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CLASS NOTES
Class N�tes ’71 HARRY SAVIO, B.A. in government, has joined Walton Development and Management in Austin as the company’s senior planning and development manager. Prior to taking the position, Savio worked as the vice president of government relations for the Home
Builders Association of Greater Austin for more than 25 years. ’73 MIKE PENRY, B.S. in agricultural business, was re-elected to a second term on the Cleveland city council. Penry has been the vice president of First
Bank and Trust in Cleveland since 2000. He is an officer in the local Lions Club as well as a board member for the
Cleveland Senior Citizens Center and Austin Memorial
Library. ’80 MIKE LEESE, M.A. in educational administration, has been promoted to Associate Vice President for Student Life at Tarleton. Prior to returning to Tarleton in 2012, Leese worked at Texas A&M University and later served as associate vice president and dean of students at Southwestern University in Georgetown. In addition, Leese earned his bachelor’s from Tarleton in government and earned his doctorate in higher education administration from Texas A&M.
BOB WHITNEY, B.S. in agricultural education, is teaching agriculture on a worldwide scale, with his next assignment located in Tunisia in North Africa. He spent 28 years with Texas AgriLife Extension and retired in 2010. After retiring, Whitney has continued sharing his agricultural knowledge in places like Honduras, Iraq and
South Africa. ’84 RONDA RIBBLE, B.S. in elementary education, was named Educator of the Year by the
Springtown Chamber of Commerce. Ribble has dedicated her 31-year professional career to the middle and high school students, teachers and administration of the Springtown Independent School District. She has served as a high school assistant principal, director of the Alternative Learning Campus and is the assistant principal at Springtown Middle School. In addition to her degree from Tarleton, Ribble received her master’s degree from Texas Woman’s University. ’85 SHARON HAYES, B.S. in biology, has been appointed as the city manager of Weatherford.
Prior to the position, Hayes served as assistant city manager. She started with the city in 1985. In addition to her Tarleton degree, Hayes earned a master’s degree in environmental science from Texas Christian University and a master’s degree in public administration from the University of North Texas. ’87 NANCY JACK, B.S. in agriculture, was honored by the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences Department of Animal Science at the University of Arkansas. The department established the Nancy Jack Award for Equine Excellence. Jack was an associate professor of animal science at Arkansas for 15 years. In addition to her degree from Tarleton, Jack received her master’s and doctorate from New Mexico State University. ’89 KRISTINE KLINE, B.B.A. in accounting, was selected as the new principal of Laura Bush Elementary in the Leander Independent School District. Kline previously served as the lower school principal at Hill Country Christian School. In addition to her degree from Tarleton, she earned her master’s degree from Texas State University. ’91JERRY BLAISDELL, B.A.A. in criminal justice, retired from serving as city manager of Weatherford. Prior to being appointed to the position in 2009, Blaisdell served as assistant city manager and police chief. He is certified as a master peace officer as well as a member of the FBI’s National Academy Associates, Inc., International Association of Chiefs of Police, Rotary International, Texas Police Association, Texas Police Chief’s Association and Parker County Sheriff Posse. ’95 LANCE CROSBY, B.B.A. in management, was chosen as the keynote speaker for Penton’s HostingCon Global, which is the premier conference and trade show for hosting and cloud providers. Crosby is the founder and visionary behind SoftLayer, an IBM Company. In addition to his degree from Tarleton, Crosby earned his juris doctor from Texas Wesleyan School of Law. He is a licensed attorney in the state of Texas and is an active member of the State Bar of Texas. KAREN MUNOZ, B.S. in interdisciplinary studies, served as the keynote speaker for the Hispanic Seniors Recognition Banquet in Abilene. Munoz is the principal at Cooper High School. In addition to her degree from Tarleton, Munoz also received her master’s from Abilene Christian University and doctorate from Texas Tech University. JAMES RICH, B.A. in English, received the Spirit of a Champion Award from Duncanville Independent School District, for demonstrating expertise and leadership for the betterment of students. Rich teaches journalism and oversees all the publications for the high school. In addition to his degree from Tarleton, Rich earned his master’s from the University of North Texas. ’98 ALAN KUNST JR., B.B.A. in interdisciplinary
business, and RALPH MATTISON JR., M.ED. in
physical education, opened a Sloan & Williams Winery together in 2013. The venture has done so well that the duo has opened a second location in Grapevine. Kunst and Mattison met in the ROTC while at Tarleton and both went on to serve in the military.
’00 AMY GALINDO, B.B.A. in marketing, was named as Vice President of Market Services at the Dallas Market Center. Prior to joining the Dallas Market Center, Galindo was a sales professional for Jan Barboglio and worked with key retailers such as Neiman Marcus. ’01 LISA CLAWSON, B.B.A. in accounting, was promoted to Assistant Vice President of Financial Accounting at TexasBank. Prior to the promotion, Clawson served as the Financial Accounting Officer at TexasBank, where she has worked since 2002.
JANET OGDEN, B.B.A. in marketing, was promoted to Senior Vice President of Retail Services at TexasBank. Prior to the promotion, Ogden was the Vice President of Retail Services at TexasBank. Ogden is also a board member for the United Way of Brown County.
’02 AVALOY LANNING, B.S.W. in social work, has been selected as the executive director of the Rutland County Women’s Network and Shelter. Lanning’s background includes more than 15 years of fighting human trafficking. In addition to her Tarleton degree, she earned her master’s from the National Catholic School of Social Service at the Catholic University in Washington, D.C.
LARRY THOMPSON, B.B.A. in management, was selected to teach an advanced industrial cybersecuriity course offered by the International Society of Automation. He is an industrial network and control systems consultant and an ISA Certified Automation Professional. Thompson served 20 years in the Air Force as well as writing several ISA books.
’03 DONNA BREWER, B.S. in mathematics, received the Welch Foundation grant. Brewer serves as the math department chairwoman and teaches pre-calculus and dual-credit math classes at Copperas Cove High School.
MISTY SHAW, B.A. in accounting, joined the Azle News and Springtown Epigraph as a reporter. Shaw is not new to the newspaper business as her start began in 2004 as a reporter for the Stephenville Empire-Tribune.
KELLY TARLA, M.S. in agriculture, was selected as the new Burnet County AgriLife Extension agent. Prior to accepting the position, Tarla taught elementary school in Florence. In addition to earning her master’s degree from Tarleton, Tarla received her bachelor’s in agricultural services and development from Tarleton. ’05 DOUG SHAW, M.S. in general agriculture, was selected as the new general manager for the Upper Trinity Groundwater Conservation District. Prior to taking the position, Shaw spent nine years with the Texas Water Development Board in the water planning division, becoming an ombudsman in 2013. Shaw also earned his bachelor’s from Tarleton in agricultural economics.
JASON MAYO, M.ED. in educational administration, has been selected as the principal of Temple High School. Prior to taking the position, Mayo was the principal of Bonham Middle School and has also served as an assistant principal at several schools. In addition to his master’s degree from Tarleton, Mayo earned his bachelor’s and doctorate from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. ’06 ALISON SCHANNEP BELLIVEAU, M.ED. in educational administration, was named Administrator of the Year for the Career and Technology Association of Texas. She works as the Career and Technology Education coordinator for Killeen Independent School District.
’07 BLAKE CAMPBELL, B.S. in agribusiness, received his juris doctor degree from Texas A&M University’s School of Law. In addition to his degrees from Tarleton and law school, Campbell received his master’s from Texas Tech University.
’08 CYLYNN BRASWELL, M.S. in information systems, coordinator at Northwest Independent School District’s Outdoor Learning Center, has been named as the director of career and technical education. She previously served as an agricultural science instructor at Byron Nelson High School as well as teaching in the McKinney school district. Her bachelor’s is also from Tarleton in agricultural services and development. KRYSTAL HATFIELD, B.S. in kinesiology, was hired as the Stephenville Chamber of Commerce’s programs and events coordinator. Hatfield’s previous position was as a lead teacher at Faith School in Stephenville. JENNA MARWITZ, B.S. in international studies (far right), and former student Nicole Sparks (far left) have turned cooking into a “crockin” adventure. The best friend duo from Brownwood combined being busy moms and slow cooker recipes into a viral hit. With more than 763,000 Facebook followers, Sparks and Marwitz have also crossed over into print publications. They published “The Crockin’ Girls: Slow Cookin’ Companion” in 2012. Tarleton President Dr. Dottavio and his wife, Lisette got a sneak preview of the new book, “The Crockin’ Girls It’s Our Crockin’ Life,” which hit stores in August.
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’09 MATTHEW STEWART, M.B.A. in business administration, has been named Vice President of Credit Analysis at Gulf Coast Business Credit in Austin. Stewart has nine years of experience in the financial services industry and holds a financial analysis certification from the Risk Management Association. ’10 BRIEANA TUNISON, B.S. in animal science, joined the veterinary team at Emergency Animal Hospital of Northwest Austin as its newest veterinarian. Tunison will provide urgent and emergency and critical care for pets. In addition to graduating summa cum laude from Tarleton, she graduated magna cum laude from Texas A&M University’s Veterinary School. ’13 TEDI SCHMIDT, B.S. in communication studies, joined the Balcom Agency in Fort Worth as its director of first impressions. Prior to Balcom, Schmidt served as assistant coordinator at Jordan Payne Events, a luxury wedding planning company in Dallas. FLOYD INGRAM, B.S. in agricultural services and development, was named as Milam County’s extension agent for agriculture and natural resources. Ingram completed a two-year internship with Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service in Ellis County before joining the extension office in Milam County. ’14 JUSTIN MCGRIFF, M.S. in agriculture, has been hired as the agriculture and natural resources agent for Fisher County by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. McGriff earned his bachelor’s from Angelo State University, where he worked at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center at San Angelo collecting scientific data and caring for livestock. CHARLES MOORE, B.S. in kinesiology was named to the 2015 National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society, which is comprised of players from all divisions who maintained a cumulative 3.2 GPA or better throughout their college career. Also, Moore was named to the Lone Star Conference Commissioner’s Honor Roll in 2013 and an LSC Honor Roll honorable mention in 2012. JORDAN SIMONS, B.S. in communication studies, joined the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo as its social media manager. Simons grew up in Aledo.
’15 JACOB HENDRICKS, B.B.A. in marketing, was selected as the marketing coordinator for Stephenville’s Chamber of Commerce. Hendricks recently Contact us Send your alumni and class updates to Tarleton State University: Box T-0730, Stephenville, TX 76402 media@tarleton.edu | (254) 968-9460 completed a marketing internship with Tarleton’s Career Services. Class N�tes
Never better expressed than when Tarleton graduates receive Tarleton rings—a priceless reminder of their achievements at Tarleton and their preparation for their professional careers.
Proud students-proud parents!
Tarleton’s annual Ring Ceremony arrives on OCTOBER 2— make your student proud! Mac ‘71 and Kathy McKinnerney admire the Tarleton ring that son Shea shows off. The beautiful commemorative ring—first in the world to feature series numbering as part of the design— provides a constant reminder of the lifelong friendships and achievements made at Tarleton and tells the world that you are proud of your Tarleton roots and heritage. The traditional border of the University seal encircles the Tarleton T and the State of Texas, while the sides reflect the university with the campus gates and cannon surrounded by oaks and antique lamp posts on one side and the impressive architecture of the administration building on the other.
