Lipscomb Now Summer 2023

FROM PAST TO PRESENT: Singarama

Above: From 1963 to 2023, Singarama remains Lipscomb’s favorite musical and a milestone experience for undergraduate students. This year, the show celebrated its 60th year with the theme “A Diamond Anniversary,” and for the first time the George Shinn College of Entertainment & the Arts (CEA) partnered with the Office of Student Life to bring a burst of creativity to the production.

The show involved 335 students on stage plus additional arts students who created graphic designs for the set, styled the hosts and hostesses, performed live music and dance, and filmed introductory openings for each of the three acts.

The new partnership brought a greater variety of ways for students to be involved. Serving in

the various artistic production roles allowed students to practice their chosen craft, and get excited about being a part of a campuswide tradition.

Read more about Singarama’s new innovations and its revival of a beloved tradition at lipscomb.edu/60thSingarama.

Bisons Graze in Top-Notch Eateries

From hot chicken to coffee, from donuts to BBQ, Lipscomb alums are operating beloved restaurants and eateries across the nation. Check out a selection of alumni-owned hot spots across the South, starting close to home with The Donut Den.

Page 14

Longtime board member and leading health care attorney was selected as the new chair of the Lipscomb University Board of Trustees. 28

Overflowing with living water

Healing Hands International is bringing flowing water and “living water” to the world. Lipscomb and its alumni have been an integral part of that mission since the beginning.

Alumni

Resolving crisis by resolving pain

Alumnus Adam Graham has taken his mission to prevent violence through healing across the nation, consulting for the FBI, the Secret Service, Google and YouTube. 24

Alumna shines God’s grace though Pure Flix film Sun Moon

Alumna Sydney Tooley’s journey to bring her experiences in Taiwan to the silver screen paid off this past May.

Editor Kim Chaudoin (BA ’90)

Senior Managing Editor

Janel Shoun-Smith (LA ’89)

Writers

Kim Chaudoin (BA ’90)

Janel Shoun-Smith (LA ’89)

Keely Hagan

Courtney Grable (junior)

Photography Kristi Jones (LA ’84, BA ’88)

Sean Worth (junior)

Lipscomb Athletics

Design

Will Mason (BA ’05)

Produced by the Office of Public Relations & Communications.

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Degree abbreviations follow standard academic abbreviations except for: (LA), alumni of Lipscomb Academy; (GC), alumni who have completed a graduate certificate; and (A) non-degreed alumni.

We

Poster art by Joel Anderson. © 2007 Anderson Design Group, Inc. Available at: www.ADGstore.com

IN THE now INVESTING IN NASHVILLE’S GREATEST RESOURCE: ITS PEOPLE

So far in 2023, Lipscomb University has been granted almost $12 million from state and federal agencies to recruit and prepare local Middle Tennesseans to combat the region’s pervasive education and mental health challenges in the wake of the pandemic.

Three grants will fund licensure and graduate education for 290 people to become licensed classroom teachers, school counselors and mental health professionals addressing substance abuse disorders over the next five years.

Healthcare Professionals Certificate Training

In June Lipscomb’s clinical mental health counseling program was awarded a grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, to equip behavioral health and health care professionals to make an impact in the area of substance abuse disorders.

This grant will fund Lipscomb’s new Healthcare Professionals Certificate Training program and will provide full tuition for a total of 50 students over five years to complete a graduate certificate in substance use disorder treatment.

The certificate is designed for counselors, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, nurses and social workers

practicing at partnering federally qualified centers that offer treatments for underserved populations, said DeAndrea N. Witherspoon Nash, director of the counseling program, lead faculty for the addiction specialization and director of the new program.

Innovative Mental Health Partnership Accessing Counselor Training (IMPACT)

In April, the U.S. Department of Education awarded the College of Education a grant to train mental health professionals to work in schools in Middle Tennessee as school counselors. This grant will provide full tuition for a total of 80 candidates over five years to complete the Master of Education in school counseling, said Lisa Davies, lead faculty for the school counseling program and IMPACT initiative program director. The graduating school counselors will be placed in high-need partner school districts throughout Middle Tennessee: Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools, Rutherford County Schools, Maury County Public Schools, Lebanon Special School District and Hickman County Schools.

Tennessee Teacher Apprenticeship

In January, the Tennessee Department of Education awarded Lipscomb funds through the University of Tennessee-Knoxville’s Grow Your Own Center to continue the university’s innovative educator preparation pathway through the Tennessee Teacher Apprenticeship program.

Lipscomb’s program is the first in Tennessee, and one of the first of its kind in the nation. The first partnership with Clarksville-Montgomery County School System in fall 2022 has led to a no-cost education leading to licensure for 346 educators in the cities of Clarksville and Nashville and Hamilton, Rutherford and Williamson counties.

By summer 2024, the grant is expected to fund tuition for another 160 people who already have undergraduate degrees, but who are facing financial barriers to seeking teacher licensure, said Vanessa Garcia, assistant professor and senior program director of Grow Your Own programs.

Almost $12 million in federal and state grants in 2023 will bring 290 teachers, school counselors and substance abuse counselors to Middle Tennessee.

290

Metro Public Health Department of Nashville/Davidson County report. †2021 Adolescent Behaviors and Experiences Survey given by the Center for Disease Control. ‡Tennessee Department of Education report for 2022-23.

of teaching positions are vacant or filled with emergency credential holders.‡

Middle Tennesseans to become specially-trained health care workers, school counselors and classroom teachers.

In Davidson County

In Tennessee Lipscomb will invest in

Cardiovascular perfusion achieves accreditation

Lipscomb’s cardiovascular perfusion program has been awarded initial accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP), to be in effect through 2028.

Housed in the College of Health Sciences, Lipscomb launched its Master of Science in Cardiovascular Perfusion program in fall 2021. It is offered through numerous clinical partners locally in the

New Health Sciences Center to expand partnerships, focus academics

In response to Nashville’s status as a capital in health care, with an overall industry economic benefit of $67 billion contributing more than 328,000 jobs to the local economy annually, Lipscomb University has launched the Lipscomb University Health Sciences Center (LUHSC) to serve as a hub that encompasses academic programs, research initiatives and community engagements and partnerships.

state of Tennessee and throughout the nation. Its first cohort of 14 students graduated in May.

CAAHEP accreditation qualifies Lipscomb perfusion graduates to sit for the American Board of Cardiovascular Perfusion (ABCP) board examinations. Certification by the ABCP is a nationally recognized standard for cardiovascular perfusion care.

Perfusionists play a vital role on cardiac surgical teams, ensuring that a patient’s blood continues to flow throughout the body by utilizing artificial pumps open-heart surgery and other cardiac procedures.

“For more than 130 years, health sciences education has been a vital component of Lipscomb University’s academic program. One of the ways we serve this community is by producing highly trained professionals who are filling workforce needs in the Nashville area,” said Lipscomb President Candice McQueen. “The LUHSC allows for strategic growth and new ways to partner with organizations on innovative solutions and to provide talent to make a tremendous impact in our city for years to come.”

The center includes a reorganization of the existing College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences into two stand-alone entities—

Physician assistant studies accreditation continued

This past spring the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant Inc. (ARC-PA) granted the School of Physician Assistant (PA) Studies accreditation-continued status, to be in effect through March 2033.

Physician assistants must graduate from an ARC-PA accredited program in order to sit for their national licensing exam to practice.

Lipscomb’s first PA cohort of 33 students enrolled in 2018 and graduated on time in 2020, despite the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions. It was the second PA studies program established in Middle Tennessee.

Lipscomb physician assistants have graduated into the health care industry.

the existing College of Pharmacy and a newly formed college of Health Sciences. Lynette Austin, professor and chair of the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at Abilene Christian University, will be the dean of the new health sciences college, beginning Dec. 15.

Lipscomb Provost Jennifer Shewmaker noted that elevating health sciences education to an academic center is a common model among the top universities in the nation. Currently, Lipscomb has more than 650 students majoring in 14 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs to prepare for health sciences professions.

Lipscomb graduated 14 perfusionists on May 6. It was the largest graduating inaugural class from any institution ever in the nation.

IN THE now

Music and theater students perform with international superstar

When renowned Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli performed with the Nashville Symphony at Bridgestone Arena in February, a choir of students and faculty from the School of Music and the Department of Theatre were featured prominently, singing 11 songs of both

classical and popular styles with the famous artist.

Bocelli, an international superstar whose music has bridged classical and pop genres, has record sales of more than 80 million units. At each stop along his 2023 tour, he uses local talent to form an accompanying choir.

Lipscomb coordinated the creation of a 60-voice choir including professionals from the Nashville community.

It is not the first time Lipscomb students have performed with Nashville’s symphony, as several are engaged with the orchestra, and students in the music and theater programs regularly record, perform and sing professionally with global artists, says Jenny Snodgrass, academic director of the School of Music.

See more of where to see and hear the work of Lipscomb’s music students on page 26.

Former Tennessee Titan, Kevin Mawae named Academy football coach

Former Tennessee Titan Kevin Mawae, a 16-year NFL veteran and pro football Hall of Famer, was named Lipscomb Academy’s head football coach in January. For the past two seasons Mawae served as assistant offensive line coach for the Indianapolis Colts. He now leads a Mustang football program that is coming off its fifth state championship

in December and will guide the program to its move to TSSAA Div II-AAA competition this season.

Mawae is no stranger to Nashville. He played with the Titans from 2006 to 2009 and started in 61 games. Mawae was selected as the team’s Ed Block Courage Award winner for the 2009 season.

241 years in the NFL NFL games played

16

Thanks to Lipscomb faculty’s extensive network of professional musical colleagues, Andrea Bocelli’s team asked the university to coordinate a choir to sing with the famous tenor at his February concert in Nashville. Photo by Kaitlyn Hungerford.

Inquiring minds want to know

Inquiring minds want to know, and hundreds of Lipscomb students each year go the extra mile to figure out exactly what they want to know through the scientific method and scholarly best practices.

In April, those students who complete such research projects—more than 300 annually—are afforded the opportunity to present their answers at the Student Scholars Symposium, before an audience of their peers.

Here are a few questions asked and answered by Lipscomb students with curious minds:

QIs there a better way crime investigators can raise a fingerprint on receipt paper?

QCan a mathematical formula boost your ability to solve Wordle faster?

AAbsolutely.

Student Anna Froemming and Professor Brian Cavitt found that nitrogen dioxide fumes and paraffin wax works pretty well for up to a week.

AYes!

Student William Fredrick, guided by his faculty mentor, Katie Link (BS ’95), created a computer program using math to recommend the best word to guess next. A player can score 3.2% better than the general population using his Wordle Solver program. It recommends using “arose,” “raise,” “later” or “irate” as the starting word.

QIs there a way to keep the huge flock of purple martins away from downtown Nashville’s Schermerhorn Symphony Center?

QWhat herbs and spices are incorporated into meals for seniors nationwide?

AYes, sort of.

Student Anna Money, guided by faculty mentor John Lewis, joined a group of researchers in 2022 to observe that darkness, crow calls and a hawk on-site did deter the birds from roosting at that site–until the summer of 2023, when the flock of 100,000+ birds returned.

ABlack pepper, thyme and parsley. By building a database of 300 recipes, Tessa Vander Kamp (’22) and Assistant Professor Tracy Noerper found these spices are being used most often in congregate meals for America’s seniors.

The symposium featured 58 presentations and displayed 95 posters summarizing student-led research from every college. Students also presented readings and performances of original poetry, music and theater; and exhibitions of artistic and scientific work.

Learn more about the Student Scholars Symposium at lipscomb.edu/2023SSS

IN THE now LONGTIME BOARD MEMBER AND LEADING HEALTH CARE ATTORNEY ELECTED NEW LIPSCOMB BOARD CHAIR

Richard G. Cowart, one of the leading health care attorneys in the nation and chair of the health law and public policy department at Baker Donelson, has been elected chair of Lipscomb’s Board of Trustees.

“Lipscomb has been fortunate to have had strong board leadership for years and Dick Cowart will continue this strength,” said Lipscomb President Candice McQueen (BS ’96). “It will be an honor to work with Dick as we vision and lead Lipscomb to new heights. Dick is both deeply thoughtful and incredibly strategic while being a humble servant to this community.”

Cowart, who has served on the board since 2011, was officially seated as the new board chair at the university’s quarterly board meeting on April 29. He will serve a two-year term as chair with the possibility of serving up to two additional terms.

“Dick Cowart’s experience, energy and talents will serve Lipscomb well for years to come. Dick and Becky have been strong supporters of Lipscomb and have already served in countless ways to support and drive the mission of Lipscomb,” said Mitch Edgeworth (BS ’95), vice chair of Lipscomb’s board and division president of HCA-TriStar Division. “Among Dick’s many leadership traits, his humility, communication style, organization and inclusiveness will be instrumental in leading Lipscomb into a strong future.”

Cowart said he looks forward to serving Lipscomb in this role and to continue building on the upward trajectory of the institution.

“Lipscomb University has a distinguished board and I am honored to serve as its representative. This is truly a great time for the university,” said Cowart.

“The Board of Trustees is extremely pleased

with Dr. McQueen’s leadership and her collaborative efforts in shaping a new vision for Lipscomb University. The board is fully engaged to work with her for a bright and bold future, and I look forward to serving in this capacity as together we seek to impact the lives of our students.”

Since 1995, Cowart has led the health law and public policy department at Baker Donelson, which is regarded as one of the premiere health law practices in the country. It has been nationally ranked by Modern Health Care, Chambers USA-America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, Health Lawyers News and other health care publications.

He is a recognized authority in advising senior management regarding policy, regulatory and business issues related to health care. He serves as strategic counsel to health care companies and advises providers on business, policy and governance issues, with an emphasis on business transactions.

Cowart has received numerous recognitions and awards for his civic and community service, including the National Association for Community Service’s Distinguished Community Leadership Award and the NASBA Center for Public Trust National Integrity Award. He has also received Lifetime Service Awards from the American Heart Association, the Andrew Jackson Foundation, the American Health Lawyers Association and the University of Southern Mississippi Alumni Association.

Cowart holds a professional accountancy degree from the University of Southern Mississippi and a Juris Doctor from the University of Mississippi School of Law. Cowart and his wife, Becky, have three daughters, Claire Cowart Haltom, a Baker Donelson shareholder; Christine Cowart French (LA ’01) a Lipscomb Academy alumna and owner of Provisions Kitchen; and Carrie

Cowart-Johnson (BA ’19, MBA ’20), a real estate portfolio manager with the State of Tennessee; and three grandsons, Houston Haltom, and Cale and Dallas French. Outgoing chair’s leadership will have lasting impact

Cowart succeeded David Solomon (BS ’81), co-founder and managing director of Meritage Funds, who concluded his third six-year tenure as board chair.

From the time he moved into High Rise Residence Hall as a freshman in the fall of 1977, Lipscomb has been a presence in Solomon’s life. As a student, it was a place that shaped his faith and prepared him for a career. Then for the last 23 years, Solomon has given back to the place that has meant so much to him through his service as a member of the board.

“It has truly been an honor for me to serve an institution that has meant so much to me,” reflects Solomon. “It is a place that shaped me into the person I am today in profound ways, and it has been a privilege to be able to give something back and to help make an impact in the lives of our students.”

Among the highlights of university growth and accomplishments during Solomon’s tenure as chair are:

• All-time record enrollment in fall 2020

and the largest new student class in history in fall 2022.

• Being named one of the fastest-growing private, doctoral universities in the nation by the Chronicle of Higher Education.

• Completion of the Lipscomb LEADS campaign, the largest in university history, which raised $250 million.

• Receiving the largest gift in school history, $23 million, and the largest federal grant in history, $4.8 million.

• Construction of the George Shinn Center and a new parking garage; major expansion of Lipscomb Academy’s Brewer Campus and construction of the Solley School; and renovations of Elam Hall and Bennett Campus Center.

Even with his service as board chair at an end, Solomon says he and his wife, Rita (Burgess, BS ’81, MA ’15) will continue to be an enthusiastic supporter of the university and will be forever grateful for the impact Lipscomb has had on his life.

“I’m so grateful that my time at Lipscomb is what gave me the fire to be my best, gave me the motivation to be involved in my church and to have Christian friends,” he said. “That’s why I’ve always been enthusiastic about Lipscomb.”

Read more about Cowart at lipscomb.edu/cowart.

(l to r) David Solomon ( BS ’81), Candice McQueen (BS ’96), Richard Cowart

Women’s golf claims firstever ASUN championship

Lipscomb’s women’s golf team was crowned the ASUN champion for the first time in program history this past spring. In May, the team went on to compete at the NCAA Westfield Regional in Indiana, earning a 12th place finish.

The 2023 Bisons put together the best season the women’s golf program has ever seen. The squad broke nearly every record possible this season, including the most tournament wins in program history, season scoring average, program high national ranking, par or better rounds, finish percentage, team low round and low round vs. par, team low 36-hole total and team low 54-hole total.

“We are grateful for the opportunity to have played in the NCAA Regional,” said Head Coach Shannon O’Brien (MDiv ’20). “We have had a special season. I’m proud of the girls’ character and diligence. They have worked really hard, and gained great experience.”

At the NCAA regional, the Bisons were paired with Morehead State and the No. 8 Oregon Ducks for the final round and shot their best round of the tournament with a 296 (+8) in the third round. Ally Williams (BS ’23) was the leader of the day for the Bisons with a solid 72 (E), her best round of the tournament. Williams finished tied for 53rd with a 227 (+11).

In the ASUN championship tournament, the Bisons had 169 total pars over the three rounds which led the field. Sophomore Lauren Thompson was crowned the 2023 ASUN individual champion.

Baseball earns ticket to NCAA tournament as ASUN champs

In May, the Bison baseball team claimed the 2023 ASUN tournament championship, outscoring Florida Gulf Coast University 12 to 6 in the final game. The victory advanced the team to the 2023 NCAA baseball regionals, within a field of 64 teams to compete for the national title.

During the ASUN championship game, Alex Vergara, a junior from Colleyville, Texas, tied a conference record of three home runs en route to being named the tournament’s MVP. Vergara went 3-for4 with five RBIs and three bombs. Lipscomb hit ten homers as a team in DeLand and

tallied 16 hits which tied a season-high in the championship final.

The ASUN tournament win was the program’s third league banner and first since 2015. The Bisons started the year 5-13 but continued to battle, finishing 29-11 including an ASUN regular season and tournament title. The Bisons hit 109 homers this season.

Lipscomb gave No. 4 Clemson all they could handle for seven innings in game one of the NCAA Clemson Regional but could not hold off the Tigers, who scored five runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to win 12 to 5. In the double elimination regional, the Bisons exited the tournament with a 9 to 1 loss to Charlotte. Vergara was a unanimous choice for the NCAA Clemson Regional All-Tournament Team.

Despite falling short in the regional, Lipscomb had a historic season with several record-breaking performances, including most wins in the program ASUN regular season history, the program’s single-season home run record and the third NCAA regional appearance in school history.

Above: The women’s golf team was crowned the ASUN champions for the first time in program history this past spring.

Left: In May, the Bison baseball team claimed claimed the 2023 ASUN tournament championship.

Four coaches honored by ASUN for the 2022-23 season

Lipscomb Athletics enjoyed recordsetting success this school year with four coaches honored as ASUN Coaches of the Year.

“Lipscomb has a history of outstanding coaches and these four—Charles Morrow (BS ’97), Nick Polk (MBA ’23), Shannon O’Brien (MDiv ’20) and Jeff Forehand continue to build on that,” said Athletics Director Philip Hutcheson (BA ’90). “We use the phrase ‘Highest level. Higher calling.’ a lot around here. And the best part about all four of these coaches is that they embody both parts of this vision. They have earned this honor thanks to their outstanding results in competition, but even more importantly, they are making an eternal difference with our student athletes through their daily investments in their lives.”

During his 18-season tenure at Lipscomb, men’s soccer coach Morrow has been named ASUN Coach of the Year twice previously, has won three ASUN tournaments and led the Bisons to the first three NCAA tournament appearances in program history, including a run to the Sweet 16 in 2018.

The Lipscomb men’s soccer coaching staff was also named the 2022 United Soccer Coaches Staff of the Year this past season. “We challenge all of our guys to come in and leave the jersey in a better place,” says Morrow, “and leave your mark on the program.”

In October 2022, Polk, director of track and field and cross country, was named the 2022 ASUN Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year.

This past fall, the women’s cross country team claimed its ninth conference title with a total of 35 points. Eight members of the women’s program earned spots on ASUN AllConference teams. Between cross country and indoor track and field, Polk helped Lipscomb earn 52 ASUN postseason honors.

Polk has produced Lipscomb’s first two Division 1 All-Americans in any sport, three consecutive NCAA Division 1 cross country championship individual qualifiers and coached two Lipscomb athletes to sub-4-minute miles.

Lipscomb’s own Cinderella story in 2022-23 was O’Brien, named women’s golf head coach in June. She had only one year of assistant coaching with women’s golf before leading this year’s team on an interim basis. But that didn’t stop her coaching the team to its first ASUN

championship and first appearance in the NCAA regional tournament.

Previously, O’Brien spent seven years on staff as the athletics director of women’s spiritual formation and as an assistant coach for women’s soccer team, which included a focus on developing goalkeepers. In that time, three Bison goalkeepers have earned ASUN standout achievements, including four ASUN Goalkeeper of the Year awards and an ASUN tournament MVP award. Two goalkeepers she coached went on to play professionally.

After becoming the first Lipscomb baseball coach in history to earn the award last season, Coach Forehand brought home the ASUN Coach of the Year honor again this past spring. He led the Bisons to a 33-22 regular season record and a 23-7 mark in conference play, the best ASUN record in program history, as the Bisons were crowned 2023 regular season champions. The Bisons won every ASUN series and went a perfect 7-0 in series on their home field.

Throughout his 15 years as coach, Forehand has racked up over 600 collegiate wins and sits as the winningest skipper in the program’s NCAA era with a 440-440 record. During his tenure, Forehand has led the Bisons to three ASUN championships and three NCAA tournament appearances in program history in 2008, 2015 and 2023.

(l to r) Jeff Forehand, Charles Morrow (BS ’97), Shannon O’Brien (MDiv ’20), Nick Polk

Lydia Miller competes in NCAA national championships

In June, Lydia Miller, junior from Ohio, earned an Honorable Mention AllAmerican distinction at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, as she clocked a 16:14.55 in the 5,000m run to cross the line 19th overall in her first trip to the national stage. Her time was just under 23 seconds off her personal best time of 15:52:20.

Miller’s showing concludes an outdoor track season in which she earned the 2023 ASUN Outdoor Track & Field 5,000m Runner Up title, finished sixth at the ASUN championships in the 1,500m run, earned personal bests in the 800m, 1,500m, and 5,000m run, and collected six top-10 finishes.

This is the third consecutive year that a Lipscomb track and field athlete

has competed in the national NCAA championships. Overall the women’s track team has broken 13 program records across their indoor and outdoor seasons this year.

The number of athletes the women’s team sent to the NCAA preliminary round–Colbi Borland, Liza Corso, Kiara Carter, Aislinn McElhaney, Bella Jackson and Miller–stands as the most athletes from either the men’s or women’s team in program history. Combined with the presence of Austin Remick from the men’s team, this season marks the highest number of athletes the Bisons have ever sent to the NCAA preliminaries from both programs.

Miller also made university history as the first student athlete to qualify for two NCAA championships in a school year as she also earned a trip to the 2022 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships in November.

Weight room improvements funded through Giving Day generosity

The 2023 Giving Day was a huge success with Lipscomb Athletics surpassing its goal to raise $500,000 during the 24-hour social media campaign to fund a renovation and update of the athletics weight room.

Lipscomb Athletics saw 1,252 unique donors and raised $529,562. That amount is 25% of the fundraising campaign’s total $2.1 million dollars raised from 4,001 donors.

“Each year since Giving Day began, we’ve raised the bar for our Lipscomb community,” said Philip Hutcheson (BA ’90), athletics director. “Each year that group has cleared the higher-and-higher bar and elevated our programs in the process.”

Completely renovating the athletics weight room, which is 20 years old, will positively affect every student athlete who puts on the purple and gold, greatly benefiting the university’s efforts to attract, equip and retain great student athletes, said Hutcheson.

“The entire facility will have all new weight equipment. A new configuration of weight racks will allow many more athletes to use the facility at the same time in a much more efficient manner with some of the best equipment produced in this market,” said John Hudy (BA ’88), director of strength and conditioning. “All new dumbbells will go up in weight in 2.5-pound increments, and everything will have Lipscomb branding and colors.”

Giving Day campaigns over the last four years have funded the athletic department’s Fueling Station (a hub for providing healthy and high-performance nutrition), the Academic Success Center, the hydrotherapy room, upgrades to Allen Arena, a soccer scoreboard and other programenhancing improvements.

Lydia Miller

TODAY’S BISONS THE GULDENS ARE A CLASS ACT TIMES TWO.

Even if they didn’t look alike, you could tell that Noah (BBA ’22, MBA ’23) (right) and Scott Gulden (BBA ’22, MBA ’23) (left) are twins. They both graduated in 2021 with degrees in management, and then graduated in 2023 with MBAs. These brothers from Norway were both five-year starters on the men’s soccer team, and both played a major role in making the team a Top 10 program and a national name.

For multiple years, Noah and Scott shared captain responsibilities and both became decorated student athletes with accomplishments both on and off the pitch.

“Scott and Noah earned the respect of every student athlete they came across and every coach in the ASUN respected them for how they conducted themselves both on and off the field,” said men’s soccer coach Charles Morrow (BS ’97). “They are both extremely humble and represented Lipscomb in a classy manner during their five years in purple and gold.”

In June, Noah was named the ASUN Conference Male Student Athlete of the Year. That was just the latest of a string of

honors including ASUN Fall Winner for Life (honoring a campus citizen who demonstrates the ASUN core values), United Soccer Coaches First Team All-American and ASUN Defensive Player of the Year. Plus the 4.0 GPA student athlete was named to the ASUN All-Academic Team for four years straight.

Scott earned three ASUN Defensive Player of the Week Honors during his career at Lipscomb, as well as being named to the ASUN All-Freshman Team, the 2021 ASUN All-Conference First Team and the 2022 ASUN All-Academic Team, having earned a 3.8 GPA in his master’s studies.

“It’s rare to have athletes who are at the top both athletically and as leaders.” said Morrow.

“Scott and Noah were any coach’s dream and I think that the Guldens are the epitome of what it means to be a Lipscomb student athlete.”

Read more about the brothers at lipscomb.edu/guldens.

01 President Candice McQueen hosts a student panel for admitted students attending the Purple and Gold Day designed to give incoming students a more holistic picture of campus and academic life at Lipscomb.

02 The graduating nursing Class of 2023 lit candles at the annual pinning ceremony, which serves as their official initiation into the health care profession.

03 Goatfest, hosted by Sigma Iota Delta, includes inflatables, food, a concert and, of course, lots of goats on campus to cheer the students. The event raises funds for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

04 Lipscomb’s spring Fashion Week features a fashion show highlighting the works of fashion design students and especially honoring the 2023 graduating class.

05 In April, the university celebrated its newest class of Bison alumni with a Senior Send-Off celebration featuring food, fun, free T-shirts and a take-your-own photo booth.

06 Beautiful Day 2023 included grab-your-own picnic lunches for all interested students, continuing a long tradition of students relaxing, eating and socializing on the lawns around Bison Square.

07 May 2023 graduation saw almost 1,000 undergraduate and graduate students receive their degrees and head into the workforce. Among the milestones this year were the first cardiovascular perfusion graduates and a new firstgeneration student pinning ceremony.

08 Among the new events the Student Government Association coordinated this year was Student Formal, where students enjoyed a night of music and fun.

09 In the second year of the revived Beautiful Day this past spring, students were surprised by the class cancellation and enjoyed fair rides, a concert, a service opportunity and other fun activities.

10 The Class of 2023 gave a mural for the walls of Bennet Campus Center as their senior gift, selecting a student proposal to create campus life images in each letter of the university’s name.

BISONS GRAZE AT TOP-NOTCH EATERIES

The Donut Den, owned by alumnus Norman Fox (BA ’68), has held a special place in the hearts of Lipscomb alums for 50 years.

FOX’S DONUT DEN HAS SATISFIED LIPSCOMB’S SWEET TOOTH FOR 50 YEARS

n Friday, June 2, Norman Fox (BA ’68) and his son, former Lipscomb Academy student Ted Fox, had an unusual day.

The first Friday in June, National Donut Day, is always a big day for Fox’s Donut Den, a beloved oldfashioned donut shop located about a mile from the Lipscomb campus. But 2023’s National Donut Day fell almost to the day on the shop’s 50th anniversary.

The Foxes decided to celebrate in a big way and offer half a dozen glazed donuts for 25 cents, the price charged on opening day in 1973. In preparation, Donut Den employees quadrupled the donut mix, making more than they have ever made before for one day’s sales.

But still, the showcase was empty of donuts by about 9 a.m. thanks to the huge customer response. Lines of customers waited for freshly baked donuts to emerge from the kitchen throughout the day and many took coupons to get their 25-cent half-dozen later in the year.

Over the past 50 years, Fox’s Donut Den has become a local landmark frequented by celebrities and community leaders and a go-to for wedding donuts or party-size Texas Donuts, but its roots are more humble and tied closely to Lipscomb, the university that Norman Fox and his wife, Barbara (BS ’70), graduated from and worked at for many years.

After teaching biology at Lipscomb Academy for four years, Norman was looking to go to graduate school at Vanderbilt University and was interested in a way to finance his future endeavors. He

sold Bibles for Southwestern Bible during the summer, and Herb Stewart, a fellow salesman who also owned a donut shop on the side, suggested that such a venture would be a good source of income.

Stewart taught Norman how to cook donuts, and in 1973, the Foxes established the Donut Den in the shops across Granny White Pike from campus (taking the former Pizzazz Pizza spot). They began selling a variety of donuts, reminiscent of donut shops of yesteryear.

Many a Lipscomb student will remember heading across the street to buy one of those donuts, whose flavors and recipes remain the same today: glazed, chocolate glazed, eclairs, maple, cinnamon, sprinkled and filled, donut holes, blueberry cake donuts, old-fashioned cake donuts, cinnamon rolls, turnovers and apple fritters (the shop’s most popular item).

“To this day, we pretty much make the same donuts that he taught us to make,” said Norman. “As long as we just keep doing what Herb said to do, we are doing good.”

In 1977, the Foxes had the opportunity to move the shop to Hillsboro Road, a more commercial area. For a while, they ran both locations, transporting donuts in a van over to the store adjacent to Lipscomb, but in the end, they gave up their Lipscomb spot to Pizza Perfect, and it was the Hillsboro store, with its neon sign, that became iconic.

The Donut Den sign dates back to pre-1970s, when it was used by Harlow’s Honey Fluff Donuts of Memphis, said Norman. Through connections, the Foxes

were able to acquire the sign, ship it from Memphis to Nashville and rework it to say Fox’s Donut Den to hang above their new location.

The sign has become so wellknown that when the landlord began renovating the shopping center, about 2005, he took a poll of the public to decide whether the historic sign should be changed or left in place. Leaving it in place won by a landslide, and the landlord refurbished it at his own expense, said Norman.

Over the years, there are some things that have changed in the little shop. The Donut Den now offers today’s popular pastry—the croissant donut, as well as muffins, breakfast sandwiches and other items. They began getting orders for weddings about 10 years ago, said Ted Fox. The “Texas Donut,” one donut big enough for parties, was originally made to allow customers to guess how much they weighed, but they were put on sale by an enterprising employee and became a hit.

“We’re always looking for a new thing, but mainly we’re still an oldfashioned donut shop,” said Norman. Along with the donuts, the connection to Lipscomb has also remained the same. He credits much of Donut Den’s success to Harold Graves (BA ’77), the shop’s longtime cook who started working there as a Lipscomb student.

Scores of Lipscomb students have worked as part-time employees at the shop, including many faculty’s children, some who went on to become Lipscomb faculty members, some who were secondgeneration Donut Den workers and several who were children of Lipscomb presidents.

In fact, Rachel Flatt, daughter of former Lipscomb President Steve Flatt (BA ’77) often helps her husband Ted Fox at the shop today. Abigail and Henry McQueen, Lipscomb students and children of current president Candice McQueen, have both also served customers at the shop.

The best part of a part-time job at the Donut Den is that “you learn to

deal with the public,” said Norman, and that’s his favorite part of the business as well: getting to know interesting people. From presidential candidates to movie stars, the Donut Den has satisfied the sweet tooth of many influential people throughout the years, he said.

All three of Norman and Barbara’s children—Ted, Tiffany Fox (LA ’96) and Tara Fox Finney (LA ’02) and their son-in-law Joseph Finney (LA ’02)— attended Lipscomb Academy and spent many hours working at the shop, even before they were tall enough to see over the register, said Ted.

Through the years Norman taught biology at the university and Barbara taught in the university’s computer science department as well as teaching in Nashville’s elementary schools.

So after 50 years of cooking oldfashioned donuts, which one is Norman’s favorite: the cherry turnover, he says, but it’s the apple fritters that “people are the most mad about when we are out of them,” chuckles Norman.

Ted Fox (left) works with his dad Norman Fox (BA ’68) (right) to operate the donut shop located about a mile from campus.

YOU CAN PULL UP TO THE TABLE AT EATERIES RUN BY LIPSCOMB BISONS ACROSS THE SOUTH

There are many things the Lipscomb Bison Herd has in common: love of God, sports, Starbucks, run-ins with those squirrels on campus, but apparently, one of the biggest commonalities is a love of food.

From hot chicken to barbecue, from donuts to cakes, from scratch-made fresh food to coffee (lots and lots of coffee), Lipscomb’s alumni are making their mark in the restaurant business near and far.

So the next time you head out for dinner or when your sweet tooth flares up, check out one of these selected eateries that are owned or operated by your fellow alumni.

Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint

Nashville and the Greater Nashville area; Birmingham, Alabama; Louisville, Kentucky; and Charleston, South Carolina

Hugh-Baby’s

BBQ & Burger Shop

Nashville and Charleston, South Carolina

In 2006, Patrick Martin (BS ’96) leased a 950-square-foot rustic shack in Nolensville and opened a small barbecue joint. A year after that, the restaurant moved into a bigger, better location across the way. Today, smoke from pit-cooked, whole hog barbecue pits wafts out of seven locations sprinkled across four states.

Martin has been featured in Southern Living, Bon Appétit and on the Food Channel. He has participated in the Big Apple Block Party, a famous New York City pig pickin’, numerous times.

Martin learned how to make whole hog smoked barbecue from the pitmasters at Thomas and Webb in Chester County in West Tennessee, during his early college days at Freed-Hardeman University, before finishing his degree at Lipscomb.

In that first Nolensville joint, everything from ordering food and keeping inventory to franchise taxes and the health department was new to Pat and his wife, Martha Ann (Neil) Martin (LA ’90, BS ’02), who became the de facto cashier, hostess, catering manager, bookkeeper—whatever was needed at the moment. Despite the learning curve, the couple stayed true to Pat’s determination to cook everything fresh and to cook the pork for 18-24 hours.

Building upon the success of Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint, Martin opened Hugh-Baby’s BBQ & Burger Shop in 2017 as a tribute to the small town barbecue and burger spots that dotted the mid-South of

Martin’s in downtown Nashville

Photo provided by Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint.

Patrick Martin (BS ‘96) (far right) and his wife Martha Ann Martin (LA ‘90, BS ‘02) (behind him) enjoy dinner with their family at Hugh Baby’s. Photo provided by Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint

his youth. Hugh-Baby’s menu covers all the classics, with burgers, Memphis-style pulled pork, hot dogs, fries and handspun shakes.

In 2022, Martin’s debut book was released, Life of Fire: Mastering the Arts of Pit-Cooked Barbecue, The Grill and The Smokehouse (Clarkson Potter). Through photography and detailed instruction, this procedural book is a must-have guide to open-fire cooking and West Tennessee-style barbecue, a tradition he’s spent a lifetime studying, teaching and celebrating.

Party Fowl

Nashville and the Greater Nashville area; Chattanooga; Destin, Florida

Party Fowl, a full-service hot chicken restaurant based in Nashville, may be the first restaurant that owes its name to a softball team.

Austin Smith (BA ’06), of Hermitage, Tennessee, and co-owner

Nick Jacobson played together on a community softball team (that includes several Lipscomb alumni) that Smith had named Party Fowl. For years they had joked about it being a great name for a roadside chicken joint, but Smith began to take it seriously and developed the idea into a successful chain that today sits at the forefront of the Nashville hot chicken craze.

The original Party Fowl restaurant opened on 8th Avenue in Nashville in 2014 and has since grown to five additional freestanding locations, most recently, in Destin, Florida.

While Smith seems to have found the recipe for success, he says he tested out others before finding his niche. He was always thinking about what he’d do next.

He changed his major five times at Lipscomb before he took an elective political science class with professor Dwight Tays. “There was something about the way I was able to connect with the way he taught,” Smith says. “I dove all the way in.”

After receiving his degree in political science, Smith worked on campaigns for former Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen and Rep. Van Hilleary, but eventually he returned to the restaurant business, an industry that had gotten into his blood when he worked as a server during college.

Fast forward to today, and Party Fowl’s Nashville International Airport location greets travelers to Music City, its Nissan Stadium locations feed fans at Titans games, and in 2020, FritoLay used its recipe in a limited-edition Nashville Hot Chicken chips campaign.

Smith’s goal was to create the first full-service hot chicken restaurant, putting everything Nashville loves under one roof: good food and drinks, good music, and the ability to watch games playing on multiple televisions.

This winning combination provides guests with a unique overall experience and Smith with the opportunity to continue dreaming of what’s next for his growing business.

Party Fowl owner Austin Smith (BA ’06) is still close to a group of 10 friends who lived in Sewell Hall, some of whom still play on the original Party Fowl softball team.

Puffy Muffin

Brentwood, Tennessee

In the heart of Brentwood, just south of Nashville, there’s a place where iconic Southern food meets genuine hospitality. Puffy Muffin, the beloved local eatery and bakery, serves delicious meals with a side of warmth and connection.

At the helm of this successful family business is Kristi Stone (BS ’95), CEO and principal owner, who took over operations of the family business in 2016. Her accounting background, combined with core values and an entrepreneurial spirit that were the starter for the business her mother grew from her home kitchen, has raised Puffy Muffin to new heights. Today the business is more profitable and busier than ever.

Puffy Muffin had a humble beginning in 1986 when Kristi’s mother, Lynda Stone (MA ’12), encouraged by friends and neighbors, began selling homemade sourdough bread from home. Her husband, Jack, (BS ’67), had a career of his own yet supported the business in his spare time, and Kristi and her sister, Ali Stone Burns (LA ’92), teenagers at the time, made deliveries after school.

Thirteen years later, in 1999, Puffy Muffin celebrated its first $1 million in sales and today staffs about 150 employees to serve the thriving business.

Specializing in wedding cakes and timeless classics like chicken salad, cranberry congealed salad, quiche, molasses cookies and ginger tea, the restaurant’s bakery and counter goods account for about half of its yearly sales with about 10 percent from delivery and catering. The remaining 40 percent of yearly sales are from breakfast and lunch served Monday through Saturday and brunch on Sunday.

Stone credits her solid foundation in financial management to her experience as a CPA and her time as a Lipscomb student learning from legendary accounting professor Axel Swang.

“Money is not my biggest motivator,” she asserts and emphasizes that her vision for Puffy Muffin goes beyond profit.

“While we are a for-profit organization, it’s creating connection and making a positive impact in the lives of others through genuine hospitality and delicious food that is our day-to day-focus and at the heart of what we do.”

Are you a Bison who owns a restaurant or eaterie? Contact the Office of Alumni Relations at alumni@lipscomb.edu. We’d love to tell your story to the Bison Herd!

Learn more about Bison-owned restaurants and coffee shops at lipscomb.edu/eateries

Kristi Stone’s (BS ’95) degree and background in accounting has influenced her strategic approach to running Puffy Muffin. Like her father, she was a student of the legendary accounting professor Axel Swang. Photos submitted by Puffy Muffin.

LIPSCOMB ALUMS SERVE UP MORE THAN CAFFEINE AT COFFEE SHOPS

Over the past two decades, Bison alumni have jumped into the crowded coffee market. Lipscomb’s coffee purveyors, however, are infused with the Christian love brewed on campus, and they stand out by serving up much more that caffeine-packed beverages. These coffee shops are also fueling community, economic rebirth, artistic expression, and in some cases, such as The Well Coffeehouse, with six locations in Nashville and Indiana, fueling financial support to humanitarian efforts. In fact, The Well’s co-founder Rob Touchstone (BA ’97, MDiv ’12) joined Lipscomb’s faculty in 2015 and continues to inspire new coffee entrepreneurs, and faithful, purposedriven Christian adults, today.

All People Coffee & Beverage Hall

Nashville

Until All People Coffee came along in December 2021, historic Cleveland Park in East Nashville was a “coffee desert.” So said Bradley Bruce (MHA ’21) (pictured above) at Lipscomb’s annual pitch competition in spring 2021 (where he placed second). Sparked by the divisiveness of the year 2020, he and his partner Corey Alexander designed the coffee shop to be a community gathering place in the neighborhood where Bruce lives, hosting events and partnering with schools and churches. Coffee and beverages are locally sourced and the owners encourage people to just hang out. An artist cooperative has been born within the shop, there are poetry and live music nights and local students have learned how to make a latte. The shop offers a variety of traditional espresso-based coffees, bagels and breakfast bites and the fan-favorite blue matcha latte.

Belltower Coffee and Studio

Memphis

Childhood and college buddies Micah Dempsey (A ’17) and Chris Galbreath (A ’17) got a bright idea in their youth to open a combo coffee shop and pottery studio. While studying at Lipscomb they decided to go ahead and take the plunge, even before they both turned 21. Six years later, Belltower Coffee and Studio now operates a full service restaurant seven days a week, a community and teaching studio for the Memphis community and a full-scale pottery production facility that sells custom work to companies all across the U.S.

House Blend Dickson

According to The Tennessean, Jeremy (A ’98) and Holly Spencer’s (BA ’99) House Blend cleared the path for a rebirth of Dickson’s downtown area when, they opened their business 21 years ago. In addition to being a full-service espresso bar, the shop also serves sandwiches, soups, salads and a variety of baked goods all made from scratch with original recipes. Catering has also become a huge part of the business as well as an eclectic gift selection located in the coffeehouse, with a sister location, both located and named, Two Doors Down. The Spencers want everyone who enters to feel welcome and a part of their community. They strive to truly love their customers, to know them as people and learn their story, not just as customers.

Just Love Coffee Café

56 locations in 16 states

Inspired by the process of adopting two children from Ethiopia— Tigist and Amelie—Rob (BA ’96) (above right) and Emily (Estes) Webb (LA ’90, BA ’94) founded Just Love Roasters, which hand roasts coffee beans, as a for-profit venture to help families offset the expensive costs of adopting children. The Webbs had great success in their first year and hired Jason Smith (BA ’95) (above left), as roastmaster and expanded to a larger warehouse in Murfreesboro. The smell of the coffee roasting kept luring people to the warehouse hunting for coffee, so the team decided to create Just Love Coffee Café at the site. Today, Just Love Coffee is serving specialty coffee and an all waffle-iron-based menu at 56 locations in 16 states, and still has a thriving fundraising program.

Photo provided by Just Love Coffee.

THE FUTURE IS COMING UP GRANOLA FOR SKIDMORE SISTERS

Lipscomb alumni’s success in the world of food looks like it isn’t stopping anytime soon. Today’s generation of Lipscomb students are just as eager to launch companies selling food, coffee or treats.

Among the most successful so far are sisters, Anna Belle (left) and Lila Mae Skidmore (right) from Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The pair began selling homemade gluten-free granola while still in high school and launched their business officially in June 2021.

Due to allergies, Anna Belle Skidmore, a senior education major and avid runner, is required to eat a gluten-free diet. “I was needing something to eat that was gluten-free, would work with my active running lifestyle, but would also taste good,” she said. “So we started experimenting with different ways to flavor granola. Every time we took our favorite flavors and turned them into new granola recipes, we said, ‘We Granola’d it!’ So that became our tagline!”

Today Granola’d (granolad.com) is continuing to sell farther afield through online purchases as well as in several stores in the Middle Tennessee area and at farmers markets and craft shows.

Anna Belle and Lila Mae, an incoming freshman, are sisters, built-in best friends and business partners who have been able to advance Granola’d while still in school thanks to the help of Lipscomb faculty and financial capital Anna Belle has won in several business pitch competitions in 2022.

Anna Belle went to her first meeting with Jeff Cohu, executive director of Lipscomb Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation, expecting him to give her a book to read. “Instead, he was so relational and has been so helpful. He knows a lot about the food industry and meets with me about once a week to talk about growth and connections,” she said.

With guidance from Cohu and other university support, Anna Belle won the Nashville Global Student Entrepreneur Awards competition, placed fourth in the Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization Global Conference and Pitch Competition and won Lipscomb’s own Kittrell Pitch competition.

Read more about the Skidmore sisters at lipscomb.edu/skidmore

RESOLVING CRISIS BY RESOLVING PAIN

FROM THE SECRET SERVICE AND THE FBI TO GOOGLE AND YOUTUBE, ADAM GRAHAM IS BRINGING COMPASSION TO THOSE SUFFERING FROM PSYCHOSIS

If there is one thing people say about Adam Graham (BS ’06, MS ’12), it’s that he is good in a crisis. In fact, the clinical mental health consultant has made an entire career out of dealing with crises and helping others in his community do the same.

It’s a specialty that has unfortunately become increasingly needed in the past decade. What started for Graham with one psychology elective in his freshman year at Lipscomb has become an expertise that local, state and federal agencies have called on time and again to help prevent and treat individuals’ acute mental health crises that could potentially turn into violence against themselves or others.

Graham’s work is far more in demand than most may think at first glance. In addition to law enforcement agencies, most major companies have threat management teams that provide an intentional response to resolve threats of violence from employees, strangers or others before anything happens, he said.

Over the past 50+ years, the nation’s response to crisis mental health care has moved from institutionalization to working closely with law enforcement, social workers and community servants to prevent or diffuse situations where individuals become homicidal, suicidal or experience a severe mental illness, Graham said.

Graham’s approach to resolving suicidal or violent crises frames the task as one of meaning and purpose.

“Crises force us to face the question, ‘What makes life worth living, even when it is unbelievably painful?’,” said Graham. “The mental health care industry currently emphasizes finding answers within: self-definition, self-expression and selfactualization, etc., and when the self is overcome by pain, this emphasis is not enough. Decades of trying to treat suicidality and violence with only medication, coping skills and locked rooms has not worked.

“The only way I know to honestly answer the question of what makes life worth living is a life that is not about us,” he continued. “I will go through pain for my family. I will endure hardship for the church that I love. I will work long hours because there is meaning in the work. I learned all of this from Jesus. Life is not about me or what I want at this moment, it’s so much bigger than that.”

How does this translate to crisis work?

Graham asks both individuals and now groups to ask the big questions of meaning and purpose, of what it means to live well.

“Adam has a servant heart for the underserved, those suffering from psychosis, poverty, homelessness, addiction and those who may be hopeless, alone, forgotten and despised,” said Melanie Morris (LA ’89, BS ’93), associate professor and clinical director in Lipscomb’s clinical mental health counseling program.

“He is also an expert in suicide and homicide prevention and seeks to make mental health and police services more compatible, compassionate and effective in their efforts to keep all people safe and healthy. He has made permanent improvements in Nashville toward these efforts.”

Since graduation, Graham’s career has progressed from on-site, one-on-one interaction with individual patients to now

working for a national company, TBD Solutions, which partners with organizations and governments to assist launching and improving crisis care systems for individuals. Along the way he has consulted for the FBI, Secret Service, local law enforcement, schools and the juvenile court system in mental health crisis management.

He discovered his skills for working through a crisis in his work as a case manager early in his career. He would provide care for patients with conditions such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder at their home. “I found that when they entered into a severe crisis while I was there, that being able to help in that very moment was really meaningful and engaging for me,” he said.

He enrolled in Lipscomb’s counseling program and took a job at Nashville’s Mental Health Cooperative with that in mind. Over the course of 13 years at the cooperative, Graham became a crisis counselor who was dispatched to on-site locations (such as hospitals, homes, workplaces or even on the side of the road), moved into management of the organization’s crisis units; and provided clinical and operational leadership to its Mobile Crisis Response Team.

Local and national law enforcement are seeing so many crisis situations involving mental health crises (such as threatened mass shootings or dangerous public behavior driven by severe mental illness) that Graham, through the cooperative, has partnered with the FBI (even on classified cases), conducting case reviews to determine the best way to diffuse a potential threat or provide treatment, or to train the FBI’s own officials to do the same.

In 2021, the cooperative established, and Graham helped develop, the Partners in Care program, where mental health workers ride along with Nashville law enforcement officials

to be present on-site during the first response to a crisis.

“If the primary driver of a person contemplating violence is a mental health crisis, then the care provider advises on the best way to get the individual connected to mental health care so that they no longer view violence as the best way to resolve their grievance,” explains Graham.

Graham was on-call with the FBI’s negotiation team during the 2016 Presidential Debate in Nashville to handle any threats of violence during the debate (there was one that did warrant health treatment and was deemed not legitimate). He also helped design and launch the cooperative’s Crisis Treatment Center, a new approach to providing 24-hour mental health services; and was part of the leadership response to the Covid-19 pandemic and its consequences.

Due to the cooperative’s partnership with the Metro Nashville Police Department and Metro Nashville Public Schools, there has been a decrease in the arrest numbers of children under 12, said Graham. Many such situations involve students in a mental health crisis who become violent, and officials were defaulting to arrest because they simply didn’t know what else to do, he explained.

After leaving the cooperative, Graham served as a consultant with various organizations including the forprofit companies Google and YouTube to implement threat response and mitigation plans informed by a mental health perspective.

“Of those who experience a mental health crisis, a very, very small percentage ever contemplate violence,” said Graham. “When these folks find themselves in that place, the best thing to do is to resolve their pain and help them find a life worth living.”

“LIFE IS NOT ABOUT ME OR WHAT I WANT AT THIS MOMENT, IT’S SO MUCH BIGGER THAN THAT.”

— ADAM GRAHAM

GOD SHINES THROUGH THE DARK IN SUN MOON

Above : Actor Justin Chien (left) and MacKenzie Mauzy (right) starred in Sun Moon , a popular film directed by alumna Sydney Tooley (MFA ’20).

Right : Tooley and Steve Taylor (MFA ’15), director of the School of Theatre and Cinematic Arts, work on the set of the $1.2 million picture.

Photo Credit Corbin Schmidt (MFA ‘22)

FOLLOWING GOD, THE MAPMAKER, LEADS ALUMNA TO TAIWAN AND SUCCESS ON PUREFLIX

In both life and her work, Sydney Tooley (MFA ’20) is all about grace, both giving herself and others a little grace, and shining a light on God’s grace.

The filmmaker enjoyed a moment this past May when her first film as a writer and director, Sun Moon, debuted exclusively on the Pure Flix streaming service and immediately became the No. 1 movie and the most watched movie in May on the platform.

Tooley wrote the movie while earning her master’s in Lipscomb’s film program and was mentored along the way by Lipscomb’s Steve Taylor (MFA ’15), director of the School of Theatre and Cinematic Arts, who encouraged her to develop the movie and helped her secure a deal to direct Sun Moon through Sony Pictures.

The film tells the story of Kelsey, a woman running from failure and heartbreak after being left at the altar, who moves to Taiwan to teach English.

“It’s a story about hope during the dark times where God is asking us to step out in faith and do intimidating things,” Tooley says. “The main character has to decide if she’ll follow the map that God has given her. She learns that having the faith to follow God as the mapmaker isn’t always the easiest choice, but ultimately He’ll lead you back to the things that are most important.”

Unsure if she could make it in the film industry, Tooley decided to move to Taiwan to be a missionary shortly after earning her undergraduate degree. She began

teaching English to students using movies and then started teaching film classes. She realized that God was leading her back to filmmaking.

Tooley enrolled at Lipscomb and Taylor took an interest in her stories about Taiwan, encouraging her to write them down. Her stories eventually turned into a movie set in Taiwan’s Sun Moon Lake district.

Tooley shot a teaser trailer on location in Taiwan in December 2020. Taylor used it to successfully pitch the film, with Tooley as the director, to Sony Pictures, which had just acquired Pure Flix as a subsidiary of Affirm Entertainment at the time. The movie budget jumped from $25,000 to $1.2 million, screenwriter Susan Issacs came on board to co-write with Tooley and professional actors were hired.

Work began in April 2021 with about half of the movie to be shot in Nashville first. Just as filming was set to begin in Taiwan, the nation experienced its first Covid-19 cases. Everything was put on hold for about eight months. Tooley didn’t give up on the project and was able to secure work visas to begin filming in Taiwan in early 2022.

Sun Moon was produced by Taylor, in collaboration with Lipscomb’s cinematic arts program and the university’s Imagine House production company. The production employed more than 40 current and former Lipscomb film students, some who traveled to film on location in Taiwan.

THE SIGHTS AND SOUNDS OF LIPSCOMB MUSIC

A

OF

PROFESSIONAL MUSICIANS AT LOCAL VENUES, STREAMING ONLINE AND DOWNLOADABLE TO DIGITAL DEVICES THROUGHOUT THE CITY AND BEYOND.

Cody Fry

In 2022, a group of Lipscomb musicians were among those seen in Cody Fry’s “I Hear A Symphony,” a video for a 2017 song that suddenly went viral on Tik Tok (lipscomb.edu/codyfry), rising to No. 2 on the U.S. Viral 50 chart and to the top ten on the Global Viral 50, charting in dozens of countries all over the world. Fry went on that same year to be nominated for a Grammy for Best Arrangements, Instrumental and Vocals for his cover of “Eleanor Rigby.”

Colton Dixon

Dixon, a singer-songwriter and musician who has produced three No. 1 albums on Billboard’s chart of the best performing Christian albums, collaborated with student Luke Snyder (BA ’22) and Assistant Professor Ben Blasko, on the string track of the song “Canvas.” Listen to everything after the bridge to hear Synder’s composition.

Sanctuary

Lipscomb’s worship music vocal group, Sanctuary, released a seven-song EP, Go Light Your World, in fall 2022. The songs were recorded in spring 2022 in Lipscomb’s Sound Emporium studio, the same studio where greats such as Kenny Rogers, Johnny Cash, John Denver, Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood and Taylor Swift have recorded music since it was built in 1969.

The Gospel Choir

The Gospel Choir released its first single “Alright,” on Jan. 13. A 2022 video of the choir’s impromptu version of the song, sung in a Raising Cane’s restaurant in Houston, received 2 million views on Instagram and 3.5 million views on Twitter in less than four days.

School of Music

Whether it’s Bison Beats you crave or music by Lipscomb’s music industry professionals who serve as faculty, from the songs of this year’s first Lipscomb Palooza concert to timeless worship mixes, the Lipscomb School of Music Spotify channel has everything you could want, with hours of music to bring harmony to your day.

And for a taste of the prestigious Lipscomb music faculty…

True Tunes

John J. Thompson, music industry veteran, artist and director of music industry studies at Lipscomb’s School of Music, is the creator and host of the True Tunes podcast, a digital venue to champion, challenge and celebrate faith-fueled art and artists.

The podcast features a diverse panel of artists, songwriters, producers, and industry innovators in conversation about music, film, books and other cultural expressions that resonate on both creative and spiritual levels, striving to unweave the mysterious and frustrating intersection between modern music and faith.

THE 2022-23 SCHOOL YEAR BROUGHT

CHORUS

LIPSCOMB STUDENT VOICES JOINING

Microhome built by students will have a macro impact

Every fall brings a new group of freshmen in the Introduction to Engineering course, and every year the freshmen do a lot more in their very first course than simply crack textbooks in the classroom to learn the fundamentals of engineering design.

In the fall of 2022, 14 students in one mechanical engineering section built a microhome, a tiny 12-foot by 7-foot structure that is now in use by Second Chance Ministries in Hurricane Mills, to temporarily house displaced people or those in short-term crisis.

The students spent their weekly lab time throughout the semester constructing the tiny home that can be powered by either the utility grid or by solar power. Though tiny, the microhome project is the perfect size for new engineering majors to get hands-on experience applying

theory on a real-world scale, said David Elrod (BS ’77), dean of the Raymond B. Jones College of Engineering, who has been rolling up his sleeves to work with the students throughout the semester. All of the materials needed for the microhome were donated by Thomas Lumber Company in Clarksville, the family business of Brandon Thomas (BS ’15, MBA ’17), a mechanical engineering alumnus.

The microhome project is a typical example of the service-oriented, real-world projects incorporated into all Intro to Engineering sections intended to teach students about the engineering design process.

Read more about this project at lipscomb.edu/microhome

OVERFLOWING WITH LIVING WATER

Healing Hands (hhi), a Nashville nonprofit that aids, equips and empowers those in need around the world, was born right here on the Lipscomb campus in 1991 when thenbusiness faculty Randy Steger challenged his marketing students to create a marketing and business plan for a humanitarian effort. The students decided to collect and send medical supplies to Eastern Europe, and it wasn’t long before the fruits of the students’ labor outgrew the classroom where they were storing donations.

As part of the project, the students researched the needs and presented them to hospitals, doctors, pharmaceutical companies and other potential donors by organizing in-person informational presentations, designing brochures and creating videos.

Craig Chumley (BA ’93), one of 20 students in Steger’s class, said in a 2007 article: “I spent most Sundays speaking to various adult classes throughout the local Nashville church community.”

HEALING HANDS INTERNATIONAL HAS BEEN OVERFLOWING ITS CONFINES WITH CHRISTIAN LOVE AND SERVICE SINCE BEFORE IT WAS EVEN ESTABLISHED.

HHI, a 30-year-old nonprofit with roots sprung from Lipscomb’s classrooms, engages churches of Christ each year in collecting items for children living in poverty. The donations are shipped in cardboard M.A.G.I. Project boxes.

By the spring semester, Steger was stashing donations on the stage of Collins Alumni Auditorium, but the response outgrew that storage plan as well. So Steger got permission to have a couple of trailers brought to campus parking lots. He also got permission for students to spend their chapel time moving all the medical supplies and equipment into the trailers, a task that was captured in a photo still displayed at today’s hhi headquarters in Nashville.

According to The Tennessean in December 1991, the marketing class shipped more than $300,000 worth of medical supplies to Eastern Europe. The

project also lit a fire under Steger, who by 1993 had joined a group of local Nashvillians to incorporate Healing Hands International (www.hhi.org), modeled after the students’ plan.

“Projects are supposed to go through steps and end, but this one just wouldn’t go away,” said Steger, who joined the faculty in 1983 and doubled as professor in the College of Business and president of hhi until he retired from the nonprofit in 2012 and from Lipscomb in 2015.

“All the time I was going to people with special expertise at Lipscomb to ask for advice on what to do,” said Steger. “I used the science department to test water

filters. I was trying to learn about the nonprofit world, and Charles Frasier (BS ’66) gave me advice on accounting and taxes. The communications department helped me put together video tapes to promote the organization. The pre-med program provided medical expertise on what would be good supplies to collect. Dr. Phil Choate (BA ’69) volunteered a lot of his time. It was a little bit of everything. I really appreciate all the ways Lipscomb helped.”

In its youth, the organization worked through Church of Christ congregations to collect, ship and distribute medications, medical supplies and equipment, agricultural aids, school supplies and other

“PROJECTS ARE SUPPOSED TO GO THROUGH STEPS AND END, BUT THIS ONE JUST WOULDN’T GO AWAY.”

— RANDY STEGER

HHI’s Clean Water program provides water wells and water filtration systems for communities without access to safe drinking water. International photos provided by Healing Hands International.

items to the disadvantaged nations around the world.

Over time, it evolved into a force to empower communities to better themselves by providing trainings; sustainable sources of water, food and income; and disaster relief. Lipscomb alumni have been front and center in that evolution of Healing Hands from its beginning to today.

“If it wasn’t for Lipscomb, I’m pretty sure hhi wouldn’t exist,” said Joseph Smith (BS ’96), vice president of operations. Of the eight alumni currently on the organization’s U.S. staff, Smith is the one who has worked at the organization the longest, since 1999, when there were only four or five people on staff, he said.

In the beginning, hhi played a crucial role for churches of Christ, said Smith. Many congregations wanted to provide aid to the needy overseas, but the maze of shipping regulations and customs laws, and the expertise needed to send the right equipment or resources for a different culture and geographic environment was beyond their capability as individual churches. hhi learned how to fill that gap well, he said.

“The Church has a lot of good people in it, and they are all over the world, wanting to know what they can do to make a difference in someone’s life,” said Steger.

In one of the organization’s first projects, Smith and the late David Goolsby (A ’66), who became the nonprofit’s director of international agricultural development and relief, helped Manna International figure out the best way to ship a water well drilling rig to Ethiopia, by sourcing the parts in the U.S. and shipping it over piece by piece. So Healing Hands used what they learned in that experience to send more drilling equipment to other nations.

But then over time, the leaders saw a need to overflow again. Water wells began to need repairs, various societal conflicts arose which blocked the use of the water for everyone in the community and the changing economy and relief practices would discourage people from farming for their own sustainably, Smith said.

Over the years, the organization shifted to equipping and empowering communities to take care of their own equipment, to collaborate to govern the use of resources themselves, to utilize tried and true farming techniques their grandparents used and to establish their own small businesses that work for their particular community.

“We strive to help, but we want the communities to be sustainable,” said Smith, “and everything revolves around creating a better environment for sharing Christ. If we provide clean water to a community, but if we don’t introduce them to the living water, then we have missed an opportunity.”

Today hhi has five main programs:

The Clean Water program provides water wells and water filtration systems for communities without access to a source of safe water;

The Hunger to Harvest program equips communities to fight hunger through basic gardening techniques that can be used even in drought prone areas;

The Women of Hope program empowers women around the world through education, business training and microfinance;

The MAGI Project meets the physical needs of children living in poverty while sharing Jesus with their families and communities; and

The Disaster Relief program assists when tragedy hits and provides supplies to those in developing countries.

On Beautiful Day 2022, students packed 1,000 buckets full of necessities for HHI to distribute to Ukrainian refugees.

HHI’s Women of Hope program empowers women through business training and microfinance.

In 1992, students spent their chapel time packing containers full of medical supplies donated in response to marketing students’ campaigns.

Healing Hand’s connection to Lipscomb University has remained strong to this day, with around 40% of its U.S. staff in 2023 made up of Lipscomb alumni. In addition to Smith, the Nashville offices include:

• Chris Gingles (BS ’69), vice president of finance

• Scott Saunders (BA ’77), donor impact director

• Linda Brock (BS ’82), administrative assistant

• Angela H. Bell (BS ’98), administrative assistant, donor services

• Mark Jent (BS ’00, MBA ’09), MAGI Project director

• Grace Boucher (BSW ’21, MBA ’22), Women of Hope, donor and community coordinator

• Katia Hanger (BS ’22, MBA ’23), data analyst

Today’s hhi staff represents just a small fraction of the Lipscomb alumni and faculty who have helped make the organization effective over its 30 years. For example, Goolsby spent years teaching community leaders around the

world how to provide for their own needs through simple sustainable agriculture and survival gardening. Jake Birdwell (BS ’00) was part of a team conducting a financial assessment of the damages from the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka and India. Dr. James Parnell (BS ’06) collected medical equipment from hhi for the mission trips he leads to Baja, Mexico.

Burt Nowers (BS ’79), served as president of hhi from 2012 to 2016, and was a member of the board beginning in 2005. Then in 2017, he brought the international non-profit experience he gained at hhi back to his alma mater to serve as a CEO-in-Residence for the College of Business’ Center for Business as Mission.

“As Americans we have a huge impact everywhere we go. So we need to make sure it is a positive impact. Even with my business background, I probably didn’t appreciate all that until I went over to Healing Hands,” said Nowers.

On top of the countless alumni who have been involved in the organization’s efforts over the years, at least two

decades of students have visited the hhi warehouse on Service Days or other university-sponsored service opportunities. In 2022, the university revived Beautiful Day and offered a bevy of on-campus activities, including packing five-gallon buckets full of necessities for hhi to send to war-torn Ukraine.

The two newest Lipscomb alums to join the Healing Hands team, Boucher and Hanger, both came to their positions through the College of Business’ directed work experience program for MBA students.

During her internship, Hanger, who worked full time at hhi this past summer, became the leader of a project to implement a data collection and analytics process using the software platform mWater. She spent months learning the nuances of the software as well as learning about Healing Hands’ programs and processes to build and implement an efficient data protocol.

“I knew the successful implementation of mWater could change our organization and further our

Seven of the eight Lipscomb alumni currently working on HHI’s U.S. staff.

impact. That knowledge motivated me throughout the project,” she said.

Through surveys for each of the organization’s programs, Hanger created a more streamlined process for data collection and used the information to build interactive maps, digital tags for project sites, an easy way to see completed projects’ key performance indicators and dashboards with interactive charts, diagrams, photo mosaics, maps, calendars and selfupdates with new data.

“It’s hard to put into words the joy I feel getting to talk with people in other nations each day and to work together to further the work of the Kingdom. When I see messages from people in Kenya, Zimbabwe, Malawi, India and many other countries, I can’t help but smile,” she said.

Boucher was assigned as interim marketing coordinator for one semester in the fall. Then her internship was continued and she worked with the

Women of Hope program in the spring term. She ended up being hired as the donor-facing coordinator of the program.

Women of Hope is an entrepreneurship program that teaches women how to run a micro-business; how to pick products, to use materials they already have, set a budget, keep a ledger and price products, among other concepts, said Boucher. hhi also gives micro-loans and nurtures groups of women from the same village to pool their resources into a micro-business, she said.

“I love the focus on being sustainable,” said Boucher, who was first introduced to the nonprofit through a service field trip when she was a sophomore. “They do a great job of putting things in place to help people help themselves… Instead of handing things out, it is giving them a hand up. I love that focus on holistic development.”

It is a unique experience to be able to share a spiritual life with co-workers,

she said, noting the staff’s morning devotions togeter. “To be in a place where everyone has the same mission and the same goal has been really special,” she said.

Steger is proud to see the organization focused on sustainable impact and sustaining itself. Crafting an organization in a way that it survives beyond its initial driving force is a key concept in business, said the former marketing professor. From the beginning, he tried to bring successful business concepts to the operation of Healing Hands, he said.

“In business, you don’t want to just treat symptoms, you try to address the real problems,” said Steger. “People were drinking dirty water or were malnourished. So we started adding to our ministries in order to solve the root problems.”

“IF WE PROVIDE CLEAN WATER...BUT WE DON’T INTRODUCE THEM TO THE LIVING WATER, THEN WE HAVE MISSED AN OPPORTUNITY.”

— JOSEPH SMITH

Share your Healing Hands stories and memories with the Herd at lipscomb.edu/hhi.

Retired Lipscomb faculty Randy Steger (center) with Lipscomb student volunteers. Steger, founder of Healing Hands, doubled as a professor in the College of Business and president of HHI.

The Healing Hands warehouse has been a popular choice for students participating in the university’s annual QuestWeek and campus-wide Service Days, held for decades.

Why we give

BILLY & REBECCA LONG

Dr. Billy W. Long (BA ’69), biology major, and his wife, Rebecca (Holmes) (BA ’72), a chemistry major, both started their postbaccalaureate careers in biochemical research in the laboratories at the National Institutes of Health in Maryland. A Nobel laureate scientist supervised the lab where Rebecca worked. Billy’s digestive disease research led to an Ivy League professorship at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School.

And they both felt well-prepared for their work in such prestigious posts, thanks to their education at Lipscomb.

“Even though I was in a Nobel laureate’s lab, making presentations before Nobel prize winners, I felt like I had been prepared well,” said Rebecca. “I had spent time hands-on with cutting edge diagnostic equipment in Lipscomb’s labs. We got a lot of interaction with really well-trained professors, and that’s why we give to Lipscomb today We want the university to continue such excellence.”

Billy, a member of the Lipscomb University Board of Trustees, said that

biology professor Willis Owens (BA ’53) inspired him, a self-described “boy with a country education,” to get interested in research. After earning his medical degree at the University of Mississippi, Dr. Long jumped at the chance to do clinical research at the NIH labs because “I wanted to see how world-class people did research, and I wanted to see if I could do it.”

Rebecca spent the summer between her freshman and sophomore years as an intern at NASA when America first put a man on the moon in 1969. “I think my Lipscomb college transcript in chemistry and calculus made my internship possible,” said Rebecca.

She taught high school and college chemistry until choosing to focus on their family when the Longs returned to Billy’s home state of Mississippi to start his medical practice, G.I. Associates, in Jackson.

Now both retired, Billy and Rebecca Long have enjoyed seeing Lipscomb’s continued success in the sciences: the expansion of science labs, the addition of nursing and

pharmacy schools. They know Lipscomb health science students are prepared spiritually as well as academically.

“The faculty are such good influences and people of faith. At Lipscomb you get a sense that what is important in life is being transmitted,” said Rebecca. “When you are a student, you don’t realize how much you absorb just by being at the feet of people who are so wise and knowledgeable of the Bible.”

“During difficult times in our life, the people who have supported us were friends from college days at Lipscomb,” said Billy. “We trust these friendships will continue and encourage others to contribute to Lipscomb also.”

Read more about the Longs at lipscomb.edu/wwgive

“Even though I was in a Nobel laureate’s lab… I felt like I had been prepared well.”

Basketball. Concerts. Inflatables. Face Painting. Parade. Bison Pride. Connections. Memories.

These are just some of the things that happen during Bisons Weekend Nov. 10-11. Formerly known as Homecoming, Bisons Weekend has become the weekend of the year on Lipscomb’s campus. Whether you are coming in from out of state or you live just a few miles away, Bisons Weekend is the one weekend a year where Lipscomb alumni come to campus for a fun-filled, family weekend.

As our team prepares for this fun-filled weekend, everything is planned with YOU in mind. The weekend’s schedule features activities for everyone. Whether you can only come to a few events or stay for the entire weekend, you’re sure to find something that interests you! We are excited to welcome and honor the Class of 1973 for its 50th reunion. It is always a great time to hear stories from their time on campus as well as their reflections on all the ways God has blessed Lipscomb through the years.

Only have a few hours to give on Saturday? Let me make a suggestion! Come to campus on Saturday for our family-friendly Bisons Weekend chapel with a special appearance by the voice of Larry the Cucumber, alumnus and current parent Mike Nawrocki

Reach out to the Herd

You

(MFA ’19). After chapel, head out to Bison Square to enjoy some lunch, inflatables, face-painting and numerous tents featuring social clubs, student organizations and other exciting reunions. Once you have finished connecting with friends and current Lipscomb students, head over to Allen Arena and help cheer on the Bisons for the men’s basketball home-opener of the season.

And as a reminder—go ahead and save the date for Giving Day 2024 on Feb. 22! More than any other single fundraising initiative, Giving Day illustrates to the Lipscomb community that all gifts, no matter the size, make a significant difference in the lives of our students. In 2023, more than 4,000 Bisons gave more than $2.1 million during the 24-hour giving period to support students. Thank you to all who support our current students, and indeed, the worthy cause of Christian education.

Looking forward to seeing you soon at Bisons Weekend in November!

Stephanie Carroll Assistant Vice President for Annual Giving, Alumni and Parent Engagement LipscombAlumni

Lifelong Learning

Hooper Archives honor legacy of longtime history professor

Class Notes

At lipscomb.edu/classnotes you can post an update, share a photo, especially if it is your reunion year. For Bisons who have joined Golden Circle—that’s 50+ years since graduation—every year is a reunion year.

Submitted Bison Notes are edited for length, clarity, cultural sensitivity, or for any reason at the discretion of the editors of Lipscomb Now. Images that do not meet the quality standards necessary for printing cannot be included.

Degree abbreviations follow standard academic abbreviations except for: (LA), alumni of Lipscomb Academy; (GC), alumni who have completed a graduate certificate; and (A) non-degreed alumni.

1963 Lynn Muir Bennett (BA) of Abilene, Texas, is a retired librarian from Abilene Christian School and Abilene Independent School District.

Robert O. McCloy (BS) of Murfreesboro retired as head of school for Westbury Christian School in Houston, Texas.

In April, the Lipscomb community gathered in Beaman Library to recognize Robert E. Hooper (BA ’54) by naming the university’s archives in his honor.

As a leading historian of the Restoration Movement and the churches of Christ as well as Lipscomb University, Hooper has entrusted his books and papers to the library’s archives. Through a generous estate gift, he has also ensured that Lipscomb’s history will be preserved for future generations in the Robert E. Hooper Archives.

Hooper taught at Mars Hill Bible School in Florence, Alabama, and at Columbia Christian College in Portland, Oregon, before joining the Lipscomb faculty in 1960 as instructor in history. He served as chair of the department from 1962-1992, and although he retired from full-time teaching in 1998, he continued to teach part time until 2017.

As a young doctoral student Hooper said he spent much time in the Crisman Library, which preceded the Beaman Library, conducting research for his dissertation, “The Political and Educational Ideas of David Lipscomb.” Later in his career, he wrote the seminal biography of university founder David Lipscomb, Crying in the Wilderness, which was originally released in 1979 and a second edition released in 2011.

He is also author of Willard Collins: The People Person (1986); A Century of Memories: Centennial Celebration, David Lipscomb University, 1891-1991 (1992); A Distinct People: A History of Churches of Christ in the Twentieth Century (1993); and If Your Enemy Hungers, Feed Him: Church of Christ Missionaries in Japan, 1892-1970

1971 William Crump (BA) of Madison is the author of “The Christmas Encyclopedia, Fourth Edition,” released in December 2022.

1974 Leslie Parker (BA) of Novi, Mich., is a retired parole and probation officer for the Michigan Department of Corrections.

Margaret Turner Kiser (BS) of Independence, Ky,. is a retired public information manager for the Northern Kentucky Health Department.

1976 Peggy Nims (BA) of Glasgow, Ky., received the Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Environmental Education from the Kentucky Association for Environmental Education. She has spent almost thirty years as an educator, most recently with the American Cave Conservation Association.

1978 John Denton (BS) of Paducah, Ky., is an environmental coordinator for Waste Path Sanitary Landfill LLC.

Stephen D. Poss (BS) of Brentwood has been appointed as an American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine Diplomate.

1979 Charles Underwood Jr. (A, ’81) of Chicago, Ill., recently received the 40-year service award from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Customs and Border Protection.

1981 Ralph H. Draper (BA) of Houston, Texas, is executive director of the National Teachers Hall of Fame.

Col. Jonathan B. Hunter, U.S. Army retired, (BA) of Clarksville has been named operations director of the Fort Campbell Historical Foundation.

1984 Dwayne Ingram (BS) of Palm Coast, Fla., is the chief commercial officer for CutTime in St. Augustine.

1986 Dr. Jeffrey McKinley (BS) of McMinnville received the 2022 James R. Cole Heritage Award from the Tennessee Chiropractic Association, the state’s largest professional organization for chiropractors.

1987 Kimberly Marlin Bean (BA) of Brentwood received Smart Meetings Magazine’s 2022 Smart Women-Entrepreneur Award in August 2022. Since 2011, she has been an event strategist at her company, KBT Creative Support Services.

Mary Lee Merritt-Boyd (BS) of McMinnville is the principal of Coalmont Elementary in Grundy County Schools.

Danny Wilson (BS) of Dalton, Ga., is the assistant head coach and defensive coordinator for Chattooga Indians football at Chattooga High School.

1988 Michael Clark (BS) of Madison is a math teacher at John Overton High School.

1990 Susan Arnold (BS) of Wynne, Ark., is a teacher at Wynne Intermediate School.

Vince Malone (BA) of Nashville has been named chief of staff and administration at WeGo Public Transit.

Don’t

Signature Series.

Presidential Lectureship on Art featuring Abraham Cruzvillegas

September 11, 2023

Carroll

Don R. Elliott Distinguished Presidential Lecture featuring Daniel Pink November 9, 2023

McClure Lecture on Faith and Science featuring Sandra Richter

April 11, 2024

1991 David French (BA) of Franklin joined The New York Times as an opinion columnist in January.

1992 Paula Greenhagen (BA) of Grottoes, Va., is the new human resources director of Rockingham County.

Melany McDermott (BA) of LaVergne, an English learner teacher with Metro Nashville Public Schools, received the Professional Educators of Tennessee Teacher of the Year Award during the organization’s Leader U Conference on June 7.

1993 Dr. Brent Fry (BA) of Knoxville recently celebrated 20 years of his Premier Eyecare practice.

Jason Stephens (BS) of Kitts Hill, Ohio, was elected speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives.

1994 Wendy Stacy (BS) of Murfreesboro is the owner of Wendy Stacy Insurance Agency.

1995 Leigh Williams (BA) of Nolensville is the executive director of the Williamson Medical Center Foundation.

1996 Brittany Mixon (BA) of Pace, Fla., is a financial aid associate for the Tennessee Board of Regents.

1997 Julie Underwood Orantes (BS) of Murfreesboro is the chief financial officer for Peachtree Planning LLC, a financial planning and wealth management firm in Brentwood.

Irina Yablonovskaya Stevens (BS) of Columbia, S.C., is a project manager at Colite International.

1998 Andy Blackston (BS) of Franklin was named the 2023 Don Meyer D-II Class 2AA Coach of the Year. He is the varsity boys basketball coach at Brentwood Academy. His team also won the 2023 D-II Class 2AA State Championship.

Deborah Watts (BS, MBA ’00) of Brentwood has been named faculty and executive director of graduate education at the University of Tennessee Haslam College of Business. In addition, Watts will continue to serve as CEO of Hayde and Company, a talent optimization consulting firm.

2000 Susan Qualls Harris (BS) of Smyrna is a financial analyst with Middle Tennessee State University.

Janice Hicks (BS) of South Pasadena, Calif., is a corporate contracts administrator for Lendlease in Los Angeles, Calif.

Allen Sharp (BS) of Cullman, Ala., is the head coach of women’s basketball at Wallace State Community College.

2001 Luke Tenery (BS) of Oak Brook, Ill., graduated in December 2022 with an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

2002 Peter E. Deming (BS) of Franklin has been named senior vice president and senior wealth and tax strategist for Truxton Trust Company. Eric Hennessee (BS) of Manchester serves as the chief of staff for Rutherford County Mayor Joe Carr.

2003 BJ Burns (BS) and William Gant (BS), both of Nashville, turned their Complete Developer Podcast into the business, Complete Developer Network, to provide training, coaching and resources for software developers looking to advance their careers.

Samuel McElroy (BS) of Savannah, Ga., is an internal medicine physician at Memorial University Medical Center.

2006 Kevin Green (BS) of Knoxville is the owner of Chef Kevin Culinary’s personal chef services.

2007 Kristin Baese (MEd ’13) and Jon Baese (BS ’06) welcomed son Griffin Clark Baese on March 11.

Lawrence Johnson (BA) of White House is a financial relationship consultant with Regions Bank in Goodlettsville.

Beth (Burress) Smith (BSN) of Nashville completed her MSN at Vanderbilt University and works as a pediatric nurse practitioner at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt Medical Center.

Ryan Walker (BSN) of Nashville completed his MSN at the Middle Tennessee School of Anesthesia and works as a CRNA at Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital Midtown Obstetrics.

BISON WINS

Dr. Scott Huitink (MBA ’23), a pediatrician and co-owner of Compass Pediatrics in Gallatin was selected as Tennessee’s 2023 Small Business Person of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration. He co-founded the clinic in 2019 as a mission to serve, educate and advocate for patients in his local community of Sumner County. He earned his Lipscomb MBA so he could better overcome obstacles in the medical field through strong business practices.

Read more about Huitink at lipscomb.edu/huitink.

YOUR FELLOW ALUMNI

‘LIFE’ HAS NEW MEANING FOR ALUMNA AT PRISON OUTREACH MINISTRY

For Mt. Juliet-native Reisha Kidd (BSW ’15), the word “life” took on a new definition during her time as a student at Lipscomb when she participated in the LIFE program, the Lipscomb Initiative For Education program that sends traditional students into the local women’s prison to study side-by-side with the residents.

After graduation, the concept of a meaningful, fulfilling life took on another meaning for her as she found herself in a toxic marriage resulting in a brief period of homelessness and a fight for the custody of her daughter.

After returning to Nashville, to her family and her social work roots, now “life” has evolved to take on new significance as she works as a case manager for Tennessee Prison Outreach Ministry (TPOM), a local nonprofit that provides housing and wraparound services for people who are leaving incarceration. TPOM provides counseling, spiritual direction, case management, mentorship, life skills classes and enrichment programs for family members, among other services.

Just as her former college mentors, including social work Associate Professor Cayce Watson (BSW ’99), retired Dean Norma Burgess, communications manager Janel Smith (LA ’89) and advancement communication director Rhonda Minton, provided support and encouragement during her time rebuilding her life in Nashville, now she strives to provide that support and encouragement to the formerly incarcerated.

From the time she became close with individual women in the LIFE program (whom they call “inside students”) and throughout internships with Project Return, which also helps individuals coming out of incarceration, and the Tennessee Department of Corrections, she became convinced that this population “is the ultimate story of redemption.”

“It’s hard work, but it’s heart work,” said Kidd. “What drives me every morning to come in, is that I absolutely love this population. I see it as a massive miracle, to see the true hands and feet of Jesus in the world. That’s what drives me to get up every day and serve the ministry like I do.”

Read more about Reisha at lipscomb.edu/kidd

Three generations of one family earned Lipscomb degrees in May

2008 Casey Hall (BSN), of Los Angeles, Calif., completed her MSN in leadership and management at Western Governors University and is working as an assistant nurse manager at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. She and husband Chaz Inouye welcomed daughter Zoey Kate in September 2022.

Laura (Hitchcock) Stiles (BSN) completed her MSN at Belmont University and joined the faculty of Galen College of Nursing in January.

Brandy Tatum (BBA/Macc) of LaVergne is an associate database administrator at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

2009 Amie Vague (BA) of Birmingham, Ala., has been named a partner at Lightfoot, Franklin & White LLC.

Most families attending May’s commencement ceremonies were celebrating the accomplishment of one family member. The Williams family arrived on campus to celebrate four, all earning advanced degrees, and three from different generations.

Forrestine White Williams received her Master of Divinity; her daughter Shameka D. Williams received a Master of Education, and her granddaughters Kyrionna M. Golliday and Kristen Alexandrea Williams both earned a Master of Science in biomolecular science.

Between the four of them, they have now earned 11 college degrees from various universities.

The grandmother of the family, Forrestine, 71, received her fourth college degree 47 years after earning her first at Tennessee State University in 1976. She hopes to use her degree to serve children and better their lives. “I had a strong, lingering desire to pursue an education that would enable me to grow in spiritual knowledge, wisdom and maturity and to serve humankind in what I consider to be an area of extreme need—violence and delinquency among youth,” she said.

Her daughter, Shameka Williams, 40, has a degree in psychology but began

to substitute teach as a working mother. The experience sparked her desire to earn her education masters. “It was a good experience. I enjoyed my rapport with teachers and serving children, so with my mother’s encouragement, I decided to make it my career,” she said.

Golliday, 26, and Alex Williams, 23, are both applying to medical schools. Golliday will pursue her M.D. and Ph.D. degrees in order to research and teach with a focus on better serving minority communities as an obstetrician gynecologist. Alex Williams will pursue her M.D. to become a primary care physician where she hopes to help solve many health inequalities by opening clinics to underserved neighborhoods.

“Without the support of our grandparents we would not be where we are today,” says Golliday. Alex Williams, who lives with her grandparents in Nashville, agrees. “Every morning before we leave the house we say a prayer,” she says. “Even if I’m only going down the street, we pray together. I see Christ moving in her life—He’s such a huge part of her life and who she is.”

Read more about the Williams family at lipscomb.edu/williams.

2011 Steve Nee (MBA) of Cookeville is CEO of Diversicare.

Dr. Bobby Rampp (BS) of Murfreesboro is an endocrine surgeon at Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford.

Brooke Baird Smith (BS) of Nolensville has been promoted to partner status with Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP in the Real Estate Practice Group.

2012 J. Douglas Stewart (EdD) of Nashville has been appointed lead educational specialist for the “Our Chance” Grant by the Tennessee Board of Regents.

Jaleeca R. Yancy (BS) of New York, N.Y., is a multidisciplinary artist whose work has been exhibited at Knowhere Art Gallery, The National Art Club, Bronx Art Space, Calabar Gallery and Superchief Gallery.

2013 Lauren (Swann) Brown (BSN) of Houston, Texas, was promoted to lead third-party coordinator as an in vitro fertilization nurse at CCRM Fertility of Houston. She is married to Brandon Brown. They have two children, Hayden and Paisley.

Carlina Cavelti-Jow (BSN) of Vancouver, BC, completed her MSN at the University of Calgary and works with HIV patients.

Shailer (Bowen) Netterville (BSN) of Nashville is a labor and delivery nurse at Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital Midtown.

2014 Alexandra (Rapacz) Barrie (BSN), of Seattle, Wash., completed a master’s at Gonzaga University and works as a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner at Seattle Children’s Hospital and in private practice. She is married to Ryan Barrie, and they have two children, Avery and Juliet.

Courtney Dalton (BA/BBA/Macc) of Hixson is the assistant chief financial officer for Parkridge Health System.

ACCOMPLISHED PIANIST INSTILLS LOVE OF MUSIC IN FUTURE GENERATIONS

Generations of Lipscomb students know Janet McMahan (LA ’69, BS ’75) as a piano teacher and the daughter of Sue McMahan, who taught at Lipscomb Academy for more than 25 years.

But they may not know that she has performed on the Grand Ole Opry tour, toured internationally with Roy Orbison, co-wrote a song recorded by Big Bird, worked as a vocalist for John Denver and co-wrote a show for Dolly Parton’s Dollywood.

McMahan is an accomplished musician, singer, writer, composer, producer of children’s music and actor who has worked as a professional pianist since she was 16 years old. She is also a compassionate volunteer whose musical talents bring joy to retirement centers, homeless shelters and similar venues.

“Music has always been a joy for me and at Lipscomb I felt the comfort of being in a Christian environment where we would go to chapel and sing hymns together,” McMahan says. “In college I was able to play in groups and perform a lot. It prepared me to make a living in the real world.”

She has certainly fulfilled that goal, having worked for famous artists such as Carrie Underwood, Steve Winwood, Shirley Jones, Sandi Patti, Kathie Lee Gifford and Michael Crawford. She has also sung jingles for McDonald’s, Target and General Tire.

To pay that gift forward, McMahan set up a fund through estate planning, called the Charles and Sue McMahan Endowed Scholarship, to honor her parents who sacrificed so much to send her to Lipscomb. where she was prepared for a career in doing what she loved most, playing music.

McMahan was an American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) Award winner for 21 consecutive years and has worked on both Grammy and Dove award-winning projects. She has more than 1,200 compositions published, recorded and in print. Her song credits have been featured on network television programs and recorded by Patti, Sonny James and Lynn Anderson, as well as that famous yellow bird.

Read more about McMahan at at lipscomb.edu/mcmahan

YOUR FELLOW ALUMNI TAKING SAFETY INTO ACCOUNT

It’s not often that an accounting degree leads to the investigation of bank robberies, child abductions and organized crime, but that is the case for Jeff Dale (BS ’88), the university’s new chief of campus security.

As an undergraduate at then-David Lipscomb College, Dale’s academic advisor was now-retired Professor of Accounting Charles Frasier (BS ’66), who not only instilled in him the skills and insight needed to succeed in business for 14 years, but also entrusted his daughter to him. Julie Dale (LA ’87, A ’89), his wife, is now a registered nurse in Lipscomb University Health Services.

Dale also took away some food for thought from an FBI agent recruiting at a career fair.

“I never would have joined the FBI had I not met an FBI agent on this very campus in 1986,” Dale recalled. “That started my journey down that road, which eventually led to me becoming an FBI Special Agent.”

Leaving business for the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 2002, Dale investigated bank robberies, child abductions and organized criminal enterprises in Oregon. Later he was assigned to the Counterintelligence Division, espionage and technology transfer unit, in Washington D.C. and was a firearms, tactical and active shooter certified instructor and a sniper team leader for the Memphis Division FBI SWAT team.

He retired from the agency in October and arrived at Lipscomb in February. Since then, he has implemented a proactive versus a reactive patrolling approach, increased the presence of Nashville police officers on campus, implemented quarterly firearms training for campus officers and coordinated executive-level tabletop exercises and faculty- and staff-wide training on how to deal with an active shooter situation.

Read more about Dale at lipscomb.edu/dale

Andrea (Dolcini) Leaver (BSN, MM ’15) of Danville, Ind., works as an operating room nurse at Hendricks Regional Health.

Andrew Hunt (BBA) of Nashville is the strategic initiatives manager for the Tennessee College Access and Success Network.

Alisha Keig (MEd) of Nolensville is the director of diversity, equity and inclusion for the Association of Research Libraries.

Jessica Kraft (BSN) of Mason, Ohio, completed her MSN in psychiatry from The Ohio State University and works as a psychiatric nurse practitioner at Lindner Center of HOPE. She married Joel Kraz in June 2022. Andrea (Dolcini) Leaver (BSN) of Nashville works as an RN/throughput/charge nurse at Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital Midtown.

Keelie Parkey (MTS) of Unicoi has been promoted to director of public relations for Corporate Image, an integrated communications firm headquartered in Bristol.

2015 Corina Picchiottino (BSN) of Nashville completed an MSN with a specialty and works as a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner at Redefining Roots, an integrative mental health care practice she founded. She is president of the Tennessee chapter of the American Psychiatric Nursing Association.

Mekenzie (Brown) Pittard (BSN) of Nashville works as the infection prevention nurse coordinator at TriStar Summit Medical Center.

Noni (Major) Ray (BSN) of Nashville was promoted in January to RN manager in the cardiac decision unit and cardiac holding and recovery at Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital West. She is married to Hayden Ray. They have a daughter, Olive Louise Ray.

Robert N. Wallace Jr. (MEd) of Antioch serves as senior education advisor for Nashville Mayor John Cooper.

Burton Williams (EdD) of Brentwood is the chief executive officer of The Ayers Foundation.

2016 Allyson (Johnson) Bost (BSN) of Nashville completed her MSN at University of Alabama at Birmingham and works as a pediatric nurse practitioner in acute care in the pediatric emergency department at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt Medical Center.

Nhan Dihn (BSN) of Albuquerque, N.M., completed her DNP at Vanderbilt University in May 2022. Dihn has worked as a transplant nurse practitioner at the University of New Mexico Hospital since 2019.

Kaitlyn (Longo) LaRochelle (BSN) of Columbus, Ohio, works as a staff RN in the neonatal intensive care unit at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. She is married to Cody LaRochelle. They have two daughters, Isla and Wren (pictured).

Mariah Lester-Sway (BSN) of Albuquerque, N.M., is pursuing a DNP psychiatric mental health degree at Washburn University and works as a medical/surgical charge RN at Lovelace Women’s Hospital.

Rachel (Williams) Mounts (BSN) of Nashville works as an RN at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt Medical Center and is pursuing an MSN in pediatric primary care nursing practice at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Natalie Perry (BSN) of Nashville began working as an RN at the Frist Clinic at TriStar Centennial in November 2022.

Deniece Thomas (MA) of Mount Juliet was appointed by Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee as commissioner for the Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development.

Katie (Sullivan) Willmore (BSN) of Nashville works as an acute care nurse practitioner at TriStar Centennial Medical Center.

2017 Kayla Ford (BA) of Astoria, N.Y., is an associate chaplain at Northwell Health/North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, N.Y. Robert Glenn (BBA, MAcc ’18 ) of Brentwood is an audit manager for HCA.

BISON WINS

Susan Hernandez (BS ’90), health system chief nurse executive for the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, was honored as the recipient of Lipscomb’s Shining Light Award for the impact that she is making in the Dallas area and beyond.

Hernandez leads over 5,000 clinical care team members, including the nursing practice for approximately 3,500 nurses throughout two university hospitals and over 60 ambulatory clinics in the UT Southwestern Medical Center system.

Read more about Hernandez at lipscomb.edu/Hernandez.

2023 Faculty Retirements

Norma Burgess, associate provost of diversity, inclusion and special initiatives, came to Lipscomb in 2009 as the founding dean of the College of Arts & Sciences. Later in the Provost Office, she reviewed and developed diversity policies. In 2021, she was named a Woman of Influence by the Nashville Business Journal, honoring “women who have led the way for others to follow in their footsteps.”

Kent Clinger (MA ’03), professor of chemistry, retired after teaching 32 years. He was named department chair in 2007. He also supervised the research of students who have made a number of presentations at the Tennessee Academy of Science and the Southeast Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society. Clinger will be fondly remembered for his white beard, his tough classes and his passion for undergraduate research.

Fort Gwinn, associate dean and professor of engineering, retired after 34 years of teaching. After 22 years working in the aerospace and automotive testing industry, he brought his skills to Lipscomb and helped establish the Raymond B. Jones College of Engineering, which has grown to more than 300 students enrolled. Gwinn is especially known among his students for wearing Hawaiian shirts on Fridays.

John York (MACM ’10), professor in the Hazelip School of Theology, retired after 25 years. During his tenure, he taught New Testament and ministry courses; served as a Presidential Faculty Fellow and was appointed as an associate dean and then executive director and dean of Lipscomb University-Austin Center. He also worked with Donelson Church of Christ, Woodmont Hills Church and West End Church in Nashville.

Greg Nordstrom, professor and chair of electrical and computer engineering, retired after 12 years of teaching. Nordstrom served as a faculty consultant for the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers student chapter, worked with the university’s accreditation team and served as president of the Faculty Senate. Among the youth who have attended a decade’s worth of summer robotics camps, Nordstrom is known as “Count Dooku” from Star Wars, due to his resemblance to the Jedi Master.

Beloved leader Walt Leaver retires from Lipscomb

There are few Bisons who leave the campus without knowing at least a little about Walt Leaver (LA ’70, BA ’74).

As was stated in May when he was honored with the 2023 Mary Morris Award for Exemplary Service to Society, “This year’s recipient seems to be everywhere, all the time, helping people. He has dedicated his life to making the lives of others better.”

Leaver was a member of the senior leadership team throughout three presidential administrations at Lipscomb. For more than 20 years, he led a variety of areas at Lipscomb including church relations, alumni relations, admissions and, for the last two decades, the events management operation.

So in 2023, as Leaver retires and transitions to a role as special advisor to the president, it is as the host and coordinator of memorable events such as Lighting of the Green and Summer Celebration that today’s generation will recall upon hearing his name.

Leaver was instrumental in developing partnerships with community organizations to hold signature university events such as the GMA Dove Awards, the Nashville Business Breakfast and the Charlie Daniels Scholarship for Heroes concert as well as the Summer Celebration annual lecture series and Lighting of the Green featuring Amy Grant and other performers each year. Leaver uses his vast connections and big heart to find solutions in times of crisis. During the Nashville floods in 2010, he coordinated a Lipscomb partnership to host an on-campus Red Cross shelter for displaced people without homes, and earlier this year when Nashville’s Covenant School needed a temporary home after a fatal shooting, he facilitated the school making its new interim home at Brentwood Hills Church of Christ, where he has served as minister since 1997.

James Lomax (MA) of Huntsville, Ala., is vice president of asset management and leasing at Corporate Office Properties Trust. He was recently named among the Huntsville Business Journal’s Top 40 Under 40.

Corianne Salois (BSN) of Memphis was promoted to charge nurse at Methodist Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital.

Angela Schildmeier (BSN) of Memphis works as an RN in the medical intensive care unit at Methodist Le Bonheur Germantown Hospital.

Ashton (Montgomery) Tidwell (BSN) of Nashville was promoted to team lead in the intensive care step-down unit at Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital Midtown.

2018 Audrey (Davis) Green (BSN) of Chattanooga obtained her board certification in cardiovascular nursing and works in that role at the Chattanooga Heart Institute and CHI Memorial Hospital.

Nathan Moran (BBA) of Franklin is an assistant coach on the men’s basketball staff at Trevecca Nazarene University.

Lindsey Nance (BA) of Washington, D.C., is a member of the WUSA9 television staff in Washington, D.C.

Andrea Pewitt (EdD) of Ashland City is the vice president and director of schools for Clarksville Christian School.

Ashton (Ligon) Sabin (BSN) works as clinical nurse manager of trauma medical/surgical at TriStar Skyline Medical Center.

Ayeesha Harris Stafford (BSN) of Goodlettsville is a registered nurse at TriStar Hendersonville Medical Center.

Kayla West (BSN) of Chattanooga is pursuing an MHA at Lipscomb University. She was promoted to nurse manager and works in the medical/surgical unit at CHI Memorial Hospital.

2019 Arsany Mina Abouda (BS) of Paris is a third-year medical student at Lincoln Memorial University DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine and has been doing clinical training with Henry County Medical Center in Paris.

Kathryn (Edwards) St. Vincent (BA) of Franklin and her husband Jonathan announced the Oct. 27, 2022, birth of daughter Lillian Elizabeth St. Vincent.

Abigayle (Rickman) Waterson (BSN) of Nashville works as a nurse practitioner doing inpatient palliative care with Alive Hospice & Palliative Care at Centennial Medical Center. She and husband Blake Waterson welcomed their son Blake in 2022.

2020 Michael A. Anastasi (MA) of Nashville has been promoted to vice president of local for Gannett Co. He recently served as vice president of The Tennessean and USA Today South Region editor.

Elise (Pearson) Billingsley (BSN) of Nashville works as an RN at Dialysis Clinic Incorporated and Renal Consultants. She and husband Luke Billingsley welcomed their daughter Nora in 2022.

Neyland Darnell (BSN) of Franklin became the assistant director of nursing at NHC Healthcare, Franklin.

Kaylene Fodra (BSN) of Chattanooga is pursuing a DNP at the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga in adult gerontology acute care nursing practice.

Katie Miller (BA) of Nashville is a senior account manager at REED Public Relations.

2021 Maggie (Stewart) Baltzell (BSN) of Murphysboro, Ill., works as a district nurse for Murphysboro Community Unit School District.

Sydney Carnock (BSN) of Baltimore, Md., works as an emergency room RN at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Heather Corbin (BSN) of Chattanooga works as an operating room circulator at CHI Memorial Hospital-Chattanooga. She was nominated twice in May 2022 for the Daisy Award.

Lauren Flynt (BSN) of Dayton, Ohio, has been working as an RN in a noninvasive cardiology unit at Miami Valley Hospital in the heart and vascular intensive care unit since July 2021. She was accepted in February 2023 to the University of Cincinnati MSN family nurse practitioner program.

Lauren Guthrie (BSN) of Nashville works as a level II RN at Vanderbilt Medical Center in labor and delivery. She was selected by nurses in her unit to receive the Shining Star Award.

Molly LaRocco (GC) of Clarksville is a development coordinator for Global Sanctuary for Elephants in Brentwood.

Grace Mason (BSN) of Nashville works as an RN in the noninvasive cardiology unit at Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital West.

Christina Mixayphone (BSN) of Nashville works as an RN in the surgical transplant step-down unit at Vanderbilt Medical Center.

Lauren Mosley (BSN) of Nashville is pursuing an MSN in primary/acute care pediatric nursing practice at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and works as a level II RN in the pediatric surgical/trauma unit at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt Medical Center.

Marisa Rust (BSN) of Nashville was promoted to clinical nurse coordinator at TriStar Centennial Parthenon Pavilion in February. She is pursuing her MSN in psychiatric mental health nursing practice at Spring Arbor University.

2022 Anne Bambula (BSN) of Nashville is a postpartum RN at Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital Midtown.

Thanks for the memories

On a recent sunny June morning, the sounds of spirited conversation and laughter emanated from Lipscomb University’s Fanning Residence Hall, Suite 203. The source of the commotion? Seven college roommates going through their morning routines, preparing for the day’s adventures.

But these aren’t your typical college roommates. These women are members of “The Group”—nine members of the Class of 1965 and one member of the Class of 1964 who lived together in Fanning. For the first time since they left Lipscomb, seven of the ten members of The Group were together again June 5-8 in their former suite in Fanning to reminisce about college days and a friendship that has spanned six decades.

Members of this special band of sisters are Jeanie (Hale) Cooper, Vantrice (Brown) Cunningham, Mary (Owen) French, Elaine (Ward) Head, Janet (Smith) Hicks, Marsha (Harris) Johnston, Jimmie Lou (Hedgcoth) Lee, Ann (Beaver) Secrest, Nancy (Osborn) Truex and Mary Ann (Mountain) Winters

Members of The Group were involved in a number of campus activities including the A Cappella Singers, band, social clubs and the Bisonettes among others. They went to the weekly Tuesday night devotional on campus and to worship services together, riding the church

buses to several local Church of Christ congregations.

After graduation on June 5, 1965, the women went their separate ways, “but through all that, we stayed together,” explains Johnston. “God brought us together and God has kept us together,” French adds.

In 1967, the women began a group letter that circulated to each member. They gathered for an in-person reunion for the first time in 1988. During the pandemic, they used video conferencing technology to connect.

While back in their Fanning home for the 2023 reunion, the women poured over scrapbooks, recounted stories about Lipscomb professors, recalled college-age adventures (and misadventures), caught up on the latest happenings in each other’s lives, celebrated their 80th birthdays, played Rook, ate a lot of snacks, worshiped and prayed together, shed a few tears and shared much laughter.

They also expressed gratitude for the place that brought them together and for the priceless friendships that resulted.

“The thing I’m most thankful to Lipscomb for is what’s in this room,” Secrest shared.

To see many more pictures and details about the The Group, log on to lipscomb.edu/TheGroup.

Taylor Casquarelli (BSN) of St. Petersburg, Fla., works as an RN in a medical/surgical and orthopedic acute care unit at Bayfront Health.

Rachel Hohl (BS) of Nashville is a staff engineer for Reliable MicroSystems.

Anna (Fry) Holland (BSN) of Nashville works as an RN in the intensive care unit at Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital West.

Camille (Pearman) Horton (BSN), of Williamson County, works as a labor and delivery RN at Williamson Medical Center. She married Kirwin Horton in October 2022.

Ashley Newby (BSN) of Nashville works as an RN in pediatric hematology/oncology at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt Medical Center.

LIPSCOMB COMMUNITY

Barbara “Barb” Bradford Anderson of Brentwood, long-time Lipscomb Athletics staff member, died March 19.

Naomi Walker Caldwell of Lynchburg, Va., a 1957 graduate of Lipscomb Academy, died March 29, 2022.

Jim Ward, retired director of Lipscomb University’s Beaman Library, died Oct. 16, 2022.

Leslie Wyatt, retired David Lipscomb High School typing teacher from 1956 to 1992, died on Jan. 18.

1938 Dorothy Roberts Dorsey of Collierville died Feb. 18.

1949 Martha Douthitt Eichelberger (BA) of Decatur, Ga., died Oct. 24, 2022.

1951 David Claypool (BA) of Hoover, Ala., died July 8, 2022.

Margaret Ruth Francis Lipscomb Smith (BA) of Franklin died May 3.

1952 Robert Gray Riggs (BA) of Bethlehem, Penn., died Jan. 13.

1953 Gynnath Kay Ford (BA) died April 27.

1954 Damon Reid Daniel (BS) of Valrico, Fla., died in March.

Martha Moody Edge (BA) of Tyler, Texas, died June 5.

Robert R. Taylor (BA) of Ripley died March 28.

1955 Brown Campbell Kinnard (BA) of Dexter, Mich., died May 11.

Paul E. Mullins (BS) of Sun City West, Ariz., died Feb. 18.

Carl Owen (BA) of Brentwood died Sept. 13, 2022.

1956 Max Leeth DePriest (BS) of Cartersville, Ga., died Jan. 13.

George Massey (BA) of Keller, Texas, died Feb. 7.

1957 Cecil A. Boone (BA) of Nashville died Jan. 20.

Ben Frank Nelms (BA) of Columbia, Mo., died Feb. 13.

Ann Hackett Suddeth (BA) of Clarksville died May 28.

1959 Myra Jackson Nickolaus (BA) of Brentwood died Feb. 2.

1960 Charles E. McGhee (BA) of Mount Juliet died Feb. 14.

1962 Edgar Daniel (Dan) Spann (BA) of Knoxville died Jan. 14, 2022.

1963 Janis Bays Callaway (BS) of Smyrna died Nov. 1, 2022.

1964 David Richard Bunner (BS) of Eighty Four, Pa., died April 1.

Donald Max Livingston (BA) of Auburn, Ala., died Feb. 8.

1965 George Perry Mason (BS) of Lake Placid, Fla., died Dec. 15, 2022.

Kenneth Marshal Shumard (BS) of Atlanta, Ga., died Feb. 14. He served as a member of the Lipscomb Board of Trustees from 2009-2021 and is survived by his wife Joyce (’72).

1966 Danny Lee Smith (BA) of Nashville died Jan 16.

Melvin Clay Waldron (BA) of Smyrna died Sept. 15, 2022.

Janet Lois Alsup Wise (BA) of Starkville, Miss., died Dec. 9, 2022.

1967 William Mack Gallaher (BA) of Antioch died March 15.

1969 Rebecca Fowler Grimes (BS) of Huntsville, Ala., died Oct. 14, 2022.

David Wayne Newberry (BA) of Washington, W. Va., died April 25.

1970 Stanley Lawrence Bise (BA) of Crossville died Nov. 24, 2022.

James Wilson Smith (BA) of Holly Springs, N.C., died Nov. 9, 2022.

1971 Diana Hixon Hamer (BA) of Rome, Ga., died Dec. 28, 2022.

Thomas E. Lenoir (BA) of Mobile, Ala., died May 5.

1972 Dorothy W. Grandstaff (BA) of Lebanon died Oct. 12, 2022.

1973 Rodney Forrest Kirby (BS) of Indianapolis, Ind., died April 19.

Stephen Wayne Major (BS) of Fort Myers, Fla., died Sept. 14, 2022.

1974 John Jernigan Austin (BS) of Ooltewah died March 4.

Jerry Lewis Gaw (BA) of Nashville died Feb. 1. He taught in Lipscomb’s Department of History, Politics and Philosophy for more than 35 years. His final book, David Lloyd George: The Politics of Religious Conviction, was published posthumously on Feb. 22.

1975 Paul Douglas Boyd (BS) of Hixon died Feb. 18.

1976 Marlene Schwall Webb (BS) of Jacksonville, Fla., died Dec. 2, 2022.

1977 Betty Ruth Dean (BS) of Nashville died Jan. 19.

1979 Cheryl E. Coleman (BS) of Maryville died Sept. 10, 2022.

1980 William Keith Cato (BS, LA ’74) of Nashville died Dec. 18, 2022. He is survived by his wife Janice Cato, who works in Lipscomb’s engineering college, sister Amy Hamar (BS ’81, LA ’78), Lipscomb’s director of lifelong learning, and Rita Cochrane (BS ’79, LA ’75), a retired Lipscomb Academy Middle School teacher.

1981 Raymond Christopher Snoddy (BS) of Nashville died Jan. 20.

1983 Gerry Thomas Parker (BA) of Columbia died Aug. 29, 2022.

1988 Billy Scott Smith (BA) of Maryville died Feb. 23.

1990 Christine Watson King (BS, MEd ’95) of Nashville died April 26.

1994 Larry Douglas “Doug” Jones Jr. (BS) of Old Hickory died Nov. 27, 2022.

1996 Tina Rohs Winfree (BS) of Watertown died Nov. 18, 2022.

1997 Mike Berry (BA) of Littleton, Colo., died Sept. 20, 2022.

2001 Todd Alan Hood (BS) died Jan. 9.

2007 Matthew Taylor White (BA) of Spring Hill died Oct. 28, 2022.

2013 Sharon Joy Johnson Colston (MEd) of Lancassas died Feb. 24.

Sweet Spring and Summer: Weeks full of Bison Herd gatherings both near and far

Each season brings new opportunities for the Bison Herd to gather to learn, celebrate or reminisce. This spring and summer offered a variety of occasions for alumni to enjoy together, as a fresh group of Lipscomb Bisons are beginning their careers, and another group is preparing to begin their college journey as a Bison on campus.

The first half of 2023 brought an oncampus Senior Send-off celebration for the Class of 2023, nine Summer Send-Off celebrations for new students this fall, the Lipscomb Night at the Nashville Sounds baseball game, a Lifelong Learning trip to Israel and a Be A Light gathering in Dallas.

In April, the university celebrated its newest class of graduates with a Senior Send-Off celebration featuring food, fun and free T-shirts. Then in June and July, the newest Bisons were invited to Summer Send-off events held at various locations across Tennessee as well as California and Arizona. Incoming freshmen and their families joined alumni, current university parents and students for food, fellowship and fun.

On the other end of the learning spectrum, 46 lifelong learners explored Israel, Jordan and Egypt in March with Lipscomb Vice President of Church Services Scott Sager as their leader.

In June, the Lipscomb cheerleaders, Lou the Bison and department representatives took over the main plaza at First Horizon Park and welcomed more than 400 Lipscomb alumni for a baseball night cheering on the Nashville Sounds. The Be A Light Tour continued in Dallas and offered alumni a chance to honor the latest Shining Light recipient, Susan Hernandez (BS ’90) (see page 43).

Be sure to keep your information up-todate with us so you don’t miss out on future fun and connections!

Contact the Office of Alumni and Parent Engagement at alumni@lipscomb.edu and follow our office on Facebook and Instagram to learn about upcoming events and opportunities.

Lipscomb community shares love of God, values and America’s favorite treat

This past year, the university’s vision, mission, values and goals were elevated in the Lipscomb Impact 360 Strategic Plan, which was launched in August 2022. In only 12 months, our community has made significant progress toward the goals outlined in the plan.

While the work is only beginning, we are enthusiastic about the strides made to date. We have seen growth in key metrics, such as: student retention, student satisfaction, research and grant advancements, community engagement, and campus efficiencies. Within this publication there is more about how these and other initial accomplishments have moved us forward and created momentum in our quest to lead as a Christ-centered top-tier, nationally recognized institution.

As we continue to advance in our strategic priorities, two significant leadership appointments have recently been announced. Dick Cowart , one of the leading health care attorneys in the nation and chair of the health law and public policy department at Baker Donelson, was elected chair of Lipscomb University’s Board of Trustees in April (see page 6). I am honored to work with him as we vision and lead Lipscomb to new heights.

It doesn’t take much to connect with a community. In some cases, all it takes is a donut.

The love of sweet treats found at Fox’s Donut Den, the neighborhood donut shop of alumnus Norman Fox (BA ’68), was already well established when I came to Lipscomb as a freshman. Now decades later, the Donut Den remains a neighborhood treasure, serving Lipscomb students, faculty, staff, alumni and their families who are drawn to it by the sensory and nostalgic memories instilled there.

I have my own fond memories of enjoying Donut Den as an undergraduate, and later, bringing our children for donuts on Saturday mornings. When they got a little older, they worked at the Donut Den (pictured here is Abigail, at age 15, hard at work), like scores of other Lipscomb students, where they learned responsibility, customer service, conflict management and most of all, strong work habits.

In that respect, Fox operates the Donut Den (which you can read more about starting on page 14), with the same values we claim at Lipscomb University: delivering our best, serving others and pursuing joy.

Additionally, we launched the Lipscomb University Health Sciences Center (LUHSC) this past spring and announced the hire of Dr. Lynette Austin as the founding dean of the new College of Health Sciences (see page 3). We look forward to her arrival later this fall.

Speaking of fall, I can’t wait to see you on campus. Don’t miss the new Presidential Signature Series (see page 38) featuring renowned scholars and speakers as we focus on a life of flourishing. I also look forward to welcoming many of you to campus for Bison Weekend, Nov. 10-11. And maybe, if you can find time between the reunions, the parade and other campus activities, you can participate in another tried and true tradition of the Lipscomb community: making connections and memories over donuts at the Donut Den.

Blessings,

Dr. Candice McQueen (’96) President, Lipscomb University