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MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE

A Closer Lookat Southern Miss

S O UT H E R N M IS S A L U M N I AS S O CI AT IO N • S P R I N G 20 14

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Auto insurance that makes the most of your connections.Did you know that as a Southern Miss alum, you could save up to $427.96 or more on Liberty Mutual Auto Insurance?1 You could save even more if you also insure your home with us. Plus, you’ll receive quality coverage from a partner you can trust, with features and options that can include Accident Forgiveness2, New Car Replacement3, and Lifetime Repair Guarantee.4

This organization receives financial support for allowing Liberty Mutual to offer this auto and home insurance program.1Discounts are available where state laws and regulations allow, and may vary by state. Figure reflects average national savings for customers who switched to Liberty Mutual’s group auto and home program. Based on data collected between 1/1/2012 and 6/30/2012. Individual premiums and savings will vary. To the extent permitted by law, applicants are individually underwritten; not all applicants may qualify. 2For qualifying customers only. Subject to terms and conditions of Liberty Mutual’s underwriting guidelines. Not available in CA and may vary by state. 3Applies to a covered total loss. Your car must be less than one year old, have fewer than 15,000 miles and have had no previous owner. Does not apply to leased vehicles or motorcycles. Subject to applicable deductible. Not available in NC or WY. 4Loss must be covered by your policy. Not available in AK. Coverage provided and underwritten by Liberty Mutual Insurance Company and its affiliates, 175 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA. ©2013 Liberty Mutual Insurance

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7 Notes from Home

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16 Calendar of Events

17 Association News

24 Foundation News

42 From the Archives

45 Arts and Letters

48 Greek

50 Athletic News

54 Snapshots

56 Class Notes

30 TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT SOUTHERN MISS... YOU’LL LIKE WHAT YOU FIND

Many University of Southern Mississippi alumni have been met with surprise when communicating an impressive fact about their alma mater. The University’s “Closer Look” campaign attempts to ensure that prospective students, their parents, alumni, friends and fans are more aware of the amazing accomplishments of Southern Miss students, faculty, staff and alumni. Undeniably, the more people learn about Southern Miss, the more it impresses.

34 THE GRIDIRON GANG Rod Scott 05’ and Ced Scott ‘00 sharpen their skills and hone their craft while

working for the Florida-based Jacksonville Jaguars as assistant athletic trainer and assistant strength and conditioning coach, respectively. For these two Southern Miss alums, continuing to build upon the Jacksonville Jaguar program, a sense of pride and passion from their respective experiences at their alma mater remains constant.

36 A GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY Taking advantage of the many opportunities offered at Southern Miss, Wilton

C. Jackson II was recently elected attorney general for the Student Government Association. In addition, the Honors College student accomplished another feat this spring when he was selected as one of 20 students nationwide, and the only student in Mississippi, to be a USA Today collegiate correspondent, where he currently submits an article weekly on a topic of his choosing that is relevant to a college audience.

39 ANYTHING BUT LUCKY Abby Thaxton ’09, owner and manager of The Lucky Rabbit, a monthly art and

vendor market located in historic downtown Hattiesburg, has immersed herself in the Hub City and its people. This Honors College graduate attests that the knowledge she gained from her experience at Southern Miss led her to embark on her entrepreneurial ventures and encourages young alumni to take risks and follow their dreams.

FRONT COVER: IN 2013, HANNAH ROBERTS, A SOUTHERN MISS SOPHOMORE, WAS AWARDED A GOLDWATER SCHOLARSHIP, A NATIONAL HONOR RECOGNIZING THE NEXT GENERATION OF GREAT RESEARCH SCIENTISTS. ROBERTS IS ONE OF MANY FEATURED IN AN ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN LAUNCHED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI AT THE BEGINNING OF 2014. THE CAMPAIGN, WHICH ENCOURAGES INDIVIDUALS TO TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT SOUTHERN MISS, FEATURES SOME OF THE BEST THE UNIVERSITY HAS TO OFFER—ITS TOP STUDENTS, ITS GROUNDBREAKING RESEARCH AND ITS SUCCESSFUL ALUMNI. PHOTO BY KELLY DUNN.

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ALUMNI STAFFEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR JERRY DEFATTA ’00, ‘10

ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR FOR EXTERNAL AFFAIRS SHEA KIDD-HOUZE ‘02

ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR FOR INTERNAL OPERATIONS DANE REITER ‘06, ‘07, ‘10

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR FOR COMMUNICATIONS JENNY BOUDREAUX ‘08

MANAGER OF PROGRAMS DAWN SMITH ’95, ’12

MANAGER OF CONSTITUENT RELATIONS LAURIE BENVENUTTI ‘10, ‘11

DIRECTOR OF THE M-CLUB AND COMMUNITY RELATIONS RAY GUY ‘72

COORDINATOR OF INFORMATION SERVICES MELISSA MCDANIEL

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ALUMNI ASSOCIATION OFFICERSPRESIDENT BENNY WADDLE

PRESIDENT-ELECT ANGIE COLLINS

VICE PRESIDENT SEAN MCGEE

PAST PRESIDENT DALE SHEARER

FINANCE COMMITTEE CHAIR TOM HICKMAN

SECRETARY/TREASURER JERRY DEFATTA

BOARD OF DIRECTORSKRISTIE FAIRLEY, WADE HOWK, CHRIS INMAN,

T.J. MCSPARRIN, DON ROBERTS, DAVID SAULTERS,

WANDA SIMPSON, CHUCK BENIGNO, JULIE BREAZEALE,

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For advertising information, contact Shea Kidd-Houze by phone at 601.266.4095 or email at [email protected].

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GROWINGUP GOLD

Creating a black and gold bond with children and grandchildren of alumni is a necessity

in the eyes of the Southern Miss Alumni Association.

In order to meet that need, the Association developed GROWING UP GOLD, a program that provides opportunities for Southern Miss

engagement from birth until age 16.

• Birthday Cards• Biennial Gifts Throughout Childhood• Invitations to Southern Miss Events

These are just a few of the manyways the Association fosters alove for all things black and

gold among the newestgeneration of future Golden Eagles.

To ensure your child or grandchild is enrolled in the program, send their full name and birthday

to the Alumni Association by calling 601.266.5013 or

emailing [email protected] today!

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SIGHTING SOUTHERN STARS


“Home sweet Hattiesburg.” Though simple, I can think of no better phrase to describe how it feels to be back in the ‘Burg. Returning to Southern Miss and my hometown of Hattiesburg is more than a job opportunity. It is my chance to give back to a place that has truly changed my life.

My Southern Miss story began not long after I was born. As a second-generation alumna, Golden Eagle pride has been a constant theme throughout my life; therefore, when it came time to determine where I would spend my college years, I gave no other university a second thought.

After completing my bachelor’s degree in speech communication at Southern Miss and master’s degree in college student affairs administration from the University of Georgia, I began working in the area of student affairs, gaining experience in first-year experience, retention programming, student activities, multicultural affairs and career services. Additionally, I’m proud to report that I am wrapping up the final stages of my doctorate in educational research and will obtain my degree in December!

Though my experiences have allowed me to live all over the southeast, I am continually reminded of the life lessons learned from this beloved institution. Though it seems impossible to encapsulate them on one page, I’d like to share my To the Top ten list:

1. You’ll find what you’re looking for. Southern Miss continues to offer more than 200 ways to get involved, rigorous academics and a campus culture that is unmatched. If you search for opportunities to engage and strive to make this institution better, there’s no doubt you’ll find them. I certainly did!

2. Leave it better than you found it. I’m not sure if Dr. Joe Paul realized that this phrase would become synonymous with student leadership at Southern Miss, but it is a driving force in every aspect of my life from relationships to career.

3. If you’re on time, you’re late. There is no explanation needed here, but thanks to my Southern Style experience as a student and administrator, planning for the unexpected eases an abundant amount of stress and helps one to think beyond the status quo.

4. Be grateful. Value what you have and thank people regularly verbally, electronically or by handwritten note (a personal favorite).

5. Build on your strengths. What if we approached the world from a ‘What is going right?’ perspective? This epiphany came to me as a sophomore biology major. When I realized that I was intrinsically good at writing and communicating, I stumbled upon a major that would play to that strength and never looked back.

6. A good speech begins with a story and an outline.Admittedly, I used to break out in hives at the thought of giving a speech, and now I enjoy public speaking. Many thanks to my speech communication (now communication studies) professors for refining my gift of gab.

7. Find a mentor (and be one, too)! With the help of “Tuesdays with Morrie” and my experience as an involved student, I have benefitted from the nurturing spirit that accompanies mentoring.

8. Everybody has a story.With a little bit of intentionality and actively engaging with people, it’s amazing to see how purposeful dialogue can bring together those who otherwise seem worlds apart.

9. Give.It’s no secret that Oseola McCarty’s story of giving has touched thousands quite literally from the coast to the Capitol. As a part of the first cohort of students to live in what is now known as McCarty Hall, I had the opportunity to participate in the naming process. What a pleasure it is to watch a legacy live on from generation to generation in the form of a beautiful residence hall and endowed scholarship.

10. Do “good” well.From service-learning with Dr. Dick Conville to teaching tolerance in the classroom as Miss Southern, I learned the importance of not only going into the world and doing good but executing it with a spirit of excellence.

As you can see, my Southern Miss story illuminates the power and influence of the Golden Eagle experience. Our alums are CEOs, doctors and lawyers. They are teachers, nurses, nonprofit advocates and entrepreneurs. The common thread to a façade of differences is that we are all ordinary people with an extraordinary love for The University of Southern Mississippi.

Lastly, I am thrilled to join the Southern Miss Alumni Association team. As the associate director for external affairs, I look forward to overseeing alumni membership and engagement, affinity partnerships and the Association’s development efforts. This unique opportunity merges my varied experiences into one role, and I look forward to assisting the Association in developing purposeful programming, engaging our alumni and living out our motto, taking Southern Miss to the Top!

Shea Kidd-HouzeAssociate Director for External Affairs

7Spring 2014

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Children who are hearing impaired and are age five years old or younger are the focus of deaf education and early oral intervention services offered by The Children’s Center for Communication and Development at The University of Southern Mississippi’s Gulf Park campus in Long Beach. The Children’s Center is a clinical program in the Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences at Southern Miss.

Serving as a satellite program of The Children’s Center, the deaf education and early oral intervention program serves children in Mississippi’s southernmost counties. The goal of the program, which provides auditory-verbal intervention and deaf education, is to develop listening and spoken language skills so infants and children with hearing impairments

can maximize their potential both educationally and socially.

Developed to benefit not only the children and families the program serves, both undergraduate and graduate students at Southern Miss are learning from the training and observation available in the classroom.

The program at the University’s Gulf Park campus is set up as a classroom designed to educationally appeal to preschool-aged children. Additionally, the classroom is equipped with an FM soundfield system for optimal teaching of young children who are hearing-impaired. Infants and toddlers are served by the program’s teacher, and the center’s transdisciplinary team, when needed, will visit homes, daycares, hospitals or other community settings.

The Children’s Center’s family-focused approach helps family members learn techniques to support their child’s early listening, speech and spoken language skills. Families also learn to manage their child’s hearing technology.

Another benefit for children enrolled in the program is the access students have to appropriate audiological services. Through a loaner bank developed in the University’s Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences, infants and young children with hearing loss are able to have their hearing levels assessed, hearing aids evaluated, ear mold impressions taken, and are provided with backup loaner hearing aids and cochlear implant technology as needed.

Children’s Center Opens Classroom for Hearing-Impaired Children on Gulf Park Campus

Haley Rishel, left, teaches about the weather to four-year-old students Collin Gonzales, center, and Azlynn Costenbader at The Children’s Center for Communication and Development at The University of Southern Mississippi’s Gulf Park campus in Long Beach. Rishel is an early oral interventionist at the center, which provides deaf education and early oral intervention services for children who are hearing-impaired and age five years old or younger.

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APPLY TODAY!

601.266.4783 www.usm.edu/residence-life [email protected]

AA/EOE/ADAI UC 66108.5064 1/12

There’s only one way to get the true GOLDEN EAGLE EXPERIENCE, and that’s by living on campus!

live. learn. connect. succeed.DEPARTMENT OF RESIDENCE LIFE

Students who live on campus make better grades, feel more connected to the university, and are often more involved in campus organizations and activities.

Southern Miss Student Interning at SiriusXM RadioAnyone who listens to Southern

Miss Radio knows Bec O’Neal follows the beat of her own drummer. Decidedly unlike the other on-air talent one would find anywhere on the radio dial, O’Neal, whose real name is Rebecca Huddleston, is the same in real life as she is when she hosts WUSM’s Southern Miss Today radio program. Perhaps her quirky realness is why satellite radio giant SiriusXM Radio chose her to intern with them in Washington, D.C.

Huddleston graduated from Southern Miss in 2011 with

a degree in elementary education and even then wasn’t completely sure of her future.

She returned to her alma mater to take radio classes and work at the campus radio station, and is now an entertainment

and media production major and the host of the weekday noon program that features guests from the Southern Miss campus and Hattiesburg community.

Huddleston found out about the radio internship through the SiriusXM website and applied. She started in January as the music-programming intern for The Village folk station on SiriusXM 741.

Her duties include behind-the-scenes work, as well as working with audio-editing equipment and music-scheduling software, assembling promotional pieces, show preparation for on-air talent, listener interaction, and occasional on-air participation.

Huddleston knows this internship will further her radio experience, particularly in a professional environment under supervision of professionals in the field. The decision to apply for the internship was also inspired by the man who gave Huddleston her very first radio show—Justin Martin.

She says that working at WUSM has helped prepare her for the internship at SiriusXM. She explains that everything that goes on air is important and that it’s necessary to make sure all the information given is accurate and up-to-date.

Bec O’Neal

9Spring 2014

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Live Oak Replaced on Hattiesburg Campus

A live oak tree that did not survive replanting last spring at Southern Miss was replaced Feb. 10 by another mature live oak. Last May five live oaks were transported from a grower in Florida and replanted on the Southern Miss Hattiesburg campus as part of a major landscaping restoration project. The remaining four trees are alive and thriving today. More than 75 trees were lost when an EF-4 tornado struck the campus on Feb. 10, 2013.

Civil Rights Movement Leader Moses Honored at Southern Miss

Robert Moses, a renowned leader in the civil rights movement, spoke with members of The University of Southern Mississippi and Hattiesburg communities following a portrait unveiling and dinner held in his honor March 4 at the Trent Lott Center on the Hattiesburg campus.

The portrait of Moses was painted by Robert Shetterly as part of the “Americans Who Tell the Truth – Models of Courageous Citizenship” series, which includes paintings that present citizens who courageously engage issues of social, environmental and economic fairness.

Moses served as field secretary for the civil rights movement’s Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, and later became a key organizer in the Freedom Summer Movement, with both initiatives aimed at registering black voters in the segregated South. Today he continues his work leading the Algebra Project, which is designed to improve math education among disadvantaged youth.

Robert Moses

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In an effort to help University of Southern Mississippi international students with transportation to the Gulf Park campus in Long Beach, Southern Miss Gulf Coast Vice President and Campus Executive Officer Dr. Frances Lucas, fourth from left, initiated the new International Student Bike Loan Program. The University purchased 15 bicycles on loan to international students for the semester. Students, selected by raffle, will have the opportunity to borrow a University bicycle at the start of each academic semester.

Southern Miss Research Project Headed for International Space Station

Professor Scott Milroy is not ready to prove life exists on Mars. However, he is one giant leap closer to discovering whether or not a living organism could survive on the Red Planet.

Milroy recently learned that his NASA-funded “Pioneering Mars” project has been selected for payload integration and flight aboard the International Space Station. Milroy’s project is one of only two chosen from the NASA ISS National Laboratory Education Project (NLEP) for transport to the ISS sometime in 2015.

Milroy’s project was one of five ISS NLEP projects nationwide that NASA funded approximately 18 months ago, providing hands-on science and engineering opportunities to high school students. His experiments focus on an attempt to grow a blue-green algae—known as cyanobacteria—in incubation chambers at the Southern Miss Gulf Park campus in Long Beach.

Milroy notes that while many of the physical, chemical and climatic conditions of Mars can be simulated in an Earth-bound laboratory, the capability to maintain living cyanobacterial cultures in reduced gravity conditions can only be explored on the ISS.

Southern Miss Kicks Off Health is Golden Campaign

The University of Southern Mississippi kicked off its “Health is Golden” campaign on March 6 with a check presentation of $250,000 from the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Mississippi Foundation.

Beyond the obvious objective to inspire a healthier campus community, the “Health is Golden” campaign aims to provide students, faculty and staff with the education and resources to accomplish that goal. Part of the initiative includes a project to recognize “Health Champions”—members of the Southern Miss family who serve as positive role models of health. Posters have been designed to promote these champions in hopes that they will influence others.

For more information about the “Health is Golden” campaign, contact Student Health Services at 601.266.5390.

Those participating in the check presentation included, from left to right: Dr. Joe Paul, vice president for Student Affairs; Dr. Virginia Crawford, director of Student Health Services; Jodi Ryder, health education and promotion director; Sheila Grogan, executive director, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Mississippi Foundation and Southern Miss President Rodney D. Bennett.

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Students Awarded Luckyday Study-Abroad Scholarships Ten Luckyday Citizenship Scholars

at The University of Southern Mississippi are recipients of the 2014 Luckyday Study-Abroad Scholarships, chosen by a committee that reviewed applications and recommendations. They include, from left, Wilton Jackson, Kristen Richards, Brooklyn Mills, Austin Allen, Patricia Chastain, Kelli Navarra, Lucy Ridge, Taylor Crenshaw, Shanice Hicks-Floore and Bradley Floore.

The Study-Abroad Scholarship is a $4,000 competitive scholarship open to Luckyday Scholars who have completed at least 30 credit hours, are at least in their second year at Southern Miss, and are in good standing with the Luckyday Program. The scholarship may be applied to any study-abroad program offered through Southern Miss during 2014.

Hattiesburg Civil Rights Movement Remembered, Celebrated in Freedom Day Re-enactment March

Fifty years after he marched for equal rights, Anthony Harris returned to downtown Hattiesburg Jan. 22 to retrace his steps in pursuit of a more just society.

Harris, a University of Southern

Mississippi alumnus, braved chilly temperatures along with many area residents, students and other supporters for the Freedom Day re-enactment march in downtown Hattiesburg. The event, part of the University’s programming commemorating Freedom Summer, recognized those who marched for voting rights and equal access to facilities for African Americans in Hattiesburg in that pivotal year of the civil rights movement.

Enduring arrest and threats to his life as a young man growing up in the segregated South, Harris was

the first African American to enroll at Hattiesburg’s then all-white Thames Elementary School and went on to earn undergraduate and graduate degrees at Southern Miss. He later served as executive assistant to University president Horace Fleming, and is currently a member of the faculty at Mercer University.

The genesis of the re-enactment march was an effort by a group of Southern Miss students who wanted to commemorate the milestone anniversary of the march. Taking the name “Remember Now, ‘64” the students worked with University, local officials and groups and those who participated in the original march to organize the event, with the ultimate goal of securing a commemorative marker at the Forrest County Courthouse where the original and re-enactment marches concluded.

Participants in the re-enactment march were given escort and protection by Hattiesburg Police and deputies with the Forrest County Sheriff’s Department, who 50 years earlier would have suppressed such an act.

Participants in the Freedom March re-enactment join hands during a ceremony held in downtown Hattiesburg on Jan. 22.

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Two members of The University of Southern Mississippi Forensics Society recently competed at the Worlds Universities Debating Championship in Chennai, India. Seniors Brandon Hersey and Michael Sims, along with coach Frankie Glennis-Watts, left for India on Christmas day and spent over a week in the city of Chennai, India.

Three hundred and forty teams competed, representing more than 60 countries.

Hersey and Sims participated in nine preliminary rounds that determined who would move on to the final rounds of competition. Receiving first place in several preliminary rounds, Hersey and Brandon competed against teams from the United States, as well as other countries.

Hersey, Sims and Glennis-Watts made new friends, and reconnected with Charlie Morris from the British National Debate Team, against whom they debated last fall. The Golden Eagles’ forensics team connected with a team from Vienna and hopes to plan a Skype debate between the two teams.

Hersey’s and Sims’ preparation for the world-wide debate event began months ago with numerous practices until the team left for India. They debated against other team members at Southern Miss and also competed in various tournaments, workshops and debates.

While in Chennai, the students and their coach traveled to the second longest beach in the world, visited the high courts, saw Chennai temples, tried new foods and explored several different parts of the city.

Forensics Society Competes at Worlds Universities Debating Championship

Seniors Michael Sims, left, and Brandon Hersey, right, along with coach Frankie Glennis-Watts, center, recently traveled to Chennai, India, where Hersey and Sims competed at the Worlds Universities Debating Championship.

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On Feb. 10, The University of Southern Mississippi marked one year since a destructive EF-4 tornado struck its Hattiesburg campus, damaging buildings and destroying trees, primarily at its front entrance next to Hardy Street.

University officials are pleased with progress to restore the campus and look forward to completing all work connected with recovery from the storm by the end of 2014.

Southern Miss President Rodney Bennett gave an update to the University community on the progress the University has made during a convocation held at Bennett Auditorium. Dr. Chris Crenshaw, director of the University’s Physical Plant, who gave an update on storm recovery projects, joined him.

The one building that for many was symbolic of the tornado’s impact on the University was the iconic and beloved Ogletree Alumni House, one of the Hattiesburg campus’s original structures that first served as the president’s home. Work is ongoing to restore the landmark building.

Other work includes repairs to roofs and windows, along with some interior damage, to a variety of other buildings including Kennard-Washington, Southern and McLemore Halls and facilities housing music performance classes.

An extensive landscaping project to replace trees and other vegetation on the campus’ historic entrance area is progressing

with the help of generous donations from alumni and friends of the University. Five large mature live oaks were planted last May as part of this effort.

Other details of the University’s storm recovery included the following:

• Campus Beautification Day of Giving raised $130,243.76 in just 24 hours.

• More than 3,000 donors contributed $2 million to aid in tornado relief efforts

• New playing surface was installed at M.M. Roberts Stadium after storm debris littered the field.

• The Mississippi Legislature provided $1.1 million to the School of Music for instrument repair and replacement.

• In addition to new live oaks, extensive landscaping and sidewalk work, the expansion of

Lake Byron and the addition of a magnificent bronze eagle sculpture donated by alumnus Chuck Scianna have helped restore and enhance the beauty of the front entrance of campus.Provost Denis Wiesenburg also gave an update on the

progress of academic affairs at the University and noted the University continues to make significant achievements in the academic arena throughout the year since the storm.

One Year Later, Southern Miss Closer to Recovery from Tornado

Taulbert Advocates Habits of the Heart in Armstrong-Branch Lecture

Drawing from his experiences growing up in the segregated Mississippi Delta, renowned author Clifton Taulbert brought a message of hope when he gave

the annual Armstrong-Branch Lecture Feb. 18, on the Hattiesburg campus.

Taulbert, a Pulitzer-nominated writer, presented “You Can Walk on

the Moon.” He spoke about the power of the “eight habits of the heart,” the title of one of his books, that can build communities and heal divisions.

Taulbert, a native of Glen Allan, was the winner of the NAACP’s 27th Image Award for Literary Work: Non-fiction for his book, “When We Were Colored.”

His book, “The Last Train North,” was the winner of the Mississippi Library Association Award. It traces the author’s journey during the 1960s from Mississippi to racially integrated St. Louis. The memorable characters from “Eight Habits of the Heart: Embracing the Values That Build Strong Families and Communities,”

“When We Were Colored” and his other popular works appear in his first picture book titled, “Little Cliff and the Porch People.”

His latest book, “The Invitation,” also taps into “the far-reaching impact of the segregated culture of his youth in his adult journey from the Mississippi Delta to the world-at-large, and his personal grappling with the lingering lessons of race and place.”

The Armstrong-Branch Lecture series was established in honor of Gwendolyn Armstrong and Raylawni Branch, the University’s first African American students. The two broke the color barrier at Southern Miss when they enrolled in September 1965.

Clifton Taulbert

University of Southern Mississippi student Allie Solomon sits atop the Little Rock that was painted with a prevailing campus theme following last year’s devastating tornado.

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Southern Miss Social Work Student Helps Nursing Home Residents Find Harmony

Brady Leatherwood, a senior social work major at The University of Southern Mississippi, is helping nursing home residents with dementia find joy and rediscover their memories.

Leatherwood and her adviser, Karen Aderer, an instructor in the School of Social Work, make weekly visits to residents at the Driftwood Nursing Center in Gulfport. During the visits, they apply individualized music intervention ideally 30 minutes before sun-downing, the most agitated period for a person with dementia.

While listening to their personalized playlists, residents relax and become more social. A song connected to a past experience can trigger lost memories.

Aderer discovered the method through Music and Memory, a program implementing individualized music intervention in nursing homes nationwide.

She showed the concept to students in her human behavior class and told them she intended to start a similar program, but she did not know when. At the end of class, Leatherwood approached her, adamant that she had to be involved. The project began.

The goals of the Finding Harmony Project are to advocate for individualized music in nursing homes and introduce social work students to working with the elderly.

Leatherwood wrote a successful grant proposal, securing $1,000 to meet equipment needs, and is now working on others. Aderer commends her for being awarded the grant, which she says is a unique experience for an undergraduate student.

Now that the program is established, Leatherwood and Aderer are working to involve more social work students. So far three freshmen have committed 40 hours of service. They expect interest to only grow and hope to eventually launch a program in Hattiesburg.

After graduating this spring, Leatherwood will pursue a Master of Social Work at Southern Miss. She intends to continue involvement with the project.

Southern Miss Gulf Coast

Jazz & BluesFestival

All Southern Miss alumni are invited to this premier event.Register at the Alumni tent to receive:

A Free Festival T-shirt Designed by Local Artist Elizabeth HuffmasterComplimentary “Big Top Photo Booth” Photograph

Southern Miss Canned Beverage HolderSouthern Miss Give-a-ways

Door Prizes Given Away Every Hour

Saturday, April 19 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Gulf Park Campus, Long Beach

Featuring Live Music, Food Vendors, Arts andCrafts Vendors, Children’s Activities

Enjoy a great lineup of musicians featuring headliner Mississippi Rail Company.

Food and drink vendors include The Shed BBQ and Blues Joint.

An 11 a.m. Easter Egg Hunt for children (ages 12 and under) will kick off the children’s activities and the Easter Bunny will be on hand for photographs.

Free AdmissionFor more information, visit www.usm.edu/jazz-blues or call 228.214.3411.

Brady Leatherwood, left, a student at The University of Southern Mississippi, and her adviser, Karen Aderer, are developers of the Finding Harmony Project, bringing individualized music intervention to nursing home residents at the Driftwood Nursing Center in Gulfport.

SOUTHERN MISS

Here are a few questions to test your knowledge of Southern Miss history. Answer two or three accurately, and you can consider

yourself a loyal alumnus or alumna. Answer zero or one correctly, and you may want to double check to make sure your diploma is not

from a university in north Mississippi.

1. In what year did the U.S. War Department establish an Army administration school on campus to train staff for World War II military camps, bringing 1,000 male students to campus?

2. Who became the first African American to receive a doctoral degree in Mississippi in 1969? Hint: This former president of Alcorn University was named among Ebony Magazine’s 100 Most Influential Black Americans in 1974, 75 and 76.

3. Prior to becoming the Gulf Park Campus of Southern Miss in 1972, what institution was housed at the University’s Long Beach campus?

4. How long has Southern Miss Athletics been a member of Conference USA?

SEE THE ANSWERS ON PAGE 63

Upcoming Events Calendar All events are subject to change and should be confirmed. Any questions regarding these events can be directed to the Southern Miss Alumni Association. For athletics schedules, visit SouthernMiss.com.

March26 The Legacy Fundraising Night Raising Cane’s | Hattiesburg | 5 – 10 p.m.

27 Founders’ Day

April2 Mobile Bay Baseball Pre-game Social Momma Goldberg’s Deli | Mobile, Ala. | 4 – 6 p.m.

5 Economic Development Alumni and Student Tailgate The Roost at Pete Taylor Park | 2 p.m.

14 Passions of the Palate presented by the Southern Miss Casino, Hospitality and Tourism Department

Lake Terrace Convention Center | 5 – 10 p.m.

21 The Legacy Spring Reception Thad Cochran Center Room 216 | 5 – 6 p.m.

22 Southern Miss All-Star Golf Classic Live Oaks Golf Club | Jackson

28 16th Annual East Central Golf Tournament Briarwood Country Club | Meridian

May1 27th Annual Mobile Bay Classic Golf Tournament Timber Creek Golf Club | Mobile, AL | 1 p.m.

2 Inauguration of Rodney D. Bennett, Tenth President of the University

Bennett Auditorium | 2 p.m.

9 Spring Commencement Hattiesburg Reed Green Coliseum | 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.

10 Spring Commencement Gulf Coast Mississippi Coast Coliseum | 10 a.m.

June1 Third Annual Mobile Bay Crawfish Boil Historic Malbis Community Center | 2 – 6 p.m.

13 Second Annual Mississippi Society of Georgia at the Atlanta Braves

14 Sixth Annual Atlanta’s Mississippi in the Park Chastain Park

14 35th New York Mississippi Central Park Picnic Central Park

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

www.usm.edu/arts AA/EOE/ADAI

A haven for thearts

One of only 34 institutions in the nation accredited in all four arts disciplines:theatre, dance, art and music.

Hosting more than 300arts events each year.Concerts | Art exhibitionsDance performances |Theatre productions

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Hattiesburg Zoo is now home to Talon, a second golden eagle on loan from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services.

Hattiesburg Zoo Welcomes TalonLess than three months after

unveiling a new golden eagle exhibit complete with a golden eagle named Nugget, the Hattiesburg Zoo welcomed Talon, a second golden eagle on loan from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services.

Talon weighs just over eight pounds and came to Hattiesburg from the same rehab facility in Ojai, Calif., as Nugget. He suffered a serious injury to his right wing earlier in his life and is now unable to fly. He joined Nugget on display at the Hattiesburg Zoo inside

the newly constructed golden eagle exhibit, which is sponsored by the Southern Miss Alumni Association, the USM Foundation and the Student Government Association.

The public was invited to participate in naming Talon by submitting suggestions via Twitter. A final selection of names was then made available on the zoo’s website for public voting, and after more than 2,000 votes, the winning name of Talon was announced at the Southern Miss vs. UTEP basketball game on Feb. 22.

“The Southern Miss Alumni Association is proud to be a part of such an impressive and educational exhibit inside the Hattiesburg Zoo,” said Jerry DeFatta, executive director of the Southern Miss Alumni Association. “We could not be more excited for Nugget to be welcoming a friend to his exhibit. The naming contest was certainly a great opportunity for Southern Miss alumni, students and fans to be a part of such an exciting development for the zoo and the entire Hattiesburg area.”

Welcome New Life MembersJames and Sylvia Baker

Patricia BauerPhilip and Patricia Daugherty

Kathy DeMarcoCarrie Fenton

S. Kathleen HenryKyle and Deborah Hill

Kristin Howard

Michael and Patricia IrwinAshley Johnson

Joseph and Wanda KingWilliam Knox Jr. Jonathan Lewis

Jason SickMarylen Smith

Donna Wilkerson

MEMBERSHIPMINUTE

Did you know that a life membership in the Southern Miss Alumni Association is only $600? This small investment lasts a lifetime and helps to build a strong alumni base as the Association strives to take Southern Miss to the top!

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Ogletree House Repair Efforts to Conclude Mid-June

More than a year has passed since the historical Ogletree House was damaged by an EF-4 tornado that struck The University of Southern Mississippi and surrounding areas. Although damage to the facility did not necessitate the demolition of the historic structure, the Alumni Association was prepared for a long road to repair, a process managed by local preservation architect Larry Albert, who oversaw the house’s 2009 restoration.

With a repair completion goal of fall 2014, the Association is pleased to report that the repairs are on track to be completed by the end of the fiscal year. “B.W. Sullivan Building Contractor Inc. of Hattiesburg has done a remarkable job managing such a complicated restoration project,” shared Jerry DeFatta, executive director of the Alumni Association. “The repair process is going very smoothly, we are happy with the progress made thus far, and look forward to the project being complete.”

BIG THREESUMMER PARTIES

Thursday, July 1731st Annual Jackson All-Star Party

Mississippi Trade Mart | Jackson, MS5:30 – 7:30 p.m.

Friday, July 2516th Annual Gulf Coast Beach Bash

Location TBA6 – 8 p.m.

Saturday, August 919th Annual Eagle Fanfare

Lake Terrace Convention Center | Hattiesburg2 – 4 p.m.

The Southern Miss Alumni Association has announced the dates for the organization’s big three summer parties to be held throughout Mississippi. The parties, named affectionately for the largest three alumni chapters in the state, are hosted by the Central Mississippi, Gulf Coast Metro and South Central Mississippi chapters of the Association. These annual events offer opportunities for guests to visit with Southern Miss coaches, administrators, athletes, cheerleaders and Seymour. During these parties, each chapter will recognize their local scholarship recipients. In addition, Golden Eagle merchandise will be available for purchase, and silent auctions will be conducted to raise money for the chapters’ respective scholarship funds for incoming students and to provide support for the Eagle Club. For more information on the Association’s annual summer parties, contact Laurie Benvenutti at 601.266.5357.

Alumni Anticipate Annual Big Three Summer Parties

D’Andra Price ’13, (L) past president of The Legacy, and Sophie Saizan ’15 (R) stop for a picture with legend-ary Southern Miss football fan Ray “Two Bits” Crawford, ’66, wearing his signature hat decorated with ticket stubs and eagle pins during the 18th Annual Eagle Fanfare in Hattiesburg.

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LEAVE A

LEGACY

BUY A BRICK

THE SOUTHERN MISS ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BRICK PROGRAM

Don’t miss the opportunity to purchase a brick for your graDuate!

Did you know that you can purchase a brick in honor of a recent grad?

For just $15 you can add a one-year Alumni Association gift membership to your brick order and keep your graduate connected to Southern Miss. Graduates who receive the gift membership within one calendar year of their graduation date

will receive a “grad pack” that includes a 1GB Southern Miss flash drive, leather portfolio, license plate and more!

For more information or to place your order online, visit www.SouthernMissAlumni.com/leavealagacy.

Alumni Chapter Hosts Annual Boys and Girls Club

The South Central Mississippi Alumni Chapter hosted 40 children from the Hattiesburg Boys and Girls Club on Feb. 27, as the Golden Eagle basketball team battled Conference-USA opponent Florida International during Senior Night at Reed Green Coliseum. The children enjoyed the exciting Southern Miss atmosphere and helped to cheer the Golden Eagles on to a victory. In addition to sponsoring the group at the basketball game, the chapter also made a $500 donation to the Boys and Girls Club of Hattiesburg.

Boys and Girls Club members (L – R) Kendrick Lovett, Jamar Cade, Shannadoah Sandifer, Chandler Smith and South Central Mississippi Alumni Chapter volunteers Aaron Boucher and Lance LeFan during halftime in Reed Green Coliseum.

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The Alumni Association recently presented three annual awards for excellence in leadership and service to both the Association and the University. These awards are given to a chapter, chapter president and ambassador to recognize each for successes in their respective roles and to acknowledge their willingness to go above and beyond in their duties. The Association is proud to announce the following recipients of the 2013 awards:

2013 Scott Caldwell Award for Outstanding Chapter President: Brent Greenwald, Mobile Bay Area Alumni Chapter

The Scott Caldwell Award is given in honor of Southern Miss alumnus Scott Caldwell, who passed away of cancer during his term as president of the Mobile Alumni Chapter in 1992. This award is presented annually to an outstanding alumni chapter president, and this year’s Scott Caldwell Award recipient is Brent Greenwald ’99, ’02 of the Mobile Bay

Area Alumni Chapter. Brent has not only worked to increase involvement of recent graduates within the Mobile Bay area but has also been instrumental in promoting Southern Miss to local high school students. Under Brent’s leadership, the chapter’s annual crawfish boil has flourished and continues to raise money for the Mickey Marshall Endowed Scholarship benefitting a Southern Miss freshman from the Mobile area. Brent’s love of Southern Miss is evidenced by his dedication to the Mobile Bay Area Alumni Chapter, as well as to the Alumni Association. Brent and his wife Kelly ’02 are Life Members of the Southern Miss Alumni Association and are the proud parents of future Golden Eagles Lauren and Addie.

2013 Alumni Chapter of the Year: Baton Rouge Alumni Chapter

The Alumni Chapter of the Year award is presented annually to the top alumni chapter based on overall success in a variety of categories. The 2013 recipient of the Alumni Chapter of the Year award is the Baton Rouge Alumni Chapter. After much hard work and fundraising, the Baton Rouge chapter was able to endow a scholarship through the USM Foundation and will award their first scholarship to a deserving incoming freshman from the Baton Rouge area in the fall of 2014. The chapter also works diligently to keep local alumni engaged with each other and with the University. Baton Rouge alumni look forward to the group’s annual Christmas party, and last year, the chapter’s summer dinner with Golden Eagle Men’s Basketball Coach Donnie Tyndall attracted a near-record crowd of alumni.

2013 Alumni Ambassador of the Year: Becky Sullivan, Dallas, Texas

The Alumni Ambassador of the Year award recognizes the top alumni ambassador for overall excellence in leadership. Becky Sullivan ’86 of the Dallas Alumni group is the 2013 Alumni Ambassador of the Year. Becky has made it her mission to increase awareness of Southern Miss happenings for local alumni, and her enthusiasm for the University has helped to grow alumni involvement in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. She sends weekly emails to the group keeping them up-to-date with University announcements, often including flashback pictures of campus from years ago, and also keeps the group’s social media outlets updated with current Southern Miss events. Becky is quick to organize pre-game socials when the Golden Eagles travel to the Dallas area to play or game-watching parties when games are televised. A Life Member of the Southern Miss Alumni Association, Becky and her husband, David Friedersdorff, currently reside in Flower Mound, Texas.

Three Annual Association Awards Presented for Excellence in Leadership and Service

Laurie Benvenutti, Alumni Association manager of constituent relations, presents Brent Greenwald, president of the Mobile Bay Alumni Chapter, with the 2013 Scott Caldwell Award for Outstanding Chapter President.

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Alumni leaders from throughout the southeast and select current students met on Feb. 1, at the Trent Lott National Center for the Alumni Association’s Volunteer Leadership Summit. At the summit, facilitated by Dr. Sam Jones, ’97, ’02, volunteer leaders shared their perceptions on three main areas of focus for the Association over the next several years: alumni engagement, minority engagement and legacy recruitment or the recruitment of children and grandchildren of alumni.

Save the Date forthe Annual Mobile Bay Crawfish Boil

Calling all crawfish lovers! Save the date for the third annual Southern Miss Mobile Bay Crawfish Boil on

Sunday, June 1, from 2 – 6 p.m. at the Historic Malbis Community Center in Daphne, Ala. Alumni, friends, fans and current and incoming students will enjoy all-you-can-eat boiled crawfish and live entertainment at this family-friendly event!

Early-bird ticket specials are available through May 1, for $25 per person. After May 1, pre-purchased tickets are $30 per person, and tickets are $35 per person at the door. Ages 16 and under are admitted free.

Proceeds from the crawfish boil benefit the Mickey Marshall Endowed Scholarship that is awarded annually to an incoming Southern Miss freshman from the Mobile area.

To purchase tickets or for more information, contact Brent Greenwald at [email protected].

Did you know that the Southern Miss Alumni Association actively posts on Instragram and Flickr? Follow the Association on Instagram @usmalumni and Flickr at southernmiss_alumniassociation!

Annual Alumni Association Volunteer Leadership Summit Held in February

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Golden Grad Reunion Quickly ApproachingThe much anticipated 2014 Golden Grad Reunion will be held April 25 – 26.

It is this weekend that the Southern Miss Alumni Association will welcome alumni from the classes of 1963, ‘64 and ‘65 to the Hattiesburg campus, creating a reunion experience no one will want to miss!

“I look forward to seeing many of our classmates from our 1964 class and our friends from the 1963 and 1965 classes at the Golden Grad Reunion,” said Tom Potter, president of the class of 1964. “The Alumni Association has put together some wonderful events for us, and getting together with classmates will bring back many memories and stories of our days at Southern Miss.”

The weekend will consist of a full schedule of events including a welcome reception on Friday evening at the golden eagle exhibit at the Hattiesburg Zoo, a breakfast of memories, University tours, a special exhibit in the University Archives, and a luncheon featuring the Spirit of Southern vocal performance group and induction into the Golden Circle.

The host hotel is the Courtyard by Marriott, located at 119 Grand Drive in Hattiesburg. For reservations, call 601.268.3050. Use the code “Golden Grad Reunion” for the special rate of $99 when making reservations.

Additional reunion details, including hotel information, are available at SouthernMissAlumni.com/GoldenGrad, and registration brochures have been mailed. Contact Dawn Smith at 601.266.4218 or [email protected] for more details. It’s time to renew old friendships, remember good times and celebrate Southern Miss!

Legacy Corner The Legacy, the student chapter

of the Southern Miss Alumni Association, hosted a friendly membership drive competition between chapters within the National Pan-Hellenic Council, the Interfraternity Council and the Panhellenic Council. The objective of the competition was to recognize the chapter from each council that obtained the highest percentage of Legacy members. In the National Pan-Hellenic Council, 60% of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity members joined The Legacy, making them the NPHC Council winners!

The Legacy would like to thank the gentlemen of Omega Psi Phi for helping to keep the history and traditions of Southern Miss alive through their Legacy memberships!

Current Omega Psi Phi members (L-R) Kelvin Dickens, Marieo Stewart, President Gerald West, Hakeem Oduniyi and Terrence Lynch

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• One Stop Shopping for Students• New and Used Textbooks• School Supplies

Located on Hardy Street across from the main entrance to Campus by IHOP

Call: 601.261.9690601.261.9690

www.campusbookmart.comwww.campusbookmart.comThe #1 source

for all yourSouthern Miss gear!

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The University of Southern Mississippi is home to one of the country’s top military history programs in the History department’s Dale Center for the Study of War & Society. In an effort to help the Center reach even loftier heights, the USM Foundation has launched the Dale Center for the Study of War & Society Campaign.

The campaign was announced on February 6, at the 2014 Lt. Col. John H. Dale Sr. Distinguished Lecture in International Security and Global Policy featuring former U.S. Secretary of Defense Dr. Robert Gates.

The Center has been renamed to honor the family of Dr. Beverly Dale, who made the initial contribution to the $2 million campaign. Beverly Dale’s late father, Lt. Col. John H. Dale Sr., served as Professor of Military Science, head of the Department of Military Science and head of the ROTC Program at USM from 1957-61 and 1964-66. Lt. Col. Dale was a veteran

of World War II and the Korean Conflict.Approximately $1.6 million toward the $2 million goal

already has been committed to support the Dale Center. Contributions to the campaign will establish or enhance needed endowments for lectureships, graduate fellowships and scholarships, research aid to faculty and students, and named professorships, such as the Major General Buford “Buff” Blount Endowed Professorship in Military History, which was established in 2010.

“We have already gathered together an unbelievable group of scholars who are producing groundbreaking research into the study of conflict – research that has a profound impact on how the country and world view the complexities of war,” said Dr. Andrew Wiest, University Distinguished Professor of History at Southern Miss and Founding Director of the Dale Center. “Keeping this core group of scholars together is key to

USM Foundation Launches Campaign to Support Dale Center

Former U.S. Secretary of Defense Dr. Robert Gates addresses a packed crowd at the Saenger Theatre in Hattiesburg for The University of Southern Mississippi’s Lt. Col. John H. Dale Sr. Distinguished Lecture Series in International Security and Global Policy on Thursday, Feb. 6.

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the continued success of the Center, and the generous gifts and support from our wonderful friends and benefactors will make that happen.”

The Dale Center serves as a local, national and international resource for the study of the history of warfare and its influence on both combatants and civilians. The Center plays an active role in the community through its annual Richard McCarthy Lecture Series, the monthly War and Society Roundtable discussions in partnership with the Hattiesburg Public Library and the Dale Distinguished Lecture Series.

Bob Pierce, vice president for Advancement at Southern Miss, notes that the Dale Center Campaign provides an

opportunity to lift the University’s military history program to elite status.

“The faculty in our military history program are experts in this field. Not only are they good at what they do, they

are among the most respected military historians in the country,” said Pierce. “The Dale Center is currently recognized as a top-five program in the study of war and society in the United States, but we want to make it the nation’s pre-eminent academic program in this area. This campaign will certainly help us achieve that goal.”

For more information about the Dale Center for the Study of War & Society Campaign, call the USM Foundation at 601.266.5210 or visit www.usmfoundation.com/dalecenter.

Mr. and Mrs. Larry AlbertCol. and Mrs. Wayde Benson

Maj. Gen. and Mrs. Buff BlountMr. and Mrs. Jeff BowmanDr. and Mrs. J.P. Culpepper

Dr. Beverly DaleDr. and Mrs. Lee DrakeDr. and Mrs. Fred Drews

Mr. Randy HamiltonDr. and Mrs. Craig HowardMr. and Mrs. Shane Loper

Dr. and Mrs. Richard McCarthy

Dr. and Mrs. Lynn McMahanMr. and Mrs. Andy Mercier

Mr. and Mrs. Tommy NumnumHon. and Mrs. Steven M. Palazzo

W.A., Abb, and Jennifer PayneMr. and Mrs. Bob Pierce

Mr. John Rasberry and Dr. Susannah UralDr. and Mrs. Pat Welsh

Dr. and Mrs. Denis WiesenburgDr. and Mrs. Andrew Wiest

Dr. Kyle Zelner and Ms. Tisha Zelner

DONORS TO THE CAMPAIGN FOR THE DALE CENTERFOR THE STUDY OF WAR & SOCIETY

(Through January 30, 2014 with a minimum commitment of $1,000)

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Eleven-year-old Parker Mitchell can’t help but smile when explaining the extraordinary gift he made to the DuBard School for Language Disorders at The University of Southern Mississippi through their discretionary fund in the USM Foundation. He knows that his late mother, Sarah Mitchell, would appreciate the extraordinary gesture made in her name.

“I decided to give the money to the school in memory of my mother because the school has helped me so much,” said Parker, a DuBard student from Columbia, Miss. “My mother would be happy. She was thankful that I was able to come to the DuBard School. When I came to the school, I couldn’t read too well. Now I know ways to figure out words.”

Memorial gifts such as Parker’s have been an integral part of the USM Foundation’s framework since its inception. These gifts – often designated in the form of academic scholarships – provide an enduring way to honor the memory of a loved one.

Parker designated $5,000 of his gift to support the greatest needs of a classroom at the DuBard School and the remaining $300 allotted for the purchase of a brick inscribed with the following message: “In Memory of my Mom, Sarah Mitchell. I love you always, Parker Mitchell.”

DuBard School Director Dr. Maureen Martin noted that Parker’s gift provided a beautiful and meaningful remembrance of his mother. “He has inspired and touched us all,” she said. “His extraordinary generosity, given at such a young age, is something that we can all admire.”

Family and friends of Southern Miss alum Mark Cook wanted to honor his legacy as a devoted fraternity brother with the Mark Cook Memorial

Scholarship. Cook, who died in 2009, earned a degree in marketing in 1998.

A George County High graduate, Mark was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity and a Southern Miss cheerleader. The SAE Chapter room features a plaque dedicated to Mark’s memory.

“We decided that we would like to establish a scholarship to be given to a Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity member who exhibited the attributes of ‘The True Gentleman,’ ” said Stacey Metz, a longtime friend of Mark’s and whose husband, Todd Metz, served with Mark in the fraternity. “It is our hope that the scholarship honors our friend Mark, his family, and the brothers of Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity.”

A new endowment established in the name of former State Senator Jim Bean will help fund scholarships for students in the Department of Health at Southern Miss.

Bean, who passed away last summer, championed rural health care and programs for children and the elderly.

Bean, a Republican, represented Forrest, Lamar and Perry counties in the Senate from 1986 to 2000. He was chairman of the Public Health and Welfare Committee from 1996 to 2000.

Many of the initial gifts to the Senator Jim Bean Community Health Centers Memorial Scholarship Endowment were made by the Community Health Center members of the Mississippi Primary Health Care Association to honor the vision and leadership of Sen. Bean, who worked to establish the Mississippi Qualified Health Center Program.

To learn more about establishing memorial gifts, contact the USM Foundation at 601.266.5210 or visit: www.usmfoundation.com.

Memorial Gifts to the USM Foundation Create a Lasting Legacy

A gift from eleven-year-old Parker Mitchell will honor his late mother and provide support for the DuBard School for Language Disorders at The University of Southern Mississippi.

Mark Cook

Jim Bean

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STAKE YOUR CLAIMIN THE SOUTHERN MISS GOLD RUSH.

w w w.s o u t h e r n m i s s g o l d r u s h.c o m

The Southern Miss Gold Rush is a 36-hour, online fundraising event that encourages University alumni, students, employees and friends to

come together and support their favorite areas of the University.

From noon on March 25 through midnight on March 26, every gift to the USM Foundation will help show the impact we can make

on the future of Southern Miss.

Visit www.southernmissgoldrush.com to make your gift March 25-26. Join the rush with #usmgoldrush.

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Matthew Johnson encourages his sixth-grade students to be “lifelong givers”. Looks like his California class is off to an impressive start.

The students, who attend Alice G. Mulcahy Middle School in Tulare, Calif., were inspired by the story of Hattiesburg, Miss., washerwoman Oseola McCarty, who left the vast majority of her life savings to The University of Southern Mississippi Foundation for the establishment of a perpetual scholarship.

The class’ decision to donate a $40 cash prize – won as part of a school-wide fundraising effort – to the Oseola McCarty Endowed Scholarship prompted contributions from others within the school. The result was a check for $135 sent to Southern Miss earmarked for the McCarty Scholarship.

“Well, inspiration has a way of being contagious,” said Johnson. “First, I was inspired by my students’ desire to give. Then, my principal and our school librarian decided to give. That, in turn, compelled me to want to give more than I had originally pledged to give.”

Johnson’s class of 35 students learned about McCarty’s generosity last December from a reading anthology that

included her biography. “They were simply amazed by her story, and they wanted to know more about the scholarship fund,” said Johnson.

In 1995, McCarty forever changed The University of Southern Mississippi with the announcement of a planned gift of $150,000 to the institution. As a washerwoman who lived frugally, this gift represented the majority of her life savings. By generously including the USM Foundation in her estate plans, McCarty established an endowment to help educate African-American students at Southern Miss. Although McCarty passed away in 1999, her legacy as a selfless benefactor lives on at Southern Miss through her generous deeds and spirit. Today, the market value of the Oseola McCarty Endowed Scholarship totals nearly $745,000.

On Friday, February 21, Southern Miss President Rodney D. Bennett took the opportunity to personally thank the class via a Skype conversation.

“I hope that your students take away from this experience that everybody can help in some way,” Bennett told the group. “Everybody can be a philanthropist. You don’t have to have

Oseola McCarty’s Story Inspires Young California Philanthropists

Members of Matthew Johnson’s sixth-grade class show off Southern Miss memorabilia outside their school in Tulare, Calif.

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millions of dollars to make a difference. I want to thank you all for honoring the memory and generosity of Ms. McCarty.”

Forty-four students have received McCarty Scholarships with more than $370,000 awarded since the scholarship’s inception. There is a residence hall on the Hattiesburg campus of Southern Miss named for McCarty.

In 2012, the USM Foundation renamed its planned giving society the McCarty Legacy in honor of its most well-known planned gift benefactor. Membership in the McCarty Legacy is extended to individuals who have included the Foundation in their estate plans in a variety of ways such as bequests, charitable trusts, gift annuities and life insurance policies.

Shannon Fleming, executive director of the USM Foundation, noted the significance of the gift from almost 20 years ago and the one made last December.

“When Ms. McCarty’s planned gift was announced in 1995, it literally made international news,” said Fleming. “It was an incredible story of generosity, and I am heartened by the fact that almost two decades later, these young students located all the way across the country were inspired by that story to become donors themselves. What could be more inspiring?”

In response to their impressive gesture, the students received a packet of Southern Miss memorabilia. The term

“paying it forward” has seldom resonated so clearly with a group of elementary school youngsters. Johnson shared that one of his students made the comment: “You have really inspired us to tell others about the Oseola McCarty Scholarship.”

Johnson noted that during the school year he teaches the class five root words per week. Just before the holiday break in December, the students learned about “phil” – the Greek root meaning “brotherly love.”

“I didn’t really need to reteach them the word they had learned four months earlier – philanthropist,” said Johnson. “They had become philanthropists in their own right.”

Johnson knows his students could not have taken their cue from a better role model. “Oseola McCarty continues to give to us all,” he said.

While none of Johnson’s approximately 35 students indicated ever visiting the state of Mississippi, Bennett extended an invitation to them well in advance of high school graduation.

“Six years from now, we’d love to have every one of you enrolled here at Southern Miss,” he said.

For more information on the McCarty Legacy, please contact the USM Foundation at 601.266.5210 or visit www.usmfoundation.com/plannedgiving.

G O L D E N E A G L E

I M PAC TTHE LETTIE PATE WHITEHEAD FOUNDATION, INC. of Atlanta, Ga. made a $44,000 gift to the Lettie Pate Whitehead Scholarship Fund to provide scholarships to female students majoring in nursing who are residents of nine southeastern states, including Mississippi.

A gift of stock from CORKY AND RACHEL CAPPS of Gulfport, Miss. donated $103,555.62 to the Jean Capps Girl Scout Scholarship Endowment to award a scholarship to a Senior Girl Scout from a county that comprised the former Gulf Pines Girl Scout Council who has earned the Gold Award with preference to incoming freshmen.

SHELIA AND GREG WHITE of Gulfport, Miss. made a gift of $15,000 to establish the Shelia and Greg White Gulf Coast Business Scholarship Endowment to award scholarships to College of Business students attending Southern Miss Gulf Coast who are residents of Harrison County, Miss., and have a 3.0 GPA or higher.

THE SELBY AND RICHARD MCRAE FOUNDATION of Jackson, Miss. made a gift to the Moffitt Health Center Building Fund in memory of John E. Moffitt to support the construction, furnishing and maintenance of the future home of Student Health Services in Century Park South.

A gift of $10,000 from CLINT AND KATHY WHITE of Hattiesburg, Miss. to the Moffitt Health Center Building Fund will support construction, furnishing and maintenance of a new university health center.

ANNE B. WINSTEAD, LLC of Hattiesburg, Miss. donated $10,000 to the Brooks-Winstead Physics Scholarship Endowment to award a scholarship to an undergraduate student majoring in Physics in the College of Science and Technology who displays a strong work ethic and who demonstrates the most financial need.

A $16,200 gift from the C. E. AND S. FOUNDATION of Louisville, Ky. will support the acquisition of a group of original artwork by the artist Tasha Tudor. This original artwork will become part of the permanent collection of the de Grummond Children’s Literature Collection.

A $10,000 gift from THE C SPIRE FOUNDATION of Ridgeland, Miss. to the DuBard School Fund will help ensure the continued operations of the school.

29Spring 2014

TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT

SOUTHERN MISS...You’ll Like

What You FindBy Jim Coll ‘99, ‘06

Did you know that Brandon Hersey was awarded a Truman Scholarship in 2013? He was the only student from a Mississippi university to earn that honor.

Advertising concepts can take time to develop. Agencies spend time interviewing clients, studying markets and testing messages. The process can often take months. In

reality, the concept for The University of Southern Mississippi’s latest campaign, “Closer Look,” actually got its start in Omaha, Neb., in 2009, on the night the Southern Miss baseball team was opening play against Texas in the College World Series. A Southern Miss alumnus and staff member was engaged in a conversation with a Nebraska fan who like many who are not familiar with The University of Southern Mississippi, considered the Golden Eagles a major underdog in the game. Of course, the Cornhusker fan was not aware of the reputation of the Golden Eagle athletic teams, and was reminded that the last time the Golden Eagles met Nebraska on the football field—just a few years earlier—Southern Miss was victorious. The response frustrated the Southern Miss staff member. The Nebraska fan refused to believe the Golden Eagle; he denied what was clearly fact.

To be sure, this Nebraska resident is not alone. And to be sure, Southern Miss alumni are not unfamiliar with that experience. Certainly, many alumni have over the years been met with surprise when communicating an impressive fact about their alma mater. Often, the response is disbelief—“really?”—or confusion that what amazing accomplishment mentioned could have occurred at Southern Miss. Perhaps many consider Southern Miss an underdog—a resilient and determined underdog, but an underdog nonetheless. No, Southern Miss is not perfect, but for most, the

more people learn about Southern Miss, the more it impresses. The truth is that those who do not know a great deal about Southern Miss, or whiz by the Hattiesburg or Gulf Park campuses on Highway 49 or 90, are missing a great deal. The “Closer Look” advertising campaign attempts to ensure that prospective students and their parents, alumni, friends and fans, especially those in South Mississippi, are more aware of the amazing accomplishments of Southern Miss students, faculty, staff and alumni.

TAKE A CLOSER LOOKIn January, the University launched an advertising campaign

with a day of social media posts dedicated to its amazing students, faculty, staff and alumni, using the hashtag #CloserLookUSM. The following day the campaign covered a variety of media in the Hattiesburg area. A few weeks later it arrived in the Jackson area, and in a few weeks, it will also move toward the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Billboards, television advertisements, print ads, social media and more are all utilized. The campaign features some of the best Southern Miss has to offer—its top students, its groundbreaking research, its successful alumni. It reminds those who know Southern Miss well of its amazing achievements. It introduces those same achievements to those who are not familiar with the successes of the University.

The campaign attempts to convey to the viewer or reader that in order to see the real or true Southern Miss, he or she needs to look closer. It challenges, with facts, the audience to

How Southern Miss Alumni Can Help

Southern Miss alumni: Want to help others take a closer look at your alma mater? There are multiple opportunities for you to do so. If you see a Closer Look ad, take a photo and share it. Make sure to use the hashtag #CloserLookUSM. Buttons, T-shirts and posters are available through the Office of University Communications at 601.266.4491. Perhaps the best way to help is by sharing #CloserLookUSM content posted on the University’s social media accounts @SouthernMiss on Twitter and Facebook.com/usm.edu on Facebook. There, the University is periodically sharing facts related to the campaign and using the hashtag #CloserLookUSM. But Southern Miss does not want you to have to wait to post content—here are several “surprising” facts about the University. Feel free to share these through your social media accounts.

• The #SouthernMiss National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security is the leader in sports security research and solutions.

• #SouthernMiss hosts more than 300 arts events each year.

• #SouthernMiss is home to the nation’s sixth-oldest acceptance-based Honors College. Last year’s freshman class had an average ACT of 30.

• At #SouthernMiss, the world is our classroom! We offer study-abroad opportunities in more than 20 countries.

• The deGrummond Collection at #SouthernMiss is home to many of the original Curious George materials.

• #SouthernMiss students logged more than 91,000 hours of volunteer service last year.

• The #SouthernMiss sales program has been recognized as one of the nation’s best by the Sales Education Foundation.

• #SouthernMiss is among only 1% of institution’s AACSB-accredited in business and accounting.

• #SouthernMiss partnered with GE Aviation to develop composites for the GEnx aircraft engine.

continued...

re-consider what may be inaccurate or uninformed opinions about the University. The visual concept supports this message, as portions of the advertisements are blurry, but the key element and the important fact, is clear.

It’s important to note that this campaign features the real achievements of real Southern Miss faculty, staff, students and alumni. Below are just a few of the students, accomplishments and more that the University featured as part of the campaign. There are many more to come, and many more Southern Miss stories to tell.

Thank you in advance for taking a closer look at Southern Miss over the next few months. We anticipate you’ll like what you find.

BRANDON HERSEY, 2013 Truman ScholarBrandon Hersey was awarded a Truman Scholarship

in 2013, when he was the only student from a Mississippi university to earn that honor. Named in honor of the late U.S. President Harry S. Truman, the Truman Scholarship is awarded to high-achieving college juniors who show commitment to public service and potential to continue that service beyond graduation.

MICHAEL SIMS & HANNAH ROBERTS, 2013 Goldwater Scholars

Southern Miss students Michael Sims and Hannah Roberts were two of three students from Mississippi universities

awarded Goldwater Scholarships in 2013. The award, which is named for Sen. Barry Goldwater, the five-term U.S. Senator from Arizona, recognizes the next generation of great research scientists. In addition, Hannah was named first alternate at the Miss Mississippi Pageant in 2013.

SOUTHERN MISS RESEARCHCancer. Obesity. Heart Disease. The list of problems can be

long, and the solutions are not always evident. But discouraged is not a welcome word at Southern Miss.

The University is known for embracing challenges, whether in the form of hurricanes, tornadoes or top-ranked athletic teams.

Perhaps that’s why the National Institutes of Health recently invested another $18 million in Southern Miss to lead research efforts for studying an array of diseases.

While focused on Mississippi issues and challenges, Southern Miss is also not afraid to explore where others will not go to develop applicable solutions to real problems. The work being completed by Southern Miss faculty and student researchers will enhance the lives of future generations. In fact, NASA has recently selected one Southern Miss project to fly on the International Space Station. One of two selected by NASA, the project will examine if life can be supported on Mars.

• #SouthernMiss athletes have won three NCAA track and field national titles.

• In 2013, #SouthernMiss student Brandon Hersey won a Truman Scholarship, the nation’s highest honor for a college junior.

• In 2013, two of three students from MS universities to win Goldwater Scholarships were from #SouthernMiss.

• Since 2006, #SouthernMiss students have collected seven Goldwater Scholarships and a pair of Truman Scholarships.

• In 2013, #SouthernMiss was one of only 14 institutions in the nation to receive a College Panhellenic Excellence Award.

• #SouthernMiss polymer scientists developed an environmental paint that helped refurbish the Pentagon after 9/11.

• Before becoming a world-famous entertainer, #SouthernMiss alumnus Jimmy Buffett developed his craft on our Hattiesburg campus.

• #SouthernMiss alumna Cat Cora made TV history as the first female Iron Chef.

• #SouthernMiss alumnus Brett Favre was the first three-time NFL MVP.

• #SouthernMiss alumna Evelyn Gandy was the first female lieutenant governor in Mississippi.

• #SouthernMiss alumnus Tom “Bones” Malone is known for his work with the Blues Brothers and David Letterman’s CBS Orchestra.

• #SouthernMiss alumnus David Sheffield wrote many of Eddie Murphy’s most famous Saturday Night Live sketches.

• Former NASA astronaut and #SouthernMiss alumnus Robert Stewart was part of the crew on the maiden voyage of Space Shuttle Atlantis.

• #SouthernMiss alumna Tena Clark has penned hits for Aretha Franklin, Dionne Warwick and many others.

• An $18 million NIH-grant extension will allow #SouthernMiss researchers to study the nation’s most pressing problems.

• #SouthernMiss is one of only 34 institutions in the nation accredited in all four arts disciplines: theatre, dance, art and music.

How Southern Miss Alumni Can Help continued

Did you know that Michael Sims was one of two students from Southern Miss awarded a Goldwater Scholarship in 2013? This award recognizes the next generation of research scientists.

The “Closer Look” advertising campaign attempts to ensure that prospective students and their parents, alumni, friends and fans are more aware of the amazing accomplishments of Southern Miss students, faculty, staff and alumni.

For two Southern Miss alumni, putting theories learned in the classroom to work on the field can be taken quite literally. Rod Scott 05’

and Ced Scott ‘00 sharpen their skills and hone their craft while working for the Florida-based Jacksonville Jaguars as assistant athletic trainer and assistant strength and conditioning coach, respectively. The National Football League team is well-known for its “roaring” fans, while the two employees focus on building a strong foundation of success for the almost 20-year old team. While Rod and Ced are not related, they do share a strong commitment to the team, creating a familial bond.

“The Jaguars have been a phenomenal organization to work for. One of my favorite experiences here occurred this past season in 2013. We had an opportunity to spend a week in the United Kingdom in preparation to take on the San Francisco 49ers as part of the NFL International Series,” shared Ced Scott, who earned his undergraduate degree in exercise physiology. “It was surreal seeing the fans’ enthusiasm for American football in the United Kingdom. That experience helped me realize how fortunate I am to be a part of such a dynamic sport that brings joy to so many people around the globe. I look forward to returning to London during the 2014 season when we face the Dallas Cowboys on Nov. 9, 2014.”

For Rod, his experiences with the team thus far take a holistic approach to helping players from start to finish: “The most rewarding experience is being there with a player from the very beginning of a serious injury to the end and working with them during a very challenging time in their lives. It is nothing like the feeling when you have rehabbed with a player for several months and they are back on the playing field doing what they love. It’s a feeling that is hard to express!”

As for the impact Southern Miss had on their respective journeys, the two share common traits: lasting relationships and one-of-a-kind experiences. “I have a genuine appreciation for the many people that I met and interacted with as an undergraduate student, especially the relationships that I developed with members of my fraternity, Kappa Alpha Psi, as well as my fellow athletic training classmates. These are people who still play an integral part in my life and who have helped me to reach my goals,” shared Rod.

For Ced, his time spent on the gridiron as a Golden Eagle had much to do with his outlook now as a coach: “Being a student-athlete is an invaluable experience that Southern Miss provided me, which I am able to draw on regularly in my profession, especially when working on the collegiate level.”

Classroom instruction also played a major

The

GridironGang

By Marie John Roberts ‘11, ‘12

34 THE

role. Rod credits undergraduate internships and classroom experiences as his keys to success, while Ced acknowledges a healthy blend of instructional pedagogy: “The exercise physiology program was academically challenging and also incorporated multiple opportunities for me to gain vital, hands-on experience. The combination of textbook and practical training helped make my transition from the classroom to the weight room virtually seamless.”

When asked to share their favorite memories from their time spent at Southern Miss, the two share distinct moments that helped shape their respective futures. “As a junior and senior, I spent my summers interning for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Current Golden Eagle head athletic trainer Todd McCall was an instrumental part in helping me develop a strong work ethic and providing me with a solid athletic training base. This subsequently led to a seasonal internship with the Jaguars following graduation in the spring of 2005. Following one year at The Citadel for graduate school, I was hired as a full-time assistant with the Jaguars prior to the 2008 season,” shared Rod, whose job entails the daily rehabilitation and maintenance of Jaguar players.

For Ced, his chosen memory revolves around time spent wearing that beloved black and gold jersey: “My all-time favorite memory is being a part of the football team during our inaugural Conference USA season in 1996 and going on to share the conference championship with Houston that same year. That conference championship jump-started several C-USA

titles, which included wins in 1997 and 1999. We won three conference titles out of the five seasons I was part of the team. That is something I am still proud of today.” The Golden Eagle was drafted by the New York Giants in the fourth round of the 2011 NFL Draft and later played for both the Cleveland Browns and Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League.

Being competitive for the highest level of coaching requires a well-balanced blend of experience, education and networking. Both Rod and Ced credit their time spent in Hattiesburg as a strategic catalyst for jumpstarting their careers: “Southern Miss introduced me to big-time football and the day-to-day rigors required from athletic trainers. It was evident that my athletic training studies at Southern Miss prepared me for the challenge of an NFL internship. I felt that I was just as prepared, if not more, than many of my peers from much larger schools and football programs. I am still thankful for this,” Rod said.

As for advice for others interested in pursuing a career in the athletic field, Ced promotes a true team-player attitude: “Your job is to discover ways to be an asset to the organization.”

For these two Southern Miss alums, continuing to build upon the Jacksonville Jaguar program, a sense of pride and passion from their respective experiences at their alma mater remains constant: “I knew that it was what I wanted to do for a career. I am blessed to work in a profession that I am extremely passionate about,” said Ced.

Rod Scott ‘05, an assistant athletic trainer for the Jacksonville Jaguars, credits his undergraduate classroom experience at Southern Miss as one of the keys to his success.

For Cedric Scott ‘00, his time spent on the gridiron as a Golden Eagle has much to do with his outlook now as an assistant strength and conditioning coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars.

35Spring 2014

You can do anything!” His older sister Natasha Jackson ‘12 gave this valuable advice to a young Wilton C. Jackson II. While it may have taken some

time for this junior broadcast journalism major to believe his sister’s words, the Jackson native now uses that advice as motivation in his life.

Jackson has taken advantage of many opportunities presented to him during his time as a student at Southern Miss. He is a Luckyday Scholar, a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc., a resident assistant in Hattiesburg Hall, vice president of Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society, and was a member of Southern Style 2013. Jackson is also a member of The Legacy Board and is a two-time recipient of the Clyde Kennard Memorial Endowed Scholarship, awarded to members of The Legacy, the student chapter of the Alumni Association, who have demonstrated a commitment to the University and a desire to see it prosper.

Furthering his commitment to the University and the student body, Jackson was appointed in 2013 as the Student Government Association Judicial Board vice chairman and was recently elected attorney general for the Student Government Association. He will assume his role as attorney general during the Founders’ Day Ceremony on March 27, 2014.

Jackson hones his writing skills as a reporter for The Student Printz, the student-run newspaper on campus, and for The Southerner Yearbook, and is also a news reader

FOUNDATION NEWS



THE ARTS

EAGLE CLUB

ATHLETIC NEWS


NOTES FROM HOME

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EAGLE CLUB

THE ARTS

FOUNDATION NEWS

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A GOLDENOPPORTUNITY

By Laurie Benvenutti ’10, ‘11

“

Southern Miss student Wilton Jackson has been selected to participate in the USA Today Collegiate Correspondent Program.

36 THE

on “Southern Miss Today,” broadcast on WUSM-Southern Miss Radio, diversifying his abilities as a student in the School of Mass Communication and Journalism.

The Honors College student accomplished another feat this spring when he was selected as one of 20 students nationwide, and the only student in Mississippi, to be a USA Today collegiate correspondent. Jackson recalls being stunned when he received the email from the publication welcoming him to the prestigious program. “This opportunity is something people dream of doing,” Jackson shared. “Some people may never get a chance to write for USA Today, and to say that I have actually accomplished that as a junior in college at The University of Southern Mississippi…that’s an awesome experience!”

As a collegiate correspondent, Jackson currently submits an article weekly on a topic of his choosing that is relevant to a college audience. Once articles are posted to the USA Today College website, collegiate correspondents are encouraged to promote their articles using social media outlets, such as Twitter or Facebook. The second story Jackson wrote as a collegiate correspondent, discussing four Texas cities that made the list of top places for recent college graduates to live, was picked up by KVUE-TV, an ABC affiliate in Austin, Texas, and was published on their website.

Jackson also has the opportunity to participate in program-led conference calls that offer pointers on how to be a successful journalist, tips on utilizing and navigating social media, and has access to professional media journalists currently employed with USA Today.

For each story he writes, Jackson must identify a topic which he admits, at times, is difficult. “Writing for The Student Printz is

centered mostly around the Hattiesburg area and Southern Miss, but for USA Today, stories can be from anywhere,” said Jackson.

Vast topic choices have allowed Jackson to cultivate relationships with sources throughout the country. “It’s all about connecting and getting to know different people,” said Jackson. Unfortunately, article topics cannot include opinion pieces or sports, which are Jackson’s passion, the catalyst for choosing broadcast journalism as his major. “When I was younger, I played basketball all the time, and that’s what I wanted to do. But once I realized I didn’t really want to play basketball for the rest of my life, I said, ‘What can I do that I can have fun with while I work?’” Jackson reflected. “Journalism would be good because I could report about basketball or sports in general.” Following graduation, he aspires to be

a sports writer or broadcaster, allowing him to combine his knowledge and deep affection of sports with his journalism

skills, which he is sharpening daily due to his current role with the national publication.

Although before he becomes a writer for Sports Illustrated or a broadcaster on SportsCenter, Jackson must finish his senior year at Southern Miss, which includes completing his Honors College thesis. During his time as a student thus far, Jackson has been fortunate to have several peer mentors and is confident he can offer that same guidance to younger students. Jackson also shared that to him, being a Golden Eagle means having “a sense of pride and continuing to work for the University…that has made an impact on my life in

so many ways.” Through his dedication to the University on campus and beyond, Wilton Jackson continues to impact the community, leaving Southern Miss better than he found it!

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THIS OPPORTUNITY IS SOMETHING PEOPLE DREAM

OF DOING. SOME PEOPLE MAY NEVER GET A CHANCE TO

WRITE FOR USA TODAY, AND TO SAY THAT I HAVE ACTUALLY

ACCOMPLISHED THAT AS A JUNIOR IN COLLEGE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN

MISS ISS IPPI…THAT’S AN AWESOME EXPERIENCE!

—w i l t o n c . j a c k s o n i i —

Legacy Board Little Rock Co-chair Wilton Jackson paints the Little Rock on March 7 to congratulate the men’s basketball Conference USA champions.

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Eclectic and funky, two words Abby Thaxton ’09 uses to describe her entrepreneurial venture called The Lucky Rabbit, a

monthly art and vendor market located in historic downtown Hattiesburg. What began in a building with no electricity that necessitated an extreme amount of repairs has sense relocated to a more spacious location in the Hub City, in response to the positive public reception and the market’s rapid expansion each month.

The recent March market marked The Lucky Rabbit’s one-year anniversary, and in February,

when the doors opened at its new location, thousands of people were introduced to a split-level gem, unique and restored, located in the heart of downtown. “We had 3,000 people come through the first weekend at the new location,” shared Thaxton. “I can’t believe people haven’t seen this building before! To have the opportunity to restore, bring back to life, and introduce this structure to the community has been awesome.”

In December of 2009, it was Thaxton and her husband Brandon’s love for the Hub City that prompted them to open their first business,

By Jenny Boudreaux ‘08

anythinglucky

but

Computer Karma, a computer shop currently in its fifth year of business nestled in The Avenues of Hattiesburg, an undertaking that began the very same day this Southern Miss Honors College student graduated summa cum laude. “I remember that day specifically because that’s the day Brandon and I found the building to rent that would house Computer Karma,” said Thaxton. “Opening up a business with a lot of bills every month is such a big risk, especially for a couple of 22-year olds without real jobs and only $800 between us both, but we had computer experience, a good vision, and found a renter who believed in us, allowing us to rent month to month.”

This Laurel native has been living in Hattiesburg since 2005, and she says what reigns at the top of her list about being a small business owner in the Pinebelt is its people. “The one great thing is the community and my community involvement,” Thaxton expressed genuinely. “If I didn’t have Computer Karma and The Lucky Rabbit, I wouldn’t have the place in the community that I do. Hattiesburg has such great people!”

Thaxton has immersed herself in the Hub City and its people, teaming up with her husband to create The Avenues Alliance, a local group of individuals that organize and execute popular Hattiesburg events such as the Annual Halloween Parade and Pumpkin Carving, among numerous others located in the area of Hattiesburg affectionately known as “The Avenues.” “We started this organization, so our true home is in The Avenues, but we wanted something more,” shared Thaxton. “The concept of The Lucky Rabbit was to draw people downtown once a month. It is my hope that people visit other businesses downtown as well when they come to the market, bringing people into the core, as market patrons travel to downtown en route through The Avenues. Ultimately this is all about Hattiesburg, my home.”

Thaxton attests that the knowledge she gained from her experience at Southern Miss, coupled with owning and managing Computer Karma and her love for the Hub City, eventually led her to embark on The Lucky Rabbit, a concept she believed everyone in the Pine Belt region would grow to love. “Everything I learned at Southern Miss has helped me in some degree,” Thaxton said. “The day I graduated I had the mind frame of ‘I need to open this business. It’s the best move for me,’ and that confidence could only come from the strong educational foundation I received during my time in the University’s Honors College.”

Throughout the experience of opening and managing two of her own businesses, Thaxton says that all of the hardships she’s encountered and overcome have molded her into the 27-year old she is today. “Opening The Lucky Rabbit was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life, but I’ve learned that you must believe in yourself, you absolutely can’t take no for an answer, and anything is possible,” shared Thaxton passionately. “With the tools I had acquired from my time at Southern Miss, I knew I could turn that $800 into something bigger.” For someone who is looking to open their own business, Thaxton would encourage aspiring entrepreneurs to start young, take risks, and if it’s something that involves an unrelenting passion, follow your dreams.

At the mere age of 27, Abby Thaxton ‘09 is owner of two local Hattiesburg businesses, The Lucky Rabbit and Computer Karma, a computer shop currently in its fifth year of business.

The Evolution of theFRONT DOORTO CAMPUS:

From Simple Streetcar Stationto Grand Gateway

FROM THE ARCHIVES

S ince The University of Southern Mississippi’s humble beginning in 1912, the Hardy Street entrance to the Hattiesburg campus has served as the front door to

Southern Miss. Numerous students, faculty, visitors and even dignitaries have made their way onto campus through this point of entry which has evolved from a simplistic trolley stop to an impressive memorial representing the institution’s past, present and future.

In 1910, R.H. Hunt’s initial design for the campus of Mississippi Normal College envisioned what a prominent architectural historian described as “a gracious, ordered public front.” In the early years however, the grace and order were

largely obscured by a barbed wire fence built to protect the campus from roaming livestock.

In 1920, MNC Secretary A. V. Hayes suggested that the school erect a campus streetcar station as a memorial to those from the college community who had served in World War I. With approval from President Cook, a campaign to raise funds was created. Faculty, staff, students and alumni generously contributed $10,000 and the cornerstone to the World War Memorial Streetcar Station was laid on July 4, 1921.

For the next 30 years, the streetcar station would serve as the campus security station (literal home to the first campus security guards) and welcome center. By the 1950s, the

42 THE

structure remained mostly unoccupied, as the city streetcar no longer ran and students, faculty and visitors were largely traveling by automobile. Now more of a monument to times past than a functional structure, the station continued to be a campus icon and an important part of the landscape.

Tragically, in the 1960s, the streetcar station was struck by an 18-wheeler traveling east on Hardy Street. The structure was damaged beyond repair and University administration made the decision to demolish the remnants of the building. After the debris was cleared, all that would remain of the memorial streetcar station was the foundation footprint of concrete and red clay tiles.

43Spring 2014

On March 30, 2010, the

Southern Miss community

gathered at the Hardy Street

entrance of the Hattiesburg

campus to formally dedicate

the Centennial Gateway. The

structure was made possible by a

contribution from the Ed Langton

family and a supporting gift from

the Gold Leaf Society.

The original Hardy Street streetcar station. Running from the train station in

Downtown Hattiesburg, this stop was the last on the line and marked the

far “west end” of town.

For the next 40 years, the Hardy Street entrance to campus would remain bare, but after decades of a noticeable void, a plan would evolve to restore and fulfill Hunt’s original vision for the front of campus.

As part of the University’s Centennial Celebration in 2010, a brick and mortar project to reconstruct a formal entrance to campus was adopted. With funds from the Ed Langton family and the Gold Leaf Society, the Centennial Gateway was constructed. Extending from the east side of West Memorial Drive to the west side of East Memorial Drive, the 62-foot-wide middle section of the gateway features the name and seal of the institution, as well as urns replicated from the Aubrey K. Lucas

Administration Building. Four-foot-wide gateposts on opposite sides of the streets feature the year of the University’s legislative foundation in 1910.

The Centennial Gateway entrance at Southern Miss was officially dedicated during a ribbon cutting as part of Founders’ Day festivities on Tuesday, March 30, 2010. In just four short years, the Gateway has become a campus icon and has come to represent the Southern Miss journey. While undoubtedly beautiful, the brick structure baring the name and seal of our beloved institution also serves as physical representation of the strength and boldness that is The University of Southern Mississippi.

By the 1950s, the streetcar station had become a campus icon formally marking the main entrance to campus.

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It could be argued that no other period in the history of America was so influential in defining, changing or challenging our values and principles like the 1960s. The same decade that brought us the Beatles, JFK, Mickey Mantle and bell-bottoms also brought us marches, riots, attack dogs and lunch counters. Few decades in our nation’s history evoke such a wide range of emotions and memories, and as 1963 came to a close, America was in crisis. We had just buried a president, people were searching their maps for Vietnam, and we were learning new terms like, “Freedom Riders,” “integration” and “civil rights.”

Martin Luther King Jr. had delivered one of the most famous speeches in American history on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, but it wasn’t just a speech. King himself said it was a demonstration of freedom. For too long, African Americans had been denied some of the most basic freedoms our Constitution guarantees and protects. King’s speech ignited a generation of Americans to pursue the freedom and liberty to which they were

born and for which they were willing to fight and die. Courage would be redefined by the heroic actions of King, Rosa Parks, Medgar Evers, James Meredith, the Little Rock Nine, Clyde Kennard and Vernon Dahmer.

With the addition of the 15th Amendment to the Constitution in 1870, black men had the right to vote, but for the next several decades, local and state officials used fear and intimidation to keep them away from the voting polls. Some of the methods used included beatings and lynchings. These horrific practices went on for nearly 100 years when in 1964, a pivotal point in race relations in America had been reached, and a new generation had a dream.

A coalition led by the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) that included the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) descended on Mississippi to take part in what was known as Freedom Summer. The campaign’s main goal was to help register blacks to vote

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Center for Black Studies Celebrates the Historical Importance of Freedom Summer

Carolyn Reese is pictured teaching a Freedom School class at an African American church in Hattiesburg during Freedom Summer 1964.

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throughout the state. The participation of leaders from the Mobile-Bouie area and Palmer’s Crossing were central to the campaign in Hattiesburg. Hattiesburg was also a primary location for the development of “freedom schools,” which were attended by African Americans of all ages. Civic education and cultural history were taught to prepare children and adults alike to be more informed citizens. Because of a deficient public school education, the freedom schools also supplemented the learning of black children in the Hub City.

Though progress was made, challenges came in the form of fear and intimidation. Every volunteer, church and business that participated in the Freedom Summer campaign became a target of white supremacists, local residents and law enforcement, who would stop at nothing to prevent progress and social change. Activists were arrested or beaten. Homes, churches and business were burned or firebombed. In June of that year, three young civil rights workers set out to investigate a church bombing in Neshoba County where they had just spoken to its congregation, when they were ambushed and murdered by the Ku Klux Klan, Philadelphia Police Department and Neshoba County Sheriff’s Department. The bodies of James Chaney, 21; Andrew Goodman, 20; and Michael Schwerner, 24 were discovered buried in a dam near Philadelphia six weeks after they disappeared in Neshoba County.

Though the horrific events would haunt the volunteers, state of Mississippi and the nation for years to come, the tireless efforts of the volunteers to get blacks registered to vote would pay off sooner than anyone realized. President Lyndon B. Johnson would sign into law the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, both landmark pieces of legislation.

The South may have been the stage for the civil rights movement in 1964, but Mississippi was front and center as the catalyst for that good and bad that would come from that year.

Fast forward to 2013 when the Center for Black Studies in the College of Arts and Letters began a conversation about how to best honor and remember the trailblazers of Freedom Summer. Dr. Sherita Johnson and Dr. Cheryl Jenkins discussed

a commemoration of sorts in the form of a conference, featuring speakers from the period and driving tours of the area to key locations during the campaign. They soon learned that the Eureka School and the Historic Hattiesburg Downtown Association were also considering ways to celebrate the heroic actions of the volunteers of Freedom Summer. In a collaborative spirit to honor our past, the groups joined forces and resources to plan several events from January through July 2014 to pay homage to those who risked so much in the name of liberty and freedom. “Commemorating Freedom Summer

1964-2014: 50 years” encompasses a march re-enactment, lecture series, photograph exhibition and three-day conference.

“We were excited to partner with the City of Hattiesburg, Hattiesburg Convention Commission and Historical Hattiesburg Downtown Association to commemorate Freedom Summer as a crucial moment in the history of civil rights struggles,” said Dr. Sherita L. Johnson, director of the Center for Black Studies at Southern Miss.

Several pre-conference events began in January to honor Freedom

Summer. Freedom Day March was the signal event for the movement in Hattiesburg. On January 22, 1964, local residents protested voter registrations practices outside of the Forrest County courthouse. On January 22, 2014, students from Southern Miss re-enacted this historical event in downtown Hattiesburg. Dr. Rodney Bennett was a featured speaker, as well as Dr. Anthony Harris, a former freedom school student.

Freedom Summer Dialogues, commemorating local events and honoring veterans of the movement, are scheduled for the first Tuesday of each month at 11:30 a.m. through May 2014, at the Hattiesburg Cultural Center. These forums are free and open to the public.

The final event in this celebration of civil rights is the Freedom Summer 1964 – 2014 conference, which will feature keynote addresses by veterans of Freedom Summer and civil rights movements. The conference will feature workshops about teaching the civil rights movement, which is designed for educators at the elementary, secondary and collegiate levels.

A group of local people and Freedom Summer volunteers sit on a tractor at the fish fry given for the volunteers by local civil rights leader Vernon Dahmer on the Dahmer property in the Kelly Settlement located north of Hattiesburg on July 4, 1964. The gathering marked the official beginning of Freedom Summer in Hattiesburg.

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Other workshops for youth are also planned as part of the conference’s goal to replicate the design of freedom schools.

The conference will also include guided tours of the ‘64 Freedom Summer Trail, a driving tour of 15 marked historic sites of Freedom Summer and the civil rights movement in Hattiesburg. Also, Unity Day is a service-learning project to encourage youth participation in the conference events and will take place at various locations along the Trail.

“The College of Arts and Letters is pleased to support the Center for Black Studies and the activities that will celebrate the historical importance of Freedom Summer,” said Dean Steven R. Moser.

“To pay further homage, The Southern Quarterly will publish a special issue on Freedom Summer to commemorate the 50th anniversary,” added Moser.

The Southern Quarterly, in its 50th year, is a scholarly journal published in the College of Arts and Letters at Southern Miss that celebrates Southern life and culture.

“We are hopeful that June 20-21, 2014, will be circled on the calendars of educators and the general public alike. It truly is a time to honor the sacrifices of so many individuals who worked to ensure voting rights for African Americans in Mississippi in 1964,” said Johnson.

“Freedom Summer isn’t just African American history, it’s AMERICAN history,” said Dr. Cheryl Jenkins. “It’s vital to know what’s happened in our past so that we can make better decisions moving forward.”

The past is not always pretty, and America has her share of ugliness. But we have two choices when considering our history. We can keep moving forward without the slightest hesitation or backward glance and hope it all works out well. Or we can slow down to look, listen and learn from our history so that we never make the same mistakes again. We have a chance this spring and summer to sit up and listen.

FREEDOM SUMMER DIALOGUES

Each event featured in the Freedom Summer Dialogues is from 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. and will be held at the Hattiesburg Cultural Center located at 723 Main Street in Hattiesburg. The public is welcome to partake in the free forums commemorating local events and honoring veterans of the civil rights movement. Lunch will be provided. Remaining Public Forums:April 1: The Role of The Arts, Hattiesburg High School Speech and Debate StudentsMay 6: The Role of Women in the Movement, Mrs. Jeanette Smith

The forums are organized by the Historic Hattiesburg Downtown Association and the Eureka School Freedom Summer Museum.

FREEDOM SUMMER CONFERENCE DETAILSJune 20-21, 2014Check-in: 7 – 8 a.m.8 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.Thad Cochran CenterProfessional: $120Student: $50Senior Citizen: $30Member or Veteran of Civil Rights Movement: $25

For more information, email [email protected].

Be sure to follow Summer64Hattie on the following social media platforms for the most up-to-date information!

facebook.com/summer64hattie

twitter.com: @summer64hattie

instagram: @freedomsummer2014hattie

Campaign headquarters of Victoria Jackson Gray (Adams), the 1964 United States Senate candidate for the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party. A female African American Hattiesburg resident is seen going into the building, and a male Caucasian Freedom Summer volunteer is also outside.

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Southern Miss Sorority Recognized for PhilanthropyThe University of Southern Mississippi’s Delta Delta Delta

sorority raised $68,000 for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in 2013.

A Southern Miss flag hangs in St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn., with each member’s signature written on it to represent Tri-Delta raising the most money for the medium-sized division of the sorority nationally. The flag is

one of only three collegiate flags at St. Jude representing the top fundraising chapter of each college division.

In 2010, Tri-Delta set a goal to raise $15 million in five years, but completed the goal a year and a half ahead of schedule. This year Southern Miss Tri-Delta chapter hopes to raise $72,000 so that the Southern Miss flag can continue to hang on the Tri-Delta Patient Care floor.

This past fall, members of the Phi Epsilon chapter of Delta Delta Delta visited St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn. The chapter continues to surpass their fundraising goals for St. Jude.

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I AMTRADITIONRITUALBROTHERHOODSISTERHOODPHILANTHROPYA COMMUNITYSOUTHERN MISS

GREEK

Sigma Alpha Epsilon Attends Leadership School in Jackson

The Mississippi Sigma chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon recently attended the Annual Province Theta Leadership School in Jackson Feb. 7 and 8. The chapter was recognized with a scholastic achievement award and was recognized for best chapter management in their province. Ned Nelson, former Interfraternity Council president, was designated as the M. Ronald Doleac True Gentleman of the Year Award. Mr. Doleac is a former national president, alumnus of the Mississippi Sigma Chapter and remains involved as an advisor with the chapter.

GREEK LIFE SNAPSHOT 2013

21PERCENTAGE OF STUDENT POPULATION

$224,225PHILANTHROPY DOLLARS RAISED (2013)

21,504SERVICE HOURS

3.18FALL 2013 SORORITY GPA AVERAGE

2.86FALL 2013 FRATERNITY GPA AVERAGE

3.08FALL 2013 MEMBER GPA AVERAGE

2.72ALL-UNIVERSITY GPA AVERAGE

49Spring 2014

Guy to be Enshrined at the Pro Football Hall of Fame Ray Guy, considered by many as

the “greatest punter of all time,” took the final step of his football journey by being elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The former Southern Miss football standout and Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders punter earned election by receiving the minimum required 80

percent of the vote by the 46-member Selection Committee. Guy, along with former Atlanta Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Claude Humphrey, made up the two senior candidates voted on for induction along with the 15 other modern-day finalists.

Guy, whose majestic punts helped coin the phrase “hang time,” played for the

Raiders from 1973-86 and was the first punter to ever be taken in the first round of the NFL Draft with the 23rd pick overall.

The six-time All-Pro selection and seven-time Pro Bowl selection played in all 207 games during his 14-year NFL career and appeared in three Super Bowls (XI, XV, XVIII), marking the most victories by a punter in NFL history.

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The winter 2013 edition of The Talon featured Ray Guy ‘72, the greatest punter in NFL history. At that time it was the University’s hope that Guy would become a Pro Football Hall of Famer, as his case for enshrinement was solid.

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He is tied for the fifth longest service with the Raiders, along with Fred Biletnikoff (1965-78), Cliff Branch (1972-85) and Dave Dalby (1972-85), while he also is fifth for games played with Art Shell (1968-78).

Guy holds the Raiders record for most career punts (1,049), and led the NFL three times in gross punt average. In addition, he had 210 punts inside the 20-yard line (not counting his first three seasons, when the NFL did not keep track of this stat), with just 128 touchbacks. He closed out his career with a streak of 619 consecutive punts without a block.

The Thomson, Ga., native is a member of the Bay Area, College Football, Southern Miss M-Club, Mississippi, Georgia and National High School Sports Halls of Fame.

His NFL honors include being named to the 75th Anniversary NFL

All-Time Team at punter, as well as the 1970s All-Decade Team, the All-Time NFL Team chosen by the Hall of Fame Committee in 2000 and the AFL-NFL 1960-84 All-Star Team.

The Augusta Sports Council named an award in his honor to reward the top punter in collegiate football each year.

While at Southern Miss, Guy was a standout defensive back in addition to his role at punter. He proved to be one of the most versatile players in school history. A letter winner from 1970-72 for the Golden Eagles, Guy still holds the single-season school record for most interceptions with eight in 1972, along with Billy Devrow (1965) and Bubba Phillips (1949). His career records include holding the longest punting average in school history of 44.7 yards, while still holding down second in career interceptions with 18.

Currently, Guy works at his alma mater as the director of the M-Club and community relations. His work with the M-Club includes maintaining a relationship with the school’s former athletic letter winners.

Guy will be enshrined at the Pro Football Hall of Fame Aug. 2, in Canton, Ohio.

PRO FOOTBALLHALL OF FAMECLASS OF 2014On Feb. 7, the Southern Miss Alumni Association and Southern Miss Athletics hosted Ray Guy Night to honor the former Oakland Raiders star’s induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Pictured with John Cox, voice of the Golden Eagles, Guy answered questions from friends, fans and alumni of the University.

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Faulkner Wins C Spire Gillom Trophy

Remaining Baseball home Schedule

Remainingsoftball home

Schedule March 21 UTSA *

March 22 UTSA *

March 23 UTSA *

April 04 Middle Tennessee State *

April 05 Middle Tennessee State *

April 06 Middle Tennessee State * (TV)

April 18 Louisiana Tech *



April 25 Rice *

April 26 Rice *

April 27 Rice *

May 09 East Carolina *



May 21 C-USA Tournament

*Conference Event

March 26 Arkansas-Pine Bluff Arkansas-Pine Bluff

March 29 UTSA * UTSA *

March 30 UTSA *

April 12 UAB * UAB *

April 13 UAB *

April 22 Alabama

May 03 FIU *

May 04 FIU *

*Conference Event

Southern Miss’ senior point guard Jamierra Faulkner (West Palm Beach, Fla.) received the C Spire Gillom Trophy awarded to the top women’s collegiate basketball player in Mississippi.

Faulkner becomes the first Southern Miss player to earn the award and has helped Southern Miss post its most wins since the 1993-94 season. The 12 Conference USA wins are the most league wins in a season.

Faulkner is a finalist to the prestigious 2014 Nancy Lieberman Point Guard of the Year. The West Palm Beach, Fla., native leads the NCAA in assists per game (8.5). She was named to her second

consecutive Preseason All-Conference USA First Team by the league, as well as Preseason All-Conference USA by College Sports Madness. Faulkner set a career high in assists (17) with the top single-game

performance in the nation this year, which tied the C-USA record and broke the Southern Miss single game record. The senior was named College Sports Madness Mid-Major National Player of

the Week and MVP of the Hampton Inn Thanksgiving Classic.She registered a career high in points with the fourth most ever in a game at Southern

Miss (39). Against Old Dominion, Faulkner broke the nearly 16-year-old Lady Eagle record for made three-point field goals in a game with eight.

Faulkner has recorded double-digit assists or points in 26 of her teams 28 games this season when at full strength and has 12 double-digit assists performances and 23 games in double-digit scoring. She is the Southern Miss all-time career steals leader (348) and second in Conference USA. The senior is the only player at Southern Miss to top the

800-assist plateau and only the second player in Conference USA to accomplish the feat. She is third all-time in scoring at Southern Miss with 1,940 and eighth all-time in Conference USA. Her 238 assists set a single season school and C-USA record.

Southern Miss’ Jamierra Faulkner was presented the C Spire Gillom Trophy awarded to the top women’s college basketball player in Mississippi.

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Top Left: Cash Cognevich, five years old, grandson of Angie Cognevich Collins ’92 finally takes a picture with Seymour. Cash loves Seymour!

Top Right: First Trip to The Rock! Left to Right: Brynlee and Dylan Davis, daughter and son of Shannon Davis ‘08 and Heather Davis ‘97, and Reed and Sawyer Simpson, twin sons of Jay Simpson ‘95, ‘98 and Heather Simpson

Bottom Left: Jackson Metro Chapter Board Member Nancy Magee, Gulf Coast Metro Chapter Board Member Susan Lamey and Gulf Coast Metro Chapter Board Secretary Keith Wilson pictured on Magazine Street in Uptown New Orleans during Krewe of Mid-City and Krewe of Thoth parades showcasing their Southern Miss pride!

Bottom Right: Two scholarship brothers with deep Southern Miss roots met at a Broadhead post-game tailgate this fall. Jonathan Palmer ’06 (far left) was the 2005 and 2006 recipient of the Bill and Amanda Broadhead Football Scholarship for a Christian Athlete and is the grandson of the late Powell Ogletree. Cooper Harrington (far right) is the 2013 recipient and is the grandson of the late Doc Harrington. Pictured with the two are Bill Broadhead ‘09 and his son Alex.

When you pack your bags for spring vacations, be sure to coordinate your wardrobe with black and gold and bring along a camera! When you do, send photos* of yourself, your family and friends, and we will print as many as space allows in a future edition of Snapshots.

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*For printing purposes, please save or scan your photos at a resolution of 300 dpi. If you have any questions, contact the Alumni Association at 601.266.5013.

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Above: The Dallas Alumni group support Southern Miss at the Southern Miss vs. North Texas men’s basketball game at North Texas on Jan. 9, 2014.

Bottom Left: Mitchell Caldwell, son of Mike and Christa Caldwell, watches intently as the Golden Eagles conquer LA Tech.

Bottom Right: Corey ’08 and Shea Gibson ’08 visited NYC for the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree lighting and stopped by the Today Show to see the news anchors. When making their sign they couldn’t help but show love to Southern Miss!

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1960sIn December 2012, CHARLES ALLEN ’66 stepped down as conductor of the Carroll County Community Chorus after a 15-year tenure—the longest in the history of the CCCC. During his tenure, the chorus grew from 23 to 135 members.

1970s DAVID LAMOTHE ’71 retired January 31, 2014, from WSB-TV in Atlanta, Ga., after more than 40 years with the COX TV station.

Troutman Sanders LLP is pleased to announce that FRANK RIGGS ‘71, a partner in the firm’s Atlanta office, has been named a fellow in the American

College of Construction Lawyers (ACCL).

CAROL ANN CRAPPS DRANE ’74 has been selected as the 2013-14 Simpson County School District Teacher of the Year. Carol Ann was selected by a district-wide committee and will compete in her school’s congressional district for the Mississippi Teacher of the Year.

SUSAN C. SPENCER ’75 has been promoted to director of Women’s Services for Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle.

JEFFERY ANDHERT, PH.D., ABPP ’76 was the recipient of the 2012 Distinguished Psychologist Award, presented at the annual convention of the Michigan Psychological Association in East Lansing, Mich. The annual award recognizes a Michigan psychologist for outstanding

contributions in advancing the profession and science of psychology.

1980sSUSAN REEVES ‘85, speech-language pathologist, has joined the Hattiesburg Clinic Department of Speech-Language Pathology.

HARLAN ’86 and Vianne Stensaas celebrated their 60th diamond wedding anniversary on March 1, 2014, in Oklahoma.

HUGH MOLOTSI ’88 celebrates his 21-year anniversary at Intuit in Mountain View, Calif. Hugh serves as the vice president of the Intuit Labs Incubator. Alongside his dedication to Intuit, Hugh has received numerous innovation and leadership awards at Intuit, including the first ever Founders Award in 2011.

TRACEY JONES ’88 and her husband Kelly Jones proudly announce the engagement of their son, Robert Tanner Jones ’14, to Courtney Bennett ‘12.

Now is your chance to catch up on the news and accomplishments of your fellow Golden Eagles.

To submit your news to The Talon, please send your information to the Southern Miss Alumni

Association, 118 College Drive #5013, Hattiesburg, MS 39406-0001, email [email protected]

or post it online at SouthernMissAlumni.com. All cities are in Mississippi unless otherwise noted.

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Located in the Newpointe Shopping Center at Highway 98 West6555 U.S. Highway 98 West, Suite B, Hattiesburg, MS 39402

Phone: 601.579.9378

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Melinda Pope DeRocker ’76, a Hattiesburg, Mississippi, native has released her first CD, “I’ll Be Seeing You.” The CD was released on December 1, 2013. The release was prompted by two love affairs. Melinda sets the stage in her own words.

“In February 1944, at the height of World War II, a 21-year-old woman from Newton, boarded a train destined for New York City,” explained Melinda. “Her fiancé was in naval officer’s training school at Columbia University and had just learned he would soon be shipped out to the South Pacific. Denied leave for the Southern wedding they had planned, they exchanged vows at Manhattan’s Riverside Church. Shortly after their honeymoon, he bid her farewell and sailed to New

Caledonia. They would not see each other again for the better part of two years.”Those two people were Melinda’s parents, Moran and the late Yvonne Pope.

Melinda continued, “The songs on this album were the musical backdrop for their story, along with countless others in that remarkable time in American history. Although the songs dropped off the popular charts, my parents kept them alive. Another love affair had begun—between me and the songs of the Great American Songbook.”

Growing up in Hattiesburg, Melinda was just 90 miles from New Orleans jazz and 200 miles from Mississippi Delta blues. Her parents exposed her to big band music, Broadway show tunes and classical music, and in the Southern culture and church, she discovered gospel, country and bluegrass. Singing since she was nine in church choirs, Melinda sang her first solo at the age of 14 with a folk trio and sang in the chorus of Southern Miss musicals in the summers. Melinda stayed grounded with her deep musical roots. While her peers were tuned into the latest pop and rock bands, she listened to Streisand, Campbell, Peter, Paul and Mary, Broadway musicals and New Orleans jazz.

Beyond her two music degrees and multiple church solos, Melinda performed in a national tour of the Lion King and more regional musical theatre, from Colorado to New Hampshire. Melinda then served a stint as the music director at Trinity Baptist Church on the upper east side of Manhattan, where she directed a 50-voice choir in 15 concerts. Recently, she sings regularly at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan.

Along the way, another aspect of her story may be of inspiration for some. In 2010 Melinda was treated for thyroid cancer. One of the biggest concerns with the surgery is that it would possibly affect her vocal chords; thankfully it did no such thing.

“I’ll Be Seeing You” is available digitally on iTunes and CDBaby.com. Hard copies may be purchased at Main Street Books in Hattiesburg. Melinda will return home to Hattiesburg to be part of Festival South 2014. Her performance will be “Love Is Here To Stay—An Evening of Romance from The Great American Songbook, “featuring Melinda DeRocker, jazz soprano with Tom Jennings, piano. For more information, visit www.festivalsouth.org.

Wedding vows plan to be exchanged on December 13, 2014.

DR. MELODY MUSGROVE ’88 has served as director of the Office of Special Education Programs at the United States Department of Education, having been appointed by the White House.

1990sSHAWN MERCER ’90 was recently promoted to district manager for the Social Security Administration’s Laurel office.

DR. TRENA WILKERSON ’92 was recently elected to the national board of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM).

ROBERT H. KOLAR ‘93 has retired from teaching high school mathematics after 35 years at JFK High School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Robert is now an adjunct instructor of mathematics at Kirkwood Community College and Mt. Mercy University in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

SCOTT PROVINCE ’97 has been promoted by Wilkins Miller Hieronymus, an accounting firm, to manager.

KIMBERLEY REESE-FUNCHESS ’97 recently completed the Certified Public Manager (CPM) Program.

JERRY ROSS ’98, ’99, ’10 has been appointed the new registrar for Syracuse University.

CHRIS BOONE ’98 and Katherine Boone happily announce the birth of their baby girl, Addison Noel Boone. Addison was born on Sept. 16, 2013, weighing 6 lbs. and 15 oz. They hope she will be a member of the Dixie Darling class of 2034!

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2000sJERRY DEFATTA ’00 ’10 and his wife Bethanie announce the Nov. 6, 2013, birth of their son, Jerry Byron DeFatta III. Trey was welcomed by big sisters Eva Marie and Ella Katherine DeFatta.

JENNIFER DELMAS CLARK ’01 and STEPHEN CLARK ’03 welcomed their daughter, Ella Layne Clark, on September 26, 2013.

KRISTEN LARREMORE ’01 has joined Waller, one of the nation’s pre-eminent law firms serving the health care industry, as an associate of the Birmingham office.

JENNIE HENSARLING ‘02, School of Arts and Humanities, was promoted to assistant professor by the American Public University System (APUS).

Hattiesburg Clinic recently welcomed MARLENA BRADLEY ‘08, CNP, to the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

JODY BABINEAUX ‘08 from Laurel has received the Martin Luther King Jr. Educator of the Year award. He received this award for going above and beyond as an educator and being a positive influence on his community.

Poole Named Director of Roane State Community College’s Cumberland County Campus

Dr. Janice Poole ’90, ‘96 graduated with a master’s degree in counseling and personnel services. Poole has been named director of Roane State Community College’s Cumberland County campus. She has served in education for 30 years and has spent much of her career

in community college leadership positions. Before this position, Poole has served as a special education teacher for two school districts in Mississippi. She then went on to serve higher education in 1997, and that is where she became coordinator of special populations for Pearl River Community College. After her many years of dedication to the school, six years later, Poole was named Pearl River’s director of extended education.

Wittmann Honored with National Kitchen and Bath Association Recognition

Kristi Wittmann ’10 graduated with a degree in interior design. Wittmann was recently honored with national recognition from the National Kitchen and Bath Association. She was chosen for the 30 Under 30 Program, which recognizes young, up-and-coming designers in the kitchen and bath industry. With this honor, Wittmann

received an all-expense paid trip to the Kitchen and Bath Industry show is Las Vegas in February 2014 to participate in the program. She currently works at Inside-Outside Kitchen and Bath in Gulfport.

Bullock Named NCSL Public Affairs Director in Washington, D.C.Mick Bullock ’03 is to serve as National Conference State Legislature’s public affairs director in

Washington, D.C. Bullock previously served as Governor Phil Bryant’s former director of communications and press secretary. In Washington, D.C., he will head the organization’s public affairs efforts, working with both local and regional, along with national, news media to share information about the National Conference State Legislature’s work. Bullock will coordinate media relations efforts and will also work on marketing and membership outreach strategies to promote the organization’s services to state legislators and legislative staff through NCSL’s magazine, newsletters, publications, social media channels, website and blog.

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COURTNEY ANN LOFTON ‘09 and Stuart Hamilton Davis announce the news of their engagement. Wedding vows will be exchanged March 29, 2014, at Canebrake Country Club in Hattiesburg.

2010sBRITTANY ANNA BROWN ’10 and Keith Walter Brown exchanged wedding vows on January 4, 2014, at First Presbyterian Church in Union.

DR. BRIDGETTE L. DAVIS ‘10 accepted a position of assistant professor at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge.

ADEWUNMI RENEE OLUFEMI OKE ’11 has been the dramaturg for Gee’s Bend at Arkansas Repertory in Little Rock, Ark., Every Tongue Confess at Horizon Theatre in Atlanta, Ga., and serves as a liaison for the Graduate Dramaturgy Forum at Yale University.

KIMBERLY ASHTON SMITH ‘13 and William McGehee Thomas exchanged wedding vows on January 25, 2014, at Parkway Heights United Methodist Church in Hattiesburg.

LISA WAYT ‘13 and Matthew Hemmer announce the news of their engagement. Wedding vows will be exchanged on June 7, 2014, at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church in Zanesville, Ohio.

In MemoriamDR. JAMES WILLIAM “BILL” SMITH JR. ‘49of Monroe, La., died December 11, 2013.

DR. DONALD RAY BERRY ‘50of Picayune died January 17, 2014.

JAMES AL DENHAM ‘50of Childersburg, Ala., died January 14, 2014.

Phalen Inducted to Broadcasters Hall of Fame

Bill Phalen ’65 was inducted to the Arizona Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame in October of 2013. In his lifetime, Phalen has founded two radio broadcasting companies and co-founded one, which acquired 24 radio stations throughout the United States from 1970 throughout 1996. His last radio ownership interest was with Prism Radio Partners,

a company he founded in 1992 with Wall Street Partner JP Morgan Bank. Phalen is currently CEO and chairman of Cities West Publishing Inc., which he founded in 1977. Cities West Publishing is located in Scottsdale, Arizona, and it publishes shelter and city magazines and directories for the southwestern United States. He is past president of the Tucson Broadcasters Association, was on the Advisory Board of the ABC Radio Network, and is a past member of the Walter Cronkite Endowment Board of Trustees at Arizona State University. Phalen has been published in Who’s Who in the World; Who’s Who in Finance and Industry; Who’s Who in the Western United States and Who’s Who in Arizona.

Boston Scientific Names Thompson as NewChief Medical Officer, Interventional Cardiology

Craig Thompson, M.D. ’91 was named senior vice president and chief medical officer, Interventional Cardiology by Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE: BSX). Thompson is a global leader in complex cardiac interventions, and he will play a key role in driving the development of innovative medical solutions within the Boston

Scientific Interventional Cardiology business. Before this advancement, Thompson served as director, Invasive Cardiology and Vascular Medicine, Yale New Haven Hospital, and associate professor of medicine, Yale University School of Medicine. Thompson brings to Boston Scientific an abundance of wealth in clinical and academic experience.

59Spring 2014

WALTER STAMPLEY JR. ‘50of Vidalia, La., died January 27, 2014.

RICHARD MARK STRAIN ‘50of Mobile, Ala., died November 26, 2013.

CLAIBORNE ODELL GRAYSON ‘52of Pearl died January 5, 2014.

REV. JAMES HAYWOOD COSBY ‘52of Chattanooga, Tenn., died January 6, 2014.

JAMES JERRY LANGFORD ‘55of Madison died December 27, 2013.

MARY CYNTHIA LOCKE BLAIR ‘55of Ocean Springs died November 13, 2013.

DEVIN F. WALKER JR. ‘55of Canton died December 21, 2013.

MARY BROWN NOWELL KAISER ‘56of Natchez died August 21, 2013.

GEORGE D. FAIRLEY ‘56of McAllen, Texas, died January 7, 2013.

DR. THOMAS H. TEDDER JR. ’56, ’58, ‘68of Hammond, La., died January 11, 2014.

VONCEIL WHITE LETY ‘57of Vancleave died October 29, 2013.

TERRY RAYMOND ARMSTRONG ‘58of Moscow, Idaho, died January 23, 2014.

COL GEORGE WILLIS TATE SR. ‘60of Pensacola, Fla., died November 1, 2013.

HAROLD “SONNY” CONRAD BANFELL JR. ‘60of Pensacola, Fla., died November 11, 2013.

KATHLEEN MARTHA GAUTIER ‘60of Kansas City, Mo., died November 24, 2013.

DENVER “DALE” LYONS ‘61of Gautier died December 22, 2013.

LEON CLIFTON “DOLEY” MYERS ‘61of Columbia died December 20, 2013.

JOHN MITCHELL NASH ‘61of Billings, Mont., died February 5, 2014.

LINDA LEE BEACHAM ‘61of Palatka, Fla., died January 19, 2014.

TALMAGE DWAIN HARPER ‘62of Hattiesburg died October 27, 2013.

CLARA SEAL LOPEZ CAMPBELL D’AQUILLA ’62, ‘64of Biloxi died January 9, 2014.

DR. NELL CRAFT HARDAGE ’62, ‘72of Palm Beach, Fla., died January 2, 2014.

CHARLES MELVIN ELLZEY JR. ‘62of Cookeville, Tenn., died January 27, 2014.

THOMAS J. MOORE JR. ‘63of D’lberville died February 14, 2014.

W. HAROLD LEE ’63, ’66, ‘74of Hattiesburg died January 8, 2014.

VIRGIL RONALD COLEY ‘63of Lafayette, La., died November 27, 2013.

MILTON LARRY CARTER ‘64of Moss Point died January 22, 2014.

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To submit a book for inclusion in Alumni Authors, please email [email protected] with the title, author's name and year of graduation, cost, page count, publisher and year of publication, brief synopsis of the book, and an electronic copy of the cover in jpg, tif or pdf format at 300 dpi.

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Texas Chili? Oh My!Patricia Wilhite Vermillion ‘69TCU PressAvailable on patriciavermillion.com

Texas Chili? Oh My! is a retelling of the beloved fairy tale of the Three Little Pigs-Texas style! Meet

Bluebonnet, Mockingbird and Sweet Olive, three little armadillos, as they leave Mamadillo’s home and build their own dens out of native Texan materials. But watch out for Trickster Coyote, always looking for armadillos to make into Texas Chili! Illustration for Texas Chili? Oh My! is provided by Kuleigh Smith.

Patricia serves as the librarian for the Lamplighter School in Dallas, Texas. She has written articles for Mississippi Magazine, School Library Monthly, Teacher Librarian and Library Sparks Magazine. Of all of Patricia’s work, Texas Chili? Oh My! is her first picture book.

TwisterJohn W. Johnston ‘57LifeStory PublishingAvailable on Amazon and twisterbooks.com

Twister is a delightful story of a horse born during a tornado and his adventures. This story takes place on and around a mid-1930’s

era farm in Perry County. Twister was inspired by childhood memories of the author. Illustration for Twister is provided by Clayton Thigpen.

John graduated with a B.S. degree in communications. A Korean War veteran, he served as an infantry platoon leader in the 25th Infantry Division and later as a public information officer (chief of radio, television and news) at Headquarters of American Forces Far East/8th Army. Johnston is a retired business executive, father of four, grandfather of nine and great grandfather of six. Although a native of Mobile, Ala., John resides in Jackson.

Ministry Matters, Secrets of Heartfelt and Engaging MinistriesCarolyn Stromeyer Nation ‘73Green Park Press Available on LivingYourMinistry.com

Ministry Matters, Secrets of Heartfelt and Engaging Ministries encompasses a decade of successful, active ministries from St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in Hattiesburg. By revealing

the inner working of some 40-plus ministries, Ministry Matters encourages pastors, ministry leaders and lay people of all denominations to adapt these fresh ideas for your own effective ministries. It was written for lay people or pastors who want to begin a stewardship program of time and talent yet don’t know where to start; anyone who needs a jolt of confidence to begin a new ministry; and leaders and volunteers seeking ways to revitalize their ministries.

Carolyn has written 15 other books and has been published internationally in newspapers and magazines. Her role as the Discipleship Team leader at St. Thomas began in 2003. She invites you to adapt these ideas for your own ministry success.

60 THE

BILLY RAY CARLISLE ‘64of Daphne, Ala., January 1, 2014.

WILLIAM “BUCK” DAVID LEWIS JR. ‘65of Evergreen, Ala., died October 27, 2013.

FRANK TERRELL “TERRY” EVERETTE ‘65of Perdido Bay, Ala., died December 28, 2013.

LAMAR A. “SKIPPY” REYNOLDS JR. ‘66of Williamstown, W.Va., died January 13, 2014.

JO NELL THOMAS HALES ‘68of Vestavia, Ala., died January 1, 2014.

DR. EDDIE MILEY LEWIS ’68, ‘69of Petal died November 6, 2013.

STEVEN JOHN MACDONALD ‘69 of Tallahassee, Fla., died December 18, 2013.

RONALD P. HODGES ‘70of Brandon died November 23, 2013.

RAYMOND G. MCEACHERN ‘70of Ridgeland died December 30, 2013.

MELVIN “MEL” F. WESTERFIELD ‘70of Brandon died December 23, 2013.

PRENTISS DANIEL “DAN” ALLEN ‘71of Gulf Shores, Ala., died January 2, 2014.

JANET LEE WADE ‘71of Hattiesburg died December 30, 2013.

MIKE LEWIS ‘72of Hattiesburg died November 1, 2013.

LUTHER DARIAS LEWIS JR. ‘72of Panama City, Fla., died December 4, 2013.

DR. JOHN CALVIN BERRY ’73, ‘76of Hattiesburg died November 10, 2013.

MARGARET ANN KITCHENS BICE ‘74of Yukon, Okla., died December 10, 2013.

CHARLES LLOYD CALVERY ‘74of Philadelphia died December 23, 2013.

HAROLD “HAL” MARSOLAIS ‘74of St. Augustine, Fla., died January 2, 2014.

LTC RONALD E. REED ’74, ‘78 of Woodbridge, Va., died November 27, 2013.

DONNA E. BERRYHILL ‘76of Cheney, Wash., died November 6, 2013.

JAMES AUSTIN HANSHAW ‘77of Pascagoula died December 21, 2013.

MAJ. GEN. CATHERINE SMITH LUTZ ’77, ‘85 of Flora died January 16, 2014.

MARY DENISE FAGAN CHATHAM ’77, ‘04of Pearl died January 2, 2014.

RICKI VAL BROWN ’79 of Abilene, Texas, died December 5, 2013.

DENNIS D. MCCORMICK ‘79of San Antonio, Texas, died December 11, 2013.

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“All The Damn Christians”: A Glimpse Into The Mirror of HypocrisyJohn W. Stiles, Ph.D. ‘05Sonfire Media, LLCAvailable on Amazon, online retailers and allthedamnchristians.com

In this book, Stiles presents a research-based look at non-Christian’s perceptions of the Church. His title, All The Damn Christians, comes directly from a study

respondent who wrote, “I would have a much higher regard for the religion itself if it weren’t for all the damn Christians.” Stiles reminds us that Christians have been called hypocrites for centuries, and even now, many nonbelievers react defensively at the slightest reference to Christianity. In his book, Stiles shares candid insights as to why the world rejects the faith and illustrates how Christians can turn hypocrisy into opportunity.

Stiles is a native of Slyva, N.C., but spends much of his time traveling the globe as an international speaker, and as U.S. director for Hannam University in South Korea.

Magnolia MudRandy Pierce ’87, ‘92Dogwood PressAvailable on Amazon

Magnolia Mud features Lee Jones, the popular Republican governor of Mississippi, who figures to win re-election against Anna Scott, a populist Democrat and the

state’s lieutenant governor. Both vow to run honorable campaigns and debate each other squarely on the issues that concern the people of their state. But the mud begins flying when both sides hire outside political consultants to raise funds and do opposition research, and the lives of Jones and Scott really become complicated when their fourth-grade daughters become the best of friends. A classic Southern novel, Magnolia Mud is a page-turner filled with insight, humor, sadness, and a cast that will get under your skin and stay there. You’ll never forget Lee Jones, Anna Scott and the people close to them…and you’ll never follow politics the same way again.

Randy Pierce currently sits as an associate justice on the Mississippi Supreme Court serving the Southern District, Place Two. Pierce graduated with a B.S. degree in accounting. After leaving Southern Miss Pierce attended and graduated from University of Mississippi Law School, where he served as President of the Law School Student Body. Randy previously served as a Chancery Court judge for the Sixteenth Chancery Court District of Jackson, George and Greene counties, and is a former state representative for District 105 in the Mississippi Legislature. There he served as chairman of the House Education Committee and Appropriations Subcommittee on Public Education. Randy is married to Cheryl Pierce, and they have four children.

Magnolia Mud will be released on March 31, 2014, with a signing party at the library in Richton; he’ll officially launch at Lemuria on April 1, 2014 and visit Square Books the following day. Pierce will be signing copies at the Hattiesburg library on April 17, 2014, just one of his many stops throughout Mississippi and the surrounding states.

61Spring 2014

Dr. William Burnett ’97 is the technical director for the Commander Navel Meteorology and Oceanography Command (CNMOC). This being the highest civilian position working for the Navy at Stennis, Burnett has been serving this position since 2011. He serves as the primary technical contact to the command, with responsibility for managing, planning and directing all phases of the Navel Oceanography program.

Before being promoted to the Senior Executive Service, Burnett served as a branch chief at the National Data Buoy Center. During his tenure, he transformed

his quality control office into a Mission Control Center, which is now recognized as a world leader in providing operational, real-time marine observations. Burnett also served on the International Tsunami Commission and as the U.S. National Representative to the World Meteorological Organization’s Data Buoy Cooperation Panel. He also supervised the International OceanSITES Global Data Assembly Center and implemented the world’s first Regional Marine Instrumentation Center. Also before joining the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in 2004, Burnett was the Plans and Programs Division head at the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command.

Burnett joined the Naval Oceanographic Office in 1988 as a meteorologist at the Operational Oceanography Center. In 1992, he joined the staff of the Naval European Meteorology and Oceanography Center in Rota, Spain, and served as the Oceanographic Services Officer. During his tenure he developed the Joint European Meteorological and Oceanographic Data Exchange System that provided products and observations to the Fleet during Operation Provide Promise/Deny Flight. He rejoined the Naval Oceanographic Office in 1995 as a supervisor of the Warfighting Support Center’s Operations Support Branch.

Burnett began his career in 1985 as a physical science aide and storm chaser with the Storm Electricity Group at the National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, Okla. He received a Bachelor of Science in meteorology from the University of Oklahoma in 1988. He received both his Ph.D. and Master of Science degrees in marine science from The University of Southern Mississippi. “Because The University of Southern Mississippi’s Department of Marine Science is located at Stennis Space Center (SSC), I had the tremendous opportunity to work full time, take classes during the day and meet with professors in the evening to obtain my degrees,” shared Burnett. “Stennis offers enormous opportunities for synergy. Resources at this unique federal city include the world’s largest concentration of oceanographers and hydrographers, world-class survey ships and high-performance computing as well as Southern Miss’ outstanding marine facility and programs. The future is very bright for SSC and for the University’s Department of Marine Science.”

Burnett was the author for the lead article, “Overview of Operational Ocean Forecasting in the U.S. Navy: Past, Present and Future” in Oceanography Magazine’s special 2002 issue, as well as the lead author of the environmental section for two Department of Defense studies focused on high-performance computing and numerical prediction of optical turbulence for weapons systems. He serves as a media spokesman and has provided numerous interviews to media outlets such as the Discovery Channel, CNN, NPR, the Phoenix Arizona Republic, the Biloxi Sun Herald and the New Orleans Times-Picayune.

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CYNTHIA “CINDY” NOBLE BARTGES ’79 of Houston, Texas, died January 9, 2014.

EUGENE W. “GENE” WILDMAN BRANDON ‘79of Austin, Texas, died January 8, 2014.

WILLIAM ANTHONY “TONY” CHARLSTON ’79 of Rockport, Texas, died January 7, 2014.

MALCOLM “MIKE” WAREN JR. ‘80of Brandon died October 26, 2013.

KATHY LYNN HARDISON WELLS ’80, ‘85of Idaho Falls, Idaho, died November 11, 2013.

JOHN FLEMMING PATE JR. ‘80of Hattiesburg died October 7, 2013.

DAVID MICHAEL DRY ‘80of Gulfport died January 18, 2014.

LORETTA JANE STRINGFELLOW ’81, ‘87of Poplarville died December 27, 2013.

C. GREGORY CARNEY ‘81of Gulfport died November 13, 2013.

CASSANDRA FOSHEE SMITH ‘81of Austin, Texas, died October 26, 2013.

MARVIN A. FLOYD ‘82of Sun City, Ariz., died January 5, 2014.

BARRY LEWIS PIPKIN ‘82of Maumelle, Ark., died January 4, 2014.

GARY ERNEST CRAIG ’83, ‘86of Hattiesburg died January 3, 2014.

THYLIA MARIE CULPEPPER HENDERSON ‘87of Jackson died January 10, 2014.

RAY CHARLES BROWN ’87 of Vossburg died November 23, 2013.

MARK ALVIN TAYLOR ‘89of Pensacola, Fla., died January 23, 2014.

PATRICK F. DUTTON ‘89of St. John’s, Newfoundland, died November 13, 2013.

JOHN STEPHEN CURTIS ‘91of Hattiesburg died October 25, 2013.

ROBERT DOUGLAS “BOB” DAVIS ‘92of Lake Charles, La., died October 31, 2013.

JONATHAN ANDREW “ANDY” COLE ‘94of New Orleans, La., died January 7, 2014.

DENNIS WILLIAM “DAN” FONTENOT, COL, PH.D. ‘95of New Orleans, La., died December 22, 2013.

HAROLD J. BATTALORA SR. ‘99of Bay St. Louis died February 20, 2014.

JEAN A. EMIL ‘00of Hingham, Mass., died October 27, 2013.

FRANCES CECILIA DUNN ‘08of D’lberville died November 27, 2013.

Dr. W

illiam

Bur

nett

’97

62 THE

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Aaron’s Sales and Lease 50% discount on first month’s payment on any new lease agreement Anderson’s Rug Market 10% discount on any rug purchaseAshley’s Sporting Goods 10% discount on total purchases (some restrictions apply)Bourne Brothers Printing 10% discount on any serviceBrownstone’s LLC 10% discount on entreesChesterfield’s* 10% off entrée Classic Concepts/ACE Home Center 10% discount on purchases or rentalsComfort Inn-The Lodge* 10% off rack rateComfort Suites* 10% off rack rateCommand Spanish, Inc 20% discount on online language courses at commandspanishonline.com when applying USMAA20 promotional codeFirehouse Subs Free drink with purchase of sandwichThe First, A Natl. Banking Assoc. $200 discount on closing costs on mortgage loansGolden Eagle Storage 5% discount on rentalGrand Bank $100 discount on mortgage loan closing costsHattiesburg Zoo $1 off admissionHeritage Vision Center 10% discount on all eyeglasses and sunglasses for regular members and 20% discount for Life Members Holiday Inn 10% off rack rate Holiday Inn Express, Lucedale 15% off standard room rateHopson Law Firm, PLLC Free initial consultation on any contingency fee case, 10% discount on consultation fee on non-contingency casesKing Photography 10% discount on photography, excluding senior portraitsKitchen Table 10% discount on cooking classesLance Computer Systems 20% discount on normal labor chargesLeatha’s Bar-B-Que Inn 10% discount on all purchasesMcLeod & Associates, P.A. 10% discount on estate planning, business entity formation and other legal services Mike’s Tire and Wheel 10% discount on all sales Newk’s Express Café 10% discount on purchases, excluding alcoholOak Grove Plaza Package Store 10% discount on purchases Oak Grove Rental 10% discount on rental items / not valid with other offerO’Charley’s* 10% discount on all purchases, excluding alcoholOwen’s Business Machines 10% discount on selected itemsParris Jewelers 10% discount on all itemsPine Belt Promos 10% discount on any purchasePine Burr Country Club $5 off one 18-hole round of golfPriceless Rent-a-Car 10% discount on rental cars, trucks and passenger vansPrime Mortgage, Inc. $250 closing cost discountSigns First* 15% discount on Southern Miss-related signsSimmons Furniture 10% discount on all itemsThe Sleep Number Store by Select Comfort Free pillow when you find your Sleep Number settingSonic Drive Inn on Hwy 11 Free 20 oz. drink or slush with purchase of #1 or #2 burgerSouthern Interiors 5% discount on flooringSouthern Oaks Catering 10% discount on takeout orders (weddings excluded)Southern Oaks Florist 15% discount on funeral, hospital and home arrangements (weddings excluded)Southern Oaks House and Gardens 20% discount on facility and room rentals Tall Pines Farm 10% discount on gift baskets and cateringUniversity Florist 10% discount on all purchases (excluding holiday’s and wire outs)

^ All discounts subject to change or termination without prior notice. Please verify discount with provider before making purchase. *Hattiesburg locations only.

The University of Southern Mississippi

Alumni Association

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Hattiesburg, MS 39406-0001

Tel: 601.266.5013 | Fax: 601.266.4214

E-mail: [email protected]

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Continue your support of The University of Southern Mississippi Alumni Association by doing business with the Association’s Marketing Partners. By utilizing the goods and services of these marketing partners, you will be generating additional revenue to support the programming and operations of the Association.

SOUTHERN MISS ALUMNI MARKETING PARTNERS

This listing contains current participants in The University of Southern Mississippi Alumni Association’s C.A.R.D. Program. By presenting either your Southern Miss Alumni Association annual dues membership card or your Life Membership card, you will receive the discount noted by each participant. The program is designed to bring added value to your membership in the Alumni Association and to thank you for your support of Southern Miss.

BalfourOfficial Southern Miss Ring. For more information or to order, call 1.866.BALFOUR and ask for reference code 2315.

USMCampus Book MartSouthern Miss Apparel and Gifts. For more information, call 1.888.712.5083.

Campus Book Mart

Bank Of America®Special offer for Southern Miss alumni and friends! Announcing a special No-Annual-Fee MasterCard® credit card now conveniently available to Southern Miss alumni. Simply call 1.800.932.2775 for details about the costs and terms of this offer or to apply for the credit card.

Liberty MutualLiberty Mutual is the official home and auto in-surer of the Southern Miss Alumni Association. For more information, call 1.800.981.2372.

Barnes and NobleYour school. Your bookstore. Located on the Hattiesburg campus of The University of Mississippi. For more information, call 601.266.4381.

Mercer Health & Benefits Administration LLCWhether it is life, health, or long-term care insurance, you can obtain important financial protection for your family at an affordable rate through Mercer Health & Benefits Administration LLC. For more information, call 1.888.560.ALUM (2586).

Specially Designed SouthernMiss Degree FramesOrder your custom Southern Miss diploma frame and preserve your achievement for a lifetime with Diploma Display. To order, visit www.diplomadisplay.com/usm.

Printing and Framing. For more information, call 1.866.418.0320.

1. 1942

2. Dr. Walter Washington

3. Gulf Park College for Women, a two-year institution that operated from 1921 to 1971

4. 19 years. After 13 years in the Metro Conference, Southern Miss became a charter member of Conference USA in April of 1995.

How did you score?

Answers below are to questions asked on Page 12.

SOUTHERN MISS

63Spring 2014

CENTURY PARK SOU TH

Century Park South will bring state-of-the art residence halls to Southern Miss, providing 954 beds for freshmen and other scholarship students. The $55.6 million project will feature three buildings, with five floors in each structure.

The new construction comes on the heels of Century Park North’s grand opening in August 2010. To make room for Century Park South, two aging residence halls—Vann Hall and Scott Hall—were demolished. The east end of Bond Hall, which housed staff offices primarily, was also included in the demolition plan.

Buildings B and C of the project have an estimated completion date of July 2014, with 511 beds available for the fall semester. Building B will be designated as Luckyday Citizenship Hall. It will house Luckyday Scholarship students and Luckyday offices.

Building A, which will also include the new Moffitt Health Center, is scheduled for completion in January 2015. The remaining beds would be move-in ready for the spring semester of that year.

Photo by Kelly Dunn

SouthernS C E N E S

Replica Southern Miss jerseys featuring Ray Guy’s number available now for $74.98! Adult Sizes: Medium, Large, XL and 2XL

Children’s Sizes: Small, Medium, Large and XLLimited quantities of autographed jerseys available!

CONGRATULATIONS RAY GUY2014 PRO FOOTBALL HALL OF FAMER

ShopSouthernMiss.com | Phone: 601.266.4381 | Like SouthernMissBooks on Facebook

The University of Southern MississippiAlumni Association118 College Drive, #5013Hattiesburg, MS 39406-5013

PERIODICAL

We hope to see you at Founders’ Day

Thursday, March 27, 2014

Founders’ Day Schedule1:30 P.M.

STENNIS SPACE CENTER TEACHING AND RESEARCH S ITE CEREMONY

Depar tmen t o f Mar ine Sc ience , Bu i ld ing 1020 Lobby

3 P.M.

GULF COAST RESEARCH LABORATORY CEREMONY

Din ing Ha l l

3 P.M.

HATT IESBURG CEREMONY Benne t t Aud i to r ium

• Student Awards • Faculty and Staff Recognition • SGA Inauguration

3 P.M.

GULF PARK CEREMONY Hardy Ha l l Ba l l room

4 P.M.

HATT IESBURG RECEPT ION Nor th Lawn o f the Aubrey K . Lucas

Admin i s t ra t ion Bu i ld ingRa in S i t e : Kennard-Wash ing ton Ha l l

7:30 P.M.

THE UNIVERS ITY OF SOUTHERN MISS ISS IPP I SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

PRESENTS DUEL ING GIANTSBenne t t Aud i to r ium A

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talon spring 2014

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