Randolph-Macon College celebrated Honors Convocation May 13, 2016. Marching with faculty, graduating seniors donned their caps and gowns and gathered in Blackwell Auditorium, RMC Center for the Performing Arts. President Robert R. Lindgren welcomed students, staff and faculty to the event.

Photos: Honors Convocation

“All of you here today, in your own unique ways, make tremendous contributions to the quality and prestige of Randolph-Macon,” said Lindgren. “We all know that this is more than a college—it is a community in which we rely on each other for our overall success, and we, in turn, rejoice in the success of each, individual member.”

Dozens of awards and scholarships were announced, and students inducted into honor societies were recognized. Among the student awards were the following:

Taylor Ryan ’16 received The Mary Mildred Sullivan Award; Andrew Schaefer ’16 received the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award; and Ashley Andersen ’16 and Bar Hass ’16 received The Janet Harvey Trivette & W. Proctor Harvey Jr. Endowed Student Award.

In addition, several faculty and staff members were honored: The Thomas Branch Award for Excellence in Teaching Award, The United Methodist Church Exemplary Teaching Award, The Samuel Nelson Gray Distinguished Professor Award, and The Marilyn J. Gibbs Dedicated Service Award were presented.

The Thomas Branch Award for Excellence in Teaching, presented by Provost William T. Franz
Recipients: Professors Melanie Gubbels Bupp, Mark Malin, Thomas Myers

In 1969, RMC received a gift from the Cabell Foundation as a memorial to Thomas Branch, president of Merchant’s Bank, a member of the Board of Trustees from 1846-1883, and one of the principle figures responsible for the college’s relocation from Boydton, Virginia to Ashland. The gift established the Thomas Branch Award for Excellence in Teaching. The award is given annually, and the recipient is selected by the students of Phi Beta Kappa, Omicron Delta Kappa, and the Honors Program.

Melanie Gubbels Bupp (biology) joined the faculty in 2009. She earned her B.S. from Creighton University and her Ph.D. from the University of Colorado.

“One student wrote of her, ‘She is always so happy, it brings up the spirit of the class,'” said Franz.  “Another said, ‘She is a fantastic professor. She strives to make sure we understand each subject.'”

Gubbels Bupp has supervised six summer research students, four of them through the Schapiro Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program, as well as eight year-long and two semester-long senior research projects in her seven years at Randolph-Macon.

“Her involvement on campus has included service learning, and Professor Gubbels Bupp has been the head service fellow on the RMC faculty,” said Franz. “She has been a member of the Scholarship Committee and the Strategic Planning Committee, and she has served our pre-health students in a number of capacities. In addition, she was the 2015 recipient of the Art Conway Enthusiasm for Teaching Award. Please join me in congratulating Professor Melanie Gubbels Bupp.”

Mark Malin (Spanish) joined the faculty in 1997. He earned his B.A., M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Colorado.

“One student wrote of Professor Malin, ‘He is the most thoughtful, well-prepared teacher ever,'” said Franz. “Another said, ‘He keeps things lively and happy while keeping the students involved. He is an expert, an amazing teacher, and an amazing person.'”

Franz went on to say, “Peering over his students on the first day of class, he might say something like this: ‘Fortune is guiding our affairs better than we ourselves could have wished. Do you see over yonder, friend Sancho, thirty or forty hulking giants? I intend to do battle with them and slay them. With their spoils we shall begin to be rich for this is a righteous war and the removal of so foul a brood from off the face of the earth is a service God will bless.’ Alas, teaching for Professor Malin is much more than tilting at windmills.”

On campus, Malin has been instrumental in making RMC’s chapter of Phi Beta Kappa consistently one of the very best in the nation. He has been a member of the Committee on the Faculty and served as its chair, and he has received the Art Conway Enthusiasm for Teaching Award.

“He is a previous winner of the Thomas Branch award, having been selected by the students in 2005,” said Franz. “Professor Malin is certainly a most worthy recipient again.”

Thomas Myers (business) joined the faculty in 2015. He earned his B.A., M.S. and Ph.D. from Virginia Commonwealth University.

“Students remarked about him with comments such as, ‘Very interested in the subject matter, he is enthusiastic and knowledgeable’ and ‘I never felt like I didn’t understand the course material, and if I struggled, the professor was quick to clarify,'” said Franz. “While Professor Myers serves as a professor in business, he has also been a practitioner. He was, for four years, president of the Urbanna Bridge Marina where he managed marina resort and rental properties. He has been a marketing/training consultant to a number of private and public sector organizations, including the Virginia State Division of Motor Vehicles and the Virginia State Department of Health. And, this experience pays off in the classroom. One student wrote, ‘Extremely knowledgeable, many real-life examples that related to the material—one of the best professors I’ve had at RMC.’ Another commented, ‘He was very active and his personal stories that are incorporated into the lecture were awesome.’ Please join me in congratulating Professor Thomas Myers.”

The United Methodist Church Exemplary Teaching Award, presented by President Lindgren
Recipient: Evie Terrono

The Board of Higher Education and Ministry of The United Methodist Church, jointly with RMC, annually recognizes a professor who exemplifies teaching excellence, civility, concern for students and colleagues, commitment to value-centered education, and service to students, the institution, the community and church.

Evie Terrono (art history) joined the faculty in 1990. She earned her B.A. from University of Crete, her M.A. from Queens College and her Ph.D. from The City University of New York.

“A term we use with great pride here at Randolph-Macon College to describe our wonderful faculty is teacher-scholars, and it is one that is personified with excellence by Professor Terrono,” said Lindgren. “Her dedicated service to the college includes a level of engagement with our students, and the college as a whole, that is outstanding.”

Terrono, who has several recently-published and forthcoming articles and chapters in prominent journals and books, has also presented her research at conferences around the United States and internationally, and received numerous grants and awards, including the Mednick Research Fellowship from the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges in 2012.

“She is known and deeply valued for her passion, inspirational teaching and creating personalized and highly-unique educational opportunities,” said Lindgren. “She teaches immensely diverse courses across our Art History curriculum—14 different courses in all. Impressively, she has done all this while also providing significant service to the college.”

Terrono serves as chair of the Committee on the Faculty,
She has served as a member of the Academic Integrity Council and on the travel abroad committee. Her consistent participation in admissions activities and scholarship interviews have also made a real difference in RMC’s ability to attract top new students.

“Dedicated to our students, passionate about her teaching and scholarship, and deeply respected by her colleagues and our students, Professor Terrono is an invaluable member of our community,” said Lindgren.

The Samuel Nelson Gray Distinguished Professor Award, presented by President Lindgren
Recipient: Aouicha Hilliard

 The Samuel Nelson Gray Distinguished Professor Award was established by Mrs. Virginia Clark Gray Backus in memory of her husband, an alumnus and former trustee of RMC. Although called the Distinguished Professor Award, this prize was established to honor the faculty member or senior administrator selected by the president as the person who has made a distinguished contribution to the college.

Aouicha Hilliard (French) joined the faculty in 1977. She earned her M.A. from the University of Rhode Island and her Ph.D. at the University of Rochester.

“Professor Hilliard has had not one, but two successful careers at the college, and in both she has been an innovative and highly effective international ambassador for the college,” said Lindgren. “For over three decades, she has proven to be a master teacher, highly respected scholar, and mentor extraordinaire, as well as a broadly engaged member of our college community in the area of service.”

During her tenure at RMC Hilliard has taught at least 29 different courses, ranging from introductory French-language courses to specialized courses across the curriculum. She was instrumental in establishing RMC’s international studies program, one of RMC’s most popular majors. Since 1991, Hilliard has also served as director of the Office of International Education.

“A beloved mentor, her great passion, warmth, and compassionate demeanor make her a treasured colleague and professor,” said Lindgren. “She is, indeed, our college’s ambassador.”

The Samuel Nelson Gray Distinguished Administrator Award, presented by President Lindgren
Recipient: Diane Lowder (vice president, advancement)

The Samuel Nelson Gray Distinguished Professor Award was established by Mrs. Virginia Clark Gray Backus in memory of her husband, an alumnus and former trustee of RMC. Although called the Distinguished Professor Award, this prize was established to honor the faculty member or senior administrator selected by the president as the person who has made a distinguished contribution to the college.

Diane Lowder joined the staff in 2007. She earned her B.A. and J.D. from the University of Richmond.

“On Vice President Lowder’s first day on the job, she was faced with a very formidable task—to plan and execute a major capital fundraising campaign that we hoped in those early days would lead to a major physical transformation of our campus,” said Lindgren. “Fast forward nine years later, and it is astounding what she has accomplished.” This past December, Lindgren told the audience, RMC finished its five-year Building Extraordinary capital campaign by surpassing its $100 million campaign goal, with over $125 million raised.

“So many of our wonderful faculty and staff have had a huge part to play in this enormous success, but leading the charge has been Vice President Lowder,” said Lindgren. “Her extremely hard and strategic work, along with that of her dedicated and outstanding team of professionals, has advanced the college in so many considerable ways. It is hard to overstate how much work has gone into this accomplishment. Last week, we broke ground on the seventh new building as part of our capital campaign, the new Science Building. With its projected completion next summer, the college will have spent nearly $80 million on new and renovated buildings in the past five years, and notably, without using a single dollar of tuition money. The result of her hard work has been phenomenal success for the college. We owe Vice President Lowder our thanks for everything she has done for this college.”

The Marilyn J. Gibbs Dedicated Service Award, presented by Jen Thompson, Executive Assistant to the President
Recipient: Sharon Jackson (director, human resources)

The award was created by a generous gift from former Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid Steven Nape and his wife Diane. This award is given annually to a staff member for outstanding service to and support of the mission of the college. The award is named in honor of Marilyn J. Gibbs, whose 18 years of dedicated service to the college as assistant professor of sociology and then registrar exemplified the highest ideals embodied in the college’s mission.

Sharon Jackson joined the staff in 1995. She earned her B.S. from Virginia Commonwealth University.

“There are few staff members who have had more direct contact with each and every faculty and staff member on our campus than today’s recipient, and in every case, Sharon Jackson is known for providing all of us with genuine respect, thoughtfulness and professionalism,” said Thompson. “She is also a great leader to a team of dedicated staff.”

Thompson explained to the audience that an enormous amount of the work that Jackson does is behind the scenes.

“I learned this about her recently,” she said. “This year, the government required employers to generate a new employee form to comply with the very complex Affordable Care Act. A mistake on that form could become a big headache for an employee, so Sharon made it her mission: There will be no mistakes. She called our payroll firm numerous times to make sure she became an expert on the process. Then, she reviewed every single employee form for accuracy, twice. She learned all the ins and outs of this particular form. She called her colleagues at other institutions for their recommendations. Then, after she did all this research she sent each of us the information and answered our questions. All that work to successfully complete one form for college employees, a mere fraction of her overall responsibilities. But this is how she approaches everything she does. With very hard work, true excellence, and dedication. How fortunate for all of us that she is in this role, as we are the beneficiaries of her outstanding work.”