Association of Honors Alumni

AHAUNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA

Sederberg to RetirePage 4

Refl ections on Peter Sederberg’s tenure and impact on the University

South Carolina Honors College

p.2

ford’s years of experience waging war at sea can translate to a different kind of battle that will unfold on the fi eld down at Williams-Brice. His advice isn’t bad for students and football enthusiasts alike: “Drink plenty of water, exercise regularly, eat well and always remember—there ain’t no free lunch.”

As for Shuford, he’s defi nitely earned his.

—Rachel Moyle Beanland (2003)

AHA! is the offi cial newsletter of the Association of Honors Alumni and is published twice yearly for alumni of the South Carolina Honors College by the South Carolina Honors College.

Managing Editor: Carissa Hansford

Copy Editor: Susan Nesbitt Ward (1990)

To reach us: 803-777-8102 or alumni@schc.sc.edu

Alumni Correspondents: Rachel Moyle Beanland (2003), Michele Marple Thomas (1992), Susan Nesbitt Ward (1990)

05204 University Publications 5/05

ford graduated and began his fi rst assignment on the USS Blakely, where he served in the operations depart-ment. That tour was followed by another serving as oper-ations and plans offi cer for the commander, Naval Forces Korea. Shuford excelled in his military assignments and in 1979, he was selected to be an Olmstead Scholar, affording him the opportunity to study for two years in France at the Paris Institute of Political Science. He then went on to earn master’s degrees in public administration from Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and in national security and strategy from the Naval War College, where he graduated with the highest distinction.

Over a 30-year career, he’s amassed fi ve Legion of Merit awards, a Bronze Star, three Meritorious Service Med-als, three Navy Commendation Medals, and the Navy Achievement Medal.

And now he has another award to add to the list, one with perhaps a slightly more down-home feel. The Dis-tinguished Honors Alumni Award, Shuford says, is particularly meaningful. “I’m honored to be a part of something important—an institution with a great his-tory and continuing impact. It is very nice to be ‘claimed’ by your alma mater!”

Dr. Steve Lynn, Shuford’s former roommate and USC’s current English department chairman, said of his friend, “He was fully committed to whatever he was doing. We knew we would read about Jacob one day in the papers.”

Shuford, in turn, said of his honors-program classmates: “I learned to recognize and use the genius of classmates to gain perspective.”

Over the years, Shuford has managed to get back to Columbia for a football game or two each season, despite the number of years he’s spent abroad or at sea. As a new era of football begins this fall at Carolina, perhaps Shu-

Shuford wins Distinguished Honors Alumni Award

Anchors Aweigh, my boys, Anchors Aweigh.

Farewell to college joys, we sail at break of day.

Through our last night on shore, drink to the foam,

Until we meet once more,

Here’s wishing you a happy voyage home.

—Anchors Aweigh, United States Navy Anthem

When SCHC announced this year’s Distinguished Alumni Award, the honoree’s long list of accomplish-ments wasn’t out of the ordinary. After all, the Honors College has graduated plenty of extraordinary people in its four-decade history.

But Jacob Lawrence Shuford’s accomplishments aren’t noteworthy simply for their plenitude. They read like a classifi ed battle plan—words like Desert Fox, Sea War-rior, and Tomahawk jump off the page. But when you’re the 51st president of the Naval War College in Newport, R.I., those words begin to make a little more sense. Oh, and by the way, Jacob doesn’t go by Jacob anymore. It’s Rear Admiral Jacob Lawrence Shuford, for those of you who weren’t buddies of his during his days at Carolina.

Shuford, a native of Bishopville, was one of the fi rst stu-dents admitted to USC’s honors pro-gram, forerunner to SCHC. He’d been a Game-cock fan through-out his childhood, so it seemed natu-ral to go to Caro-lina when the time came to apply to school.

He may have matriculated into the University with jour-nalism and the performing arts on his mind, but by the time he graduated in 1974 with successful completion of the Navy ROTC program under his belt, there was nowhere else he wanted to be except out at sea.

Shuford remembers long-time English professor Dr. George Geckle returning what Shuford had assumed was an “A” paper with a “C” scratched at the top of the page. Shuford laughingly says of his foray in literature, “I fi g-ured out that ships and tides wait for no one.”

While at Carolina, Shuford booked artistic perfor-mances for the University and was a member of Kappa Sigma fraternity. Some of his fondest memories of USC include marveling at just how little work his fraternity brothers managed to do while he was busy balancing the demands of the honors program with Thursday marches to the Navy ROTC drill.

The marches must have paid off, however, because Shu-

“We knew we would read about Jacob one day in the papers.”

-former roommate Steve Lynn

Navy Admiral Jacob Shuford

Shuford’s college roommate and mentors attended the brunch. From left: Steve Lynn (1974), Professor George Geckle (English), Shuford, and Professor Bob Oakman (computer science and English)

Call for nominationsNominations for the Distinguished Hon-

ors Alumni Award come from alumni, staff

members, and various friends of the college;

nominees are asked to submit supporting

materials. Up to two winners are recognized

each year at the SCHC Alumni Brunch

during USC’s Homecoming weekend and

the Carolina Alumni Association awards

banquet the same weekend. Each winner

receives an engraved memento and a piece of

Honors College sportswear as a reminder of

the honor. Nominations for the 2005 award

will be accepted through Aug. 1, 2005.

Nominarions can be e-mailed to

alumni@schc. sc.edu

AHA

p.3

Competition drives scholar athletes to excelHomework and team-work: for athletes who are Carolina or McNair scholars, both are areas in which to compete.

Each year, 20 S.C. stu-dents are named Carolina Scholars and 20 out-of-state students are named McNair Scholars. Recip-ients of these prestigious awards receive stipends for four years of undergrad-uate study, provided they maintain at least a 3.00 grade point average.

Such high-achieving students who also are varsity ath-letes can be found in baseball, tennis, and track and fi eld, to name a few. For these students, the drive to win—in the classroom and on the fi eld, or court or in the pool—is what motivates them.

“I would still run whether I was part of a team or not, but I would miss the competition very much if I was running on my own,” said Karen Wigal, a sophomore McNair Scholar (W.Va.) and member of USC’s track and fi eld team. “There is nothing like the feeling after fi nishing a great race.” Wigal, a chemical engineering major with a 4.00 GPA, runs cross-country and indoor and outdoor track.

The same spirit of competition rings true for runner and Carolina Scholar David Johannesmeyer. “Origi-nally, I had not planned to continue running in college.

However, I realized that I would miss the competing aspect of (competitive) run-ning. Running is one of my passions, and I am happy to have the opportunity to con-tinue it at the collegiate level.” Johannesmeyer runs track and fi eld, specifi cally the 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter. A biology major, he also enjoys reading, playing the piano, snowboarding, and hanging out with friends.

Many of these scholar athletes come to Carolina with a passion that started early in life. “I’ve been playing base-ball since I was 5 years old,” said freshman Carolina Scholar Brad Hock-ing. “I played four sports until I was 13, but I chose to stick with baseball because I love the team aspect of the game. It was always a dream of mine to pitch for Caro-lina, so I feel very fortunate to be in the position that I am today.” Hocking will redshirt this season and begin playing with the team in spring 2006, although he prac-tices and lifts weights with the team every day. Aside from majoring in business, Hocking mentors a student at Joseph Keels Elementary School.

Coming to Carolina as a scholar has added value for those who are also athletes. Grace Blakely, a McNair

Scholar (Pa.) said, “One major reason that I chose USC over multiple Ivy League schools was so that I could play tennis with a competitive program and continue to grow my game.” Blakely is a mathematics major, University Ambassador, and founder and president of two new stu-dent organizations, as well as the winner of a fellowship from the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies.

So when do these scholars have time to fi t in all of the demands on their schedules?

Blakely says it’s tough. “Being a scholar athlete is defi -nitely not for the fainthearted. The most obvious chal-lenge is that there are only 24 hours in a day. Practice and training take hours every day, (forcing) me to budget my time strictly to have enough time also to study.”

Wigal votes for a lon-ger day too. “I really wish days were about 30 hours long. We have to fi nd time to practice, go to class, lift (weights), study, work, get adequate sleep, and eat well. Somewhere in there we have to fi nd time for a social life and relaxation.”

Johannesmeyer and Hocking agree that balancing daily life is tough. “The hardest thing is trying to fi nd time to get everything done,” said Hocking. “Even during the off-season, practices, conditioning, and weight training take up a large portion of each day.”

—Jan Smoak

In September 2004, Alexa Maddox joined the Honors College as an academic advisor and the director of communications. She replaces Cameron Blazer, who left to attend the Charleston School of Law.

Maddox brings a strong background in both communications and advising to her new position. In 1990, she earned a BA in English from USC and in 1996, a master’s in the same fi eld from Appalachian State University. Prior to joining SCHC, Maddox was a study-abroad advisor for the International Programs for Students Offi ce at USC. Other accomplishments include working as a VISTA volunteer, a magazine editor, and an editorial assistant.

Maddox (center) with her in-laws at the Golden Temple in Amritsar, India

Karen Wigal

David Johannesmeyer

Brad Hocking

Maddox has a passion for travel and learning about other cultures. Her cur-rent interest is studying Punjab culture, language, and food—she recently married an Indian national. She also likes dance, including salsa and bhangra.

As an advisor, Maddox says she aspires to be accessible and wise, and hopes to develop more international opportunities for the students in SCHC.

She can be reached at alexamaddox@schc.sc.edu.

—Michele Marple Thomas (1992)

Grace Blakely

Alexa Maddox joins college

p.4

vision when he became dean (in 1994). He could not have gone as far as he did with that vision if not for the active, strong support of President John Palms,” she said.

“The Honors College is the intellectual heart of under-graduates at the University,” said Palms, who retired as

president in 2002 but still teaches for SCHC. “Its vital-ity stimulates the academic lives of students and faculty. The Honors College continues to attract the best stu-dents coming out of high school. They deliver key lead-ership on our campus.

“Peter Sederberg has always been dedicated to excel-lence in undergraduate education,” he continued. “He

The search is underway for a new dean of SCHC, and by all accounts, Peter Sederberg is a tough act to follow.

Sederberg retires in June, after 30 years’ involvement with the Honors College. Much of the original vision for the college has been realized in just these past few years under his leadership.

“Dr. Sederberg is not replaceable—we are searching for a successor,” said Bruce Coull, chairman of the search committee. “Dr. S. has incredible energy, drive, and love of the SCHC. We are hoping we can fi nd someone with similar qualities, but we know that will not be easy,” he said.

“I don’t think we could fi nd anyone who loves the Hon-ors College more than Peter,” said Patsy Tanner, SCHC business manager, who has been with the honors pro-gram for 31 years. “He has put his all into it.

“Peter is a family-oriented man and a very caring per-son,” she said. “He loves his children and wife and loves talking about them and sharing with us things they have done. He is always thinking about the staff and their needs; the same with the students. I guess that is what I appreciate about him the most. He is easy to talk to and work for.”

“Peter is a man of extraordinary integrity, intellect, ded-ication, and good spirits,” said his wife of 20 years, Jan Love. “As dean, Peter has been like a kid in a candy store. He sees many great possibilities and goes to work each day eager to seize them all. It’s very gratifying to see someone so fulfi lled in his work.

“Peter thrives under challenging circumstances, and he has a passion for creatively solving problems,” she said. “Guiding the SCHC has certainly offered many chal-lenges and interesting problems to solve, so he’s never bored!”

Love and Sederberg met in 1982 when she began teach-ing at USC as an assistant professor. “By that time Peter was already a full professor and was taking a break from doing any administration with the Honors College,” she explained.

“He had been involved in one way or another since its founding. He clearly had a vision of how great the SCHC could be, however, and began to implement that

Then and Now: Sederberg’s association with the Honors College spans 30 years

“I don’t think we could fi nd anyone who loves the Honors College more than Peter. He has put his all into it.”

-Patsy Tanner, SCHC business manager

Sederberg steps down after decade of serviceTime marches on...

July 1: Sederberg assumes deanship

1994 1994 Association of Honors Alumni established

Association of Honors Alumni

AHA

Renovation of Maxcy, a residence hall for fi rst-year Honors students

1996A fall tradition: moving freshmen into Maxcy

Research-based learn-ing is born, signifi cantly enriching honors aca-demic opportunities; Flinn Hall classrooms acquired

1997Quality of Honors students continues to improve, bolstered by the fi rst class of McNair Scholars

1998 Members of the fi rst class of McNair scholars Members of the fi rst class

1997

Milestones in Sederberg’s tenure

also is innovative in conceptualizing the idea of learning through research, and has fostered and published on that subject for undergraduates.”

Few people take Sederberg’s support of the concept more personally than Doug Williams, one of SCHC’s asso-ciate deans, who joined the Honors College eight years ago. “Peter literally rescued me professionally,” he said. “We intersected during a time in my life when I was struggling to defi ne and put forward a concept called ‘research-based learning.’ I was meeting considerable resistance and hostility from close-minded and small-thinking faculty in my home program.

“Peter recognized the potential of my ideas immedi-ately and enthusiastically joined me, pooling our intel-lectual resources and energy, becoming partners, thus making an exciting concept a reality and part of the mis-sion of the Honors College,” he said. “For this and many other kindnesses and examples of his support, I will be for-ever grateful.”

It’s hard to summarize a career stretching back to the very beginnings of the honors program, but Sederberg said he is proud of three things: “First, that we have been able to expand the size of the college while improving the quality of both its students and its programs. Second, I am pleased that the college is perceived by our most tal-ented faculty as a venue for experimentation. Finally, I

p.5

am proud of the evolving vision of research-based learn-ing. It really is an empty vessel into which we have been pouring content for the last seven years. Some of it has been exceptionally successful, other ideas have not worked, but the effort and promise remain worthwhile.

“I am grateful for the support of the University leader-ship over my tenure, especially John Palms,” he contin-ued.

“I am grateful for the staff of the Honors College. I hes-itate to mention anyone, without mentioning all of them. I feel, though, I cannot fail to note Patsy Tanner, who has meant so much to the college and its precursor for three decades. I also benefi ted greatly from my col-laboration with Doug Williams, my co-conspirator on research-based learning. Finally, I must mention my pre-decessor—twice—Bill Mould. He and I really wrote the proposal and shepherded it through all levels of approval within the University. He laid the foundation; I have had the chance to build on it. My successor will, I hope, con-tinue to build on what we have prepared.”

Mould, who is in a unique position to counsel Sederberg on the adventures that await after retiring from SCHC, has advice to share with Sederberg.

“1. Make no decisions for a year. You may think you want to buy a farm, or move to Samoa, or go to med school. Give it a year. Relax. Get used to catching up on your reading, on letter-writing, or gardening or cook-ing or golf or whatever—but keep it small scale. After a year, you are ready to take your passport in hand and do whatever you want.

“2. Do not think that you will fi nally do what you have never done. If you have never gardened, you won’t do it in retirement. If you have never backpacked, or run the marathon or learned a foreign language, you are unlikely to do it in retirement. Retirement is a wonderful time to return to past efforts, expand them, fi nd out if you are really any good at them. This is not to say that retire-ment is not a time of growth; quite the contrary. But you are unlikely to become a different person, just a bet-ter one.”

And he added, “Hope and pray that your successor is as fi ne a dean as mine has been. When I left the college to you, I felt a little bit like when we sent our sons off to college—hopeful, and somewhat scared. You took this ‘child’ and led him/her into maturity. (My successor) did a wonderful job. I wish you the same good fortune.”

—Susan Ward (1990)

The Long Goodbye

Now begins the long goodbye. As many of you already know, I am stepping down as dean of the col-lege at the end of this academic year. The major reason for my decision is timing— whenever one is in a position of leadership, it’s better to walk out

the door freely than to wait for the defenestration.

In addition, our business manager, Patsy Tanner, will be retiring no later than June 2006. Patsy has worked in the Honors College and its precursor honors program for 31 years. My successor would benefi t greatly from her presence over the next year.

Still, breaking up, as the song says, is hard to do. For 30 years, the South Carolina Honors College has been a part of my professional life at Carolina. It was my privi-lege to serve on the committee that designed the college. Bill Mould, then director of the honors program and chair of the founding committee, and I shepherded the proposal through all levels of University approval.

When Bill’s term as director ended in 1976, I suc-ceeded him and during my tenure implemented the col-lege proposal, admitting its fi rst class in 1978. Bill was appointed the fi rst “master,” later dean, of the college in 1979, and I followed him once again in 1994. Bill and I, then, have led honors education at the University since 1973, so this transition to new leadership is criti-cal, providing yet another reason to try to make the new dean’s path as smooth as possible.

Our vision for the college we created three decades ago has been largely fulfi lled:

We wished to attract more high quality students to Car-olina. Our fi rst class in 1978 numbered approximately 120 students; over the last three years we have averaged 270 entering freshmen. We do not have comparable data going back to the 1970s, but in 1994, the average SAT score was 1316 and the weighted high school GPA was 3.92. For the last three years we have averaged SAT

scores of 1399 and WGPAs of over 4.40.

Attracting more fi ne students was only half the plan. We also aimed to develop enriched academic oppor-tunities for these students across all four years. In the late 1970s, we provided about 40 honors courses per semester for a college of approximately 450 students. We now typically offer more than 120 courses each semester for a student body of 1,100.

We hoped the college would become a venue for aca-demic innovation. Over the past three decades, we have pioneered hundreds of honors proseminars, many of which have subsequently been introduced into the reg-ular curriculum. We have fostered interdisciplinary investigation and encouraged the expansion of under-graduate research opportunities.

We envisioned creating a quasi campus within the Uni-versity that would provide honors residential oppor-tunities for as many of our students as desired them. From the fringes of the campus and housing for 35 students, we have moved to the historic heart of the University and provide honors housing for up to 600 students.

We dreamed of using the college as a lever to lift the entire institution. Obviously we have helped enhance the quality of the undergraduate student body. Our students, in turn, have improved the school not only through their academic excellence and the recognition they earn, but also through the leadership they contrib-ute to the University community.

Also important are the substantive changes we have fostered. Most recently, the Honors College took the lead in establishing a celebration of undergraduate research and inquiry—Discovery Day—in all disci-plines. Our leadership helped prompt the University to move toward the creation of an Offi ce of Undergradu-ate Research that will foster these opportunities for all undergraduates.

The new dean will fi nd a fi rm foundation on which to build; not merely, I hope, to stand. Challenges of man-aged growth, maintained excellence, academic initia-tives, and appropriate resources in a time of increasing fi scal austerity await. The college, though, is poised to reach for the next level of excellence.

Bill and I cannot claim all the credit for this legacy. First, we have been assisted over the years by a wonderful and

Record breaker! Honors College offers 125 courses for the fi rst time

1999

Doug Williams taught “South-ern Horizon,” SCHC’s fi rst Maymester course

2000Caroline Parler named Rhodes Scholar. Seder-berg mentored Caro-line and many others for national competitions

Parler (center) with the Uni-versity Rhodes Scholarship Committee

2001USC Bicentennial Campaign kicks off. Under Sederberg’s tenure, the SCHC endow-ment surpasses $500K, outside funding increases dramatically, and new schol-arships are established

20042004 Sederberg advised Baccalaureus and Politi-cal Science majors, many of whom express fond memories of their mentor

Baccalaureus majors at the 2004 revocation ceremony

2005

Sederberg will step down June 30. At press time, a suc-cessor has yet to be named

continued on page 6

the door freely than to wait for the defenestration.

p.6

1960sJohn D. Culbertson (1969) recently retired, but stays busy as a part-time ele-mentary school counselor, a member of the board of directors of the Edgefi eld County Chamber of Commerce, and an instructor at Piedmont Technical College.johnculbertson@hotmail.com

1970sSarah P. Springer (1977, USC School of Law 1980) is complet-ing her 10th year on the bench. At the Missis-sippi Trial and Appellate Judges Conference in 2004, she was elected to a two-year term as chairwoman of the Con-ference on Chancery Judges. She has previ-ously served the conference as secretary, vice chairwoman, and program chairwoman. sspringer@lauderdalecounty.org

Kate Heald (1978) is a massage therapist currently studying Feldenkrais. She resides in Columbia.mikiman@earthlink.net

Gail B. Ingram (1978) earned national board certifi cation in the fi eld of adoles-cence and young adulthood/social studies-history. She is in her 25th year of teaching history at Cheraw High School and led her 13th student tour to Europe in March 2005. She is married to attorney Miller S. Ingram Jr. and has two children. Ruth is a senior at Presbyterian College and Mark is a sophomore at Clemson. She says, “Maybe my grandchildren will attend USC!”ptdixie@shtc.net

1980sBarbara Faile Morán (1987) is a cardi-ologist in Greenville, S.C. She and her husband Mandrés Morán have a seven-

month-old daughter, Isabel. She also has two stepchildren: Krystal, 15, and Josh, 8. bmoran31@charter.net

Andrew Newton (1987) was named vice president for legal affairs at the Medical Col-lege of Georgia in Augusta. His wife June (Godshalk) Newton (1987) is a freelance fl ut-ist and private fl ute teacher in the Augusta area. They have two children, James, 12, and Thomas, 10.Andrew: anewton@mcg.eduJune: june.newton@comcast.net

1990sMichele Marple Thomas (1992) and her husband, Curt, recently wel-comed another son to their fam-ily. Braden Scott Thomas was born Aug. 28, 2004, and joins his big brother, Cameron, who turned 3 in April. In addi-tion to exciting family news, Michele also took a new position at IBM, managing the Design Center for the Systems and Tech-nology Group. She and her family are based in Raleigh, N.C.marplet@us.ibm.com

Jennifer Baker (1995) recently joined her father (also a USC alumnus) as vice pres-ident of The Laurin Baker Group, one of the only father-daughter lobbying fi rms in Washington, D.C. Since moving to D.C. after graduation, Jennifer spent fi ve years as project manager for a strategic commu-nications fi rm, two years in public and cri-sis communications at WorldCom, and two years in legislative affairs for the U.S. Marine Corps. After that, she fi gures working with her dad will be a breeze!jenniferlbaker@aol.com

Danny Dorsel (1995) taught and coached for two years at Cardinal Newman School in Columbia before taking on a new posi-tion as Cardinal Newman’s director of advancement. He says the position is chal-lenging but easy to do because he believes in the mission of the school: “forming lives of excellence in the Catholic tradition.”dannydorsel@yahoo.com

CLASS NOTES

Sarah P. Springer

Michele Marple Thomasand Family

Andrew Newton

The times they are a-changin’

The past few years have seen several high-level retirements at the university, including a provost, two associate provosts, and several academic deans. Jamal Rossi, dean of the USC School of Music, will leave USC in May 2005 for the University of Rochester’s Eastman School of Music. He commented for AHA! on the changing of the guard:

“This is an exciting time at the University in so many ways, yet at the same time, the University must exercise caution. Over the

next fi ve years the University will witness a tremendous turnover of faculty and staff due to retirements. Within a period of about 18 months, the University will have hired a new provost, two associate provosts, and eight deans. The exciting piece of this equation is that all of these people come to the University with fresh enthusiasm and new ideas. The University must exercise caution because it is los-ing tremendously valuable experience. All things are the way they are for good reason. Intelligent and dedicated people put forward their best efforts to create the University as it exists today. With so much turnover, it is easy to think that everything must change. Care must be exercised so that the University does not lose sight of its history, and the reason that things exist as they currently do.”

including a provost, two associate provosts, and several academic deans. Jamal Rossi, dean of the USC School of Music, will leave USC in May 2005 for the University of Rochester’s Eastman School of Music. He commented for the guard:

“This is an exciting time at the University in so many ways, yet at the same time, the University must exercise caution. Over the Rossi

capable staff: the constant contribution of Patsy Tanner; the academic leadership of Doug Williams, Leslie Jones, and Jim Burns; the advisors who do so much more than academic advisement, Marshall James, Carissa Hansford, and Alexa Maddox; and the support staff of Patsy, offi ce manager Debra Boulware, who has served the college for 20 years, and William Morris, our IT director.

I, in particular, have been blessed with the support of the leadership of the Uni-versity from the Board of Trustees to President Andrew Sorensen and all the pro-vosts with whom I have been privileged to serve. Most importantly, the support given the college by past president John Palms over his 11-year tenure explains our success.

What animates this structure, however, are the faculty and students whose energy and creativity constitute the life force of the college. Those who gladly teach and gladly learn have made my experience a joy. I have been honored to work with the best students and best faculty of this institution for over a decade. I will not forget them.

In Bruce Springsteen’s ironic anthem, “Glory Days,” his characters cannot let go of the glory days of their high-school years. The Honors College—its staff, stu-dents and faculty—have made this past decade into my glory days. And though my stories may still be boring to everyone but me; they will, at least, be fresh.

—Peter C. SederbergJanuary 2005—Peter C. Sederberg

continued from page 5

In honor of the founders of the South Carolina Honors College, the William A. Mould Scholarship Fund has been renamed the William Mould and Peter Sederberg Scholarship Fund. Gifts in honor of Peter Sederberg’s retirement may be made to this fund. Make your check payable to the SCHC Educa-tional Foundation for the Mould/Sederberg Fund. Mail to Carissa Hans-ford, SC Honors College, USC, Columbia, SC 29208.Donations may be made online at schc.sc.edu.

p.7

now teaching sev-enth grade. She says, “My students always appreciate additional books for our class-room library. Please e-mail if you can donate.”jdniemi@hotmail.com

Judson Brehmer (2001) resides in Den-ver, but will be relocating in the fall to attend law school, location yet to be determined. Stay tuned!

Sara J. Cornwell (2002) completed a master’s degree in social work at USC in May 2004. She worked at Vis-taCare Hospice in Macon, Ga., for the past year, and has just accepted a position with Hospice Care of America in Beau-fort, S.C. Sara is engaged to be married to Charlie Nolette on May 29, 2005, in Tampa, Fla. Charlie is a USC grad (2003) with a BS in hotel, restaurant, and tourism management. He is the banquet manager at Idle Hour Country Club in Macon, Ga.

Derrick Smith (2002) is engaged to marry Meghan Blanton on June 3, 2006, upon her graduation from Samford Uni-versity. The wedding will be held in Spar-tanburg, S.C.

Martha Wright (2002) is a copy editor and page designer for the style section of The Washington Post.marmarj@aol.com

Katherine Ray (2003) is a fi rst-year stu-dent at the USC School of Law.katherineray14@yahoo.co

Suzanne Pickard (2003) completed a master’s degree in teaching at USC in 2004.pickards@iolscedu

Christina (de Ridder) Scheer (2004) married Isaac Scheer (2003) on Aug. 7, 2004. Christina is an accountant at Brad-shaw, Gordon & Clinkscales, LLC; Isaac is also an accountant at Sloan Construc-tion. They reside in Greenville, S.C.

Jessica Roaden (2004) is a contract administrator for engineering and con-struction company Fluor-Daniel. She lives in Taylors, S.C.

Allison Skipper (2004) joined the South Car-olina State Ports Authority in Charleston as a public relations associate.

Nicholas Young (2004) and Amber (Liebsch) Young (2004) were married Oct. 16, 2004. They live in Nashville, Tenn.

p.7

1960sJohn D. Culbertson (1969) recently retired, but stays busy as a part-time ele-mentary school counselor, a member of the board of directors of the Edgefi eld County Chamber of Commerce, and an instructor at Piedmont Technical College.johnculbertson@hotmail.com

1970sSarah P. Springer (1977, USC School of Law 1980) is complet-ing her 10th year on the bench. At the Missis-sippi Trial and Appellate Judges Conference in 2004, she was elected to a two-year term as chairwoman of the Con-ference on Chancery Judges. She has previ-ously served the conference as secretary, vice chairwoman, and program chairwoman. sspringer@lauderdalecounty.org

Kate Heald (1978) is a massage therapist currently studying Feldenkrais. She resides in Columbia.mikiman@earthlink.net

Gail B. Ingram (1978) earned national board certifi cation in the fi eld of adoles-cence and young adulthood/social studies-history. She is in her 25th year of teaching history at Cheraw High School and led her 13th student tour to Europe in March 2005. She is married to attorney Miller S. Ingram Jr. and has two children. Ruth is a senior at Presbyterian College and Mark is a sophomore at Clemson. She says, “Maybe my grandchildren will attend USC!”ptdixie@shtc.net

1980sBarbara Faile Morán (1987) is a cardi-ologist in Greenville, S.C. She and her husband Mandrés Morán have a seven-

month-old daughter, Isabel. She also has two stepchildren: Krystal, 15, and Josh, 8. bmoran31@charter.net

Andrew Newton (1987) was named vice president for legal affairs at the Medical Col-lege of Georgia in Augusta. His wife June (Godshalk) Newton (1987) is a freelance fl ut-ist and private fl ute teacher in the Augusta area. They have two children, James, 12, and Thomas, 10.Andrew: anewton@mcg.eduJune: june.newton@comcast.net

1990sMichele Marple Thomas (1992) and her husband, Curt, recently wel-comed another son to their fam-ily. Braden Scott Thomas was born Aug. 28, 2004, and joins his big brother, Cameron, who turned 3 in April. In addi-tion to exciting family news, Michele also took a new position at IBM, managing the Design Center for the Systems and Tech-nology Group. She and her family are based in Raleigh, N.C.marplet@us.ibm.com

Jennifer Baker (1995) recently joined her father (also a USC alumnus) as vice pres-ident of The Laurin Baker Group, one of the only father-daughter lobbying fi rms in Washington, D.C. Since moving to D.C. after graduation, Jennifer spent fi ve years as project manager for a strategic commu-nications fi rm, two years in public and cri-sis communications at WorldCom, and two years in legislative affairs for the U.S. Marine Corps. After that, she fi gures working with her dad will be a breeze!jenniferlbaker@aol.com

Danny Dorsel (1995) taught and coached for two years at Cardinal Newman School in Columbia before taking on a new posi-tion as Cardinal Newman’s director of advancement. He says the position is chal-lenging but easy to do because he believes in the mission of the school: “forming lives of excellence in the Catholic tradition.”dannydorsel@yahoo.com

Pass us a note ... a Class Note!We’d like to hear what you’ve been up to! Please send us your professional or personal news. Remember, we love photos, and we’ll send them back to you after publication.

NEW! Class notes and photos may be submitted online. Visit schc.sc.edu and click Alumni.

Or, fi ll out the form below and return it to AHA!, S.C. Honors College, USC, Columbia, SC 29208; or fax to 803-777-2214; or e-mail to alumni@schc.sc.edu.

Name _____________________________________________________________

Year of Graduation __________________________________________________

Address ____________________________________________________________

City _____________________________State ___________ZIP ______________

Phone _____________________________________________________________

Is this a new address or phone number? Yes No

E-mail address ______________________________________________________

May we publish your e-mail address? Yes No

Write your news below (please add a sheet of paper if you need more room).

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

Lisbeth Bossheart (1996) has been liv-ing in Los Angeles for the last six years. She is an attorney at the fi rm of Shaub, Williams and Nunziato LLP, where she recently became partner. She specializes in international and intellectual property, business litigation, and transactions. She is licensed to practice in both California and New York.lisbeth@swn-law.com

Amy Coppler (1996) graduated from the Medical University of South Car-olina in 2000. After completing a res-idency in emergency medicine at The Johns Hopkins University, she returned to Charleston to work in the emergency department at MUSC. She is engaged to marry Mike Ramsay, whom she met at MUSC, in the fall.amycopp@yahoo.com

Joseph “J.J.” Gentry (1996) recently joined the South Carolina Senate after serving as an attorney with the S.C. House of Representatives for four years. In his new position he will serve as coun-sel to the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Judicial Merit Selection Com-mission.JJG@scsenate.org

Laura A. Hall (1996) is the director for planning at the newly established offi ce of the coordinator for reconstruction and stabilization at the U.S. Department of State. The mission of the offi ce is “to lead and coordinate U.S. government plan-ning, and institutionalize U.S. capacity, to help stabilize and reconstruct societies in transition from confl ict or civil strife so they can reach a sustainable path toward peace, democracy, and a market economy.”loorahall@gmail.com

Allison Williams (1996) and Jason Spangler (1995) are the proud parents of Sophia Elizabeth Spangler, born July 18, 2004, in Fayette-ville, N.C.alliewillie@yahoo.com

Erin (Shaw) Street (1998) is com-munications and public relations manager at the University of Ala-bama, Birmingham Comprehensive

Cancer Center. She married Shane Street on May 22, 2004. They enjoy life with their pugs, F. Scott and Lolita.

2000sChris Dorsel (2000) graduated from the USC School of Law and began work as an associate with Turber, Padget, Gra-ham, and Laney in Charleston.chrisdorsel@hotmail.com

Holly Dowd (2000) graduated from Wake Forest University School of Law. She then completed her international law degree at Trinity College in Dublin, Ire-land. She plans to take the North Caro-lina bar exam.hollyedowd@yahoo.com

Ben Morris (2000) and Angela (John-son) Morris (2000) welcomed their second child, Cameron Grace, in April 2004. She joins big brother, Alex, 2. Ben and Angela graduated from the Medical Uni-versity of South Carolina in May 2004. Angela is pursuing family practice at Anderson Area Medical Center and Ben is doing his surgery residency at Green-ville Memorial Hospital.

Gwendolyn “Wendy” Pearson (2000) traveled the country for three years as a children’s theater actor, educator, and dancer. In 2003 she decided to change careers and move back to Columbia, where she began work as a docket clerk at the U.S. District Court.gwendypea@yahoo.com

Rebecca (Cron-ican) Strelow (2000) and her husband, Paul, had their fi rst child, Blake Wil-liam, in March 2004. Rebecca and Paul both work for the Her-ald-Journal in Spartanburg, S.C.rcronican@yahoo.com

Jenn Niemi (2001) moved to Los Ange-les in 2002 upon completion of a 10-month Americorps national service program. She joined Teach for America and finished her first year of teaching in June 2004. She is

bama, Birmingham

Erin and Shane Street

Cameron Grace Morris

Blake William Strelow

Allison Skipper

18, 2004, in Fayette-

Allison Williams, Jason Spangler, and Sophia

Jenn Niemi

Sara Cornwell and her fi ancé, Charlie

p.8Raise your glasstoast your classcelebrate your past

“Here’s a Health, Carolina!” was the theme Oct. 9, when alumni and friends of the Honors College gathered at the Top of Carolina for the 9th annual AHA homecoming reunion.

Association of Honors AlumniSouth Carolina Honors CollegeUniversity of South CarolinaColumbia, SC 29208

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

Volume X No. 3

Non-Profi tOrganizationU.S. Postage

PAIDPermit #766

Columbia, SC

USC President Andrew Sorensen

with distinguished alumnus Jacob

Shuford

Kate Heald (1978) and Susan Cate

(1978), who fi rst met in honors

Anthropology 101 in spring 1975 Suzanne Pickard

(2003)

John Culbertson (1967) and his wife, Virginia, with Jim Stiver

Danny Dorsel (1995) and Chris Dorsel (2000)

Sallee Still Weston (1992) with husband, Mark, and daughter, Madelyn