the university of georgia magazine september 2013

September 2013 • Vol. 92, No. 4 Magazine

The University of

The right person, the right timeStudents, faculty, alumni and state leaders say Jere Morehead has the experience and skills to take UGA to the next level

GEORGIAGEORGIAGEORGIA

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GEORGIA MAGAZINEKelly Simmons, MPA ’10, EditorAllyson Mann, MA ’92, Managing EditorLindsay Robinson, ABJ ’06, MPA ’11, Art DirectorPamela Leed, Advertising DirectorFran Burke, Office ManagerPaul Efland, BFA ’75, MEd ’80; Peter Frey, BFA ’94; Robert Newcombe, BFA ’81; Rick O’Quinn, ABJ ’87; Dot Paul; Andrew Davis Tucker; and Courtney Rosen; UGA PhotographersChase Martin and Shanda Crowe, Editorial Assistants

PUBLIC AFFAIRSTom Jackson, AB ’73, MPA ’04, PhD ’08, Vice President Alison Huff, Director of Publications

ADMINISTRATIONJere Morehead, JD ’80, PresidentLibby Morris, AB ’71, Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic AffairsTom S. Landrum, AB ’72, MA ’87, Vice President for Development and Alumni RelationsRyan Nesbit, MBA ’91, Interim Vice President for Finance and AdministrationGriffin “Griff” Doyle, AB ’76, JD ’79, Vice President for Governmental RelationsLaura Jolly, Vice President for InstructionJennifer Frum, PhD ’11, Vice President for Public Service and OutreachDavid Lee, Vice President for ResearchVictor Wilson, BSW ’82, MEd ’87, Vice President for Student AffairsTimothy Chester, Vice President for Information TechnologyGreg McGarity, ABJ ’76, Director of Athletics

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Find Georgia Magazine online at uga.edu.gm

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FINE PRINTGeorgia Magazine (ISSN 1085-1042) is published quarterly for alumni and friends of UGA. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to:University of Georgia, 286 Oconee Street, Suite 200 North,Athens, GA 30602

In compliance with federal law, including the provisions of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Sections 503 and 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the University of Georgia does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, religion, color, national or ethnic origin, age, disability, or military service in its administration of educational policies, programs, or activities; its admissions policies; scholarship and loan programs; athletic or other University-administered programs; or employment. In addition, the University does not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation consistent with the University non-discrimination policy. Inquiries or complaints should be directed to the director of the Equal Opportunity Office, Peabody Hall, 290 South Jackson Street, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602. Telephone 706-542-7912 (V/TDD). Fax 706-542-2822.

SEPTEMBER 2013 • GEORGIA MAGAZINE 3

September 2013 • Vol. 92, No. 4

Magazine

The University of

GEORGIADepartments5 Take 5 with the President President Jere Morehead on his appointment

6 Around the Arch Campus news and events

Closeup

14 Liberation and education UGA professor researches education of freed

slaves in the 1800s

Features16 The right person, the right time Students, faculty, alumni and state leaders say

Jere Morehead has the experience and skills UGA needs to reach the next level.

24 A horse of another color More than 50 years since it was spurned by

students, the Iron Horse will be surrounded by UGA.

28 Extreme makeover SGA’s new president is promoting a culture

change on campus

Class Notes

36 Alumni profiles and notes

Jose Blanco, associate professor of textiles, merchandising and interiors in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences, leads the “Fashion Independent: The Original Style of Ann Bonfoey Taylor” tour at the Georgia Museum of Art. The exhibit, which includes about 200 pieces from Taylor’s collection, features fashions from post-World War II through the 1970s, designed by some of the world’s top couturiers. Some of Taylor’s own designs also are included. The exhibit will be on display at the Georgia Museum of Art through Sept. 15.

Photo by Courtney Rosen

ON THE COVER

President-elect Morehead chats with students on north campus in mid-June. From left, Remi Ojo (BS ’13) from Stone Mountain; Will Saunders, a fourth year biochemistry and molecular biology major from Alpharetta, Ga., and Anne Chen, a third year economics major from Columbus, Ga.

Photo by Dot Paul

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Q: Those weeks leading up to July 1 when you officially took over were a whirlwind of activity. How did you prepare for this new role?

A: I’ve spent a lot of time over the past few months trying to finish up my work as provost. I hired several new deans who arrived on campus this summer. So my first priority was to make sure that I left the next provost with an outstanding group of deans. I have spent the last few months meeting with alumni, meeting with students, meeting with faculty, meeting with many other stakeholders on this campus as well as throughout the state, finding out what they want from the University of Georgia, what they hope UGA will be in the future and how they can help in making this great institution even more preeminent.

Q: As you talk with those stakeholders, constituents, supporters, donors, friends, what do they tell you about the university?

A: The great story that you hear over and over again is how much everyone loves the University of Georgia. As president, I get to tap into that reservoir of good feelings, of strong support for this institution. There is an abiding love for this institution that gives me an advantage as the new president. I want to make sure that our supporters understand how they can help UGA either with their time or their resources and how they can contribute to making this great institution one that continues up the national charts of prominence—an institution that continues to get better, an institution that stakes out new opportunities and takes advantage of opportunities that are available to us.

Q: You’ve had a variety of posts here on campus. How would you describe yourself as an administrator?

A: I like to be a change agent. I want whatever I take on to be better when I finish it, and so one of the things that I have always tried to do is to look for opportunities to make the division or the unit or the office that I’m responsible for better. I think you do that by working in collaboration with others. You can’t do anything by yourself, and so one of the things that I’ve always tried to do is make sure that I’m a good listener. I want the people around me to have an opportunity to have input, to be a part of the process of making something better. I think you can anticipate from my past that my service as president will be one that is very collaborative. I’ll listen a lot, but once I’ve listened, I’m not afraid then to make a decision. I want those decisions to be ones that will make the University of Georgia an even greater institution than it is today.

Q: How do you perceive the university as we begin this term?

A: I think the university is a great institution. We reach out across this state, as we should as a land-grant institution, to serve the people of Georgia. We have substantially improved the quality of education on this campus. The quality of students has never been higher. The quality of our faculty has never been better, but we can’t settle for the status quo. If you settle for the status quo, you will begin to decline. So we have to look for ways, look for opportunities to improve this institution, and that’s what this administration will be focused on doing. It will also be critical to grow the level of private support for our students, faculty and staff.

Q: You’ve been here for almost three decades. What advantage does that give you as a new president?A: I think one of the advantages that I have as a person who’s spent many years on this campus is that I know the many things that we’ve done well, and I also know the opportunities that we have to improve. I don’t think it will take you long to find me making decisions that will focus on those opportunities, looking for ways to make a great institution even better. You will find in me and in everything I do a focus on excellence, a focus on how the University of Georgia can be an institution that does more than it has ever done before, does it better than it’s ever done before, and does it in a way that will bring pride and respect from the citizens of Georgia and beyond.

Jere Morehead

TAKE — President Jere Morehead on his appointment5

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GEORGIA MAGAZINE • www.uga.edu/gm6

Summer at the CirCuS

Students in advertising and public relations spent part

of their summer honing their skills through a partnership

between the Grady College of Journalism and Mass

Communication and The Creative Circus in Atlanta, a two-

year, accredited portfolio school that offers courses on how

to think creatively in the advertising, illustration, interactive

development, graphic design and photography industries.

Through this first-time collaboration, called “Summer

at the Circus,” Grady students had the opportunity to earn

up to six upper-level elective credits while taking courses

from UGA through the Atlanta portfolio school. Classes

taught strategic problem solving, campaign visioning

and development, typography, art direction, copywriting,

packaging, graphic design, presentation and other skills vital

to the communications industry.

Students received mentoring and industry feedback on

their work and learned how to build a professional portfolio.

Get more at www.summeratthecircus.com.

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Tesi Saker (right) a third year student majoring in advertising and art, participated in Summer at the Circus at The Creative Circus in Atlanta. During the four week sessions, students from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication learned about advertising strategy and selling their ideas, creative writing and copywriting, layout and design, digital trends in marketing and communication, and tools for brand building, among other things.

CoUrTney roSen

Another Gates grant for UGA The UGA Research Foundation received a $3.4 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to expand its operational research on how best to eliminate schistosomiasis, a debilitating and neglected tropical disease affecting millions of people in countries throughout much of Africa, Asia, the Middle East and the Americas.

This recent award adds to an $18.7 million grant awarded to UGA by the Gates Foundation in 2008, bringing the funding total to more than $22 million. Researchers will use this additional money to find out how to move from repeatedly treating infected people to eliminating the disease.

Schistosomiasis is a parasitic disease caused by several species of worms. Larval parasites burrow into the skin of humans who swim or wash in the water. Once inside people they develop into adult worms. While it has a relatively low mortality rate, schistosomiasis can damage internal organs and impair physical and cognitive development in children.

UGA researchers are looking at how a drug that kills the parasites, combined with improved hygiene and sanitation practices could eliminate the disease.

Get more at http://score.uga.edu.


Extra funding for professorships, scholarships Students and faculty will benefit from an additional $3.3 million that the University of Georgia Foundation earned in investment returns during fiscal year 2013. The foundation board voted unanimously to approve funding for specific areas identified by President Jere Morehead. Highlights of the funding include:• $500,000 for need-based student

scholarships;• $200,000 for professional school

scholarships;• $125,000 for endowed

professorships (to match a donor commitment);

• $500,000 for the UGA Washington Semester Program; and

• $500,000 for study abroad scholarships.

The board also earmarked $1 million for the purchase of a permanent facility to house the UGA Washington Semester Program, founded in 2008 to provide students opportunities for internships in the national capital while taking classes. The $3.3 million is in addition to more than $40 million in annual support provided by the foundation to the university and $500,000 provided earlier this fiscal year for endowed professorships. Morehead also requested that the $220,000 budgeted for the 2014 Celebration of Support, which recognizes UGA’s top donors, be redirected to the Georgia Access Scholarship, which provides funding for the neediest students at UGA. He plans to form a group to review the Celebration of Support and make recommendations for future events. Get more http://news.uga.edu/releases/article/uga-foundation-allocates-3-3-million-dollars-to-enhance-academics/.

Terry MBA among best in the world In its first rankings of Executive MBA programs, The Economist placed the Terry College of Business No. 22 worldwide. The Economist’s rankings reflect each EMBA program’s performance in two broad categories: personal development/education experience and career development, with each category weighted equally. Terry’s EMBA program received the highest ranking among schools in Georgia, and was ranked No. 10 among programs based solely in the U.S. Rankings data were collected using two Web-based questionnaires. The first surveyed business schools about student quality and diversity, faculty qualifications, number of overseas assignments and alumni statistics. The second survey was given to current students and EMBA alumni from the last three graduating classes. It asked for ratings of classmates, faculty, curriculum and facilities. Alumni were also asked to report their pre-EMBA and current salaries to determine average increases. Terry’s Executive MBA program started in 2001. The program moved to its current location at the Terry Executive Education Center in Buckhead in 2005. Get more at http://mba.terry.uga.edu.

tweNty yearS Of hOPe

Former Gov. Zell Miller (center), who launched the HoPe scholarship for Georgia college students in 1993, returned to campus in late June to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the state lottery, which funds the merit-based award and the state’s Pre-K programs. In this photo Miller is shaking hands with Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle. To the right of Miller is Gov. nathan Deal. The ceremony and reception were held in the Zell B. Miller Learning Center, named for the former governor.

AnDreW DAVIS TUCKer


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BeSt iN ShOwa BARK Out tO

… Pratt Cassity, director of public service and outreach at the Center for Community Design and Preservation, who received the senior level Award for excellence in Service-Learning from the The Council of educators in Landscape Architecture.

… Michael P. Doyle, regents Professor of Food Microbiology, who was awarded the 2013 Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation Agriscience Award.

… Edward Delgado-Romero, a professor of counseling and human development services in the College of education, who received the 2013 Distinguished Career Contributions to research Award from a division of the American Psychological Association.

... William Underwood Eiland, director of the Georgia Museum of Art, who received the American Alliance of Museums Award for Distinguished Service to Museums.

… Bonnie Joerschke, director of the Office of Student Financial Aid,

was elected chair of The College Board Southern regional Assembly, effective in February 2014.

… James K. Reap, an associate professor in the College of environment and Design, who was elected to the board of directors for the U.S. Committee of the Blue Shield, which was formed in 2006 in response to cultural heritage catastrophes around the world.

… Kaye Sweetser, an associate professor of public relations in the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, who was appointed to the Universal Accreditation Board, a certification body for the public relations profession.

… Three College of education faculty members who were recognized for their work by the American educational research Association. They are:• Peter Smagorinsky, Distinguished research Professor of english education, was selected as the 2013

outstanding reviewer for Review of Education Research, the AerA journal, and as an Outstanding Reviewer for 2013 by the editors of the “American Educational Research Journal - Teaching, Learning and Human Development.” • Joseph Tobin, the elizabeth Garrard Hall Professor in early Childhood education, who received the 2013 Mentoring Award from the AerA Division G. • Laine Bradshaw, an assistant professor of educational psychology, who was awarded the 2013 outstanding Dissertation Award for the Cognition and Assessment Special Interest Group.

DELGADO-ROMERO

SWEETSER

JOERSCHKE

SPOtlight ON the artS

UGA will hold its second annual Spot-light on the Arts festival nov. 7-15, featuring concerts, theater and dance performances, art exhibitions, poetry readings, film festivals, discussions on the arts and creativity, and more.

The festival will kick off on nov. 7 with several evening events including a University Theatre production of “Pride and Prejudice” at the Fine Arts Theatre, a Senior Dance Concert showcasing student choreography at the new Dance Theatre, and Student night at the Georgia Museum of Art. In addition, UGA’s Performing Arts Center will partner with The Classic Center in downtown Athens to present “Two Man Group,” an evening of improvisa-tional comedy with Colin Mochrie and Brad Sherwood, stars of the TV show “Whose Line It is Anyway?”

Also on nov. 7, the UGA Press will hold a “dirty book” sale of slightly damaged mer-chandise at the Tate Student Center Plaza, and the Jane and Harry Willson Center for Humanities and Arts will host a discussion among Willson Center Fellows doing arts-based research projects.

other highlights of the nine-day festival include a production of “Carmen” by the UGA opera Theatre on nov. 14 (with an open dress rehearsal the night before), several events to be held in conjunction with the Georgia Writ-ers Hall of Fame induction ceremony on nov. 11 at the richard B. russell Building Special Collections Libraries, and a Museum Mix eve-ning nov. 14 at the Georgia Museum of Art, which will stay open until midnight for dancing and tours of the exhibitions.

The Willson Center, in conjunction with the community organization Whatever It Takes, will present a film festival Nov. 9-10 featuring the work of writer-director Jim McK-ay, whose credits include “Everyday People” and “Angel Rodriguez.” Another film festival nov. 12-15 will focus on movies tied to books published by the UGA Press.

A signature event on the closing evening of the festival will be a performance by Hal Holbrook as Mark Twain at the Performing Arts Center on nov. 15. The oscar-nominated actor has been portraying Twain on the stage for nearly 50 years.

A schedule of events with ticket informa-tion will be posted at arts.uga.edu as details are confirmed.


Trustees name new officers, members

John Spalding (AB ’82, JD ’85) was unanimously elected by the University of Georgia Board of Trustees to serve as chair for the next two-year term, ending June 30, 2015. He succeeds Bill

Young Jr., who served the foundation in two separate terms from 2007 to 2009 and 2011 to present.

The board also elected, by unanimous vote, Kenneth G. Jackson (BBA ’79, MAcc ’80) as vice chairman, Andrew M. “Jack” Head (BBA ’75) as secretary and William W. Douglas III (BBA ’83) as treasurer.

Spalding inherits chairmanship of a foundation whose endowment grew during Young’s term by more than $125 million to $800 million despite a very challenging economic climate.

Six new managing trustees joined the board on July 1, 2013: Garry W. Bridgeman, Victor E. Corrigan II (BS ’79), Stephen Joiner (BBA ’86), Steve C. Jones (BBA ’78, JD ’87), Cliff McCurry (BBA ’71) and Barry L. Storey (BSA ’82).

In addition the board added five new advisory trustees: Mark Chandler (BBA ’81), Richard W. Courts IV (BBA ’95), John Mangan (BBA ’82), John E. “Ted” McMullan (MBA ’93) and Susan Donziger Sherman (ABJ ’82).

Joining as ex-officio trustees are College of Family and Consumer Sciences Associate Dean Silvia Q. Giraudo (MS ’84, PhD ’91), Student Government Association President Austin Laufersweiler, Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Libby V. Morris (AB ’71), Interim Vice President for Finance and Administration Ryan A. Nesbit (MBA ’91) and UGA Alumni Association President Timothy A. Keadle (BBA ’78).

SPALDINGmurDer, She wrOte

Millionaire Dr. Black has been murdered, and the person who can solve the mystery of his death is someone on the UGA campus—with an iPhone. That’s the basis for an interactive game of “Clue” created by graduate student Caity Johnson, who is studying dramatic media. The game, played on an iPhone, began last fall as a class project to deliver multimedia and content directly to individuals on mobile devices. Johnson used the online software ArIS to put a new spin on one of her favorite childhood games. “I have always loved Clue because when I was a kid at our family game nights we would always play Clue and have a blast,” she said. “So when I first got this [assignment] I was like ‘That’s perfect!’” “Clue” is a murder-mystery game in which players collect clues to determine who murdered the game’s victim. The characters are spread out on campus, and players have to go “talk to them” by traveling to the location on the map ArIS displays. Players visit places like the Fine Arts Building, the Hull Street parking deck and the Miller Learning Center during the game. In all, Johnson estimates the game takes one to two hours to complete, with some of the scenarios taking less time. To play, visit the Apple App Store and download the ArIS application. After being launched, the application will ask users to create an account and then search for nearby games. If on campus, Johnson’s “Clue” game will come up as one of the options and users can select it to begin solving the mystery behind Dr. Black’s murder.

The Redcoats are coming (back) Hundreds of former members of the Redcoat Marching Band are expected to take the field in Sanford Stadium on Nov. 9 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Redcoat Band Alumni Association. The group’s goal is to have 900 band members on the field before and at halftime of the UGA game against Appalachian State University. The Redcoat alumni formed the association in 1973 primarily to help raise money for the band and to keep alumni band members connected. The group’s web site now tracks about 4,000 Redcoat alumni. Get more at www.redcoatalumniband.com.

PAUL eFLAnD


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StuDeNt getS gOOgle SChOlarShiP

UGA graduate student Jennifer rouan (BS ’12) received the 2013 Google Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship, an award that honors its namesake by encouraging women to excel in computing and technology.

Borg was a computer scientist who devoted her life to revolutionizing perceptions of technology and dismantling barriers that keep women and minorities from entering computing and technology fields. The Google scholarship—worth $10,000 for the 2013-14 academic year—also encourages women to become active role models and leaders in these fields.

rouan served in the U.S. Air Force from 2004-2008 and worked in network intelligence. She attended UGA on the GI Bill, and after completing her bachelor’s degree in computer science in 2012, she joined the master’s program in the fall of 2012.

Through her expertise with CUDA, a parallel computing platform and programming model invented by the nVIDIA Corporation, rouan is conducting research on developing parallel algorithms for solving problems that model water waves and optical fiber communications systems. She manages the UGA CUDA Teaching Center, funded by nVIDIA, and has presented three workshops on teaching CUDA for the university community since April 2012.

rouan also was selected for the 2013 Google Student Veterans of America Scholarship, but chose the Borg award because she could only accept one.

ROUAN

BeatiNg BaCk the mumPS

Mumps may seem like a disease of a bygone era to many people, but a UGA professor is fighting a new strain of the virus that threatens to spread. Biao He, a professor of infectious diseases and a Georgia research Alliance distinguished investigator in the College of Veterinary Medicine, has a $1.8 million grant from the national Institutes of Health to develop a new vaccine for the new infection. Although not typically a life-threatening disease, mumps can lead to serious health problems such as viral meningitis, hearing loss and pancreatitis; and it can cause miscarriage during early pregnancy. Vaccinations, in use since 1967, diminished the number of cases dramatically, but two large outbreaks of the virus in 2006 and 2010 forced researchers to question the effectiveness of the drug today. Get more at http://ugaresearch.uga.edu/research-news/beating-back-the-mumps#sthash.sDfSGZFC.dpuf.

Glucose monitors for pets Glucose monitoring devices are now available from the Veterinary Teaching Hospital to helps owners of cats and dogs with diabetes monitor their pet’s response to insulin.

The iPro continuous glucose monitoring devices, commonly used for human patients with diabetes, will improve the level of care that the veterinarians at the hospital provide their patients.

According to the State of Pet Health Report 2012 released by Banfield Pet Hospital, the prevalence of pet obesity has risen 37 percent for dogs and 90 percent for cats since 2007. Diabetes, a common result of obesity in pets as well as humans, is diagnosed in 42 percent of overweight dogs and 40 percent of overweight cats. Signs of diabetes in dogs or cats include animals that drink, urinate, eat and sleep more. They also will show signs of tiredness and have a decreased exercise tolerance.

The monitor features a small disposable sensor, which is inserted under the animal’s skin to read blood glucose levels. Once the sensor is in place it is attached to a small recorder to collect data. The device records blood glucose readings every five minutes. After the sensor has been in place for a few days it is removed and mailed back to the hospital for doctors to analyze the data and recommend changes in medication levels if needed.

SPeCIAL


UGA sending Salty Dawg undersea UGA will launch its first robotic submersible later this year, joining a growing num-ber of research institutions that use the efficient and cost-saving instruments to explore the oceans.

UGA physical oceanographer Renato Castelao and colleague Ruoying He of North Carolina State University will launch two autonomous underwater vehicles called glid-ers in fall 2013. UGA’s Salty Dawg and NCSU’s Salacia, named for the Roman goddess of salt water, will remotely collect data on the exchange of water between the coastal ocean off Georgia and the Gulf Stream.

The Gulf Stream is a powerful ocean current that runs from Florida up the Eastern Seaboard and across the Atlantic Ocean. Along its route it influences fish and shellfish populations, weather and even ship fuel usage. Tendrils of the current, known as eddies, shear off from the Gulf Stream and move from the deep ocean toward the continental shelf, which extends for miles under water from the shore. The eddies, which are colder and saltier than the more shallow coastal waters and carry many nutrients, are thought to provide a major food source for marine life.

The six-foot glider, which looks like a torpedo with fins, moves forward when the nose cone fills with seawater, causing it to sink at an angle. At the desired depth, the glider discharges the water and slants upward again toward the surface, where the action is repeated. The speed is slow but steady, about 12 to 15 miles daily in an up-and-down, saw tooth pattern. As it rises and falls, the instrument-packed glider samples seawater at different depths and sends reports to a laboratory via satellite, where researchers download the data and monitor the vehicle’s progress. Except for launch and recovery, researchers stay on dry land.

Using a $775,616 grant from National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Castelao and He are first mapping the eddies using data from NASA satellites. Once mapped, the researchers will launch the gliders to measure the properties of seawater in and near the eddies. They will analyze water at different depths for temperature, salin-ity, chlorophyll, dissolved organic matter, light and oxygen levels, and the speed of the currents. The measurements will be correlated with the satellite data to provide a more detailed picture of eddy activity. Knowing where water temperatures and salt levels oc-cur is useful for fishermen, because different species of fish prefer different habitats. The information will help fishermen reduce catches of unwanted species and lower fuel costs.

The Salty Dowg can run for weeks or months without returning to shore through the use of an energy-efficient electrical power system.

PeTer Frey

teaChiNg kiDS with autiSm

A graduate program in the College of education is working with educa-tors in Georgia to help them learn new strategies for teaching children with autism. The college has received a $1.2 million federal grant to continue the program through 2017. The Col-laborative Personnel Preparation in Autism (CoPPA) project is a partner-ship between special education faculty and four area public school systems: Clarke, Gwinnett, Madison and oconee counties. More than 70 percent of the funding will be used to fund graduate fellowships for 45 students to become highly qualified and adaptive curriculum certified public school teachers to serve children with Autism Spectrum Disor-ders (ASD) in grades K–5. Applicants for the fellowships will be considered from across the nation, with priority given to those with ASD experience, who are from underrepresented groups, and who are not currently certified in special education. Get more at www.coe.uga.edu/news/2012/12/13/teaching-children-with-autism.

Back to the gulf Marine scientist Samantha Joye, a lead researcher following the Deepwa-ter Horizon explosion in the Gulf of Mexico three years ago, headed back to the gulf this summer to organize the first research effort following the Hercules natural gas well blowout in late July. The research party included scientists from various consortiums studying the ecosystems in the gulf. The team collected sediment and water samples from areas near the rig and studied biological communities and activities. They will compare those with samples collected down-current from the site. Get more on Joye, UGA Athletic Association professor of arts and sciences at www.marsci.uga.edu/directory/mjoye.htm

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Georgians less civic-minded? A new report shows that Georgia communities exhibit lower levels of civic engagement than the national average. The Georgia Civic Health Index, sought to examine how the state’s residents participate in civic life—be it through voting, volunteering or interacting with family and friends—and what that means for Georgia. The study showed Georgia exhibits some of the lowest rates of civic engagement in the country, particularly in the millennial generation, or people born be-tween 1981 and 2004. The state is about average in such civic health indicators as family and neighborhood interactions but is below the national average in measures like attending public meetings and voter turnout. The results of the study estab-lish a benchmark for civic participation that government and community leaders can use to find ways of encouraging more engagement and measure progress over time. The consortium that produced the report—the Carl Vinson Institute of Gov-ernment, GeorgiaForward, the Georgia Family Connection Partnership, the National Conference on Citizenship and a number of community foundations—plans to conduct annual citizen engagement analyses over the next several years to record improvements in participation. The full Georgia Civic Health Index report is available at http://www.cviog.uga.edu/pdf/free-downloads/georgia-civic-health-index.

uga’S imPaCt: $2.16 BilliON

The university’s economic impact on the Athens-area economy topped $2.16 billion in fiscal year 2012, and the school’s operations accounted for more than 22,000 jobs.According to the UGA Selig Center for economic Growth which looked at the impact of all 35 University System of Georgia institutions, UGA’s economic impact on the local economy—which includes Clarke, oconee, Madison, oglethorpe, Jackson, Barrow, Walton and Gwinnett counties—was an increase of more than 5 percent from fiscal 2011. For university system schools, UGA’s impact was second in the state only to Georgia Tech.

UGA also was responsible for 22,196 jobs, which include 9,042 on-campus jobs and 13,154 jobs that exist because of UGA spending. The total number of jobs is an 8 percent increase over fiscal 2011 and is the most jobs created by a state university.

In fiscal 2012, which ended June 30, 2012, UGA spent $669.5 million in salaries and $393.6 million in operating expenses, a combined increase of 5 percent over fiscal 2011. Student spending in the Athens area also increased, from $444.9 million in fiscal 2011 to $446.9 million in fiscal 2012.

Statewide, the University System of Georgia schools employed more than 139,000—3.6 percent of all jobs in Georgia—and had a combined economic impact of $14.1 billion, compared with $13.2 billion in fiscal 2011.

fiSh tale

In an unusual move, California white sturgeon used in a study at the Warnell School of Forestry and natural resources were donated to the Atlanta Community Food Bank and the Tennessee Aquarium once the research was complete. Almost a ton of the fish were taken to Inland Seafood to be processed for distribution by the food bank. Three of the fish will be on display in the River Giants exhibit at the aquarium.

Typically fish used in research studies are disposed of in a landfill, but since these fish were only used to test their swimming ability, their quality was unaffected. Associate Professor Doug Pe-terson said putting the fish to good use was a priority of his, as well as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which funded the research.

The Atlanta-based Inland Seafood also distributes UGA Pre-mium Siberian Sturgeon Caviar, which was developed by Peterson in another project at Warnell’s Cohutta Fisheries Center.

Get more at http://news.uga.edu/releases/article/uga-donates-sturgeon-atlanta-community-food-bank-tennessee-aquar-ium/.

yOuNg DawgS get NatiONal reCOgNitiON

The young Dawgs program, which brings high school students onto campus to do research with university faculty, received the 2013 Community Service and outreach Award from the College and University Professional Association for Human resources. The recognition came with a $10,000 award. Through the young Dawgs program, run by UGA Human resources, students spend six weeks studying areas such as chemistry, pharmacy, genetics, astronomy, physics and cellular biology. They work with professors conducting research on various topics including cancer, muscular dystrophy, erosion, ecosystems and moths. The program serves about 110 students per year over three semesters. Since its inception in 2008, it has had close to 600 high school interns who have collected just over 60,000 internship hours under the supervision and mentorship of approximately 600 volunteer UGA faculty, staff and graduate students. Get more at www.hr.uga.edu/uga-young-dawgs-program.

SPeCIAL


gOiNg greeNSustainability award for Costa Rica campus The UGA Costa Rica campus received the 2013 Innovation in Sustainability Award presented by GoAbroad.com at the NAFSA: Association of International Educators annual conference.

The award recognizes institutions, organizations and individuals who are creating initiatives to move the field of international education forward and to commend leaders in the community for their efforts to go beyond the conventional.

GoAbroad.com recognized UGA Costa Rica for studying, understanding and embodying the interconnectedness of human society within the natural environment. The 155-acre campus in Monteverde is independently certified as a sustainable operation achieving a score of 85 percent or higher in all four areas evaluated, including 100 percent in the assessment of employee relations and community engagement.

Examples of UGA’s sustainability practices include an integrated sustainable farm that serves as a living classroom, producing 15 percent of food served on campus. Additionally, all food products come from within 200 miles of campus, with 25-30 percent coming directly from small farmers in the immediate community. Local farmers offer sustainable agriculture tours and share traditional knowledge with students. UGA landscape architecture students in service-learning courses provide trail designs, maps, logos and websites to enhance the quality of tours. These tours annually inject $15,000 into the local economy.

Get more on UGA Costa Rica at www.externalaffairs.uga.edu/costa_rica/index.php.

ONe laSt laP

Plant lovers joined retiring horticulture professor Allan Armitage in July as he made one last walk around the trial gardens he founded. The annual open house included a recognition ceremony for Armitage, who had been at UGA for 31 years. Located on campus in between the Snelling Dining Hall and the pharmacy building, the gardens display hundreds of annuals and perennials from plant breeders around the world. John ruter, a veteran ornamental horticulturalist in the College of Agricultural and environmental Sciences, will serve as garden director upon Armitage’s retirement. Get more at http://ugatrial.hort.uga.edu.

PeTer Frey

CoUrTney roSen


CLOSE UP

When Ron Butchart was a master’s degree student at Northern Arizona Uni-versity in the early 1970s, he wrote a paper about the education of freed slaves. While conducting research, he read a book that argued educating slaves was a way for the North to undo the South. Perplexed by this idea, Butchart, in his paper, argued that the teachers were in fact heroes.

That was three decades ago. Since then, Butchart, a professor in the College of Education and head of the Department of Educational Theory and Practice, has studied the history of those early teachers and the freedmen they taught. And he’s cre-ated a database—30 years in the making—to catalog information about the educators.

“I did not realize that almost half of the people teaching during this time were themselves African American,” Butchart says. At that time in America’s history, lit-erate African Americans made up around 3 percent of the country’s population.

“But African Americans were the ones really doing this work.”

His database of those early educators now includes more than 11,000 names and won him a UGA Creative Research Award last year. In 2012 his book Schooling the Freed People: Teaching, Learning and the Struggle for Black Freedom, published in 2010, was named Outstanding Book of the Year by the History of Education Society. He published his first book on freedmen’s education, Northern Schools, Southern Blacks, and Reconstruction: Freedmen’s Edu-cation, 1862-1875, in 1980.

It was tedious work.To find the teachers, he needed at

minimum to know their last name, where and what year they taught. To find names of these people, he searched historical records and publications. Newsletters published at the end of the Civil War, magazines and Freedmen’s Bureau records gave him the first 4,000 to 5,000 names. Diaries, military records and census data produced others.

At one point he went to the Alabama Statehouse to look through documents that had not been touched since they were boxed in 1874.

“I got a call that they had these documents and boom, we were there,” he says. “Talk about getting your hands dirty.” He gathered 1,100 more names from that search.

What he found surprised him.The average Northern teacher

lasted about two years in the educational workforce, while black teachers stretched that time to an average of six. He became interested in their motives.

Some of the teachers were driven by salvation, rather than selfless missionary service. They would teach for a few years and, satisfied with themselves, would move on.

“Those who were there to make sure they got more stars in their crown, they didn’t last,” Butchart says.

Not to be overlooked, though, are Southern white teachers, whose stories had never before been told. Some were Confederate veterans, officers, even past slave owners. They didn’t leave much information to be found, but they didn’t like their work and were driven to teach because they needed money in the suffering economy of the South.

“Some of them were probably standing in front of the classroom in their Confederate gray uniforms,” Butchart says.

However, there were heroes who sought to make a difference in the lives of the freed people.

“They were lynched, they were beaten, they faced hell,” Butchart says. “But they’re the ones who lasted.”

Currently only Butchart has access to the database because of its complex filing system, but he provides information to other scholars by request. He hopes to increase accessibility in the future.

Liberation and educationUGA professor researches education of freed slaves in the 1800s

by Chase Martin

Ron Butchart, professor of education, has published two books on the education of freed slaves. Schooling the Freed People, published in 2012, was named Outstanding Book of the Year by the History of Education Society.


PHoTo By DoT PAUL

Butchart began researching the education of freed slaves 30 years ago as a graduate student. He’s since created a database that includes the names of more than 11,000 early educators, an effort that won him a UGA Creative Research Award last year.

16 GEORGIA MAGAZINE • www.uga.edu/gm

Students, faculty, alumni and state leaders say Jere Morehead has the experience and skills to take UGA to the next level.

by Kelly Simmons

Photo by Dot Paul

The right person,

the right time

Morehead stands next to Moore College, home base for UGA’s Honors Programs. Behind him seated on a bench is a depiction of Bernard Ramsey, whose transformational gift to Honors significantly increased scholarship awards offered to top students.

17SEPTEMBER 2013 • GEORGIA MAGAZINE


July 1, Jere Morehead’s first day as president of the University of Georgia.

It begins early, with a breakfast among a handfulof students in the Tate Center. From there, he moves

next door to the Miller Learning Center to address his new-est constituents: First-year students on campus for Freshman College, a program that brings students to campus early to explore educational, cultural and social opportunities.

He walks the aisles of the auditorium-style classroom as he welcomes them to the university. As he talks he flashes photos on the screen at the front of the room, photos of some of UGA’s most academically successful students in recent years. Among them, Deep Shah (AB, BS ’08), a Rhodes and Truman scholar who earned his medical degree from Harvard and now is back in Georgia doing his resi-dency at Emory; Lucas Puente (BBA, AB ’10), who worked for then-Sen. Barack Obama as a student in the Washington

Semester Program in 2008 and now is earning his doctorate in political science at Stanford University; and Tracy Yang (AB ’11), another Rhodes and Truman scholar now study-ing medicine at Johns Hopkins University. All of them, he points out, were active in organizations and activities on campus while succeeding academically.

“Get out of your comfort zone,” he tells the new fresh-men. “This is the next stage of your life. Get involved. Find something at the University of Georgia that you really enjoy. ”

“Find your place on campus.”Starting his first day as president with students is by

design. They are, he says repeatedly, a priority. “I want to make sure our institution stays focused on its

primary mission, to educate students, conduct research and serve the public,” he says. “And I think it will be important to do everything possible to generate resources and shift other resources to support these three key functions.”

He already is taking steps to forward that mission: • In May he announced a reorganization of the senior

administration that would eliminate one level of bureaucracy

Morehead walks the aisles of the Miller Learning Center classroom as he speaks to incoming students on campus early for Freshman College. “You are now entering the best four years of your life,” he tells them.


and provide him with more oversight of the vice presidents.

• With the unanimous support of the University of Georgia Foundation he directed $3.3 million in unrestricted investment returns from fiscal year 2013 to student scholarships and en-dowed professorships.

• He opened a UGA economic development office in Atlanta, overseen by the vice presidents for public service and outreach, and research. In July, a director was hired for that office, who will provide a direct link between the Georgia Department of Economic De-velopment and the business sector.

And he has made it abundantly clear, from meetings with his staff, faculty representatives and alumni that any expenditure request is going

to be heavily scrutinized. If it doesn’t forward the mission of the university and add to the academic experience of students, it will not be approved.

“The core of my message is going to be academic excellence at the Univer-sity of Georgia,” he told members of the executive committee of the University Council. “It’s not an original notion, but it’s going to be the way I operate. ”

A campaign to raise $1 billion, perhaps more, is on the horizon. The money raised will be earmarked for additional professorships, scholarships and programs.

UGA needs more transformational gifts, like the $34 million given by the late Bernard Ramsey, which created the Ramsey Honors Scholarship, dramati-cally increasing the number of students

on campus who receive money through the Georgia Foundation Fellows Schol-arship. Students who interview for the Foundation Fellow but do not receive the award are offered the Ramsey scholarship.

Morehead does not shy away from telling alumni, hundreds of whom gathered to hear him speak in Wash-ington, D.C., in late July, that he will be coming to them for support.

“Support is critical to our institu-tion here and in Athens,” he says to the group, which includes both U.S. senators from Georgia and several con-gressmen. “We want to be a premier institution. It means we’re going to focus on our students, our faculty and on the future. We owe our students the best education they can have.”

On his first day as president, Morehead consults with his chief of staff, Kathy Pharr, who manages his office and his two assistants.

I want to make sure our institution stays focused on its primary mission, to educate students, conduct research and serve the public. And I think it will be important to do everything possible to generate resources and shift other resources to support these three key functions.”“

— President Jere Morehead

RobeRt Newcomb

Dot PAUL


He made the same pitch to faculty representatives from the University Council.

“I don’t think I can do it alone; I’m going to need the support of those of you in this room,” he told them.

One of Morehead’s best and earliest supporters, Earl Leonard (ABJ ’58, LLB ’61), says Morehead will have no problem garnering support from students, faculty, alumni and government officials.

“The harmony between those four major constituents is going to be (his) biggest asset,” says Leonard, a former

Coca-Cola Co. executive who created the Institute for Leadership Advancement in the Terry College of Business and provides scholarships to students in his name.

“You don’t always want an insider to be a president,” Leonard says. “But today at this time with this man, the regents and selection committee got it just right.

“If Jere Morehead wants me to climb Stone Mountain at 6 o’clock in the morning and sing the ‘Star Spangled Banner,’ I’ll be there. He’s the ideal (person) for this moment in history.”

Morehead was born in Lakeland, Fla., where his parents met and both worked at

Western Union Telegraph. When he was 10, his father was transferred to West Palm Beach. Two years later he was transferred to Daytona Beach. Four years later he was transferred to Atlanta.

His high school years disrupted by the moves, Morehead focused on academics and finished high school at Southwest DeKalb at age 16.

He earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from Georgia State University, followed by a law degree

coNtRibUteD

Former Georgia Gov. and U.S. Sen. Herman Talmadge (seated, third from left) took the UGA Law School moot court team to the Senate Dining Room following the Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition in 1979. Morehead, a member of that team, is seated, second from the right. Team coach Griff Doyle (AB ’76, JD ’79), UGA vice president for governmental relations, is stand-ing, far left. Standing far right is Randy Nuckolls (BSA ’74, JD ’77), who was Talmadge’s legislative director and arranged the lunch. Other team members include Audrey Winter (BSEd ’77, JD ’80), seated far left, Betsy Cox (JD ’80), seated, fourth from left, Mike Levengood (AB ’77, JD ’80), standing, second from right, and Peter Quist (BBA ’77, JD ’80) seated, far right.


from UGA. At age 23, he went to work as an assistant U.S. attorney for the Department of Justice. It was a job he had anticipated since watching the Watergate hearings on television in 1973.

After six years of prosecuting criminal and civil cases, he felt drawn to academics. He had taught a business law course at Georgia State during the summer of 1985.

“That piqued my interest in being a college teacher,” he says.

A job was available at UGA that would allow him to teach the legal environment of business and international business perspectives in the College of Business and advocacy in the School of Law. He carried a five-course teaching load each year and oversaw the law school’s moot court program.

Peter Shedd (BBA ’74, JD ’77), director of the Terry College MBA programs and UGA professor emeritus of legal studies, recalls the hiring process that brought Morehead to UGA. It was a unique position that required a special candidate, he says, and Morehead was ideal.

“Jere’s academic record was stellar. Then being in the U.S. attorney’s office provided a wealth of experience and knowledge to bring back into the classroom,” Shedd says. “When you present in front of a jury you are teaching all the time.

“He was great from the beginning and he just got better. Over the years he just honed {his teaching experience} to where those kids were winning everything from the state to the regional to the national to a couple of international titles.”

But after nine years of traveling across the country with

the moot court program, Morehead decided to focus his teaching in business. He had been active in committee work on campus and in 1996 was asked by then-President Chuck Knapp to chair the task force on the quality of undergraduate education at UGA. Through that process, he realized he had a keen interest in being part of the university administration.

“If I was really going to make a dif-ference I was going to have to become an administrator,” he says.

He calls his time on the task force, which he co-chaired again in 2005, “among the best experiences of my life. I got to spend hours and hours talking to people and thinking about how to make this place better.”

When Michael F. Adams became president in 1997 he asked Morehead to serve as interim director of legal affairs for the university. About 18 months later, Provost Karen Holbrook tapped him to be associate provost and direc-tor of the Honors Program. He quickly moved up the chain, from vice provost for academic affairs, to vice president for instruction and in 2010, provost.

He has made a practice of looking at other schools for ideas that would make UGA stronger. When he became provost, one of those was the University of Michigan, where he was a visiting as-sociate professor of business law in 1995.

“I came away with a renewed no-tion that, if you want to keep recruit-ing the very best students, you have to recruit the very best faculty,” he says.

He has made significant hires during his tenure as provost, bringing top notch recruits from Virginia Tech, Vanderbilt, the University of Missouri

Morehead talks with another campus leader, Student Government Association President Austin Laufersweiler, during a breakfast with students at the Tate Center on July 1.

“

Rick o’QUiNN

I came away with a renewed notion that, if you want to keep recruiting the very best students, you have to recruit the very best faculty.”


and the University of Texas to serve as deans in engineering, education, journalism/mass communications, and public and international affairs, respectively. He tapped former UGA President Chuck Knapp to serve as interim dean of the Terry College of Business, until a search can be held for that position. The search for a provost to succeed Morehead is underway.

He also has worked to strengthen the academic programs for undergradu-ates, including adding a seminar pro-gram for all freshmen that provides them an opportunity to take smaller classes with tenured or tenure-track faculty during their first year at UGA. Through the First-Year Odyssey seminars, which count as one credit hour, students are exposed to more writing assignments, which Morehead’s team determined was essential in their evaluation of the quality of undergraduate education.

Another program that emerged during the task force work was the Office of Service-Learning, jointly run by the Office of the Vice Presi-

dent for Public Service and Outreach and the Office of the Vice President for Instruction. The service-learning program combines community service with academics to help students better understand how what they do in the classroom relates to the outside world.

“For a number of our students, getting a chance to give back to the community is very fulfilling,” More-head says. “As a land-grant institu-tion it seems to me we have to have a service-learning component.”

Perhaps the most telling indicator of his presidential style

is his ability to build and maintain rela-tionships with students—some from as far back as his early years with the law school advocacy program.

Allison Thornton (JD ’92), who

lives in Atlanta, has a standing lunch date with Morehead every year on the day after Christmas when he is in town visiting family.

“You can tell he really cares about you as a person,” Thornton says.

His teaching skills also led her and fellow law student, now husband, Steve Thornton (JD ’92) to win a moot court competition against the University of Florida. He ran a tough program for the future lawyers, she says, challenging students’ positions and making them defend them in every possible way.

“It sounds cliché, but he did not accept mediocrity,” Thornton says. “Everyone at some point felt frustrated that they weren’t going to perform to his expectations. But he drew out the best in his students, and they did perform to his expectations eventually.”

Morehead wrote one of David Battle’s letters of recommendation for the MBA program at Harvard University, which Battle (BBA ’00) completed after working in finance in Charlotte and New York.

Now a vice president for Metal Mark Capital in Manhattan, Battle still turns to Morehead for advice and credits him for much of his success.

“I want to do well on behalf of UGA,” he says. “That is because of Jere. He lives by an honor code and sets a good example. You want to do right by him.”

The extent of the relationships Morehead has maintained with former students was evident in the days and weeks following his appointment to the presidency. Students in graduate programs at other universities, doing fellowships or working in foreign countries began posting photos of themselves on the Foundation Fellows

Erin Thomas, an incoming freshman, and her mother, Melonie Thomas (BBA ’86) of Dunwoody, Ga., congratulate Morehead during a reception in his honor on north campus July 9. Thomas’ husband Bill Thomas (AB ’88) is a member of the UGA Alumni Association board of directors.

“For a number of our students, getting a chance to give back to the community is very fullfilling.”

ANDRew DAViS tUckeR


and Honors Program Facebook pages, holding handmade signs congratulating the president-elect.

“Congratulations President Morehead,” reads the sign held by Rebecca Corey (AB/AB ’09), who posted her photo from Tanzania where she is a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar. Matt Sellers (AB/MA ’12) and Tracy Yang (AB ’11), both at Oxford University in England, had their photo taken on the university grounds holding poster boards with the message, “Congrats Pres. Morehead.”

One of those to hear of Morehead’s selection from afar was Trey Sinyard (AB, BBA ’11) who was in his first year of medical school at Duke University.

Sinyard, Morehead’s teaching assistant for his 2011 First-Year Odyssey seminar, “Current Events and Law,” saw the presidential potential then. Morehead established a nonjudgmental environment in his classroom, which put students at ease so that they could share their thoughts, Sinyard says.

“He lets the conversation be student driven. He wanted it to be less about his opinion than teaching students to process theirs,” he says.

“He’s given his life to the service of the university, which is so evident in everything he’s done. That’s the student-centric style that will make his presidency so successful.”

Peter Shedd, Morehead’s long-time colleague and confidant agrees, and adds that his loyalty to the university will breed success as well.

“What Jere will bring and what we will truly appreciate is his true sense of stewardship of the public trust that is the University of Georgia. We have sometimes failed to recognize we have to be stewards of the trust that the state has placed in us.”

Morehead poses with Freshmen Fellows in Oxford, England in this May 2008 photo. The students were in England for a Maymester program and to dedicate the new house for UGA’s Oxford programs. From left: Morehead, Rachel Pocock

(BS ’11), Phillip Mote (AB/BS ’11), Mir Inaamullah (AB/BS ’11), Anne Karam (BBA ’11) and Geales Goodwin (AB ’11).

Morehead oversaw his first graduation ceremony as UGA president on Aug. 2, awarding diplomas to 708 undergraduates, 573 masters and specialist students and 218 doctoral candidates. The summer ceremony in Stegeman Colliseum featured speaker Inez Moore Tenenbaum (BSEd ’72, Med ’74), chair of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. At left is Interim Provost for Academic Affairs Libby Morris.

ANDRew DAViS tUckeR

coNtRibUteD


by Chase Martinphotos by Shanda Crowe

A horse of another color


Late on a cold December night, a pickup truck towed a two-ton horse through downtown Athens. The sides of the truck were covered with cardboard so that no one would recognize the owner, whose company name was painted on the doors.

About 20 miles down Ga. 15, the truck stopped and the horse was unloaded. It was left in the spot in which it got stuck in the mud, its rear end facing the university that shunned it.

The year was 1959.Now, more than 50 years later, the campus is coming to the horse.

This past spring the Curtis family, which owns the land on which the horse has stood since its final move, sold 660 acres of its property to UGA for horticulture research. However, they kept the 400 square feet around the horse and an easement from the highway to the statue.

“It’s an integral part of us,” Jack Curtis (AB ’55) says. “I personally saw it being built, and consequently I’ve always thought it was a part of me.”

Curtis was a UGA student when the 12-by-12 foot iron horse sculpture was built for the university. Lamar Dodd, then director of the School of Art, commissioned Chicago sculptor Abbott Pattison to do the work. Pattison, who died in 1999, previously had chiseled a granite sculpture he named “Mother and Child,” which still sits on campus behind the Fine Arts building.

Iron sculpture made its debut following World War II and was still a new concept. When the “modern art” was erected on campus near Reed Hall in May of 1954, it immediately drew outrage from students.

“It was an oddity,” Curtis says. “There had been nothing at the university like it before.”

Students gathered around the statue that evening. They climbed it, put hay in its mouth and manure at its rear. When night fell, someone placed old tires around the horse and set them on fire. When firefighters arrived they had to turn their hoses on the 500 to 700 students rioting near the horse to get them to settle down.

“There was no rhyme nor reason for having the turmoil,” Curtis says now.

The Iron Horse, its back toward Athens and the University, was removed from campus after students rioted and set it afire in 1954. Its now a destination for UGA students, who make the drive south on Ga. 15 to view the sculpture.


In the 1980 documentary “Iron Horse” that aired on PBS, Pattison expressed shock at the student’s reaction.

“I welded it so it would last against the elements, but had no idea of the human element that would be involved,” he says. He viewed the riot as a form of lynching, and was devastated to see something he had created with pride so hastily rejected by the student body.

“The nature of the sculpture was unconventional. It didn’t look like a bronze horse that was cast in the Middle Ages, but we were living in another day, and my horse was a horse of another color,” he says in the film.

Within a day the horse was loaded on a truck and taken away from campus, the first of three moves. It was initially stored in a barn out of sight of the public. When the barn fell in on the horse, the statue was carted to a wooded pasture. In 1958, Curtis and his father, L.C., wrote to Dodd asking

that they be allowed to move it to their farm. Dodd agreed, and roughly one year later the horse made its final move to a cornfield along Ga. 15 owned by the Curtis family.

“We’ve had it for quite a few years,” Curtis says. “Clarke County has lost it. If possession means anything it’s ours. I like it where it is.”

Since taking ownership of the horse, the Curtis family has used it as a logo for the family-run gravel and sand business. It’s on a sign at the road leading to the business, on the company letterhead and business cards. The office is adorned with photographs and paintings of the horse.

UGA student William VanDerKloot (BS ’74) knew nothing about the horse until someone mentioned it at a party. He drove out to see it that very night.

“I was just awestruck by it,” says VanDerKloot, who founded VanKerKloot Film and Television in Atlanta. He produced and

directed “Iron Horse,” which won a Gold Award at the 1981 Chicago International Film Festival. He shot the film on the Curtis’ property, using fraternity members to recreate scenes from the campus riot.

John English, associate producer of the documentary and professor emeritus at the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, says they could never find out who made the decision to remove the horse after its first night on campus.

About a decade ago, there were discussions on campus about bringing the horse back, but English says it’s in its rightful place.

“It’s in a beautiful location,” he says. “I don’t see any place for it on campus.”

It has become a popular site for students. Listed in the UGA Alumni Association’s G Book as a destination not to be missed by students, many make the trek down Ga. 15 and through the cornfields to see the horse.

It’s an integral part of us. I personally saw it being built, and consequently I’ve always thought it was a part of me.” —Jack Curtis

“Jack Curtis (AB ’55) was a student when Chicago artist Abbott Pattison created the two-ton sculpture. Four years after the horse was removed from campus, Curtis and his father, L.C., requested that they be allowed to move it to their farm. The family has since used the horse as a logo for their gravel and sand business.


Visible most months of the year, it can be difficult to spot come summer when the corn is almost as tall as the horse.

“We know it’s a good crop if we can’t see the horse’s head,” Curtis says.

When Curtis tills the land around the horse he’ll notice passers-by look toward the sculpture as they round the curve. Once, a boiler inspector lost control of his truck and flipped over while staring. During football season, scores of people call to ask if they can get pictures with the horse.

“Some people will say they know they’re home because they see the horse,” Curtis says.

And while it remains off campus, the horse’s legacy still resonates with lessons to be learned.

“The horse is a perfect example of how we should all be tolerant of new and interesting ideas,” VanDerKloot says.

“Some things don’t change,” Curtis says. “The Chapel bell hasn’t changed. It’s nice to say the horse hasn’t. The older things get, the more you’re going to revere them.”

At top, an illustration of the Iron Horse hangs in Curtis’ office. Above, “Mother and Child,” a granite sculpture that sits behind the Fine Arts Building, also created by Pattison.

Extreme Makeover


SGA’s new president is promoting a culture change on campus

He’s only five minutes late, but Austin Laufersweiler calls one morning in May to apologize and explain that he just got out of

a meeting. As the new president of UGA’s Student Government Association (SGA), he has many demands on his time. But Laufersweiler is not the average student—once a victim of bullying, he remade himself into an advocate, effecting change and receiving accolades at the local, state and national levels. Now he’s putting his skills to work in the service of his fellow students at UGA.

While campaigning for SGA president during spring semester, Laufersweiler and his team emphasized retooling the organization to better serve student needs and also create a culture change—one that encourages students to get more involved on campus. Measuring success with the latter goal is going to be tough, but Laufersweiler thinks that figuring out what they’re passionate about—it could be athletics, research, theater,

social justice or just about anything—will help students graduate with a much better understanding of what they want from life.

“I think UGA will improve if people start to advocate for positive change in those areas that they care about,” he says. “I think that promotes overall campus growth, the betterment of UGA as an institution and then society, upon graduation.”

It’s a lesson he learned at a young age. Laufersweiler was 16 when he decided to address bullying at his high school. That effort segued into working for new legislation at the county level and eventually into lobbying the U.S. Congress and accepting an invitation to the White House. So this 22-year-old senior from Marietta knows exactly how valuable it can be to embrace and follow your passion. It shapes who you are and who you become.

“I just wouldn’t be anywhere near where I am today without those experiences early on,” he says.

by Allyson Mann (MA ’92)photos by Peter Frey (BFA ’94)


In June, Laufersweiler began a steady schedule of speaking to incoming freshmen, on campus

for orientation, about SGA. Four times a week he addressed groups of 25 to 50 incoming students, introducing them to SGA programs and sometimes digressing to offer the insights of an upperclassman. Snelling Dining Hall, he tells them, is open 24 hours. Eating at East Campus Village, he says, is worth the hike—especially when they’re serving buffalo chicken pizza or strawberry feta salad. Speaking at these sessions, and also working twice a week at the orientation resource fair, is a significant time commitment. Instead of sending another representative, Laufersweiler is doing it himself to demonstrate that SGA is here to serve students. He wants freshmen to recognize his face when they arrive on campus.

The young man addressing crowds weekly this summer is much more self assured than the sophomore who entered a guidance counselor’s office at Lassiter High School in 2007. He wanted to address bullying, but he was nervous, and for good reason. He’d been a target for years.

“I was bullied in elementary school because people perceived me as gay and feminine, and I did not identify that way,” he says. “I remember in the 5th grade, in particular, I got called gay a lot and girly, and I grew to take great offense to that, because I felt it wasn’t true.”

In middle school, there was gossip that made him uncomfortable and more labels he didn’t like. During his freshman year of high school, the bullying became more overt. Laufersweiler got pushed while walking to class. It was subtle, but deliberate.

Laufersweiler chats with incoming freshmen at an orientation session during summer. Speaking in front of crowds got easier for Laufersweiler after he performed in a production of “Grease” during his senior year of high school. After auditioning on a whim, he was cast in the lead role of Danny Zuko.


After it happened a couple of times, he changed his route.

“I didn’t realize it was a problem,” he says. “I had grown to accept it.”

He’d also grown to accept something about himself. The day after his 16th birthday, Laufersweiler told his family that he was gay. Coming out had a secondary effect at school—no one at school bothered him anymore.

But he knew there must be others experiencing what he’d gone through.

“I had to change my daily life because of the way I was treated. Whereas it’s not a huge inconvenience to walk a different way to class, I shouldn’t have to,” he says. “It’s one thing to allow a certain student or type of student or characteristic to exist, but it’s another one to embrace it or accept it or acknowledge it. And those last three were not what I was experiencing.”

Laufersweiler’s first step was visiting his guidance counselor’s office. He was nervous, but reassured by the presence of a sticker on the door—it said “Safe Space” and included a small rainbow flag.

“To most students, I don’t think that would mean much, but I was able to identify the meaning of that, which meant if you’re an LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender] student… it’s likely that I would have a safe space there,” he says. “I would be able

to talk to her about things like this.”He met that day with guidance

counselor Diane Wilkes and Maru Gonzalez, a school counseling intern. Gonzalez remembers a passionate but fearful young man who was fidgety and didn’t make eye contact. But he did want to make a difference, and Lassiter High School’s gay-straight alliance club was formed as a result. A couple of months later, Laufersweiler and other members organized a voluntary teacher training on how to create safe schools, emphasizing the academic benefits for all students, not just LGBT students. About 60 faculty members came and listened to him and other students speak about their experiences.

“It was incredibly courageous of the students to do that in this somewhat resistant environment, and it was very, very effective,” Gonzalez says.

“That was the start of something really special.”

High school students and their families get a campus tour led by Arch Society member Laufersweiler during UGA First Look, a special visitation program sponsored by the admissions department. Welcoming visitors to campus is one of the responsibilities of the Arch Society, a student organization whose members serve as official hosts and goodwill ambassadors.

“I think UGA will improve if people

start to advocate for positive change in

those areas that they care about. I think that

promotes overall campus growth, the betterment

of UGA as an institution and then society,

upon graduation.” — Austin Laufersweiler


In June 2010, Austin Laufersweiler found himself shaking hands with President Barack Obama

during the LGBT Pride Reception at the White House. After seeing a visible transformation at his high school, he’d devoted the next year to his new calling.

“Creating a safe environment for all students became my charge,” he says.

It was something of a surprise. When Laufersweiler came out to his family—his parents, Steve and Mary, who divorced when he was young, and his older sister Lindsey and younger brother Owen—they expressed concern that he would experience negative repercussions. He assured them that he wasn’t going to become an advocate.

“I remember saying to my family that I had no intentions of getting on a soapbox or trying to be public about this, but it turned out to be the exact opposite,” he says. “And it was

something that I fell into, not driven so much by the idea of being an activist, but there were important issues that needed to be addressed, and if not me, then who?”

He and Gonzalez, who had become a close friend, helped to create the Georgia Safe Schools Coalition, an organization devoted to eliminating oppression of LGBT students in Georgia schools. Run by volunteers, the coalition addresses policy change, offers teacher training and sponsors a gay-straight alliance summit every year. For six months the two worked to change Cobb County’s anti-bullying harassment policy, attending school board meetings every month and partnering with other groups like disability rights.

“There is now in Cobb County a comprehensive anti-bullying harassment policy that protects not only LGBT students but also LGBT faculty. I think

Austin should get a great deal of credit for that,” Gonzalez says. “It’s one thing to hear an adult say, ‘Oh, I think this policy is a good idea’ versus a student saying, ‘Look, this is my experience in the hallways at your school, and this is why we need a stronger anti-bullying and harassment policy.’ It’s much more impactful.”

In 2009 Laufersweiler was named the first Student Advocate of the Year by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, a national safe schools organization. He and Gonzalez, who nominated him, attended a red carpet event in Los Angeles, where Laufersweiler gave a speech in front of a crowd including cast members from “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Dancing with the Stars” and “True Blood.” Later the two attended the Safe Schools Advocacy Summit in Washington, D.C., through the network, where they lobbied Congressional representatives for passage of the Safe Schools Improvement Act and the Student Nondiscrimination Act.

But while he was experiencing great success, Laufersweiler was also dealing with great sorrow. During his senior year, his mother died after years of chronic lung illness.

“That kind of lit a fire under me to go out and do things,” he says. “She was a big support system for me, and so that was a strong motivator.”

His mother, named Mary, was called “Pixie,” which said a lot about who she was, according to Laufersweiler. She had “a sense of unbridled excitement” and a go-for-it attitude.

“A lot of the things that I do, I do them kind of in her memory because I know it’s something she’d be excited about and care a lot about.”

In March 2012 Gonzalez and Laufersweiler ran the Atlanta marathon and half marathon, respectively, to raise money for the Georgia Safe Schools Coalition. Five months later, Laufersweiler joined the inaugural Youth

Alex Moosariparambil (right) met Laufersweiler through SGA during their freshman year and now serves as his chief of staff. “That was probably my favorite part about SGA during my freshman year—the friendships I made,” Laufersweiler says.


Advisory Board for the Born This Way Foundation. Created by pop star Lady GaGa, the foundation seeks to create a kinder and braver world. That concept—seeking culture change—is one that’s important to him.

Laufersweiler’s thoughts on his journey have been preserved through StoryCorps, an oral history project that records participant interviews for preservation at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress. He was interviewed by Gonzalez, now a doctoral student in social justice education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

“As educators, you sort of go into schools thinking you’re there to inspire students... And then someone like Austin comes along and really just transforms your way of thinking,” she says. “Austin is really one of the primary reasons that I’m getting my doctorate and doing the kind of work that I do because I see firsthand how important it is.”

Laufersweiler chats with students (left to right) Kristen Lemaster, Zach Gaddis, Melanie Wiggins and Margaret Hancock at Dawg Camp, a program that introduces incoming freshmen to campus life. The SGA and Dawg Camp offices are housed in the Tate Center, along with other student organizations.

When he was campaigning for SGA president last spring, Laufersweiler had trouble sleeping. Running through his head

constantly was a barrage of questions: What could we do better? What’s the next step for SGA?

“It’s the greatest and most terrible two weeks of your life, because the highs are so high and the lows are very low,” he says.

To relax before bedtime, he watched videos of blue whales.

“I just found them really interesting and very relaxing creatures. [They don’t] seem to have a lot of concerns. [They’re] too large to have any natural predators, and I thought, ‘What a life to swim around the ocean without having any fear of being eaten.’”

Campaign stress is unavoidable with the entire process crammed into two weeks, but Laufersweiler inadvertently has been preparing for his role as SGA president since he arrived at UGA. During his first year he led the Freshman Board, a group of 15 students that represent their class in SGA concerns. During that year he met sophomore Belle Doss (AB ’13), who was assigned to be his SGA mentor. Their first meeting was “very, very memorable.”


“He had more ideas and more things that he wanted to do in the four years that he was here than anyone I’d ever met,” Doss says.

She encouraged him to sustain that passion the whole time he was on campus, and Laufersweiler did his best, overcommitting during his sophomore year because he was interested in so many things. He refers to the condition as FOMO—fear of missing out.

“Once he realized that he couldn’t do 35 things on campus and love them all, he really found his drive and his passion for the things that he really wanted to devote himself to,” she says.

He and Doss became close friends, and he stayed with SGA, serving as a senator during his sophomore year and chief of staff during his junior year. He also worked with Designated Dawgs, which provides safe, free, nonjudgmental rides home for students, and Shop with a Bulldawg, a student organization that

aims to bring the joy of the holiday season to underprivileged children in Athens-Clarke County. And he became a member of the Arch Society, official hosts and goodwill ambassadors for UGA.

When it was time to plan for his senior year, Laufersweiler made a decision that would have made his mother proud.

“I guess I could have taken a back seat, but I felt compelled to use all of my knowledge and experience in the highest capacity, and that would require running for president,” he says.

“I love [SGA], but even more than that I love what it can do. I love the potential that’s there.”

He based his decision on passion, but Laufersweiler applied himself to the task with lots of hard work—a quality he learned from his father, Steve.

“I wouldn’t be anywhere without my dad’s hard work,” he says. “At this

point in my life, whereas I do things in memory of my mom and really keep her in mind, my dad is my biggest support system… I would not have been able to do what I have done at UGA without the support of my dad.”

Laufersweiler recruited friends Uzma Chowdhury and Mary Grace Griffin as running mates. Griffin had been involved in SGA since her freshman year, but Chowdhury was an SGA outsider and took some convincing.

“It took a couple of months. I said no for a very long time,” she says, laughing.

“I honestly would never have done it if I didn’t know Austin.”

The three developed their EmbarkUGA campaign with the intention of overhauling SGA, making it more accountable to students and putting in place long-term strategies to increase student involvement and end apathy—in other words, effect a culture change.

“It was really important to us that the motto of SGA is the voice of every Dawg, and not just people who’d been in SGA for four years,” Chowdhury says.

“Some of the things that we had a problem with or had concerns about, we thought, you know there’s really no one better to solve these problems than us,” Griffin says. “And if we really want to see a change, then we have to be the ones to make it happen.”

And for perhaps the first time in years, Laufersweiler did not have to talk publicly about being gay and being bullied.

Laufersweiler, SGA Vice President Uzma Chowdhury (center) and Treasurer Mary Grace Griffin prepare what they’re going to discuss before their first meeting with President Jere Morehead. The architects of the EmbarkUGA platform survived a grueling two-week campaign in the spring and remained friends. “It’s the best two weeks of my life that I never want to do again,” Chowdhury says.

“I love [SGA], but even more than that I love

what it can do. I love the potential that’s there.”

— Laufersweiler


“It was significant to me that it wasn’t a part of the campaign at all,” he says. “No one brought it up, and a lot of people knew, but it was just never a point of contention. I thought, ‘What if they ask me about it during the debate?’ They didn’t do that, didn’t go anywhere near that. We didn’t lose support, to my knowledge, because of it.”

Ask Austin Laufersweiler whom he admires, and he comes up with two names: C.J. Cregg

and Toby Ziegler. They’re characters from “The West Wing,” a TV show that followed the lives of White House staffers and ran from 1999-2006.

Press secretary Cregg and speechwriter Ziegler represented two parts of the communication process for their fictional president—shaping the message and crafting the message. For Laufersweiler, who’s double majoring in communication studies and political science, it’s the perfect combination of his interests.

“I’m fascinated with why people believe what they do, and I think when you can answer that question, it makes people much easier to reach.”

Like many seniors facing graduation, Laufersweiler isn’t sure how to translate his interests into a job. Speechwriting for a politician would keep him in messaging and politics and also provide the opportunity to respond quickly to issues and events—where he sees a lot of potential to do good.

“I don’t think I’m an 8 to 5, Monday through Friday kind of person. The

spontaneity of a high-stress, high-impact situation—that’s what drives me,” he says. “That’s why I loved the SGA campaign so much. That was probably the happiest I have been, despite the stress.”

The general consensus from his friends is that Laufersweiler has the talent and the drive to do whatever he wants.

“I just kind of sit back in amazement at how far he’s come since that afternoon in my office,” Gonzalez says.

“Austin is one of the most passionate people I’ve ever met about everything that he does,” Chowdhury says. “And he doesn’t give up on things. I’m really excited to see what he does in the future… because I expect really big things from him.”

For the next year, Laufersweiler will devote himself to serving UGA

students and leaving SGA in a position to continue improving after the Embark team is gone. After that, he’ll continue to follow his passion wherever it leads.

“I believe that people are on this Earth for a reason,” he says. “I want to find my purpose. I want to have an impact. That is how I am fulfilled—by knowing that I have changed something for the better.”

Laufersweiler works as a lifeguard at UGA’s Legion Pool. “It’s… a great opportunity to see a very different side of Athens, because a lot of families and community members go there,” he says. “It definitely gives me a different perspective.”

GET MORE

UGA Student Government Associationsga.uga.edu

Laufersweiler and Gonzalez’s Outrun Bullying blog (includes a link to their StoryCorps interview) outrunbullying.wordpress.com

Georgia Safe Schools Coalitiongeorgiasafeschoolscoalition.org


CLA

SSN

OTE

S

Aimee Copeland (BS ’10), the 25-year-old who lost both of her hands, her right foot and her left leg to necrotizing fasciitis—a rare, “flesh-eating,” bacterial infection—after a zip line accident in May 2012, has made great strides learning to adjust both emotionally and physically to her new life. In June she welcomed a new companion, a 1-year-old Labradoodle service dog named Belle. Trained by Psychiatric Service Dog Academy and Registry, for which Copeland is now a spokesperson, Belle will help with a multitude of tasks such as turning on and off light switches and knowing when to bring Copeland her medication. “I’m so excited to have that new addition and that new help because my life is so much more difficult than it used to be—I am constantly dropping things,” Copeland says. “And plus, just having a companion around makes such a difference emotionally.” —Alex Crevar (AB ’93)

1940-1944Claude Williams (AB ’44, ABJ ’48) of Athens was awarded the Dean’s Medal for Leadership Excellence in Communication from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication.

1950-1954Joeseph B. Powell Jr. (BSA ’50) of Albany was honored with a Lifetime Service Award from Darton State College.

1960-1964Marc H. Coody (BBA ’60) of Coto de Caza, Calif., is now chairman of the USAF Helicopter Pilots Association.

1965-1969Mark Smith (ABJ ’66) of Eatonton was awarded the Dean’s Medal for Leadership Excellence in Commu-nication from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communica-tion. He was also inducted into the Georgia Press Association’s Golden Club. Gloria Ricks Taylor (ABJ ’66) of Athens was awarded the Dean’s Medal for Leadership Excellence

in Communication from the Grady College. Mary Laraine Young Hines (AB ’68) of Raleigh, N.C., was honored by the North Caro-lina Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution as the winner of the Oustanding DAR Service to Veterans Award. Reynold Jennings (BSPh ’69) of Kennesaw is president and CEO of WellStar.

1970-1974Claude Felton (ABJ ’70, MA ’71) of Athens received the John Holli-man Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award from the Grady College of Jour-nalism and Mass Communication.

CLASS NOTESCompiled by Chase Martin

PETER FREY


IronE Singleton remembers a sweltering day in an abandoned Georgia prison, when a horde of gruesome zombies attacked his character T-Dog. He didn’t make it out alive. But zombies were just part of daily life on the hit series “The Walking Dead,” in which Singleton (AB ’98) played the zombie-killing juggernaut T-Dog. Prior to this role, he was cast in “The Blind Side,” playing the part of the menacing thug Alton. Singleton’s path to stardom, however, had its own obstacles. He was born and raised in a rough neighborhood of Atlanta, where characters like Alton were all too real. “I knew college was the only way out,” he says. “I needed a totally different environment and constant education.” With God as his inspiration, Singleton was determined to leave the projects behind. He spent his first year of college at Kentucky State before transferring to Georgia to pursue a degree in drama and play football. Starting as a defensive back and later becoming a running back, he played for four years at UGA, participated in theater productions and was president of the Black Theatrical Ensemble. “UGA was one of the greatest times of my life,” he says. “I became a man at Georgia.” At football practice, Singleton’s teammates would ask him to perform Shake-speare monologues. “Acting was all I wanted to do.” He remembers thinking, “This will be my life.” Singleton had his first big break in the industry when he auditioned for a role in “The Blind Side” in February of 2009. “I gave the audition of my life,” he says. It paid off, and two months later he was on the set with actress Sandra Bull-ock. “It was surreal,” he says. “When I got the call, I could have yelled so loud the entire neighborhood would have heard me.” After landing this role, producers and directors began to notice Singleton. In June 2010, he was cast for AMC’s “The Walking Dead.” “I had never done a horror [show] before,” he says. “Once I became T-Dog, my mind just shifted. I was living in an apocalyptic world.” Theodore “T-Dog” Douglas appears in the first season of the series, as one of the original characters in the survivor group the show follows. Singleton says his life experiences and strong relationship with God are a part of everything he does, on and off set. Whenever he’s preparing for a new role, he studies the character and injects his own personal experiences into the part. “My core is always who I am.” Recently Singleton’s autobiography, Blindsided by the Walking Dead, has been his focus. Written with Juliette Terzieff and published in February, it tells his story of overcoming the struggles of his youth to his time at UGA and the roles he succeed-ed in landing in the film industry. “We all have an incredible story,” he says. “Now I can use my experiences to tell mine.”

A story for the scripts Following a rough childhood, alumnus makes break in “The Blind Side” and “The Walking Dead”

by Chase Martin

FRANK OCKENFELS/AMCIRONE SINGLETON

ALUMNI PROFILE

William B. Wood (BBA ’70, MBA ’75, JD ’79) and daughter Morgan Wood Bembry (ABJ ’02, JD ’11) established the law office of Wood & Bembry LLC in Lawrenceville. Cliff McCurry (BBA ’71) of Savan-nah was recognized by the Southeast Georgia Chapter of the American Red Cross as its 2013 Adult Mentor and Community Volunteer Hero of the Year. Don Jordan Harrison (BBA ’73, MBA ’81) of Gastonia, N.C., was named president and CEO of Alliance Bank & Trust. Jimmy W. Hayes (BBA ’74, MAcc ’75) of Atlanta will retire as CEO of Cox Enterprises in April 2014.

1975-1979Greg Parker (AB ’75) of Savan-nah is CEO of Parker Companies and now has 30 Parker’s gas stations and convenience stores in coastal Georgia and South Carolina. Amrey Harden (BBA ’76) of Watkins-ville celebrated 40 years of service with Oconee State Bank. Philip G. Meeks (ABJ ’76) of Atlanta was named executive vice president and chief operating officer for business services at Time Warner Cable. Dick Byne (BSA ’78) of Waynes-boro came together with three other Georgia farmers to win the snack foods category of the Flavor of Georgia contest, sponsored by the College of Agricultural and Environ-mental Sciences.

1980-1984Laura Nehf (AB ’80, JD ’83) of Athens was awarded the Justice Rob-ert Benham Award for Community Service. Leslie Shanks Smithwick (BSEd ’80, MEd ’85) of Athens retired from Clarke County School District after 32 years of teaching.


CLASSNOTES

I bring you great tidings of joy from the Classic City and from the gorgeous campus of the University of Georgia. It is my distinct honor to serve as the 73rd president of the UGA Alumni Association. I look forward to meeting each of you when you visit campus or at events in your areas. Originally from the middle Georgia community of Barnesville, I committed to the “G” at age 3 while doing the twist in the Tri-Delt house on Milledge Avenue, my sister’s sorority. The summer of 1974 I enrolled at UGA and was a member of the 1974 freshman football team. (At that time freshmen were not allowed to play on the regular team.) Thirty-five years since that fateful date night of dancing to the mighty Tams in downtown Athens, I am still married to my UGA college sweetheart, the former Kathryn “Kitty” Kincaid Thomas (BBA ’78). We re-sided in metro Atlanta for 34 years and recently moved home to Athens so I can fulfill my duties as president. My wonderful supporting family of Kitty, our daughter, Georgia Keadle Hardison (BBA ’04, MAcc ’05), and our son, Walker Lee Keadle (BBA ’08), is ready to serve UGA and its alumni with energy and enthusiasm. During my eight years on the Alumni Association Board of Directors, I have had the pleasure of serving with Federal District Court Judge and Immediate Past President Steve Jones (BBA ’78, JD ’87). Steve’s leadership has meant so much to me, and I want to thank him for the fine example he set. Steve is a class act, and I have a challenge in maintaining his standard of excellence. Also, my sincere appreciation goes out to my colleagues in Atlanta at Porter Keadle Moore LLC. They so graciously cover for me in my many absences while serving UGA. During my two-year term as president, I will emphasize the Alumni Association’s chapter structure. Chapter events bring UGA and Athens to your communities. Please become involved with your local chapter and capitalize on the numerous opportunities to network and socialize with fellow Bulldogs and to support your alma mater. Thank you to the more than 350 alumni chapter leaders from Rabun Gap to the marshes of Glynn and across the globe, whose hard work is priceless and greatly appreciated at events such as UGA Days, Freshman Send Offs, Bulldogs After Business Hours and Women of UGA gatherings, among others. These volunteers do an incredible job coordinating activities for more than 110 alumni chapters. Let me recognize the 2013 40 Under 40 Class, which will be honored on Sept. 19 at the Georgia Aquarium. These young graduates have achieved great success in their life endeavors, and I congratulate each of them on this great honor. They are truly an impressive group. To view the complete list of honorees or to register for the 40 Under 40 Awards Luncheon, please visit www.alumni.uga.edu/40u40. Each of you can count on the UGA Alumni Association Board of Directors and me to support the best interests and traditions of Georgia’s flagship university and its graduates. I encourage you to return to campus soon. A visit to the Classic City will surely renew your soul.

Always a Dawg,Tim Keadle (BBA ’78), presidentUGA Alumni Association

Deborah Dietzler, Executive DirectorALUMNI ASSOCIATION OFFICERSTim Keadle (BBA ’78)President, StathamRuth Bartlett (BBA ’76)Vice President, AtlantaJennifer Chapman (BBA ’97, MAcc ’98, JD ’02)Treasurer, AthensBonney Shuman (BBA ’80)Assistant Treasurer, St. Simons IslandJulie Reynolds (BSHE ’81)Secretary, LawrencevilleSteve Jones (BBA ’78, JD ’87)Immediate Past President, Atlanta

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION WEBSITEwww.alumni.uga.edu800/606-8786 or 706/542-2251

ADDRESS CHANGESEmail [email protected], call 888/268-5442 or visit www.alumni.uga.edu/myinfo

UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

®

TIM KEADLE

Will Smithwick (BSEd ’80) of Athens is the southeast director of sales for Armament Systems and Procedures. Barry Storey (BSA ’82) of Augusta was elected to the Synovus Financial Board. Mike Henry (ABJ ’83) of Morrison, Colo., is one of the founders of Media Mechanics, which won a 2012 Peabody Award for a series of micro-documentaries exploring in-ductees into the National Record-ing Registry. Michelle McDonald (BBA ’83) of Manhattan Beach, Ca-lif., was named director of finance for The Annenberg Foundation. Robert Rosengart (BS ’84) of Macon was elected president of the Georgia Radiological Society. 1985-1989Elizabeth “Beth” Chandler (BBA ’85, JD ’88) of Atlanta was named vice president and general counsel of Rollins Inc. John Sullivan Hayden (BS ’85) of St. George, Utah, was promoted to deputy executive director of the Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration in Denver, Colo. Nath Morris (BSA ’86) of Gainesville is currently serving as chairman and is in his fourth term on the Hall County Board of Education. He was also elected president-elect of the Georgia School Board Association. Scott Parel (BS ’86) of Augusta won the Air Capital Classic, becoming the fourth oldest winner in Web.com Tour history. Carl Sweat (BBA ’86, MBM ’88) of Roswell was named chief marketing and commercial officer of In Zone Brands. Jill Strickland Luse (ABJ ’87) of Atlanta was appointed as chief of public affairs for DeKalb County.


For more information:[email protected](800) 606-8786www.alumni.uga.edu

ALUMNI calendar

Game Watching Parties

Association chapters across the country will hold parties each week to cheer the Bulldogs on to victory. Find one in your area at www.alumni.uga.edu/calendar.

Thursday, Sept. 19

40 Under 40 Awards LuncheonJoin the Alumni Association as it recognizes 40 of UGA’s most accomplished young alumni during a luncheon at the Georgia Aquarium. Registration begins at 11:30 a.m. with lunch at noon. Go to www.alumni.uga.edu/40u40 for more information.

Friday, Sept. 20, and Saturday, Sept. 21

UGA Parents and Families WeekendParents and Families Weekend brings families to campus to visit their students and participate in events including tours, an Arts at UGA reception, a traditional tailgate party and the opportunity to attend the UGA football game against North Texas.

Friday, Oct. 11

Alumni Night at the BookstoreGraduates are invited to the UGA Bookstore from 5-7 p.m. to shop for items at 20 percent off. The event includes alumni authors book signings and photos with Uga IX.

Saturday, Oct. 26

Bulldog Pumpkin Pickin’Alumni and friends are invited to join the Macon Chapter of the Alumni Association at Elliot Farms in Lizella, Ga., for an afternoon of pumpkin picking, hayrides and tasty treats.

Monday, Nov. 4, to Sunday, Nov. 10

McGladrey ClassicThe UGA Alumni Association and the Golden Isles Chapter will again host “The Dawg House” hospitality tent at the annual tournament at the Sea Island Golf Club on St. Simons Island, Ga. For more information on the tournament, go to www.mcgladreyclassic.com.

For information about events in your area go to www.alumni.uga.edu/calendar.

(Left to right) Jake Mosley (AB ’04, AB ’05), April King-Mosley (BFA ’03) and Winnie Smith (BFA ’00) attended the 2013 Alumni Employee Breakfast on May 24. The Alumni Association offers this annual breakfast to express gratitude to UGA alumni employees who work daily to continue the excellence of their alma mater.

Amanda Wade (AB ’12, ABJ ’12) (left) and Serra Stalling (ABJ ’12) pose for a photograph with Hairy Dawg at the Alumni Association’s Young Alumni Gathering at SweetWater Brewing Company in Atlanta on June 14.

(Left to right) Haley Durham Galvin (BSFCS ’08), Christy Marsh (BBA ’02) and Bulldog 100 honoree Laura Lanier (AB ’00) got into the UGA spirit at UGA Day in Statesboro on May 22.


CLASSNOTES

A solid shell conga drum, or a drum made out of one piece of wood, is something extraordinary, explains Ryan “Manito” Wendel. Large sections of tree trunks—all harvested locally and sustainably—rest in piles outside of his Madison County wood shop, which forms the hub of Manito Percussion. Inside, a drum in progress sits on a lathe. As the outside is smoothed, unexpected colors emerge, caused by an early but undamaging stage of decomposition. The subtle blues, greens and red-oranges are beautiful, but it’s the never-seen hollow part that is the key to the drum’s sound. Think of sound waves. A traditional wooden drum is made up of staves, or pieces, which are made up of layers of plywood. The glue connecting the staves is more dense than the wood, forming a hard line interrupting vibrations. With a solid piece of wood, “you can get the wood to really sing, and every wood sounds really different,” says Wendel (BA ’99). Wendel is one of only two known artisans crafting drums in his exact way (which remains, for the most part, a trade secret), and he’s become known for intentionally shaping the inside of the drum to affect the sound—the importance of which he knows not only as a craftsman, but also as a musician himself. Wendel formed Manito Percussion in 2010 to meet a personal need—“There’s no store for conga making equipment,” he says—and has since made 150 drums, keeping a steady lineup of 30-50 drums in progress. He offers five sizes of congas with a starting price of around $900, as well as claves and sticks and custom-made hardware. Last February, he released a new line of bongo drums that promptly sold out. There is now a six-to-eight-month waiting time placed on new orders. His personal intentions in drum making have grown with the business. “When I first started, I was about making the best sound possible,” he says. “But then the visual side started appealing to me. I’m trying to make a unique piece of art that is of the highest possible quality.” His woodworking skills are mostly self taught, borne out of years of repairing drums, reskinning them and experimentation. He keeps a separate metal shop, where he makes all of his own stainless steel fittings, and he sources his skins from around the world. “I grew up around handy people so tools were never strange, but [making these drums] definitely came out of loving drums and not liking what was in stores,” he says. “He’s being modest,” says his wife Annie Rutter Wendel (MA ’07), a UGA Spanish instructor. “I’ve seen him go from beautiful, lathe-turned bowls to these big drums… self taught is an understatement.” Wendel traces his love of drumming to a childhood spent living in Brazil and listening to street musicians. Later, he’d study drumming with Arvin Scott, a lecturer in UGA’s Hugh Hodgson School of Music; Afro-Haitian folkloric drumming in Port au Prince, Haiti; and Afro-Cuban percussion at the Berklee College of Music in Boston and with master drummers in Cuba. (He got his nickname Manito in Haiti as a frequent buyer of home-roasted peanuts from child vendors—it’s a combination of mani, Spanish for peanut, and hermanito, or little brother.) Even though keeping up with drum orders means he now has limited time to perform or teach music, it’s worth it, he says. “Very early on, I think I realized that I may not be the best conga player in the world, but maybe I can build the best conga drum in the world,” he says. “I want to give something.”

A solid soundRyan “Manito” Wendel carves a unique niche for himself in the drum-making world

by Mary Jessica Hammes (ABJ ’99)

ALUMNI PROFILE

PAUL EFLANDRYAN “MANITO” WENDEL

Tammy Gilland (BSHE ’88) of Bishop was named vice president of Athens Regional Health System’s Foundation. William Ostick (ABJ ’88) of Fairfax, Va., received the Henry W. Grady Mid-Career Alumni Award from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. Matt Montgomery (AB ’89) of Boston, Mass., joined The Trustees of Reservations, Massachusetts’s largest conservation organization, as chief marketing officer. Natasha Trethewey (AB ’89) of Decatur was named a 2013 member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She was also named to a second term as the nation’s poet laureate.

1990-1994Michael Abramowitz (ABJ ’90) of North Palm Beach, Fla., featured a traveling PGA Championship History Exhibit at the Rochester Museum & Science Center. Kim-berly Ballard-Washington (AB ’90) of Lawrenceville was named interim president of Fort Valley State Uni-versity. John Newman (BLA ’90) of Hampton won the Iron Age Designs’ Challenge. Vicki Whichard (ABJ ’90) of Columbia, S.C., graduated


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DE

PARTMENT OF

PUBLIC HEALTH

Carrying the load through Athens

Navy fighter pilot Lt. Cmdr. Travis Mann (AB ’96) joined Carry the Load, a national organization that honors men and women in service, as it passed through Athens in mid-May. The relay to honor fallen heroes began in West Point, N.Y., passed through 240 cities and covered 1,700 miles in 27 days. While in Athens, the relay also included the family of former Athens-Clarke County Senior Police Officer Elmer “Buddy” Christian, who was killed in the line of duty in 2011. In this photo, Mann walks with Callie Christian, 7, and Wyatt Christian, 4, Buddy Christian’s children, and their grandmother Paulette Watkins.

ANDREW DAVIS TUCKER


CLASSNOTES

Those teenagers battling to the death in a post-apocalyptic outdoor arena, and that brilliant athlete smashing the baseball race barrier, and those sexy vampires falling in love, and all of those supposedly real housewives in Atlanta mean job security for Lee Thomas.

“At this moment, we have 34 shows being made in Georgia, and they’re in various stages of production,” says Thomas, director of Georgia’s Film, Music & Digital Entertainment Office. It’s mid-March, and by shows, she basically means big-screen feature films and television programs.

“So, 34 shows is a lot, and I recently gave a speech about it. To give you an idea of how much it’s grown, I gave the same speech in 2007 and at the time we had one two-week episode of a reality show called ‘Yo Mama’ being made.

“Things have gotten a lot better,” she says. “We’ve got zombies now.”

In 2008, the state legislature passed the Entertainment Industry Investment Act, the foundation of which was a 20 percent investment tax credit for companies spending a minimum of $500,000 in a single year. Lawmakers have tweaked the incentives package so that now companies may get a 30 percent tax credit, and it’s made Georgia one of the top three production locations in the country, which means not only is Thomas’ job secure, it’s busier than ever.

“Now, we spend less time trying to attract shows to Georgia and more time taking care of the ones that are here,” she says. “The tax incentives attracted some big productions, but it’s led to tremendous growth in the infrastructure that stays here, new soundstages and service companies. The industry is growing like crazy right now.”

When Thomas, who is an Atlanta

native, was studying film and TV, first at the University of Georgia, then Georgia State, and then New York University, she was focused more on the art of filmmaking, “on critical theory stuff in cinema studies,” she says. “That was until I realized that location scouting was a real job.”

She started at the Georgia film office as a project manager during the 1996 Olympics and was a location scout for 12 years, serving as interim director a couple of times before taking on the gig for real in 2010.

“I loved location scouting,” she says. “You’re driving around the state in your car, going to some distant places, seeing little towns, getting on top of buildings and into creepy factories, you see everything. You see stuff that most people never see.”

She’s put down some roots in one of those distant places—Thomas is co-owner of the Laurel Lodge Restaurant, in the woods near Lake Burton, in northeast Georgia. But most of her working life is devoted to big and little screen productions. Her office receives scripts from all over, mostly New York and Los Angeles. Thomas and her crew break down each script, shot by shot, and determine the best places to shoot, using the massive digital database of images they’ve collected or created.

“Everything was location driven when I started, and we’re lucky to have a diverse landscape in Georgia,” Thomas says. “Now, so much of it is about incentives, and it makes us very competitive.”

It also helps that Thomas can pick up the phone and work a deal with her neighbors. That kind of networking can determine how a story will end.

“Last year, getting ‘Catching Fire,’ the second ‘Hunger Games’ installment, was huge, a back-and-forth last-minute thing,” she explains. “There wasn’t a space big enough for a soundstage, so we worked closely with the Georgia World Congress Center, and they were able to move a trade show around to accommodate the production, about 200,000 square feet.

“We had gone to the line with Lionsgate, and we were sure they were taking the production somewhere else. But at the last moment we were able to reel them back in. That was very exciting.”

— Jerry Grillo is a senior editor at Georgia Trend magazine, www.georgiatrend.com. This article was reprinted with permission from the June 2013 issue of Georgia Trend, which retains all rights.

The zombies are hereGeorgia is one of the top three movie and television production locations in the U.S.

by Jerry Grillo

ALUMNI PROFILE

SPECIALLEE THOMAS


Concerts Comedy Drama

Dance Opera Film Festivals

Art Exhibitions Poetry Readings

Georgia Writers Hall of Fame

Book Sale and more!

facebook.com/UGAartstwitter.com/UGA_arts

November 7-15, 2013

Edwards joins Hall of Fame

Former Lady Dog basketball player Teresa Edwards (BSEd ’89) was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame in June. FIBA, the International Basketball Federation, held ceremonies in Mies, Switzerland, to induct Edwards and 11 other members of the 2013 class. The native of Cairo, Ga., competed in five Olympics (1984, 1988, 1992, 1996 and 2000), winning four gold medals and one bronze medal. She is both the youngest and oldest women’s basketball player to ever win Olympic gold. After leading UGA’s team into the women’s NCAA Final Four in 1983 and 1985, Edwards launched a professional career in 1987 with Vicenza in Italy and went on to play all over Europe and as far away as Japan. After her playing career, she coached in the WNBA from 2006-11. In 2012 Edwards served as chef de mission, or manager, for the U.S. Olympic team in London.

SAM FORENCICH

from Leadership South Carolina, the state’s most recognized leader-ship development program. James Robert Copeland (BBA ’92) of Pike Road, Ala., was named princi-pal of Saint James Middle School. Elizabeth Ann Lippmann (AB ’93) of Smyrna was named com-munity development director for Paulding County. Ben Spitalnick (BS ’93) of Savannah received the President’s Award from the Low-country Down Syndrome Society. Brian Epps (AB ’94, JD ’98) of Augusta was selected as a federal court magistrate judge. Kay Keller (BBA ’94) of Watkinsville was named president of the Oconee County Chamber of Commerce. Camille Kesler (BSFCS ’94) of Atlanta will serve as the 2013-14 president-elect of the Atlanta Sym-phony Associates. 1995-1999Ivy C. Hall (ABJ ’95) and sister Britney Vickery celebrated the 10,000th consultant signed to their fashion handbag and home organization company, Initials Inc. Robert Edward DeFrancesco III (AB ’96) of Alexandria, Va., was named a partner in the international trade practice at the Washington, D.C., firm Wiley Rein LLP. Jason Douglas Dickens (BSA ’96) of Watkinsville is president of the Home Builders Association of Georgia. Jonathan R. Granade (AB ’96) of Atlanta was appointed judge pro tempore of the municipal court for the newly formed city of Brookhaven. Melissa Allen Purcell (BS ’96, MEd ’98, EdS ’03) and Jason Purcell welcomed their second son Marshall Allen Purcell March 21. Nicole Greer (AB ’97)


CLASSNOTES

WHYIgive“Simple answer. Education is our future.”

— Rex Johnson on why he created the Edward W. Johnson Memorial Endowment in Game Bird Management at the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources in memory of his father, who first encouraged his love of the outdoors.

Want to give? Go to www.externalaffairs.uga/os/makegift.

Johnson lives by the motto, “Good friends, good food, good times and much good work can be done.” He and his friends have not only enjoyed fishing beautiful lakes, streams and rivers, as well as hunting large and small game and a myriad of game birds around the world, but they have given their time, talents and money to support the sustainable management of these species and their habitats. Johnson’s ultimate wish for the endowment is to provide a better environment for people of all ages to love the outdoors and to find the kindred spirits he has found by participating in outdoor activities.

SPECIALREX JOHNSON

of Oxford has purchased and reno-vated a historic antebellum home that is now a bed and breakfast. Twelve Oaks Bed & Breakfast was named to BedandBreakfast.com’s list of the Top 10 Luxury Inns in the World. Robert Alexander Williams (ABJ ’97) of Asheville, N.C., helped cre-ate Asheville School’s iPhone/iPad universal app, which features a virtual tour, photo gallery, podcast player and more. Mark Abney (BSA ’98, MS ’00) of Zebulon, N.C., heads the peanut entomologist post at the UGA Tifton campus. Doug Booher (BS ’98) of Athens received a graduate research fellowship from the National Science Foundation. Rodrecas Davis (BFA ’98, MFA ’06) of Bernice, La.,

was granted tenure as assistant profes-sor of art at Grambling State Univer-sity. Kellie Dean (AB ’98) of Athens was elected chairwoman of the Young Agents Committee of Georgia. Courtney Gale (BSA ’98, MPA ’11) returned to the Athens police force as an officer nearly six years after a near-fatal stabbing. Tracy Golden Reznik (AB ’98) of Norcross was elected to the board of directors for Dress for Success Atlanta. Katarina Burin (BFA ’99) of Cambridge, Mass., won the Institute of Contemporary Art’s 2013 James and Audrey Foster Prize. Rebecca Lane (ABJ ’99) of Athens was named the official Vidalia onion spokesperson for 2013.

2000-2004Amanda Montford (BSEd ’01) of Savannah was featured in Walls and Ceilings magazine as one of The Fantastic Five Women in Today’s Construction Industry. Jason Eric Brooks (AB ’02) of Loganville published his first collection of short stories, about a private detective working unique cases in Athens. Katrina Elliott (BFA ’02, MFA ’07) of Los Angeles, Calif., and her team at Digital Domain received a Grand CLIO Award for “Virtual 2Pac at Coachella” in the Content & Contact Category. Kelly Maddux Hines (ABJ ’02) and James Harris “Hap” Hines (BSEd ’02) of Newn-an welcomed son Preston “Harris” Hines II April 24. Jennifer Lance (BSA ’02, MEd ’06) of Washington received a Berneta Minkwitz Schol-arship of $10,000 for the 2013-14 academic year from the Delta Kappa Gamma Society International. Tripp Owings (BBA ’02) was appointed vice president of business and devel-opment at Wesley Medical Center. Joel Turner (AB ’02) of Bowling Green, Ky., was promoted to associ-ate professor of political science and granted tenure at Western Kentucky University. He and his wife Can-dice also welcomed a son, Lincoln Roswell Turner, their second child. Anne Rayborn Howard (BS ’03, MIT ’04) and husband Steve Howard (BBA ’02), along with uncles Dan Howard (BSEd ’99) and Will Howard (BBA ’03) and aunt Kimberly Rayborn (BSEd ’06), welcomed Virginia Bethany April 12. Andrew Walton Beal (ABJ ’04) of Wake Forest, N.C., graduated from Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University with a master of arts in political science. Jason


CLASSNOTES

On a busy Saturday at the nation’s largest indoor climbing center, in Atlanta, hundreds of preschoolers, kids, teens and adults swing and pull themselves up walls reaching 25 to 60 feet high. When they hit the ground again, some cheer and high-five, while others receive words of encouragement from friends, instructors and coaches. Eric Gray (BSEd ’04) wants to open up the world of adventurous sports to individuals who don’t have use of their hands or feet. His Atlanta-based non-profit organization, Catalyst Sports, is trying to eliminate physical and financial barriers that keep people with a loss of function from attempting climbing and other recreational activities. “It is a really neat opportunity to show people that there aren’t any limitations,” Gray says. “No matter who you are, we can get you up the wall.” In March 2013, Catalyst offered its first adaptive climbing clinic at Atlanta’s Stone Summit, using specialized harnesses, pulleys and other equipment to help kids and adults reach new heights. About 250 people and 70 climbers attended the first clinic; the next free clinic takes place this month in Knoxville, Tenn. “It’s important for people to see how we can empower them to do things they never thought they could,” says Gray, who earlier that day completed Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta’s Strong4Life SuperHero Sprint (he was among a group of Batman runners). Gray was 10 when he was hit in the right eye by a soccer ball, and the unusual swelling resulted in doctors diagnosing him with cancer in that eye. He underwent chemotherapy, radiation and surgeries in Atlanta to beat the cancer, but the treatments destroyed tear-producing glands and produced

scar tissue. Surgeries failed to repair his right eyelid, and his eye was removed in 2012, turning Gray into “a permanent pirate,” as he says. Attending Camp Sunshine, for children with cancer and their families, was the catalyst for Gray’s desire to help disabled individuals accomplish unexpected feats. At UGA, he earned his degree in recreational therapy; during an internship in Park City, Utah, Gray taught disabled adults and kids to water ski, canoe, kayak, snowboard, ski and other activities. Working at a Veterans Administration hospital in Augusta, he helped injured military members discover new recreational outlets or adapt to activities they previously enjoyed. Sports included golf, kayaking, cycling and climbing, with Gray getting approval to build a 50-foot outdoor climbing wall. “I was always looking for great opportunities to provide for people with disabilities in areas that they didn’t think possible,” Gray says. “Who thinks about climbing when you’re a paraplegic?” In September 2012, Catalyst, a faith-based 501(c)(3) organization and Paradox Sports, an adaptive climbing program in Boulder, Colo., helped three wounded warriors accomplish a climb in Grand Teton National Park. At Catalyst’s clinics in Atlanta, individuals who are blind and battling motor deficits from tumors and conditions such as cerebral palsy have scaled the walls. Others have lost their legs, whether on the battlefield or due to illnesses such as cancer.

Gray is empowering people to give recreational activities a try and providing assistance and training so they can be successful. One blind participant didn’t make it up the beginner wall at his first clinic. On his next try, during one of Catalyst’s weekly clinics (discounted rates are provided for participants), the man made it to the top four times, with Gray guiding him. Wheelchair-bound individuals can be strapped into a special harness (donated by North Carolina-based Misty Mountain Threadworks) to ascend the wall. Some people may wonder what joy results from an activity like that, but Gray believes it provides an emotional boost. “When the kid is nervous and going up, and you see him get to the top … and comes down with a huge grin on his face, that’s an opportunity that he’s probably never had before,” Gray says.

Accessible adventuresCancer survivor Eric Gray helps the disabled scale new heights

by Lori Johnston

ALUMNI PROFILE

GET MORE

www.gocatalystsports.org

PETER FREYERIC GRAY


“This book brings back so many fond memories. . .” — Former Georgia Gov. Roy Barnes

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From The Red & Black: Student Life at the University of Georgia

1893 - 2013by Carrol Dadisman (UGA Grad, 1956)

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“The most telling and interesting Bulldog story lines. . .” — Amy Glennon, Atlanta Journal-

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Carter (JD ’04) of Atlanta was the commencement speaker at Georgia Southwestern State University’s spring 2013 commencement cer-emony. Corey Willis Cottle (BBA ’04) of Valdosta was promoted to director of marketing for Ag-Georgia Farm Credit. Irish Ryan Neville (BBA ’04) of Charleston, S.C., received the 2012-13 Young Lawyer of the Year Award from the South Carolina Bar Associa-tion. David Stanford Young (EdS ’04) of Decatur published his third school counseling book, More Skits and Raps for the School Counselor.

2005-2009Jason Conner (BSEd ’05) of Jefferson was hired as the head football coach at Duluth. Phillip Blume (ABJ ’06) of Winterville directed “Lost Boys of Paradise,” a documentary that shows the condi-tions of one of Guatemala’s worst zones. Chad M. Cowan (ABJ ’06) of Pittsburgh, Pa., joined the firm Leech Tishman as an associate in the corporate practice group. Todd Isaacs (BBA ’06) of Atlanta cel-ebrated the one-year anniversary of his business, District Solutions. Ben Mayer (ABJ ’06, AB ’06) of New York, N.Y., received the John E. Drewry Young Alumni Award from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. Andrew Moore (AB ’06, MA ’06) of Buford won six straight games on “Jeopar-dy!,” with winnings totaling around $137,000. Paige Tidwell (BSW ’07, MSW ’08) was named the 2013 School of Social Work BSW Field Instructor of the Year. Whitney Wade (AB ’07) was named assistant coach of UGA’s women’s golf team. Peyton Ethridge (BBA ’09, JD ’12)


CLASSNOTES

Bulldawg: Detective Tales from the Classic CityCreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (2013)By Jason Eric Brooks (AB ’02)Written as an homage to Athens and its singular feel, this collection of short stories follows a detective working unique cases in the Classic City.

Rebel FaitheBook ArtisansBy Corey Little (BSFCS ’00) Based on the author’s own spiritual journey, Rebel Faith explores questions of doubt and faith.

When Colleges Sang: The Story of Singing in American College LifeUniversity of Alabama Press (2013)By J. Lloyd Winstead (BBA ’89, MEd ’97, EdD ’05)A history of how a seemingly small component of college life has had a far-reaching impact on collegiate traditions and on the lives of countless students over more than three centuries.

Darby Ecanus Publishing (2013)By William Roy Pipes (EdD ’87) A novel that combines danger, suspense, romance and intrigue interwoven with the history and culture of the Appalachians.

Miss Dimple SuspectsSt. Martin’s Minotaur (2013)By Mignon Franklin Ballard (ABJ ’56)In the third install-ment of the Miss Dimple mysteries, first-grade teacher Miss Dimple Kilpatrick searches for a missing child and finds herself again entangled in murder.

The Resurrec-tionistW. W. Norton & Com-pany (2013)By Matthew Guinn (AB ’92) This work of historical fiction follows a young doctor as he wrestles with the legacy of a slave “resurrectionist” owned by his South Carolina medical school.

Dear Old U-G-AThe Red and Black Publishing Co. (2013)By Carrol Dadisman (ABJ ’56) In this coffee table book, reports from The Red & Black newspa-per trace the colorful history of student organizations, reveal origins of campus traditions, chronicle the overcoming of resistance to coeducation and desegregation and much more.

More Tales of Kinfolks, Friends, Varmints, & The Storyteller, TooLaurel Mountain Press (2012)By Janie P. Taylor (BSHE ’52, MEd ’76)In this sequel to The Storyteller: Tales from Tiger Mountain, Rabun County native Taylor continues her folksy yarns, along with memories by family members.

Lost BaltimorePavilion (2013) By Gregory J. Alexander (ABJ ’93)This coffee table book features rarely published images of homes, buildings, industrial ports and other commercial entities that have been razed, damaged and significantly altered over the years, as well as important historical events that have shaped Baltimore.

FreezeCodhill Press (2012)By Heather Matesich (PhD ’09)A collection of poems, inspired by Michigan’s winter landscape, that won the 2012 Codhill Press Chapbook Award.

Johnny Football: Johnny Manziel’s Road from the Texas Hill Country to the Top of College FootballWilliam Morrow (2012)By Josh Katzowitz (ABJ ’01)An e-book biography of Johnny Manziel, the reigning Heisman Trophy winner from Texas A&M.

The Million Dollar Financial Services PracticeAMACOM Publish-ing (2013)By David J. Mullen Jr. (ABJ ’77, MBA ’79)Written for finan-cial advisors who are looking for a comprehensive guide on how to build a successful financial services practice.

NEWBOOKS


Eight Questions and the God Who’s AskingWestbow Press (2012)By Paul Gotthardt (AB ’98)A guide for living confidently in Christ when life doesn’t make sense.

Target LeadershipSwitches Safe Inc. (2013)By Jeff “Odie” Espenship (AB ’86)This book prepares target leaders—those who inspire the best in others.

Gendered Politics in the Modern SouthLouisiana State University Press (2012)By Keira Williams (PhD ’07)Williams uses the Susan Smith infanticide case of 1994-95 to analyze the “new sexism’’ found in the agenda of the budding neo-conservative movement of the 1990s and to contextualize the case within the history of gender politics over the last quarter of the 20th century.

ONLINEFind more books by UGA graduates at www.uga.edu/gm

SUBMISSIONSSubmit new books written by UGA alumni to [email protected]. Please include a brief description of the book and a hi-res pdf or tiff of its cover.

You’ve Gradu-ated, Now What?: 10 Steps to Stand Out and Get Hired in the New EconomyE.K. Allen All Crvtive (2012)By Monica Allen (BBA ’96) and Ethan K. Allen (AB ’99)A guide for graduates written by young entrepreneurs who went from sitting on one side of the interviewer’s desk to sitting in the hiring manager’s seat in a short span of years.

The Cambridge Introduction to Tom Stoppard Cambridge University Press (2013)By William W. De-mastes (MA ’79) A concise overview of one of the great living playwrights, author of “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead,” “Arcadia,” “Shakespeare in Love” and many more modern classics.

The Subversive Job Search: How to Overcome a Lousy Job, Sluggish Economy, and Useless Degree to Create a Six-Figure CareerCareer Press (2013)By Alan Corey (BBA ’00)A first-person account of job searching in a down economy that puts a new spin on networking, interviewing and salary negotiation.

Sid Gillman: Father of the Passing GameClerisy Press (2012)By Josh Katzowitz (ABJ ’01) A biography of football coaching legend Sid Gillman.

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CLASSNOTES

Donna Leigh Jackins’ life hangs on a wall in her Birmingham, Ala., living room. There’s a press pass from a trip to the CNN Center in Atlanta; a little sock representing a Christmas stocking; a mermaid, like the one she painted in a mural at her family’s lake house; a tiny December birthstone ring; an Arch pin; a Georgia Bulldog and a poem:

“Part of me is structuredPart of me is freePart of me lives by the rulesAnd part of me is on a spree.Society builds fencesSouls require spaceConformity and confoundingI run my human race.”

The poem and the mementos are on a canvas quilt that covers about 30 square feet of space on one side of the room. Hundreds of tiny items, memories from Jackins’ seven decades of life are sewn or glued onto the quilt. Even her cat left his mark—tiny paw prints from the day he walked through paint and then across the canvas. “You can always add things,” says Jackins (BFA ’57), propped against a walker following knee surgery. “That’s what’s so fun.” The life quilts, as she calls them, tell a story, a sort of three-dimensional montage of things, photos and words that represent important dates, places and people. The quilts have evolved over time as Jackins moved from one art form to the next. As a child in Virginia Beach, Va., she recalls painting all the furniture in her bedroom. Instead of being angry, her parents encouraged her artistic flair. “They would take their friends back there and say ‘Look what she did,’” Jackins says.

She spent two years at the College of William & Mary before transferring to UGA to study art. She began painting and then moved into sculpture. For about a decade she focused on making paper. “My friends said, ‘What are you going to do next?’ It was sort of a progression.” An antique crazy quilt she spotted at a cocktail party provided her next inspiration—she created quilts out of the paper she had made. Soon she was making quilts from fabric. Not typical quilts, these feature wizards, pizzas, angels and fairies among other things, created from fabric and sewn onto the quilts. She’ll often include a poem written in fabric paint. “I’m very gaudy,” she says. “I use a lot of embellishments.” Recently she made two dresses, one black, the other red, and sewed them to a quilt. Accompanying “My red dress” is this poem:

“I’m feeling confident todayI’ve got my strut, my hair looks great,My smile and eyes are flashing.Isn’t this the grandest day?Don’t I look just smashing!!!Something good’s about to happen Don’t know what, but yesFortune’s shining down becauseI’m wearing my red dress.”

Since she made her life quilt about three years ago she has been commissioned to make them for others. She meets with clients and asks them questions about their lives

and has them bring pictures and other mementos to include on their quilts. One woman asked that she include some black areas on her quilt. “They’re my secrets,” she told Jackins. So far she has made about a dozen life quilts for other people. “I like to think when anybody gets a piece of my artwork, every day they walk past it they think, ‘I’m glad I have that.’”

The quilting lifeArt has taken many forms for Donna Leigh Jackins

by Kelly Simmons

ALUMNI PROFILE

NANCY EVELYNDONNA LEIGH JACKINS

This quilt of the state of Georgia hangs in the Graduate School offices.


of Gray received his LLM in taxa-tion with distinction from George-town University. He also received a certificate in estate planning as well as a dean’s certificate for recognition of special and outstanding service. Andrew Thomas Wiese (BS ’09) of Alpharetta earned a doctor of chiro-practic degree from Life University and joined the practice Milton Chi-ropractic & Massage in Milton.

2010-Tyler Coley (BLA ’10) of Atlanta was hired as a professional landscape architect at Stantec. Harris English (BSFCS ’11) of Thomasville won the St. Jude Classic, his first PGA Tour victory. Catherine Taylor (BSEd ’11) of Chattanooga, Tenn., was named a member of the 2013 LearnZillion Dream Team. Robby Arrington (BSES ’12) of Albany is the Altamaha Riverkeeper and attended a fundraiser in Athens promoting river recreation. Cam-eron Brown (BS ’12) of Durham, N.C., received a graduate research fellowship from the National Sci-ence Foundation. Drew Davis (ABJ ’12, AB ’12) performed an acoustic set at the Green Room in April. Colby May (AB ’12) of Guyton is head baseball coach at Bethlehem Christian Academy. Jennifer Rouan (BS ’12) of Jefferson received the 2013 Google Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship. Kerrie Grunnet (BSA ’13) was awarded a $1,000 scholar-ship from the Elizabeth Wilmot Bull Memorial Scholarship Fund by the Rockdale Medical Center Auxiliary. Leslie Hale (MPA ’13) of Athens became the first full-time director of Athens-based Books for Keeps. Carly Mathis (ABJ ’13) of Leesburg was named Miss Georgia.

Surprise vows

As UGA students, Loyd (BSEd ’53) and Mary (MAEd ’82) Landrum met through the Redcoat Band. Mary Landrum was working on a master’s in art, a degree she wouldn’t complete until 30 years later, while Loyd Landrum was getting a bachelor’s degree in music education. They married in Atlanta in 1953 and soon moved to Macon, where Loyd served as a minister of music and Mary taught art. In June, on their 60th wedding anniversary, they came back to Athens and UGA where a surprise ceremony awaited them at the Chapel. Their daughter Lynn Withers planned the event—a renewal of vows—and lured her parents to the campus (and lunch at the Varsity) as a gift. “They loved the university,” says Withers (BSEd ’78, MEd ’80). “What could’ve been better than bringing them back?”

—Chase Martin

ANDREW DAVIS TUCKER

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CLASSNOTES

Social networks could help prevent disease outbreaks in endangered chimpanzees

Many think of social networks in terms of Facebook friends and Twitter followers, but for Julie Rushmore (PhD ’13), social networks are tools in the fight against infectious diseases.

Rushmore, who graduated in May from UGA’s Odum School of Ecology, analyzed the social networks of wild chimpanzees to determine which individuals were most likely to contract and spread pathogens. Her findings, published in the Journal of Animal Ecology in June, could help wildlife managers target their efforts to prevent outbreaks and potentially help public health officials prevent disease in human populations as well.

Disease prevention in wildlife is logistically challenging, and resources are scarce, Rushmore says. Even when vaccines are available, it is impractical to vaccinate every individual in a wildlife population. She used social network analysis to pinpoint the individuals most important in disease transmission.

Rushmore observed a community of wild chimpanzees in Kibale National Park in Uganda, recording the interactions of individuals and family groups over a nine-month period to

determine which individuals—and which types of individuals—were most central. Her analysis revealed that the most central figures in the network turned out to be high-ranking mothers and juveniles with large families. Second in centrality were the high-ranking males.

Rushmore and her colleagues are continuing their research, using infectious disease models to simulate outbreaks on these networks and to develop targeted interventions.

“Ultimately, we want to develop vaccination strategies that could both prevent large outbreaks and lower the number of animals requiring vaccination,” she says.

REBECCA STUMPF/UGA

"With a serious & multi-faceted bent for history, Dooley offers illuminating insights into the University's past and present spanning five University presidents..." Loran Smith

"...an interesting, lively and very personal run through more than two centuries with special emphasis on our own time on campus..."

UGA History Professor F. N. Boney

"Dooley is uniquely positioned to tell the history of UGA. Steve Penley's love for the university pours out of every visual interpretation." Dick Parker, Looking Glass Books

"...he certainly has a historian's eye for capturing the subtle forces and surprising dramas of change over time...he trains that eye on the

school he loves well enough to be honest about its ups and downs." UGA History Professor Stephen Berry

Name E-mail

Address City State Zip

Person to whom the book is autographed

Checks payable to Vince Dooley. $55, including shipping. Mail to: Dooley's History, 131 Princeton Mill Road, Athens, GA, 30606

Read a full review at www.georgiahistory.com/containers/1851


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GRAD NOTES

Arts & Sciences Stephen Enniss (MA ’87, PhD ’96) of Washington, D.C., was named the new director of the Harry Ransom Center, a humanities research library and museum at the University of Texas at Austin. Robert James Francis Elsner (MS ’95, MEd ’99, PhD ’01) of Due West, S.C., was awarded the 2013 Younts Excellence in Teaching Award. Amanda Burk (MFA ’07) and Katherine McGuire (MFA ’08) opened a printmaking studio in Athens, Double Dutch Press. Wes Fugate (PhD ’12) of Lynchburg, Va., is the winner of the 2013 CASE Alice L. Beeman Award for Outstanding Research in Communications and Marketing for Educational Advancement. Tom Okie (PhD ’12) was awarded the an-nual Allan Nevins Dissertation Prize at the annual meeting of the Society of American Historians.

BusinessVictor Segrest (MBA ’93) of Atlanta was named chief financial officer for Lee & Associates Valuation and Consulting Services, a nationwide provider of real estate appraisal ser-vices. Bonnie Buchanan (PhD ’00) of Seattle, Wash., has been tenured and promoted to associate professor at the Albers School of Business at Seattle University. Dave Douglas (MBA ’05) of Atlanta was promoted to national vice president of sales at Healthstat.

EducationRay Perren (BSEd ’79) of Douglas was named president of Lanier Tech-nical College. Mary-Beth Cooper (MEd ’85) of Pittsford, N.Y., was

named president of Springfield Col-lege. Catherine H. Monaghan (PhD ’04) of Cleveland, Ohio, received Cleveland State University’s 2013 Dis-tinguished Faculty Teaching Award. Kathy Ann Rogers Pharr (MPA ’05, EdD ’11) of Winder is chief of staff for UGA President Jere Morehead.

Environment & DesignJohn Robert “Rob” Crawford IV (MHP ’05) of Oxford, N.C., was named executive director of Uptown Lexington.

Journalism & Mass CommunicationMarie Hardin (PhD ’98) of State College, Pa., received the Distinguished Alumni Scholar Award from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication.

LawWilliam C. Rumer (JD ’75) of Columbus served on a case in the Georgia Supreme Court. Mary Ellen Staley Clark (JD ’78) of Marietta is president elect of the Council of Superior Court Judges. She will begin her term May 1. John Thompson (JD ’78) of Atlanta was named in Georgia Super Lawyers 2013. D. Albert Brannen (JD ’82, MBA ’82) of Atlanta was named in Georgia Super Lawyers 2013. Emory Palmer (JD ’99) of Newnan is now a superior court judge in the Coweta Judicial Circuit. Shyam K. Reddy (JD ’00) of Atlanta left the Obama administration to become senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary of Euramax International Inc.


CLASSNOTES

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Help UGA and your classmates keep up with what’s happening in your life—both personally and professionally—by sending Class Notes items to one of the addresses listed below. And please include your hometown to help us keep our alumni database up to date. If you send a photo, please make sure it is a resolution of 300 dpi. Due to the volume of submissions we are not able to confirm that we have received your note. Please be patient. It can sometimes take a few months for a note to appear in the magazine after it has been submitted.

Holliman to be inducted into Hall of Fame

The late John Holliman (ABJ ’70) will be honored by the Georgia Radio Hall of Fame at a ceremony Oct. 19 in Atlanta. Holliman, along with Royal Marshall (AB ’92) and Leonard Postero (BS ’43), will be 2013 Legacy inductees. Jim Woodruff Jr. (M ’38) will receive the 2013 Elmo Ellis Spirit Award. Born in 1948, Holliman grew up in Thomaston and began his radio career broadcasting Little League games at age 14. After graduating from UGA he worked at WSB Radio in Atlanta and later the Metrome-dia Radio Network in Washington, D.C. From 1974-80 he served as the agricultural editor for The Associated Press Radio Network, receiving a Peabody Award for a documentary. After moving to CNN he was White House correspondent and later NASA reporter, covering space shuttle missions. In 1991, along with Peter Arnett and Bernard Shaw, Holliman gave the first live report from the middle of an airstrike during the Persian Gulf War. Following Holliman’s death in a 1998 car accident, Eleanor Helin of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory named an asteroid after him. Asteroid 6711 Holliman continues to travel through space. For more information about the ceremony, visit www.grhof.com.

RICK O’QUINN

Justin O’Dell (JD ’02) of Marietta has opened his own practice, O’Dell & O’Neal.

Social WorkTrevis Killen (MSW ’06, EdS ’07) of Warner Robins is president of the School Social Workers Association of Georgia.

Veterinary SciencesJohn E. Hayes (DVM ’63) of Ruckersville, Va., received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the College of Veterinary Medicine. John C. Sundstrom (DVM ’67) of Gainesville was elected president of the State Board of Veterinary Medicine. David Loughridge (BSA ’73, DVM

’78) of Chatsworth was named Veterinarian of the Year by the Georgia Cattlemen’s Association. Robert M. Sheegog Jr. (DVM ’79) of Jacksonville, N.C., was named Small Business Person of 2013 by the Onslow County Board of Directors. Susan Lawson Fubini (DVM ’80) of Ithaca, N.Y., received the Distinguished Alumna Award from the College of Veterinary Medicine. Wendy Whitlock Carter (DVM ’00) of Charleston, S.C., was promoted to chief of staff of the Banfield Pet Hospital in Summerville, S.C. Adam C. Eichelberger (DVM ’03) of Aiken, S.C., received the Young Achiever Award from the College of Veterinary Medicine.

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BACK PAGE

John KnoxAssociate professor and undergraduate coordinator, geography, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences

B.S., mathematics, University of Alabama at BirminghamPh.D., atmospheric sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Richard B. Russell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, 2013Sandy Beaver Excellence in Teaching Award, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, 2011T. Theodore Fujita Research Achievement Award, National Weather Association, 2010

Photo shot by Peter Frey in the Geography/Geology Building.

“When I was 4 years old I was at a baseball game in my hometown of Birmingham, Alabama. It was a sellout crowd, the Atlanta Braves were playing the Southern League All-Stars in an exhibition game… My brother’s favorite baseball player was at bat. The winds came up, blew chairs off the roof and lightning hit the transformer just past center field… All the lights went out. The crowd of 10,000 was gasping, and nobody knew what to do. This was a severe thunderstorm. It was reported there was a funnel cloud. I don’t think there was any touch-down of a tornado, but there was a funnel cloud… My mom told me, ‘John, hide under your seat.’ I hid under the seat so far they couldn’t find me. That experience at Rickwood Field when I was 4 really, really stuck with me. “One year later, probably partly because of all that, my aunt sent me a book on the weather, and I announced to my family that I’m going to be a meteorologist—to a family that had no scientists that we knew of. As my classmates will tell you, all the way through school that was my plan. I never deviated.”

—John Knox on how he first became interested in studying the weather. He is shown here with a rotating fluid dynamics tank, which he uses when teaching to simulate how the Earth’s rotation affects the large-scale movement of the atmosphere and the ocean. Knox is dressed as Ben Franklin to champion the university’s connection to Franklin, for whom the College of Arts and Sciences was named.

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CLIENT: The Georgia CenterJOB NO: 005117PUB: Georgia MagazineBLEED: 8.625” x 11.125” TRIM: 8.375” x 10.875” LIVE: 7.25” x 9” INSERTION DATE: September, 2013AGENCY: Freebairn & Co.CONTACT: Dawn Adams, Prod. Mgr.PHONE: 404.487.6126

“My wife and I have stayed in Athens

many times, but never at this hotel. We love the

family-friend ly atmosphere.” --UGA graduate’s Trip Advisor review

The UGA Hotel is perfect for returning alumni. It’s so relaxing, right in the heart of campus. Comfortable rooms. Delicious food. Reasonable prices. The people working here know what true service is all about. Many are UGA students themselves. And, there’s the Special Collections Library, plus Athens’ shops, sightseeing, restaurants, golf, music and memories. UGAHotel.com.

1197 S. Lumpkin St., Athens, GA 30602 • 800.884.1381

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GEORGIA ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

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The Atlanta event kicks off the first of the Terry College’s annual Economic Outlook series 12-city tour. Research by the Selig Center for Economic Growth.

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