collegenews ALUMNI RECOGNITION
Kerr, Sandt receive RC’s highest honor
Donald Kerr, 2012 recipient of the Roanoke College Medal, offers remarks while President Michael Maxey and Board of Trustees Chairman Morris Cregger ’64 look on.
Roger Sandt, 2012 recipient of the Roanoke College Medal.
Donald Kerr ‘60 and Roger Sandt ‘64 have been awarded the Roanoke College Medal, the College’s highest honor. The Roanoke College Medal recognizes outstanding alumni who show characteristics of responsible leadership, intellectual integrity and good citizenship through their professional accomplishments and service to their community and alma mater. Kerr, who lives in Brentwood, Tenn., graduated from Roanoke with majors in political science and history. While at Roanoke, he was president of the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity and was one of the top athletes on the men’s track and soccer teams. For his athletic achievements, Kerr was inducted into the College’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2009. After graduation, Kerr was a member of the U.S. Intelligence Service before joining the Campbell Soup Co., where he worked for 15 years. In 1999, Kerr formed his own company, Kerr Industries, which is comprised of several food production and manufacturing businesses. In 2007, Kerr provided the lead gift that made possible the turf facility that is home to Roanoke’s soccer, field hockey and lacrosse teams. The field was dedicated as the Donald J. Kerr Stadium. Kerr also is chairman of the Maroon Club, which raises money for the College’s intercollegiate, intramural and club sports programs. A Lifetime Distinguished member of the Roanoke College Associates, Kerr also is a member of the Society
nomics and business administration. He was a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity, the Roanoke College Choir and the cross country and track
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of 1842 and a member of the College’s Board of Trustees. Sandt graduated from Roanoke with a bachelor’s degree in eco-
teams. After graduation, Sandt worked at various paper companies in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania before forming his own company in Lancaster, Pa., Sandt Products, a manufacturer of cash register paper rolls and other paper products. A Lifetime Distinguished member of the College Associates, Sandt donated the funds to make possible the C. Homer Bast Track at Roanoke, which is named for his former track coach. Sandt, who lives in Lancaster, Pa., has served on numerous boards in his community, including the Lancaster Family YMCA, the Demuth Foundation and the North Museum of Natural History and Science.
CLOSING A KNOWLEDGE GAP
Rule of Law center is established at Roanoke ROANOKE COLLEGE in September announced the establishment of The Center for Teaching the Rule of Law. The Center, located at the College, is an independent, non-profit educational organization. Its mission is to enlighten people about the importance of the rule of law in providing justice, equality, fairness and stability in the world. “The most significant challenge in the world today is educating our youth about the importance of the rule of law in their lives and the need to promote, preserve and protect it,” said G. Michael Pace, Jr., the Center’s founder and CEO and managing partner at Gentry Locke Rakes & Moore, LLP. “Unfortunately, there is less emphasis on teaching history, social studies and civics than ever before. The Center exists to provide the resources to effectively address this critical gap in knowledge.” Roanoke College President Michael Maxey said the College’s commitment “to preparing great citizens and the Center’s commitment to the betterment of our society makes this a perfect partnership. The work of the Center is critically important and we are excited about working together.” The Center will serve as a forum for discussion and debate involving national and international rule of law advocates, scholarly research and writing on related topics, and collaborative initiatives with other organizations and institutions. The Center’s innovative flagship program is the Virginia Law Foundation/Virginia Bar Association Rule of Law Project, which brings lawyers and judges together to teach the rule of law in elementary, middle and high
schools from a national and international perspective. “The Center’s focus is on scholarship, teaching teachers and developing educational materials that give students a personal relationship with the rule of law,” said Timothy Isaacs, the Center’s vice president and director of education. “To do this, the Center has developed an understandable and teachable definition of the rule of law.” Isaacs said civil societies are based on four elements that must exist for democracy to work: 1. Government and its officials are subordinate to and bound by the law. 2. Citizens must be engaged in making the laws that govern them. 3. Laws must be fairly and equally applied to everyone. 4. Citizens agree they will obey the law. “The Center for Teaching the Rule of Law is a big idea, and Roanoke College is all about big ideas,” says Dr. Richard Smith, vice president and dean of the College. “The relationship between us provides an opportunity to bring real-world issues that are relevant to our future as a nation and as citizens of the world to the forefront of discussion.” The College provides office space, technical support, grant writing and grant administration access to student interns and collaborative opportunities with professors and academic departments. “John Adams said in 1784, ‘There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide,’” Pace said. “The purpose of The Center for Teaching the Rule of Law is to prove Mr. Adams wrong.” Roanoke College Magazine