Alan Storey
INSIDE THE GATE
BERRY PEOPLE William L. “Bill” Pence (76C) is the new chair of the Berry College Board of Visitors, an executive advisory group consisting of alumni and non-alumni professionals who meet annually to lend their expertise and insight on matters of strategic importance. He’s served on the board since 2010. A partner with the BakerHostetler law firm in Orlando, Fla., Pence specializes in environmental law. His honors Bill Pence (76C) include placement on the “Best Lawyers in America” list for 2015. He earned his Juris Doctor from the Syracuse (N.Y.) University College of Law and a Master of Laws degree from The London School of Economics and Political Science. He serves as a volunteer guardian ad litem for the Legal Aid Society of Orange County, Fla. The Board of Visitors also welcomed two new members at its spring meeting: Mike Crego (92C), managing director of Benjamin F. Edwards and Co. in Rome, and Jack Allen Morgan, a trial attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Tax Division and special assistant U.S. attorney in Washington, D.C. Morgan is the grandson of Berry benefactor and honorary alumna Audrey Morgan and her late husband, Jack.
Chick-fil-A CFO joins trustee board
Daley Hake
Brent Ragsdale (88C), a former member of the Berry College Board of Visitors, has been elected as the newest member of the college’s Board of Trustees. One of the first participants in the WinShape College Program established at Berry by the late S. Truett Cathy, Ragsdale today is senior vice president and chief financial officer at Chick-fil-A. He Brent Ragsdale holds a master’s degree in business administration from Mercer University and is a 2012 graduate
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BERRY MAGAZINE • FALL 2016
of the Harvard Business School’s Advanced Management Program. He also is a certified public accountant. Ragsdale sits on the boards of Southwest Christian Care and the Atlanta Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He also serves as an elder at Southside Church in Peachtree City. He and wife Gigi have three children.
Whitaker named president of King University For the second time in less than a year, a member of the Berry President’s Cabinet has been tapped to lead another institution. This time, that person is also an alumnus – Whit Whitaker (81C) Chief of Staff and Secretary to the Board of Trustees Whit Whitaker (81C), now president of King University in Bristol, Tenn. Whitaker follows in the footsteps of former Berry Provost Kathy Richardson, who recently assumed the presidency of Westminster College in Pennsylvania. Whitaker has been associated with Berry since the age of 6, when his father joined the college’s English faculty. He returned to Berry in 2007 after a 25-year Navy legal career. For nearly a decade, Whitaker worked closely with Berry’s governing and advisory boards; provided oversight of public relations, religious life and historic assets; and assisted with fundraising efforts, first as assistant vice president for major gifts and later as chief of staff. In recognition of his service, he recently was granted the title of Secretary to the Board Emeritus by the Berry trustees. “When I was a student, Berry prepared me exceedingly well for a professional life beyond the Gate of Opportunity,” Whitaker said. “Now I find that Berry has prepared me well for yet another great adventure. It says something very good about Berry, and especially the marvelous leadership of Steve Briggs, that two of his cabinet members have this year been chosen for college presidencies.” Alan Storey
Pence is new BOV chair
Kirsten Taylor (left) and Ginger Swann (93C)
Taylor, Swann earn Martindale acclaim A consensus builder among the faculty and a former Berry tennis player now charged with overseeing the health and safety needs of more than 400 student-athletes were honored this spring as recipients of the 2016 Martindale Awards of Distinction. The Martindale winner for faculty, Associate Professor and Department Chair of Government and International Studies Kirsten Taylor, was lauded by colleagues for her ability to listen, challenge constructively and seek common ground on even the most controversial of campus topics. The staff Martindale Award honored the innovative and personal care provided by Assistant Director of Athletics for Sports Medicine Ginger Swann (93C). The Martindale Awards were endowed by Susan Byrd Martindale (73C) and her husband, Larry, to reward those in the Berry community who promote continuous improvement, implement innovative approaches to problem solving and inspire others to extraordinary achievement.
Berry appoints new vet Dr. Rebecca Stinson is Berry’s new college veterinarian, succeeding Dr. Martin Goldberg, who retired after nearly 30 years of exceptional service. Stinson comes to Berry from Carolina Equine Hospital in Brown Summit, N.C., where she was one of five founding partners of a large-animal practice. She also served as an adjunct professor at both North Carolina State University and Averett University in Virginia. Her veterinary interests include equine lameness and performance medicine, ophthalmology, and complimentary medicine including acupuncture and herbal therapy. Stinson earned a bachelor’s degree in animal science from Virginia Tech and a doctorate of veterinary medicine from the University of Georgia. She currently serves as vice president of the American Veterinary Medical Association.