Patriot SALUTE
Dr. Dennis Trickett "Psych"ed for Cumberlands
Dr. Dennis Trickett, ’79, who is usually known as “Denny” to friends, originally enrolled at Cumberlands with plans to pursue music ministry after college. After a psychology class under Dr. Robert Darby, however, he switched his major from music to psychology and has been active in that field ever since. After graduating in 1979, Denny attended graduate school, then returned to Williamsburg, Kentucky, in 1986. He worked for a community mental health center for about 10 years. Then, in 1997, psychology professor Dr. Brooks (one of Denny’s old professors) announced his retirement, and Denny was approached to interview for the position. He got the job, and over the next 21 years he worked up to full professor status and served as the Department of Psychology chair for 11 years. In 2017, he was given Cumberlands’ award for Excellence in Teaching. He retired in 2018. “My wife retired the same year from the public school system, so we decided to go out together,” he said. Denny’s wife, Paula (Estes) Trickett, ’82, studied math and accounting at Cumberlands. She was a math teacher, then assistant principal, and then deputy superintendent for the Whitley County school system. As a Cumberlands student, Denny played intramural sports (basketball, softball, volleyball, and flag football) and was involved in Love in Action (now Appalachian Ministries). As a professor, he served as a STRIPE in the Insights program for 10 years and helped lead Psi Chi, the psychology honor society on campus. He also helped design the original online master’s degree program in counseling for the university. He and the other psychology professors tried to teach with a rigor that would prepare their students for graduate school. 38
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SPRING 2021
“I sought to push students beyond what they perceived as their limits,” he said. “I hoped they learned not to doubt their ability to succeed…as long as they were willing to work very hard.” Denny taught all of the psychology courses at some point, except for a couple of special topics courses and the Research Design and Statistics courses. In his words, “No one could improve on Dr. Stephens’ mastery of those.” His favorite courses to teach were the counseling courses and Psychology of Religion. The most challenging part of teaching was keeping the courses relevant for students and helping them learn how to apply concepts to their lives instead of merely “spitting back” information they had memorized onto a test. The most rewarding thing was seeing his students – especially those who struggled initially – go on to succeed in graduate programs or in professions of their choosing. For him, the job wasn’t about course content; it was always about the people, both faculty and students. “The dedication of the people there and the spirit of service is what makes Cumberlands unique,” he said. “I sorely miss the day-to-day interactions with the other psychology professors. They were the best group of colleagues one could ever hope for. And, as much as I enjoy retirement, I miss being in the classroom with the students. They pushed me to be a better instructor and person." After retirement, he and his wife traveled quite a bit until the pandemic hit. They keep up with their grandkids as much as they can, though the families are scattered from Virginia, to Texas, to Colorado. When Denny isn’t watching grandchildren or in front of his computer (he still teaches a few online classes for Cumberlands), he is generally tinkering in his garage, woodworking, or working in the yard. He also hunts and fishes, and he and his wife hike when the weather permits.
