photo by jon styer
community
photo by Caroline Prendergast/jmu
“Vikki” Ingram, MBA ’05, directs human resources at Bridgewater College.
photo by jon styer Conley McMullen ’78 (standing center) has been teaching biology at James Madison University for 17 years.
Mary Walala ’09 oversees the smooth functioning of more than 30 community outreach programs at JMU’s Institute for Innovation in Health and Human Services.
Inspiration, opportunity, and connecEMU’s Roman Miller encouraged tion to community – these gifts of an Brown’s budding but undirected interest EMU education are common themes in research the summer after graduation. shared, and passed on, by alumni who “I’m so thankful to him for the opportuhave chosen to work in higher education. nity to help him out,” says Brown, who went on to earn a PhD at East Carolina INSPIRATION University. “When I say ‘help out,’ I Among those EMU graduates who mean ‘make a mess and occasionally work in higher education, many collect some data.’” With that same nurshare special bonds with their former turing quality, Brown now oversees six professors. “We teach the way we were undergraduate students who research the taught,” says Randy Snow ’91, who connections between neural mechanisms blends the compassion, high standards, and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. and practical skill-building that he As an assistant professor of elemenexperienced while a teacher candidate tary education at Bridgewater College, at EMU into the human resources and Jennie M. Carr, MA ’06 (education), adult education courses that he teaches PhD (NorthCentral U.), continues to at JMU. enjoy both professional and personal In the JMU biology department, asfriendships with professors she met as a sociate professor Justin W. Brown ’97 graduate student at EMU. Carr makes teaches pathophysiology, neuroscience, biannual visits to campus to speak on and physiology, with the same “contaa panel facilitated by faculty memgious passion” of his former professors. bers Cathy Smeltzer Erb and Sandy
Brownscombe, and co-teaches a course at Bridgewater with her former action research project supervisor, Judy Wilfong. Carr says that she takes particular pleasure in the exponential gratification of her work: each teacher-candidate she helps to develop with strong professional skills will eventually touch hundreds of children. Another alumna in the Bridgewater education department is Jean R. Hawk, class of ’70 (Bluffton grad), who has an MS from JMU and a PhD from Vanderbilt. Lori Hertzler Schrock ’93 admired her EMU mentor and role model Jean Brunk for her varied experiences in the wellness field. Schrock has followed in her footsteps with positions at the Sentra RMH Wellness Center and Sunnyside Retirement Community. Schrock is currently program director at the Funkhouser Wellness Center of Bridgewater College. www.emu.edu | crossroads | 21