Alumni Chronicles

Alumni News Roundup

1970s

Julian Anderson Williams (’70, ’73) has authored The Confederacy and Old Jacksonville, Ga., a book steeped in Confederate history about several locales, especially Old Jacksonville, Ga. Williams, a resident of Broxton, Ga., brings personalities to life from the early eras, the antebellum period, the Civil War time and later developments. Confederacy is sponsored by the Old Jacksonville, Ga., History Project and two local scholarships will be awarded from the book’s proceeds. The Avid Readers Publishing Group of Lakewood, Ca. has also selected Confederacy as its Book of the Month.

Pratt Hill (’72) and John Lee (’82) are owners of Lee, Hill & Johnston Insurors of Statesboro. Their agency was recently recognized by Auto-Owners Insurance as its top producer of new business in Georgia in 2011. The independent insurance agency was chosen out of more than 320 other agencies in the state, writing more new premium volume for home, auto and commercial insurance than any other agency in Georgia. Lee is a past president of the Southeast Georgia Independent Insurance Association, served a term on the Bulloch County Commission and is a former member of the board of directors of the Chamber of Commerce. Hill is a founding member and former president of Joseph’s Home for Boys. In addition to serving on the Red Cross board of directors, Hill has been a board member of the Chamber of Commerce, Statesboro Rotary Club and Southern Boosters. A member of the Statesboro High School Athletic Hall of Fame, he has been instrumental in the success of the Schenkel Collegiate Golf Tournament during the past decade.

1980s

Bulloch County staff attorney Jeff Akins (’81), was installed as 2012-13 president of the Association of County Commissioners of Georgia county attorneys section at its recent annual meeting in Savannah. In this role, he will assist in coordinating the County Attorneys Section’s activities with the association’s overall programs, serve as the parliamentarian for the association’s Fall Legislative Conference and provide guidance to the organization’s staff. Akins also serves as an ex officio member of the association’s Board of Managers which manages the organization’s overall affairs.

Col. Kenneth D. Enzor (’82), retired as the chief of staff for the 2nd Marine Logistics Group at Camp Lejeune, N.C. Enzor enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1974 and served as a rifleman and squad leader with 1st Ranger Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment before transitioning back into the civilian sector. After graduating from Georgia Southern, he re-entered the military as a Marine Corps officer, serving from California to Japan to Oslo, Norway.

Wanda S. Mitchell, Ed.D. (‘82) has been appointed founding vice president for diversity and equity of Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). Mitchell’s expertise has been recognized through her work with many prestigious organizations, including the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education. She is a sought-after speaker and regularly presents on topics of recruitment and retention, diversity and educational equity and women’s leadership development.

Mary Anne Butler (’84) was named the principal of St. Peter the Apostle Catholic School in Savannah, Ga. Butler began her career in 1969 as an elementary school teacher and has since served in the roles of principal, high school administrator and academic dean in several parochial schools.

1990s

Dr. Marie Craig Hooks (’92, ’93, ’99) was named Woman of the Year at the St. Patrick’s Awards in Dublin, Ga. Hooks is the principal of Susie Dasher STEM Elementary School, and also received Georgia Southern’s College of Education Alumni Award in 2002.

Richard Goering (’95) has been named vice president of sales for the 3C Network, a nationwide support system for consumers, contractors and insurance carriers. 3C Network’s technology and business support services are designed to help on-the-road roofing contractors more accurately inspect, measure and estimate costs on damaged homes and businesses, and more efficiently manage job orders, paperwork processes, profit margins and customer relations. Goering previously served as general manager with BlueLinx Corporation (a leading national building products distributor), where he was responsible for the Northwest and Mountain regions of the U.S.

Damon E. Woodson (‘96) and Jennifer Woodson welcomed their third child, Achilles Tobias Woodson on April 3.

Kevin Smyrl (’96) has been has been named Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations at Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, Ga. During his 15-year career, Smyrl has worked in the fields of special populations, sports, and higher education development. As chief development officer for Oxford College of Emory University, Smyrl led the Office of Development and Alumni Relations through a successful multi-year $40 million comprehensive campaign.

Sal Silvester (’96) has recently published the book Ignite! The 4 Essential Rules for Emerging Leaders. Silvester is the founder and president of 5.12 Solutions, an organizational development company based in Boulder, Co. The company’s mission is to help organizations ignite the potential of their employees, enabling them to accelerate business results and establish themselves as employers of choice.

Othell Raven (’98) of Albany, Ga., received an award from Mississippi College School of Law during its annual Law Day ceremony. Raven was the recipient of the Association of Legal Administrators Award, given to a student in the top half of the class.

2000s

Jessica Nix (’00) has been promoted to vice president of marketing for Peak Campus Management, overseeing national marketing and leasing strategies for the company’s student housing portfolio. Peak Campus Management is one of the largest companies in the country managing more than 19,000 beds of student housing in 16 states nationwide. Nix was recognized as the Place Properties Person of the Year in 2002, and received the Peak Campus Management Pacesetter Award in 2012.

J. Russell Myers (’01) is a financial advisor for Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith in Atlanta, Ga.

East Coweta Middle School teacher Blaire Booth (’07) was recently honored by the International Technology and Engineering Educators Association as one of 36 teachers from across the U.S. to receive its prestigious Teacher Excellence Award. The award is one of the highest honors given to technology education classroom teachers and is presented in recognition of each recipient’s outstanding contribution to the profession and their students. Booth has worked as an engineering and technology teacher at East Coweta Middle since 2007.

Matthew Edwards (‘03) has joined First Citizens as a retail sales manager in Alpharetta, Ga. Edwards is responsible for meeting with retail and small business customers, developing strategies to help them achieve their financial goals and promoting additional bank products and services in the community. A native of Gainesville, Ga., Edwards is a member of Beta Gamma Sigma, an international business honor society.

George Joseph Myers IV (’07) was awarded the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine Degree from Ga. Campus – Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine in a ceremony held at the Gwinnett Center in Duluth, Ga. on May 20. He is continuing his training in general surgery at Mercy St. Vincent Medical Center, Toledo, Ohio.

James Dowling (’08) received the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine Degree from Ga. Campus – Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine in a ceremony held May 20 at the Gwinnett Center in Duluth, Ga. He is continuing his medical training in internal medicine at Largo Medical Center, Largo, Fla.

Eric Dorner (’10) recently completed a 3,000-mile coast-to-coast bike ride from San Diego, Ca. to Savannah, Ga., to raise money for Camp Little Shot, a free residential summer camp launched 30 years ago for diabetic kids in Georgia. Dorner, a park service ranger at Olympic National Park in Washington, is a former camper at Camp Little Shot, and now serves as a youth counselor.

Elizabeth Bennett (’11), a 10th grade English teacher and girls basketball coach at Richmond Hill High School in Richmond Hill, Ga., was named the school’s Teacher of the Year and Coach of the Year.

Tyler Soenksen (’11) has joined O’Neal, Inc., a Greenville, S.C.-based design and construction firm as an engineer in the Atlanta, Ga. office. The company has completed capital projects in the automotive, pharmaceutical/biotech, process chemical, manufacturing, energy and pulp and paper markets worldwide. Soenksen earned a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering technology.

J. Myron Faircloth (’11) received a commendation from Georgia Governor Nathan Deal for his career in health care. Faircloth received his Doctor of Nursing Practice degree as a member of the program’s first cohort, was inducted as a member of the Golden Key Honor Society in 2010 and received the Valdosta State University Nursing Facility in Clinical Excellence Award in 2010. Faircloth also networked with state legislators to successfully change health care policy applying to nurse practitioners in Georgia. “I am humbled to receive this and I am grateful to the faculty at Georgia Southern who educated me,” said Faircloth.

Rashidat Amanda Bakar (’11) has been selected to participate in the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program. The JET Program invites young college graduates to teach English in Japanese schools or to engage in international exchange activities at local government offices. Since JET’s inception in 1987, more than 54,000 participants from 50 countries have taken part in the program. Bakar will spend one year working as an assistant language teacher in Hokkaido, Japan.

In Memoriam

John Purvis (’05)

Gerald Nobles (’57)

Shirley Anne Maxwell Gale (’59)

Sandra Martin (’80)

Leonard Daggett, (‘05)