Student Success

Meet Our Alumni

• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/1947-ross-ellis"><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/142,366,693,917/3468_ross.rev.1520456379.jpg" alt="Ross Ellis, E&H Class of 2013." class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="551" data-max-h="551"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/1947-ross-ellis"><p> Ross Ellis is a doctor of veterinary medicine in Chattanooga, Tennessee.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><div class="_h8t"><div class="_5wd9 direction_ltr"><div class="_5wde _n4o"><div class="_5w1r _3_om _5wdf"><div class="_4gx_"><div class="_d97"><span class="_5yl5">Dr. Ross Ellis is a 2013 Emory & Henry grad who graduated from the veterinary school at the University of Tennessee. He is now working as a small animal emergency veterinarian at a referral hospital in Chattanooga, Tennessee.</span></div><div class="_d97"/><div class="_d97"><span class="_5yl5">While at Emory Ross was a member of the football team, president of the blue key honor society, and was a resident advisor in Wiley Jackson residence Hall. </span></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><a href="/live/profiles/1947-ross-ellis" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2707-meg-hathaway-retinger"><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,320,320/6405_meg_retinger.rev.1558721713.jpg" alt="E&H alumni John and Meg Hathaway Retinger at the beach." class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="320" data-max-h="320"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2707-meg-hathaway-retinger"><p> She’s number 1 in the number 2 business: Meg Retinger is COO of Bio Pet Laboratories in Knoxville.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Meg Hathaway Retinger graduated from Emory & Henry in 1976 with a plan to teach elementary school. But when she was faced with a crowded field of educators, and too few job openings, she headed in a different direction.</p><p> She began by doing computer work in an industry that created “bug zappers” and electric cattle fencing. Eventually she segued into a company that did testing to see if cattle had been properly inseminated for breeding. And now….well…now she finds herself elbow deep in dog poop.</p><p> Meg is the Chief Operating Officer (COO) for <a href="http://www.biopetlabs.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bio Pet Laboratories</a> in Knoxville. The main component of their business is a program called PooPrints®; evaluating DNA in dog poop so that apartment complexes know which tenants are not picking up after their pets. Dog owners swab the cheeks of their dogs, and the apartment landlords send the swabs to Bio Pet to be registered in a database –DNA World Pet Registry. If a pile of poop is found where it shouldn’t be, it can be collected and sent to Bio Pet to be matched up with the dog owner – or, as Meg calls that person, “The Poopetrator.”</p><p> Bio Pet is now serving clients all over the U.S., Canada, and Europe. They receive as many as 2000 swabs a day, and receive 200 poop samples a day.</p><p> Meg says the two biggest issues apartment complexes deal with are parking and dog waste. And in addition to being unsightly, it is also a huge environmental issue as it affects the water runoff and eventually the regional watersheds. “People think that dog poop is just fertilizer, but because of what dogs eat, their poop has more bacteria than human waste.”</p><p> She says her E&H education taught her how to learn – and instilled a desire to learn. So when her initial career plans got sidetracked, she was flexible and found a new way to apply her degree.</p><p> In short, Meg knows her poop.</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/2707-meg-hathaway-retinger" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/1446-cathy-lowe"><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1248,1251/2404_IMG_0480.rev.1516308322.jpg" alt="Cathy Lowe, E&H '11" class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1248,1251/2404_IMG_0480.rev.1516308322.jpg 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1248,1251/2404_IMG_0480.rev.1516308322.jpg 3x" data-max-w="1248" data-max-h="1251"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/1446-cathy-lowe"><p> Cathy Lowe (E&H ’11) is serving as the mayor of Abingdon, Virginia.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Cathy fell into the category of “non-traditional” student while getting her E&H degree. She was already a grandmother when she walked across the stage and received her diploma. Cathy is also proof that it’s never too late to start a new project.</p><p> She is Executive Director of Virginia Highlands Small Business Incubator, and oversees all of the daily operations of the 40,000 square foot Economic Development Facility. She has served on the Abingdon Town Council since 2006, and in 2015 she was honored with a YWCA Tribute to Women Award.</p><p> In 2016 she was elected Mayor of Abingdon, Virginia. She was appointed in 2015 as a citizen member of the Virginia Tobacco Commission, and serves as the Governor’s Representative for the Commonwealth of Virginia to the Cultural Heritage Foudation.</p><p> She is a member of the Abingdon Rotary Club and has been named a Paul Harris Fellow multiple times. She also serves on numerous community boards including Barter Theatre, William King Museum, and Virginia Highlands Community College.</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/1446-cathy-lowe" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2685-katelyn-shaver"><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,720,720/6354_katelyn_Shaver.rev.1557175245.jpg" alt="Katelyn Shaver at San Jacinto Battleground/Battleship TEXAS State Historic Site." class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,720,720/6354_katelyn_Shaver.rev.1557175245.jpg 2x" data-max-w="720" data-max-h="720"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2685-katelyn-shaver"><p> Katelyn Parks is using a liberal arts preparation to connect her to every aspect of the National Park where she’s employed.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Katelyn Shaver’s “world of work” gives her a job description that covers a lot of areas: </p><p> -Inspecting reproduction period weapons.</p><p>             -Dressing in period outfits and acting like a person from the 1830s.</p><p>             -Public Speaking: Educating about history, lifeways, and skills from the 19^th Century.</p><p>             -Writing: Writing text for exhibits, waysides, publications and grants.</p><p>             -Biology: Working with the prairie/marsh restoration and wildlife.</p><p>             -Community service: Working with Texas Master Naturalist volunteers.</p><p>             -Transportation: Driving different types of vehicles and us various tools.</p><p>             -Art:  Making supplies for interpretive programs.</p><p>             -Public Relations: I usually get asked to help with traffic control.</p><p><a href="https://www.ehc.edu/live/image/gid/68/height/672/src_region/88,105,645,854/6353_katelyn_shaver_2.jpg" class="lw_preview_image"><img width="500" height="672" alt="Katelyn Shaver at San Jacinto Battleground/Battleship TEXAS State Historic Site." src="/live/image/gid/68/width/500/height/672/crop/1/src_region/88,105,645,854/6353_katelyn_shaver_2.rev.1557175245.jpg" class="lw_image lw_image6353 lw_align_left lw_column_width_half" data-max-w="720" data-max-h="960"/></a>As a Park Ranger I – Interpretation/Volunteer Coordinator at <a href="https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/battleship-texas">San Jacinto Battleground/Battleship TEXAS State Historic Site</a>, Katelyn’s job description could probably be summed up by this single quote: “It is not an experience I expected to have but there we are.”</p><p> Katelyn became passionate about the world of park interpreters after working a stint at the Petersburg National Battlefield site. She is now in one of the country’s most unique parks, far from Petersburg, because she understood that to get a job or a promotion in the National Park Service, she had to be willing to move.</p><p> Katelyn double-majored in English, with a focus on creative writing and literature, and History and minored in Sociology. . She took classes in psychology, biology, and anthropology.  She’s now in a job that requires her to use a wide range of skills and experiences. “I had some good history professors at EHC that helped grow my interest in the field. Every NPS site is unique and so the requirements for jobs at them differ; we ‘wear many hats’ in my profession and so the skills I learned from different subjects have proved to be useful in the long run.”</p><p><img width="200" height="267" alt="Katelyn Shaver at San Jacinto Battleground/Battleship TEXAS State Historic Site." src="/live/image/gid/68/width/200/height/267/6355_katelyn_and_dg.rev.1557175347.jpg" class="lw_image lw_image6355 lw_align_left lw_column_width_half" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/200/height/267/6355_katelyn_and_dg.rev.1557175347.jpg 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/200/height/267/6355_katelyn_and_dg.rev.1557175347.jpg 3x" data-max-w="720" data-max-h="960"/>You’ll see a lot of articles these days about how people don’t appreciate the value of a liberal arts degree. The “connected learning” experience offered by places like Emory & Henry might seem like it isn’t getting you to your job goal fast enough. Katelyn Shaver is a perfect example of why having a broad range of skills and experiences can prepare you for what you don’t see coming.</p><p> She just celebrated her five-year work anniversary, and she is well-versed in the fascinating history of her park. Fun fact: this park site is considered the birthplace of Texas because the last battle of the Texas Revolution occurred here on April 21^st, 1836: the same year Emory & Henry was founded.</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/2685-katelyn-shaver" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/1751-erick-long"><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,612,515/3181_Erick_Long.rev.1518214003.jpg" alt="Erick Long" class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="612" data-max-h="515"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/1751-erick-long"><p> Erick Long is a vice president for the Academy of Country Music in Los Angeles.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Erick Long joined the Academy of Country Music in 2009 after many years in the events industry. He currently manages Operations & Events at the Academy including several components of the Academy of Country Music Awards, ACM Party for a Cause Festival as well as ACM Honors. Long oversees the general operations of the ACM, event production, red carpet, talent logistics, sponsor fulfillment, catering, board meetings, security, transportation, the All-Star Jam (official after party), IT, as well as the internship and volunteer programs.</p><p> Prior to joining the Academy, Long spent more than six years in special events at Universal Studios Hollywood where he managed large-scale events including the MTV Movie Awards After Party, the Tahitian Noni International Conference, Lance Armstrong’s Tour of Hope, and New Year’s Eve events, among others. Before Universal, Long spent more than 10 years in event production and operations with the Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, Pallotta TeamWorks - Avon Walk for Breast Cancer, Up with People as well as independent contracts with the Grammys, Latin Grammys, and the Inland Valley Humane Society. A Tennessee native, Long graduated from Emory & Henry College in Virginia. He has lived in Los Angeles since 2000.</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/1751-erick-long" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/790-richard-groover"><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,3200,2133/564_2887April2917_005.rev.1505402809.JPG" alt="Richard Groover's hand holding a dragonfly." class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,3200,2133/564_2887April2917_005.rev.1505402809.JPG 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,3200,2133/564_2887April2917_005.rev.1505402809.JPG 3x" data-max-w="3200" data-max-h="2133"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/790-richard-groover"><p> Catching dragonflies for the National Park Service is only the latest of Richard Groover’s cool projects.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> It’s probably easier to ask Richard Groover what he HASN’T done. After being a scientist, a teacher, a field researcher, a government employee, a reserve deputy sheriff, hostage negotiator for 9 years, a documentary filmmaker, a National Park docent, a former member of the Governor’s Climate Change Commission for Virginia, a current member of the Board of Trustees for the Virginia Science Museum and now an author – you’d think there wouldn’t be much new territory left to explore.</p><p><a href="http://www.ehc.edu/live/image/gid/68/width/650/569_groover.jpg" class="lw_preview_image"><img width="500" height="414" alt="Richard Groover poses with his wife, Patti Jackson." src="http://www.ehc.edu/live/image/gid/68/width/500/height/414/569_groover.jpg" class="lw_image lw_image569 lw_align_left lw_column_width_half" data-max-w="629" data-max-h="521"/></a>But he has plans.</p><p> “I figure I’ve got about 10 years left in me before my brain goes, so I’ve got a lot to do.”</p><p> Richard graduated from E&H in 1971, and at the age of 68 he just this year completed his Ph.D. in Environmental  Science and Public Policy at George Mason University. “Well, you know, the dog died, the children grew up, the skies parted – I realized I had time to do my Ph.D.”</p><p> He speaks excitedly about his graduate work: he focused on Ecology and Policy. He says he studied with the best and brightest in public policy (including Lee Talbott who authored the Endangered Species Act), but his real passion is education and research in the field. He is a Biology and Environmental Studies teacher at Reynolds Community College in Richmond, and he is currently doing a project for the National Park Service studying dragonflies on National Battlefields. (For the record, he has nothing against damselflies he just thinks they’re “wimpy.” We couldn’t reach a damselfly for comment.)</p><p> He is just about to publish an ambitious reference book: <em>Second Edition of the Environmental Almanac of Virginia</em>. Richard approached the author of first edition to encourage him to write a second part – but the author, Frits van der Leeden (real name) said Richard ought to write it. The book will be out in October of 2017.</p><p> Richard says he doesn’t mind staying busy. “I’m worried about being bored. If I die tomorrow, I’ve had a really fun life!”</p><p> You can reach Richard speak of many things, including his upcoming book: <a href="mailto:rgroover@reynolds.edu"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">rgroover@reynolds.edu</span></a></p></div><a href="/live/profiles/790-richard-groover" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/792-bronie-reynolds"><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,499,543/565_bronie.rev.1505403379.jpg" alt="Bronie Reynolds (E&H '84) poses with Mike Young (E&H ’86)" class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="499" data-max-h="543"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/792-bronie-reynolds"><p> Did you ever wonder who picks the best referees in the country? Turns our Bronie Reynolds (right, E&H ’84) is one of those people.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><blockquote><p> She picks the refs who make the big calls. </p></blockquote><p> Bronie Reynolds (E&H ’84, E&H Hall of Fame basketball point guard) laughs with glee as she recalls how Dave Thomas used a dust spray around the edges of the E&H basketball court. “He took such good care of the King Center…and we all knew if you got much beyond the court lines during a game, you’d slide all over the place because he had dusted over there!”</p><p> These days Bronie is looking at basketball from a different vantage point. She is one of a handful of people who evaluate basketball referees. She works for Charlene Curtis – former basketball standout and Hall Of Famer from Radford University who selects and assigns the Women’s Basketball Officials for the ACC, Big South, Southern and Colonial Conferences.  Bronie has known Ms. Curtis for a long time. “Coach Curtis, as I refer to her since I worked under her as her Graduate Assistant Coach at Radford University in 1984, is also responsible for the evaluation of the officials for those conferences.  She has to hire Neutral Observers, like me, to help her fulfill the expectations of each conference to have the best officials on the floor for every game. “</p><p> During the summer, she attends a camp where new officials try to break into conferences like the ACC and current officials try to vie for a better spot on the referee totem pole. Bronie says it’s very competitive. “Every year they’re all evaluated – so they have to be on their best game. They have to stay in shape physically, they must know the rules, and they need to appear invisible on the court. There is always someone trying to get their spot.”</p><p> She has a “day job,” too. She is Business Manager for Blue Spiral Consulting and an Insurance Consultant for Blue Ridge Insurance Services. However, throughout the year she watches tapes of games and attends games, and she gets to watch a lot of her favorite sport. “I get paid to watch basketball! Who can complain about that!?”</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/792-bronie-reynolds" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/1841-linda-coutant"><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,96,2133,2227/3317_LindaCoutant2018.rev.1519076778.jpg" alt="Dr. Linda Coutant" class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,96,2133,2227/3317_LindaCoutant2018.rev.1519076778.jpg 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,96,2133,2227/3317_LindaCoutant2018.rev.1519076778.jpg 3x" data-max-w="2133" data-max-h="2131"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/1841-linda-coutant"><p> Linda Coutant is senior editor and writer in the communications office at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><div class="gmail_extra"><div class="gmail_quote"><div id="m_-4766316923025457948m_6126689255754143167pseudoBody"> Dr. Linda Coutant completed her Doctor of Education degree (Ed.D.) in educational leadership in May 2017 at Appalachian State University, with a research focus on the use of mindfulness and other contemplative practices in higher education.  </div><div/><div> In December 2017, her research was published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Contemplative Inquiry with the title “The Mindful Campus: Organizational Structure and Culture.”  </div><div/><div> She is senior editor/writer in University Communications at Appalachian State University and teaches journalism as an adjunct instructor in the University’s Department of Communication. </div><div/></div></div></div><a href="/live/profiles/1841-linda-coutant" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/1743-myron-wingfield"><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,320,404/3150_Myron_Wingfield.rev.1518206236.jpg" alt="Myron Wingfield" class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="320" data-max-h="404"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/1743-myron-wingfield"><p> Myron Wingfield (E&H ’83) is the Executive Director of Connectional Ministries for the California-Pacific Conference of The United Methodist Church.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Myron Wingfield (E&H ’83) has returned to California to be the Executive Director of Connectional Ministries for the California-Pacific Conference of The United Methodist Church.</p><p> Resident Bishop Grant J. Hagiya of the Los Angeles Episcopal Area of The United Methodist Church recently shared the following letter as a means of announcing the news:</p><p> “I am pleased to announce that Rev. Myron D. Wingfield will become our next California-Pacific Conference’s Executive Director of Connectional Ministries.</p><p> Rev. Wingfield currently serves as the Associate General Secretary of the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry’s Division of Ordained Ministry where he supervises and coordinates the work of the program and administrative staff of the Division of Ordained Ministry. His work includes providing training, consultation, and resources for district superintendents across the Connection and for administering the Effective Ministry Assessment (EMA) on effective clergy-congregational leadership collaboration as well as the Ministerial Education Fund and the Central Conference Theological Education Fund.</p><p> Prior to this, in the California-Pacific Conference, he served as District Superintendent in the San Diego District for seven years and on the Board of Ordained Ministry for nine years. He has also served as Co-Pastor of St. Mark’s United Methodist Church (San Diego, CA), among other local churches, and as a delegate to the 2012 Western Jurisdictional Conference.</p><p> Rev. Wingfield earned a Master of Divinity with Honors from Candler School of Theology, Emory University (Atlanta, GA), and a Bachelor of Arts in Religion from Emory & Henry College (Emory, VA).</p><p> Myron both understands our Cal-Pac Conference culture and brings the perspective of the General Church, both nationally and internationally. He supervises the entire staff of the Division of Ordained Ministry, and as such brings a wealth of administration as well as program ministry gifts. I am confident that God will lead us into greater ministry vitality in and through his leadership. Let us keep him in prayer and welcome him as he comes to lead in this capacity, starting January 15, 2017.</p><p><strong>Bishop Grant J. Hagiya</strong><br/> Los Angeles Area Resident Bishop<br/> The United Methodist Church”</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/1743-myron-wingfield" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/683-"><img src="/live/image/gid/2/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,33,533,566/322_Victor_Trussell.rev.1499440958.jpg" alt="Victor Trussell" class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="533" data-max-h="533"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/683-"><p> Victor Trussell ’13 starting acting on a whim – and now he’s acting professionally.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Victor says he started acting his freshman year of high school, enjoyed it so much he majored in theatre at Emory & Henry, and now he on the stage all the time.</p><p> “I have been performing with a variety of different professional theatre companies since graduation. I have toured the country multiple times with companies like Bright Star Touring Theatre and The National Theatre for Children, both listed by Backstage as ’12 Touring Theater Companies That Make a Difference.’” Not only has acting become his vocation, but he is proud of the impact he is having on school kids.  “These experiences have allowed me to perform for thousands of children, educating them on a range of topics spanning from historical figures like Martin Luther King, Jr. to the importance of energy conservation.”</p><p> His range of theatre involvement shows an amazing array of skills. He has performed with <em>Trumpet in the Land</em>, a historical outdoor drama in New Philadelphia, Ohio, that tells the story of frontier Ohio.  And he has also been in <em>Hairspray</em>, <em>Les Miserables</em>, and even <em>Winnie the Pooh</em>.</p><p> In the summer of 2016, Victor will be performing at the Tecumseh Theater in Ohio doing Shakespeare. “Either <em>The Tempest</em> or <em>Macbeth</em>, or both!”</p><p> Victor is also a playwright. His one-act play <em>Millennial Show</em> has been published in the first edition of <em>Young Scribblers</em>, a publication started by fellow E&H alum Forrest Williams (E&H ’16). “The play, in the form of a variety show, pokes fun at generational stereotypes as well as challenges the ‘problems’ young people face today. Taken from real interviews, <em>Millennial Show</em> also features commentary on related topics addressed within the play.”</p><p> Victor ended up at Emory & Henry because he “loved the intimacy of the campus and classes. I had a ton of hands-on experience in the theatre department.” He is planning to use that experience to keep on writing and performing and inspiring others.</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/683-" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/1433-toni-atkins"><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,56,800,857/2267_Toni_Atkins.rev.1516131104.jpg" alt="Toni Atkins, E&H '84" class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,56,800,857/2267_Toni_Atkins.rev.1516131104.jpg 2x" data-max-w="800" data-max-h="801"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/1433-toni-atkins"><p> Toni Atkins is the leader of the California Senate – and is the first woman to hold this position.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Toni Atkins, E&H ’84, recently made history by becoming the first woman to serve as president pro Tempore of the California Senate.  She has served as interim Mayor of San Diego, and was Governor of California for nine hours in 2014 – making her California’s first openly gay governor, and it also landed her a spot on the Jimmy Kimmel talk show.</p><p>  </p><p> Below is an article by Lisa Renner written for Capitol Weekly in 2017:</p><p> State Sen. Toni Atkins has come a long way since she was a girl growing up poor without running water in rural Virginia.</p><p> This month, the San Diego lawmaker is set to replace Kevin de León as leader of the California Senate. She will be the first woman and first open lesbian to hold the position. She also will be the first person since the 19^th century to hold both of the Legislature’s top jobs – Assembly speaker and Senate leader.</p><blockquote><p> “She came with a sense of wanting to make a difference but didn’t think she could make a difference because of her background.” — Stephen Fisher </p></blockquote><p> Atkins, 55, is a real coal miner’s daughter who grew up in a house without indoor plumbing or running water, and her mother cooked on a wood stove, according to her college professor and close friend Stephen Fisher. When Atkins and her family moved to the city of Roanoke, she was teased for her hillbilly accent.</p><div id="div-gpt-ad-1395717372217-22_container" class="idm_ad_unit"/><p>  </p><p> Only two others have served as both Assembly speaker and Senate leader — Ransom Burnell (Assembly Speaker in 1861 and Senate pro Tem in 1864) and James T. Farley (Assembly speaker in 1856 and Senate pro Tem in 1871-1872), said Alex Vassar, author of <em>California Lawmaker: The Men and Women of the California State Legislature.</em></p><p> Fisher recalls that when she arrived at Emory & Henry College, where she ultimately majored in political science, she had a lot of “anger and shame” about her upbringing. “She came with a sense of wanting to make a difference but didn’t think she could make a difference because of her background,” he said.</p><p> But as she grew more comfortable, she became more confident in her skin. She was part of a group of students who asked Fisher to teach a course on feminism. He agreed if the students would help him create the course, including decided what texts do use and how the class would be structured. “It was a transformative experience for all of us,” he said, adding that Atkins wasn’t the only participant who went on to have great success in professional life.</p><p> Atkins also showed courage by helping arrange for a visit to campus by lesbian folk singer Holly Near in the early 1980s when the college “was not a safe place to come out in,” Fisher said.</p><blockquote><p> Atkins was elected to the state Assembly in 2010. becoming Speaker of the Assembly in 2014. </p></blockquote><p> But Fisher said he had no idea back then that Atkins would end up where she is now. “I knew that she was going to do well but I had no notion that she was going into public work.”</p><p> Atkins ended up continuing her education at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University before relocating to San Diego in 1985.</p><p> She initially served as director of clinic services of Womancare Health Center but soon began working for then San Diego City Councilmember Christine Kehoe, the city’s first openly gay elected official. Atkins’ first jump into elected office came on the San Diego City Council in 2000, when she replaced Kehoe after Kehoe moved on to the state Legislature.</p><p> Atkins was herself elected to the state Assembly in 2010. becoming Speaker of the Assembly in 2014.  She set her priorities as access to health care, affordable housing and educational opportunities.</p><p> Among her achievements was getting the bipartisan support for a $7.5 billion water bond approved by voters in 2014. “That was a clear example of her leadership because folks believed it could not be done,” said Assemblymember Shirley Weber of San Diego.</p><blockquote><p> “She has that coal miner’s daughter perspective that comes out of that environment.” — Shirley Weber </p></blockquote><p> Weber also credits Atkins with getting her to run for office. Weber was recently retired after a long career as a professor of Africana studies at San Diego State University when Atkins asked her to consider running for the Assembly.</p><p> When Weber won the election and joined the Assembly in 2012, it was Atkins who opened doors for her and helped her make the transition. “She said I will help you do this and she did,” Weber said. “Other people say I’ll help you and you can’t find them. They don’t do anything for you.”</p><p> Weber said she is impressed that Atkins has been able to rise so far while keeping her dignity and maintaining her integrity.</p><p> “She has that coal miner’s daughter perspective that comes out of that environment,” she said. “You don’t get out of that environment if you don’t take what you have, make it better, learn from strengths and minimize your weaknesses.”</p><p> Atkins was elected to the state Senate in 2016 and was able to get all 12 bills she sent to the governor, signed and approved. In her December newsletter, she said she is especially proud of Senate Bill 2, which creates a permanent funding source for affordable housing and Senate Bill 179, which requires the state to legally recognize “nonbinary” as a gender for people who do not identify as male or female.</p><p> Rick Zbur, executive director for Equality California, said Atkins is one of the best advocates for the state’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community. He applauded her upcoming advance to leadership of the senate.</p><p> “It’s important that she has shattered yet another glass ceiling,” he said. “These kinds of achievements are important for LBGTQ people because we have been historically underrepresented in government.”</p><p> Through it all, she remembers her Virginia roots. She invited Cameron Chase, a 20-year-old Emory & Henry student, to Sacramento for a three-week internship with her earlier this year. “Sen. Atkins is literally so down to earth and so kind and generous,” he said.</p><p> In a 2014 statement to the Washington Post, Atkins reflected on her rise from poverty to high office in California. “What that says about our opportunities as Americans and our democracy is profound.”</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/1433-toni-atkins" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/708-"><img src="/live/image/gid/2/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,300,200/358_MaryBethTignor.rev.1500388800.jpg" alt="Mary Beth Tignor" class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="300" data-max-h="200"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/708-"><p> Love for the region keeps Mary Beth Tignor’s future local. </p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Her love of this region and her passion for education are the fuel to her daily work. </p><p> Mary Beth was a part of the first Emory & Henry Honors Program cohort that graduated in Spring 2013. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Studies and a Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy and Community Service. Currently, she is working as an AmeriCorps with Appalachian Sustainable Development and pursuing a Master’s degree in Education with a focus area of Middle School Science. </p><p> Serving the community of this region has always been one of Mary Beth’s passion and love. As a student at Emory & Henry, she served as a volunteer of an on-campus after school program called Highlands Project. She said, “Through this program and some of my courses, I developed a passion for education and the children in this area.” Since then, she has created and is the current coordinator of a after school program at a local elementary school. Her most memorable experience in the Honors Program is going to New York City as an upperclassman leader with First-Year Honors Scholars. After her first trip to New York City, Mary Beth had learned a lot from her experiences and really enjoyed sharing them with the First-Year Honors Scholars. </p></div><a href="/live/profiles/708-" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2053-mike-fintel"><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,720,720/4097_image.rev.1525119131.png" alt="Mike Fintel, E&H Class of 2009." class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,720,720/4097_image.rev.1525119131.png 2x" data-max-w="720" data-max-h="720"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2053-mike-fintel"><p> Mike Fintel is making a difference in higher education.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Mike Fintel wants to make a difference.</p><p> With a degree in Business Management it seemed pretty obvious what he would do after college. And when he landed a plum job with the Shelor Corporation in Montgomery County, Virginia, he was off and running.</p><p> His business background got paired with his soccer experiences as he was first given responsibilities with one of Shelor’s more athletic projects. Mike was General Manager and then Sales and Marketing Manager for the Pulaski Yankees, running historic Calfee ballpark in Pulaski and overseeing marketing for the new Jackson Park Inn hotel and Al’s on First restaurant. He increased sales revenues for the baseball park, and saw an uptick in group sales.</p><p> Soon after that, he was offered a promotion in the company with more responsibility and opportunity. Things were exactly on track!</p><p> And that’s when he walked away.</p><p> Mike said his inner voice was telling him to make a change. “It just didn’t feel like that was what I was supposed to be doing. I wanted to make a difference.”</p><p> In 2017, Mike was inspired by a fellow E&H Classmate <em>(Chris O’Connor)</em> to join Big Brothers, Big Sisters as a mentor with an elementary school in a rural town. It was through this mentorship that Mike decided to follow his heart to higher education.  </p><p> He is now an Admissions Counselor at Roanoke College and Mike says work doesn’t seem like work any more. “I am driven by the thought of waking up each morning, knowing that I can help students envision the achievable dream of attending college. Work no longer seems like a chore.”</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/2053-mike-fintel" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/714-"><img src="/live/image/gid/2/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/53,72,821,840/1910_jarrett.rev.1515554170.jpg" alt="Jarrett Dunning" class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/2/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/53,72,821,840/1910_jarrett.rev.1515554170.jpg 2x" data-max-w="768" data-max-h="768"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/714-"><p> Investigation of Power </p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Enticed by the way power is used in our society, Jarrett is determined to expand upon his research in graduate school and to pass on his knowledge to future political theory students. </p><p> With a major in philosophy, politics, and economics (PPE), Jarrett is attending graduate school at the University of Chicago to study Political Science and plans to receive his Ph.D. in political theory with the long-term goal of holding a professorship. During graduate school he plans to expand upon his honors thesis work which critically engages the causes of faction and more specifically, the various uses of power in the ordering, structure, and maintenance of human interaction. Following an intellectual tradition encompassing thinkers as diverse as Locke, Von Mises, Weber, and Foucault, he hopes to explore the power dynamics between the individual and the state and interrogate the corollaries of power as a result of social class, economic status, and the structure of state institutions. This inquiry into the nature of power also extends to the origins of political order, social contract theory and the function of private property in society.</p><p> As far as his hobbies go, Jarrett is a well–established bibliophile. He said, “I am known to stay up late into the night hunting the internet for that one rare or out-of-print edition that I can’t keep off my mind, or travel out of my way to visit obscure, used bookstores in hopes of coming across that next great find.” While attending graduate school, Jarrett also works as a Program Assistant for The Hermon Dunlap Smith Center for the History of Cartography at the Newberry Library. As the world’s largest private research library, working at The Newberry has been an excellent opportunity for the expansion of Jarrett’s career and research interest.</p><div class="row sqs-row" id="yui_3_17_2_1_1500390393817_126"><div class="col sqs-col-5 span-5"><div class="sqs-block quote-block sqs-block-quote" data-block-type="31" id="block-yui_3_17_2_2_1423505275009_6882"><div class="sqs-block-content"/></div></div></div></div><a href="/live/profiles/714-" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2655-mark-handy"><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,531,531/6281_Mark_Handy.rev.1554843091.jpg" alt="Dr. Mark Handy, E&H Class of 1986." class="lw_image" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="531" data-max-h="531"/></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2655-mark-handy"><p> Dr. Mark Handy (E&H Class of 1986) is recognized for unusual personal service as a physician.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Dr. Mark Handy is not a typical physician. For starters…he plays the banjo.</p><p> Dr. Handy is known throughout the region of Southwest Virginia, East Tennessee, and Western North Carolina as an accomplished musician, a fine flat-footer, and he was even in a music video with Zach Galifianakis.</p><p> It’s enough to make you forget that he is also a beloved physician, a decorated medical school educator, and a tireless volunteer for emergency services.</p><p> In 2019, Dr. Handy was honored by being named the 2019 Volunteer Clinical Faculty Awardee by UVA’s Alpha Omega Alpha. It is given annually to a volunteer clinical faculty member for excellence in clinical mentorship. </p><p> The nomination for Dr. Handy might just be the best description of this unconventional doctor that can be assembled: </p><p> “Dr. Handy embodies the commitment to education, compassion and service that Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) society strives for its members to embody. I spent one month working with Dr. Handy during my family medicine rotation caring for the under-served patients of Abingdon in rural Southwest Virginia. Despite a busy practice where we saw 30+ patients everyday in addition to numerous house visits, Dr. Handy provided me the platform to develop my critical thinking skills by giving me  the independence to create plans for patients. At end of every shift, he would assess gaps in my knowledge with the simple statement “tell me about x,” and would spend the next hour filling in the gaps. Furthermore, in a primary care climate where every clinic visit is scheduled to be ten minutes long; he emphasized the importance of compassion by giving me the flexibility in the amount of time I spent with patients listening to fascinating stories about their lives and their lost loved ones. Dr. Handy also ensured that patients treated me with respect. I distinctly remember an occasion when he was quick to provide education to a patient who made a racially insensitive comment in reference to me. Unsurprisingly, the utmost respect in which I hold Dr. Handy is shared by all students that I have encountered who have worked with him. As such, I strongly believe he is a deserving candidate of the AOA Volunteer faculty award.”</p><p> Dr. Handy is also a 2014 winner of the Carl and Ruth Looney Humanitarian Award granted by the Emory & Henry Alumni Association.</p><p> Mark finished at Emory & Henry with a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology, and graduated from East Carolina School of Medicine and the ETSU Family Residency Program. He is a family medicine practitioner in Abingdon, Virginia. He serves on the Board of Directors for the Carter Family Fold in Hiltons, Virginia, the ISHN Board of Quality Assurance, is Medical Director of Hometown Hospice, and is Medical Director for Intrepid Home Health. He received the Board of Governors for East Carolina University School of Medicine. He is President and CEO of Abingdon Medical Arts, President and CEO of Triple H Farms of Alleghany, President and CEO of William M. Handy, MD, PC, and Associate Professor of Medicine at University of Virginia.  He is a past winner of the Teacher of the Year Award at UVA, the Resident Teacher Award, and was named Medical Director of the Year for Emergency Medical Services.  He is an accomplished banjo player and champion clogger, and is a member of Mountain Park Old Time Band and Tune Town Band, which won Vocal Group of the Year at Blue Ridge Acoustic Uprising in 2014.</p><blockquote type="cite"/></div><a href="/live/profiles/2655-mark-handy" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>