Student Success
It’s about you.
It’s about you doing something you care about.
It’s about you being someone you’d like to hang out with.
Emory & Henry won’t give you answers–Emory & Henry will push you to find your own answers.
You will read. You will work in the community. You will meet interesting people. You will confront difficult issues. You will be enlightened, intrigued, challenged, encouraged, guided, and set free to explore. You will share and talk and explain your point of view.
At Emory & Henry you will learn to be a contributing member of your community. You will find your place in a global society.
You’ll discover that learning doesn’t begin or end with school: it is a lifelong pursuit. And those who join that pursuit are the ones who live the best lives.
Are you ready to live your best life?
Did you know you can find E&H alumni in every corner of the world making every imaginable contribution to society?
Government? Get to know Toni Atkins (E&H ’84) in the California Assembly or Fred Parker (E&H ’73) who is Washington County (Va.) Treasurer. Or Israel O’Quinn (E&H ’01) who serves in the Virginia legislature.
Education? Check out Major Warner (E&H ’91) or Dr. Monica Jacobe (E&H ’95) who teaches at The College of New Jersey. Or Becky Edmondson Pretzel (E&H ’83) who is at the University of North Carolina.
Art? Read about sculptor Vaughn Garland (E&H ’00) and Lillian Minnix (E&H ’15).
Counseling? Get to know Randall Meadows (E&H ’88), a psychotherapist in Los Angeles.
Medicine? Dr. Brian Wolfe (E&H ’97) is practicing in Boulder, CO. Cathy Cuskey Large (E&H ’93) is a medical physicist in Michigan.
Aviation? Tess Teasley (E&H ’02) is flying jets and Zach Triplett (E&H ’10) is making sure the passengers are happy. And check out our NASA connection.
Politics? Read about Micah Morris (E&H ’09) who has been involved in big name campaigns. Or about Art Scott (E&H ’07) who hangs out a lot with Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine.
Thinking outside the box?
How about the world where food and culture intersect with art? Meet Emily Wallace (E&H ’04).
How about planning events for country music superstars? Get to know Erick Long (E&H ’91).
Meet Our Alumni
- <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2707-meg-retinger"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,320,320/6405_meg_retinger.rev.1558721713.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,320,320/6405_meg_retinger.rev.1558721713.jpg 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><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." width="345" height="225" data-max-w="320" data-max-h="320" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2707-meg-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-retinger" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
- <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2878-thomas-nelson"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/100,0,500,400/6696_Thomas_Nelson.rev.1565219739.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/100,0,500,400/6696_Thomas_Nelson.rev.1565219739.jpg 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/100,0,500,400/6696_Thomas_Nelson.rev.1565219739.jpg" alt="Thomas Nelson being inducted into the E&H Sports Hall of Fame." width="345" height="225" data-max-w="400" data-max-h="400" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2878-thomas-nelson"><p> Thomas Nelson is a coach and teacher at Murphy High School in North Carolina.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Thomas Nelson, E&H Class of 1998, is a teacher and football coach at Murphy High School in Murphy, North Carolina. He is also a personal fitness trainer at Murphy Health and Fitness.</p><p> Thomas was inducted into the E&H Sports Hall of Fame in 2011 for his versatile performance as a defensive back, defensive lineman, fullback, and offensive lineman. He was a four-year letter winner and accumulated 16 career interceptions, and has held the ODAC record for interceptions in a season (9) and interceptions in a game (4). He was a two-time All-ODAC First Team, All-State College Division, and All-South Region honoree. Additionally, Nelson was named Second Team Hewlett Packard All-America, as well as to the Burger King, Kodak, and Dan Hansen’s Football Gazette All-America First Teams.</p><p> In addition to his athletic pursuits, Nelson was a member of Habitat for Humanity and Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He also participated in the NCAA Youth Education through Sports (YES) program while he was in college.</p><p> After graduating, Nelson remained at Emory & Henry for eight years, serving as assistant football coach, head softball coach, intramural director, area coordinator, and strength & conditioning coordinator, before leaving to pursue a career in secondary education and coaching. In the 2010-11 academic year, he was named Murphy High School Teacher of the Year. </p></div><a href="/live/profiles/2878-thomas-nelson" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
- <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/718-"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,975,975/437_unnamed.rev.1502370732.webp 2x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,975,975/437_unnamed.rev.1502370732.jpg 2x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,975,975/437_unnamed.rev.1502370732.jpg" alt="" width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,975,975/437_unnamed.rev.1502370732.jpg 2x" data-max-w="975" data-max-h="975" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/718-"><p> Fallon Walker Grindstead, ’13 leads in Chilhowie </p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Fallon Walker Grinstead is a 2013 graduate of Emory & Henry from Chilhowie, Virginia. Fallon majored in our teacher preparation program in Health & Physical Education. She is entering her 5<sup>th</sup>year of teaching and her 9<sup>th</sup> year of coaching volleyball at Chilhowie Middle School. In 2014-2015, she helped create the Health and Physical Education curriculum for Smyth County Schools and last year she was honored as Teacher of the Year for her school. In addition, the past two years, the Chilhowie JV Volleyball team has won the Mountain West Conference Championship. Fallon says her overall goal is to “help each student find something active they enjoy.”</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/718-" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
- <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/704-"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/2/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,690,390/354_25f3d785419f0eb611f94ba17fd1703d_f1833.rev.1500386495.webp 2x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/2/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,690,390/354_25f3d785419f0eb611f94ba17fd1703d_f1833.rev.1500386495.jpg 2x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/2/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,690,390/354_25f3d785419f0eb611f94ba17fd1703d_f1833.rev.1500386495.jpg" alt="" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="690" data-max-h="390" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/704-"><p> Rachel Dunne Finds Unlikely Path in Alaska </p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> When Rachel Dunne (’04) was a student at E&H, she pretty much set the woods on fire. Lately, she’s been busy putting out fires. This is truly a young woman who knows how to fire up a Liberal Arts degree. </p><p> This is all a corny way of saying that Rachel has been fighting wildland fires in Alaska.</p><p> A double major in Public Policy & Community Service and Psychology, Rachel was a top notch student with a heart intent on making a difference. And it comes as no surprise that she is finding such a creative means of making her way in the world. She wanted to pursue work in the area of disaster relief response after graduate school, but needed job experience. She spent 10 months in the AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps doing a lot of work in the Gulf region of the U.S. working on Katrina recovery efforts. She also got sent to a very small town in Arizona where her team was assigned to assistance with brush clearing to prevent wildfires. Her superiors suggested she come back after AmeriCorps for a job.</p><p> While she only intended to do the job for a year, she stayed for two and a half years honing her skills not only in firefighting and prevention but also in coordinating fire response, GIS, HAZMAT, EMT, and learned how to drive a water tender (please Google this to see how impressive this feat is).</p><p> After Arizona she found an opportunity to continue this good work and to see some of the country’s most beautiful land. She considered Big Sky country, but ended up in Alaska because of their unique challenges in fire logistics. She served as a fire logistics dispatcher for the Alaska Fire Service, which is part of the Bureau of Land Management. In this role, she helped get the people, supplies, and aircraft out to remote areas of Alaska for wildland fires.</p><p> As is wont to happen, while in Alaska, Rachel ran smack into another Emory & Henry person! Daniel Griggs (’07) was there doing similar work and putting his geography background to good use. Giving Dr. John Morgan all the credit for getting him the right start, Daniel says he finds working for the fire service very “real” in the sense that there is “immediate need for accurate geospatial information.” He ended up in Alaska because he had always wanted to visit the state, so when he got a job offer in Anchorage he jumped at the chance.</p><p> Rachel says folks in her position work seasonally—putting in 6 months of work and then filling the other half of the year with school, other work, travel, or personal projects and hobbies. While the job sounds pretty cushy, it turns out those six months are pretty demanding. On a fire assignment, dispatchers and firefighters alike usually work 14 straight days of up to 16 hour shifts. In many ways, it’s more of a lifestyle than a job.</p><p> So what happens during those long days? This season, Daniel got sent out to the field as a GIS specialist, providing custom real-time maps of fires for the incident decision-makers. Rachel moved to another dispatch center as an aircraft dispatcher, where she finds the helicopters and planes that support both fires and scientists in interior Alaska and the lower 48. “It’s not every day you get to say, ‘Yeah, I ordered a jumbo jet at work today’,” says Rachel. “The best part of the job is the constant challenge—you never know who is going to call or what they are going to need, and it’s great to be able to say, ‘Sure, I can make that happen,’ even when it means getting people or supplies into parts of Alaska your average tourist will never even think about visiting.”</p><p> With these new job demands, Rachel is less “fire fighter” and more “travel agent” – booking flights into all corners of the state. Whether they are VIPs touring Alaska before making recommendations on energy or land management policy, scientists researching animal habitats and archeological sites, or firefighters protecting Alaska’s assets, everybody knows they’ll have to fly to get to their Alaskan destination. “I may miss the smell of smoke and getting to do things with my own hands, but what I can do with a phone and a radio allows those professionals to make the difference, and I’m proud to be part of their support network.”</p><p> While Daniel will stay on with Alaska Fire Service in Fairbanks for the near future, Rachel plans to move on after this season ends. “What’s next? I don’t know, but if you’d told me I was going to be a firefighter or live in Alaska while I was at Emory, I’d have laughed. I just keep believing in the hope that people can do amazing things when we are willing to take on a challenge, even if it means leaving our comfort zones behind.”</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/704-" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
- <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2053-mike-fintel"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,720,720/4097_image.rev.1525119131.webp 2x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/png" 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-origin="responsive"/><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." 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" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></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-"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/2/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/53,72,821,840/1910_jarrett.rev.1515554170.webp 2x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" 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-origin="responsive"/><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" 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" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></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></div><a href="/live/profiles/714-" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
- <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2568-jerry-york"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1536,1536/6061_jerry_york.rev.1552495017.webp 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1536,1536/6061_jerry_york.rev.1552495017.webp 3x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1536,1536/6061_jerry_york.rev.1552495017.jpg 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1536,1536/6061_jerry_york.rev.1552495017.jpg 3x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1536,1536/6061_jerry_york.rev.1552495017.jpg" alt="Jerry York, Class of 1984, with his fiance while visiting Bavaria." width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1536,1536/6061_jerry_york.rev.1552495017.jpg 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,1536,1536/6061_jerry_york.rev.1552495017.jpg 3x" data-max-w="1536" data-max-h="1536" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2568-jerry-york"><p> Jerry York is working around the world while serving American military personnel </p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Jerry York is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER®, and works through the Zeider’s company as a personal financial counselor helping our active duty military with financial literacy, debt reduction, budgeting, investing, estate planning, retirement, etc. Zeider’s is a veteran-owned government contractor that provides human services solutions to military and veteran communities. He has worked in various locations around the world, and currently lives in Grafenwoehr, Germany.</p><p> A Business and Economics major at Emory & Henry, he got his start with Alex Brown & Sons. Eventually, he ran his own financial services firm, JD York, in Richmond, Virginia. He says Emory & Henry gave him just the start he needed to get his career underway. “At Emory & Henry, professors took the time to know and listen to my desires in education and career. Dave Collins let me do an independent study in financial statement analysis which helped me pursue a career in the financial services industry.”</p><p> Jerry loves his work, and is proud of who he gets to work with. “It is a privilege to be able to help those who protect our right to pursue happiness participate in making their own American dream a reality.”</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/2568-jerry-york" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
- <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2551-joshua-lee"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/56,156,854,954/6044_Joshua_Lee_Pic_2019.rev.1551974189.webp 2x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/56,156,854,954/6044_Joshua_Lee_Pic_2019.rev.1551974189.jpg 2x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/56,156,854,954/6044_Joshua_Lee_Pic_2019.rev.1551974189.jpg" alt="Joshua Lee, E&H 2013." width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/56,156,854,954/6044_Joshua_Lee_Pic_2019.rev.1551974189.jpg 2x" data-max-w="798" data-max-h="798" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2551-joshua-lee"><p> Josh Lee is an attorney in Charlotte, North Carolina</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Joshua graduated from Emory & Henry in 2013, and finished his Juris Doctor Degree at Charlotte School of Law in 2016. He also studied abroad at the University College at Cork in 2011. Joshua says that E&H helping him study abroad was the best experience he had in college and the biggest educational experience he had throughout his college career. “The professors at E&H, such as Dr. Gaia, were phenomenal in helping me accomplish my dream of living in Ireland and traveling Europe.”</p><p> He is currently an Associate Attorney at Emblem Legal, PLLC where he practices family law and juvenile defense. </p><p> He has been working toward this goal since his high school years when he was an intern in the Ward Law Firm in Grundy, Virginia, researching statutes and case law regarding criminal matters. He got his feet wet compiling and organizing legal documentation and evidence for use at trial, and he shadowed an attorney working on misdemeanors and homicide matters.</p><p> Later he would do additional intern and extern work at Ingalls Law in Charlotte and the Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s Office. </p><p> In addition to his work for Emblem Legal, he is also a community manager for Startup Grind, an independent start-up community connecting thousands of entrepreneurs. Joshua is also active with the Mecklenburg County Bar and on their juvenile defense list where he regularly defends juveniles accused of committing various crimes. </p><p> Joshua says his days at Emory & Henry were important because he fully believes E&H prepared him for the rigorous experience that was law school. He says that the professors at E&H always went above and beyond to answer any questions he had regarding class or life in general. They helped him make the decision to eventually become the attorney that he is today.</p><p> You can find Joshua at: https://www.emblemlegal.com/joshua-lee</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/2551-joshua-lee" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
- <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2306-cathy-bottrell"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,8,214,222/4535_41368297_705985249770551_4194188508329410560_n.rev.1536365207.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,8,214,222/4535_41368297_705985249770551_4194188508329410560_n.rev.1536365207.jpg 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,8,214,222/4535_41368297_705985249770551_4194188508329410560_n.rev.1536365207.jpg" alt="Cathy Bottrell, E&H '82" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="214" data-max-h="214" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2306-cathy-bottrell"><p> Cathy Bottrell doesn’t wear a cape: but her work with families facing cancer is super.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Look at Cathy Bottrell’s Facebook photos and you’ll see a woman who takes her job <strong><em>very</em></strong> seriously; there are pictures of her posing with fairy princesses, welcoming Storm Troopers, wearing pajamas to the office, dressed like a super hero, and doing a dance routine with a rolling office chair.</p><p> Cathy doesn’t work at a theme park: she works for the Inova Life with Cancer Center.</p><p> Inova offers a raft of free programming for individuals and families who are facing cancer, and Cathy is involved at every level to do her part to add simplicity to bureaucracy and lend guidance in what can be a stressful world of treatments. She is a licensed clinical social worker who spent 8 years working with HIV patients, and now finds herself helping families maneuver complicated systems of health care while also finding time for the joys of life. Focusing on cancer treatment while also trying to maintain positive outlook can be tricky; Cathy’s work intervenes to help maintain a healthy balance.</p><p> She’s an oncology clinical therapist at Inova Life with Cancer - Inova Schar Cancer Institute – a large facility with 40 employees. They have a family center that is a like a large home where cancer patients can learn how to deal with cancer from day to day while also maintaining quality of life for their families.</p><p><a href="https://www.ehc.edu/live/image/gid/68/height/530/src_region/0,226,504,894/4532_Cathy_Botrell.jpg" class="lw_preview_image"><picture class="lw_image lw_image4532 lw_align_left lw_column_width_half"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/400/height/530/crop/1/src_region/0,226,504,894/4532_Cathy_Botrell.rev.1536350726.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/400/height/530/crop/1/src_region/0,226,504,894/4532_Cathy_Botrell.rev.1536350726.jpg 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><img width="400" height="530" alt="Cathy Botrell will go to extremes to cheer up her friends at work: even if it means dressing like Batman." data-caption="Cathy Botrell will go to extremes to cheer up her friends at work: even if it means dressing like Batman." src="/live/image/gid/68/width/400/height/530/crop/1/src_region/0,226,504,894/4532_Cathy_Botrell.rev.1536350726.jpg" title="Cathy Botrell" data-max-w="504" data-max-h="668" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a>Much of Cathy’s work is with children – hence all the princesses and storm troopers – and that can be difficult; but Cathy doesn’t let the sadness keep her away from the people she loves to serve. “The families I work with show me the strength of love and compassion and how strong and brave people can be. I’m so honored to be a part of their journey during their difficult times.”</p><p> So if you see Cathy headed to work wearing a funny mask or a cape, don’t be surprised. Just know that she’s on her way to the office – where she performs acts of heroic goodness, all in a day’s work.</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/2306-cathy-bottrell" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
- <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/837-randall-meadows"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,360,359/726_IMG_3080_4.rev.1506973300.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,360,359/726_IMG_3080_4.rev.1506973300.jpg 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,360,359/726_IMG_3080_4.rev.1506973300.jpg" alt="Randy Meadows E&H '88" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="360" data-max-h="359" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/837-randall-meadows"><p> As a psychotherapist in Los Angeles, Randall talks to a lot of people. But he finds that in many ways, people are very much the same.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Randall “Randy” Meadows LCSW (E&H ’88) talks to a lot of people during a day’s work. He’s a psychotherapist in Los Angeles, and part of his week is spent doing outpatient psychiatry Kaiser Permanente Medical Group; his role there is as a crisis therapist and he deals with things like work stress, panic attacks, and suicidal and homicidal impulses.</p><p> He also has a private practice where he does weekly therapy with individuals seeking personal internal growth. He says therapy is a “strange thing. It is a very intense relationship with a lot of boundaries.” But despite the angst he deals with daily, he doesn’t get frustrated because he has seen so many people grow and succeed past current problems. “I routinely see people overcome their challenges.”</p><p> In fact, he sees his role as a privilege. “I’m fortunate: I get to see behind the masks of janitors, lawyers, and movie stars. In one conversation, a janitor may be worried about being judged by the head janitor while a movie star is worried about being judged by Jack Nicholson. We are all pretty much the same on the inside.”</p><p> Randy majored in economics and political science at Emory & Henry. And even though he wasn’t loving the program he had nearly completed his MBA at the University of Maryland when his father died. This big life event made him realize life was short and gave him need for some time to reflect; he entered therapy. He was so impressed by the process that he decided to go into the profession.</p><p> Randy didn’t get a background in psychology at Emory & Henry, but he credits the College (particularly the political science department) for preparing him for a meaningful adult life. He loves living in the melting pot of Los Angeles, and says his E&H classes started him on the process of embracing the joys of living in a “liberal and inclusive” community. A self-declared Republican when he came to Emory & Henry, Randy recalls a day in class when Dr. Steve Fisher listened closely to what Randy was expressing and said, “You know you’re not a Republican, right?” He gave Randy a stack of books to read that paved the way for the rest of his life. He says his professors never tried to sway his thinking, but they challenged him to “make educated decisions.” </p><p> It’s not all work for Randy, and he says he plays as hard as he works. He says Los Angeles has an amazing array of cultural offerings including “theatre, concerts, museums” and more. And he takes full advantage of the California climate: “I can have breakfast at the beach, drive up the mountain to snowboard in the afternoon, and drive down the mountain for evening cocktails by the pool in the desert!” All in a day’s work.</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/837-randall-meadows" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
- <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2494-cortney-halsey"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/43,37,595,589/5791_IMG_1051_1.rev.1546634866.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/43,37,595,589/5791_IMG_1051_1.rev.1546634866.JPG 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/43,37,595,589/5791_IMG_1051_1.rev.1546634866.JPG" alt="Cortney Halsey ('15) and Jeremiah Jessee ('15) in full academic regalia." width="345" height="225" data-max-w="552" data-max-h="552" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2494-cortney-halsey"><p> Dr. Cortney Halsey is an occupational therapist who is serving her alma mater as a devoted career mentor.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Cortney Halsey finished at E&H with a B.S. in Biology in 2014. In 2017 she completed a doctorate of Occupational Therapy in the charter class of Murphy Deming College of Health Sciences (MDCHS) at Mary Baldwin University.</p><p> She is currently working full time as an occupational therapist embedded into the Pre-employment Readiness and Education Program (PREP) at Wilson Workforce and Rehabilitation Center (WWRC). The position is the first of its kind. Cortney feels blessed to be in this recently created position. “ In collaboration with the OT department, we submitted a position proposal to the Department of Aging and Rehabilitation Services (DRS). The position was approved soon after I completed my doctoral experience at the center.”</p><p> Her responsibilities in the position include serving young adults with disabilities as they pursue independent living and vocational opportunities. Her special interests include sensory integration, assistive technology, and community integration. Cortney also represents WWRC in the DRS sponsored Autism Project and is a core member of the Autism Advocacy Partnership at the center. She supports academic institutions, as a project mentor for MDCHS’s Community Practicum course and precepts Level I OT Students from MDCHS and James Madison University.</p><p> She also works per diem at UVA-Encompass Health, an inpatient rehabilitation hospital in Charlottesville, as an occupational therapist for adults with acute neurological and orthopedic impairments.</p><p> Cortney doesn’t let being busy get in the way of supporting her alma mater. She was the Lyceum Keynote Speaker at E&H’s cognitive community team’s annual Autism event last year. In the summer of 2018, she collaborated with a current E&H student on a summer internship project at WWRC. Cortney says she loved getting to know Sarah Ingram, and the experience was also important for her as a new professional. “It is evident that servant leadership remains an Emory & Henry core value. Sarah, like most E&H students I can imagine, provide tangible and contextual resources through the understanding of place, thus she was able to provide current and future clients with tangible resources and education. Accessibility to resources, experiences, and opportunities will support potential and resiliency for all abilities. Sarah’s presence at our center and E&H’s commitment to service will provide this access to so many.”</p><p> Cortney used her E&H undergrad years to the fullest extent, not only excelling as an accomplished academic student, but also as a well-rounded athlete (she played softball) and campus leader (student director of orientation, member Delta Omicron Pi, Hope Award winner 2014, Homecoming Queen 2012). She says her E&H experience prepared her for the world of work she finds herself in now by “instilling a love for innovation, desire for life-long learning and joy in trials or barriers. Emory & Henry challenged me to be a spark and not someone’s flame. The greatest reward may be the moments someone chose to change their life with one of your tools and their unique self, rather than your gifts alone attributing to that change. I am humbled by this principle every moment as an Occupational Therapist,” says Cortney.</p><p> In 2018, Cortney married college sweetheart Dr. Jeremiah Jessee (E&H re’15, ETSU Pharmacy School ’18). Jeremiah is a pharmacy resident at Sentara Rockingham Memorial Hospital in Harrisonburg, VA and will be taking a second year Oncology residency later this year.</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/2494-cortney-halsey" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
- <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/842-ken-noe"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/203,60,416,273/744_noe.rev.1507061099.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/203,60,416,273/744_noe.rev.1507061099.jpg 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/203,60,416,273/744_noe.rev.1507061099.jpg" alt="Dr. Ken Noe (right) with another E&H alum, Peter Thomas ('08)" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="213" data-max-h="213" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/842-ken-noe"><p> Weather can influence more than your picnic: it also affects entire military campaigns.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> When Dr. Ken Noe (’79) was growing up in Elliston he remembers that weather played a huge role in the work done on his grandfather’s farm. “If rain was coming, we dropped everything else to put up hay.” He thinks this experience planted a seed in the back of his mind about the impactful influence of weather. Later, his interest in weather grew when he took a geography course at Emory & Henry with Dr. Ed Bingham.</p><p> But even he could never have predicted that he would now be writing a two-volume book on weather’s impact on the American Civil War.</p><p> Ken is the Draughon Professor of Southern History at Auburn University. He is the author or editor of seven books, and he has published scads of articles, essays and chapters about the Civil War. He is a decorated history professor serving at West Georgia College before heading to Auburn. He was a Pulitzer Prize entrant and won the 2003 Kentucky Governor’s award, the 2002 Peter Seaborg Book Award for Civil War Non-fiction, and the 1997 Tennessee History Book Award. He has won several teaching awards, has served as president of the Alabama Historical Association, and is serving on the Advisory Board of the Society of Civil War Historians. He has even been a consultant for the NBC series <em>Who Do You Think You Are? </em></p><p> But in all his prolific writing and research and publishing even he is surprised that his biggest and most industrious work to-date will be about weather. “Meteorologists are still trying to work out why the weather during the Civil War was so unusual. They dealt with incredibly snowy and rainy winters and droughts in the summer that affected Southern food supplies. There were dust storms, flooded rivers, and only two hurricanes. It had a profound effect on many campaigns.”</p><p> His research on weather has already taken several years, and he still has a few years left before he publishes. And even he was amazed to realize just how much information he had accumulated. “Very little has been written about Civil War environmental history. It is only now becoming part of the conversation about Civil War history.” </p><p> Ken says that even in a field of study like Civil War history where so many things have been written, there is still new area for research and a lot of topics that haven’t been covered. He has grad students asking new questions about the role of religion, the prison industries during the war, the role of friendship, and one young man, who is an E&H grad, is looking into camp life.</p><p> Even though we have just passed the 150<sup>th</sup> anniversary of the American Civil War, Ken points out that this conflict still has implications for current events; and he marvels that most conversations over the past 18 months have quickly moved from history to current topics like the Confederate flag, U.S. prisons, and race relations. He says his field has gotten so tangled with politics that there is a declining interest in Civil War history among the public. “But this event still has much to teach us. It was a great turning point in American History and opened up questions that are still being answered about equality of humankind, the status of women, states’ rights. I don’t know how we can answer all these questions unless we go back to the beginning.” He consistently stresses to his students the importance of going back to primary source information rather than depending on how the stories have been told and passed down.</p><p><a href="/live/image/gid/68/height/500/744_noe.jpg" class="lw_preview_image"><picture class="lw_image lw_image744 lw_align_left"> <source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/450/height/490/744_noe.rev.1507061099.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/> <source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/450/height/490/744_noe.rev.1507061099.jpg 1x" data-origin="responsive"/> <img width="450" height="490" alt="Dr. Ken Noe (right) with another E&H alum," data-caption="Photo: Dr. Ken Noe poses with one of his Auburn grad students, Peter Thomas (E&H, ’08). In addition to the flag of his home state in the background, if you look closely, you can just make out the end of his lacrosse stick from college days." src="/live/image/gid/68/width/450/height/490/744_noe.rev.1507061099.jpg" data-max-w="450" data-max-h="490" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/> </picture> <span class="lw_image_caption lw_align_left" style="width: 450px">Photo: Dr. Ken Noe poses with one of his Auburn grad students, Peter Thomas (E&H, ’08). In addition to the flag of his home state in the background, if you look closely, you can just make out the end of his lacrosse stick from college days.</span></a>Ken actually majored in education at Emory & Henry and still remembers panicking when he realized he didn’t want to be a junior high school teacher. “I had a lot of electives leftover and started taking history classes late in my college experience. I realized what I wanted to be was a historian and teach at a higher level.” A conversation with Patsi Trollinger (’72) reassured him that most alumni do not stick to work within their major. And a conversation with Dr. Gene Rasor in the history department led to a phone call which ended with Dr. Rasor telling Ken he had an interview with the history department at Virginia Tech.</p><p> The rest, as they say, is history.</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/842-ken-noe" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
- <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/1744-melvin-dillon"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/346,345,1076,1074/3151_dillon.rev.1518206768.webp 2x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/346,345,1076,1074/3151_dillon.rev.1518206768.jpg 2x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/346,345,1076,1074/3151_dillon.rev.1518206768.jpg" alt="Melvin Dillon" width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/346,345,1076,1074/3151_dillon.rev.1518206768.jpg 2x" data-max-w="730" data-max-h="729" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/1744-melvin-dillon"><p> Melvin Dillon is part of the Vinyl Revival</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Melvin Dillon (E&H ’06) is a musician himself, and used to play at venues in the Emory area while a student to make a little extra money. But as he got to know the industry, there were things that bothered him about the business of music. Says Melvin, “Soul Step Records is known because of our unwillingness to do business that serves our bottom line. We do everything in service to our artists. I think that’s why we’ve grown in such a short time.”</p><p> According to the Soul Step Records website, Melvin’s goal was simple; he wanted to give artists the ability to make vinyl records (so that music can be “listened to the way music should be…”). The thing that sets him apart from other music companies is that Soul Step pays all the upfront costs, and then profits are split evenly between the company and the band. “Our number one goal with each release is to have enough to fund another record. I have yet to take a dime from sales; every profit for Soul Step goes back into building up for another release. …Our relationship with our artists is paramount to us.”</p><p> And his good intentions are resulting in good business.</p><p> One of his current artist/clients is starring in <em>Hedwig and the Angry Inch on Broadway</em>, and most of the music he is recording is currently featured in TV and film. Another client is Holy Ghost Tent Revival, and he says getting to know them years ago, and seeing the struggles they had with traditional means of recording, served as much of the inspiration for his company.</p><p> Because he loves the artist aspect of the music business it allows him some great opportunities, including the fact that with each release they do 100 vinyl records in a special color – while the rest of the run is in the traditional black vinyl. One album garnered particularly interesting success with the cover art. “When I was releasing my third album, Matt Duncan’s <em>Soft Times</em> I saw the artwork that was done by Robert Beatty. It was this psych-tarot card freaky artwork. Truly beautiful …After seeing the tarot card artwork - I went to the pressing plant I was using and said I wanted to put a tarot card INSIDE the record. After much trial and error, and even going as far as accidentally setting a pressing machine on fire, we were able to conjure a way to make this happen. The results were stunning and we had mentions from tons of music and vinyl publications. These 100 records we made for that project will pop up on eBay – typically going over a hundred dollars. Crazy.”</p><p> </p><p> Melvin says his time at E&H helped prepare him for a business model that breaks the mold. “The big keyword is service. It’s hard to be a student of Emory and not have service of others instilled into you. The heart of this company is service. I think that Emory helps you understand the value in giving back. Many of my fellow alumni who are in position to do so find some way to give back. It’s something that I’m proud of. I’ve been very fortunate to find a job with a phenomenal company that puts me in the position to do this. I feel that it’s my duty to find a way to give back. I’m happy that Soul Step fills that need.”</p><p> </p><p> Melvin spends only part of his week with Soul Step, and is also a manager for Apple Computer.</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/1744-melvin-dillon" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
- <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2485-catherine-wiedman"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,115,1876,1989/5777_Catherine_Wiedman_Headshot.rev.1545251220.webp 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,115,1876,1989/5777_Catherine_Wiedman_Headshot.rev.1545251220.webp 3x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,115,1876,1989/5777_Catherine_Wiedman_Headshot.rev.1545251220.jpg 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,115,1876,1989/5777_Catherine_Wiedman_Headshot.rev.1545251220.jpg 3x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,115,1876,1989/5777_Catherine_Wiedman_Headshot.rev.1545251220.jpg" alt="Catherine Wiedman, E&H Class of 2017" width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,115,1876,1989/5777_Catherine_Wiedman_Headshot.rev.1545251220.jpg 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,115,1876,1989/5777_Catherine_Wiedman_Headshot.rev.1545251220.jpg 3x" data-max-w="1876" data-max-h="1874" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2485-catherine-wiedman"><p> Catherine Wiedman is the Communications Coordinator for the Fairfax Bar Association.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Catherine Wiedman graduated from Emory & Henry in 2017 with degrees in Mass Communications and Philosophy.</p><p> She has wasted no time putting her education to work, and in August of 2018 she became the Communications Coordinator for the Fairfax Bar Association (FBA). The FBA is a professional organization with more than 2,000 practicing attorneys who serve in the Commonwealth of Virginia.<br/><br/> Catherine’s job is to oversee all digital and print media relating to the FBA, draft weekly newsletters to membership, and design flyers, programs, informational sheets, and other marketing materials for organization events. She is also in charge of social media posts and the organization’s website. And she designs and oversees content for a quarterly magazine.</p><p> Catherine’s college experiences included serving as Editor-in-Chief of the Whitetopper and interning as a reporter for the <em>Smyth County News & Messenger</em>. But she says those things really helped prepare her for what she’s doing in the professional world. “There’s no way to really prepare for the world after graduation, but my experiences at E&H, specifically in the Mass Communications department, definitely provided me with the knowledge and confidence I needed to land this position and succeed in it. My job allows me to use many of the skills I gained in college and express my creativity in order to help people. I think that really exemplifies what we were taught in the MCOM department (but don’t tell Dr. Finney I said that!).”</p><p> (Dr. Mark Finney, by the way, is a mass communications professor at Emory & Henry.)</p><p> She is also busy in her community serving as a volunteer kitten snuggler at the Fairfax County Humane Society.</p><p> Catherine says the best thing about her job is the chance to make a lasting impact on her community.</p><p> “The work I do for the FBA directly affects our efforts in the community. I communicate with our members to gain donations for our Pro Bono program and recruit volunteers for court tours. The FBA offers many wonderful benefits to Fairfax County, and every day I get to communicate those programs in effective and creative ways. Attorneys also send us gift baskets sometimes; that’s pretty great.”</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/2485-catherine-wiedman" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
- <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2381-william-allen"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/png" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,21,240,261/4965_William_Allen.rev.1540587584.png 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,21,240,261/4965_William_Allen.rev.1540587584.png" alt="William Allen, E&H Class of 1980." width="345" height="225" data-max-w="240" data-max-h="240" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2381-william-allen"><p> William Allen turned an education in science into a career in law.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> William Allen (E&H ’80) is a partner with the Thompson Hine law firm in Cincinnati. His work is in the firm’s Intellectual Property practice, and he counsels clients on an array of patent and trademark issues, helping them manage, protect, and capitalize on their IP assets. He prepares and prosecutes domestic and international patent and trademark applications, conducts due diligence, prepares legal opinions, and represents clients’ interests in post-grant review proceedings.<br/><br/> Prior to practicing law, William spent over a decade as a laboratory physicist at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. He also served as an adjunct professor in the Materials Science and Engineering Department at the University of Tennessee.<br/><br/> William holds a Ph.D. in physics and a B.S. in physics and mathematics. He has wide-ranging experience in electrical, mechanical, and materials technologies including semiconductor device fabrication and integrated circuits, travel industry software, cosmetic surgery instruments and procedures, medical devices, metalworking tools and processes, automated pharmacy systems, pharmaceutical packaging, wind turbines, e-commerce and business methods, tires and tire-making equipment, integrated circuit processing tools, X-ray and optical inspection equipment, and flat panel displays and signage. While a physics professional, he co-authored several articles published in scientific journals.<br/><br/> William received his J.D. degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law and his Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.<br/> He was selected in 2018 and 2019 for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America, and serves on the Board of Directors for the Northern Kentucky University Research Foundation. William is married to Kathryn Allen, owner of the luxury handbag and accessory business Kathryn Allen Couture.<br/><br/> William says his E&H years prepared him for the work he’s doing now by “educating me in physics, chemistry, and mathematics to furnish a sound and comprehensive foundation for professional careers in both science and law.”</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/2381-william-allen" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>