The Ole Miss Alumni Association recognized seven distinguished alumni with its highest annual awards as part of
2024. Pictured from left: William G. Yates III (BBA 93), Robert R. ‘Bobby’ Bailess (BBA 73, JD 76), Suzan Brown Thames (BA 68), Mallory McCormack (MBA 15), John Maxwell (BA 66, MA 68), David Ward Kellum (BA 80) and Jon Turner (BBA 78).
Photo by Bill Dabney
Ole Miss Alumni Review
PUBLISHER
Kirk Purdom (BA 93)
EXECUTIVE EDITOR
Jim Urbanek II (BA 97) jim@olemissalumni.com
ASSOCIATE EDITOR AND ADVERTISING DIRECTOR
Annie Rhoades (BBA 07, MBA 09) annie@olemissalumni.com
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR
Benita Whitehorn
EDITORIAL ASSISTANT
Kayden Breedlove
ART DIRECTOR
Amy Howell
CONTRIBUTORS
Kevin Bain (BA 98), Danny Barrett Jr., Srijita Chattopadhyay, Bill Dabney (BA 89), Natalie Ehrhardt (BAJ 15), Joe Ellis, Jay Ferchaud, Erin Garrett (BAJ 11, MS 20), Stefanie Goodwiller (MA 17), Marvis Herring, Jason Hoeksema, Jim Horne (BBA 74), Robert Jordan (BA 83, MA 90), Joshua McCoy, Sage McNamara (BS 22), Jonathan Scott (BA 82), Clara Turnage (BAJ 17), Rachel Vanderford (BS 19)
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION OFFICERS
Jeff Hubbard (BBA 80, JD 83) president
Charles White (BBA 82) president-elect
Gail Pittman (BAEd 72) vice president
Todd Sandroni (BSPh 92, PharmD 97) athletics committee member
Zach Scruggs (BAccy 96, JD 00) athletics committee member
ALUMNI AFFAIRS DIRECTORS
Kirk Purdom (BA 93), chief executive officer
Joseph Baumbaugh, assistant director for information services
Sunny Brown (BSFCS 09, MA 11), assistant director
Clay Cavett (BBA 86), associate director, campaigns and special projects
All offices are located at 651 Grove Loop, University, MS 38677. Call 662-915-7375 to subscribe. Periodicals postage paid at Oxford, MS 38655 and Jackson, MS 39201.
As we reflect on another remarkable fall semester, I’m filled with gratitude for the unwavering dedication of our Ole Miss family. The successes we’ve seen have fueled growth, helped us serve the state and reaffirmed our leadership position.
For the third consecutive year, our overall enrollment has broken records, surpassing 24,000 students and underscoring our position as a thriving, prominent choice for higher education. This year’s freshman class also continues to exceed expectations and arrived with more than 6,000 students. Additionally, we’re educating more Mississippians, first-generation students, military-connected students and students from traditionally underserved areas, reflecting our commitment to access and opportunity.
Your extraordinary generosity continues to enhance our university, with giving levels higher than we’ve ever seen. In fiscal year 2024, we celebrated 61,668 gifts from 26,706 donors, supporting every facet of our university. This achievement is linked to the unprecedented success of Now & Ever, which shattered its $1.5 billion goal a year ahead of schedule this summer and will continue through June 30, 2025.
We’re continuing game-changing projects that strengthen our facilities. This fall, the Jim and Thomas Duff Center for Science and Technology Innovation opened its doors to students. It features state-of-the-art learning spaces, a breathtaking atrium, and access to a new walkway that connects the Grove and Vaught-Hemingway Stadium completing our enhanced Walk of Champions. This month, we’re also celebrating the ribbon cutting of the new Center for Graphene Research and Innovation, which focuses on a broad range of applications ranging from manufacturing to electronics to medicine.
Our commitment to excellence as a top-tier research university continues to flourish. We’re fostering a collaborative environment, driving economic development and fueling growth. We’re excited to welcome John Higginbotham as our new vice chancellor for research and economic development. I’m grateful to the researchers who propel us to excellence and the faculty who inspire and educate our students while pursuing creative achievement and pioneering discovery.
In service to the health of Mississippi’s people, we’ve launched two new degree programs through our new Department of Public Health, which will equip students to serve in community health education, epidemiology, preventive medicine and population health. Additionally, University of Mississippi Medical Center researchers recently published a landmark study linking midlife inflammation to late-life mobility, potentially revolutionizing our approach to healthy aging and preventive care.
Our athletics programs continue to ignite the Rebel spirit. We experienced another historic attendance level at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium this season, reaching an electrifying 67,505 fans during our game against Georgia Southern. Hotty Toddy!
As I close, I extend my appreciation to Karen Moore (BS 82), immediate past president of the Ole Miss Alumni Association, for her leadership and service to the Ole Miss family. I look forward to great work from our new president, Jeff Hubbard (BBA 80, JD 83). And to all our alumni, thank you for your devotion and for building our Ole Miss community.
Sincerely,
Glenn F. Boyce (BAEd 81, EdD 96) Chancellor
from the President
Dear Alumni and Friends,
It is truly an honor to be the new president of the Ole Miss Alumni Association. Karen Moore has done an outstanding job of leading our Alumni Association as president this past year including kicking off the fundraiser for the new Triplett Alumni Center; implementing a close working relationship with the Grove Collective; and instituting an alumni and stakeholder survey to identify key metrics to better serve our alumni. President-elect Charles White, the Alumni board and I look forward to continuing to work on these items.
It is a great time to be an Ole Miss Rebel! Chancellor Boyce has put together an impressive team that is accomplishing great things for our university including record giving, enrollment, student retention and academics.
I would be remiss if I did not mention the excitement that football is generating. I certainly plan to enjoy every second of the football season as well as our other fall sports.
Whatever sports events you attend, I highly recommend that you introduce yourself to the Rebel fans who sit around you. You may recall last year’s “Instant Classic” LSU game played at Vaught-Hemingway. A new family sat on my row. There were several daughters and one son whose name was Colton. He was 9 years old, and he got stuck sitting next to the old guy (me). I introduced myself, and I am pleased to say we struck up a conversation that lasted throughout the game. He had some favorite players and strong opinions on who should get the ball, but Colton taught me a lot that game:
1) He had fun, whether we were ahead or behind;
2) He cheered for the Rebels. Again, ahead or behind did not matter, Colton cheered loud and long;
3) He went quickly to reload on concessions at strategic times so that he would miss the fewest possible plays;
4) He did not boo or complain about plays that did not succeed;
5) He did not give up — even when we were behind 49-40 with eight minutes to play; and
6) He was nice to everyone, including showing the old man next to him how he could make his flashlight manually strobe.
So, thanks for the lessons, Colton. I hope your family gets the same seats again — I may need help on that manual strobe flashlight thing. It truly is a great time to be a Rebel.
Hotty Toddy!
Jeff Hubbard (BBA 80, JD 83)
Ole Miss Alumni Association President
f rom the Circle
THE LATEST ON OLE MISS STUDENTS, FACULTY, STAFF AND FRIENDS
The Road to Happiness
UNIVERSITY WELCOMES CLASS OF 2028 AT FALL CONVOCATION
More than 5,000 new University of Mississippi students flooded
The Sandy and John Black Pavilion at Ole Miss for Fall Convocation on Aug. 27 to learn about one thing: happiness.
Happiness is not a feeling but a direction, a lifelong goal that changes over time, says Arthur Brooks, renowned social scientist and author and the 2024 Convocation keynote speaker. But it is always achievable, he assured.
and realize it was the beginning of an extraordinary journey — a journey that will go by quickly, I promise you,” Boyce said. “Students, I want you to know that your journey isn’t just about where you land four years from now.
“It’s about all the experiences you take with you from these four years.”
The road to a happy life often begins with experiences with friends and family, but it does not end there, Brooks said.
“The main thing you are here to learn
Chancellor Glenn Boyce (BAEd 81, EdD 96) emphasized the importance of leadership and fulfillment in his address to the incoming freshmen and transfer students during the event, which was the 176th time Ole Miss has welcomed new students to campus.
“You will look back at this time
is not your major, not how to make a living; it’s the ‘why’ of your life. This is the adventure. This is the journey. Let me tell you what it is.
“This, ultimately, is what I came here to talk to you about.”
Brooks, a Harvard leadership professor, partnered with Oprah Winfrey, the
lauded talk show host, philanthropist and producer from Kosciusko, to write Build the Life You Want: The Art and Science of Getting Happier (Penguin, 2023).
Brooks and Winfrey’s book, which was chosen as the university’s 2024 Common Reading Experience selection, explains the science behind happiness and how to cultivate it. Every new student received a copy of the book.
Brooks often asks his students two questions: “Why are you alive?” and “For what would you give your life right now, happily?” Finding the answers to these questions can point one in the direction of happiness, he says.
“So, what are your answers, my friends?” he asked. “Good news, if you don’t have them, you have four years to figure it out. This is the time to find the essence of who you are, for the essence of why you exist.”
For Bridges McGowen, a freshman integrated marketing communications major from Hattiesburg, happiness is learning to be himself and be confident in who he is.
“Anybody can be happy,” McGowen says. “It doesn’t matter where you’re from or what you want to do — if you even know what you want to do. That’s what I think he was saying.
“Being happy, for me, is being myself, even when it’s hard.”
Christian Griffin, a freshman from Okolona who is studying computer science, says he was most inspired by Boyce’s call for students to be leaders in whatever they do.
“For me, that means showing up to class 15 minutes early, studying hard and showing everyone that I’m dedicated,” he says. “(Boyce) was talking about being a leader and taking advantage of the opportunities here. That’s what I want to do.”
More than 5,000 freshmen and transfer students fill The Sandy and John Black Pavilion at Ole Miss for Fall Convocation. | Photo by Srijita Chattopadhyay
UNIVERSITY’S VOYAGER AWARDEE FOCUSES ON HEALTH CARE DISPARITIES
Ayanna Norman, a University of Mississippi junior, has been awarded a Voyager Scholarship, also known as the ObamaChesky Scholarship for Public Service.
A Corinth native majoring in allied health studies and psychology, Norman is the university’s first recipient of the award.
“We are thrilled for her award which recognizes her commitment to expanding public service to better serve Mississippi, the United States and other parts of the world,” says Vivian Ibrahim, director of the Office of National Scholarship Advisement.
“Ayanna is an excellent student who is poised to accomplish great things with the help of this scholarship.”
Besides the $50,000 scholarship, Norman will receive a $10,000 stipend to explore national and global public service trends in a project of her choosing.
communities and “identify effective interventions that can be applied on a global scale.”
Norman, who ultimately plans to attend nursing school, aims to use her project to explore health care disparities in underserved
Special Selection
PHI KAPPA PHI NAMES PROFESSOR TO BOARD
University of Mississippi journalism professor Debora Wenger has been appointed to the board of directors for Phi Kappa Phi, one of the nation’s old est and most selective multidisciplinary honor societies.
Wenger plans to increase the visibility and awareness of the prestigious society, one of several goals the board pinpointed for the two-year term.
“I see this as such an opportunity for Phi Kappa Phi to have a bigger role in the national conversation about the value of higher education,” says Wenger, professor in the School of Journalism and New Media.
“The fact that it’s a multidisciplinary society that’s well over a century old makes it uniquely poised to be able to speak about this because, let’s face it, our world is multidisciplinary.”
“I am thrilled about the chance of creating and carrying out my own summer project, something that I can now actualize beyond just a dream,” she says. “This scholarship opens doors for me to travel, meet new people and experience different cultures and communities in ways I never thought possible for myself.
“I get to truly give back and continue my work in the most exciting and meaningful way possible.”
The Voyager Scholarship was created in 2022 by the Obamas and Brian Chesky, co-founder and CEO of Airbnb. The two-year scholarship program is open to students entering their junior year of college at an accredited four-year college or university, who have demonstrated a financial need and who are U.S. citizens, permanent residents or DACA recipients.
Wenger’s service on the national board underscores the excellence of the flagship university’s faculty, students and education, says Annette Kluck, Ole Miss chapter president and dean of the Graduate School.
Debora Wenger
Founded in 1897, Phi Kappa Phi invites the top 7.5% of college juniors and top 10% of seniors and graduate students to join. Distinguished faculty, staff and alumni can also meet eligibility requirements.
As one of 12 board members, Wenger will help develop performance indicators for the organization’s new strategic plan.
“Our chapter has a history of being recognized for the work we do,” she says.
“Dr. Wenger’s service on the board will further enhance the extent to which our chapter is aware of trends and plans for the national organization and other chapters. In other words, she will have greater insight into the best practices from across the U.S., and we can explore and adapt those that are a fit for our campus chapter.”
Phi Kappa Phi’s welcoming of scholars from different areas and its motto, “Let the love of learning rule humanity,” resonate with the passionate journalist and educator, she says.
“This organization understands and values that if we all work together across disciplines on challenges, we’re going to get much further, much faster,” Wenger says.
The university’s chapter has more than 1,000 affiliated members, including notable alumni such as author John Grisham and Chancellor Emeritus Robert Khayat.
Ayanna Norman
Paving the Way
UM RESEARCHER SEEKS TO CREATE CLEANER ASPHALT
The Environmental Protection Agency is funding a University of Mississippi professor’s effort to develop more environmentally friendly asphalt as part of a $160 million initiative to support efforts to report and reduce atmospheric pollution from the manufacture of construction materials.
Ali Behnood is among 38 recipients nationwide to receive support for their work to create sustainable, greenhouse gas-reducing construction materials. Behnood, assistant professor of civil engineering at Ole Miss, received $750,000 for his project.
“As stewards of the future, we are committed to advancing towards more sustainable and resilient infrastructure to uphold our responsibility to the next generation,” Behnood says. “Our efforts are focused on developing systems that not only meet today’s needs but also ensure environmental integrity and durability for the future.”
The wide-ranging use of asphalt means Behnood’s project could have a broad effect on American construction material manufacturing, says Viola Acoff, dean of the School of Engineering.
“By lowering the mixing and compaction temperatures in asphalt production, we significantly reduce the need for additional energy,” he says. “This reduction not only decreases greenhouse gas emissions but also leads to substantial cost savings.”
The unknown is how well warm-mix asphalt compares to its traditional counterpart and what additives make the material most effective and environmentally friendly.
“Dr. Behnood’s work has the potential to develop an asphalt that is not only environmentally friendly, but also has better mechanical properties and is more cost-effective than traditional asphalt,” Acoff says. “His work can lead to the University of Mississippi becoming a leader in this field of research.”
In asphalt production, most greenhouse gas emissions come from heating asphalt’s binder to 280-320 degrees, which requires a lot of energy. Behnood is helping test the quality and durability of warm-mix asphalt, a mixture of reclaimed asphalt and a new binder that cuts the required heat by up to 60 degrees.
“We are embarking on a comprehensive evaluation of a diverse range of additives to determine their potential benefits in asphalt production,” Behnood says. “Our study will focus on comparing these additives to assess their ability to save energy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enhance the mechanical properties of asphalt.”
To study each of these variables, Behnood plans to use artificial intelligence and machine learning to test predictive models of warm-mix asphalt.
“Construction is an essential activity that continues as development progresses, and it plays a crucial role in accommodating the growing needs of our society and economy,” he says. “That is the demand, but it necessitates a more responsible approach to development. We must ensure that our growth strategies are sustainable and considerate of environmental impacts.
“We can no longer justify contributing to greenhouse gas emissions without restraint. It is imperative that we adopt more responsible and sustainable practices in our activities to mitigate environmental impact.”
This material is based on work supported by the Environmental Protection Agency’s Reducing Embodied Greenhouse Gas Emissions for Construction Materials and Products program.
Ali Behnood
Photo by Robert Jordan
Leader On and Off the Court
COACH YO HONORED AS EMERGING YOUNG PHILANTHROPIST
Whether she’s training athletes to work together on the basketball court or working to improve the lives of young people in communities large and small, Yolett McPhee-McCuin, head women’s basketball coach at the University of Mississippi, incorporates service to others in all aspects of her life.
McPhee-McCuin’s philanthropic spirit was celebrated Aug. 29, when she was honored with the Emerging Young Philanthropist Award by the Ole Miss Women’s Council for Philanthropy. Coach Yo’s fans, family members, UM students, Women’s Council members and supporters filled the ballroom of The Oliver Hotel for the event.
“This award means so much to me, and I was so surprised when they told me I was being honored with the Emerging Young Philanthropist Award by the Ole Miss Women’s Council,” McPhee-McCuin says.
Coach Yo says the award was particularly meaningful because she participated in the council’s ceremony
last year when Tywanna Smith (BBA 04, MBA 05), a former UM student-athlete, professional women’s basketball player and philanthropist, was the recipient.
“I’m familiar with the incredibly impactful work that members of the Women’s Council do for our Ole Miss students, as well as their efforts to promote a culture of service to others,” she says.
One of the council’s founding principles is to nurture philanthropic behavior.
In presenting the award, the council noted the 42-year-old Ole Miss coach’s positive impact with her nonprofit foundation, No Ceilings with Coach Yo.
“Coach Yo and her foundation provide outreach programs like these that not only impact our Oxford community, but many other communities around the state, country and world,” says Betsy Collier Smith (BAEd 01), an active council member.
McPhee-McCuin says the importance of assisting others was instilled in her at a young age.
“I think I inherited my philanthropic spirit from my parents as I was growing up in the Bahamas,” she says. “My parents always gave to those who were less fortunate. This was something they were passionate about and this same desire to help others became a part of who I am.
“Serving others is not as much about how many financial resources you can give because no amount is too small or too big. It is more about the impact you can make, regardless of whether it is giving of your finances, your time or whatever skills and talents you might have.”
This fall, McPhee-McCuin begins her seventh season as head coach at Ole Miss. During her first six seasons, she helped elevate the women’s basketball program back into the national spotlight. During the 2023-24 season, she led the program to a record 12 SEC wins and the school’s third straight NCAA Tournament appearance.
Yolett McPhee-McCuin (second from left) honored as the Emerging Young Philanthropist by three active members of the Ole Miss Women’s Council for Philanthropy, (from left) Margaret Barker, Betsy Smith and Roane Grantham. | Photos by Amy Howell
Yolett McPhee-McCuin and her two daughters, Yasmine (left) and Yuri (right).
First Class
PHARMACY SCHOOL NAMED COMMUNITY PHARMACY CENTER OF EXCELLENCE
The American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy has named the University of Mississippi as a member of its inaugural class of ACT Community Pharmacy Centers of Excellence.
The Academia-Community Transformation, or ACT, Center of Excellence designation recognizes the School of Pharmacy’s commitment to advancing community pharmacy through teaching, service, scholarship, leadership and partnerships.
“The recognition of our school as an ACT Center of
Lindsey Miller (left), clinical assistant professor of pharmacy practice, and Joe Dikun, instructional assistant professor of pharmacy administration, are recipients of the
Excellence underscores our commitment to advancing community pharmacy practice through research, education and community engagement,” says Donna Strum, the school’s dean. “It is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our faculty, staff and students.”
Faculty members Lindsey Miller (BSPSC 19, PharmD 22) and Joe Dikun, instructional assistant professor of pharmacy administration, are recipients of the ACT Community Pharmacy Practice Transformation Educators’ Badge. The designation recognizes their commitment to and proficiency in improving community pharmacy practice through knowledge, training, engagement/implementation and dissemination activities.
“It’s vital for our students to grasp the pivotal role of community pharmacy in patient care — a cornerstone of compassionate health care in diverse communities,” says Miller, clinical assistant professor of pharmacy practice.
“My aim is to share the knowledge I have about new patient care strategies in community pharmacy and the business aspects of owning and managing a successful pharmacy.”
Four Ole Miss pharmacy students have been selected to participate in the ACT Community Pharmacy Student Scholar Leaders Program. They are Delancy Anderson, a third professional-year student from Yazoo City; Elizabeth Jenkins, a fourth-year student from Grenada; Erin Pearson, a thirdyear student from Potts Camp; and spring 2024 graduate John White, of Brandon.
STATE LEGISLATURE APPROVES, FUNDS NEW UM CANNABIS PROGRAM
Students and staff members crowd into Rebel Market for lunch during the first week of the 2024 fall semester. | Srijita Chattopadhyay
In a significant move toward advancing medical research and patient care in Mississippi, Gov. Tate Reeves has signed a bill that establishes the Mississippi Medical Cannabis Research Program at the University of Mississippi.
The legislation, spearheaded by Sen. Kevin Blackwell and co-authored by state Sens. Reginald Jackson, Rod Hickman (BGS 14, JD 17), Sarita Simmons and Nicole Boyd (JD 94), represents a milestone in efforts to understand the therapeutic potential of medical cannabis and its impact on patient outcomes.
“We are grateful for the leadership of Gov. Reeves and the tireless efforts of Sen. Blackwell, Sen. Boyd and their colleagues in championing this landmark legislation,” says Robert Welch, director of the university’s National Center for Cannabis Research and Education.
understandable for health care providers, patients, caregivers, law enforcement and policymakers.
Working with the Mississippi Department of Health’s Mississippi Medical Cannabis Program and patient advocacy groups, program administrators aim to make new information more
The bill also establishes an advisory board that will oversee research efforts, ensure compliance with regulatory standards and guide the program’s strategic direction.
The program will focus on examining the safety, efficacy and potential therapeutic benefits of medical cannabis for patients suffering from a range of medical conditions. The bill includes funding that will give Ole Miss pharmacy school researchers the resources needed to conduct scientific investigations and explore new avenues for medical cannabis research and educational programs.
“The National Center for Cannabis Research and Education will help to ensure that Mississippi remains at the forefront of natural products research,” Boyd says. “I am proud of the University of Mississippi for continuing to be a national leader in research excellence.”
ACT Community Pharmacy Practice Transformation Educators’ Badge. | Photo by Sage McNamara
Robert Welch
Rest Stop
SLEEP APNEA TAKES HIDDEN HEALTH TOLL
Sleep apnea is often linked with snoring or machines designed to alleviate it, yet the condition’s impact goes far beyond disrupted sleep. The health consequences of untreated sleep apnea can be severe, affecting everything from cardiovascular health to overall quality of life.
Sleep apnea is characterized by repeated interruptions in breathing during sleep, known as apneas, which can last from a few seconds to minutes and occur 30 times or more an hour. There are two primary types: obstructive sleep apnea, caused by airway blockage, and central sleep apnea, where the brain fails to signal the muscles to breathe. CSA represents less than 1% of cases, while OSA affects most individuals.
“Sleep apnea, particularly obstructive sleep apnea, is often underdiagnosed,” says Dr. Andrea Lewis (BS 00, MD 04), professor of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at the University of Mississippi Medical Center and a sleep medicine specialist. “Many individuals with sleep apnea may not realize they have it, as symptoms can occur during sleep and be difficult to notice. There are many possible reasons for underdiagnosis. One of these is lack of awareness among the general population and health care providers.
“Symptoms can vary widely among individuals, making it harder to recognize a common pattern.”
While loud snoring is the most common symptom reported by those diagnosed with OSA, snoring does not necessarily mean a person has sleep apnea.
“Men are more likely to experience loud snoring, observed episodes of breathing cessation during sleep, and excessive daytime sleepiness,” Lewis says.
“Women are more likely to report insomnia, morning headaches, mood disturbances and fatigue rather than excessive daytime sleepiness. I especially note that women will report frequent awakenings during sleep where men will say that they
sleep well at night but note excessive daytime sleepiness.”
Men ages 65 and older have a higher risk of developing sleep apnea than women and younger people. For men ages 30 to 49, the frequency of sleep apnea is four times higher than that for women. However, between the ages of 50 and 70, the difference between the two groups narrows, and men are only twice as likely to experience OSA. Older adults in that age range are more likely to have a sleep apnea diagnosis than other age groups.
People who are pregnant or who have polycystic ovary syndrome may also have higher rates of sleep apnea due to their hormone levels.
A sleep study can help determine if you have sleep apnea. Home sleep studies are generally recommended for patients with a high likelihood of moderate to severe OSA without significant comorbid conditions due to their lower cost and convenience. These tests focus on detecting sleep apnea and are suitable for patients who have difficulty sleeping in a lab setting.
In-lab sleep studies, or polysomnography, are recommended for patients with complex sleep issues, significant comorbid conditions such as heart disease or neurological disorders, or when home sleep study results are inconclusive. Polysomnography provides a comprehensive picture of the patient’s sleep by measuring brain waves, oxygen levels, heart rate, breathing and eye and leg movements.
Home sleep apnea tests typically measure airflow, breathing patterns, blood oxygen levels and heart rate, but they are not as reliable as in-lab tests. If a diagnosis cannot be made from a home sleep study or if data is lost, an in-lab study is usually ordered to ensure an accurate diagnosis.
A variety of surgical procedures is available to patients unable to tolerate continuous positive airway pressure, or CPAP. Lewis says procedures should be tailored to each patient’s anatomy.
Illustration by iStock
Answers Under Our Feet
UNDERSTANDING SOIL FUNGI COULD FILL GAP IN CLIMATE CHANGE PREVENTION
Scientists have long searched for ways to mitigate the amount of carbon entering Earth’s atmosphere, but an upcoming international collaboration seeks to show that the answer may have been under our noses the whole time.
The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded nearly $1 million to a team of researchers led by Jason Hoeksema, ecologist and University of Mississippi professor of biology, to study soil fungi in Australia that may hold clues to better understanding carbon reduction.
“This project aims to understand the role of soil fungi in how forests respond to climate change,” he says. “We understand a lot now about how different kinds of ecosystems respond in terms of storing carbon. Storing additional carbon is the normal response in many ecosystems, but there are exceptions.
“Those exceptions are important because if they’re widespread, we can’t count on the Earth’s ecosystems absorbing a large part of the carbon we’re putting into the air.”
Hoeksema will lead a team of researchers from West Virginia
University, Boston University and the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa as they partner with Western Sydney University to understand why fungi in New South Wales, Australia, act differently than those elsewhere.
“These are organisms that are ubiquitous in Earth’s ecosystem,” he says. “They are just as present in Australia as in the hardwood forests of northern Mississippi, but we still have a really limited understanding of what they’re doing in the soil in terms of their different roles.”
Global models of climate change have a “black box” where soil fungi are concerned, says Nicole Hynson, director of the Center for Microbiome Analysis through Island Knowledge and Investigation at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa.
“We’re dependent upon ecosystems for lots of different services — from providing fresh drinking water to soil stabilization to the air that we breathe,” Hynson says. “What’s unclear at this point is how different climate change factors will impact these ecosystem services that all life relies on.”
To understand how climate change
will affect the environment, scientists need to understand all the factors that contribute to plant life, including mycorrhizal fungi.
“A lot of our climate change models have some ideas about how plant communities will change in composition and in their geographic ranges, but what’s left out of these models is the soil microbial underpinnings of how plants make a living,” she says.
Understanding why Sydney’s eucalyptus forest does not store carbon in the same manner as other ecosystems will help scientists fill a gap in the approach to mitigating climate change, Hoeksema says.
“All of these fungi have different characteristics, and we have a poor understanding of how they fit together to make ecosystems work,” he says. “What’s gone wrong is we’ve elevated the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide in recent decades, and it has nowhere to go.
“What we’re trying to understand is which ecosystems have the potential to store more and why this is not one of them.”
Students from Ole Miss and three other partner institutions will have opportunities to conduct research at the EucFACE research site in New South Wales, Australia, at Western Sydney University’s Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment. | Photo by Jason Hoeksema
Green Restaurant Certification
UM DINING, CATERING ACHIEVE RECORD SUSTAINABILITY RATINGS
The residential dining and catering staff at the University of Mississippi incorporated more environmentally sustainable measures into their operations over the last year, resulting in their best-ever Green Restaurant Certification scores.
The Green Restaurant Association grades restaurants on a four-star rating system, assessing them in eight sustainability categories: energy; water; waste; chemicals and pollution; food; building and furnishing; reusables and disposables; and education and transparency.
Ole Miss Dining Services serves about 10,000 meals daily from 23 campus outlets. Rebel Market, the largest restaurant, was recertified as a four-star Certified Green Restaurant, the highest certification level, upgrading from its previous one-star grade.
The recertification score “demonstrates that we are leading by example — making a positive impact on the
environment while enhancing the quality of our dining services,” says Amy Greenwood Anderson, the group’s marketing manager.
boxes was also a priority, Burr says.
“If you go into the Rebel Market dining facility, you won’t find straws,” he says. “We have completely eliminated those.
This year’s score also improved thanks to a focus on carbon neutrality and sustainable purchasing, both of which earned Dining Services a national award earlier this year, says Chip Burr (BA 02), resident district manager.
“The sustainable purchasing agreement that we signed with Homeplace Pastures has been a great accomplishment,” Burr says.
Purchasing beef and pork from a farm about 30 miles away, in Como, is just one of the positive steps Burr and his team have taken to improve sustainability.
Rebel Market staff grows lettuce in a hydroponic garden inside the Paul B. Johnson Commons and fresh herbs in planters outside.
Reducing single-use plastics and trading plastic foam for eco-friendly
“If something were to happen and the dishwasher goes down, we go to a completely sustainable product that’s compostable versus going to a cheaper, Styrofoam box, to-go box that’s going to sit in the landfill for the duration of its existence.”
Ole Miss Catering, previously a one-star Certified Green Restaurant, also improved this year to a three-star certification. The Dish, at the Luckyday Residential College, earned its first Green Restaurant Certification, receiving one star.
“What we wanted to do is really push Rebel Market as far as we could get it, and see if we could achieve that four, and then try to bring the rest of campus up to that level,” Burr says.
“The goal is, ultimately, to get them to a four as well.”
Students and staff members crowd into Rebel Market for lunch during the first week of the 2024 fall semester. | Photo by Srijita Chattopadhyay
Fresh lettuce grows in the Rebel Market hydroponic garden before being transplanted. The indoor gardening system, which doesn’t use soil, is one of the sustainable processes used at Rebel Market. | Submitted photo
Worthwhile Investment
PROGRAM CELEBRATES 10 YEARS OF MISSISSIPPI COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS
Over the last decade, more than 100 University of Mississippi students have interned in communities across the state, thanks to a Grisham-McLean Institute for Public Service and Community Engagement program.
In 2014, the institute began planning for the first summer interns as part of the Catalyzing Entrepreneurship and Economic Development initiative. The initiative is the result of a $2.4 million investment from the Robert M. Hearin Support Foundation to the institute.
“This program allows our students to experience opportunities right here in Mississippi while supporting the community they get to explore,” says Albert Nylander (BAEd 92, MA 94), director of the Grisham-McLean Institute and professor of sociology.
“I am thankful to the Hearin Foundation for providing financial support to have university students work alongside our community partners to advance community and economic development across the state.”
Omobola Obasanjo, a senior from Greenwood majoring
in business and finance, was among the students participating in this year’s summer program. Obasanjo spent his summer interning in Tupelo with the Community Development Foundation and the CREATE Foundation under the supervision of Stewart McMillan, project manager for CREATE and Toyota Wellspring.
“The only thing I knew about Tupelo was Elvis,” Obasanjo says. “Being from the Mississippi Delta and from a small town, Tupelo is a lot of the dreams people have for their town realized. I did not realize it was thriving, or that the businesses here are all working together.”
Among the organizations that have hosted Ole Miss students as summer interns through the Grisham-McLean Institute’s initiative are:
• Catholic Charities in Vardaman
• James C. Kennedy Wellness Center in Charleston
• Offices of the mayors of Charleston, Greenville and Lexington
• New Albany Main Street Association
• Pontotoc County Chamber of Commerce
• Greenwood-Leflore-Carroll Economic Development Foundation
• Cleveland-Bolivar County Chamber of Commerce
• Mississippi Development Authority in Jackson
• CREATE Foundation
• Community Development Foundation
• Community Foundation of Northwest Mississippi in Hernando
• Oxford-Lafayette County Chamber of Commerce
• Refill Jackson Initiative
• Innovate Mississippi in Jackson
• Mississippi Small Business Development Centers in Oxford, Tupelo and Biloxi.
This summer, the university’s Office of Economic Development partnered with the Grisham-McLean Institute to place students with new sites such as Base Camp Coding Academy in Water Valley and the Vicksburg-Warren Partnership in Vicksburg, while continuing multiyear partnerships with the Mississippi Development Authority in Jackson and other locations across the state.
Obasanjo had a full schedule for the summer, including participating in the CREATE Foundation’s hiring career coaches, sitting in on meeting with the Tupelo Chamber of Commerce and interviewing members of the community for the foundation’s Imagine the Possibilities Career Expo.
Stewart McMillan (left), project manager for the CREATE Foundation and Toyota Wellspring; Omobola Obasanjo, a senior University of Mississippi business and finance major from Greenwood; and Albert Nylander, director of the Grisham-McLean Institute for Public Service and Community Engagement and professor of sociology, gather at the CREATE Foundation office. | Submitted photo
MILITARY UNITS HONOR UNIVERSITY-OXFORD AIRPORT WITH PLAQUE
Three military divisions have recognized the Airport at Ole Miss for its assistance during two recent training missions.
In January and August, the University-Oxford Airport served as one of many stops during a large-scale air assault training mission for the 101st Airborne Division, the 426th Brigade Support Battalion and the 1st Brigade Combat Team. The military units recently recognized the airport for its service with a plaque recognizing the facility’s “professionalism and unwavering support.”
“I’m happy to do it,” says Jacob Pind, University of Mississippi airport manager. “It’s our act of appreciation — a way to say ‘thanks’ back to the military for what they do for us.
“The reason is that we’re supporting our military and the way that they’ll support us at any moment.”
The training included more than 350 troops, 80 flight crew members and 60 support troops on 24 AH-64 Black Hawk heli copters flying into the university’s airport, where they
refueled and camped for the night before flying on to their next stop.
“The facilities at Oxford-University Airport enabled the 426th Brigade Support Battalion from the division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team to establish the rest and resupply areas needed for our maintainers,” says Capt. Steve Nava, deputy division public
Honorable Service
The training simulated what a combat mission across an ocean might involve — with Oxford, Tunica, Millington, Tennessee, and other locations serving as “islands” where the troops could stop and refuel. The purpose of such missions is to prepare for any eventuality, Nava says.
“Put more simply: These training events ensure that the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), if called upon, is ready to go anywhere in the world to fight tonight and win.”
The University-Oxford Airport will continue to partner with the military divisions however needed to support that mission, Pind says.
ARMY ROTC SUPPORTS VETERAN OVERCOMING HOUSING INSTABILITY
University of Mississippi Army ROTC cadets served as the color guard during a ceremony on Aug. 27 honoring local Army veteran Frankie Dunn with a new home.
Purple Heart Homes, a North Carolina-based nonprofit supporting veterans, provided Dunn’s tiny home after U.S. Marine Corps veteran Scott Burns, founder of 7 Days for the Troops, a Tupelo-based nonprofit, shared that Dunn had lived in a shed for the past five years following a house fire.
The fire destroyed Dunn’s home just one year after his wife died. Then, he suffered a stroke in May 2024.
“Frankie Dunn served his country honorably,” says Lamar Austin, Purple Heart Homes regional project manager.
“Ensuring that he has a safe and accessible home to live with comfort and dignity is one small way we can say ‘thank you’ and honor him for his service.”
Dunn was an active member of the U.S. Army during the late 1970s. His new home near Oxford features kitchen appliances, furniture and a deck with a ramp built by volunteers.
“It’s nice,” Dunn says. “We can all do things for others that may be in need — whatever it is. We all need help.”
His daughter, LaTwanza Price, says the house is a gift from God.
“God gave you that,” Price says. “And he gave it to you because he wants you to live happily until it’s time for you to go home.”
“He’s a brother to me, and I’m a brother to him because of the service that we share,” Newby says.
The Home Depot Foundation and 7 Days for the Troops funded Dunn’s “Mission Complete” project.
Andrew Newby, director of the university’s Office of Veteran and Military Services, was among dozens of local veterans who didn’t know Dunn personally but attended the ceremony as a display of support and their common bond.
U.S. Army veteran Frankie Dunn (center) and family members share their gratitude with community members attending a ceremony to present him with a new home. | Photo by Srijita Chattopadhyay
Arguments Against Artificial Intelligence
UNIVERSITY STUDY HINTS DEBATE SKILLS MAY LESSEN NEGATIVE IMPACT OF AI
Higher education is facing a tough challenge as it adapts to the advent of artificial intelligence. To combat it, a University of Mississippi professor proposes using one of academia’s oldest weapons: debate.
Learning to debate is not only learning to argue but also learning to understand a subject so completely that one might defend or oppose any aspect of it, says Jacob Justice, assistant professor of speech communication, in a study published in Argumentation and Advocacy
“The impact of AI on higher education broadly — everybody’s still trying to figure that out to an extent,” says Justice, who also coaches the Warren Debate Union, the Ole Miss debate team. “For the past two years, we’ve been grappling with this technology.
“Even though AI has offered a shortcut through the writing process, it actually still is important to be able to write and speak and think on your own. That’s what the focus of this research is: how debate engenders those aspects of being able to write and speak and study and research on your own.”
Justice and co-author Brett Bricker, associate director of debate at the University of Kansas, published their work in a special edition of Argumentation and Advocacy dedicated to collegiate policy debate. The researchers argue that learning to debate builds comprehension, research skills and empathy.
Recent studies show that using AI tools to assist with writing results in a 25% reduction in accuracy and a 12% decline in reading comprehension.
“We thought about the greatest concerns that people have about artificial intelligence — namely, that it’s going to make people worse at critical thinking and worse at argument construction,” Justice says. “We saw that debate offers skills that could make students better able to navigate those problems.”
Researching a debate topic takes more than a cursory knowledge of a subject or a bulleted list of highlights, which is all that most AI can provide, argue Justice and Bricker.
“Because debate’s not just about stating the points,” Justice says. “You’ve got to be able to respond in a time-pressured setting to what your opponent is going to say and rebuild your arguments, and then compare and weigh arguments.
“Those are things that a college debater will over time become very good at that I do not think the current generation of AI platforms are doing quite as well.”
Bricker and Justice hope to see debate teams rise across K-12 and higher education, but also want to see more use of debate in classrooms from every curriculum.
Communities or schools with debate programs should properly fund and protect them, Bricker says. And schools without debate should seriously consider starting their own programs, he says.
Like any good debater, Justice and Bricker plan to take on the other side of the argument in the next phase of their research, in which they plan to answer the question: How could AI enhance debate?
Illustration by Stefanie Goodwiller
Greens Over Grease
HOW TO LOWER BAD CHOLESTEROL
When heart disease runs in the family, it can feel like a losing battle with all the health-related numbers you have to track after 40, with cholesterol lev els among those dreaded stats.
Winning that battle over the long haul, whether there’s a family history of heart attacks and strokes or not, can be as simple as taking a daily pill and making key changes in your diet, cardiologists say.
“Familial hypercholesterolemia is common, occurring in 1 in 250 people,” says Dr. Bradley Deere, cardiologist and assistant professor in the Division of Cardiovascular Diseases at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. “If you have a personal or family history of early heart disease, stroke or high cholesterol, then you should consider talking with your doctor, having your levels checked. FH should be treated early to prevent or delay the onset of heart disease.”
In reality, the human body makes all the blood cholesterol it needs. It’s a waxy, fatlike substance made in the liver and is indeed essential for good health. The body uses it to make hormones and digest fatty foods.
For most Americans, the trouble comes in when we eat too much dietary cholesterol, which is found in animal products such as meat, seafood, poultry, eggs and dairy. Levels are measured in milligrams per deciliter, or mg/dL, and involve
low-density lipoprotein and high-density lipoprotein, or LDL and HDL. In short, normal levels of HDL, or “good” cholesterol, may lower the risk of heart disease and stroke. LDL, or
“bad” cholesterol, earns the name because it’s a sign there’s too much dietary cholesterol in the blood, often from foods fried in various processed vegetable oils at high heat.
Those without heart disease are recommended to keep LDL levels below 100 mg/dL. For people with a prior heart attack or stroke, or deemed at high risk for either, the ceiling for LDL is lower, at 70 mg/dL. People are considered at high risk based on test results if they show levels of more than 130 mg/dL.
The first steps toward staying in
the safe zone on cholesterol involve avoiding fried foods and eating a more heart-healthy diet, exercising regularly and quitting smoking. Statin drugs such as atorvastatin and ezetimibe remain a go-to option to help lower LDL in the blood, often recommended alongside the diet adjustments. They work by reducing LDL levels when combined with heart-healthy changes in diet.
“In combination with lifestyle changes, LDL levels can typically be lowered to a safe zone for most individuals,” Deere says. “We also have newer classes of medications that are safe and effective such as PCSK9 inhibitors, which involve injections under the skin every two to four weeks, and inclisiran, which is an injection under the skin every six months.”
Healthier cuisine pairs nicely with any cholesterol medication, dietitians say, stressing an overall switch from fried food to more vegetables, fruit, legumes such as chickpeas and lentils, whole grain and healthy fats such as those found in fish and nuts. The idea is to avoid the kind of inflammatory response produced in the body with fried foods, particularly in the arteries.
“The best way to keep LDL in check at the lunch counter or dinner table is to include plenty of anti-inflammatory foods in your body to help quickly repair artery damage, as well as minimize those foods that contribute to that damage,” says Dacia Breeden, a registered dietitian based at the UMMC Cancer Center and Research Institute.
“Good examples of anti-inflammatory foods are primarily going to be your plant-based foods, such as fruit, vegetables, beans, peas and healthy starches.”
Banking and Finance Symposium: Oxford Conference Center, 8:15 a.m.4 p.m. Visit olemissalumni.com/events.
8Faculty Colloquium: Tom Haley, assistant professor of law at the University of Florida, presents a paper to the faculty as part of the annual SEC faculty exchange. UM School of Law Library 1021, 12:30-1:30 p.m. Visit law. olemiss.edu/event.
8Volleyball: Ole Miss vs. Oklahoma. Gillom Center, 1 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
8
Men’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Grambling State. The SJB Pavilion, 6 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
9Football: Ole Miss vs. Georgia. Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, time TBA. Visit olemisssports.com.
10
Women’s Basketball Alumni
M-Club: Celebration of 50 years. Location and time TBA. Visit olemissalumni.com/events.
10
Women’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff. The SJB Pavilion, 2 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
11
Men’s Basketball Alumni
M-Club: Reception honoring coach Bob Weltlich. Location and time TBA. Visit olemissalumni.com/events.
11
Performance: Veterans Day Concert. Nutt Auditorium, 7 p.m. Visit eventcalendar.olemiss.edu.
Photo courtesy of the Gertrude C. Ford Center for the Performing Arts
12
Men’s Basketball: Throwback game. Ole Miss vs. South Alabama. Tad Smith Coliseum, 7 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
13Patterson School of Accountancy: Dallas Alumni Luncheon. Dallas Petroleum Club, Lafayette Room, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Visit olemissalumni.com/ events.
15Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc.: Lambda Sigma Chapter 50th Anniversary. Oxford campus. Various times and locations. Visit olemissalumni.com/ events.
15Volleyball: Ole Miss vs. Arkansas. Gillom Center, 6:30 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
16Student Media Alumni Reunion: Overby Center for Southern Journalism and Politics, 6-9 p.m. Visit eventcalendar.olemiss.edu.
17
Volleyball: Ole Miss vs. Mississippi State. Gillom Center, noon. Visit olemisssports.com.
18
Women’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Jackson State. The SJB Pavilion, 11 a.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
18 Performance: Jazz Ambassadors of the U.S. Army Field Band. The Jazz Ambassadors is the official touring big band of the U.S. Army. Gertrude C. Ford Center, 7:30 p.m. Visit fordcenter.org/events.
19Performance: UM Opera Theatre Presents “An Evening of Arias.” Part of the 2024-25 opera season, “Perfect Matches: A Season of Love and Laughter.” Admission is free. Nutt Auditorium, 7:30 p.m. Visit eventcalendar.olemiss.edu.
21
Men’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Oral Roberts. The SJB Pavilion, 7 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
22
Volleyball: Ole Miss vs. Missouri. Gillom Center, 6:30 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
29
Football: Ole Miss vs. Mississippi State. Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, 2:30 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
30
Women’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Alabama State. The SJB Pavilion, 2 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
DECEMBER
5
Performance: “A Charlie Brown Christmas, Live!” Featuring a Broadway-style production with all new sets, costumes, lights and musical arrangements, the live stage adaptation of the classic animated television special brings all your favorite characters to life. Gertrude C. Ford Center, 7:30 p.m. Visit fordcenter.org/events.
7
Men’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Lindenwood. The SJB Pavilion, 7 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
8
Women’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Tennessee State. The SJB Pavilion, 1 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
15
Women’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. South Alabama. The SJB Pavilion, 2 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
17
Men’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Southern. The SJB Pavilion, 6 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
21
Men’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Queens. The SJB Pavilion, 6 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
21
Women’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Mississippi Valley State. The SJB Pavilion, noon. Visit olemisssports.com.
30
Women’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Alcorn State. The SJB Pavilion, 6:30 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
JANUARY
4
Men’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Georgia. The SJB Pavilion, 11 a.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
9
Women’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Vanderbilt. The SJB Pavilion, 6:30 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
11
Men’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. LSU. The SJB Pavilion, 5 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
12
Women’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Alabama. The SJB Pavilion, 3 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
16
Women’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Florida. The SJB Pavilion, 8 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
22
Men’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Texas A&M. The SJB Pavilion, 8 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
26
Women’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Texas. The SJB Pavilion, 2 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
26
Women’s Basketball Alumni M-Club Weekend: Location and time TBA. Visit olemissalumni.com/ events.
29
Men’s Basketball: Ole Miss vs. Texas. The SJB Pavilion, 8 p.m. Visit olemisssports.com.
30Performance: Catalyst Quartet. With a commitment to diversity, education and a passion for contemporary works, this Grammy Award-winning string ensemble presents programs that are imaginative and accessible to all audiences. Gertrude C. Ford Center, 7:30 p.m. Visit fordcenter.org/events.
For a complete and latest listing of Ole Miss sports schedules, visit olemisssports.com.
For more Oxford events, news and information, go to visitoxfordms.com or call 662-232-2477.
50years 50years
OF CELEBRATED SUCCESS
Photos by Bill Dabney
Ole Miss Alumni Association honors distinguished alumni for 2024
By Jim Urbanek
Fifty years after the first Ole Miss Alumni Hall of Fame class was inducted, the Association recognized seven distinguished alumni with its highest annual awards as part of Homecoming 2024.
University of Mississippi Alumni Hall of Fame inductees for 2024 are Robert R. “Bobby” Bailess (BBA 73, JD 76), of Vicksburg; David Ward Kellum (BA 80), of Water Valley; John Maxwell (BA 66, MA 68), of Jackson; Suzan Brown Thames (BA 68), of Ridgeland; and William G. Yates III (BBA 93), of Biloxi.
Created in 1974, the Hall of Fame honors select alumni who have made an outstanding contribution to their country, state or the University of Mississippi through good deeds, services or philanthropies that have perpetuated the good name of Ole Miss.
Jon C. Turner (BBA 78), of Jackson, will receive the Alumni Service Award for service to the university and the Alumni Association over an extended period.
Mallory McCormack (MBA 15), of Huntsville, Alabama, will receive the Outstanding Young Alumni Award, which honors alumni who have shown exemplary leadership throughout their first 15 years of alumni status in both their careers and dedication to Ole Miss.
“We are excited for this opportunity to celebrate some of the university’s most successful and notable alumni,” says Ole Miss Alumni Association CEO Kirk Purdom (BA 93). “These inductees stand out both with their career accomplishments and with their service to Ole Miss and their communities.”
The Alumni Association hosted a gala for the honorees on Sept. 26, in the Gertrude C. Ford Ballroom at The Inn at Ole Miss.
HALL OF FAME
Robert R. “Bobby” Bailess
Bailess earned his undergraduate degree in business administration from Ole Miss in 1973 and played linebacker for the Rebels for the 1971-73 seasons. He received his Juris Doctor from the School of Law and was admitted to the Mississippi Bar in 1976.
He has continued to practice with the same firm, now known as Bailess & Rector, in Vicksburg. Bailess is a fellow of the Mississippi Bar Foundation and served as a member of the Board of Bar Commissioners. He was elected president of the Mississippi Bar Association and received the 2009 Law Alumnus of the Year Award and is a past president of the Law Alumni Chapter.
He served as a board member and as chairman of the UM Foundation and serves on the executive committee of the Ole Miss Alumni Association. He was president of the Alumni Association in 2017-18.
Bailess and his wife, the former Natalie Waring (BAEd 73), are members of Crawford Street United Methodist Church, where he has served on numerous committees, as a member of the board of trustees and as chairman of the administrative board.
“I am truly humbled to be included in present company, as well as those previously inducted,” Bailess says. “It is an unexpected and overwhelming honor that is very much appreciated.”
David Ward Kellum
Kellum is director of broadcasting for the Learfield Ole Miss Radio Network and assistant to the athletics director for publicity. As a student, Kellum served as the voice of Ole Miss women’s basketball and baseball programs for local radio station WSUH/WOOR and was a DJ, program director and production director.
After graduation, he continued broadcasting Ole Miss women’s basketball and baseball games and added Northwest Community College sports to his broadcast duties. Kellum was hired by NWCC and Three Rivers Planning and Development District to serve at the WIN Job Center in Oxford as rapid response coordinator and the C2C youth coordinator. He worked there until his retirement in 2021.
Kellum was selected as voice of the Rebels for Ole Miss football and men’s basketball in 1989. At age 30, he was one of just a few play-by-play announcers to do all three major sports in the Southeastern Conference. He also hosts “RebTalk” and is the master of ceremonies for Rebel Road Trips and other athletics events.
Kellum has also worked as an adjunct professor in the School of Journalism and New Media, teaching broadcast sales and sports broadcasting as well as helping with the Student Media Center when it was created.
Kellum married Mary Kuehn (BSW 80) after graduation from Ole Miss. He was recently commissioned as a deacon at Pinelake Church in Oxford, and he and Mary serve on the baptismal committee.
“My first association with Ole Miss was living as a child in married student housing,” Kellum says. “Now, some 60-plus years later, I still spend my life on the Ole Miss campus and around the country living my dream as the voice of the Rebels. God has blessed me with a wonderful family, a fulfilling career and an association with a university that is dear to my heart.”
Maxwell lives in Jackson but was raised on a cotton farm near Pickens. He graduated from Ole Miss with a master’s degree in theatre in 1968.
He began touring his one-man play, “Oh, Mr. Faulkner, Do You Write?” based on the life of Noble laureate William Faulkner, throughout Mississippi in 1981. He has since toured the production to most of the continental United States and 10 foreign countries. Included in this touring was a presentation at the Smithsonian in its Portraits in Motion series, the Bottom Line in New York, the Alliance Regional Theatre in Atlanta and the Empty Space Regional Theatre in Seattle.
Perhaps the most prestigious among his presentations was a partial production as a part of the Cultural Olympiad in Atlanta in 1996. Included in that audience were nine Nobel laureates and President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn. He has presented the show at least 1,500 times worldwide.
He has written and produced several monologues and plays based on characters and stories of the Bible throughout much of the Southeast. He has won numerous fellowships in playwriting from the Mississippi Arts Council as well as a fellowship in playwriting from the Tennessee Williams Writing Conference in Sewanee, Tennessee. He has served as artistic director for New Stage Theatre in Jackson and received the 2014 Governor’s Award for Art Excellence.
“Graduating with a master’s degree in theatre from Ole Miss gave me the opportunity to make a living doing what I love to do,” Maxwell says. “I owe Ole Miss a debt impossible to repay.”
John Maxwell
Suzan Brown Thames
Thames’ volunteer career with the University of Mississippi Medical Center began in the early 1980s, when she led a fundraising campaign for the state’s first stand-alone pediatric cancer clinic. She established the first support group and fundraising entity, Friends of Children’s Hospital, and was its inaugural president and its chair for 20 years.
She also chaired the capital campaign to build Batson Hospital for Children, which opened in 1997. Thames served on the UMMC Capital Campaign Committee for the $101 million Kathy and Joe Sanderson Tower at Children’s of Mississippi, which opened in 2020. She also serves as chair of the advisory board of the Memory Impairment and Neurodegenerative Dementia Center at UMMC.
Her efforts at UMMC led friends and family to endow the Suzan Brown Thames Chair in Pediatrics, the first of its kind, with $2.1 million in contributions.
For 34 years, she was a speech pathologist and audiologist working with patients at the Jackson Ear Nose and Throat Clinic. Besides her Ole Miss degree, Thames also earned a master’s degree in speech pathology and audiology from Tulane University and received a fellowship from the University of Wisconsin in behavioral disabilities.
Thames has served on several organizational boards for the university, including the UM Foundation, Ole Miss Women’s Council and the executive committee of the Ole Miss Alumni Association. She was the 2015 recipient of the Ole Miss Alumni Service Award. Thames was chosen as Volunteer Fundraiser of the Year by the National Philanthropy Association in 2011.
“Ole Miss and our Medical Center have enriched my life in every dimension by providing meaningful purpose, exceptional opportunities for learning and magnificent relationships beginning as a student and continuing today as a volunteer,” Thames says. “I am genuinely grateful for this honor and the lifelong encouragement that the Ole Miss family has instilled in me.”
HALL OF FAME
William G. Yates 111
Yates is CEO and president of the Yates Cos. Inc., a nationally recognized construction firm. Under Yates’ leadership, the company has grown to more than 20 offices in over a dozen states from California to Maine.
At Ole Miss, he earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration, graduating summa cum laude. He was a Hearin-Hess scholar and a Taylor Medalist. Yates also earned a master’s degree in construction management from Arizona State University and is a CPA.
Yates is a member of the boards of directors of the New Orleans branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, Trustmark National Bank and the Mississippi Economic Council.
His former directorships include the Ole Miss Alumni Association, the Millsaps College board of trustees, the UM Foundation, former chair of Mississippi Associated Builders and Contractors and former chair of the United Way of South Mississippi. He was also a member of the Governor’s Commission for Economic Recovery during the COVID-19 response.
In 2024, Yates was named one of Mississippi’s Top 50 Most Influential Leaders. He also has received a Hope Award and a United Way of South Mississippi’s President Award and was inducted into the Roland Weeks Hall of Fame Outstanding Community Leaders Class of 2010.
“Ole Miss has had a very positive impact on my life, and I am thankful for the opportunities it has afforded me,” Yates says. “It is an honor to be recognized and especially with such a distinguished group.”
ALUMNI SERVICE AWARD
Jon C. Turner
Turner is a retired partner from the Jackson office of BKD/Forvis, where his public accounting experience with several firms spanned more than 40 years and multiple industries. He is a member of the Mississippi Society of CPAs and won the 2013 MSCPA Public Service Award for his community and statewide civic involvement.
A Belzoni native, Turner began his career with the international accounting firm of Peat Marwick Mitchell, now KPMG, in Jackson. He then joined a local firm that later became Smith, Turner & Reeves, which grew into one of the state’s three largest CPA firms. After serving more than 20 years as managing partner, Turner guided the 2008 merger of his firm and two other Mississippi CPA firms with BKD, garnering him the title “father of BKD Mississippi.”
Turner is a past president of the Ole Miss Alumni Association and has served multiple terms on the boards of the UM Foundation and the UM Athletics Committee. He served as a co-chair of the Ole Miss First Campaign and on the steering committee for the campaign to construct The Inn at Ole Miss.
Turner was a co-founder and president of the Rebel Club of Jackson and later served as president of the Central Mississippi Alumni Club. He has been active as an adviser to Kappa Alpha Order and was awarded its highest honor, the “Knight Commander’s Accolade” by the group’s national organization and honored as “Alumnus of the Year” by the active chapter, which later named the award for him.
“Ole Miss truly is a family, and the campus and Oxford have remained a hub for our extended family through the years,” Turner says. “Ole Miss is very much a part of who I am and is a large piece of our family fabric. And as the Alumni Association is the glue for that fabric, I am deeply honored to receive its award for serving the university.”
OUTSTANDING YOUNG
ALUMNI AWARD
Mallory McCormack
A Mississippi native who grew up in north Alabama, McCormack earned an MBA from the university in 2015. She then continued her career in government contracting, focusing on program management, and is a program manager for Saab Inc.
McCormack is a 24-year childhood cancer survivor and has worked with organizations such as Livestrong, the American Cancer Society and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society to raise money and lobby for cancer research funding.
She is also on the board of directors and has served as president for Christmas Charities Year Round, a local charity in Huntsville, Alabama, that provides free services and goods for economically challenged citizens. She is also a member of Women in Defense, a national organization that supports the advancement and recognition of women in all aspects of national security.
McCormack served on the Ole Miss Alumni Association board of directors from 2019 to 2021 and has been president of the Rocket City Rebel Club in Huntsville since 2015. She and her husband, Cody, are charter members of eMpower, a component of the Vaught Society that supports Ole Miss women’s athletics programs.
“Ole Miss is so much more than the degree I received; it is a special place with incredible people that have helped shape who I am today and continue to challenge me to think bigger and never stop learning,” McCormack says. “Being awarded the 2024 Outstanding Young Alumni Award means more than words can say.”
JONES
Alumnus follows food and wine career path
By Annie Rhoades
(STILL) THIRSTY
What do wine, food and philanthropy have in common? For alumnus Scott Jones (BA 92), vice president of content and partnerships for eMeals, the three comprise his entire career.
“It’s not a linear [career] path,” Jones says. “There are many right turns, but I feel so fortunate to be able to use the gifts that I’ve been given to do what I love.”
A founding member of the Southern Foodways Alliance board, Jones relished his time at Ole Miss, which he spent studying magazine publishing under the direction of Samir Husni, retired UM professor of journalism, Hederman lecturer and director of the Magazine Innovation Center.
“I’m from Orlando, Florida, and had a couple of friends who attended Ole Miss,” he says. “I remember being told about a professor that I had to meet who taught magazine publishing. I ended up talking to Dr. Husni and realized there was no other place on the planet that I was going to go to school, when I could combine the fun of Ole Miss with the ability to study magazine publishing. That was all she wrote, and I was out the door and on my way.”
After graduating from Ole Miss, Jones and his wife, Deanna, relocated to Los Angeles to start a career in the motion picture business.
Deanna and Scott Jones
“I worked at a couple of movie studios on the motion picture development side, and my wife worked at Creative Artists Agency on the agency side,” he says. “I think a lot of it was driven by the fact that we were both from the South, and neither one of us had ever been west of the Mississippi at that point. So, we moved to Los Angeles and loved it.”
After 11 years and a self-described early “midlife crisis” in his 30s, Jones pleaded with his wife to relocate to New York to attend the Culinary Institute of America in pursuit of a culinary arts degree.
“While we were in LA, we were going out to restaurants with good wine and food, and I found myself spending a lot of time reading The New York Times Wednesday food sections,” he recalls. “I could feel this convergence of my interest in media and my interest in food and wine, and I started thinking about how I could align all of these things that I really loved.”
While completing the two-and-ahalf-year culinary arts program at Hyde Park’s Culinary Institute, Jones began writing for Food & Wine magazine and even tried his hand at reviewing restaurants.
“I started writing more for food publications and did restaurant reviews for a local newspaper, which I hated because I couldn’t bring myself to write anything bad about anyone working as hard as someone works to run a restaurant,” he says. “After about a year, I decided to go and eat in these places and not review any more.”
During his time at the Culinary Institute, Jones’ passion for wine blossomed.
“They have a dedicated piece of the program where you go through a pretty intense wine education block,” he says. “That just threw the match on the wood that was already soaked with fire starter. As soon as I got in there, I thought this is amazing because it tied together so many of the things that I love such as history, food and geography.”
Heading Down South
After residing in the city for a few years, Jones and his wife decided they wanted to move closer to home to start a family.
“We wanted to get back to the South where we were closer to our family and get a place with a yard and air conditioning,” he says. “We looked at a lot of options where my wife could continue to do what she was doing workwise and a place where I thought I might be able to use my media and food training.”
The two looked at opportunities in Atlanta, Nashville and New Orleans before Jones received a call from Birmingham.
“I got a call from Cooking Light magazine in April 1999,” he says. “At
the time, Time Inc. had a massive presence in Birmingham with five or six magazines being published. There was a custom publishing division that was a big piece of Time Inc., so they recruited me to come down and consider a role at Cooking Light.”
Eager to leave the dirty piles of city snow, Jones accepted the interview to “enjoy the sunshine” and get away for a few days. But before leaving New York, he received a call from a senior editor with Southern Living magazine asking if he would be interested in interviewing with them as well during his visit.
“At the time I thought, I’m never going to move to Birmingham, and I’m never going to work at Southern Living — my grandma reads that magazine,” he laughs. “After I interviewed at Cooking Light, I knew immediately it was not the right fit for me and met with Southern Living and immediately knew that it was the perfect fit for me.”
In July 1999, the two moved to Birmingham where, unbeknownst to him, Jones became the first man in the 40-year history of Southern Living to work in the foods department.
He began an 11-year stint with the publication, serving as executive editor overseeing the food, entertainment and wine content for the magazine.
“We launched a TV show [while I was there], which really allowed me to use all of the things that I loved initially in magazine publishing and media in general,” he says.
Jones Is Thirsty
Toward the end of his time with Southern Living , Jones leaned into his passion for wine and, more importantly, taught people about wine.
“As the executive editor, I did a lot of public events on behalf of Southern
Jones tailgates in the Circle with his wife, Deanna, and daughters Tallulah and Augusta.
Living,” Jones says. “I would travel to the Charleston Wine and Food Festival and other events and became more comfortable talking about wine and food in front of people. I realized that it was something that I fed off — that energy. So, I decided to spin out a little side hustle.”
Named by his two daughters, Augusta and Tallulah (BSME 22), Jones Is Thirsty was created in 2012 with a focus on providing “no-snobbery” wine education for the masses.
“My picture on [the website] is me pouring a bottle of wine over my head,” he says. “I had two objectives when I started it: One was to strip out all of the snobbery when it came to talking about wine and to really empower folks to be able to buy wine with confidence and to use Jones Is Thirsty as an avenue for all of the philanthropic work that is really important to me and remains a key driver to what I do.”
Jones uses his company to help raise money for organizations benefiting the community, both locally and nationally.
“I do a lot of events that help raise money for childhood education, pediatric cancer and [more recently] men’s prostate cancer,” he says. “That is a big one for me because I was diagnosed with
prostate cancer a year ago. I caught it early, and I have a good diagnosis.”
Jones travels across the country through his wine education work catering to any audience ranging from small private events in homes to large corporate events.
“Taking Jones Is Thirsty on the road has also allowed me to do a lot of travel and wine writing, which I really enjoy,” he says. “I love the whole world of wine. It’s exciting and fun and doesn’t have to be complicated.”
Fueling His Passion
When he’s not busy with his passion project, Jones’ time is consumed with his “day job” at eMeals, an application that connects meal ideas to online grocery shopping for consumers, brands and retailers.
The company offers a platform that combines shoppable technology with a full-service content creation hub. An in-house team creates custom photo and video content for brands to use across the eMeals platform, retail media promotion, and their owned and operated channels.
“It’s been a blast because it allows me to do basically the same thing I was doing at Southern Living but now in a fully digital experience,” Jones says. “It’s caused me to retrain my brain to be digital first, focusing on all the things that go into acquiring a user digitally, which is radically different from the way we used to do it in print.
“I work with phenomenal data analysts, engineers and developers. I also work closely with a team of chefs, photographers, videographers and registered dietitians to create the content images and videos for eMeals.”
Forrest Collier, CEO of eMeals, quickly learned that he and his “detail-oriented and engaging” vice president of content and partnerships had a lot in common from their first meeting.
“Whether he’s discussing everyday wines, Asian food, adventure travel, SEC sports, pop culture, ancient history or almost any other topic, Scott shares his wealth of information in a way that’s always personable, interesting and enjoyable,” Collier says.
“With his unending thirst for knowledge, experience and opportunity, I’m confident that [he] will continue to be a valuable contributor to his work, community and, most importantly, his family.”
Jones approaches his jobs with equal enthusiasm as they both offer opportunities to help others improve their lives.
“I really enjoy that aspect of it, whether it’s helping them get meals on the table or it’s helping them have more confidence and not be intimidated when they buy wine,” he says.
“When I was at Ole Miss in the magazine publishing program, there was a term called ‘service journalism’ — making what you’re doing useful with the underpinnings of helping improve someone’s life. That’s what initially drew me to magazines from an early age and continues to do that now through wine.
“I’ve been working a long time, and I still can’t wait to get out of bed every morning and get to work. That’s what fuels my passion, knowing that I get a chance to do something that I love.”
Visit jonesisthirsty.com to learn more about Jones’ wine education company.
Jones uses his food and wine expertise as a judge at the annual Sutter Home Build a Better Burger contest.
What Is in a
The unofficial mascot 50 years before Juice Name?
CBy Jim Horne (BBA 74)
oach Lane Kiffin brings a unique energy to Ole Miss football, and I love it when he brings his dog, Juice, to the field. Juice is not the first dog to serve as “unofficial mascot” to the Rebels, however.
In 1973-74, the Rebs had a little German Shepherd named “Dammit” who lived in the athletic dorm (Miller Hall), attended football practices (and a few classes) and ultimately became a certified member of the M-Club. The story of Dammit’s journey to Ole Miss began in summer 1973 in Washington, D.C., during the famous Watergate hearings, but let’s back up three years.
I went to Ole Miss on a football scholarship in 1970, and that was my lifelong dream, to play for Ole Miss and coach Johnny Vaught. Those were heady times for Ole Miss. Archie Manning was starting his senior year as a leading contender for the Heisman Trophy, and the Rebels had just won the Sugar Bowl. In fact, under Coach Vaught, Ole Miss had the longest streak of bowl appearances of any college in the country.
Unfortunately, two bad things happened early in the 1970 season: Archie broke his arm and was out for most of the season, and Coach Vaught had a heart attack that resulted in his retirement. It looked as though our freshman class would never get to play for the storied Johnny Vaught.
The next year we had a great season under coach Billy Kinard, winning 10 games, including the Peach Bowl. The following year was not as successful. We won five and lost five. The momentum of the previous years was no longer there. The next season would have to be a comeback year.
As I was going into my senior year in 1973, I wanted to experience the excitement of Washington for the summer. I got a job as a temporary mail carrier in the district, filling in during the regular carriers’ vacations. It was a great summer job since it started early in the morning and I was finished by about 1 p.m. every afternoon. Because of the political drama of the Watergate hearings, Washington was particularly interesting that summer. I was able to sit in on much of the afternoon testimonies.
My mail carrier job required three days of training, which included a lengthy segment on how to protect yourself from dogs. There were two key points in the dog training: Never run and always keep holding the mailbag to protect yourself in a dog attack. Unfortunately, I did not remember those two things when I needed them.
Photos courtesy of Jim Horne
My walking mail route was in an area of Northeast Washington with a high crime rate at that time, and it seemed as if everyone had a protective “bad dog” in their yard. I was on Queen Street, when a German Shepherd crashed through the screen door as I approached the house. Forget the training. I threw down that heavy mailbag and ran as fast as I could. It worked, because I outran that dog. The new problem was that I had to go back to get the mailbag.
When I went back to the house, a nice lady profusely apologized for “Duchess” chasing me. It wasn’t lost on me that I got chased down Queen Street by “Duchess.” She explained that the dog had puppies so she was overly protective. She then offered me one of the puppies. I had no idea what I was thinking and said, “Yes, ma’am.” I took the puppy home in my now-recovered mailbag and, only a few days later, drove back to Ole Miss to start practice.
When I got back to Ole Miss, I turned the puppy loose in the athletic dorm, and she was adopted by everyone. She moved around campus, but she slept in the room that I shared with Harry Harrison (BBA 74) (All-American safety and now analyst for the Ole Miss Football Radio Network). The name Dammit kind of stuck, as in my teammates saying, “Get off my bed, dammit,” or “Get out of my room, dammit.” You get the point.
The coaches never complained, and she went back to the field house with us almost every game day, following us out to the practice fields. She would follow my teammates to class and go hang out in front of “The Grill,” which was our student union back then. A lady even stopped me to tell me that she was enjoying teaching my dog that semester. Dammit had apparently followed someone to class often.
The 1973 season started poorly. We won against Villanova in our first game, but we lost two in a row to Missouri and then Memphis State. After the Monday practice the next week, a coaching change was made. The rumor that night was that Coach Vaught was going to finish the season as our head coach. By Tuesday morning, the news was confirmed, and bumper stickers were all over campus: “Vaught’s Back.”
in front of Coach Vaught, paused, looked up at him and then walked out of the room. Coach was taken aback but continued his comments. By now, I wasn’t sure how this was going to work out for me or for Dammit.
Things got worse. When we were scrimmaging in practice, Dammit got in the way of an end sweep. I was ready to get chewed out about the dog, but all Coach Vaught said was, “Watch the puppy.”
After practice and dinner, I was in my room, and someone came down the hall and yelled, “Horne, Coach Vaught’s in the lobby, and he said to tell you to bring the dog!” I was thinking that this could be the end for Dammit and maybe for me. Dammit and I walked into the lobby, and there were Coach Vaught and his wife. He said, “Jim, I wanted my wife to meet Dammit.”
That Tuesday afternoon, we dressed for practice and assembled on the pull-out bleachers in our dressing room. Strangers were there, press most likely. After a few minutes, Coach Vaught walked into the room and calmly addressed us: “Gentlemen, some of you may not remember me. I’m Johnny Vaught, and we’re going to win some football games.”
As soon as he got those words out, Dammit walked out from under the pull-out bleachers wearing a blue scrimmage vest with a “Vaught’s Back” bumper sticker on it. She walked
Dammit had made a new friend.
The Rebels had a resounding victory over Southern Miss that week. Vaught was indeed back. He won five games during the remainder of the season.
One of our equipment managers was the M-Club secretary, and at the end of the school year, he presented me with an M-Club membership certificate for Dammit. It was signed by Coach Vaught and Chancellor Porter Fortune.
I’m sure they didn’t know what they were signing in that large stack of certificates. However, this certificate would prove helpful three years later when I was building my first house. A carpenter was using a power saw without a blade guard, and Dammit barked at the noise, causing the carpenter to cut his own leg.
Thankfully, he only needed stitches and didn't suffer permanent damage. Nevertheless, he filed a “vicious dog” lawsuit, and my insurance company was represented by none other than former Ole Miss and Baltimore Colts quarterback Raymond Brown (BBA 58, LLB 62). He introduced Dammit’s M-Club certificate as evidence to the judge, and the case was dismissed.
A few years later, I saw Coach Vaught at an Ole Miss event, and he asked about Dammit. I asked him if he knew that he had signed an M-Club membership certificate for her. He burst out laughing and said something to the effect of “No, but I’m glad that I did!”
Jim Horne with Dammit
Jim Horne is a Gulf Coast real estate appraiser and developer. He served as an independent director of Hancock Holding Co. for 25 years. He and his wife, the former Keith Bridgeforth (BA 73), are raising their 3-year-old granddaughter in Pascagoula. Horne enjoys sailing, equestrian fox hunting and polo, and keeps a small herd of polo ponies on his farm.
Ole Miss Sports
Elite Career
PATRICK WILLIS ENSHRINED IN PRO FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME
Ole Miss football legend Patrick Willis (BSCJ 07) officially joined his brethren among the best to ever play the game after being enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2024 on Aug. 3.
but as Hall of Famer Patrick Willis,” Willis says. “I salute my high school, college and NFL brothers. Now, what a privilege it is to stand with my Hall of Fame brothers in the hall of football immortality.”
The 11th overall selection of the 2007
With his new gold jacket on and his bronze bust unveiled, Willis relished the moment he officially became one of the elite 378 professional football players who can call themselves members of the Hall of Fame.
“I am elated to know that I will no longer be known not simply as Patrick Willis,
NFL Draft, Willis won NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year during his debut season with the San Francisco 49ers. Willis went on to enjoy an eight-year NFL career in which he made seven Pro Bowls and was voted All-Pro five times.
One of the best defensive players of his era, Willis finished his NFL career
with 950 combined tackles (732 solo, 218 assists), 20.5 sacks, 16 forced fumbles, five fumbles recovered, eight interceptions and two defensive touchdowns.
Despite only playing eight years, Willis felt a sense of fulfillment at the close of his NFL career. He told the crowd in Canton, “It’s not necessarily how long you play, but how impactful you are.”
Willis is just the third Rebel to ever enter the hallowed halls of Canton, joining Bruiser Kinard (BSC 38) (1970) and Gene Hickerson (58) (2007). Willis and Kinard are in even more exclusive company as the lone two Rebels to now be part of both the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the College Football Hall of Fame, with Willis inducted in 2019 and Kinard in 1951.
A four-year letterwinner for the Rebels from 2003 to 2006, Willis is one of the most decorated defensive players in Ole Miss football history. He was a consensus All-American as a senior in 2006, when he also won the Butkus Award and Lambert Trophy as the nation’s best linebacker.
He twice led the Southeastern Conference in tackles and was selected to the most first team All-American squads (13) ever by a Rebel player in a single season. A first team All-American in 2005 and 2006, he was also a two-time SEC Defensive Player of the Year.
The senior team captain ranks sixth all-time at Ole Miss with 355 career tackles, and he is tied for sixth with 33 career tackles for loss. Willis was the recipient of the 2006 Conerly Trophy as the best college football player in the state of Mississippi and was also the 2006 recipient of the Ole Miss Chucky Mullins Courage Award. The Bruceton, Tennessee, native ended his collegiate career as the Defensive MVP for the South Team in the 2007 Senior Bowl.
Patrick Willis | Photo courtesy of Ole Miss Athletics
Two of the Greats
MANNING, STRINGFELLOW INDUCTED INTO MISSISSIPPI SPORTS HALL OF FAME
Ole Miss standouts Eli Manning (BBA 03) (football) and Savanté
Stringfellow (01) (track and field) were both officially inducted into the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame as part of its Class of 2024 on Aug 3.
Manning, a four-year letterwinner for the Rebels from 2000 to 2003, won the Maxwell Award as a senior, an honor given to the best all-around player in college football. He set or tied 47 Ole Miss single - game, season and career records during his time in Oxford.
The New Orleans native became the highest pick in program history when he was selected No. 1 in the 2004 NFL Draft. His father, Archie Manning (BPA 71), was the No. 2 overall pick of the New Orleans Saints in 1971 after a historic career with the Rebels from 1968 to 1970.
Manning, who finished third in the 2003 Heisman Trophy ballot following his senior season, finished his illustrious Ole Miss career with a school-record 10,119 career passing yards and 81 career TD passes. He also set new Ole Miss career records for completions (829) and passing attempts (1,363), and both marks ranked fourth on the SEC career lists.
Manning solidified his place in
Ole Miss history with a historic senior campaign in 2003. Besides the Maxwell Award, he won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award and earned numerous All-America honors after throwing for 3,600 yards and 29 TDs. He earned SEC Offensive Player of the Year, helping lead the Rebels to a 10-3 record.
After being drafted No. 1 by the San Diego Chargers, Manning was traded to the New York Giants for Philip Rivers. Manning would go on to don a Giants uniform for 16 years, retiring shortly after the 2019 season. He was named to four Pro Bowls and was a two-time Super Bowl champion and two-time Super Bowl MVP.
Manning received the 2020 Bart Starr Award, which is given annually to an NFL player who best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field and in the community.
Stringfellow, meanwhile, remains one of the most prolific athletes in Ole Miss track and field history as well as among the best collegiate and American long jumpers of all time. Stringfellow was the first Rebel to win three NCAA titles, taking the 2000 outdoor long jump title and then sweeping the 2001 season indoors and outdoors.
As a Rebel, Stringfellow was a six-time All-American (most by a Rebel at the time), 1999 SEC Outdoor long jump champion, sixtime SEC runner-up and a
two-time Penn Relays champion in the 4x400-meter relay (1999) and long jump (2001). In the midst of his college career, Stringfellow represented Team USA at the 2000 Summer Olympic Games in Sydney in the long jump.
He was part of two World Championships teams outdoors in 1999 and 2001, winning silver in the long jump in 2001. Internationally, he also competed in the 2001 Goodwill Games and finished eighth in the long jump at the 1999 Pan-American Games.
In the states, Stringfellow won seven total USA medals (four outdoors, three indoors), including four gold medals with two outdoors (2001, 2002) and two indoors (2000, 2004). Both his indoor (27 feet, 1 inch) and outdoor (27 feet, 9.5 inches) long jump records still stand at Ole Miss, and he was inducted into the Ole Miss Sports Hall of Fame in 2007. He still ranks 10th in U.S. history at his career best of 8.52m/27-11.50.
Eli Manning | Photo courtesy of Ole Miss Athletics
Savanté Stringfellow | Photo courtesy of Ole Miss Athletics
Ole Miss Sports
All-Around Winner
PRICE-SMITH ELECTED TO COACHES ASSOCIATION HALL OF FAME CLASS
Ole Miss track and field and cross country head coach Connie
Price-Smith has been elected to the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Hall of Fame as part of its Class of 2024, the USTFCCCA announced.
Price-Smith enters the Hall of Fame alongside Dave Cianelli, Frank Gramarosso, Ron Helmer, Jud Logan and Ford Mastin. All will be officially enshrined at the 2024 USTFCCCA Coaches Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Tuesday, Dec. 17, at the USTFCCCA Convention, held at the Grande Lakes Resort in Orlando, Florida.
Price-Smith is in her 10th season in charge of the Ole Miss program and her 24th overall as a collegiate head coach when adding in her prior 14 seasons at her alma mater, Southern Illinois.
In total, Price-Smith has led her teams to 42 NCAA top-25 finishes, won 22 NCAA titles (28 total champions), coached 21 NCAA runners-up, mentored 244 First or Second-Team All-Americans, scored 609 points at the national meets, coached 282 total conference champions and won 14 total conference titles — including the first two in Ole Miss combined program history.
Success as a coach came naturally to Price-Smith after a brilliant 15-year
professional career as the best American women’s thrower of her era. During her decade-and-a-half career as a world-class thrower, Price-Smith was a 25-time U.S. champion in the shot put and discus and a member of 34 international U.S. squads.
She participated in four Olympic Games — 2000 (Sydney), 1996 (Atlanta), 1992 (Barcelona) and 1988 (Seoul) — with a best finish of fifth in the shot put at the 1996 Atlanta Games, the best by an American woman since 1960.
Price-Smith is no stranger to coaching on the international stage, either. She was the head women’s coach for Team USA at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, as well as at the 2011 IAAF World Championships (Daegu, South Korea), the 2013 World University Games (Kazan, Russia) and the 2007 Pan American Games (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil).
She served as an assistant coach at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and 2012 London Olympics, as well as the 2004 World Junior Championships (Grosseto, Italy), the 2005 World Indoor Championships (Budapest, Hungary) and with the U.S. 2006 World Cup Team (Athens, Greece).
Since arriving in Oxford on July 21, 2015, Price-Smith and her staff have led the Rebels to new heights, winning 14 NCAA individual titles (20 champions), 14 NCAA runners-up, 172 First or Second-Team All-Americans, 380 NCAA points, 76 SEC individual champions and a bevy of the best team finishes in program history at both the SEC and NCAA levels.
The Ole Miss men earned the first two SEC titles in program history in cross country back-to-back in 2018 and 2019, and numerous teams have set new program record conference and national finishes — highlighted by an overall record fourth-place finish by the men’s cross country team in 2016 and two fifth-place track finishes by the Rebel women in 2024.
In total, her Rebel teams have reset the highest SEC finishes in program history in five of the six possible seasons
among cross country, indoor track and outdoor track.
Most recently, Price-Smith’s teams put together arguably the best allaround season in the history of Ole Miss track and field, with all four teams (men and women, indoor and outdoor) finishing within the national top 25.
Price-Smith graduated from SIU in 1985, but only competed in track and field her senior year after an outstanding four-year college basketball career. She still ranks among the school’s all-time leaders with 1,271 points and 744 rebounds, while she maintains the single-season record for best field goal percentage at .650, which led the nation her junior year.
At the urging of SIU track and field standout John Smith, whom she married in 1990 and now coaches alongside, Price-Smith threw the shot put for the first time as a senior and quickly became dominant in both shot put and discus, winning Missouri Valley Conference indoor and outdoor titles in the shot in 1985 before embarking on her remarkable professional career.
A 1990 Saluki Hall of Fame inductee, Price-Smith also received the SIU Distinguished Alumni Award in 2001 and was named the Administrative/Professional Woman of Distinction in 2007.
She was also selected for induction to the Drake Relays Hall of Fame in 2003 and the Missouri Valley Conference Hall of Fame in 2012 as an Institutional Great. In 2014, Price-Smith was enshrined into the St. Louis Sports Hall of Fame, and she was inducted into the USA Track & Field Hall of Fame in 2016.
Price-Smith is also revered as a leader in the collegiate and professional coaching circles, having served time as both president of the USTFCCCA and chair of the NCAA track and field committee in addition to numerous other leadership positions related to the administration and advancement of collegiate and American track and field.
Connie Price-Smith | Photo courtesy of Ole Miss Athletics
Ole Miss Sports
JJ PEGUES EARNS 2024 CHUCKY MULLINS COURAGE AWARD
Ole Miss senior defensive tackle JJ Pegues was named the winner of the 2024 Chucky Mullins Courage Award, as announced by head coach Lane Kiffin on Aug. 22.
The Oxford native becomes the 34th recipient in the 35-year history of the award, which is presented annually to an Ole Miss upperclassman defensive player who embodies the spirit of Mullins — courage, leadership, perseverance and determination.
“It’s a blessing,” Pegues says. “Growing up here, being 5 and 6 (years old) and hearing about the award, and my family always spoke highly of the award. I knew once I got back and knew more about this award, I just really wanted to be that guy to represent him and his legacy.
“At the end of the day, you never know when it might be your last football play,” he continues. “For me, just the guy I am, just trying to give back to the younger generation and just try to be the light of Ole Miss. That’s
the main reason I really wanted this award, and I appreciate it.”
The award, sponsored by Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, honors the late Chucky Mullins (91), who had his Ole Miss career come to an end during the 1989 Homecoming game against Vanderbilt when he was paralyzed after making a tackle. After returning to his studies at Ole Miss, Mullins died May 6, 1991.
Pegues has become a mainstay of the Ole Miss defense, playing in all 13 games for the Rebels in 2023 while starting 12. He ended the 2023 campaign with career highs in tackles (42), tackles for loss (8.0), sacks (3.5) and pass breakups (4) while also adding two QB hurries.
A former tight end, Pegues also further cemented his role as one of the nation’s more versatile linemen, rushing for a crucial first down in Ole Miss’ Peach Bowl victory over Penn State. In 2022, he hauled in a oneyard touchdown reception in the Egg Bowl.
Pegues is heavily active within the
Lafayette-Oxford-University community, partaking in numerous community service events during his time at Ole Miss. Pegues — a member of the SEC Leadership Council, the SEC Community Service Team and the Ole Miss Student-Athlete Advisory Committee — held his own communitywide school supply giveaway last fall, which helped distribute school supplies for elementary students.
• Get the advanced degree you need in just two years.
• Develop a broad range of business skills that can be applied in any setting.
• Flexible format designed for busy professionals in diverse industries.
• GMAT/GRE waivers available for professionals with 5+ years post-graduate work experience.
• Rolling admission for fall, spring, and summer cohorts.
JJ Pegues | Photo courtesy of Ole Miss Athletics
Early Success
TRACK AND FIELD’S ODELUGA WINS WORLD U20 SHOT PUT GOLD MEDAL
Ole Miss track and field sophomore Akaoma Odeluga wrapped up a long and successful first season with the Rebels in style, winning the gold medal for Team USA in the women’s shot put at the World Athletics U20 (under age 20) Championships on Aug. 30.
Odeluga took the crown with ease, winning by nearly a full meter at her fourth-round heave of 17.34m/56-10.75. She is the first Rebel woman to ever win a World U20 title, and she becomes the fifth Rebel overall to ever win a World U20 gold
alongside Antwon Hicks in 2002 (men’s 110-meter hurdles, Team USA), Mike Granger in 2010 (men’s 4x100-meter relay, Team USA), Jalen Miller in 2014 (men’s 4x100-meter relay, Team USA) and her teammate, current junior Tarik Robinson-O’Hagan in 2022 (men’s shot put, Team USA).
The victory concludes an excellent first season of action for Odeluga in an Ole Miss uniform. She exploded in the outdoor season, becoming the second-best American-born U20 women’s shot putter all-time, first with her SEC bronze medal performance of 18.11m/59-5 and then by her U.S. Olympic Trials preliminary performance of 18.13m/59-05.75.
The only thrower ahead of her on that list is fellow Ole Miss Rebel Raven Saunders, at her 2015 NCAA Indoor winning 18.62m/61-01.25 during her freshman season at Southern Illinois.
Oxford Commons
Odeluga also became one of the two first women’s freshmen in Ole Miss history to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the shot put alongside teammate Mensi Stiff — who won the gold for Team USA at the Pan-American U20 meet last summer.
Makena Gobbell Director of Sales Tim Noss
Akaoma Odeluga | Photo courtesy of Ole Miss Athletics
As an Ameriprise private wealth advisory practice, we have the qualifications and experience to help navigate your complex financial needs. Whether it’s investment management, tax strategies or legacy planning, we can work with you to grow and preserve what you’ve worked so hard to achieve.
Call us today and discover the personal service you deserve.
Forrest Johnson Wealth Management A private wealth advisory practice of Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC
One Icy Night by W.A. Pepper (BBA 01, MBA 02, PhD 14), 270 pages (hardcover, also available in Kindle and paperback), Hustle Valley Press, ISBN: 978-1958011119
Abandoned by her now-ex-boyfriend at a dive bar in the middle of nowhere, the last thing resilient Rook Kellum needs is the local sheriff confiscating her fake ID when one phone call could expose her true identity (and the reason she is on the run from the law). So when she’s trapped by a deadly ice storm that destroys the Mississippi Delta, the 20-year-old fugitive has a plan: Get everyone drunk, steal back her license (and a madman’s car) and get the hell out of town. It is only when Rook escapes to a secluded cabin does she discover she isn’t the only one in need of rescue. As she fights her way out of one disaster just to get pounded with another, will Rook live to see the light of day?
W.A. Pepper writes suspenseful thrillers. He is a USA Today, Wall Street Journal and Amazon bestselling author for his contribution to the business anthology Habits of Success . He has published in multiple academic journals, interactive e-books, anthologies and online.
The Field of Justice: Moonshine and Murder in North Georgia by William A. Thomas Jr. (BA 87, MD 91), 234 pages (hardcover, also available in paperback and Kindle), Green Altar Books, ISBN: 978-1963506051
1887: James Godard, a cantankerous old man, had fled from his past to live far up in the mountains of Towns County, Georgia. Tilmon Justice was a young man working hard to provide for his growing family in the insular Appalachian world, but he had the odds stacked against him. What these two men had in common was a land boundary — and a history with moonshine. Their feud comes to a violent and inevitable conclusion, tearing apart families in a small community. This story has been documented in newspaper articles and in the handwritten court transcript from the murder trial — now retold for us here through the imagination of one of the character’s descendants.
After graduating from Ole Miss and the University of Mississippi School of Medicine, Thomas completed a career in the U.S. Air Force as an internal medicine physician, flight surgeon and commander. He lives in Augusta, Georgia, with his wife, Paula Haley Thomas.
Trigger Warning: Tales From a Life in the Law by Brooks Eason (BA 79), 280 pages (hardcover, also available in paperback and Kindle), Wordcrafts Press, ISBN: 978-1962218436
Brooks Eason practiced law in Jackson for 40 years. Then, one day in the spring of 2023, he decided he might be retired. But he wasn’t sure. How, one might ask, could a man with a lifetime of experience and a postgraduate degree not know whether he’s retired? Well, it’s complicated.
Though Eason maintained both a title and an office with his firm, and though he remained on call for his biggest and best client, the phone hadn’t rung in a while, and he rarely went to the office. Not that he hasn’t been busy. Why, there have been dogs to walk, stories to tell, concerts to host and books to write. Including this one, which consists of stories spanning more than four decades, starting when Eason decided to go to law school and ending when he settled his last big case shortly before he decided he might be retired.
Eason lives in Madison with his wife, Carrie, three rescue dogs and a tabby cat named the Count. He holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Mississippi and a juris doctorate from Duke University.
Ghostwriter: Shakespeare, Literary Landmines, and an Eccentric Patron’s Royal Obsession by Lawrence Wells (PhD 75), 216 pages (hardcover, also available in Kindle), Yoknapatawpha Press, ISBN: 978-1496852434
Part literary mystery, part an examination of what constitutes fiction versus reality, Ghostwriter is based on the true story of author Lawrence Wells, then 45, hired by the University of Mississippi in 1987 to ghostwrite a novel for a wealthy, eccentric donor (“Mrs. F,” then 75), who was convinced that Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, was William Shakespeare. Believing herself to be the reincarnation of Queen Elizabeth I, Mrs. F treated ghostwriter Wells as a “captive” Edward de Vere.
Lawrence Wells’ Ghostwriter manuscript received the 2014 Faulkner-Wisdom Prize for narrative nonfiction at the Words and Music Festival in New Orleans. His memoir In Faulkner’s Shadow, about his 38-year marriage to Dean Faulkner Wells, niece of William Faulkner, was published by University Press of Mississippi in 2020.
Tales From the Stirrups: The Not-
So-Routine
Stories
of a Gynecologist by Thomas L. Wiley (MD 77), 183 pages (paperback, also available in Kindle), independently published, ISBN: 979-8873842520
According to Webster’s Dictionary, a gynecologist is a physician who deals with the diseases and routine physical care of women and their reproductive systems. “I’ve been doing this for over 40 years, and I can promise you that the care of women and their reproductive systems is never routine — especially if you are the woman in the stirrups,” says Dr. Thomas L. Wiley, author of Tales From the Stirrups . From the fainting husband trying to cut the cord, to the laboring patient who “just wanted to sit this one out,” to those regrettable tattoos in all the wrong places, and then the gorilla in the exam room … a lighthearted, easy-to-read collection of stories that make you shake your head and laugh.
Wiley is a retired gynecologist and lives with his wife in Jackson. He is the author of several other titles including Mississippi Cotton King and Pushmataha: The Forgotten Warrior.
The Life and Times of Gary “Buzz” Roseman: On Having Reached 86 by Gary Roseman (EdD 72), 116 pages (hardcover, also available in Kindle), independently published, ISBN: 978-1959813682
The Life and Times of Gary “Buzz” Roseman is more than just a memoir; it’s a testament to the power of resilience, the beauty of human connection and the enduring spirit of adventure. Whether you’re reminiscing about your own journey or seeking inspiration for the road ahead, this book is sure to leave a lasting impression on your heart and soul.
Gary Roseman is a retired professor of English, having taught at DeKalb College and in the University System of Georgia and High Point University. He holds a doctorate in English and higher education from the University of Mississippi.
Information presented in this section is compiled from material provided by the publisher and/or author and does not necessarily represent the view of the Alumni Review or the Ole Miss Alumni Association. To present a recently published book or CD for consideration, please mail a copy with any descriptions and publishing information to: Ole Miss Alumni Review, Ole Miss Alumni Association, P.O. Box 1374, Oxford, MS 38655.
Rebel Traveler 2025
The alumni travel program is a service the Ole Miss Alumni Association offers as part of its mission to unite its alumni and keep them connected to Ole Miss and one another. OMAA has partnered with several tour operators that specialize in alumni travel to offer a broad selection of educational tours. Alumni and friends obtain group rates and discounts. Listed prices are per person, based on double occupancy, and pricing and dates are subject to change until booking. Airfare is not included unless noted. Visit olemissalumni.com/travel for a complete listing and the most up-to-date information.
Offerings and itineraries are subject to change or cancellation. OMAA strongly recommends purchasing travel insurance. For a brochure or more information on a trip, contact the Alumni office at 662-915-7375 or email travel@ olemissalumni.com.
WONDERS OF THE GALÁPAGOS ISLANDS
FEB. 2-12, 2025
Tour Operator: Gohagan
The Galápagos Islands represent a truly unique environment. Located 600 miles off the coast of Ecuador, the archipelago’s isolation combined with its nutrient-rich waters created one of the world’s richest marine ecosystems. Immerse yourself in the coastal landscapes that inspired Charles Darwin on this unequaled 10-day Galápagos journey, an unforgettable experience with a bounty of extraordinary wildlife. Begin your journey exploring the UNESCO treasures, rich indigenous traditions and contemporary verve of Quito, Ecuador’s beguiling capital city. Then travel to the Galápagos and discover the natural splendor of six Galápagos islands. These legendary islands, each with its own ecosystem, teem with endemic flora and fauna. The wildlife is uniquely
receptive to up-close human interaction — encounter birds, marine and land animals on included excursions. Walk with giant tortoises in San Cristóbal and swim with playful sea lions in Santa Fé. — From $7,495
GREAT SOUTHERN LANDS OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND
FEB. 9-24, 2025
Tour Operator: Go Next Hear “g’day” and “kia ora” as local Australians and New Zealanders greet you on this 14-night cruise aboard Oceania Cruises’ Regatta. Embark in Sydney and set sail for Melbourne. Wander through the many laneways lined with impressive street art or stroll the bustling Queen Victoria Market, an all-encompassing food hub since 1878. In Burnie, let local cheese makers dazzle your taste buds and in Hobart, journey to the summit of Mount Wellington for panoramic views of the city. As you make your way to New
Quito, Ecuador
Zealand, take in the sensational sights and sounds along the Tasman Sea and the Fjords of Milford Sound. In Timaru, enjoy a leisurely walk along the picturesque Carolina Bay. Then, watch a sheep-shearing display in Christchurch or see movie-making history in Wellington, where “The Lord of the Rings” was filmed. Bask in the sun on a beach in Napier. Enjoy a relaxing afternoon at a boutique winery in Gisborne, and before arriving in Auckland, immerse yourself in the Maori culture with a traditional hangi feast and performance. — From $7,699
CLASSIC PANAMA CANAL
FEB. 18 – MARCH 1, 2025
Tour Operator: Go Next Embark on an extraordinary 12-night cruise along the Panama Canal and the Caribbean Sea, where enchanting tales of the past merge seamlessly with breathtaking coastlines and vibrant local cultures. Set foot in Panama City, a mesmerizing fusion of tradition and modernity that links two worlds. Then, marvel at the Panama Canal before strolling down the narrow stone walkways of historic Cartagena. Feel the gentle embrace of the sun-drenched Sierra Nevada mountains and rest in the sand of the forest-fringed beaches of Santa Marta. In Oranjestad, observe the colorful colonial buildings and traverse the floating bridge in Willemstad.
Escape to the serenity of Port Antonio, a hidden gem of natural beauty. Before journey’s end in Miami, discover the vibrant markets in Nassau and immerse yourself in the rhythm of island life. —
From $3,899
BEST OF THE ALPS IN AUSTRIA AND ITALY (OLE MISS ONLY)
MARCH 6-17, 2025
Tour Operator: Alpine Adventures
Experience Italy and Austria on this exclusive journey with Ole Miss alumni and friends. After arriving in Venice and transferring to Bolzano for four nights, travelers experience the city with a guided tour and a visit to the Museum of Archaeology in Bolzano dedicated entirely to the glacier mummy Ötzi, the Iceman. The next day brings a full-day tour of the Dolomites (the Italian Alps), visiting Cortina d’Ampezzo, the most well-known ski resort in Italy and one of the hosts of the Winter Olympic Games in 2026. Visit Juval Castle, the summer residence of world-famous mountaineer Reinhold Messner, and the Messner Mountain Museum before a wine tasting on the return to Bolzano. Next, journey via Brenner Pass to Innsbruck with a guided city tour and visit to Swarovski Museum. Then head to Salzburg and the Fortress of Hohensalzburg. The next day includes a tour to Kitzbuhel and Zell am See. Visit Hallein and Berchtesgaden
salt mines, the oldest active salt mine in Germany before embarking on a journey into the depths of the Alps. Explore the stunning natural beauty of the Salzkammergut lake district and the village of St. Wolfgang. Visit Fuschl Castle before the farewell dinner followed by a day at leisure. — From $5,724
GREAT TRAINS AND GRAND CANYONS
MARCH 9-14, 2025
Tour Operator: Premier World Discovery “The Grand Canyon is the one great sight which every American should see.” In 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt said this when he first laid eyes on one of nature’s most awe-inspiring sights. Every traveler should explore the beautiful American West, and that is exactly what you will do on this exciting program to Arizona. This travel experience features a combination of American West highlights with the scenery of Grand Canyon National Park and the red rocks of Sedona, the Native American history at the Montezuma Castle National Monument, the Old West nostalgia of two train rides and five nights at a picturesque property in Sedona, Arizona. Just north of Phoenix, Sedona is known for its upscale resorts, artist galleries and breathtaking red rock scenery, and is the perfect “home base” for this six-day adventure. — From $3,795
St. Wolfgang, Austria
Rebel Traveler 2025
HAWAII THREE-ISLAND ADVENTURE
MARCH 11-19, 2025
Tour Operator: Premier World Discovery Aloha! From the moment you arrive in this incredible destination, you will be greeted with sheer beauty and a cultural experience like no other. You will quickly realize why Hawaii is known as the “Paradise of the Pacific.” With many exotic beaches, flowers, mountainous landscapes, breathtaking views and magnificent waterfalls, you will be amazed everywhere you travel within this incredible island state. We welcome you to experience three Hawaiian Islands on this incredible tour that features a perfect combination of sightseeing and leisure time in this island paradise. — From $5,995, including airfare
DUTCH WATERWAYS
APRIL 16-24, 2025
Tour Operator: AHI
Embark on a carefree, seven-night cruise along the intimate waterways of the Netherlands and Belgium brimming with centuries of history and Old World splendor. Delight in Amsterdam’s charming canals and stroll amid the glorious tulips at Keukenhof Gardens. Revel in Bruges’ wonderfully preserved Gothic gems and Antwerp’s impressive medieval old town. Other ports of call introduce you to Enkhuizen, a beautiful Dutch Golden Age city, and Veere, a laid-back harbor town. Enjoy enriching lectures and a choice of included excursions. Admire Enkhuizen’s stately landmarks on foot and by boat; tour the picturesque, 17th-century port town of Hoorn; or bike through the pastoral West Frisian countryside. See The Hague and the Mauritshuis’ celebrated masterpieces, watch artisans at the Royal Delft porcelain factory or sample farm-fresh cheeses in Gouda. In Bruges, visit a chocolaterie, discover the beer culture or take in renowned Belgian art. Unpack once aboard your exclusively chartered, first-class ship and savor generous meals with wine and beer at lunch and dinner. No single supplement. — From $3,595
RIVIERAS OF FRANCE AND ITALY
APRIL 19-27, 2025
Tour Operator: Gohagan
Experience the allure of the legendary Cote d’Azur under the billowing white sails of the Wind Spirit, a motorized sailing yacht with ocean views from every suite or stateroom. Immerse yourself in the best of the French and Italian Rivieras on our exclusive cruise itinerary, which takes you from Barcelona to the coast of Marseilles and along the sparkling coastline to such iconic destinations as Nice, Monaco, Portofino and Cinque Terre. Visit four UNESCO World Heritage sites: the medieval fortified city of Carcassonne, incomparable Riviera resort town of Nice in France, the Palazzi dei Rolli of Genoa and picturesque villages of Cinque Terre in Italy. Embark
and enchanting towns, let this alluring slice of Italy seduce your senses. From your base in charming Vietri sul Mare, set off to explore Amalfi and Positano, endearing villages perched majestically above the sea. Admire unspoiled vistas while cruising azure waters, and delve into fascinating legends at Herculaneum and Pompeii, frozen in time by the mudflows of Mount Vesuvius. Unravel history amid Paestum’s Greek temples and tuck into the region’s sensational cuisine, including olive oil and cheese tastings during a rural farm experience. Whether visiting the renowned National Archaeological Museum or discovering Old Naples, your Italian daydreams will come to life. This handcrafted, smallgroup journey features first-class accommodations and an extensive meal plan.
on unforgettable excursions, from the Rock of Monaco to the fountain-filled streets of Aix-en-Provence. Savor delicious local foods and wines during this unparalleled journey. Extend your stay with a pre-tour extension option in Barcelona and/or a post-tour extension option in Rome. — From 5,895
THE CHARM OF THE AMALFI COAST
APRIL 30 – MAY 8, 2025
Tour Operator: AHI
Behold the splendors of the Amalfi Coast on this incredible seven-night journey. From ancient ruins to sun-swept coasts
Along the way, local experts share their knowledge of the region as you discover the wonders of Italy. — From $3,495
EUROPEAN COASTAL CRUISE
MAY 3-12, 2025
Tour Operator: Gohagan
Visit four European countries and indulge all the senses on this eightnight cruise aboard a deluxe small ship. Connect the past with the present as you sail from Lisbon to London, exploring the cuisine and culture of Portugal, Spain, France and England. Retrace the footsteps of ancient pilgrims in Santiago de Compostela, delight in the exquisite
Carcassonne, France
collections of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, climb to the top of UNESCOinscribed Mont-St.-Michel and enjoy an overnight docked within view of London’s Tower Bridge. Experience culinary traditions and taste regional specialties throughout the tour, including the option to attend a Basque cooking demonstration. Meet guest speaker Dwight David Eisenhower II, grandson of President Dwight D. Eisenhower, as he leads you on a tour of the hallowed D-Day beaches at Normandy. Complement your journey with the Lisbon pre-tour and London post-tour extensions. — From $6,890
MASTERS OF THE AIR: THE MIGHTY EIGHTH OVER THE SKIES OF EUROPE
MAY 7-14, 2025
Tour Operator: National WWII Museum
The rural farmland of England’s East Anglia region became the Allied headquarters for the “Bomber War.” Villages with prewar populations in the hundreds, suddenly buzzed with the energy of thousands of pilots, crew and support staff carrying out the missions to bring about the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany. This was a new type of warfare, a war waged from the skies against an unseen enemy. The National WWII Museum’s exclusive weeklong Masters of the Air tour visits the villages and airfields from which American flyboys launched their massive bombing campaign against Nazi Germany. The
bases, control towers and museums that tell the story of the U.S. Eighth Air Force are part of the tour, but also the opportunity to view restored aircraft like the ones the Bomber Boys flew, to immerse yourself in the very pubs and country inns they frequented, and to meet, in London and elsewhere, survivors of the German Blitzkrieg. — From $6,495
BRITISH AND EMERALD ISLES JOURNEY
MAY 11-26, 2025
Tour Operator: Gohagan
In this exclusive journey, experience the best of the British Isles and Ireland, in all their variety and splendor. Immerse yourself in incredible destinations — from the dazzling metropolis of London to the windswept archaeological sites of the Scottish Isles; from the warm gregariousness of Dublin to the breathtaking natural beauty of the Lake District. Learn from distinguished guest speaker Allen Packwood, OBE, World War II and Winston Churchill expert, and visit Guernsey Island, where Hitler stockpiled armaments. Visit four UNESCO World Heritage sites, four castles and lesser known but unforgettable locales of Cowes, Tresco and Whitby. Ride on ferries and in black cabs, step inside ancient castles and among prehistoric stones, stroll in lush gardens and down cobbled streets. Enhance your experience with a London pre-tour extension. — From $12,590
GREECE: ATHENS AND CRETE
MAY 16-27, 2025
Tour Operator: AHI
Delight in authentic Greek island life on this enriching, 10-night journey featuring seven nights on Crete. Take in charming Cretan villages, tranquil beaches, olive groves and the breathtaking Aegean Sea over five nights in Heraklion and two nights in Chania. Revel in picturesque old towns and beautiful, 16th-century Venetian harbors in each locale, plus feast on Greek olives, seafood and wine. Enjoy guided tours of Knossos and Phaistos, major centers of the Minoan civilization, and view exquisite Greek and Minoan artifacts, including the mysterious Phaistos Disc. You’ll also set off to the stunning island of Santorini and delve into the intriguing history of Spinalonga Island. Learn how to make traditional Cretan dishes at a fun cooking class, marvel at one of the world’s oldest olive trees, and cruise on Chania Bay at sunset. During three nights in Athens, take in the glorious Parthenon on the Acropolis and admire the Acropolis Museum’s treasures. This remarkable, small-group program includes a round-trip flight to Crete, deluxe and first-class hotels, and illuminating insights from expert guides and lecturers. — From $5,690
EASY COMPANY: ENGLAND TO THE EAGLE’S NEST
MAY 19-31, 2025
Tour Operator: National WWII Museum
The HBO miniseries “Band of Brothers” brought the story of the 101st Airborne Division’s 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment “Easy Company” to millions of viewers. In the decades since its 2001 premiere, the men of Easy Company have become world famous, with their actions recounted and steps retraced from England to the Eagle’s Nest. Join us on this personal journey to the beaches, bridges, cities and villages where the legendary Easy Company fought the crucial battles across Europe and changed the course of history. Every tour features an original cast member from the miniseries, making this tour a truly unique experience. — From $8,299
Belém Tower, Lisbon, Portugal
A lumni News
M POWER
Class of 2028 members of the Ole Miss Alumni Association’s Future Alumni Network started a new freshman tradition as they came together on Sept. 22 to “Build the M” in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.
Photos by Bill Dabney
Class Notes
’60s BILL COSSAR (BBA 62), of Enid, was recognized by the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks Commission in June for his lifelong dedication to public service and outdoor stewardship.
LYTTLETON “LYT” T. HARRIS IV (BBA 62), of Houston, Texas, was recognized in August as an inductee into the 2024 LSU E.J. Ourso College of Business Hall of Distinction.
’70s VAN CHANCELLOR (MEd 74), of Katy, Texas, was announced in September as a member of the 2025 Houston Sports Hall of Fame class. He will be honored in January.
LAWRENCE WELLS (PhD 75), of Oxford, released a new book titled Ghostwriter: Shakespeare, Literary Landmines, and an Eccentric Patron’s Royal Obsession.
’80s JOHN GLENN (BBA 82), of Richmond, Texas, has joined U.S. Bank as senior vice president and private wealth adviser in Houston, Texas.
DEWEY HEMBREE (BBA 83, JD 86), of Madison, managing member of McGlinchey Stafford PLLC in Jackson, was recognized in the 2025 edition of The Best Lawyers in America in the area of product liability litigation – defendants.
CAL MAYO (BAccy 86), of Oxford, founding partner of Mayo Mallette in Oxford, was named 2024-25 president of the Mississippi Bar Foundation.
COLETTE OLDMIXON (JD 81), of Poplarville, received the Mississippi Bar’s 202324 Lifetime Achievement Award.
DAVE SHEPARD (BBA 82), of Cordova, Tennessee, entered his 42nd year with Tom James Custom Clothing.
WILLIAM A. THOMAS (BA 87, MD 91), of Augusta, Georgia, published his second novel, The Field of Justice: Moonshine and Murder in North Georgia. It is based on newspaper reports and transcripts of an 1887 murder trial.
’90s
MARC L. BOUTWELL (JD 92), of Lexington, was appointed to the part-time position of Oxford municipal judge. He will be assisting Judge Michael N. Watts (JD 84) as needed.
CHERYL DONALD (BA 97), of Brooklyn, New York, was sworn in as a career member of the U.S. Senior Executive Service and appointed director of the Office of Regional Operations at the Administration for Children and Families in Washington, D.C.
DAVID GADD (BA 97), of Laurel, was promoted to senior vice president and general manager of the retail business unit of Wayne-Sanderson Farms. Gadd will lead all aspects of the company’s retail operations and sales.
TIMOTHY HILL (BBA 96), of Philadelphia, was named interim president and CEO of Pearl River Resort.
ALAN LAMAR (MAccy 93), of Meridian, was elected to the board of directors of the Phil Harden Foundation, a statewide education philanthropy based in Meridian.
MEADE MITCHELL (BAccy 90, JD 93), attorney with Butler Snow LLP in Ridgeland, was sworn in as president of the Mississippi Bar.
RICHARD MYERS (JD 94), of Brentwood, Tennessee, was named executive member at the Nashville and Franklin office of Stites & Harbison PLLC.
JEANNIE SPECK-THOMPSON (BA 91), of Oxford, joined the University of Mississippi faculty in 2023 as university archivist and assistant professor.
SELDON VAN CLEVE (BBA 91), president of Van Cleve Insurance in Indianola, was elected chairman of the Independent Insurance Agents of Mississippi.
’00sR. WILLIAM ANDERSON (BA 01), of Philadelphia, was promoted to lieutenant at the Philadelphia Police Department.
DERECK BARR-PULLMAN (BAccy 02, MAccy 04, PhD 14), of Louisville, Kentucky, received tenure and was promoted to associate professor at the University of Louisville. He was also named director of the School of Accountancy.
JULIE J. GRESHAM (JD 01), of Ocean Springs, was recognized as an inductee of the 2024 University of Southern Mississippi’s Hall of Fame.
THOMAS GRIESEDIECK (BA 05), of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, was sworn in as a special district court judge for both Kay and Noble counties in July 2024.
MELISSA KING (BBA 07), of Tupelo, was selected as director of the Gardener Project at North Mississippi Rural Legal Services, advocating for victims of domestic violence in the courtrooms of Mississippi.
Alumni News
JOHN ROUSE (MBA 01), of Ridgeland, was recognized in the 2025 edition of The Best Lawyers in America in the area of product liability litigation – defendants.
ROBERT SAVOIE (BBA 07), of Solon, Ohio, was named as a Thomson Reuters Standout Lawyer for 2024.
’10sALFONDUS ALEXANDER (BBA 15), of Winona, received the Proclamation Award for service from the city of Winona.
ROBYN DORRIS (BAccy 10, MAccy 11), of Germantown, Tennessee, was hired as Baptist Memorial Hospital’s chief financial officer.
MATTHEW HALL (BBA 10), of Natchez, was named to Independent Banker’s 40 Under 40: Community Bank Leaders list.
NATALIE SHATRO (BBA 14), of St. Charles, Missouri, graduated from the University of Missouri in May 2024 with an MBA.
MARY KATE SKELTON (BS 18), of Oxford, was inducted into the 2024 Jones College Athletics Hall of Fame.
CAROLINE WALLER (BS 19), of Houston, Texas, accepted the role of communications coordinator at Duchesne Academy of the Sacred Heart.
’20sABIGAIL NICHOLS (BBA 23), of Olive Branch, was named the U.S. Small Business Administration 2024 Mississippi Young Entrepreneur of the Year.
LUKE REICHERT (BBA 22), of Biloxi, joined the sales division of United Rentals.
BIRTHS
James Keith, son of Ashley Browning Ball and Richard Keith Ball Jr. (JD 06), July 16, 2024.
June Marie, daughter of Erin Blair Henry and George Mark Henry Jr. (BS 07, MD 14), Sept. 9, 2023.
Jeremiah David, son of Erin Hoevelmann Houry (BSPhSc 17, PharmD 20) and Jordan David Houry (BSChE 18), Aug. 28, 2024.
WEDDINGS
Mary Kaitlyn Cornett and Jean Francois Larroux IV (BBA 15), March 23, 2024.
Carli Elena Glenn (BSW 21, MSW 22) and Luke McNeill Reichert (BBA 22), May 18, 2024.
Marisa Ann Panasci (BAccy 21, MADA 22) and Alec Dalton Poynter (BBA 20, MBA 21), July 6, 2024.
Natalie Shatro (BBA 14) and Kyle Bouman, Sept. 21, 2024.
IN MEMORIAM
1940s
Ralph Lucius Brock (MedCert 45, BA 45), of Flowood, July 21, 2024
Maralyn Howell Bullion (BA 44), of Oxford, Aug. 9, 2024
John James Fraiser Jr. (LLB 48), of Starkville, July 4, 2024
Robert Ballard Haltom (BA 48, BSPh 50), of Ridgeland, July 19, 2024
Robert Louis Marcus (BA 48), of Mountain Brook, Ala., July 31, 2024
Elizabeth Smith Meadows (BA 49), of Shreveport, La., July 17, 2024
Carl Albert Megehee (BA 49, LLB 50), of Gulf Shores, Ala., June 26, 2024
Perry Eugene Phillips (45), of Madison, June 8, 2024
James Leonard Vanderburg (49), of Hernando, Sept. 11, 2024
Thomas Milton Wilkinson (BA 47), of Lubbock, Texas, Aug. 16, 2024
REBEL WHO
1950s
Austin Fowlkes Barbour (BBA 56), of Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., July 1, 2024
James Harry Barkley (BA 57), of Ridgeland, Sept. 5, 2024
Nancy House Beck (BA 54), of Fernandina Beach, Fla., Sept. 8, 2024
Elizabeth Ball Brevard (BAEd 52), of Mobile, Ala., July 30, 2024
Dorothy Moffett Burford (BSN 58), of Waynesville, N.C., Aug. 18, 2024
Hugh Jonathan Burford (MS 56), of Waynesville, N.C., Dec. 3, 2023
Josephine Wollam Davis (MBEd 57), of Tupelo, Aug. 6, 2024
Robert Eaton Davis (BBA 51), of Hattiesburg, July 9, 2024
Eugene DeBow (BSPh 51), of Mantachie, June 20, 2024
William Edward Durham (BSGE 57), of Ridgeland, July 24, 2024
Jack Eady (MEd 53), of Crystal Springs, Aug. 30, 2024
Lael Trent Gooch (BSHPE 55, MEd 58), of New Albany, Aug. 18, 2024
Jane O’Keefe Graham (55), of Sumner, Sept. 14, 2024
Lucy Wallace Harkey (BA 54), of Brownwood, Texas, Aug. 18, 2024
Edwin Wilburn Hooker Jr. (BBA 59), of Lexington, Aug. 7, 2024
Walter Earl Huff (BSME 58), of Monroe, La., June 17, 2024
Hugh Richard Johnson Jr. (BS 54, MedCert 57), of Jackson, Sept. 10, 2024
Walter Richard Larson (BBA 53), of St. Petersburg, Fla., Aug. 25, 2024
Edwin Lamar Leggett (BSHPE 53, MEd 59), of Greenwood, June 26, 2024
Robert Ashford Little (BA 51), of Biloxi, Sept. 8, 2024
Robert Leslie Lyon Jr. (BBA 53), of Henrico, Va., July 13, 2024
Thomas Davis McBride (BBA 58), of San Diego, Calif., July 18, 2024
Charles Edward Moore Sr. (BA 57), of Tupelo, July 20, 2024
Dewey Frank Myers (59), of Jackson, Aug. 4, 2024
Anthony Thomas Papa (BBA 57), of Madison, July 28, 2024
Frank Abner Polk (BBA 50), of Hattiesburg, Aug. 11, 2024
Land Rush Watch Party
Members of the Ole Miss Alumni Association gathered on the front lawn of Triplett Alumni Center as tailgaters “land rushed” the Grove to secure their spots on Friday, Sept. 6, before the football game vs. Middle Tennessee State. The event featured live music, food and beverages.
Photos by Annie Rhoades
Alumni News
Fred Gene Ray (BBA 54), of Jackson, Sept. 12, 2024
Lehman Clark Sammons Jr. (BBA 50), of Bozeman, Mont., Aug. 31, 2024
Bernard Walter Schreiber (BBA 56), of North Sioux City, S.D., Sept. 2, 2024
Tommy Farrell Taylor (BBA 59), of Jackson, July 15, 2024
Mary Cooper Thesmar (BAEd 58), of Byhalia, July 28, 2024
Juanita Durham Thomas (55), of Oxford, Aug. 11, 2024
William Jackson Toler (BBA 50), of Inverness, June 22, 2024
Dandridge Franklin Walton (BAEd 56), of Georgetown, Ky., Aug. 24, 2024
James Leon Woods Jr. (54), of Central, S.C., Sept. 22, 2023
William Swan Yerger (BA 54), of Fairhope, Ala., Aug. 1, 2024
1960s
Elizabeth Julian Abadie (MA 62, PhD 73), of Oxford, July 30, 2024
Wadie Hill Abraham Jr. (MD 60), of Marion, July 21, 2024
Ellis Kale Albritton (MEd 67), of Lakeland, Fla., Aug. 19, 2024
James Bradley Arnold Jr. (BBA 60), of Oxford, Aug. 13, 2024
Mildred Etheridge Aust (MEd 60), of Gainesville, Fla., April 1, 2024
James Everitt Baine (JD 68), of El Dorado, Ark., July 3, 2024
Charles Arman Becker Jr. (JD 68), of Oxford, Aug. 27, 2024
William Roy Boone (BBA 60, MBA 61), of Ridgeland, Aug. 8, 2024
Jesse Allen Bourland III (MS 69), of Dothan, Ala., March 19, 2024
Lesbeth Hitt Cartledge (BAEd 64), of Ormond Beach, Fla., July 12, 2024
Virginia Maier Coggins (BA 69), of Amory, July 13, 2024
Charles Ray Counce (BBA 69), of Corinth, Aug. 18, 2024
Angus Leslie Emerson III (BSG 60), of Billings, Mont., June 24, 2024
Herman Donald Estes (BBA 65), of Oxford, Sept. 17, 2024
Alfred Lee Felder (BA 67, JD 69), of Summit, Aug. 15, 2024
Sandra Hill Fitts (61), of Corinth, July 21, 2024
John Wesley Gary III (BBA 65, JD 68), of North Palm Beach, Fla., June 22, 2024
Linda Louise Glenn (BSHPE 68, MEd 69), of North Fort Myers, Fla., June 17, 2024
Cole Brittain Gober (BS 65), of Beaumont, Texas, June 24, 2024
Robert Joseph Hamernik (MD 64), of Jackson, Feb. 5, 2024
Lester Eeds Hatcher (BA 60), of Vicksburg, Sept. 7, 2024
Charles Arthur Herbst Jr. (MD 67, MS 72), of Chapel Hill, N.C., Aug. 8, 2024
Patricia Horne Holcomb (BAEd 68), of Grand Junction, Colo., Sept. 5, 2024
Alumni News
Submitted photo
LOYAL FAN
John Brown sports his Ole Miss bandana and is always eager for Ole Miss football. Even though he and his parents, Jim (BBA 81) and Hope (BAEd 81) Cox live in North Georgia in Georgia Bulldog country, he is a loyal Rebel. Hotty Toddy, John Brown!
William Ervin McLellan III (JD 68), of Vestavia Hills, Ala., Aug. 12, 2024
Martin Lanier McRoberts (MD 66), of Hoschton, Ga., Sept. 4, 2024
Charles Edward Miller (BBA 69), of McKinney, Texas, July 20, 2024
Charles Leon Moniot (BSPh 64), of Oxford, July 2, 2024
Richard Ferris Newman (BA 63), of Williamsburg, Va., Aug. 9, 2024
William Richard Newman III (BBA 60, MBA 61), of Madison, July 28, 2024
Constance Cummings Nobles (61), of Basking Ridge, N.J., Aug. 3, 2024
Joseph Arrington Perrault Jr. (BBA 66), of Baton Rouge, La., June 21, 2024
Morris Clayton Phillips Jr. (BBA 66), of Carthage, Aug. 29, 2024
Hubert Powell Prewett Jr. (BSME 66), of Oak Ridge, Tenn., Aug. 10, 2024
Miles Riley Jr. (BBA 62), of Oviedo, Fla., Aug. 4, 2024
Kenneth Barkley Robertson (LLB 64), of Pascagoula, July 27, 2024
John Curlee Ross Jr. (BA 63, JD 67), of Corinth, Aug. 19, 2024
Marietta Martin Rutledge (MCS 63), of Lubbock, Texas, June 18, 2024
Rex Franklin Sanderson (BBA 61, JD 70), of Houston, July 20, 2024
Joseph Jay Schiller (BS 61, MS 87), of Sequim, Wash., Aug. 3, 2024
Eleanor Marshall Scudder (BA 63), of Bozeman, Mont., March 28, 2024
Rosemary Moore Seago (BAEd 64), of Madison, Aug. 21, 2024
Alexandria Taylor Barial (BA 02), of Gautier, Aug. 31, 2024
Patricia Juanita Dykes (Cert 04), of Richton, Aug. 23, 2024
Kevin Scott Ferguson (BSN 00), of Knoxville, Tenn., Sept. 8, 2024
Tipton Scott Masterson (BA 06), of Smyrna, Ga., May 25, 2024
Nicholas Alexander Parker (BBA 09), of Alpharetta, Ga., July 5, 2024
Wade Weathersby Ratcliffe (BSFCS 05), of Hattiesburg, Aug. 2, 2024
2010s
Dustin Graham Denton (BAPRM 11), of Tylertown, July 6, 2024
David Matthew Duckworth (DHA 16), of Nashville, Tenn., Sept. 7, 2024
Thieu Minh Hoang (18), of Oxford, July 13, 2024
Lewis Alan Longino (BA 12), of Chicago, Ill., July 8, 2024
Braden Leigh McCauley (10), of Oxford, Sept. 6, 2024
Daisha Bettia Pugh (16), of Jackson, Sept. 17, 2024
June Dunbar Rosentreter (11), of Chelsea, Mich., June 12, 2024
Jocelin Sanchez (19), of Tylertown, July 4, 2024
Shelton Reed Tillery (MBA 19), of Maben, June 6, 2024
CELL:
FACULTY, STAFF AND FRIENDS
Mark Alan Aten, of Oxford, July 12, 2024
Gail Scott Bullock, of Brandon, Aug. 2, 2024
Jim R. Chambless, of Oxford, June 20, 2024
Robert Murray Cheston III, of Harwood, Md., June 18, 2024
Oscar Weir Conner III, of Jackson, July 24, 2024
Adam Gallat Corley, of Hattiesburg, July 29, 2024
Sidney Smith Curry, of Atlanta, Ga., July 4, 2024
Durwood Wayne Goldman, of Bessemer, Ala., Sept. 3, 2024
Eddie Carroll Gregory, of Oxford, June 24, 2024
Jeffrey Thomas Gross, of Oklahoma City, Okla., June 6, 2024
Anees Hatim Kanorwala, of Cary, N.C., July 15, 2024
Barbara Bond Kellett, of Brandon, Sept. 11, 2024
Monte George Kiffin, of Oxford, July 11, 2024
Ken Miller, of Asheville, N.C., Aug. 21, 2024
Bobby Mann Noah, of Vaiden, Aug. 22, 2024
Ron Reed, of Ashland, Ky., July 25, 2024
Charles Primo Sbravati, of Clarksdale, July 18, 2024
Laron Shannon, of Ripley, Aug. 26, 2024
Sarah Whitlock Smith, of Pittsboro, N.C., Aug. 4, 2024
Marvin Franklin Sparks, of Magnolia Springs, Ala., June 27, 2024
Gregory Lee Tull, of Corinth, July 11, 2024
Donald Andreth Waller, of Oxford, Sept. 14, 2024
Lavern Sanders Whiteside, of Alpharetta, Ga., Aug. 12, 2024
Patricia Nason Williams, of Oxford, Aug. 29, 2024
David Matthew Zuefle, of Charlottesville, Va., July 9, 2024
Due to space limitations, class notes are only published in the Alumni Review from active, dues-paying members of the Ole Miss Alumni Association. To submit a class note, send it to records@olemiss.edu or Alumni Records Dept., Ole Miss Alumni Association, P.O. Box 1374, Oxford, MS 38655. Class notes also may be submitted through the Association’s website at olemissalumni.com. The Association relies on numerous sources for class notes and is unable to verify all notes with individual alumni.
SHOW YOUR PRIDE!
If you live in Mississippi, get your Ole Miss affinity plate today! Affinity plates are $51 a year, $32.50 of which comes to the university to support student scholarships and keep the Grove and Circle vibrant.
