to 40 outstanding business leaders under 40 years of age.
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Hunter Manasco M.S. ’04, assistant professor of speechlanguage pathology at Misericordia University in Pennsylvania, has written a book titled An Exceptional Children’s Guide to Touch: Teaching Social and Physical Boundaries to Kids, illustrated by Hunter’s wife, Katherine. The purpose of this picture book is to educate children wth special needs on social rules regarding appropriate and inappropriate forms of touching and to empower children to recognize abuse and ask for help if necessary. Deanne Gilbert Pool resides in Tallahassee, Fla., where she is owner and CEO of Digital Pens LLC, a communications and design company, as well as Deanne Pool Fine Art, which manages her artworks. She and her husband, Robert, enjoy traveling with their combined family. Birmingham Business Journal has named Jefferson Traywick, senior project manager of economic development with the Birmingham Business Alliance, to the 2012 list of “Top 40 Under 40.” The award recognizes 40 business leaders under 40 years of age.
2003 Jamika Kirk was named one of Birmingham Business Journal’s “Top 40 Under 40” for 2012. Jamika is an alumni affairs specialist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s College of Arts and Sciences. She also is chair-elect for the Junior League of Birmingham’s Market fundraiser. The BBJ’s “Top 40 Under 40” honors exceptional business leaders who are below the age of 40.
www.montevallo.edu/alumni
|Class Notes| 2005
2009
Haley Davis Edwards and her husband of 10 years, Grant, reside in Alpine with their two children. Haley is employed as a public health social worker in Sylacauga.
Brooke Deason Kelso recently received the New Teacher Grant award from Alabama Power Co. She teaches at Trussville High School near Birmingham.
2008
Tiffany Westry was the associate producer for Deadly Deception, a documentary about Superfund cleanup efforts in North Birmingham, which aired on CBS 42, Birmingham’s local CBS affiliate. The documentary won awards for Best Local Programming at the ABBYs and Best Documentary at the AP awards. Both are statewide recognitions.
Rachel Hendrix recently starred in the film October Baby distributed by Provident Films with American Family Studios. October Baby tells the story of 19-year-old Hannah, who goes on a search for her birth mother when she discovers that she was adopted and is the survivor of a failed abortion. Hannah’s father is played by John Schneider of Dukes of Hazzard fame. Rachel and her husband, Gabriel, reside in Switzerland.
2010 Anna McFall is the media relations and public relations coordinator for the United Saints Recovery Project. She also serves on the junior board of the Alabama Humanities Foundation and is a member of AmeriCorps VISTA.
Springfield, Va. Jimmy is employed with the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board in Washington, D.C., and Nicole is a nurse at the Washington Hospital Center.
Ray and Candace Hudson O’Neil
1998
James E. “Jimmy” Jones and Nicole Flynn were married Oct. 9 at the Sheraton Sand Key in Clearwater Beach, Fla. After a honeymoon trip to Costa Rica, the couple resides in
Daniel and Kathrine Turnbow Sharpe
Katherine Turnbow married Daniel W. Sharpe Dec. 19 in St. Petersburg, Fla. The couple has relocated to United Arab Emerates where Katherine teaches grades 1-4 at Al
Same Sweet Girls: a group of women who graduated in the mid-1960s. From left to right: (top row of stairs) Sandra Bond Bowers, Mary Elliott Cobb, Mary Carol Cannon Hitchcock; (second row) Patti Galloway Hughes, Shannon Shelton Brown, Linda Norrell Hinson;(third row) Carol Wishum Harris, Cassandra King Conroy, Loretta Douglas Cobb, Carol Bailey Watson; (front row) Margo Fallin, Mary Ellen Lazenby Slaton, Lisa Nichols (scholarship recipient), Jennifer and John Stewart.
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Montevallo Today
Candace Hudson and Ray O’Neil were married Sept. 4 at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. After a honeymoon trip to Cozumel, Mexico, the couple resides in Bessemer. Candace is a marketing specialist for the Birmingham Airport Authority, and Ray is a senior network administrator with MailSouth.
2007
Weddings 1994
2005
Nicole and Jimmy Jones
Trey West has been elected to the board of directors of the Dallas chapter of the Chorister’s Guild and will chair the 2012 youth choir festival.
Daniel McBrayer ’08 and Keith Shoemaker ’98 completed the 2012 Publix Georgia Marathon in Atlanta in March. This was the first marathon for both Dan and Keith.
Masoudi School in Al Ain. Daniel is president of Sharpe Group, a land development consulting firm.
Kate Davenport and Tim Hunter ’07 were married April 16, 2011, at Reid Chapel at Samford University. After a honeymoon in Grenada, the Hunters reside in Birmingham. Kate is a pharmacist at Publix in Hoover, and Tim is an auditor with Revenue Discovery Systems.
2008
Anna Wright Hess and Bradley Hess
Anna Wright and Bradley Hess ’08 were married Nov. 5 at St. Elizabeth Catholic Church in Greenville. Bridesmaids included UM alumnae Erin Donaldson Gwynn ’07 and
Leah Jennings ’10. Seth Hampton ’09 was Bradley’s best man. The couple resides in Atlanta where Anna works as a speech therapist with the Gwinnett County public schools, and Bradley is finishing his audiology residency at the Atlanta VA Medical Center.
being a stay-at-home mom since Fowler’s arrival in 2007.
Fisher and Fowler Vick
2007
Madge Salter Cirillo, 96, of Hueytown died Oct. 14. She was a retired teacher. Baylee Marie Hill
Brandi Pate Hill and her husband, Michael Hill ’05, of Montevallo welcomed the birth of a daughter, Baylee Marie Hill, Sept. 7. Michael is a large-loss general adjuster with Farmers Insurance Group, and Brandi is a human resources recruiter for the Protective Life Corp.
Jack Blankenship and his wife, Carrie, announce the birth of a daughter, Eden Frances, July 12. Eden joins big brothers Noah, 3; Caleb, 5; and Josiah, 2, at the family’s home in Rock Hill, S.C., where Jack is the campus minister for the Baptist Collegiate Ministry at Winthrop University.
Holley Blackmon Echols and her husband, Specialist Ronnie Echols, announce the birth of a son, Aaron James, Sept. 22. The Echols family resides in Verbena where Holley is enjoying being a stay-at-home mom while studying for her master’s degree in early childhood education. Ronnie recently returned home after a tour of duty in Iraq.
2002 Tiffany Pope Vick and husband Brad celebrated the birth of a second son, Fisher Jaxon Vick, July 1. Big brother Fowler, 4, was excited to welcome Fisher to the family home in Wilsonville. Tiffany has enjoyed
Mary Emma Harris Godbold, 94, of Camden died July 14. She was a retired case worker with the Alabama Department of Human Resources. Survivors include her daughter, UM alumna Nancy Godbold Mirkheshti ’71. Elsie Maddox Adams Lewis, 94, of Panama City, Fla., died Oct. 18. She was a retired teacher and guidance counselor. Annabel Gates Nichols, 94, of Tuscaloosa died Nov. 22. She was a retired teacher with 40 years of service, the last 30 years in Tuscaloosa.
1942 Martha McGowin, 91, of Jackson died Jan. 19. She taught engineering drawing at the University of Alabama for 22 years.
1943 Aaron James Echols
Luverne Brannan Evans, 88, of Wilmer died Dec. 5. She was a retired teacher and businesswoman. Survivors include her daughters, UM alumnae Phyllis Evans McClure ’78 and Jane Evans Broadway ’79. Dorothy Jean Roddy Garrett, 89, died Jan. 8.
1937
1938
2009 The Blankenship family
Julia Catherine McDonald, 98, of Alexander City died Feb. 14. She was retired from the Coosa County Department of Pensions and Security with approximately 30 years of service.
Eleanor Watson Lewis, 96, of Panama City, Fla., died Dec. 17. She was an active member of a number of community organizations.
1999
2000
1936
Ellen Elizabeth Launius Harding of Leeds died Feb. 1. She was a retired teacher.
1997
Katee Miller Thomas and husband Larry of Semmes celebrated the birth of a son, Charles Henry Thomas, Aug. 15. Charles was welcomed home by his big sister, Addison Hayes Thomas, 3. Katee is a benefits assistant with Volunteers of America Southeast in Mobile.
1944
Edith Green Ball, 95, of Columbus, Ga., died Dec. 6. She was the retired owner of Wellworth Variety Store.
Births Dena Puliatti Schrimsher and husband Barry welcomed the arrival of their son, Rowan Anders Schrimsher, July 16. The family resides in Huntsville where Dena is enjoying being a stay-at-home mom and teaching fitness classes.
Deaths
Maitland Wadsworth Newsome, 92, of Arley died Dec. 27. She was a retired teacher of home economics with 36 years of service.
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Doris Bazemore McClellan with her granddaughter Catherine Grizzard.
Doris Bazemore McClellan, 90, of Talladega died Jan. 11. She taught elementary school in Talladega County for 36 years. Survivors include her granddaughter, Catherine Grizzard ’07.
1945 Margaret Compton Davis, 88, of Alpharetta, Ga., died Jan. 17. Mary Elizabeth “Libby” Riley Higginbotham, 88, of Montgomery died Sept. 5. She was a retired banker. Frances Ellen Pauly Kolter, 88, of Birmingham died Sept. 23. She was a retired homemaker.
1949 Dora Jean Rattray Hill, 85, of Gadsden died Feb. 14. She was a retired teacher of foreign languages for almost 40 years. In 1971 she was the first inductee into the Alabama Teachers Hall of Fame and was named Alabama Teacher of the Year in 1976.
1956 Jo Ann Hamilton, 76, of Fairfield died March 31, 2011. She was a retired teacher.
www.montevallo.edu/alumni
|Class Notes| 1960 Mary Jean Ayers Smith, 76, of Grant died Oct. 5. She was a retired teacher. Patricia Spradlin Smith, 76, of Boone, N.C., died Aug. 28.
Fred Collins Blackmon M.Ed., 87, of Clanton died Dec. 14. He taught mathematics and physics at UM from 1960-1987. Evelyn Hope Neely, 73, of Mobile died Nov. 16. She was a writer.
1957 Carol Elizabeth Bailey Rhodes, 75, of Tuscaloosa died March 24. She had worked at Alabama Power Co. and St. Mark United Methodist Church in Northport.
1962 Marvin Rice M.A., 84, of Dora died Aug. 18. He was a retired teacher.
1963
Carolyn Murff Hughes Smith, 76, of Simpsonville, S.C., died Feb. 8. She was a retired administrative assistant.
James Mitchell Adams, 69, of Ider died Jan. 31. He was a retired teacher with 25 years of service.
1958
1965
Dennye Winn Harper, 74, of West Palm Beach, Fla., died Dec. 25.
Horace Franklin Smith M.A., 78, of Clanton died Oct. 11. He was a retired teacher. Survivors include his wife, Lucille Walker ’63.
1959 Elizabeth McHenry Dickson, 75, of Albertville died Dec. 3. She was a retired teacher.
She retired from the American Red Cross as director of volunteer services after 30 years of service.
1967 Thomas Talmadge Parsons, 67, of Anniston died Sept. 9.
1969 Rodney Jeff Cleckler, 65, of Woodland Park, Colo., died Feb. 9. He was a retired scientist. Pamela Smith, 67, of Pensacola, Fla., died Nov. 23. She was a retired teacher with more than 30 years of service.
high school football coach. Carolyn Perry Kinney M.Ed. ’80, 60, of Jacksonville died Oct. 29. She was a retired teacher.
1975 Alice Helms Parrish, 75, of Ozark died Jan. 24. She was a retired teacher. Marie Poole Tucker M.Ed., 72, of Talladega died Oct. 5. She was a retired teacher and librarian. Elida Marie Utter-Mathews M.Ed., 85, of Oxford died Oct. 6. She was a retired teacher.
Susan Claremont “Moni” Mackinaw Zimmerman, 64, of Oakland Park, Fla., died Jan. 4.
1978
1973
Gary L. Houlditch, 60, of Vestavia Hills, died Feb. 28. He was an artist.
1966
Charles Joseph Boike M.Ed., 75, of Cullman died Nov. 25. He was a retired teacher with 35 years of service.
Marguerite “Margo” Fallin M.Ed. ’76, 67, of Birmingham died Dec. 12.
Donald Wayne Hannah, 64, of Birmingham died Feb. 2. He was a
1979 Janice Mason Barker, 62, of Hoover died Dec. 8. She was employed with the Internal Revenue Service for 25 years, retiring as a revenue officer.
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MONTEVALLO
Join the UM Car Tag Club by sending your name, class year, address, phone number, and a photo of you and your license plate to
University Advancement/Alumni Affairs, Station 6215, Montevallo, AL 35115 or by e-mail to UMAlumniOffice@montevallo.edu so that we can recognize you as a member on the UM website and in an upcoming issue of Montevallo Today.
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If you would like information on becoming a UM license plate holder, please visit www.montevallo.edu/giving/AnnualFund/CarTags.shtm or contact our office at 205-665-6215.
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Montevallo Today
1981
the death of her son, Joe Sparks, of Hazel Green, March 3.
Ewell Paul Davis M.Ed., 57, of Birmingham died Dec. 2. He was a teacher, coach and pastor, most recently at Schultz Creek Baptist Church in Centreville.
1962
1984 Bryan Gay White, 49, of Birmingham died Dec. 19.
1999 Amanda Nicole Moran Treadwell, 34, of Opelika died Sept. 16. She was a social worker at the U.S. Veterans Home in Tuskegee.
2005 Carla Holloway Watson, 29, of Hartselle died Feb. 1. She is survived by her brother, Chip Holloway ’99.
Condolences 1953 To Anne Sparks of Huntsville on
To Frank C. “Butch” Ellis Jr. of Columbiana on the death of his brother, Leven Handy Ellis II, also of Columbiana, Feb. 9.
1968 To Fred C. Crawford M.Ed. ’72 of Clanton on the death of his mother, Laurel Geraldine Crawford, of Homewood, Sept. 22.
1978 To Donna Thompson Allen of Hoover on the death of her husband, Paul Allen, Feb. 11.
1979 To Margo Gibson M.Ed. ’92 of Clanton on the death of her mother, Evelyn Jones Smith, March 30. She was a homemaker.
1983 To Lynn Gurganus M.Ed. ’90 and his wife, Kim Gurganus ’92,
M.Ed. ’94, M.Ed. ’97, of Alabaster on the death of Lynn’s brother, Jimmy Lee Gurganus, of Wilsonville, Dec. 22.
To the family of Loudell “Dell” Lagrone, who died Dec. 21. She was the staff nurse at UM from 1969 until her retirement in 1981.
1987
To the family of Edward L. Patridge of Brent, a longtime supporter of Montevallo athletics, who died Jan. 12. Ed served as treasurer of UM’s Falcon Club for a number of years and was inducted into the Falcons Hall of Fame in 1992.
To Jenny Williams Avery M.Ed. ’90 on the death of her mother, Aileen Ellison Williams, of Calera, Dec. 30.
To the family of Ethel Harris Hall of Birmingham, who died Nov. 12. The first African-American faculty member at the University of Montevallo, she was an associate professor in the social work program from 1971 to 1978. To the family of Alvis T. Harthern of Carrollton, who died Dec. 12. She was an associate professor of education at Montevallo from 1968 to 1983. To the family of Mary Douglas Hawkins of Birmingham, who died Jan. 5. She was an associate professor of social work at UM from 1974 until 1984.
To the family of Shirley A. Reed of Harpersville, associate professor of curriculum and instruction at UM from 1979 until her retirement in 1995. She continued to teach as an adjunct associate professor until 1998. To the family of Callie Marie Samya of Jemison, a freshman student at UM, who died Oct. 10. To the family of Rachel Franciele Ward of Alabaster, a sophomore student at UM, who died Oct. 23. To the family of Robert E. Wright Jr. of Alabaster, who died Dec. 28. He served as professor of music at UM from 1996 until his retirement in May 2011.
To make your gift of $3.14, visit Adrian Cartier Assistant Professor of Math
www.montevallo.edu/giving
Michael Sterner Associate Professor of Math
|Alumni Activities|
|Homecoming 2012 reunion photographs|
ALABAMA COLLEGE SOCIETY From left: (front row) Vermey Lee Knotts Greene, Jacqueline “Jackie” Bush Harper, Anne Weldy Sparks, Myrt Salter and Julie Tatum; (second row) Libby Queen, Della Dobbins Scott, Joyce Moncrief Harrell Blake, Ann Mathison Davis, Ruth Peer, Bettie McDonald Martin, Dolly Brumfield White, Jeannine A. McElroy and Barbara W. Jones; (back row) Billie Rae Kohen, Ray Jones and Clyde Hoffman.
CLASS OF 1952 From left: (front row) Marianne Ludwig Neubig, Bobbye Lightfoot, Ruth Autrey Gynther, Mel Robinson, Phoebe Burns Hollimon and Dot Davis Moore; (back row) Earlene Decker Brasher, Margaret Utley, Jane Sears, Delyn Rouze and Wanda Wolbrink Beasley.
CLASS OF 1957 From left: (front row) Mary Nell Glasscock and Rosa Gorum Sullivan; (back row) Margaret Jacobs Pope, Segie T. Reed, Marian T. Talley, Ann Kimbrough Kelly and Martha Ennis Rogers.
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CLASS OF 1962 From left: (front row) Elna “Puddin’” Watkins, Eleanor Shotts, Judith Smith, Joyce Posner Trigg, E. Faye Hassler Smelich, Betty Cook House, Dr. Stewart, Janice Jones Bogue, Lucy Weeks Dowdy, Alice Little Harper and Mary Carter Daum; (second row) Ella Johnson Stewart, Ginna Clark, Billie Anderson Peavy, Nancy King Alexander, Sandra Bridges Craft, Meredith M. Byram, Frances Hicks Gray, Ann Massey Fortenberry and Martha Hayes; (third row) Ken Taylor, Harriett Taylor, Caroline D. Fulmer, Frank Schaff, Rodney Hildreth, Jolene Hammick, Frances Elaine Anderson Lenga, Leroy Swanner, Catherine Cameron Branson and Sara Jeter Pankaskie; (back row) Bob Stoddard, Linda Broach, Madge Barnard Cain, Judy Killian Derieux, Judy Bess Robinson Feagin, Ed Higginbotham, Mickey Luck, Knox Reynolds, David Hayes, Martha Kay Johnson and Audrey Allen Vaughn.
CLASS OF 1972 From left: (front row) Rozlyn O. Spiker, Elaine Wilcox Chambliss, Jane Adams Glover and Betty Gottler; (second row) Mike Payne, Elizabeth T. McDow, Sherry Hendon and Ron Glover; (back row) “Jef” Frey, Carl Watts, Tom Martin, Kathryn Crawford McCrary and Barbara Sloan.
CLASS OF 1982 From left: (front row) Timothy Beiro, Ed Bice, Warren Higgins and Rick Ernst; (back row) Donna Smith Landers, Warwick Mann Woodall, Michele Frankenberg Huber and Craig Maluff.
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www.montevallo.edu/alumni
|Alumni Activities|
2012
Hometown Homecoming CLASS OF 1992 (Above right) From left: Jeannie Tatum Pate, Blake Williams, Ashley Arnette Ryan, Kevin Townes, Marie Brady Mott
GOLD SIDE Young alumni (those who graduated 15 or fewer years ago) represent their gold side.
PURPLE SIDE Young alumni (those who graduated 15 or fewer years ago) represent their purple side.
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Montevallo Today
|You can go home again| I’ve never been one to dispute the declarations of literary giants, but on a late morning in July, I discovered that Thomas Wolfe was incorrect about his musings on home and how you can’t go back and all. Reynolds Hall was right where I left it in 1965. So were Main and Calkins and the brick sidewalks and streets leading to the infirmary and Ramsay. But 2011 was waiting right there to grab me and shake me back into reality. For instance, for old Alabama College students like me who knew exactly where the post office was, it’s gone. I don’t know where it went. In its place were still the two doors leading in and out but the sign above the doors said International Relations. At least the doors were still there. I can’t say that about the one leading into the Tea House. It was gone, too. I mean, it isn’t there anymore. No door. Just white brick. For those of you who came after 1965 and don’t know, the Tea House was the gathering place in Reynolds where we sat, talked, drank cokes, ate snacks and listened to the free juke box. In 1966, that gathering place relocated to the brand new SUB. It was next to the basketball arena that was built in 1965 for our equally brand new intercollegiate basketball team. Now another new structure houses the Falcons basketball team. Things are moving at such a dizzyingly fast pace. In discovering things from the past that are now missing, I found there’s also some new stuff. For instance, you can no longer turn right at Ramsay, at least if you’re in a car. An extension to the cafeteria seems to be there. And if you lived in Ramsay 103 like Tom and I did and you want to peer into your
BY FRED COOPER ’65
old room, just for a minute, too bad. It’s an office. There are offices everywhere. And cars. Everybody at Montevallo apparently has a car. And they’re parked everywhere. I remember the student outrage in 1961 when President Phillips was castigated for plowing up greenery to build two new parking lots. Who needed parking lots! It was a campus that called for leisurely strolling. Well, these days a few more lots might be helpful to get the parked cars off of those narrow brick streets that were designed for narrow wagon passage. Comer’s where I spent most of my academic time, but to tell the truth, seeing it again didn’t stir much emotion. Comer seemed pretty much unmoved by my presence, too. I never made it as far as the old library, but I very rarely made it to the old library when I was a student so this was nothing new. I did, however, go into Palmer Hall. I wore my class ring every day that I was in the Air Force after I graduated and every day, I would look at the etching of Palmer on that ring and wish with every fiber in me that I was back in that building where there were so many college theater and College Night productions, where there had been convocations and eventually a graduation that I really didn’t want. We used to refer to the “acoustically perfect 1600-seat Palmer Auditorium” in news releases. I have no idea if that was true or if it was, how we knew, but nobody ever challenged us about our claim. What I wanted to do most of all was go down the steps into what probably was originally a storeroom but was the News Bureau when I worked there as a student writer/photographer. Steve Huffstutler and the late Ed Blake
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decided maybe there was a possibility that they could teach this unskilled neophyte how to discipline some wildly undisciplined writing into acceptable news copy and how to compose a news photo, skills that later shaped my entire work career. I will always be grateful for their instruction and their patience. As I walked from Palmer to my car, I spotted something else that hadn’t been there during my four years. In the middle of the quadrangle is a section of bricks embedded in the grass. Each brick had a name or names on them, several with designations indicating a specific connection to the school. I recognized a few of the names, in fact knew a few of them. It occurred to me that many others have stopped and read those names and probably wondered who these people were but the names were there, permanently. While I was at Alabama College from 1961 through 1965, I had a contribution to the Tower literary magazine, wrote two plays, three Montages, and countless columns for the Alabamian but the only permanent record of my having been there had been the wall in the lighting cage of Palmer Auditorium. Pam St. John and I had worked the lights for a theater production in 1962 and in keeping with tradition, carved our names in the wall next to the lighting board. In the ’70s, the board was replaced along with the wall with all the carved names. I remember when the offer came for alumni and friends to buy a brick which would establish a permanent reminder of their connection to the school and I passed on it so there is no place that visitors to this little plot of land that I love can look at and say “I wonder who Fred Cooper was.” I wish now I’d bought a brick.
www.montevallo.edu/alumni
|Alumni Activities| How did Montevallo affect your career choice? The mass communication department, along with Cynthia Shackelford from the public relations office, offered me opportunities to branch out and try different things in the broadcasting and print field, which allowed me to make a sound decision on what I wanted to do after college. BYRON ROBINSON ’97 Sports copy editor for Montgomery Advertiser
How did Montevallo affect your career choice? I think I’m a walking billboard for the importance of a liberal arts degree. I came to UM to study music education and I still teach music and lead a church music program. But the way UM affected my journalism career most was by opening my mind to various subjects and ideas. The onecareer professional is a creature of the past; teaching its students to think is the most important thing a university can give its graduates. DAVID KNOX ’81 Assistant sports editor for The Birmingham News
Words of wisdom you would offer students: Network, network, network... and not just online! Nothing replaces meeting someone in person. You never know when those contacts can help you down the road. In turn, always be willing to help out those you can assist, too, whether it's through an introduction or a job lead.
LEADA DEVANEY GORE ’92 Display ad manager for The Decatur Daily, President of the Alabama Press Association
Words of wisdom you would offer students: Your twenties are your time to explore and find something you are passionate about – do it, enjoy it, and learn as much about business as possible. If students will start to think more entrepreneurial instead of simply about ‘getting a good job’ we can continue to (generation after generation) innovate, create, and grow.
What was your favorite aspect of Montevallo? My favorite aspect has to be meeting all the wonderful friends I still carry with me. Some of my best friends remain ones that were first just strangers in the Caf or new girls on my floor in the residence hall. My family still comes down to College Night every year to cheer on the purples and reunite with the people and place we love so much.
AMY LEMLEY BAILEY ’00 Owner and publisher of MyScoop.us at MyScoop Media Inc.
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Montevallo Today
STEPHANIE COMER NEWTON ’03 Director of publicity for the Non-fiction Trade Group at Thomas Nelson Inc.
|Professional Spotlight: Publishing| Alumni in the publishing field share a few words What was your favorite aspect of Montevallo? The ability to put classroom instruction into practice, from pretty much the first day. I copy-edited and wrote a column at The Alabamian. I wrote, produced, and hosted my own TV show at Mass Comm. Our professors put us to work. I mean that in a good way.
JOE CROWE ’92 Copy editor and writer for the The Birmingham News
Who would you like to thank for your success? The wonderful, nurturing English department: particularly Dr. Conway and the Harbert Writing Center and the amazing Dr. Hughes.
How did Montevallo affect your career choice? By getting a Bachelor of Business Administration degree, I was able to learn about the business world. By working with The Alabamian as editor for two years, I gained first-hand experience in journalism. I can’t imagine another school that would allow a student to get so much experience that prepares him for the future. Now that I run a company, I find the knowledge I gained in the Stephens College of Business to be invaluable.
How did Montevallo affect your career choice? Truthfully, I could have gone to a giant school with more dedicated/specific print journalism classes, but I feel like I might have gotten lost in the crowd there.
CINDY HATCHER EHRETT ’00 Senior editor for Cooking Light magazine
DAVID CLEMONS ’03 President and publisher for the Times-Journal of Fort Payne.
Words of wisdom you would offer students: Get involved! There are plenty of opportunities to help get you ready for the “real” world; you just need to take advantage of them. Seek out classes that will challenge you and broaden your base of knowledge. Work on the student publications and student newscast. Learn to write, take photos, and edit copy and video — become a jack-of-alltrades. More and more journalists have to wear these multiple hats. Learn these skills in college, and you will have a big advantage of job seekers who don’t.
JUSTIN AVERETTE ’06 Managing Editor at Clanton Newspapers Inc. If you would like to nominate someone for the Alumni Profile (located on page 16) or for the new Professional Spotlight, please email us at prnews@montevallo.edu The next profession to be featured will be law.
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www.montevallo.edu/alumni ll d / l
||Alumni A lumni A Activities| ctiviRacheal ties| Farewell,
After eight years of service to her alma mater, Racheal Brantley Banks ’99, director of development and alumni affairs, has stepped down in order to relocate to Mobile to become the director of health sciences development at the University of South Alabama. Banks joined the University of Montevallo staff in 2004 as assistant director of alumni relations and immediately began invigorating the National Alumni Association, the Student Alumni Association and a myriad of volunteers. Her organizational abilities and collegial spirit quickly became apparent in her support of university events including Homecoming, Olympics Day and others. She helped establish new alumni clubs and reactivated others, even writing a handbook for alumni club leaders. One of her most significant accomplishments during this time was the establishment of the Junior Alumni Board of Directors, which serves to keep young alumni connected to the university and to each other. Keith Shoemaker, former president of the Junior Alumni Board, said, “Racheal and I went to Montevallo at the same time, but our friendship really took off when she went to work in the alumni office. The time she spent to bring the young alumni together on the Junior Board was priceless. We have all made some really great connections with Mon-
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Montevallo Today
tevallo alums that we otherwise would not have made. Her dedication to the alumni of this university has made the work we do on both boards effortless, which makes volunteering as an alumnus fun!” In 2008, Banks became director of development and alumni affairs. In this capacity, she not only oversaw the operations of the alumni office, but also was involved in developing and maintaining relationships with current and prospective donors. Under her direction, giving to the University increased dramatically. Karen Kelly ’80 said, “I had just been installed as President of the UMNAA when Racheal became the new director of development and alumni affairs – so we learned our new roles together. I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to work directly with Racheal, learn with and from her, watch as she earned the respect and affection of Alabama College and UM alumni of different generations, and call her my friend. The hours were long, and there were many challenges, but with commitment, dedication, and a warm smile, Racheal led her team so that events ran smoothly, new ideas became reality, volunteers looked like pros, guests felt welcome, and the job looked easy. Though her career takes her away from our brick streets, I hope that, like many of us, Racheal will always think of UM as home.” Banks has served on numerous committees during her time at Montevallo
including the Athletic Hall of Fame committee, the College Night committee, the commencement committee, the inauguration committee, the Founders’ Day committee, the Dancy Lectures committee and the Hallie Farmer Lectures committee, to name only a few. She is a member of several honor societies including Phi Kappa Phi, Golden Key International, Omicron Delta Kappa and others. Jeremy Ward, director of annual and special giving at UM, said, “Working with Racheal Banks has truly been an honor, and I have learned and taken away so much from her experience and insight. The secret to Racheal’s success as director of development and alumni affairs can be attributed to so many things; among these are her effectiveness as a leader, her passion and love for the University of Montevallo, and her tenacity in achieving whatever goals she sets out to accomplish. But quite possibly, Racheal’s greatest strength is the way in which she offers her genuine friendship to each and every person that she meets. Racheal has been an invaluable mentor to me, as well as a great friend, and she will be sorely missed. However, I know that she will continue to succeed and make UM proud wherever her path takes her.” Banks is married to UM alumnus Lee K. Banks ’00. They have two children, Madeline, 4, and Brantley, 1.
|Junior Board of Directors| Officers
Meet the President
President Patrick McDonald ’01 Vice President Julie Harbin ’00 Treasurer Jeff Purvis ’02 Secretary Dana Wright Marshall ’06 Social Chair Dan McBrayer ’08
Patrick McDonald named president of the Junior Board What was your favorite aspect of Montevallo as a student and your favorite aspect now? As a student, I look back on my time working as an R.A. in Napier Hall and representing my fraternity across campus. Making friendships that still are alive today. As an alumnus, having the chance to share my experience with others and being encouraged with the direction the University is moving. The upgrade in branding and facilities attracts more students and exposure to our school.
Directors Eddie Baker ’04 Zach Banks ’08 Jason Booi ’04 David Clemons ’03 Reagan Denson ’03 Matthew Fridy ’98 Amanda Golden ’07 Andrew Heaton ’04 Blake Hudson ’02 Tiffani Humphries ’98 Greg Lee ’99 Terra Moody ’06 Tiffany Roskamp-Bunt ’00 Lindsey Sherrill ’07 Kaci Slaughter ’09 Christopher Willis ’07 Christopher Winslett ’04
Why did you get involved with the Junior Board? To connect back with my university and to repay it for all of the support and help it gave me to become the husband, father, and teacher I am today. What role do you see the Junior Board playing in the University community? By being an advocate for the University and encouraging young alumni to have an active role in their alma mater. What are your goals as president? Raise interest in alumni events and provide a way for alums of all ages to network and interact. What would you like the alumni to know about the Junior Board? All activities are open to all alumni, no matter your graduation year.
Applications If you are interested in serving on the Junior Board, please visit our website and submit an application today!
www.montevallo.edu/alumni/ JuniorBoardofDirectors/aaplicationform.shtm
The mission of the University of Montevallo Junior Board of Directors is to foster interaction between the University of Montevallo and those who have graduated from the University during the past 15 years.
www.facebook.com/UMyoungalumni
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www.montevallo.edu/alumni
|Sign up for Olympics Day, August 4, 2012| Registration Form Please return form to: University of Montevallo Station 6215 • Montevallo, AL 35115 or fax to: 205-665-6218
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