University of Memphis Magazine - Spring 2019 by University of Memphis

UNIVERSIT Y OF MEMPHIS MAGAZINE

Nurturing THE NEIGHBORHOOD

Isaac Rodriguez SweetBio co-founder and CSO As seen in Forbes and on 60 Minutes

SPRING 2019

#stripeup

gotigersgotix.com

In This Issue / S P R I N G

2019

UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS MAGAZINE

Board of Trustees: The First Two Years Recap

The UofM has implemented an incredible number of programs that benefit a wide range of areas, allowing it to become a national leader.

Climbing Mountains

Using proprietary technology and “highly engaged services,” Green Mountain Technology assists some of the largest shippers in the U.S. in managing and optimizing spending on transportation costs.

Nurturing the Neighborhood

The University is creating a pipeline from labs on campus to research parks while giving a boost to the University District.

B Y A N I TA H O U K

Second LiFE

Eligible FedEx employees can pursue a tuition-free education through UofM Global's online curriculum. B Y M I K E O’K E L LY

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David North

Sedgwick CEO David North was elected chair of the University of Memphis Board of Trustees.

Advantage Rule

The Tiger women's soccer team made history by winning the school's first American Athletic Conference tournament championship in November.

34 Home Run

Former Tiger football player Kerry Cobb strives to improve the lives of African-American youth by bringing baseball back to the city. B Y P H I L L I P T U TO R

Dream Team

Plaza for a Hometown Hero

In 2020, the University will dedicate a plaza to honor the legacy of Larry Finch, a man who brought fame and honor to his alma mater, and excitement and healing to his hometown. BY PETE WICKHAM

Courtesy & Consent

The UofM and Le Bonheur Children's Hospital combine forces on several ongoing partnerships geared toward making Memphis a healthier, happier city.

The Office for Institutional Equity's Title IX Prevention Center works to curb sexual misconduct and encourage healthy relationships through a variety of training and secondary education programs.

B Y CAS E Y H I L D E R

All the News That’s Fit to Save

The UofM’s Special Collections becomes the repository for thousands of photo negatives and news clippings from The Commercial Appeal, making the vital snapshots of Memphis history accessible to the public. B Y GA B R I E L L E M A X E Y

I N E V E RY I S S U E 5 48 58 68 70 72

CAMPUS NEWS SHORT STORY COLUMNS CLASS NOTES MAIN EVENT IN MEMORIAM

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U N I V E RS I T Y O F M E M P H I S M AGA Z I N E

Students in the Contemporary Dance program (BFA in Theatre, concentration in Dance) show off their moves in the dance studio. From left are Jaylon McCraven, Catherine Barkley, Ivy Wetherill, Laura Rowland, Hannah Shelton, Connor Chaparro and Jorge Guaman.

PHOTO BY TREY CLARK

PRESIDENT'S LETTER

Dear alumni and friends of the University, In this issue of The University of Memphis Magazine we are highlighting the deep connection between the University of Memphis and the City of Memphis. We have strong partnerships across our city, with corporations (FedEx, AutoZone, Sedgwick), hospitals (Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare, Baptist Memorial Health Care, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital) and many others. We have a story on our recently launched UMRF Research Park in the University District, which will allow the UofM to strengthen its role as a researchbased driver of economic M. David Rudd development PRESIDENT in the region. We also profile one of the Research Park’s citizen companies, Green Mountain Technology. The University of Memphis has teamed with one of the region’s largest pediatric health care facilities, Le Bonheur Children's Hospital, for several programs. Among the initiatives, we explore Memphis CHiLD, a medical-legal partnership that addresses social conditions that could affect patient health, and the LENA program, a three-pronged approach to encourage the vital connection between parents and young children. We meet a student who is pursuing his dream of receiving a college degree through the LiFE (Learning inspired

FOLLOW PRESIDENT RUDD ONLINE

U N I V E RS I T Y O F M E M P H I S M AGA Z I N E

U o f M e m p h i s P re s

by FedEx) program. FedEx pays the tuition for eligible employees who are taking courses through our UofM Global online curriculum, allowing them to achieve their goal of a university education while earning a living. Read about plans for the University to dedicate a plaza in front of the Laurie-Walton Family Basketball Center on the Park Avenue Campus in 2020. It will honor the legacy of former Tiger basketball legend and coach Larry Finch, a man from Orange Mound who brought fame and honor to his alma mater, and excitement and healing to his hometown. This spring, our Ned McWherter Library’s Special Collections Department acquired thousands of historical images and news articles from The Commercial Appeal. This allows the UofM to preserve important snapshots of Memphis history from the 1920s through the 1990s and make them accessible to the public, including journalists, teachers and historians. And don’t miss the recap of our first two years under the leadership of our independent Board of Trustees. What the University has achieved under its governance in such a short time is remarkable. I invite you to read these inspirational stories and learn more about the great things happening at the University of Memphis. GO TIGERS!

EDITORS Gabrielle Maxey (BA ’80) Jazmine Phillips (BA ’12, MBA ’18) DESIGN Archer Malmo PHOTOGRAPHY Trey Clark WRITERS Chuck Gallina Casey Hilder (BA ’09, MA ’12) Anita Houk Mike O’Kelly (BA ’03) Phillip Tutor (BA ’89) Pete Wickham PRESIDENT Dr. M. David Rudd VICE PRESIDENT FOR EXTERNAL RELATIONS Tammy Hedges

MISSION The University of Memphis is a learner-centered metropolitan research university providing high quality educational experiences while pursuing new knowledge through research, artistic expression, and interdisciplinary and engaged scholarship. The University of Memphis is governed by a 10-member Board of Trustees. The Board consists of eight members appointed by the governor of Tennessee, a faculty trustee elected by the faculty and a non-voting student trustee selected by students and appointed by the Board. The University of Memphis’ name, seal, logos and Tigers are registered marks of the University of Memphis and use in any manner is prohibited unless prior written approval is obtained from the University of Memphis. The University of Memphis Magazine (USPS-662-550) is published three times a year by the Division of External Relations of the University of Memphis, 308 Administration Building, Memphis, TN 38152-3370. Periodical postage paid at Memphis, TN 38152. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Alumni & Development Office, The University of Memphis, 120 Alumni Center, Memphis, TN 38152-3760.

Driven by Doing. M. David Rudd President

FIRST OF ALL When RAAJ KURAPATI joined the UofM as chief financial officer a year ago, he quite literally brought a world of experience to the role. He came to the University after serving as CFO at Texas A&M University-Kingsville. He also previously held financial positions at the University of Alaska Fairbanks and in Micronesia, including Saipan and Guam.

CFO, KURAPATI HAS oversight for several administrative offices which serve students, faculty, staff and the community.

“My goal is to ensure that we deliver these services in a timely and efficient manner,” Kurapati says. “I would like the Division of Business and Finance to be seen as an organization that consistently provides exemplary customer service to all our constituents. As stewards of the University’s financial resources, we want to demonstrate that we operate the institution in a financially sound manner by being transparent, strategic and accountable in all actions related to the allocation, investment and employment of the resources we are entrusted with.” Kurapati’s family is from India but moved to Micronesia when he was young.

“Having had the opportunity to work in unique, and at times challenging, places teaches you to be creative in meeting the needs of the customers you serve,” he says. “I think the unique perspective I have gained from these experiences allows me to stay positive in every situation and employ lessons learned to make the best of any situation we are presented with.” The University has made significant strides simplifying its tuition and fees structure in an effort to promote a clearer understanding of costs and to better allow students and their families to plan financially, says Kurapati. “We are also looking at strategic opportunities to improve the student experience by acquiring new facilities, and exploring and pursuing alternative mechanisms to financing such acquisitions. We recognize that continuing to rely on the traditional approach of expecting the

state to invest limited tax payer dollars is, and will continue to be, challenging. “The Gather on Southern is an example of this approach. We are also transforming our dining options on campus by partnering with a new vendor who is invested with the University to meet the changing needs and preferences of our students, faculty and staff.” Kurapati, who is married with five children — including two daughters attending the UofM — was attracted to Memphis by the passion of the faculty and staff to deliver the best possible experience to students. “The city is bursting at the seams with potential, and we have the right leadership and a community invested in seeing the city achieve its full potential,” he says. “It is exciting to be part of this process.”

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Campus News / B Y

THE NUMBERS

Fulbright Award Will Allow UofM Student to Study Water Management in Italy

Aubrey Toldi, a graduate assistant in the University of Memphis Department of City and Regional Planning, has received a Fulbright Award for research in water management that could benefit the Memphis community. The nine-month award provides Toldi the opportunity and funding to conduct research in the Simeto River Valley of Sicily, working with partners from the City and Regional Planning department's summer study abroad exchange program. Her project is â&#x20AC;&#x153;(New) Memphis Blues: A Holistic, Community-Led Reconnection to Our River and Blue Spaces.â&#x20AC;?

DAVID WATERS

JOINS STAFF OF INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC SERVICE REPORTING Award-winning Memphis journalist David Waters has joined the staff of the Institute for Public Service Reporting, a professional newsroom on the UofM campus that produces robust, independent investigative reporting and in-depth explanatory journalism on issues of importance to the Greater Memphis area while also providing hands-on training to UofM students.

UofM Named to Military Friendly Schools List for Fifth Straight Year

The University of Memphis has been named to the Military Friendly Schools List for the fifth consecutive year by Victory Media, originator of the Military Friendly group of education and career resources for veterans and their families. The UofM was ranked gold status among Tier 2 research institutions. The list honors the top colleges, universities and trade schools that are doing the most to embrace military service members and veterans as students and ensure their success on campus.

University Accepts Folds of Honor Scholarship as Payment in Full for Tuition The University of Memphis announced in January that it is accepting the Folds of Honor scholarship, a $5,000 annual award, as payment in full for tuition. The Folds of Honor scholarship supports higher education for spouses and children of America's fallen and disabled service members. The UofM is the first institution of higher learning nationally to partner with Folds of Honor.

U N I V E RS I T Y O F M E M P H I S M AGA Z I N E

UofM Launches Research Institute in Agriculture & Food Technologies

The Division of Research and Innovation is launching an interdisciplinary research initiative in agriculture and food technologies. With the world population estimated to reach almost 10 billion by 2050, critical supply issues, along with environmental concerns, point to the need to engage in fundamental and applied research that will improve innovation and efficiency in food production while protecting the environment.

Research Challenges Assumptions About Impact of Musical Training on the Brain

Dr. Gavin Bidelman and doctoral student Kelsey Mankel have published new findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) that challenge assumptions about the impact of musical training on the human brain. In contrast to commonly held beliefs, the study shows that formal music experience is unnecessary to enhance the brain's speech function. Instead, it appears some people are endowed with highly adept auditory systems which offers similar speech-language benefits to taking years of music lessons. This may be welcome news for those who are challenged when it comes to music.

UNIVERSITY MIDDLE

The Shelby County School Board approved the opening of University Middle School in February, making it the third University-sponsored school. University Middle is a public school offered in partnership with SCS. The school aims to enroll 60 sixth-grade students to begin in fall 2019 with subsequent grades to follow at a projected enrollment of 90 per class.

UofM Initiative Aims to Close “Talk Gap”

The University of Memphis and LENA, in partnership with Agape, Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital and Porter-Leath, are collaborating on an initiative to improve kindergarten readiness by encouraging parents to talk more with their children. LENA Start™ features parent classes in English and Spanish that employ LENA “talk pedometer” technology to measure how much parents are talking with their children, and how much children are responding. For more information on the program, see page 41.

Private Support Creates Office of First-Generation Student Success The University of Memphis received a total of $1.4 million in private support from the Suder Foundation and an anonymous donor to create the Office of First Generation Student Success (OFGSS) and establish an endowed scholarship fund for first-generation students. The OFGSS will expand existing programs for firstgeneration students and create new programs in collaboration with partners across campus. First-generation students are the first in their family to go to college. They often face obstacles that their peers whose parents attended college do not. The average national graduation rate for first-generation students is 34 percent compared to 55 percent for the general undergraduate student population.

Peer Power Institute Opens on Campus

The University of Memphis and the Peer Power Foundation have opened the Peer Power Institute on the University of Memphis campus. Peer Power Foundation is a Memphis-based nonprofit that hires high-performing college students to tutor and mentor Shelby County Schools students. The Peer Power Institute in Ball Hall features college students who are recruited then employed as “success coaches.” After five weeks of training, in addition to monthly professional development seminars led by a training committee comprised of Shelby County Schools teachers, UofM PhD candidates and Peer Power leadership, the success coaches are placed in Shelby County Schools classrooms to support in-class curriculum, reducing the student-toadult ratio from 30:1 to 10:1. Peer Power, the UofM and Shelby County Schools have come together to create an alliance of educational institutions called The Memphis Model.

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Campus News

Dynamic Duos

I N T H I S I S SU E , W E C O N T I N U E W I T H O U R P RO F I L E S O F M A R R I E D C O U P L E S W H O WO R K AT T H E U N I V E RS I T Y O F M E M P H I S.

PHOTO BY TREY CLARK

Nicole “Nikki” Detraz is an associate professor in the Department of Political Science. She joined the department in 2009. Nikki enjoys spending time with her family in Memphis, Florida and Turkey. Among her proudest achievements are having her son, Ali John, along with publishing three books. Dursun Peksen is a full-time professor of Political Science. He joined the department in 2012. Dursun is proud to be a first-generation college student, and the only PhD in his family. He has published widely in his field.

U N I V E RS I T Y O F M E M P H I S M AGA Z I N E

How did you two meet? ND: We met when Dursun came to Memphis on his job interview in fall 2011. I remember taking him out to dinner with another colleague. We started dating in 2014, after bonding over international relations documentaries. (That is nerdy, but true.)

Did you come to the UofM together? DP: We didn’t. Nikki came to the UofM right out of grad school. I joined the Political Science department a few years later after spending four years at a different institution. Do your areas of teaching/research ever intersect? ND: Our teaching and research intersect a great deal. While our primary research concentrations are in fairly different areas (environmental politics for Nikki and foreign policy for Dursun), we have published three articles together on topics where our interests align. In terms of teaching, we both teach courses in international relations. We often teach the same students. They used to be quite surprised to learn that we are a couple, but now most of them already know when they come to class on the first day. Just so they all know, no, we do not coordinate the timing of quizzes in our classes!

Bookshelf WHAT WE ARE WRITING

Do you give each other advice? If so, is it generally accepted? DP: We definitely give each other advice. That is one of the nicest things about being married to someone in your field. We can ask one another about whether a particular journal might be a good fit for an article, or whether we should present at this or that conference. We also ask for advice in our roles as editors of a journal in our field. What are the pros and cons of working at the same university? ND: There are lots of pros and only a few cons. Pros include that we both get to work in an absolutely wonderful department with a supportive chair and fantastic colleagues. Cons include the fact that we end up talking about work a lot at home. There should probably be times when we don’t talk about work, like when we take our son to the zoo or when we are eating burgers at Huey’s. We sometimes have to remind ourselves about this. Outside of work, do you share many of the same interests or do you have varied pursuits? DP: We both like watching movies, going out for meals and taking our son out for walks and to the park. Nikki also likes meeting friends for cupcakes at Muddy’s, and I love playing and watching basketball (go Tigers and Grizzlies!).

The Men and the Moment: The Election of 1968 and the Rise of Partisan Politics in America Brides in the Sky: Stories and a Novella By Cary Holladay Cary Holladay's collection of stories explores stereotypes about the lives of women in unsentimental but intimate detail. From the Old West to the 1960s, lives of women that might be considered ordinary are revealed to be rich and complex. “It’s about the bonds between women — mothers, daughters, sisters,” says Holladay, UofM professor of creative writing. “I wrote the stories and the novella separately, but when I looked at them together, there was a clear theme. Some of the stories are historical, others contemporary. The title refers to constellations that are viewed by an imaginative young bride during her arduous journey on the Oregon Trail in 1855.” Holladay focuses on girls and women trying to find their place in a world that often treats them as insignificant. Some of the stories have modern settings, but most take place decades ago. She recreates the earlier times while making parallels to the present. The novella, "A Thousand Stings," is the story of 8-year-old Shirley, who is striving to make sense of the impact of the 1967 Summer of Love on her small town — from a hippie minister who upends the family church to the blossoming of her older sister. In “Operator,” set in 1954, a young woman working as a telephone operator and hoping to marry up tells the tale of what happens when she takes it upon herself to respond to an emergency call about a violent incident.

By Aram Goudsouzian The presidential election of 1968 forever changed American politics. In his latest book, Aram Goudsouzian, UofM professor of history, portrays the key transformations that played out over that dramatic year. “The presidential election of 1968 is the subject of many books, since it occurred against a backdrop of critical events, including the Vietnam War’s Tet Offensive, the assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, and the violent unrest in American cities,” Goudsouzian says. “I was fascinated by the candidates’ personalities as well as their decisions in the heat of this moment. In my own short, character-driven narrative, I highlight how each candidate was responding to the swirling forces of that tumultuous year. It was an election that proved transformative, as it signaled the destruction of the Democratic Party’s once-powerful coalition, while driving the resurgence of the Republican Party.” It was the last “old politics” campaign, where political machines and party bosses determined the major nominees, even as the new politics of grassroots participation powered primary elections. It was an election that showed how candidates from both the Left and Right could seize on hot-button issues to alter the larger political dynamic. It showcased the power of television to package politicians and political ideas, and it played out against a backdrop of chaos and conflict. (UNC PRESS, 2019)

( S WA L L O W P R E S S , 2 0 1 9 )

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#CHEERUP 10

U N I V E RS I T Y O F M E M P H I S M AGA Z I N E

The University of Memphis coed cheer squad (left) captured its second Universal Cheerleaders Association Small Coed DI title in three seasons at the 2019 College Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championships in Orlando, Fla., in January. The UofM pom squad (right) finished as runners-up at the Universal Dance Association national championships in the Division IA hip-hop category.

PHOTOS BY TREY CLARK

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Campus News

IN THIS ISSUE, WE SPOTLIGHT BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEMBER

R. Brad Martin, chairman of Chesapeake Energy, chairman of RBM Ventures and retired chairman and CEO of Saks Inc.

Martin served as CEO of Saks and its predecessor firm for nearly 20 years, during which the company grew from a 10-store base in East Tennessee to become a Fortune 500 enterprise. Martin also co-founded Corporate Child Care, Inc., which became the largest corporateaffiliated child care company in the United States. As chairman of RBM Ventures, he is a partner and investor in a variety of private businesses. Martin serves on the board of directors of FedEx Corp., Chesapeake Energy and Pilot/Flying J. Through his business experiences, he has developed an understanding of the distinction between the responsibilities of a board and the executive leaders of an enterprise or institution. “The charting of the course of the University of Memphis is the responsibility of our administrative and faculty team,” Martin says. “The Board has the responsibility of approving that strategy, allocating resources and ensuring accountability.”

U N I V E RS I T Y O F M E M P H I S M AGA Z I N E

An independent board for the University of Memphis permits the University to develop its own unique strategy and allocate resources accordingly. “The President has articulated important goals, such as growing access, enrollment, student outcomes and important research and discovery, and has stressed doing so in a manner that provides service to the interests of the communities in which the University operates,” says Martin. “I am privileged to help support those goals.” Martin graduated from the University of Memphis where he served as president of the Student Government Association and earned an MBA from the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University. He returned to the UofM for the 2013-14 academic year to serve as interim president, and later was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters from the University. Martin served five terms as a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives and holds the distinction of being the youngest person ever elected to the Tennessee legislature. “From my time in the Assembly, I clearly understand there are

standards of transparency and public service that are a key part of the responsibility of the University of Memphis,” Martin says. He is involved in a number of civic and philanthropic activities and chairs the Martin Family Foundation. Martin is also an accomplished writer. He is co-author of the book Five Stones: Conquering Your Giants and wrote the children’s book Myles’ Pesky Friends. “I actually took a class on creative writing while I was a student at the University of Memphis,” he recalls. “It just took me a few decades to put what I learned to some good use!”

Campus News / L A M B U T H

UofM Lambuth and Jackson-Madison County Schools Partner With Modern States Education Alliance to Provide Students an On-Ramp to College

MODERN STATES EDUCATION Alliance, a philanthropy dedicated to making a college degree more affordable and accessible, has entered into a partnership with the Jackson-Madison County School System and the University of Memphis Lambuth to provide Jackson-Madison County students the opportunity to earn free college credit while they are still in high school. The “Freshman Year for Free” program through ModernStates.org is the first catalog of tuition-free online courses for more than 30 core collegiate freshman subjects. The initiative enables students to earn traditional academic credits at more than 2,900 major colleges and universities. Taught by professors from leading universities, Modern States’ free courses prepare students for the College Level Examination Program (CLEP) offered by the College Board, which also administers the SAT. Eric T. Jones, superintendent of the Jackson-Madison County School System, says partnering with the UofM and Modern States benefits his students by providing new opportunities for learning, as well as earning college credit. “This partnership allows us to better prepare our students for the transition from high school to college,” says Jones. “The more credits our students can earn now exponentially increases their chances of earning a degree. We will do anything to help stack the odds in their favor and help minimize the amount of debt they take on while pursuing their education.” Through the partnership, the second of its kind in Tennessee, Modern States will pay

the $87 CLEP examination fee for at least 200 Jackson-Madison County students. Making access to a test location convenient for students, the UofM Lambuth will offer CLEP exams in its on-campus testing center. “The new agreement with Jackson-Madison County Schools and Modern States provides another opportunity for the University of Memphis to help ensure high school students in Tennessee are able to pursue a college degree without breaking the bank,” said Dr. Richard Irwin, UofM executive dean of UofM Global and Academic Innovation. “For every course they CLEP out of, in-state students would save $1,500.” Modern States also has a similar partnership with the University of Memphis and Collierville Schools. “Modern States is pleased to expand its partnerships in Tennessee and help make a college education a reality for more students in the state,” said Steve Klinsky, the philanthropy’s founder and CEO. “National student debt is at an all-time high and great tuition-free college courses, like the ones that Modern States is providing in partnership with the Jackson-Madison County Schools and University of Memphis Lambuth, can help many more people afford a college degree.” The professors who teach the Modern States courses include faculty from some of the nation’s top universities, including Columbia, Purdue, Rutgers, MIT, Johns Hopkins, Tufts, Baruch College, the University of Texas and University of California, Berkeley. More than 90,000 students have registered at ModernStates.org.

UofM Lambuth Offers Doctor of Liberal Studies Degree UNIVERSITY COLLEGE AT the UofM began offering the Doctor of Liberal Studies (DLS) last fall. The DLS is a terminal degree for students who want to work across disciplines to engage a topic or issue. A DLS degree allows participants to design their own interdisciplinary doctoral program focused on their areas of interest. Students earn a total of 54 hours of post-master’s coursework, which includes 21 hours of University College core requirements and 33 hours of coordinated study, with no more than 18 hours in a single department. Students also must complete comprehensive exams and defend their dissertation/capstone project. In order to pursue this degree, students must have earned a master's degree from a regionally accredited U.S. college or university with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.25. For more information, contact ucgrad@memphis.edu.

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Campus News

The 1972-73 Memphis State Tigers. Front row: David Kimmel, Ed DeSchepper, Bill Cook, Ed Wilson, Ed Young (asst. coach), John Tunstall, John Washington, Clarence Jones and Ted Turnipseed. Back row: Bill Grogan, Gene Bartow (head coach), Doug McKinney, Jim Liss, Jerry Teltzlaff, Ken Andrews, Wes Westfall, Larry Kenon, Wayne Yates (asst. coach), Charles Duvall, Ronnie Robinson, Billy Buford, Larry Trosper, Shannon Kennedy, Larry Finch, Bill Laurie, LeRoy Hunt (asst. coach) and Norman McCoy.

Tiger Hoops at 100: A Century of Memphis Basketball

Tyler Harris Sophomore guard

U N I V E RS I T Y O F M E M P H I S M AGA Z I N E

EGINNING IN MARCH

2020, the University of Memphis will partner with the Memphis Pink Palace Museum to create an exhibition commemorating men's and women's Tiger basketball. Tiger Hoops at 100 will feature objects from the University’s own collections, as well as the collection at the Memphis Pink Palace Museum. Objects from several private collections also will be on display. “I was 10 when we played UCLA for the championship in 1973,” recalls Memphis Pink Palace programs administrator Warren Perry (BA ’92, MA ’00). “I remember watching both the national semifinal against Providence and the final against the Bruins. I don’t remember ever wanting to go to college anywhere else. Memphis was always the only school on my list, and part of that reasoning was the impact that 1973 game had on me. Tiger basketball is a centerpiece tradition with tens of thousands of families in our community.”

The exhibition will feature discussion of the glory moments, but it will also address the controversies. “No season goes by in which all the schools survive the NCAA’s scrutiny,” Perry notes, “and our school has a couple of asterisks attached to our records which we feel compelled to address in the show. We want a comprehensive historical exhibition which reflects the greatness of our teams but which also addresses some of the low points in our history.” Tiger Hoops will showcase objects and images from all the decades spanning both men’s and women’s basketball. The staff of the Pink Palace is reaching deep into the community looking for objects with hopes that basketball treasures from private collections will emerge over the search. The exhibition is tentatively scheduled to run from March 7¬June 7, 2020. Anyone interested in loaning an item to the exhibit may contact Perry at warren.perry@memphistn.gov.

GIFT FROM

Neil and Mary Aronov Will Support Clinical Psychology Students and Law School

EIL AND MARY ARONOV have made generous commitments in their estate plans which will benefit both the University of Memphis Clinical Psychology program and the Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law.

Several years ago Neil, a clinical and forensic psychologist and adjunct professor in Clinical Psychology at the UofM, learned that PhD students were having to pay for their own travel to universities for internship interviews. Some students were paying for multiple flights. The Aronovs started the River Fund I to help defray the expenses these students incurred traveling to internship interviews. The couple is now establishing an additional fund, The River Fund II, through their estate plans. Thanks to the fund, the students will be reimbursed for most of their interview travel expenses. The UofM’s Clinical Psychology program is considered one of the best in the country. It attracts 200 applicants a year from around the world to fill more than a dozen slots. Graduates go on to prestigious internships at such elite institutions as Harvard, Yale, Brown and Johns Hopkins. Additionally, the Aronovs have committed to making larger gifts during their lifetime to enable the Psychology Department to support a lecture series with an emphasis on topics the PhD students choose. Clinical graduate students will be able to bring in recognized experts to provide hands-on workshops to further the breadth of training they already receive at no additional cost to the students or faculty. “I’ve been a practicing clinical and forensic psychologist for decades in Memphis, and for many of those years I

have had the honor of participating in the training of young Clinical Psychology graduate students in the Department of Psychology,” says Neil. “As I supervised their clinical work, fortunately they taught me how to teach them.” Mary graduated second in her class from the UofM School of Law and is retired from the Baker Donelson law firm. She was rated one of the top attorneys in her specialty by Best Lawyers in America. The bequest to the Law School is unrestricted, allowing the dean to use it for the School’s most important priorities. “My clinical and forensic practice has been successful, and my wife Mary had become a preeminent attorney with a successful career in a prestigious law farm,” says Neil. “So we wanted to support the University in a more substantial way.” “My education at the Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law prepared me well for the legal profession,” says Mary. “Reflecting on a long and rewarding career in the law, I wanted to give back to the law school that made this possible.” Bequests are simply gifts made in a will. Ask your professional advisor how you can join the Aronovs in creating a legacy gift, or contact the Office of Planned Giving at 901.678.2732 or plannedgiving@memphis.edu for appropriate language.

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BOARD OF TRUSTEES

THE FIRST TWO YEARS 16

U N I V E RS I T Y O F M E M P H I S M AGA Z I N E

March 17, 2017 … the historic day when the University of Memphis Board of Trustees met for the first time, a moment that instantly made an indelible impact on the future of the University. The only constant since has been change. In just two short years, the University has implemented an incredible number of programs that benefit a wide range of areas allowing this University to become a national leader.

The much-anticipated pedestrian cable bridge will provide students with improved accessibility to campus.

UofM Offers Paid Parental Leave

Campaign Shines Light on Track and Soccer Complex

The University of Memphis Board of Trustees approved a six-week paid parental leave policy. With this implementation, the UofM becomes the first public higher education institution in the State of Tennessee to offer paid leave for new parents. The policy will offer six weeks paternal or maternal leave for faculty and staff adopting or having a biological child. This policy is monumental in the University’s strides to recruit and retain young professionals and be recognized as family friendly.

The Time to Shine Capital campaign is shedding light, literally, on the University of Memphis soccer programs. The UofM announced a $500,000 project to light the Billy J. Murphy Track and Soccer Complex. Started in 2013, the campaign will conclude with the return of Memphis men’s and women’s soccer matches to the UofM Park Avenue Campus.

Football Will Get New Indoor Practice Facility As part of the Time to Shine Capital campaign, the UofM will open a new indoor football practice facility on the Park Avenue Campus. It will include a 120-yard, top-of-the-line artificial turf practice field with goal posts, coaches’ offices and spaces for enhanced student-athlete academic, nutrition and athletic development.

FedExPark Gets Addition Originally opened in 2010, FedExPark underwent further development in 2017–18. The Tigers opened a 1,600 square-foot addition to the W.S. “Babe” Howard Training Facility attached to FedExPark for the 2018 season. The expansion, which was made possible by the generosity of Ray and Laura Rosas along with other private donors, includes a team meeting room and additional coaches, offices. With the additional office space, the Tigers will be able to have their entire coaching and support staff in the same building.

Patterson Street Project Will Increase Safety The Patterson Street Realignment Project will make it easier to negotiate the five-way stop on Patterson. It will be completed by the City of Memphis and has 20 percent financial input from the UofM. The work includes aligning the street with the existing railroad crossing and relocating the existing parking from the west side of the street to the east side of the street. No parking will be lost, but it will be more accessible and safer. The street will have a center median and planted verge strips with new sidewalks and lighting.

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Office of Technology Transfer Celebrates Record Number of Patents The Office of Technology Transfer (OTT) hosted the 2017 University of Memphis Inventor Celebration to honor and recognize those who have received patents for their inventions and/or intellectual property during the last year. The celebration culminated an extraordinary year for the University, receiving a record 10 patents â&#x20AC;&#x201D; an achievement that highlights the research capabilities at the UofM.

UofM Breaks Ground on Scheidt Family Music Center The University of Memphis broke ground on the new Scheidt Family Music Center, a 40,000-sq. ft. music center that will allow the UofM to immediately increase student recruitment and grow the pool of UofM music graduates. The state-of-the-art facility will double the size of the current Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music, and feature an expansive performance hall and significant enhancements in technology and acoustics. Dedicated tailored laboratories for innovation and artistic expression will allow faculty to structure the educational experience to best serve students.

UofM Opens Next Generation of Basketball Facilities The Laurie-Walton Family Basketball Center on the Park Avenue Campus of the University of Memphis features the latest in amenities, technology, student-athlete involvement and even fan engagement. The facility is the primary home of the Tiger menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s basketball program and sets the standard as the next generation of facilities. The center includes the normal practice facility amenities, including a practice gym, locker room, coachesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; offices and training facilities. However, what sets the Laurie-Walton Family Basketball Center apart from its predecessors is the commitment to donor and VIP cultivation, a public Hall of Traditions, academic support for multiple teams, state-of-the-art training facilities, enhanced technology and connectivity throughout the building and a practice court that is significantly larger than the normal size.

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Rose Family Foundation Commits $1 Million to Natatorium Renovation Project The Rose Family Foundation has made a $1 million commitment to the University of Memphis Natatorium Renovation Project. The Foundation is partnering with the UofM to secure $10 million to renovate its natatorium, which is used by Memphis Tiger Swimming, Splash Mid-South and the UofM community. Drowning is a leading cause of death among children ages 1-4. AfricanAmerican children ages 5-19 drown in pools at a rate 5.5 times higher than that of white children. Since the closing of the YMCA on Walker Avenue in 2011, there have been few options available in the University area for swim lessons and drowning prevention training. In addition, Memphis does not have a swimming facility that can accommodate swimming and diving competitions.

Nineteen UofM Programs Ranked Nationally by U.S. News & World Report

THE FIRST TWO YEARS

The University of Memphis has 19 academic programs currently ranked nationally by U.S. News & World Report in its Best Graduate Schools, including three in the Top 25: Audiology (No. 17), Rehabilitation Counseling (No. 21) and Speech-Language Pathology (No. 24). The other ranked programs are: Health Care Management (No. 47), Social Work (No. 88), Clinical Psychology (No. 102), Earth Sciences (No. 111), Fine Arts (No. 114), Math (No. 127), English (No. 133), History (No. 134), Public Affairs (No. 135), Law (No. 137), Engineering (No. 145), Psychology (No. 148), Education (153), Nursing (No. 155), Part-Time MBA (No. 163) and Biological Sciences (No. 190).

Trustees Approve New Programs

The Community Health Building located on the Park Avenue Campus is home to the new PhD in Nursing Program.

The Board of Trustees has approved eight new programs to expand the academic offerings available from the UofM. The following new academic programs have been approved by the Board of Trustees and the Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC): PhD in Nursing (Loewenberg College of Nursing), Doctor of Liberal Studies (University College), Master of Science in Biostatistics (University College) and Bachelor of Science in Commercial Aviation (University College). Additionally, the following programs have been approved by the Board of Trustees, but are pending approval by THEC: PhD in Urban Affairs (College of Arts & Sciences), Doctor of Physical Therapy (School of Health Studies), Doctor of Social Work (College of Arts & Sciences) and Master of Science in Engineering Management (Herff College of Engineering).

UMRF Ventures Opens Command Center, Call Centers UMRF Ventures, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the University of Memphis Research Foundation, has hired 45 UofM graduate students primarily specializing in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) to work on campus with FedEx IT employees from their IT Command Center Team. The result of this collaboration is a UMRF Ventures-operated FedEx IT Command Center â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Systems Analytics Group, which opened at the FedEx Institute of Technology on campus. UMRF Ventures also operates two IT Call Centers, one on the main campus and one at UofM Lambuth. Students earn a good salary and gain real-world experience providing FedEx team members with first-level technical support. By the end of its second year, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s projected that UMRF Ventures will employ 300 students.

UofM Launches River City Partnership The River City Partnership, a collaboration between the University of Memphis, Shelby County Schools and the Achievement School District, was created in 2018. The River City Partnership is an umbrella initiative intended to strengthen the teacher pipeline by introducing high school students to a possible career in education, preparing teachers at both the undergraduate and graduate level and implementing retention strategies for new and existing teachers.

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Record Year for Fundraising The University of Memphis secured a record $23,145,635 in academic commitments during the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2018, surpassing the previous record of $21,080,174 achieved in 2015. The total includes gifts of cash, pledges and planned gifts from alumni, friends, corporations and foundations to the University of Memphis Foundation. Private contributions impact the lives of students and improve the educational experience at the University of Memphis.

University College Adds Commercial Aviation Degree Program The University College partnered with Crew Training International (CTI) Professional Flight Training to launch a new Commercial Aviation program in fall 2018. “The Commercial Aviation Degree program is one of many steps the University of Memphis is taking to better prepare students for 21st century jobs,” said President M. David Rudd. “The opportunity to collaborate with Millington’s Crew Training International Professional Flight Training will not only build a superior education program for our students, it will also better position our aviation graduates for future opportunities with FedEx.”

FedEx LiFE Program Offers Opportunity for Tuition-Free Degree FedEx Express and the University of Memphis established the Learning inspired by FedEx LiFE program, a new initiative that allows employees of the FedEx World Hub the opportunity to earn a tuition-free, fully-online degree from UofM Global. This unique initiative provides FedEx Hub employees in Memphis, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Oakland, Calif. and Newark, N. J. the opportunity to earn a bachelor’s degree through the University of Memphis online program, UofM Global, at potentially no cost to the employees. As long as students

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remain in good academic standing and are employed at the FedEx Hub, tuition expenses will be directly billed to FedEx. See page 30 for more on the program.

Larry Finch Plaza Planned Larry Finch Plaza, which will include a statue of the late former Memphis Tiger All-American, assistant coach and head coach, will be located at a site to be chosen on the University of Memphis campus. A committee has also been appointed to plan the project. Finch, who had his No. 21 jersey retired on Nov. 30, 1974, competed in more than 500 games in 25 years as a player and coach for the Tigers. Finishing his threeyear playing career from (1970-73) as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 1,869 points, Finch is currently ranked fourth behind Keith Lee, Elliot Perry and Rodney Carney. His 22.3 points per game career average remains a Memphis record. See page 52 for more on the plaza.

UofM Among Three Universities to Share $5 Million NSF STEM Grant The University of Memphis is one of three urban universities to receive a portion of a $5 million grant from the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (S-STEM) program. The grant will support the Urban S-STEM Collaboratory project, which brings together the UofM, the University of Colorado at Denver and Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis to provide academic, social, professional and peer networking; career preparation; and scholarship support to approximately 150 engineering and mathematical sciences majors across the three institutions. The UofM Herff College of Engineering, College of Arts & Sciences and College of Communication and Fine Arts will collectively receive $1.7 million for the project, $1 million of which will be dedicated to scholarships.

THE FIRST TWO YEARS

Metal Additive Manufacturing Lab Opens The University of Memphis celebrated the opening of the state-of-the-art Metal Additive Manufacturing Lab Sept. 27, 2018. “The opening of the Metal Additive Manufacturing Lab marks both the culmination of years of planning and the launch of a new phase of research and instruction at the Herff College of Engineering,” said Dean Richard Sweigard. “This will be the region’s first 3-D metal printing facility at an educational institution, and it will enable the University to perform cutting-edge research while also preparing graduates to meet the needs of our manufacturing partners. Additionally, the lab will provide new opportunities for researchers campus-wide to incorporate 3-D metal printing into their work.”

UofM May Add Osteopathic Medicine School at Lambuth The UofM is exploring the feasibility of adding a doctor of osteopathic medicine school to the UofM Lambuth Campus in Jackson. President M. David Rudd said the school would be a natural fit for Jackson, where there is a significant need for rural health care. Students who earn a doctor of osteopathic medicine degree are fully licensed physicians who focus on primary care and wellness.

New Simplified Tuition Structure Most out-of-state students at the University of Memphis will have a sizable cut in tuition under a simplified four-tier tuition structure approved by the Board of Trustees in September 2018. The restructuring sets tuition for Tennessee residents, outof-state residents, international students and UofM Global (online) students. Under the new system, students from

outside a 250-miles radius of the UofM will see a considerable decrease in costs. The changes will significantly reduce the amount above in-state tuition that students from around the country have to pay.

UofM Has Lowest Tuition Increases in State Over Last Five Years The University of Memphis has the lowest total tuition and fee increases in the State of Tennessee over the past five years by a substantial margin at 11.9 percent. The UofM is the only public institution of higher education in Tennessee to not have a tuition increase in two of the last five years, and has the lowest rate of average tuition increase (1.7 percent) over the last five years. The UofM’s average tuition increase has been 1.7 percent, compared to 7.4 percent over the previous decade and a half.

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UofM Moves Forward on Agreement to Manage Gather Apartments

University Nears Completion on Pedestrian Cable Bridge The UofM is nearing completion on the much-anticipated pedestrian cable bridge, amphitheater and general access parking garage. The cable bridge will link the north and south sections of the campus. Once completed, students will be able to walk across Southern and Walker avenues and the railroad tracks. The $30 million Center for Wellness and Fitness will soon follow. The project will feature a new 74,000 sq. ft. building with an academic focus offering holistic wellness and fitness opportunities that are integrated into the University’s core academic mission. Combined with renovations to the existing recreation center, it will provide 225,000 sq. ft. of wellness and fitness space.

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The University of Memphis Board of Trustees approved a request by the UofM to move forward on an agreement with Municipal Acquisitions to manage and eventually acquire the Gather on Southern apartments at a special called meeting. The endeavor — the first of its kind by a public university in the State of Tennessee — will allow the University to expand its housing inventory in a public/private partnership.

Tuition Transparency and Accountability Act Approved The University of Memphis Board of Trustees approved a Tuition Transparency and Accountability Act — a policy to establish guidelines for considering increases in tuition and mandatory fees — at its meeting in December 2018 at UofM Lambuth.

AND THE BEST IS YET TO COME!

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Isaac Rodriguez (SweetBio co-founder and chief science officer) says starting a company with his sister, Kayla Rodriguez Graff (co-founder and CEO), was “one of the coolest experiences.”

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With the UMRF Research Park, the Uof M is creating a pipeline from labs on campus to research parks while giving a boost to the University District

NURTURING THE

NEIGHBORHOOD BY ANITA HOUK

UST THERE, at 460 S. Highland, inside the humble, red brick building that housed Memphis’s first branch library from 1951 to 2011, you can witness visionary plans unfolding. Want to go in? It’s a two-story, approximately 10,000-sq. ft. space. A good-natured game of table tennis is being played in the loft by a couple of guys taking a break from taxing their brains.

Despite the cool-looking, open environment, there’s an unmistakable crackle of hot ideas cooking in this Phase 1 facility for the University of Memphis Research Foundation (UMRF) Research Park. Folks in the offices and community spaces have big plans, as do those considering the surrounding community. PHOTOS BY TREY CLARK

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“Dr. (M. David) Rudd has worked very hard at getting the character of the University District going,” says Dr. Jasbir Dhaliwal, UofM executive vice president for Research and Innovation. “Restaurants. Shops. Making it a happening neighborhood.” Attract young people. Mature people. Students. Professionals. New companies. Talent, global in orientation. Lay the groundwork for cutting-edge research to find a home. “What character should the district have? Let’s put a research park there, growth companies and innovators in the middle of it all and let that define that neighborhood,” says Dhaliwal. But let’s not lose our sense of place, he insists. Like the rehabbed Highland Branch Library, the neighborhood can flourish. “We’re trying to help the community find its character,” explains Dhaliwal. “We’re trying to create an ecosystem of innovation around the University. That’s very special, because in the old days, universities were like ivory towers: the philosophers cut off from the real world. “Modern universities,” he says, “have a responsibility to contribute to the economic development of the neighborhood.”

A huge artwork by Memphis muralist Michael Roy emerges from a two-story wall near the stairs. The artist, a Mississippi native better known as Birdcap, created a strange interpretation of the god of fire, volcanoes, metalworking, stone masonry, sculpture and craftsmen. Usually bearded, ugly and lame, the god called Vulcan in Roman mythology is presented here in stunning blue, looking far from human and named in the Greek, Hephaestus. Such are the curious counterpoints in Phase 1 of 3 for UMRF Research Park’s brave new world of innovation.

IT’S GOING TO COME ALIVE WITH START-UP COMPANIES THAT OUR STUDENTS LAUNCH; COMPANIES THAT WILL COME AND WORK WITH OUR FACULTY MEMBERS AND STUDENTS.”

Their game of table tennis interrupted, competitor Troy Parkes, who is in innovation development, asks his rival to grab the end of the table, and — voila — the surface converts to a conference table. Look around, and whiteboards line the walls, poised for sudden brainstorms.

UMRF Phase 2 involves repurposing the old Defense Contract Audit Institute building at 4075 Park Ave., near Goodlett.

Parkes also points to just inside the Highland Street entrance to a conference table he says was used by former University presidents. “It’s a great piece of history,” he says, adding that neighborhood groups are still invited to use the facility. “We combine the past with the future here.”

“It’s going to come alive with start-up companies that our students launch; companies that will come and work with our faculty members and students,” Dhaliwal says. “At the same time, the focus there will be companies that are launched based on our patents.

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“When good technologies pop out of our research, we patent it. Once the patent is issued to us, the University, including the individuals involved, then the University sets up start-up ventures around the intellectual property. Currently, the University is on track to getting about 10 patents every year.” Case in point: SweetBio, lodged on the second floor of the Highland site. A Memphis-based startup, SweetBio specializes in using biodegradable Manuka honey from Australia and New Zealand in soft tissue or wound repair. Dr. Gary Bowlin, Herff Chair of Excellence in Biomedical Engineering, and then-postdoctoral fellow in biomedical engineering Isaac Rodriguez co-invented applications. “SweetBio has had a very positive and collaborative relationship with the University since our incorporation in 2015,” says Rodriguez, SweetBio cofounder and chief science officer. “When we were first approached by UMRF about SweetBio being an anchor tenant, we immediately jumped at the opportunity. It is really exciting to see the University open its doors to growthstage startups and be proactive in facilitating collaboration with faculty for research or students for internships.” SweetBio execs include COO Axel Strombergsson, CFO Kevin Graff and Rodriguez’s sister, Kayla Rodriguez Graff. “Starting a company with my sister,” Rodriguez says, “was one of the coolest experiences. With her background in business, my background in science, and our trust in one another, we knew we had a powerful founding team. “Four years ago, I would have never imagined that my idea could be the seed that planted the growth of our company. “As for our patients, who will ultimately benefit from our product, we are motivated

every day, because we are dedicating our time to commercializing a product that is going to help our loved ones heal.” “To create an ecosystem of innovation, we need many different players to come and interact — faculty and students and entrepreneurs and companies that want to work in research from everywhere in the world,” says Dhaliwal. “It helps shape the research agenda to be more relevant to our community and our region.” The challenge is complex. Even as Phase 1 and 2 are getting off the ground, plans are underway for UMRF Phase 3. The latter will involve new construction, a three-story building in the Highland-Patterson area, with two floors devoted to research labs and companies that co-locate with the UofM and a third floor for student residences. “As the research comes out of the labs on campus, we are creating a pipeline to the research parks,” Dhaliwal says. “We are going to have many phases. The wrong approach is to build a huge research park and then hope ‘they’ will come. We don’t take the high-risk approach.” Of course, without students at the core, the UMRF strategic plan could go nowhere. “Students are central to everything a university does,” Dhaliwal says. “Today, in a full employment economy where workforce and talent are very hard to get, we are inviting companies to see our best and brightest and to co-locate with us (in Memphis).”

Isaac Rodriguez SweetBio co-founder

Top Right: UMRF Research Park is a 10,000 sq. ft. global flex campus with room for large or small office spaces. Bottom Left: The historic table used by previous University presidents is where history meets innovation.

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UofM President M. David Rudd greets guests as Green Mountain Technology officially moves into its space at UMRF Research Park.

Climbing Mountains

By Anita Houk PHOTOS BY TREY CLARK

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REE SHIPPING? NO SUCH THING. But save on shipping? That’s a mission — and not mission impossible for Green Mountain Technology, a major entity at the University of Memphis Research Foundation (UMRF) Research Park.

Using proprietary technology and what Bruce Prentice, company vice president of information technology, calls “highly engaged services,” Green Mountain assists some of the largest shippers in the United States in managing and optimizing spending on transportation costs.

“We understand that data is what fuels their ability to make decisions needed to delight customers,” Prentice says. “We are the leaders in turning this data into actionable information that can be quickly understood and leveraged.” To out-perform the competition and nurture talent from the best and brightest across all disciplines, Green Mountain is making the UofM its partner and the research park an extension of the company. “This is the first venture of its kind for Green Mountain Technology, and it has come at a very opportune time,” says Prentice of the company, which was started in Memphis 20 years ago.

Top: Dr. Karen Weddle-West, vice president for Student Academic Success, meets Craig Russell, founder and CEO of Green Mountain Technology, as the company takes up residence at UMRF Research Park. Bottom left: President Rudd greets Russell (left) and Bruce Prentice, the company’s vice president for information technology. Bottom right: Guests get to check out the UMRF Research Park during the welcome celebration for Green Mountain Technology.

“We have begun a process of re-imagining our architecture and innovating at a fast pace.

be able to help students across all majors understand how they can play a vital role in our future.

“(UMRF is) a place for us to partner with the University on the research and development of next-generation technologies and processes. This venture has had the unexpected effect of connecting us with more faculty at the University than we thought possible. It has opened up new possibilities for collaboration with the different colleges. It also has allowed us the opportunity to understand and begin collaborating with the other tenants at the UMRF campus.”

“It is a great opportunity to help further their knowledge and give them the opportunity to work on real-world issues that fit closely with their studies. It also will allow us to connect with the other contributors and the faculty at the research park, and to further innovation in our city.

Students have a decided place in the mix. “We want to allow the students to participate with us as we begin this journey,” says Prentice. “We will

“We know that our own backyard is the best place to grow and develop talent that will help move not only Green Mountain, but also the City of Memphis into the future. We are committed to helping this process by spurring innovation at the UMRF Research Park and developing the talent needed to make Memphis the central hub for innovation.”

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SECOND LiFE: Employees can pursue a potentially tuition-free education through UofM Global’s online curriculum

IM GRANNAN NEVER IMAGINED that he and his daughter, Mackenzie, would be enrolled at the University of Memphis at the same time. The 41-yearold father of four girls has spent the last 22 years working at FedEx, rising from a package handler in the hub in 1997 to his current role as operations manager of the FedEx international command center in Memphis. In his mid-20s, Grannan completed an EMT certification with the goal of becoming a firefighter. Then life and a family came along, and his FedEx career blossomed as a manager. As recently as last summer, the thought of earning a college degree wasn’t even a blip on his radar. In August 2018, Grannan attended a FedEx management team meeting, where he learned of a new collaboration between the company and the UofM. In the ensuing minutes, Grannan and his colleagues learned more about the partnership — a program known as Learning inspired by FedEx or LiFE — and a summer afternoon meeting quickly evolved into the opportunity of a lifetime. “My main focus has been making sure my kids are taken care of and pushing them through school,” Grannan says. “When this opportunity came along with FedEx, I wanted to be a part of it. It was a great opportunity for me to continue my education and pursue a bachelor’s degree.”

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Tim Grannan UofM LiFE Student

Mary Brignole serves as a LiFE Coach and aids students throughout their educational journey.

Creating LiFE DR. RICHARD IRWIN, executive dean of UofM Global and Academic Innovation, spoke at the August 2018 meeting alongside FedEx leadership. They shared details about the LiFE program, which almost sounded too good to be true to many in the audience like Grannan. FedEx Express employees in the Memphis hub who had not finished high school or college, and who met eligibility requirements, could pursue degrees potentially tuition-free through the UofM Global online curriculum.

"THE PROGRAM IS ONE OF THE FIRST PARTNERSHIPS OF ITS KIND BETWEEN A CORPORATION AND A UNIVERSITY."

Employees could begin the program immediately, outside the traditional structure of a standard twosemester calendar, an ideal format for the busy schedules of FedEx employees. Innovative in its design, LiFE is expected to help FedEx solve attrition challenges. FedEx leaders approached the University of Memphis looking for a creative solution through education.

By Mike O’Kelly

“This program strengthens the University’s relationship with FedEx while addressing a community need,” Irwin says. “FedEx wanted to address a retention challenge, and this program means keeping employees longer with less of a need to retrain. LiFE is a wonderful opportunity for a lot of people who didn’t have a college degree on their personal plan.”

PHOTOS BY TREY CLARK

The program is one of the first partnerships of its kind between a corporation and a university, and another link in the strong ties between the city’s largest private employer and the UofM.

Since launching last fall to the 11,000 employees of the Memphis World Hub, the program has expanded to hubs in Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Newark, N.J., and Oakland, Calif., as well as to employees of FedEx Logistics, which is moving its corporate headquarters to downtown Memphis. In addition to Grannan and several others completing the Prep Academy course, one student has successfully achieved his high school equivalency and another finished her degree program while enrolled in LiFE and graduated in fall 2018. Through the University's unique experiential learning credit program, many FedEx employees were able to turn their work training into college credit hours. For example, one student was able to move from a junior to a senior based on his extensive training portfolio.

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The Building

a Bachelor of Professional Studies in Organizational Leadership degree.

Blocks of LiFE

LiFE Goes On

GRANNAN IS CURRENTLY taking one online course, but prior to that he completed the LiFE Prep Academy, which helps prepare students who either have yet to obtain a high school diploma, have not taken a college entrance exam or who have been away from the classroom for a long time. LiFE coaches also help evaluate student readiness and guide students throughout the entire experience from enrollment to completion. UofM Global also offers Smart Start, a comprehensive assessment tool.

“AN EDUCATION IS PRICELESS. I AM JUST VERY GRATEFUL TO BE A PART OF IT.”

“The Prep Academy helps prepare you for what to expect as far as online courses go, and if you have any questions, a LiFE coach is there to help you along the way,” says Grannan, who completed the last of his Prep Academy online modules last December. Students entering the Prep Academy gradually return to the learning environment at their own pace, completing modules with no specific deadline or schedule. “They are not dealing with deadlines or tests, so they ease into the online learning style,” says Courtney Brafford, director of student success services for UofM Global. “These are mostly adult learners, so people who maybe tried college and it wasn’t successful, so maybe they have a little bit of trepidation about starting school. We’ve received some great feedback about the help that we’ve been able to give them and taken away some of the barriers that might intimidate them.” After completing the Prep Academy and working with a LiFE coach, participants are enrolled as UofM students. FedEx employees who complete the online curriculum will receive

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AS LiFE STUDENTS begin to share their success stories, interest in the program is growing. Grannan encourages his team members and colleagues to explore the program. With the support of his daughter Mackenzie, a UofM sophomore, and the rest of his family, Grannan continues to take steps toward earning his bachelor’s degree.

“This is truly a great investment that will help me further my career with FedEx, and I am sure FedEx will see a great benefit from this, as they will see growth in their employees,” Grannan says. “An education is priceless. I am just very grateful to be a part of it.” Although LiFE is less than a year old, the program has already reached several thousand FedEx employees across the U.S. Irwin says that his team receives more than 300 requests each week from potential students. “We are having discussions about further expansion and there is quite a buzz within FedEx, which I think speaks to the success of the program to date,” Irwin says. “This is a dynamic program; there is great value in having FedEx join us in continuing to think outside of the box. They have been such a great supporter of things that we do at the University of Memphis and this has crystallized that relationship.”

Learn more at uofmglobal.memphis.edu/LiFE.

Innovative Collaboration Offers FedEx Employees the Opportunity to Pursue College Dreams

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WHEN KERRY COBB TALKS baseball, his pace quickens and his voice rises. He recalls his first hit in T-ball. He reminisces about controlling games from the mound. He admires baseball’s nuances and strategies and the tough-love lessons it teaches about failure and redemption. “It’s a team sport first, but you have to understand your part, your duty, your assignment,” Cobb says. “That’s what sets it apart from all the other sports.” Here’s the odd part: Cobb is a football guy. He was the captain of his high school baseball team in Jackson, Tenn., but football brought him to the University of Memphis. A four-year letterman, he played tight end in one of the UofM's most acclaimed victories — its 21-17 upset of the nationallyranked Tennessee Volunteers in 1996. Yet, this UofM graduate is using his lifelong passion for baseball as a conduit for improving the lives of the City of Memphis’ African-American youth. That passion for baseball is sincere, but so, too, is his desire to be a change agent in Memphis.

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“In this city, when I go around and see what’s going on, (the kids) need mentoring. They need help,” Cobb says. “If you can use baseball as a tool to keep them motivated, to keep them off the street, that’s what comes first.” Cobb’s tool is Memphis Little League, the nonprofit organization that in 2007 became a chartered member of Little League Baseball Inc., the renowned organization that operates youth baseball and softball leagues in all 50 states and more than 80 countries. When a previous City of Memphis administration eliminated Little League Baseball in a swath of budget cuts, Cobb decided to revive it and create opportunities for children who couldn’t afford the sport’s increasing reliance on expensive travel teams that showcase players and attract college scouts. “At the time,” Cobb says, “baseball was pretty big in Memphis. But when that budget cut came, it just destroyed the model of inner-city baseball here.” A key component of Cobb’s success is Little League Baseball’s Urban Initiative Program, which assists low-income communities by starting youth baseball and softball leagues, maintaining their facilities and acquiring equipment. The Urban Initiative Program, which began in 1999, now features 200 leagues in nearly 85 U.S. cities.

BY PHILLIP TUTOR PHOTOS BY TREY CLARK

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Almost 4,000 Memphis boys and girls have participated in Cobb’s leagues over the last decade. His goal this year is to enroll 350 boys and girls and field as many as 24 teams in four age groups. Memphis Little League plays at the city-owned Will Carruthers Baseball Complex on Neely Road in Whitehaven. Little League grants and other volunteers have helped Memphis Little League renovate the restrooms and concession stands, build clay mounds and fix the infields that had fallen into disrepair. Cobb dreams of a five-star complex where next year “you are going to see something special out there.” Others say something special is already happening with Memphis Little League. In 2011, Little League Baseball and Softball named Cobb the Howard and Gail Paster Little League Urban Initiative Volunteer of the Year. Stephen D. Keener, the organization’s president and chief executive officer, said that year that Cobb “has built the Memphis Little League from the ground up in an area where baseball does not have a strong reputation. His commitment to the program and the children of Memphis has raised the awareness of baseball to the point where he has a league with several hundred participants.” Through a management agreement with the city, Cobb and his team

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of volunteers are responsible for lining the Carruthers Complex’s five fields, cutting the grass, trimming the weeds and cleaning the grounds. That makes Cobb a mentor, entrepreneur, coach and groundskeeper. “If I’m not cutting grass, I’m probably coaching one of my teams,” says Cobb, who also owns a screenprinting and embroidery business, Christian Wear Apparel. “It’s a lot of stuff going on, but I’m at a point now where it’s close to reaching the vision. I can’t just stop here.” There’s a story he tells that epitomizes that vision. Last summer, Cobb took one of his teams to the Urban Initiative Program jamboree in Macon, Ga., nearly 500 miles from Memphis. Afterward, organizers rewarded the players with tickets to a Major League Baseball game in Atlanta, which confirmed Cobb’s belief that his decision to resurrect Little League Baseball in Memphis was correct. “Just seeing how those kids reacted, it made an impression on them,” Cobb said. “They enjoyed themselves so much, there was no stress, they were just having a ball. The excitement on their faces made me feel like a little kid again.” The success of Memphis Little League is a small chapter in the national story of African-American participation in baseball, a sport in which the modern era was built in part on the exploits of black players such as Jackie Robinson — who broke MLB’s color barrier — Larry Doby, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays,

Cobb has built the Memphis Little League from the ground up in an area where baseball does not have a strong reputation. His commitment to the program and the children of Memphis has raised the awareness of baseball to the point where he has a league with several hundred participants.

Willie McCovey, Don Newcombe, Frank Robinson, Roy Campanella and Satchel Paige. By the 1980s, many of the game’s best players were African-Americans: Darryl Strawberry, Rickey Henderson, Andre Dawson, Bo Jackson, Eric Davis, Dave Winfield, Kirby Puckett and Tony Gwynn.

instant gratification available in the NBA and NFL, where players like former UofM football stars DeAngelo Williams and Anthony Miller don’t have to toil for years in the minor leagues; the expense of playing travel baseball and a decline in the quality of baseball coaching in inner-city America.

The game’s changing demographics, however, have been stark and obvious in the decades since. When Jackie Robinson retired in 1956, only 6.7 percent of MLB players were black. Last year, MLB’s official tabulation of black players on its rosters was just 8.4 percent.

Cobb, though, sees opportunity, not a lost cause. He’s committed to his long-term vision, the City of Memphis and its youth.

In February, University of Oklahoma two-sport star Kyler Murray, who is black, provided the latest example of baseball’s struggle with diversity. Murray, a quarterback, won the 2018 Heisman Trophy and also was drafted in the first round by MLB’s Oakland A’s. Murray decided to play in the NFL, robbing baseball of a marketable and talented minority player. None of that is lost on Cobb, who can rattle off a detailed list of explanations: the stardom and

“Right now, I have a job to do in this community, whether it’s restoring baseball fields, beginning more camps or whether it is helping kids off the right path get back on it,” he says. “The journey we have taken down this road, if it were football or basketball, we would be well ahead of the curve. But you have to sell the value of baseball. “It has been a little tougher than I thought it would be, but we have more people now paying attention to what we are doing. We are seeing more people coming and wanting to be involved and saying, ‘How can we help?’ I didn’t imagine it was going to be this tough, but I’m not going to give up.”

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Dream Team BY CASEY HILDER

PHOTO BY TROY GLASGOW

UofM football players are frequent visitors to Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital. From left are Joey Magnifico, Calvin Austin III, Cade Mashburn and Keith Brigham, who surprised patient Jaylah with a new football.

HE UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS has teamed with one of the region’s largest pediatric health care facilities in Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital for several new and ongoing programs, showcasing a model of how to use a partnership between a hospital and a university to amplify the quality, efficiency and sustainability of existing and newly minted initiatives. “What we’ve built is a unique collaborative with the University involving multiple organizations coming together

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to meet the needs of our Le Bonheur patients,” says Gary Cook, director of Grant Administration with Le Bonheur. Existing collaborations between the UofM and Le Bonheur include the Memphis CHiLD medical-legal partnership, the University-based Memphis Speech & Hearing Center (MSHC), and the LENA initiative geared toward pre-K readiness and improving communication between parents and their children.

The UofM and Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital combine forces on several ongoing partnerships geared toward making Memphis a healthier, happier city.

A DVO CAT I N G FO R C H I L D R E N THE MEMPHIS CHILDREN’S Health Law Directive, also known as Memphis CHiLD, is a first-of-its-kind for the region medical-legal partnership that began as a team effort between the UofM’s Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law, Le Bonheur and Memphis Area Legal Services. This interdisciplinary program brings together medical and legal professionals in an effort to better respond to legal issues facing patients and address some of the underlying social conditions that might have a negative impact on health. “We saw a big need for something like this at Le Bonheur, knowing that a lot of our families have other needs that impact their health,” says Sara Burnett, public and community relations representative with Le Bonheur. The initial goal of Memphis CHiLD was to look beyond the walls of the hospital toward the myriad of social determinants behind health, namely socioeconomic status and housing concerns. This is accomplished by pairing Le Bonheur families in need with UofM legal professionals to help out with various issues.

“Since they’re already Le Bonheur families, Memphis CHiLD provides a nonthreatening, known environment to discuss legal matters,” says Burnett. Memphis CHiLD handles nearly 500 cases a year, dealing with a range of issues from taking landlords to task for housing improvements to rallying for previously denied supplemental income through Social Security for special needs children. “The program is why I came to Memphis,” says Kathryn Ramsey, assistant professor of law and director of the MedicalLegal Partnership Clinic at the UofM. “I have been interested in medicallegal partnerships for a long time.” Ramsey came to the UofM in fall 2018 after nearly a decade of working on issues of public interest law, expressing a marked interest in examining the nexus between legal problems and health issues in the Mid-South. “It was clear for me the minute that I looked into the job that this is something that was very important and needed in the City of Memphis,” says Ramsey. “Given the high levels of poverty, particularly among children,

in Memphis, this is an area where we really need to work to directly stabilize family situations and alleviate some of those negative social determinants of health that our clients experience.” The UofM’s medical-legal partnership presents a dual-learning effort for both law students and local physicians by providing both parties a unique opportunity to practice alongside each other. “The clinic offers a unique perspective,” says Burnett. “Attorneys in the program finally have a chance to interact with doctors and help break down some of those existing barriers in what was previously thought to be an adversarial relationship.” The Research Center at Le Bonheur now hosts five offices dedicated to Memphis CHiLD in its lobby, allowing families to review cases directly on the hospital’s campus.

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BETTER ACCESS,BETTER OUTCOMES

“There were a lot of meetings between the two institutions to make sure we align our beliefs and ensure this would be beneficial for the University, the hospital and, most importantly, patients,” says Keeton.

NOTHER COLLABORATIVE effort between the UofM and Le Bonheur is a relatively new partnership linking Le Bonheur’s existing network of patients with the state-of-the-art facility of the Memphis Speech and Hearing Center at the School of Communication Sciences and Disorders. “The Memphis Speech and Hearing Center is now part of the Memphis-Le Bonheur family when it comes to continuity of care,” says Danielle Keeton, director of Outpatient, Rehab and Developmental Services at Le Bonheur. “That leads to better outcomes and easier access to services via internal referral, especially when it comes to things like hearing and language testing following a stroke or cochlear implant surgery.” Since fall 2016, the UofM-based MSHC has operated under the Le Bonheur flag with the organization providing clinical oversight and revamping the center’s medical record-keeping system. “We’ve agreed to both bring our own pieces of expertise and respect it on each side and make sure that anything we put together levels up the benefit for patients and families in the community,” says Keeton. “We’re really making sure that we’re not compromising any of the levels of quality that we need to maintain, but rather enhancing them by putting our services together.” For example, surgeons who perform cochlear implants are now backed by experts at Memphis Speech and Hearing who know exactly how to care for patients post-implant to ensure they access as much hearing as they can as soon as possible. “We didn’t always have access to that kind of expertise before this partnership,” says Keeton. The partnership is the brainchild of Dr. Linda D. Jarmulowicz, dean of the School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, who made the initial proposal and began to bring groups of administrators together to discuss institutional alignment in fall 2015.

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“It’s been rewarding to see how two groups who want the same thing for the community can come together and really make things work.

”

In the lead-up and following the program’s September 2016 launch, Jarmulowicz worked alongside director of Speech Language Pathology Marilyn Wark, director of Clinical Services in Audiology Jennifer Taylor and Methodist Le Bonheur operations manager Sheila Climer to participate in monthly meetings with the operations team and clinic leadership to ensure educational components of the program are being met. “Our partnership with the University brings clinical expertise that is cutting-edge, based on the latest research, and being published in new textbooks,” says Keeton. “That’s a huge benefit to Le Bonheur, because we’re constantly learning and challenging our own practices.” For Keeton, a 2000 alumna of the UofM’s School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, being approached to head the project has felt like a second homecoming of sorts. “The whole thing has felt like a bit of a comingof-age project with the people I once asked for advice coming to me asking for advice,” says Keeton. “It’s been rewarding to see how two groups who want the same thing for the community can come together and really make things work.” In addition to technology benefits on the University side, there are other ways patients can benefit from the MSHC-Le Bonheur union. “Methodist Le Bonheur Health Care has a much larger variety of insurance companies that they contract with,” says Keeton. “We were able to help patients lower their own financial responsibly in some cases, so there’s a financial benefit to those patients who no longer have to be out-of-network with a clinic managing its own contracts.”

PHOTO BY TROY GLASGOW

Tiger football players hosted a game show for children during a recent visit to Le Bonheur. From left are Cade Mashburn, Calvin Austin III, Keith Brigham and Joey Magnifico.

SPEAKING UP FOR INFANTS AND TODDLERS

URTHER ADVANCEMENTS in speech are made through the LENA program, a three-pronged approach to encouraging the ever-important connection between parents and children through age 3. The Language Environment Analysis (LENA) initiative represents a combined effort between the UofM, Le Bonheur, Porter-Leath and Agape Child & Family Services. “Overall, LENA is designed to help study the use of language with young children,” says Sandra Madubuonwu, Maternal-Child director with Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital. LENA is broken down into three separate programs, each dealing with a different aspect of a child’s life: LENA Home, which focuses on home visitation; LENA Start, which is comprised of a series of parentgroup classes; and the classroom-centric LENA Grow for early childhood educators. According to Madubuonwu, a wide net was necessary for the program to reach as many new parents in the Mid-South as possible. “We are saturated,” she says. “We want to have the largest impact we can so the largest group can benefit from this.”

Memphis became the latest among a slew of new sites for the LENA initiative in fall 2017. The partnership was spearheaded by Dr. Loretta Rudd, clinical associate professor of Child Development, in conjunction with Seeding Success, a local nonprofit centered around childhood education initiatives. The UofM has currently implemented both LENA Home and LENA Grow programs. “Dr. Rudd is the main coordinator between all our agencies,” Madubuonwu says. “We have one from each organization involved in addition to a ‘coordinator of coordinators’ sitting on the University of Memphis side.” The crux of the LENA program involves attaching a small device, or “speech pedometer,” that records parents’ interactions with their babies for a short period of time each week. “It doesn’t actually record what the mom is saying,” says Madubuonwu, “but it does keep track of the number of words and interactions between a mother and child.” The data from these devices is then used to track the process of language development and gauge the level of interaction between a parent and child.

“Every week, we receive a recording that shows the improvement in language development as their relationship and interaction with their mom progresses,” says Madubuonwu. “At the end of the year, we will report the outcome of this project.” Le Bonheur currently has 25 pairs of mothers and children participating in the LENA program, with an overall goal of 50 more registered participants in 2019. Graduation from the program requires 10 uninterrupted sessions out of 30, with at least four of which being mandatory for program participation. Early data from the Memphis-based initiative shows a graduation rate of 80 percent and improvements in several key areas, including a marked increase in adult caregivers speaking to the babies and nearly doubled language scores from program participants. “The need is all over,” says Madubuonwu. “The necessity for this kind of program is not specific to a certain segment of society or culture. We are getting every one of these babies in the program ready for kindergarten.”

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DAVID NORTH

CHAIR, UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS BOARD OF TRUSTEES

President and CEO of Sedgwick, the premier global provider of innovative business solutions in the areas of workersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; compensation, disability and absence management, property loss adjusting and other specialty services

Recognized by Business Insurance in 2017 as one of the individuals having the most profound influence on the industry in the last 50 years

Has served on the UofM Board of Trustees since its inception in 2017

Developed and taught the American Management Association course Advanced Risk Management Strategies: Managing the Total Cost of Risk

Served on the University of Memphis Board of Visitors, University of Memphis Foundation Board and Presidentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Innovation Board Received the CLM Lifetime Achievement Award

Recognized by Business Insurance in 2016 as Entrepreneur of the Year for the Southeast U.S. region

Co-authored the book The Art of Self-Insurance Member of the Business Insurance Women to Watch Advisory Board

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ADVANTAGE RULE

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MAKING HISTORY.

That’s exactly what the University of Memphis women’s soccer team accomplished by winning the school’s first American Athletic Conference tournament championship in November. It marked the program’s sixth league championship overall.

HE TIGERS DID IT in impressive fashion with a pair of shutouts against UCF (1-0) and No. 1 seed and host USF (3-0) in the championship game in Tampa. Memphis finished the season a perfect 12-0 away from home and snapped USF’s 14-match home winning streak. “It was a great feeling,” said 19thyear head coach Brooks Monaghan. “When you’re doing this so long, you’re looking for the right ingredients. Those ingredients involve talent, and we’ve always had a lot of talent, but it also involves the group buying in 100 percent. That’s not easy to get. We knew we had a chance from the very beginning of the season with the group we had — from seniors to the freshmen. There are a lot of special girls on this team. It’s not just about their soccer ability, it’s about who they are as people.” Sophomore Clarissa Larisey scored the first two goals in the championship game, and freshman Caroline Duncan’s goal sealed the win over the Bulls. “It was amazing,” said Larisey, who was named the AAC Tournament’s Most Outstanding Offensive Player. “It was something special. It’s such a nice feeling knowing you can make your team proud by doing the simple thing of scoring a goal. My favorite thing ever was after scoring, turning around and seeing my whole team running at me so happy. It was really a great feeling.”

The Tigers had a magnificent season, recording the secondmost wins in school history with a 17-4 overall record and 7-2 in AAC play, while being ranked as high as 15th nationally. “This season was very special,” said Larisey. “The chemistry was great. We worked so hard. We put 100 percent into every practice and into every game because we had the same goal. That’s what we originally started the season off with. “We all put our goals down, and we all agreed with each other that this is what we wanted to achieve, and we ended up doing it. It was really special in that once we put our minds to it together, it happened.” The Tigers ranked fifth nationally with 50 total goals, eighth in shots per game and eighth in scoring offense with 2.5 goals per game. Defensively, Memphis allowed just 16 goals all season as sophomore goalkeeper Elizabeth Moberg’s 13 shutouts led the nation. Senior Olivia Gauthier, who has signed a pro contract with Lidköpings FK of Sweden, was named the American Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year, and a program-record seven Tigers earned all-AAC accolades. Junior Serena Dolan, Larisey and senior Marie Levasseur were named All-AAC firstteam while senior Catherine Levasseur and Moberg earned All-AAC second-team honors. Freshman Tanya Boychuk was named to the league’s All-Rookie Team. Senior defender Chanel Hudson-Marks, who participated in Jamaica’s full National Team camp for the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, was named the AAC Tournament’s Most Outstanding Defensive Player. Marie Levasseur, a forward, and junior defender Stasia Mallin were also named to the All-Tournament team. Memphis, ranked No. 15 following the AAC title, earned a home game in the NCAA Tournament first round against No. 23 Wisconsin. The Tigers lost 3-0 before a raucous home crowd of nearly 1,000 at the Mike Rose Soccer Complex. “It was really exciting for us to have that experience and play at home in front of all the fans there,” said Dolan. “We knew it was going to be a really, really exciting and intense atmosphere, and we were just excited to be able to play at home. Unfortunately, it didn’t go our way, but it was a really good experience.”

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IVE SENIORS FINISHED

their careers as Gauthier, Hudson-Marks, Catherine Levasseur, Marie Levasseur and Elizabeth Woerner totaled 50 wins and a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances in their four seasons. “This senior class is a special group,” said Monaghan. “These girls brought it every day. They helped tweak the culture. I’m going to miss them.”

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FOR THE FIRST TIME in program history, three Tigers were named academic All-Americans in the same season. Mallin and Catherine Levasseur were named Google Cloud Academic All-Americans, and Dolan was named to the United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-America second team. “Coach makes academics a big priority,” said Dolan, a two-time Dean’s List honoree who has a 3.73 GPA majoring in Health Studies with a concentration in Health Sciences. “He always says you are a student first, athlete second. It’s very important to him. “We make sure when we go on the road, we take time to have study hall hours to maintain our grades and always make sure we are keeping up with our schoolwork even though we are on

“We get to come in July before our season starts, meet all of the new players, and we become close quickly,” said Dolan. “It’s a very strong family atmosphere on and off the field because we really enjoy being around each other so much. It’s great to play with and see your family every day, even being away from your actual family back home. It really makes you feel at home here.” This past season rivaled the best season in school history, 2011, when the Tigers were ranked as high as No. 3 in the nation and finished 22-1-1 while reaching the NCAA Tournament second round and winning the Conference USA championship. Under Monaghan, the Tigers have won six league championships, including the 2018 AAC Tournament title and five Conference USA titles from 2007-11,

Left: The 2019 women's soccer team and coaches celebrate their victory in the American Athletic Conference tournament championship. Right: Head coach Brooks Monaghan posing after the chapionship win.

the road. We don’t want to fall behind because it is a very important part of our program.” The team is consistently participating in community service with St. Jude and many other organizations throughout the city. “We have a lot of volunteering opportunities,” said Larisey. “We do a lot with St. Jude. Usually we like to do things as a team, so whenever there is a volunteering opportunity, everyone is willing to do it, and even though there are only six people needed, the whole team volunteers. “We went to the St. Jude Marathon and handed out water. We also go to the Target House, and we play games with the children. For Valentine’s Day, we went and did arts and crafts. I did that last year, and it was so much fun just being with the kids and making their day while making stuff with them.” A family atmosphere is a huge component to the Tigers’ success.

and earned seven NCAA Tournament berths. Memphis has claimed 12 straight National Soccer Coaches Association of America Team Academic awards, five straight American Athletic Conference Team Academic Excellence awards, the 2009 Conference USA Sport Academic Award, 10 Academic All-Americans and 17 CoSIDA/Capital One Academic All-District selections. In 2015-16, the team GPA of 3.70 was the highest grade point average in all of Division I soccer and the program’s highest ever. “I want to start by saying how proud I am of this year’s team,” said Monaghan. “This team won our first American Athletic Conference championship. I can’t put it into words. This is a special group of ladies who have been an absolute pleasure to coach. “I expect to win another championship with the kids that we have. To see them grow has been awesome. There are some players who haven’t been on the field much yet who can be the next Clarissa (Larisey) and Sam (Murphy). It’s up to them to step up as leaders and keep that culture going.”

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Before the party By Kalpana Negi

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eena’s house was ready for the party, and there were knives. Big and small, sharp and blunt. And there were cheeses, bacon, kiwis, cantaloupes and chopping boards, all arranged by Neena on the tablecloth she and her husband, Sharad, had bought on their last trip to India. It was somewhere between a deep maroon and the color of blood, handwoven with raw silk, and as she arranged food on it, Neena imagined the admiration in the eyes of women and an occasional man, with an eye for fine things. In her mind, she rehearsed the part when she would explain how reasonably priced the tablecloth was and what a pleasure the dollar-rupee conversion rate made shopping in India. But she was reminded of Carol and Wren’s party last month when someone had boasted about their shopping spree in Sri Lanka, and the discussion veered toward pay disparity in the third world. Carol had made a fool of herself ranting about human rights violations. Neena would stay away from controversial topics. She would talk about cheerful things she and Sharad were doing — planning to adopt a dog and making a big donation to an Indian not-for-profit that worked for girls’ education. This party was going to be Neena’s answer to Carol’s gathering. With the horrible stuffed vegan rolls and fake-cheese pizza Carol had served, it wasn’t going to be hard. Sharad hadn’t been sure about the timing, but Neena had insisted. Soon, people would go away for Christmas, and January would be too late. Neena wanted her own little bash while Carol’s party was still fresh in people’s minds. Carol may have gotten the promotion, but Neena wouldn’t let her win each time. She hoped people would compare the two events like a crystal bowl next to its knock-off. A dark-green silk runner would go perfectly with the tablecloth.

She was still looking for the runner and undecided about where to place the tissue holder when the doorbell rang. If it was a guest, they were an hour early. If it was Sharad, it meant either he had forgotten the keys, or worse, his wallet, or couldn’t decide what liquor to buy, which made her mad. Couldn’t he do just one thing she’d asked him to do? And the sofa was lacking the extra throw she’d placed in the morning. Sharad was always misplacing things. It was cold, and guests needed to stay warm. The doorbell rang again. “Hi, darling! I am here to help.” It was Rupa, Neena’s colleague and close friend. “I thought maybe you could use a hand.” She was wearing a black satin dress. Neena was so out of touch — since when was satin back in fashion? It looked great on Rupa. She took a seat at the dining table and went for the biggest knife and the finest bacon. “Wow! Look at all this food,” she said and started to slice the bacon. That knife wasn’t easy to handle, but she seemed to be doing well. “You didn’t have to,” Neena said. “Oh, stop with the formality. How many people?” “About thirty, give or take.” “How many from work?” Rupa was on to a cantaloupe now and was slicing it in bite-sized pieces. Neena was glad for the help, but Rupa hadn’t washed her hands before touching the fruit. “Everyone on our team,” Neena said. “You do know Carol isn’t coming. Right?” Neena was dumbfounded. “Why?” “She is apparently not in town this weekend. Visiting her mother,” Rupa said. “Carol hasn’t been within five hundred miles of her mother in ten years,” Neena said. “Maybe she’s still cleaning up the mess from last month’s party,” Rupa said, and they laughed.

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“What about Dan? Did he say he was going to be here?” Rupa adjusted the noodle straps of her dress. Neena couldn’t recall if Rupa had worn that dress to work. It was too revealing for work. “I invited him, but I don’t know if he’s coming. Nothing stops you from texting him.” “Do I look desperate to you? Run me through the guest list,” Rupa said.

say, doesn’t know you exist?” Neena said. “Who cares? My love for him surpasses the love I’ve had for any man.” “Just slice that kiwi. Also, please wash your hands and hurry up. They will be here any time now,” Neena said. Carol wasn’t coming, but the rest of the audience was. The show had to be perfect. “I am serious. Did you never love

“You mean single men on the list?” “Single, divorced and married men who are interested,” Rupa said. “Let’s see. Rishi, I think, and Steve and Jeremy.”

“Cynicism, honey,” Rupa said. “Tell me about it.”

“That’s news to me. Mutual?” Neena said.

“As a 32-year-old woman with six failed relationships, I am not even looking for the right man anymore, I am going to settle for the one I think isn’t bad. It’s a deep fear, and, I would even say, a belief that I am never going to find love in my life. Anuptaphobia, it’s called. Anuptaphobia. Two out of five single women have it.”

“No. I don’t think so,” Rupa said, adjusting the strap of her dress again. Neena couldn’t help feeling uncomfortable that her hand was touching her body and then the knife and then the food. “Well, today is your day to find out,” Neena said.

“You just made that up, didn’t you? Anup — what?” Neena asked.

“Is it just me, or does Steve look like a young George Clooney?”

“Anuptaphobia. The fear of staying single all our lives.”

“Was he ever young? I don’t think that hair was ever black,” Neena said.

“I can’t believe it. The things I have never heard of,” Neena said.

“You’re thinking Up in the Air Clooney; think ER Clooney.”

“Life is tough.”

“Still don’t find him attractive.”

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“Neena, love is never about the loved, it's about the lover, it’s selfish. Loving someone has nothing to do with their physical presence. You think you love Sharad because you know him. But how well? Sharad to you isn’t the same as Sharad to his friends. Who knows what the truth of him is? At least my truth about George Clooney aligns with that of a billion women around the world.”

“Why go after Steve or Dan when you can just love George Clooney?”

“Glad Steve’s coming. I could look at him all day and not be bored.”

“I was so hoping you wouldn’t say that. Cringe queen.”

“Not as much as I love George Clooney,” Rupa said.

“Some things I can’t do for you, love. You have to do them yourself,” Neena said.

“Right! Me and my pictures of George Clooney who didn’t know, or should I

“All love is selfish,” Rupa said.

“I know who Sharad is. I love him,” Neena said.

“That’s all the choice I have? You are no friend.”

“You married women! You know, at least a hundred good-looking men died so George Clooney could be born. I had an entire collage of his pictures when I was in school. What wonderful days those were.”

“It’s one-sided love. Selfish love. Unreal love.”

any men like that? Tom Cruise? Patrick Swayze? How old are you?” Rupa asked.

“You will find someone. It’s just a matter of time,” Neena said.

“You have never met George Clooney. I am as old as you, by the way.”

“Time? Do you know the breadth of this thing called time? It’s wider than my patience, bigger than my life,” Rupa said.

“It’s still love. It’s like love at first sight,” Rupa said.

Neena had no heart to argue with her. With such a complex name, maybe it was a problem worth taking seriously.

She looked around the house, which still needed preparation for the party, but it was as though her feet wouldn’t move. Somehow, she had lost the determination she’d started with in the morning. “Let me ask you something,” Rupa said. “As a married woman, what kind of fears do you have?” “Fears?” “Yeah. And don’t say spiders or cockroaches.” “I don’t know. I never thought about it.” “Think about it now and tell me,” Rupa said. “I guess fear of growing old, losing my job, my health.” “Of divorce?” Rupa asked. “Rupa! Shut up.” “You don’t fear the end of your marriage? The end of the relationship? Of being alone again?” Rupa asked. “No. It will happen if it has to happen,” Neena said. “I can’t do anything about it.” “You are a superwoman, you know that? So Zen about relationships. You’d be a great single woman,” Rupa said. “I fear dying before Sharad. Leaving him alone to live.”

the Indian food she had ordered, but there was so much else to do. She still had to place water bottles in the cooler, light a fresh candle in the washroom and make sure there were no newspapers lying around. She stood up and got to work. Her phone disturbed the quiet of the house. It was Sharad. His voice sounded far away. “I’m at the liquor store,” he said. “They don’t have the wine you want. I’ll have to go to another place.” He named a store about seven miles away. “Okay. Can you at least bring salsa, unless you want to have chips with ketchup?” Neena said and hung up. She sat down at the table again and looked at Sharad’s picture in her phone. If his hair wasn’t too long, he’d look handsome, but it was his hair; she had no say in how he wore it. But she had a say in other things, like this party that he didn’t want and tiny decisions of everyday life that didn’t amount to much, but accumulated each day like raindrops to form a lake. “I heard what he said. You believe him?” Rupa said. If the question hadn’t been so earnest, Neena would have ignored it. But Rupa was looking at her while she was looking at the picture. “Yes,” Neena said. “You don’t sound too sure,” Rupa said.

“Womankind. Selfless even in their fears,” Rupa said.

Neena looked at her and couldn’t find any mischief on her face.

“I’m not lying.”

“Yes. Of course, I believe him. Where else could he go?”

“But you’re not telling the truth either,” Rupa said. “I don’t know what you want to hear,” Neena said. “Okay. If you don’t wish to reveal, Madame.” To keep her hands occupied, Neena flicked dust from the cast iron Buddha on the dining table. She and Sharad had bought it four years ago, while on their honeymoon in Bali. It wasn’t too big but was heavy, and she wanted to buy it even though Sharad had protested taking along such a commonplace thing. She liked buying souvenirs from places they traveled, but now all of them had to be dusted. Good thing the caterers had already delivered

“You know what I mean.” “No, I don’t, as a matter of fact.” “Change that’s not pleasant. A change that in some ways doesn’t keep a promise.” Neena stopped dusting and kept her hands in her lap. “A change that doesn’t keep a promise?” “Yes.” The folds of cast iron fabric on the Buddha still held some dust. Or was it the way cast iron looked after four years, with the passage of time, when things were left to themselves? Like Sharad, who was probably alone now, thinking about the promises she hadn’t kept. She’d just heard from him, and yet, it seemed like he’d left to never come back again. She picked up the napkin holder and rose from the table. “Oh, come on, Neena. Come back! Don’t take me seriously. I have anuptaphobia, remember?” Rupa laughed, but Neena didn’t. Neena looked around, and the living room looked different. There were things and colors that didn’t belong in the house they’d moved into four years ago. Everything seemed to need so much work. The sofa was still bare without the throw, and she had lost the will to look for it. But she had to do it, like Rupa with the knife, cutting things into accommodating pieces. She had to do it all by herself.

Rupa took the knife and chopped a piece of kiwi that was already sliced. She’d gone for the bigger knife, the one that was for the meat. “I don’t know. Men can be like that, you know. Always on the lookout for something more.” Rupa bit into a piece of the kiwi. “He isn’t like that.” Neena went back to dusting the Buddha. “You don’t think he’s changed since marriage?” “Changed? Who doesn’t? Everyone changes,” Neena said.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kalpana Negi Kalpana Negi is a third-year MFA student with a concentration in fiction. She is currently at work on a novel and is looking forward to attending the Tin House Workshop this summer. E A C H I S S U E F E AT U R E S A C R E AT I V E WRITING PIECE FROM A STUDENT

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PLAZA FOR A HOMETOWN

HERO BY P E T E W I C K H A M

POPULAR ARGUMENT GAME: pick a sport or team and name the faces on its Mount Rushmore. will honor the legacy of a man who brought fame and honor to his alma mater, and excitement and healing to his hometown — always with a healthy dose of laughter.

University of Memphis Tiger basketball? Larry O. Finch is front and center. No argument there… Or is there? Would it be the confident youngster with the silk-smooth jumper who led Memphis State to its first NCAA Finals in 1973? Or the guy in a suit and tie who righted Memphis’ ship in the 1980s, coaching eight players on to the NBA, and a much larger group to graduation and on to lives as productive adults? Overlay the context of his City of Memphis’ often tumultuous, sometimes tortured history — and how often the kid from Orange Mound came to the rescue. Now the question is, was it ever just about basketball? Answer? A resounding no. With that in mind, the University will dedicate a plaza in front of the Laurie-Walton Family Basketball Center on the Park Avenue Campus in October 2020. It

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His legacy will continue to be honored by future generations with the Larry Finch Plaza, located on the Park Avenue campus with his statue looking toward Orange Mound.

“He IS the native son,” said current Tiger coach Penny Hardaway (aka Finch 2.0?). “He’s the one who got guys like myself to want to come to the school because he was from Memphis, from Orange Mound. From a player to an assistant to a head coach, this was his whole life.” UofM President M. David Rudd has appointed a 16-member committee to draw up plans for a statue and multimedia exhibit that will showcase all of the ways that Finch impacted his school and hometown. “Larry Finch embodies the City of Memphis,” said Rudd. “From growing up in Orange Mound to unifying the city by attending then-Memphis State University to coaching his alma mater at the University of Memphis, Larry Finch and his spirit are what make our city so special.

“His legacy will continue to be honored by future generations with the Larry Finch Plaza, located on the Park Avenue campus with his statue looking toward Orange Mound. “The Larry Finch Plaza committee consists of community members who were close to the former Tiger AllAmerican. The statue and plaza will be one we will all cherish forever.” Herb Hilliard, a committee co-chair and chairman of the National Civil Rights Museum, was the first African-American to play for the Tigers in 1965. “Let’s be honest,” he says with a smile, “Larry was a heck of a player. I was average at best. There were some better athletes or players than Larry, but he is synonymous with Memphis basketball. This should have been done a long time ago.” It goes much deeper than the then-school record 1,869 points — currently fourth all-time — Finch scored from 1970-73, or becoming the school’s first basketball AllAmerican. Finch’s 22.3 points per game career average is still a Tiger record. After Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s murder on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in 1968, racial tensions were never far from a boil, and the city seemed intent on tearing itself apart.

With this as a backdrop, Melrose High School stars Finch and Ronnie Robinson were getting set to choose a college. Larry could have gone anywhere, Hilliard said, and a lot of people in the black community wanted him to go somewhere else. They didn’t have a good feeling about the University of Memphis. “But Larry was always his own person. He made the decision for himself, and for the community. And that team did so much to heal the wounds of an entire city.” “Unification. That’s the word that defines Larry’s life,” said committee co-chair Otis Sanford, a longtime Memphis journalist. “He helped give people a place to come together, feel good about Memphis and being a part of the city. He stepped up again during another crisis time (Dana Kirk’s firing and an NCAA probation). He convinced hometown heroes to do what he did. Penny is doing the same thing. Hopefully this plaza keeps telling that story.” Finch's statue facing west toward Orange Mound serves as a nod to his beloved community. “This is my heart right here — Orange Mound, Tennessee,” Finch said before his death in 2011. “Everything in this

city starts and ends right here.” On the walls of the Laurie-Walton Family Basketball Center is a list of more than 100 Memphis players who have worn Tiger Blue, including current star and Memphian Jeremiah Martin. The majority were recruited by Finch, first as an assistant to Kirk then as head coach from 1986-97. “I don’t see myself as a miracle worker,” said Finch. “I look at the players that we bring in as the miracle workers.” Try telling that to the big kid from Binghampton now filling Finch’s old job. “He’d walk into your living room, and there was an aura about him,” Hardaway said. “It was like there wasn’t anything he couldn’t do. He’d tell you, ‘If I’ve got you, we’re going to win championships.’ And you believed him.” Hilliard said Finch “could walk into the smallest hole-in-the-wall in Orange Mound or the best place in town and you’d see him shout out to somebody he knew. He knew folks everywhere he went.” He also cemented the indisputable fact that there is basketball — and Memphis basketball.

Coach Larry Finch and his wife Vickie celebrate the Tigers 1987 Metro Conference Tournament championship win over Louisville 75-52 in Freedom Hall.

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“EVERY FAN IN THIS CITY is knowledgeable about what’s going on and the players here,” said Hardaway. “You don’t see a lot of cities where this many players stay and play for the hometown school. And people are not just knowledgeable, they will fight you over how good they think Memphis basketball is.” Former Tiger All-American Elliot Perry is a committee member. Like Hardaway, “Socks” played for Finch and went on to a 10-year NBA career. The lessons he learned as a Tiger were only the beginning of his education. “He challenged us to be better players, and more important to be good students and good citizens and take responsibility for helping to make our home a better place,” said Perry, who like Hardaway is a minority owner of the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies and active with several community organizations. Is as often the case in the dog-eat-dog world of major college athletics, there was no fairy-tale ending. Finch was fired in 1997 after a 16-15 season, and later suffered a debilitating stroke. “It was tough because of everything he gave,” Hardaway said. “It just seemed like a large number of people forgot about him. I was there, and I knew it bothered him.” Hardaway said he has drawn on Finch’s example during the low moments in his first season as coach. “I think about the good times, and that brings me back to why I’m here doing this,” Hardaway said. “It’s because of him. It’s because of the city and wanting to bring it a national championship.”

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His lead assistant is former teammate Tony Madlock, and ex-Tiger Dwight Boyd is also on the staff. “We talk about Coach Finch every day, it seems,” said Hardaway. “We joke about the things he said to us or the funny way he’d get on certain teammates. That’s the beauty — it’s like a reunion every day.” Finch’s son, Larry Jr., played for his father and is now a teacher with four children of his own. “It means a lot for Dad to be honored this way," said Finch Jr., also a committee member. “It’s a blessing for the family.” With a laugh nearly as hearty as his fathers, Finch Jr. said his reaction “might not be publishable, but he’d be tickled because he likes everyone around him to be happy and laughing.” When talking about his father, the younger Finch often still talks in the present tense. “It isn’t a difference to him that it has his name on it. To him, it’s all about the UofM. It’s always about building with him.” Even in pain, Finch Jr. said his father “still sees it as part of God’s plan. He was able to see some things he would never have been able to see ... and he never lost loving Memphis.” Perry remembers telling family, teammates and friends at Finch’s funeral, “He isn’t gone. He’s all over this room.” Soon, his image will be a few steps from the Tigers’ practice facility — never to leave home.

Finch played three seasons (1970-73) for the Tigers, becoming the school’s first All-American in 1973.

LARRY FINCH FACTS LARRY FINCH Born: Feb. 16, 1951, in Orange Mound Graduated: Melrose High School, Memphis State University Died: April 2, 2011 Wife: Vickie Sons: Larry Jr. and James Daughter: Shanae (died 2014)

PLAYER 1970-73 (3 seasons) 1,869 points (fourth in Tiger history), 22.3 ppg Missouri Valley Player of the Year 1972 First Tiger All-American 1973 (2nd team)

LARRY FINCH PLAZA COMMITTEE

NCAA Finalist, All-Tournament team 1973

HEAD COACH 1986-97 (11 seasons) 220-130 (most wins in school history) Six NCAA Tournament appearances NCAA Elite Eight 1991-92 All-America players: Anfernee Hardway,

Herb Hilliard, co-chair Otis Sanford, co-chair Harold Byrd Larry Finch Jr. Bobby Hall Ted Hansom Tammy Hedges Cato Johnson

Elise Jordan Myron Lowery Mary Mitchell Elliot Perry Dexter Reed Verties Sails Jr. Rochelle Stevens John Wilfong

Lorenzen Wright NBA draft picks: Vincent Askew, Chris Garner, Sylvester Gray, Anfernee Hardaway, Cedric Henderson, Elliot Perry, David Vaughn, Lorenzen Wright Finch Plaza dedication target date: October 2020 Site: UofM Park Avenue Campus, in front of the Laurie-Walton Family Basketball Center.

* John Calipari had 252 wins at Memphis from 2000-2009, but 38 were erased by NCAA sanctions in 2007-2008.

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BY C A S E Y H I L D E R

The Office for Institutional Equity's Title IX Prevention Center aims to make strides toward a safer University of Memphis community through a suite of training sessions and interactive presentations revolving around topics such as sexual assault, consent and domestic violence. Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972 was enacted alongside a slew of nondiscriminatory related federal laws primarily meant to focus on equity concerns in regard to gender in secondary and higher education. For the first 39 years of its implementation, Title IX was heavily utilized as a way to ensure a fair playing field for female college athletes in regard to funding and practice space. However, in 2011, the Department of Education noted that the prevalence of sexual assault and interpersonal violence on college campuses meant that another aspect of Title IX had not been appropriately implemented: ensuring that college students have a right to receive their educational benefit without interference based on sex or gender. “It’s really a public health crisis in the country that has not yet been fully addressed,” says Kenneth Anderson, UofM Title IX coordinator and director of the Office for Institutional Equity.

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PHOTO BY TREY CLARK

Director of the Office for Institutional Equity Kenneth Anderson (right) and Title IX Prevention Specialist Abby Kindervater.

COURTESY & CONSENT

The Office for Institutional Equity’s Title IX Prevention Center works to curb sexual misconduct and encourage healthy relationships through a variety of training and secondary education programs

The DOE issued guidelines and a “dear colleague” letter mandating universities do more to address a myriad of concerns including sexual assault, dating violence, stalking and sexual harassment. The Office for Institutional Equity handles enforcement of Title IX through receipt of complaints, ongoing investigations and resolutions. “Our goal is to promote a culture in which everyone understands the University's values and expectations and has the right tools and knowledge to interact with one another where they are fully present and able to read social cues,” says Anderson. Anderson, whose 18-year law career includes five years litigating discrimination cases across the tri-state area for the EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission), took the position of coordinator in August 2017 following an academic route that saw him attend Johns Hopkins University as an undergrad before studying law at Georgetown University. “A critical piece of Title IX that the University invests in is prevention,” says Anderson. “That involves creating a culture and environment where the likelihood of sexual misconduct is diminished through engagement and education.” UofM alumna Abby Kindervater came onboard last June as the University’s first Title IX prevention specialist. Kindervater works directly with students to encourage them to make informed decisions by developing maturity levels and creating a comprehensive, sustainable prevention program dedicated to establishing boundaries, communication skills and emotional regulation. “We want to change the way people are talking about sexual assault,” says Kindervater. “Oftentimes, people want to engage in a kind of legalistic talk about consent. We want to think about the broader issue of how we prevent this overall as well as what strategies are effective. It is important to focus on healthy relationships and behaviors like bystander intervention,

which the CDC has said is effective in reducing harm.”

component comprised of nearly a dozen peer educators so attendees can hear the

Most of the OIE’s prevention methods are focused on educating and exposing the UofM community to what indicia exist in healthy relationships, including respect for boundaries, effective communication and a clear sense of comfort level in regard to intimacy.

message through a co-presentation model that incorporates staff members alongside fellow students.

“With the #MeToo movement last year, I remember how it felt hearing the barrage of stories day in, day out,” says Kindervater. “It feels like it hasn’t ended for me because I still hear stories almost every day. It’s definitely something we want to change the culture on.” The Title IX Prevention Center employs an evidence-based approach to reducing harm in the community through in-person and online training sessions, awareness campaigns and direct interactions with student organizations like the studentled Sexual Assault Prevention & Awareness Coalition (SAPAC). “The goal is to hit every aspect of the community. We work with fraternities and sororities, RSOs engaged in advocacy and more,” says Anderson. “We’re trying to make a concerted effort to reach out to minority students, LGBT students and international students who may not receive as much of a targeted message as other groups.” In addition to a wide array of prevention programs that has included more than 100 in-person presentations to courses such as ACAD 1100, which is geared toward educating incoming freshman on successful college strategies, the OIE also provides sexual assault prevention training opportunities for returning students, graduate students and faculty. “We significantly increased our trainings and engagements with students this past semester,” says Kindervater. “So much so that we saw an 85 percent increase in students taking the online course from the year before.” Kindervater has also worked to develop a peer education

Our goal is to promote a culture in which everyone understands the University's values and expectations and has the right tools and knowledge to interact with one another where they are fully present and able to read social cues.

“We’ve also been working with Dr. Mollie Anderson from the Department of Psychology to help us develop some of our skill sets that we teach,” says Kindervater. “But, we also want to broaden our scope of what’s available. We offer training by request for any department or student group that desires it.” In addition to prevention, the Office for Institutional Equity receives around 150 complaints a year and attempts to address them appropriately, either informally or through investigation. That’s a number Anderson says he’s quite proud of since it means more parties are more educated and willing to report incidents than in the past. “The process has become more litigious in the last few years,” says Anderson. “Obviously, there’s a concern over what happens next after these reports are provided, but my office is not involved in sanctions or discipline at all. We make these findings and report to Human Resources, the provost or the Office of Student Accountability, Outreach and Support.” Revisions to Title IX in 2011 require that these cases use a preponderance of evidence standard and afford due process to students in terms of notice and opportunity to participate. The accused are allowed advisors in the form of lawyers; a recent law even grants students the right to cross examine in proceedings. At the conclusion of an investigation, a written report of findings of fact is used to determine if University policy was violated. While these proceedings may seem like a formal trial, the University rarely shares information or works directly with local law enforcement. “We don’t share the information of investigations we’re conducting with them, and they generally don’t share their information with us in regard to sex crimes,” says Anderson. “We see our investigations as parallel to those in many ways, but ours involve University policy and circumscribe to what happens in our community and oftentimes that involves both on-campus and off-campus matters. “I’d like to think that we are working toward creating a culture where people feel more emboldened and more encouraged to report their concerns as well as being willing to intervene or act as witnesses when they see something that needs to be reported.”

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Columns

The Talented

10%

2014, President M. David Rudd prioritized three initiatives for then-Provost Karen Weddle-West: develop recruitment initiatives designed to increase the quality and quantity of students, expand and deepen the UofM’s engagement with Shelby County Schools, and create strategies to increase retention and graduation rates for students at all levels. Guided by that charge, academic leaders and administrators designed several strategies, among them the Talented 10%.

The Talented 10% recruitment initiative is based on the scholarly works of W.E.B. Du Bois, who in 1903 wrote: “How do we create a more knowledgeable and informed citizenry to become leaders of the future? There can be but one answer: The best and most capable of our youth must be schooled in the colleges and universities of the land.” Du Bois was a historian, author, activist and the first AfricanAmerican to earn a doctorate from Harvard. He was also one of the founders of the NAACP. In response to the UofM’s focus on increasing academic excellence, the Top 10% Recognition Ceremony was created. Rising seniors in the top 10 percent of their class are invited to an induction ceremony at the UofM and at UofM Lambuth for Jackson-Madison County students. More than 250 students, their families and high school counselors — averaging 750 attendees — pack the Rose Theatre. The deans of each college and school don regalia, drape honor cords and “pin” each inductee

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Casting a Wider Net

to celebrate their academic achievements. Representatives from Admissions, Student Financial Aid and the Scholarship Office staff computer banks and encourage the scholars to apply to the University of Memphis. “We at the UofM wanted to do something to recognize and show appreciation to our Shelby County Schools students who have graduated in the top 10 percent of their class,” says Steven Mizell, assistant director of Recruitment. “It’s a very special event for these students. We want to show our appreciation for our local students to help them see that the UofM cares about their hard work and dedication. “We’re also showcasing the UofM. Some of the students may have never come to the campus and they’re in awe of the facilities we have. They’re being pulled in so many different directions. A lot of them assume they know Memphis, so we might be in their top three schools, but they don’t think they need to come visit.” “I enjoyed the ceremony and felt like I was being acknowledged for my hard work,” said Talented 10% inductee Megan Williams, a Cordova High graduate. “I even had the opportunity to speak at one of the programs a few years later, so that was very rewarding for me. It is great to honor those students who’ve gone through high school, maintained stellar grades and remained in the top 10 percent of their class.” “The success of this recruitment initiative is reflected in increased enrollment and performance of students in the top 10

percent,” says Weddle-West. Students who were inducted into the Talented 10% program were significantly more likely than their peers to select the UofM. In fall 2017, 38 percent of Talented 10% inductees enrolled compared to 18 percent of other students in the top 10 percent of their classes. The fall 2017 cohort also had a 3.4 cumulative GPA and 87.5 percent one-year retention rate. In fall 2018, 43 percent of Talented 10% inductees selected the UofM. The Talented 10% recruitment initiative has “increased percentages of high-achieving Latino and African-American students in the top 10 percent of their high school class matriculating at the University of Memphis, enhancing both the quality and diversity of the student body,” says Weddle-West. “Valedictorians and salutatorians have a title, and our top scholarship recipients are announced in programs, often the colleges they will attend and how much scholarship money they will receive,” says Dr. Randy A. McPherson, SCS manager of Student Support. “But we have many students who work very hard and earn the honor of being among the top 10 percent in their individual high schools who, prior to the Talented 10% program, were often overlooked. It is truly inspiring to see students and families by the hundreds come together and celebrate classroom success. It is a wonderful opportunity to affirm that because of their success, students have the support and the resources to go on to great accomplishments after high school and throughout life.”

TIME CAPSULE

MEMPHIS 1994

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Columns

TIGER TOY DRIVE

Nets Record Number of Presents Donated for Children

Under the leadership of former Tiger basketball player Ken Moody, the Tiger Toy Drive, in partnership with the University of Memphis and the City of Memphis, provided toys for more than 200 families

“Initiatives like the Tiger Toy Drive are extremely near and dear to my heart because I know, number one, how it makes the kids feel, because I was one of those kids; but more importantly, how the parents feel that, ‘Man, I will be able do something for my child for Christmas,’” says Moody, who is a special assistant to City of Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland. “So, it is extremely meaningful for me because we continually hear it from the parents after the toy drive that, ‘Hey, had it not been for all of you, my kids wouldn’t have been able to have anything for Christmas.”

The Tiger Toy Drive expanded this year to give people more opportunities to donate toys at Tiger Impressions last a lifetime. When football and men’s and women’s Ken Moody, the youngest of 11 basketball games as well as the children in a single-parent home, University of Memphis campus-wide. was a child, it was the Goodfellows The Memphis vs. Houston football program that made sure that he and game on Nov. 23 kicked off the drive, his brothers and sisters enjoyed a then was followed by the women’s good Christmas with their mother. basketball game vs. Samford on Dec. Fueled by that loving memory, Moody 9, and men’s basketball games vs. UAB directed the Tiger Toy Drive which, on Dec. 8 and Tennessee on Dec. 15. in partnership with the University of “In the past, it was more of a Memphis and the City of Memphis, collection at the Penny Hardaway set a record for the 13-year program in providing Christmas toys for more Hall of Fame and a select basketball game,” says Steve Macy, senior than 200 children and families. associate athletic director, External

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Relations, at the UofM. “This year, we decided that we needed to involve more people. With the attendance at the last football game of the year and us playing Houston for the AAC West Division championship, we decided to add that to the Tiger Toy Drive collection. “With three men’s basketball games, including the premium game of the year vs. Tennessee, the number of toys we received was just overwhelming. We asked University of Memphis students, faculty and staff to donate toys on campus, and all of the generosity was gratifying. It was an amazing response by the community and allowed us to almost triple the number of toys we collected last year.” The Tiger Toy Drive was so wellsupported with the generosity of Memphians that people continued to bring toys to the games even after Christmas. “We had over 200 families touched, and each bag had at least three toys in it,” says Moody, a lifelong Memphian and former Tiger basketball standout from 1985-87. “It is a record, the biggest one that we have ever had. Actually, people continued to bring toys to other games. So, there were extra toys after Christmas, and we were able to take them to Le Bonheur and donate the toys to them.” The men’s basketball coaching staff joined the players in handing out the toys to children in the Pipkin Building at the Fairgrounds on Dec. 21. “It means a lot to just be able to touch these kids lives with the team and be able to hand out toys,” says Memphis head coach Penny Hardaway. “These kids probably wouldn’t ever have had the opportunity to get toys. To be able to put smiles on their faces with the team being here all together makes me feel really good.” The smiles weren’t just on the children’s faces with Hardaway and the Tigers in the giving spirit.

Penny’s commitment to making sure his players understand the importance of doing that,” says Moody. “Again, that is why this one was the best ever. The players and coaches stayed and took pictures. It was great. “It is an example of the University’s and the city’s commitment to doing all we can to help those who are less fortunate. I just look forward to a continued partnership and relationship in the years to come.” The outpouring of support had a major effect on Strickland as he participated in the gift-giving festivities. “He was like a big kid,” says Moody of the mayor. “When we got back to the office that day, we talked about it for at least an hour. He had a good conversation with Penny, and they talked about how we were going to make it bigger and better every year. He was just overwhelmed and overjoyed to see how the University and the city worked together to make sure our kids are taken care of. He loved it.” The partnership between the University and the city has been yet another one of the many that have been win-wins for all involved — most importantly for the children of Memphis. “It’s been a huge part of the relationship with the City of Memphis through Ken Moody’s leadership,” says Macy. “We’ve been able to create a partnership that helps the city. With this partnership, we were able to do something good for the whole community, and it allows us a chance to give back through our collective work. Our fan base was able to contribute a significant number of toys for this endeavor. It impacted so many families here in the City of Memphis.” For Moody, it is even more meaningful to work with his alma mater for the Tiger Toy Drive to benefit so many families in Memphis. “It’s special,” Moody says. “That’s the only word that I can use to describe it. It’s extremely special.”

“I think the adults may have enjoyed that more than the kids, but that shows

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Gerald Chaudron, head of Special Collections, says his successors would “never forgive him” if he didn't preserve the CA archives because they are so valuable.

Columns

ALL THE NEWS THAT’S FIT TO SAVE

ooking for the most comprehensive record of life in Memphis during the last half of the 20th century? It may not be found with a newspaper or online news publication, but in the Special Collections at the University of Memphis’ Ned McWherter Library. The Commercial Appeal’s photo and article archives, which chronicle the city’s triumphs and tragedies, have a new home in the UofM’s Special Collections.

With the city’s daily newspaper, The Commercial Appeal, moving from its longtime home at 495 Union Ave. to smaller quarters downtown, the University of Memphis has acquired a treasure trove of photo negatives and article archives the paper will no longer have space to store. It started in 2017 when Mike Brown, a former CA photographer, contacted Gerald Chaudron, head of Special Collections, who also happens to be a neighbor. “He said, ‘We’ve got to move. We’re leaving Union and the building there and I’m really worried about the negative collection,’” Chaudron recalls. “I think you should contact the CA and ask them what they intend to do with them.”

We want to ensure that the material is available to the public, including researchers, academics, book authors and freelance writers, for decades to come.

Michelle Duerr, digitization archival assistant, checks out some old editions of the newspaper. The bronze plaque is from The Commercial Appeal's original building on Union Ave.

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After several months of discussion, CA executive editor Mark Russell agreed to have the materials transferred to Special Collections. The archives date from around 1920 to about 2000 — a history of Memphis in 60 filing cabinets. “More than half are negatives, hundreds of thousands of individual images,” says Chaudron. “What’s nice is that in the newspaper you get one picture with a story. We’ve got the whole shoot.” The remaining cabinets hold paper article clippings. Dating mostly from the 1950s to the 1990s, when the CA started an electronic archives file, they include an expansive range of topics. Elvis through the years. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the sanitation workers strike. Robert Church. E. H. Crump. Willie Herenton. Beale Street’s rise, fall and rise again. Life in Memphis. Downtown development. Music, culture, food. The growth of the city into the eastern suburbs and southeast Shelby County. The development of retail shopping centers. The evolution of vibrant suburban communities. The opening of the National Civil Rights Museum and Graceland. The fall of Stax and the rise of the museum, music academy and Soulsville Foundation and Charter School. The complicated and tortured history of race relations. Lynchings. Politics. Memphis Tiger basketball and football. Transferring the filing cabinets was a mammoth logistical operation. “In August we took two days to load them on a truck and haul them back here,” Chaudron says. “One day we had four people, the next day we had five go over there. The second day we closed the department. It took two days because there were so many, but you can only load so many cabinets on a truck. We lost one; fortunately it landed right side up. Back in those days filing cabinets were tough. “We were pretty much exhausted. I made a few trips myself to get bits and pieces.” After retrieving the photo negatives, which were arranged in order in cabinets stacked two high, Chaudron asked Russell what else he might have.

PHOTOS BY TREY CLARK

“He looked at me and said, ‘Oh you’re interested in other stuff?’ He showed me a room full of clippings. Back in the day newspapers had a librarian and they would snip out those things, so there were cabinets of those. “Then I said, ‘So what else do you have?’ And we looked around and found original editorial cartoons from the 1970s and 1980s.” The library also acquired advertising materials, submissions for awards, portfolios, drafts of layouts, directories, books and Memphis-related art from events such as Liberty Bowl and Beale Street Music Festival and a complete volume of Mid-South Magazine, which was published from the 1960s to the late 1980s. “Then they kind of gave us full run of the building. We poked in offices and grabbed stuff. At that point they had pretty much consolidated to the newsroom,” Chaudron says. “A lot of those offices were empty, but they had stuff in them. Some of the people who had worked there for awhile said, ‘Come and have a look at this,’ so we would open a drawer and take stuff off the walls. There would be posters, photographic prints, so we grabbed them. The only thing they didn’t want to give me were some original front pages going back to the Civil War that were framed on the walls.” Not only does the UofM now house the CA archives, it also acquired all the materials from the Memphis Press-Scimitar when the paper ceased publication in 1983. “The Press-Scimitar is our most-used file,” says Chaudron. “It’s a snapshot of this town from the 1940s to 1983 when it closed. Where else do you find the photographs? A the information is wonderful. Now we have the CA, so we have the most complete record, if you will, image-wise and information-wise, for the last half the 20th century.” The department has four graduate assistants; three have been pulled off other projects and are in the process of doing the inventory. “By end of the year we should have a pretty good idea of what we have. It’s slow work,” Chaudron says. The files are accessible to the public, including writers, researchers, historians, lawyers and teachers. The CA retains the copyright to the images. Right now, the library will digitize materials on request.

The archives include an impressive collection of editorial cartoons. Pictured is Brigitte Billeaudeaux, Special Collections librarian/archivist.

“Over time we hope to get grants to employ someone to digitize them as a project,” says Chaudron. “It’s important to preserve the CA’s archives and materials because they tell the story of the region and Memphis’ evolution and chronicle the triumphs and tragedies,” Russell says. “We want to ensure that the material is available to the public for decades to come. “As we have increasingly digitized our archives, we no longer need to have a big library that contains photo negatives and clippings dating to the early 1900s. But we want our journalists — and the public — to have access to those files. Having that material at the UofM’s Special Collections accomplishes that goal.” The story doesn’t end here. Special Collections will be collecting items from the CA’s rotating filing system. “That is my next load, that will be another full-van load,” Chaudron says. “That’s prints, clippings, publications. Apparently there’s Bill Clinton’s tax return from the 1990s.” There is the issue of limited storage space in Special Collections. “We’ve sort of reached our max,” Chaudron admits. “I don’t care, we’ll figure it out. It’s too important.”

Jim Cushing, archival assistant, combs through historic pages and news clippings from The Commercial Appeal.

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Columns IT’S GOOD BEING TRAVIS BLACKWELL these days. It’s hasn’t been that long since Blackwell was at the University Memphis earning his bachelor of fine arts degree in theatre design and technical production with an emphasis in stage management. But since his 2015 graduation, Blackwell’s quick ascension as a professional stage manager has taken him to cities across the United States, much of it spent on the Tony Award-winning musical Hamilton: An American Musical. It gets better: Blackwell was one of three stage managers this winter for Hamilton’s three-week run in Puerto Rico with composer and singer Lin-Manuel Miranda. He also has worked on sets for productions of Oklahoma!, The Bodyguard, Our Town and The Color Purple. Blackwell recently took a few moments to answer questions about his career and his work on the production.

Travis Blackwell (BFA ’15)

Not Throwing Away His Shot

Q: How did you land this gig? A: I had been working on Hamilton since January 2017. First as a production assistant (short-term, three-month job to get the show up and running) for the first national tour, then as a substitute stage manager (covers vacations) for both the first and second national tours and then I was one of the full-time stage managers on a new production. So far, I’ve done Hamilton in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., Houston, Seattle and now San Juan. Kimberly Fisk, my current boss, offered me the PA job and I climbed the ladder from there. Q: What specifically did you do there? A: I worked on a small team of people that manages the logistics of doing the show every day. We scheduled rehearsals, prepared understudies, called the shows (tell the lights/sound/ other crew when to take their cues) and ensured the smooth operation of the show on a day to day basis. It’s a blast!

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Q: How long were you in Puerto Rico and with the Hamilton production? A: We had been in San Juan since late December. This was the longest a national tour has ever played in Puerto Rico. Lin was starring as “Hamilton,” but was not in the show once we left. (The show has moved to San Francisco for a sit-down run of at least a year). Q: What is it like working with Lin-Manuel Miranda? A: Lin is a fantastic performer and a super nice human. It’s been amazing to see the way the people of Puerto Rico embrace him and us, and to see the way he performs the show he wrote. It’s been a dream. Q: Do you have a favorite part of the show? A: It changes constantly. Right now it’s Hamilton’s spoken-word soliloquy that takes place during his duel with Aaron Burr. It’s absolutely stunning.

The cast of Hamilton.

Q: Was this production different from the one performed in the States? A: This production was different in that it’s a brand-new cast, and Lin is playing Hamilton. Otherwise it’s virtually identical to the productions you’ll see on tour in Chicago and on Broadway. Q: What are your future plans? A: “Hamilton!” I’ve got a dream job.

Rebekah Wineman

Recording History

(BM ’13)

N QUICK FASHION, alumna Rebekah Wineman achieved a lofty space within her chosen field of audio engineering. Then she was nominated for a Grammy Award, an addition to her already impressive resume.

Wineman, who graduated from the Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music in 2013 with a bachelor’s degree in sound recording technology, was nominated for her work as a mastering engineer in the Grammys’ Best Historical Album category. She works for Meyer Media in New York City, where Andreas Meyer and Wineman remastered the recordings of pianist Oscar Levant for Rhapsody in Blue: The Extraordinary Life of Oscar Levant. “Oscar Levant was an underdog for his time,” says Wineman. “There were other pianists during his life that I think have gotten more recognition. That is why I feel like this box set is important. It sheds light on music you already know, but it reveals an artist you may not remember. His life was messy and complicated, and that is important to note because it shows that no one is immune from mental health issues. We don’t get to pick projects. This particular box set is released on Sony Masterworks, so they decide the content, and we make it sound great.” In comments to her hometown newspaper, the Record Eagle of Interlochen, Mich., Wineman explained what initially interested her in the field of audio engineering. In college, Rebekah Wineman learned about music restoration and cleaning up audio. She became somewhat of an expert on the topics, which led her to meet her current boss. “My boss has been doing this for quite a long time. I feel like he’s made a name for himself. He’s taught me how to really refine my skill in this area,” she said. It took the pair four months to digitally remaster the Levant recordings, which is longer than most projects, Wineman said. “I’ve never been to LA before. My boss has won several Grammys already, and for me, it’s just overwhelming,” Wineman said.

“I think my training at the UofM has helped me in my career immensely because we were immediately taught how to be professional in our industry,” Wineman says. “We weren’t only taught about the technical side of our field, but also how to carry ourselves and be responsible with our time. I think what made going to the UofM special was learning both sides of the coin – technical and interpersonal skills.” Wineman is also playing a role in a noteworthy movement within the entertainment industry. A story in Variety mentioned the UofM graduate’s place in this year’s female award contenders.

Rebekah Wineman in her recording studio.

“Looking at non-performer categories, many pointed out last year how difficult it is for female producers and engineers to be recognized. Linda Perry is a nominee for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical. Two of the five Classical Producer of the Year nominees are female, and Mary Mazurek has a nod for Best Engineered Classical Album. Mastering engineer Rebekah Wineman is nominated in the Best Historical Album category.” “I had a lot of people who influenced me,” says Wineman, “my main teachers, Jon Frazer and Jeff Cline, but also my oboe professor, Dr. Michelle Vigneau, along with our Wind Ensemble conductor, Dr. Albert Nguyen and, of course, Ms. Carrol (Rakestraw), the secretary in the band office. All these people taught me a different life skill that I could take with me in my future, and I am really grateful for that.”

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Columns

Rick Bolton (BS ’72)

1974, RICK BOLTON accepted a position in Columbia, Tenn., as Union Carbide’s first administrator of occupational health and environmental affairs. The Clean Air Act was relatively new, and it would affect how businesses operated in the future. That’s how Bolton became the company’s first administrator to deal with the Clean Air Act and a raft of other environmental laws and regulations. For more than 40 years, Bolton devoted his life and career to resolving environmental and energy issues on behalf of business and industry. The Tennessee Chamber of Commerce and Industry has honored Bolton with the Lifetime Excellence Award for his years of service.

Setting a Higher Standard NOx emission reduction trading regulation, the first such regulation in the country. Bolton gained noteriety for successfully getting Maury County reclassified under the national ambient air quality standards for particulate matter (dust). Back then Columbia’s air had been historically more polluted, posing a threat to future prosperity. For decades, Union Carbide and Monsanto benefited from low electrical costs and rich phosphate in the soil. If not for Bolton’s perseverance in bringing industry and government

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In reflecting on his long journey, Bolton compiled a list of the top 10 environmental lessons he has learned. Among them was to apply good science to his work. “My scientific education was a huge help in dealing with all the environmental issues during my career,” he says. Since retiring from Union Carbide (then GrafTech), Bolton has worked for several environmental consulting firms in the state and is now a senior project director with Memphis-based EnSafe. He believes businesses can grow while still bolstering standards to protect air, water and soil.

“I was somewhat overwhelmed and humbled by this award, and at the same time it caused me to look in the rearview mirror at what a roller coaster ride it has been for me,” Bolton says. As a concerned citizen in the 1980s, Bolton helped Maury County officials tackle asbestos problems at elementary schools in Columbia. Soon thereafter, Gov. Lamar Alexander appointed Bolton to the newly created Air Pollution Control Board. He served on the board as an industrial representative for 24 years, including as vice chairman. As vice chair, Bolton and other senior TVA managers developed Tennessee’s

fought for a number of issues, including the creation of a rapid response team on ozone nonattainment issues.

together to have the county reclassified to meet the standard, air quality issues might have persisted and General Motors could not have located its Saturn manufacturing plant in Spring Hill in 1985. In 2005, he was appointed to the EPA’s Clean Air Act Advisory Committee. He

“Most corporate manufacturers understand how and where and why they produce the waste that their processes contribute to the environment,” Bolton says. “Then they work very hard and re-engineer their manufacturing processes to either reduce or eliminate the waste. It has been nothing short of amazing what American industry has done over the past four decades. Government’s job in setting the tighter standards is to set the schedule and allow industry the flexibility to reach that goal.”

The University of Memphis Creative Writing MFA Program is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. Established in 1989 within the Department of English, this graduate program has helped launch the careers of numerous writers, editors and educators. Students have the opportunity to study fiction, poetry and nonfiction writing with prize-winning faculty: ALICE BOLIN , assistant professor, is the author of the essay collection Dead Girls: Essays on Surviving an American Obsession, a New York Times Book Review Editors’ Top 10 Pick. She writes nonfiction about aspects of contemporary culture, including media, music and crime. CARY HOLLADAY’S eighth volume of fiction, Brides in the Sky: Stories and a Novella, was published this year. A professor and coordinator of Creative Writing, she has received an O. Henry Prize and a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. COURTNEY MILLER SANTO serves as editor-in-chief of The Pinch and director of the River City Writers Series. Her novels The Roots of the Olive Tree and Three Story House have been translated worldwide. Her fiction has appeared in Redbook and Memphis Magazine. MARCUS WICKER, assistant professor and a National Poetry Series winner, is the author of two collections of poetry, Maybe the Saddest Thing and Silencer. He was featured on the PBS series Brief But Spectacular. He won a Ruth Lilly Fellowship from the Poetry Foundation.

UofM Creative Writing MFA Celebrates its 30th Anniversary

otable alumni include New York Times best-selling novelist DOLEN PERKINS-VALDEZ ; poet and novelist DARNELL ARNOULT ; poets RUTH BAUMANN , CLAY CANTRELL , MATT COOK , MICHAEL GRABER , TARA MAE MULROY , ASHLEY ROACH-FREIMAN and MARK YAKICH ; YA author KAITLYN SAGE PATTERSON ; fiction writers MICHAEL COMPTON , TOM GRAVES , DOUG HAINES, ALEXANDRIA LAFAYE, C.D. MITCHELL , JOHN SCHULZE and JEROME WILSON ; and nonfiction writers RANDY RUDDER and PAT WALTERS .

Others are publishing, winning awards, judging competitions, teaching and editing. The program is home to the River City Writers Series, which brings acclaimed

authors to campus for readings, interviews and guest lectures as well as The Pinch, an award-winning national journal of literature and art. The student-run journal and reading series offer unique opportunities for real-world work experience in literary arts. The Hohenberg Foundation provides support for these projects. “Memphis is a writers’ town, and this program is at the heart of it,” says Holladay, the Creative Writing coordinator. “The 30th anniversary is a time to celebrate its success, and we’re eager to recruit new students.” The program generally takes about three years to complete. For more information, contact Holladay at holladay@memphis.edu or 901.678.4405.

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Columns

CLASS NOTES '70s Janis Wilson

(BA ’72, MA ’76) was awarded a research grant from Sisters in Crime, a national organization of crime writers. Wilson is a novelist who writes mysteries set in Victorian England. In addition, she was a speaker at the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s conference in Philadelphia last August where her topic was persuasive legal writing.

'80s Bob Huff

(BBA ’80) was named regional executive officer of business development for Community Bank in Meridian, Miss. He previously served as president of Community Bank and has been in banking for 38 years.

Sidney Scheinberg

(BBA ’83, JD ’88) was named executive vice president of the Executive Committee at the Godwin Bowman law firm.

Richmond Adams

(BA ’84) gave the Holmes, Morris and Newell Lecture on Classic Film at Cameron University in March. His topic was “About as Radical as Cotton Tom Heflin: Atticus Finch, To Kill a Mockingbird and Post-1945 American Life.” The talk explored the relationship between Harper Lee’s 1960 novel

and its 1962 awardwinning film adaptation starring Gregory Peck. Adams is an assistant professor of English at Northwestern Oklahoma State University.

Charles McGhee

(BA ’84, JD ’89), an attorney with Shea Moskovitz & McGhee, was named to the 25th edition of The Best Lawyers in America for his work in the area of family law.

Scott Williams

(BA ’89) was named president and CEO of Discovery Park of America in Union City, Tenn. He had been president and chief operating officer of the Newseum in Washington, D.C., and has held leadership positions at several advertising agencies as well as Cleo Inc., Service Master, Baptist Memorial Health Care and Elvis Presley’s Graceland.

Martin B. Daniel

(JD ’85) was re-elected to the Tennessee House of Representatives District 18.

'90s

Charles Lydeard

(MS ’86), chair and professor of biology at Morehead State University in Kentucky, co-edited the book Freshwater Mollusks of the World – A Distribution Atlas, which was published by Johns Hopkins University Press.

Tripp Thompson

(BBA ’86) was named president of FirstBank Investment Partners, the bank’s investment division.

Alan Crone

(BA ’87, JD ’90), founder and attorney at the Crone Law Firm, was named a Super Lawyer by Thomson Reuters.

Robert Blackstone

(BBA ’89) was inducted into the U.S. Martial Arts Hall of Fame as Innovator of the Year. He was recognized for his creation and continued development of a website to support independent martial arts school owners as well as individual martial artists continuing their personal development in martial arts.

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Deborah Reed

(BBA ’91, MPA ’02) was unanimously voted secretary of the Tennessee Democratic Party in January. In August, she was elected to a second term on the State Executive Committee representing District 32, Tipton and northeast Shelby counties.

Jennifer Troyer

(BBA ’93), professor of Economics at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, was named interim dean of the College of Health and Human Services at UNC Charlotte.

Kirk Caraway

(BA ’94, JD ’97), a partner in the law firm of Allen, Summers, Simpson, Lillie & Gresham, has been named a Super Lawyer in the field of labor and employment by Law & Politics. Selection for this distinction is limited to no more than five percent of the lawyers in Tennessee, Mississippi and Arkansas.

Angie Craig

(BA ’94) was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Minnesota’s District 2.

Edward Stanton III

(BSCE ’91) is mayor of Osceola, Ark.

(BA ’94, JD ’97) was appointed an independent monitor to ensure that Memphis Police Department officers are not spying on protesters. An attorney with the Butler Snow law firm, Stanton served as U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee from 2010-17.

Chuck Lane

Brad Jones

Sally Longo Wilson

(BBA ’92, MBA ’96) was named senior vice president/CFO of Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare. He has served in various leadership positions with the healthcare system since 1996 and was promoted to senior vice president/ associate CFO in 2017.

Cynthia Chappell

(JD ’93) was elected a Fellow of the Tennessee Bar Foundation, an association of 855 attorneys statewide.

(MEd ’95) is head coach of the Memphis Hustle, the NBA G League affiliate of the Memphis Grizzlies. He most recently served as general manager of the G League’s Iowa Wolves and as a pro scout for the team’s parent affiliate, the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Joey House

(BBA ’96, MBA ’98) of Sedgwick was appointed to the board of directors of the Orpheum Theatre Group.

Laquita Stribling

(MPA ’96) became the first African-American installed as 6760 District Governor for Rotary International. She is past president of the Rotary Club of Nashville, the third largest Rotary Club in the world with nearly 600 members.

C. Michael Adams Jr.

(JD ’97) is a shareholder with the Evans Petree law firm, focusing his practice primarily in estate planning, taxation, wills and trusts and probate administration.

Stephanie Simpson

(BA ’97, JD ’01) is international vice president-collegians for Alpha Gamma Delta International Fraternity.

Marlo Walpole

(MS ’97) was named to The Corridor’s “Faces of Technology” for her innovative work with AuxThera. She is director of translational research, helping to develop a supplement that supports healthy weight loss in dogs.

Lee Holcomb

(JD ’98), an attorney and chief operating officer for an international legal outsource provider, released the book Lifestyle Lawyer: The Female Attorney’s Guide to Designing a Law Career You Love.

'00s Ebonye Edwards

(BSEd ’00) is director of Learning and Development at ALCO Management Inc., providing training to more than 200 employees.

David McKinney

(BBA ’04, JD ’07) is senior vice president for public policy at the Greater Memphis Chamber.

Wendy Laybourn

(BA ’05) joined the UofM Department of Sociology as a tenure-track assistant professor after earning her PhD in sociology from the University of Maryland. Her book Diversity in Black GreekLetter Organizations: Breaking the Line was published last spring.

Frank Scott

(BBA ’05) became the first African-American elected mayor of Little Rock in a runoff election in December. A former banking executive and highway commissioner, he also served as an adviser to former Gov. Mike Beebe.

Chris Matz

(MA ’06) is executive director of Angelo State University’s Porter Henderson Library. He was previously associate dean for public service at the University of North Texas.

Donald Anthony

(MCRP ’07) is director of the City of Murfreesboro Planning Department.

Shannon Wiley

(BA ’07, JD ’10) joined the Bass, Berry & Sims law firm, where she focuses her practice on health care regulatory and transactional matters with an emphasis in the specialty pharmaceutical industry.

Laura Bailey

(JD ’08), an attorney at the Crone Law Firm, was named a Rising Star for Super Lawyers, issued by Thomson Reuters.

Jonathan Nelson

(JD ’09) joined the Bass, Berry & Sims law firm, where he represents companies in cases involving breach of contract actions, shareholder derivative actions, breach of fiduciary claims, commercial tort actions and other business disputes.

Elizabeth Taylor

(JD ’09), a former staff attorney and director of the Office of Civil Rights for the Tennessee Department of Education, is an assistant city attorney in Murfreesboro, Tenn.

DeQuanda Roberson

(BA ’16) is sponsorship development manager for the Greater Memphis Chamber. She previously served as local sales manager for Nexstar Broadcasting.

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Antonio Tirado

(BFA ’16, MA ’18) received the 2019 Outstanding Thesis Award from the Tennessee Council of Graduate Studies for “Empathic Design: Using Kinesthetic Architecture to Empower Children with Autism.” The award recognizes the best thesis prepared in a Tennessee institution of higher learning in the past year.

Mathias Elmer

'10s Tamera Malone

(MAT ’11) is an instructional coach with Gestalt Public Schools. She previously was a middle school teacher and special education teacher, and is working on her doctorate in Instruction and Curriculum Leadership at the UofM.

Jazmine Phillips

(DMA ’17) won the American Prize in Conducting in the college/university division after being selected from applications reviewed across the U.S. He is a visiting professor and director of orchestral activities at the UofM.

Dr. Francisco Salgado Garcia

(PhD ’17) is a postdoctoral fellow in preventive medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center.

Patrick J. Hillard

(BBA ’12, MBA ’18) is Assistant Director of Marketing at the University of Memphis.

(JD ’18) is an attorney with Burch, Porter & Johnson, where he focuses his practice on commercial and business litigation.

Spencer Glaser

Ericka Liggins

(JD ’14) is an attorney with Harkavy Shainberg Kaplan PLC. He focuses his practice on residential and commercial real estate.

John Oeth

(MM ’14), a member of the classical guitar group Petrichor Duo, performed at the state funeral of Sen. John McCain at the Arizona state capitol. Oeth is an Arizona-based guitarist and music teacher who was born and raised in Mississippi.

(MSN ’16) was promoted to clinical director of the Cardiovascular and Medical Intensive Care Unit at Methodist Le Bonheur Germantown Hospital. She previously was a nurse educator for various departments.

Rachel Barenie

(JD/MPH ’18) received an appointment at Harvard Medical School as a fellow in the Program on Regulation, Therapeutics and Law.

Matthew Schwartz

(BA ’14) is a weekend sports anchor/ reporter with KAIT-TV in Jonesboro, Ark.

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SEPT. 1 Members of Pouncer's Pals take part in the Tiger Toddler Trot at halftime of the Tigers vs. Mercer football game.

MAR. 22 Select alumni were recognized for diversity in developing and launching their entrepreneurial ventures at the Top Tigers luncheon. Eddie Moore (BA '91), CEO of Cambridge Construction Management Inc., is congratulated by President M. David Rudd.

U N I V E RS I T Y O F M E M P H I S M AGA Z I N E

AUG. 27 Pouncer leads the cheers at the Fall Convocation Pep Rally celebrating the beginning of the fall semester.

SEPT. 13 From left, students Juan Torres, Leodan Rodriguez, Jose Sanchez and Alberto Coronado received the Hispanic Alumni Council Scholarship.

NOV. 14 David Tate and Elizabeth Tate (BA '71) were honored at the Fogelman College of Business & Economics Alumni Day luncheon.

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In Memoriam The University of Memphis Alumni Association expresses sympathy to the families and friends of these individuals: ALUMNI

(Listed alphabetically by decades)

1940s-50s Sara A. Barcroft ’56, July ’18 Danny J. Childs ’56, ’67, Aug. ’18 William E. Dixon ’50, Aug. ’18 Henry C. Ellis III ’49, July ’18 Maynard I. Evensky ’54, Sept. ’18 Franklin Finley ’57, Nov. ’18 Patricia C. Gammon ’58, Nov. ’18 Shirley J. Gillentine ’51, Nov. ’18 Lois A. Goodman ’54, Aug. ’18 Mary B. Gray ’59, July ’18 Reed D. Hamman Jr. ’53, Sept. ’18 JoAnne L. Hill ’56, Sept. ’19 Otis W. Howe Jr. ’54, Jan. ’19 Claire O. Johnson ’52, July ’18 Jane G. Keltner ’56, July ’18 George Klein ’57, Feb. ’19 Ione F. Mason ’54, Sept. ’18 Elbert C. Mayfireld ’49, Oct. ’18 Faye C. McAteer ’45, Dec. ’18 Gerald L. Mitchell ’55, July ’18 Samuel B. Sadler ’58, Nov. ’18 Richard C. Strub ’58, ’70, Dec. ’18 Charles J. Vaught Jr. ’52, Dec. ’17 Betty O. Wallace ’56, ’76, Jan. ’19 G. Wayne White ’57, July ’18 Walker B. Wilkerson ’51, July ’18 Percy Wilbur Jr. ’56, Jan. ’19 Lloyd C. Wilson ’50, ’58, July ’18

1960s-70s Marvin E. Bailey ’65, Sept. ’18 Robert T. Baldridge Jr. ’78, Aug. ’18 Marvin E. Ballin ’63, Oct. ’18 Dr. Barbara C. Baxter ’67, ’82, ’91, Nov. ’18 Mae T. Blanchard ’73, Sept. ’18 Paul O. Boyd ’76, ’84, Aug. ’18 Sara F. Brewer ’70, Aug. ’18 Michael E. Butler ’69, Nov. ’18 William H. Calaway III ’75, Aug. ’18 Daniel H. Campbell ’69, ’74, Aug. ’18 Andrew B. Catigani ’72, Sept. ’18 Russell Clack Jr. ’71, Sept. ’18 Barbara G. Clemons ’77, ’80, Dec. ’18 Dr. Joel M. Cook ’65, Sept. ’18 Hazel M. Cothran ’64, July ’18 72

U N I V E RS I T Y O F M E M P H I S M AGA Z I N E

Mary A. Covert ’65, Sept. ’18 Robert C. Critchett ’64, June ’18 Virginia M. Cummins ’72, April ’18 John H. Curbo ’68, ’70, Jan. ’19 Ernest R. Dike ’74, Aug. ’18 Nancy B. Duke ’72, ’93, Aug. ’18 Michael D. Eastham ’74, Jan. ’19 Robert B. Everett ’62 Nov. ’18 Kenneth R. Fairless ’71, Dec. ’18 Roger E. Fakes ’61, Sept. ’18 Janet C. Fleming ’79, Sept. ’18 Avis P. Foreman ’61, ’65, Oct. ’18 Martha B. Gandy ’60, Nov. ’18 Thomas W.C. Gerdes ’61, Oct. ’18 Betty E. Godbold ’70, April ’18 William H. Goodwin ’69, Dec. ’18 Diane F. Graham ’64, ’69, Nov. ’18 William Craig Hall ’74 Dec. ’18 Linda A. Hawkins ’60, ’72, April ’18 Joan G. Heffernan ’71, ’72, June ’18 Howard S. Hicks Jr. ’69, Aug. ’19 J. Irene Higley ’62, ’68, Aug. ’18 Hillery E. Horne Jr. ’72, Oct. ’18 Kenneth W. Houk ’71, Oct. ’18 Beverly H. Irwin ’60, July ’18 Patricia W. Ivey ’69, Oct. ’18 Rev. Beverly B. Johnson ’65, Aug. ’18 Joyce T. Johnson ’69, Aug. ’18 Allen C. Jones ’77, Nov. ’18 Edith T. Kowan ’67, April ’18 Jane H. Leblanc ’66, Nov. ’18 Louise A. Liddell ’70, Dec. ’18 Edward L. Lillard ’78, Aug. ’18 Wayne L. Mangum ’71, July ’18 Dr. Reginald Martin ’79, July ’18 Harold W. McLeary Jr. ’72, June ’18 Leo L. Meisberger ’71, Aug. ’18 Robert S. Minarik ’66, Oct. ’18 T. Wayne Mock ’70, Sept. ’18 Barbra F. Moore ’73, Jan. ’19 Marian. H. Morgan ’77, Oct. ’18 Woodie L. Murdoch III ’79, Aug. ’18 Dr. J. William Murphy ’79, Aug. ’18 David A. Nahmias ’72, Aug. ’18 Rosemary A. Norris ’68, Feb. ’18 Susan C. Nunnery ’60, ’84, Sept. ’18

Sallie N. Osborne ’66, Oct. ’18 Charlene W. Parker ’67, Oct. ’18 Dr. William K. Phillips ’69, ’73, ’78, Jan. ’19 O. C. Pleasant Jr. ’68, Dec. ’18 Harold L. Rhodes ’62, Oct. ’18 Daveena M. Salisbury ’66, Aug. ’18 James D. Sandifer ’79, Nov. ’18 Fred J. Sawyer III ’71, July ’18 Virgil L. Shelby ’70, Sept. ’18 Sandra B. Shipley ’71, Dec. ’18 C. Lawrence Shurlds ’66, ’71, June ’18 Anne M. Simmons ’67, July ’18 Richard Singleton ’64, July ’18 Joey D. Sledd ’76, Nov. ’18 Dianne B. Steen ’76, Jan. ’19 Joan J. Stivers ’65, Oct. ’18 Eloise W. Strong ’71, Sept. ’18 Thomas R. Taylor ’72, Oct. ’18 Willard C. Teague ’60, April ’18 J. Clay Tidwell ’73, Sept. ’18 Chester C. Timbs ’75, Dec. ’18 Bob E. Treece ’69, ’70, Dec. ’18 William L. Troha ’78, Oct. ’18 T. Jerry Turner ’63, Aug. ’18 Lionel G. Varner ’61, Oct. ’18 Michael R. Washington ’74, Aug. ’18 Carolyn N. Whitney ’71, Nov. ’18 Carl T. Wiles ’60, Nov. ’18 Claude W. Wright ’72, Oct. ’18

1980s-90s Wendi L. Allan ’92, Nov. ’18 Jeanne G. Andrews ’94, Sept. ’18 Beth M. Barnett ’88, Oct. ’18 Dr. Mary V. Battle ’86, Aug. ’18 Clarke C. Bell ’83, Sept. ’18 Donald W. Boswell ’82, Oct. ’18 Jamie C. Brandon ’95, Dec. ’18 Charles L. Broughton ’95, Aug. ’18 Melvin T. Burgess ’80, June ’18 Christopher Canute ’89, July ’18 Victor A. Cavola ’80, July ’18 Wei Chen ’98, Dec. ’18 Kendrick Crawford ’98, July ’18 Nancy L. Dever ’89, Sept. ’18 R. Daniel Goodwin ’92, Nov. ’18 P. David Hamm ’93, Oct. ’18 Carruthers D. Hays ’82, Aug. ’18 H. Gregory Hodnett ’92, Sept. ’18 Deborah S. Hooser ’80, June ’18 Dr. Robert V. Hull ’81, June ’18 Shelia S. Johnston ’89, July ’18 Eric S. Kinnaman ’84, Nov. ’18 Karen L. Jones ’92, ’00, Aug. ’18

Kimberlie S. Luiten ’83, March ’18 Dr. W. Allen Mashbern ’80, Aug. ’18 Dennis R. Mays ’89, Feb. ’18 John J. Melrose ’93, ’98 July ’18 John J. Morse ’93, ’98, July ’18 Joseph W. Murrell ’90, July ’18 Charles F. Polinski ’92, Oct. ’18 Louis S. Reddish ’80, Sept. ’18 Sandra K. Riley ’90, Feb. ’18 Belinda T. Rimer ’91, Sept. ’18 Susan W. Rodgers ’85, Dec. ’18 Vincent C. Salemi ’83, Oct. ’18 Dr. Mark A. Scott ’91, ’93, Dec. ’19 Kathryn B. Shainberg ’84, Oct. ’18 Mary E. Sherman ’91, Feb. ’18 Gary R. Wilkins ’81, Aug. ’18

2000s Allen B. Bowers ’15, Jan. ’19 Jeffery P. Cheely ’00, ’03, July ’18 Jiang Chen ’02, Dec. ’18 Darren K. Endris ’08, Jan. ’19 Jacob A. Heimerman ’09, Nov. ’18 Jeffrey D. Lewis ’14, Aug. ’18 Samuel B. Selecman ’16, Sept. ’18 Angela G. York ’04, July ’18

Faculty/Staff Dr. David M. Vaught, Aug. ’18

Saturday, June 8, 2019

The Peabody Memphis

alumni.memphis.edu/DAA

2019 Honorees

Distinguished Alumna

Distinguished Alumnus

Judith H. Edge

Cato Johnson

awarded posthumously

BA ’83 Corporate Vice President, Human Resources FedEx Corporation

BEd ’70, MEd ’71 Chief of Staff, Public Policy and Regulatory Affairs Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare

Wei Chen MBA ’98 Founder and CEO Sunshine Enterprise, Inc.

Outstanding Young Alumnus

Distinguished Friend

Frank D. Scott, Jr.

Bill Koeneman

Bryan Jordan

BBA ’05 Mayor of Little Rock, Arkansas

Owner B & C Construction

Chairman, President and CEO First Horizon National Corporation

Periodical Postage

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