Tuesday,April 21, 2026
11 a.m.
SloanAuditorium, Brown FineArts Building
Program
Prelude
“Veni Creator Spiritus”
Piping inthe Procession*
Invocation* Introduction
Jehan Titelouze
The Lyon College Pipe Band
James Bell
Director of Scottish Heritage
The Reverend Margaret Alsup, ’11 College Chaplian
Dr. Anthony K. Grafton
Provost
Recognition of Members of Academic Honor Society
Honors Fellows
Alpha Chi
Mortar Board
Alpha Lambda Delta
Dr. Stephanie Saunders, ’02
Associate Professor of Spanish
Dr. Jeremy Chapman
Associate Professor of Mathematics
Dr. Irosha Nawarathne
Associate Professor of Chemistry
Dr. Matthew Lebrato
Associate Professor of Anthropology
*The audience is requested to rise, if able
Recognition of Members of Academic Honor Societies by Discipline
Alpha Psi Omega
Kappa Delta Pi
Kappa Pi
Pi Sigma Alpha
Sigma Delta Pi
Sigma Tau Delta
Phi Alpha Theta
Psi Chi
Pi Delta Phi
Dr. Fonzie Geary II Professor of Theatre
Dr. Kimberly Crosby, ’92
Associate Professor of Education
Maggie Gayle
Associate Professor of Art and Theatre
Dr. Scott Roulier
John Trimble Sr. Professor of Political Philosophy
Dr. Monica Rodriguez
Associate Professor of Spanish
Dr. Melissa Merte
Assistant Professor of English
Dr. Edward Tenace
Associate Professor of History
Dr. Brittany Florkiewicz
Assistant Professor of Psychology
Dr. James Martell
Associate Professor of French
Student Life Awards
Danell Hetrick
Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students
Sophia Peace Prize Award
Campus Ministry Award
Celtic CrossAward
Jason Kennedy
Assistant Professor of Anthropology
Rev. Alsup
Alpha Chi Professor of the Year Award
Lizzy Grafton, ’26
Alpha Chi President
Academic Awards
LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE
NATURAL SCIENCES
MATH
Dr. Rodriguez
Dr. Maryline Jones
Associate Professor of Biology
& COMPUTATIONAL SCIENCES
HUMANITITES
FINE ARTS
PSYCHOLOGY & EDUCATION
Dr. Tharanga Wijetunge
Professor of Mathematics
Dr. Tenace
Dr. Geary
Dr. Crosby, ’92
BUSINESS & ECONOMICS
Introduction of Speaker
Dr. Radek Szulga
Associate Professor of Economics
“Reflections from the Senior Class”
Dr. Melissa Taverner
President
Zoe Papazoglou, ’26
Student Government Association President
Skye Hart, ’06, Organ
Lyon, thy children laud thy name today.
Unto thee we’ll offer our hymn of praise for aye.
We shall ever love thee, loyal we shall be. May our memories hold us ever near to thee.
Lyon, all hail to thee, all hail thy standards bright
Forever we’ll adore thee and follow in thy light.
Benediction
Postlude
“O Love, How Deep, How Broad, How High”
*The audience is requested to rise, if able
*There is no recession
Rev. Alsup
David N. Johnson
Honors Fellows Program is a rigorous course of study designed to provide highly skilled, motivated students the opportunity to study, hone their research skills, and exchange ideas in a challenging and supportive academic environment.
PeytonAllen
CashArnhart
IthycaBacon
Ian Bailey
Katelyn Balderas
Allison Barber
Luke Beeser
Madisen Bennett
EmilyBerry
Annie Blevins
Nevaeh Bragg
Jackson Brock
Ethan Byler
Madeline Cleaves
Brooklynn Collins
AlyssaCooan
Lauren Couture
ZoeyCraig
HadleyCunningham
Hannah Davison
Christian Del Gobbo
Kadyn Dienst
KelseyDillinger
Marti Flores
Zane Fountain
Arden Fraiser
CynthiaGarner
Nevaeh Ghan
Chris Gibson
AlexanderGleason
Marcus Goldman
Jacob Harrod
David Hefner
EmmaHerbold
Madeline Hopson
EllaHoward
Nathan Hutto
AloraHuver
Thomas Irvin
HunterJackson
Landon Jackson
GretaJones
OliviaJones
NatalyaKaza
SicilyKentner
Jada-Lynn King
Alison Koons
Norah Kopkau
Novalee Lackey
Peyton Landreth
AleeciaLewis
OliviaLocke
SamanthaLove
Keylee Lyons
Katelyn Mace
Sadie Martin
Maggie Mason
Molly Mason
Makenzie Massey
Lauren McCool
Ethen Mcfadden
Elisabeth Meadows
Kelli Meythaler
Sidney Milligan
Catherine Mills
Ryleigh Mullen
Philomenia Niese
Cade Norton
Skylar Ogle
Zoe Papazoglou
Luv Patel
Brooklyn Penn
Salem Powell
Elizabeth Reaves
Isaac Rice
Vera Richardson
Gwen Rickey
Avery Robertson
Ava Rose
Sawyer Schubert
Faith Sharp
Emilee Simpson
Quinn Simpson
Lauren Smotherman
Kailey Stigler
Marshal Strother
Trampas Stubbs
Beau Turner
Taydem Ware
Kennedy Warren
James Wayland
Kacee White
Atlas Wilbanks
Lily Williams
Rylie Williams
Rayne Wilson
Thaddeus Wirges
Sydney Wolf
Jillian Wood
Atley Woods
Hannah Young
Mortar Board is a national honor society for college seniors. Lyon College’s Order of the Tartan Chapter was chartered in 2001. Nominations by faculty and staff are solicited for rising seniors who have demonstrated leadership in scholarship, campus life, and service to others.
Katelyn Balderas
Keeley Beary
Emily Berry
Emily Betzold
Annie Blevins
Brady Cook
Isaac Cottle
Cristian Del Gobbo
Hannah Davison
Ty Ferguson
Zane Fountain
Lizzy Grafton
Lillie Hall
Madeline Hopson
Jayden Hughes
Jacob Hutto
Natalya Kaza
Jada-Lynn King
Karl Lange
Fallon Lancaster
Robert Lee
Levi Neal
Mollie McCoy
Cari Meeks
Catherine Mills
Whitney Mitchell
Zoe Papazoglou
Claralea Roberson
Rylee Smith
Hannah Young
Alpha Chi is an academic honor society founded in 1922 to promote academic excellence and exemplary character among undergraduate and graduate students. Inductees are in the top 10 percent of the junior and senior classes, possess outstanding character and integrity and are engaged in the best undergraduate scholarships in all academic fields. Lyon College’s chapter of Alpha Chi was founded in 1960.
Emily Berry
Annie Blevins
Rose Breckenridge
Isaac Cottle
Cristen Cleveland
Cristian Del Gobbo
Zane Fountain
Deidra Jones
Olivia Jones
Natalya Kaza
Wes Lange
Makenzie Massey
Sidney Milligan
Whitney Mitchell
Tyler Mohr
Seth Moore
Sienna Morris
Zoe Papazoglou
Brooklyn Penn
Beau Turner
James Wayland
Shae Williams
Jillian Wood
Matthew Younger
Kappa Delta Pi is an international honor society in education founded in 1911. It was established to foster excellence in education and promote fellowship among those who are dedicated to teaching. Lyon College’s Tau Delta chapter was founded in 1993. Membership in Kappa Delta Pi recognizes scholarly achievements and dedication to the education profession.
Camryn Dawley
Robert Lee
Justin Maguire
Jackson Midyett
Tristen Wood
Psi Chi is an honor sociey for psychology majors and minors who have taken at least nine hours of psychology, earned a 3.0 average in those courses, and are in the top 35% of their class.
Suzanna Bates
Rose Breckenridge
Hannah Davison
Mary Duggield
Madeline Hopson
Greta Jones
Cari Meeks
Sienna Morris
Zoe Papazoglou
Hannah Young
Sigma Tau Delta, founded at Dakota Wesleyan College in 1924, is the international English honor society with over a thousand chapters worldwide. It recognizes undergraduate and graduate students who have achieved distinction in their study of the English language and its literature. Sigma Tau Delta offers annual awards, scholarships, and opportunities to publish academic creative work. Lyon College’s Eta Lambda chapter was founded in 1971. Its members are English majors and minors who maintain a 3.0 average in upper-level coursework. The chapter serves the campus by publishing the Wheelbarrow, a literary and art magazine, annually.
Annie Blevins
Emma Herbold
Jayden Hughes
Robert Lee
Skye Mellor
Jayson Nichols Bryanna Rosario
Sigma Delta Pi, the national collegiate Hispanic honor society, was founded at the University of California at Berkley in 1919. To qualify, students must have completed 18 college hours of Spanish, be in the upper 35% of their class, and have a GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale in all Spanish courses taken.
Katelyn Balderas
Suzanna Bates
Annie Blevins
Zane Fountain
Olivia Jones
Natalya Kaza
Norah Kopkau
Novalee Lackey
Jayson Mcdermott
Kailey Stingler
Taydem Ware Atlas Wilbanks
Alpha Psi Omega, the national honor society in theatre, was originally founded in 1925. Lyon College created its chapter of APO in 1928. APO honors students who maintain a 2.5 GPA and demonstrate meaningful participation in at least two areas of production over a minimum of three semesters.
Weston Derden Lillie Hall
Alpha Lambda Delta’s chapter was established at Lyon College in 2011. In 2012, our chapter chartered with the national honor society for first-year success, Alpha Lambda Delta. The mission of ALD is to encourage superior academic achievement among students in their first year in institutions of higher learning, and to assist students in recognizing and developing meaningful goals for their roles in society. Each member must be a firsttime, full-time students with a GPA of 3.5 or higher and a ranking in the upper 20% of his or her class in the fall semester.
Sara Avant
Reece Bailey
Katelyn Balderas
Allison Barber
Suzanna Bates
Emily Berry
Tomas Biasi
Lucia Birkenkrahe
Annie Blevins
Gabe Burfitt
Enoch Busbin
Ashley Campbell
Hannah Cherwein
Caleb Collins
William Conkle
Zoey Cooney
Yasmin Corralejo
Isaac Cottle
Lauren Couture
Cristian Del Gobbo
Weston Derden
Natalie Dunman
Madelynn Fore
Marie Garner
Christopher Gibson
Lizzy Grafton
Emma Herold
Zachary Holte
Madeline Hopson
Mary Huezo
Jacob Hutto
Olivia Jones
Natalya Kaza
Levi Keller
Luka Kentner
Norah Kopkau
Olivia Locke
Sam Love
Sadie Martin
Molly Mason
Makenzie Massey
Cari Meeks
Catherine Mills
Whitney Mitchell
Benjamin Moore
Jesi Odom
Zoe Papazoglou
Brooklyn Penn
Gabriel Rangel de Castro
Souza
Grace Reaves
Caiden Roberts
Avery Robertson
Ava Rose
Rylee Smith
Kailey Stingler
Rylan Tucks
Beau Turner
Atlas Wilbanks
Shaela Williams
Colton Williams
Sydney Wolf
Jillian Woods
Psi Sigma Alpha was founded in 1920 at the University of Texas in Austin to encourage and recognize superior achievement in the study of government and politics at the undergraduate and graduate level. With chapters numbering well over 700 and over 8,000 students joining its ranks each year, it is still the only recognized college honor society in the dicipline and is now one of the largest consituent memebers of the Association of College Honor Societies. The Alpha Eta Iota chapter of Lyon College was established in 2011. Members must have attained at least junior status, a “B” average in at least 10 credits of political science courses, and an overall GPA rank in the top third of their class.
Lizzy Grafton
Zoe Papazoglou
Peyton Richarson
Beau Turner Atlas Willbanks
Pi Delta Phi is the National French Honor Society for undergraduate and graduate students at accredited public and private colleges and universities in the United States. The highest academic honor in the field of French and the oldest academic honor society for a modern foreign language in the United States, Pi Delta Phi was founded as a departmental honor society at the University of California at Berkeley in 1906. The purpose of the Society is to recognize outstanding scholarships in the French language and Prancophone literatures, to increase the knowledge and appreciation of Americans for the cultural contributions of the French-speaking world, and to stimulate and encourage French francophone cultural activities.
Emily Berry
Weston Derden
Jayson Nichols
Beau Turner
Phi Alpha Theta, is the history honor society. Established at the University of Arkansas in 1921, Phi Alpha Theta’s mission is to promote the study of history through research, good teaching, publication, and the exchange of learning and ideas among historians. Members must have a minimum GPA of 3.1 in history and an overall GPA of 3.0.
William Litton
Jacob Belcher
Dylan Cody Kohen Phifer
Honors DayAwards
Celtic Cross Award - Given to a Lyon senior who, through his or her leadership or involvement in campus ministries, has exhibited faithful witness to the gospel. Named for the Celtic cross which appears at the center of the Lyon College emblem, the award emphasizes Lyon College’s Scottish and Presbyterian heritage and relationship to the Presbyterian Church, U.S.A. Recipients of the Celtic cross awards meet the following criteria: active participation in the religious life and campus ministry program at Lyon; generous giving of their time, talents, and faith with joy and love; response to the Great Commandment to be and make disciples; and demonstration of personal religious growth as it comes through the interaction of faith and reason.
Clarence Adams Award - Given to honor the memory of Dr. Clarence Adams who as Division Chair led during a time of great change, including the design of and move to the Lyon Business and Economics Building in 1993. The award recognizes a student who exemplifies Dr. Adams’ qualities of scholarship, leadership, and service to the Lyon community.
The Schram Emerging Biologist Award - Established in memory of Dr. Mark Schram, Professor Emeritus of Biology at Lyon. It is awarded to an outstanding student in the gradutating class who biology faculty believe shows promise in biological scholarship and plans to attend graduate school. Priority is given to students who are interested in Ecology, Evolution, Behavior, and Environmental Science.
The Rachel Stevens Memorial Psychology Book Award - Established in the spring of 2015 in memory of Rachel Stevens. This is an annual award funded by the college, given to a transfer student who is planning to atttend graduate school.
George Maxfield Evans Award - Established in 1987 by Mrs. Suzanne Evans Blair, ’68, in memory of her father, George Maxfield Evans, and awarded to the female with the highest GPA in calculus.
Abbie Snapp Arnold English Award - The oldest of our endowed awards is the Abbie Snapp Arnold English Award. It was established as a tribute to Mrs. Arnold, a long-time teacher of English, by her children Carl F. Arnold, Mary Kaufmann, and W.J. Arnold. The English faculty awards it annually to the senior English major whose academic accomplishments it judges to be most outstanding.
Theta Alpha Kappa Award - is an undergraduate achievement award given every year from the international religious honors society, Theta Alpha Kappa, to a student in the local Theta Alpha Chapter who has distinguished themselves in their religion courses.
James Alexander Shanks Chemistry Award - Established by Capp Shanks, Jr., ’32, and his wife Ella Myrl Dodson Shanks, ’33, in memory of Mr. Shanks’ older brother, James A. Shanks, ’24. Awarded to a junior who will be conducting research in the area of chemistry during his or her senior year.
The Libris Award - Given to recognize the outstanding work of a student library assistant. Nominations are given by Library staff and other student library assistants.
Sophia Prize Award - Presented annually to a Lyon College community member who has demonstrated great effort in the promotion of the values of peace and justice through service.
American Institute of Chemists Award - Given to the outstanding senior chemistry major in recognition of a demonstrated record of ability, leadership, and professional promise.
American Chemical Society Organic Chemistry Award - Given to the top student in organic chemistry.
Roberta Thomas Dorr Brown Scholarship - Dr. Roberta Thomas Dorr Brown, a lifelong Arkansan and pioneering figure in higher education, was the first woman to serve as academic dean at a college or university in Arkansas. Born in Batesville, she graduated from Lyon College in 1944 and went on to serve the institution for 44 years in roles including registrar, academic dean, and vice president of planning. A dedicated advocate for education and historic preservation, she played a critical role in institutional development through her leadership and successful grant writing. Dr. Brown earned advanced degrees from the University of Arkansas and pursued postdoctoral studies at George Washington and Harvard Universities. Her trailblazing career earned her Lyon College’s Distinguished Alumna Award and an honorary Doctor of Letters degree, cementing her legacy as a transformative leader in Arkansas higher education. The Roberta Thomas Dorr Brown Scholarship is given to a junior who is majoring in religion and philosophy, mathematics, chemistry, or history who best exemplifies the people-first spirit of Dr. Brown.
Freshman Writing Award - Each year the English faculty selects a freshman enrolled in English 102 to receive the Freshman Writing Award. In doing so it honors the individual achievement of the student whose writing is exemplary, and it also signals the importance of writing in much of our academic and professional work.
Roberta Bustin & Frances E. Leland Endowed Chemistry ScholarshipThe Dr. Roberta Bustin & Dr. Frances E. Leland Endowed Chemistry Scholarship was established in 2022 by Dr. and Mrs. George F. Jackson III and their son, Dr. George S. Jackson, ’92, to honor faculty who influenced their careers in chemistry educations: Dr. Roberta Bustin, ’64, professor emerita of chemistry at Lyon, and the late Dr. Fran Leland, who taught 32 years at MacMurray College in Illinois. It is awarded annually at Honors Convocation to a rising junior and a rising senior majoring in chemistry. Recipients are chosen by the chemistry faculty.
The Mission of Lyon College
A selective, independent teaching and learning community affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Lyon College offers both a challenging undergraduate curriculum grounded in the liberal arts and select graduate programs. In a primarily residential setting, the Lyon College experience is guided by the Honor System and enlightened by cocurricular programs, service and experiential learning, and opportunities forleadership. Together these foster critical, creative thought and ethical, spiritual growth that will prepare students for fulfilling personal and professional lives committed to lifelong learning and service.
TheVision of Lyon College
Lyon College will be the premier institution on Arkansas for academic and professional asvancement.
UPCOMING EVENTS
May 15, 2026 10:00am ROTC Comissioning Ceremony Couch Memorial Garden
May 15, 2026 5:00pm Hall of Opportunity Edwards Commons 1 Floor st
May 15, 2026 6:00pm Senior Picnic Couch Memorial Gardens
May 15, 2026
7:30pm Baccalaureate
May 16, 2026
James C. Becknell Gymnasium
8:30am Commencement
Couch Memorial Gardens