Alumni Awards

Meet Our Alumni

• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/677-doug-dalton"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/2/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,640,640/272_11140356_10154000682162786_5533273719072550783_n.rev.1497276685.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/2/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,640,640/272_11140356_10154000682162786_5533273719072550783_n.rev.1497276685.jpg 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/2/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,640,640/272_11140356_10154000682162786_5533273719072550783_n.rev.1497276685.jpg" alt="" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="640" data-max-h="640" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/677-doug-dalton"><p> Doug Dalton (’94) is More Than Meets The Eye</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Ask anyone who follows Doug Dalton on social media and they’ll tell you that this guy knows how to have a good time. The Fairfax, Va., native is now a dyed-in-the-wool Californian, and photos of him wearing a cheetah suit and going to Burning Man, cocktail parties, and rock concerts might lead you to think he is just a playboy.</p><p> Think again!</p><p> He is also the owner of 9 very successful, very popular, very trendy bars in San Francisco, as well as 3 stores.</p><p> How — and why – does a former “dot com guy” end up as a bar entrepreneur? “I was working at Estee Lauder as the Chief Technology Officer living in San Francisco and New York City. New Yorkers would often speak poorly about San Francisco saying there was nothing interesting to do there. I wanted to contribute to San Francisco because I felt it was a wonderful town. San Francisco at the time was full of incredible restaurants and dive bars but nothing in between, so I ventured to make an elusive but not exclusive high-end bar experience on par with the New York nightlife scene.”</p><p> Doug and his partners venture into areas that some businesses are reluctant to consider (like the Tenderloin District) and his successes are reinvigorating long-ignored areas. “Our bars are bringing new life and other businesses to the area, helping to better them and make them more inviting.”</p><p> If you know a student who is interested in identifying a problem…and working for a solution…encourage him or her to look at Emory & Henry’s Ampersand project. Maybe they’ll grow up and be like Doug Dalton: an answer to community challenge.</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/677-doug-dalton" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2314-tammy-parks"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/6,0,157,150/4597_Tammy_Parks.rev.1536941020.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/6,0,157,150/4597_Tammy_Parks.rev.1536941020.jpg 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/6,0,157,150/4597_Tammy_Parks.rev.1536941020.jpg" alt="Tammy McMillan Parks (E&H '95) is an art professor at New River Community College." width="345" height="225" data-max-w="151" data-max-h="150" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2314-tammy-parks"><p> Tammy McMillan Parks is making sure her students see art all over the world: paying forward a gift bestowed by an E&H faculty mentor.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Tammy McMillan Parks (E&H ’95) is taking a page out of the Royce Morris handbook.</p><p> Tammy was an art major at Emory & Henry, and loved classes with E&H’s classics and art history professor, Dr. Royce Morris (deceased). She went with him on his semi-annual trip to Rome, and found the experience to be life-changing. Now that she is an art professor herself, she is carrying on his legacy of sharing the world’s most amazing art with young people.</p><p> She is a professor of art at New River Community College (Dublin, Virginia), and she is committed to offering her students opportunities to see, try, and experience art in every possible fashion.  Study abroad is a huge part of her teaching method. “Travel accomplishes two wonderful things: it makes them appreciate things at home they never really paid attention to before and it makes them consider how their home could benefit from doing things in some of the ways they encountered abroad.”</p><p> Her last trip with students was to the Balkan region of Europe – Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria and Greece. She said the experience was great. “This past summer is no different from my many years of taking students abroad…our plane flight back home was filled with their new memories, laughter, plans for future travel and all their ideas for new art projects and trips.”</p><p> She is known as a professor who goes beyond the classroom to serve her students. Right now she is involved in expanding the clubs at NRCC to create opportunities for students to travel more – not only to see the world but also to experience the history and culture of the area. “I want them to see places like Biltmore and museums and festivals that are accessible within our own region and surrounding states.  We don’t have to go to Rome to appreciate other cultural experiences! These experiences can have a strong influence on their understanding of the arts in and around place they study and live.”</p><p> Tammy earned her bachelor’s degree in art from Emory & Henry, she earned a master’s in Spanish from the University of Southern Mississippi, and an M.F. A. in public art from Goddard College in Vermont. She is currently working on a Ph.D. at the Institute for Doctoral Studies in the Visual Arts, Portland, Maine.</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/2314-tammy-parks" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/1434-gary-reedy"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,280,279/2269_Gary_Reedy.rev.1516131489.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,280,279/2269_Gary_Reedy.rev.1516131489.jpg 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,280,279/2269_Gary_Reedy.rev.1516131489.jpg" alt="Gary Reedy, E&H '78" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="280" data-max-h="279" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/1434-gary-reedy"><p> Gary Reedy is CEO for American Cancer Society.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Gary M. Reedy is the Chief Executive Officer for the American Cancer Society. He took the position in April 2015, but he served as a volunteer for many years before that.</p><p>  </p><p> As a volunteer leader, Reedy is credited with transforming the organization into one able to better deliver on its lifesaving mission. He is a past chair of the Society’s volunteer Board of Directors and past chair of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network^SM (ACS CAN) Board. He also led the ACS Board’s advisory committee on transformation, a pivotal role for the organization’s recent restructuring work. He first joined the Society in 2000 as a member of the Board of Trustees of the former American Cancer Society Foundation. In recognition of his service, Reedy was elected as an Honorary Life Member of the Society in 2014.</p><p> Prior to taking the helm of the Society, Reedy had a distinguished 37-year career as a health care business and advocacy leader, most recently as the worldwide vice president of government affairs and policy, at Johnson & Johnson, where he spearheaded initiatives to influence global health policy. He previously devoted more than 25 years of his career to the business side of the industry, including senior leadership positions with SmithKline Beecham, Centocor, and Johnson & Johnson. During his tenure at Johnson & Johnson, Reedy served as president of Ortho Biotech, a Johnson & Johnson company with annual revenues of more than $3 billion.</p><p> Reedy’s nonprofit experience includes current board appointments for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, the Tobacco-Free Kids Action Fund, the National Health Council, Research America, and Emory & Henry College. He is an active member of the Atlanta Rotary Club, previously served on the C-Change board of directors, and was a charter member of the CEO Roundtable on Cancer.</p><p> As the Society’s top staff executive, Reedy leads the strategic direction and overall management of the organization, with 2  million volunteers, 6,000 staff, and 5 geographic regions. He works with the Society’s Board of Directors to establish the organization’s vision and drive revenue and impact to achieve its lifesaving mission.</p><p> Reedy also holds an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Arcadia University. He and his wife, Cindy (E&H ’80), live in Atlanta, Georgia, and are the proud parents of two adult daughters, Katie and Stephanie. </p></div><a href="/live/profiles/1434-gary-reedy" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2593-hans-hobson"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/188,0,827,640/6072_15032937_10210903752006876_1351423552006573066_n.rev.1553104497.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/188,0,827,640/6072_15032937_10210903752006876_1351423552006573066_n.rev.1553104497.jpg 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/188,0,827,640/6072_15032937_10210903752006876_1351423552006573066_n.rev.1553104497.jpg" alt="Hans Hobson, E&H Class of 1997, with his family." width="345" height="225" data-max-w="639" data-max-h="640" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2593-hans-hobson"><p> Hans Hobson is the Executive Director for the Tennessee State Soccer Association.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Hans Hobson is the Executive Director for the Tennessee State Soccer Association. He is responsible for oversight and management of the not-for-profit organization that governs recreational, competitive (travel), and adult soccer program in the state of Tennessee.  The Association is responsible for state sanctioned events such as the competitive State Cup, recreational tournaments, member governance, liability and accident insurance coverage, and risk management oversight and guidance. </p><p> A 1997 grad, Hans was a Physical Education major who played soccer at Emory & Henry for 3 years. </p><p> He has a strong belief in the role that sports can play in a young person’s life. Hans credits much of his success and beliefs to Fred Selfe, Bob Johnson, Dr. Margaret Hutson.  Hans recalls a story while at Emory & Henry when he and other soccer players were competing in a relay race.  The winners got to leave practice early and avoid further fitness fun.  Hans states, “I remember that our soccer coach was not looking and I cut the corner on a cone to catch my team up.”  At the same time coach Fred Selfe was walking by with the football team and coach stated,  “Hobson you are only cheating yourself.”  In that moment he recalls feeling completely moved to go back and finish because he surely did not want to cheat himself and Coach Selfe. </p><p> “I think about these three individuals in my job daily and how they would handle situations.  I was blessed to be around people that truly cared not only about our mental development but about our personal growth as well. These 3 people influenced me more than they will ever know.  I hope they know just how many people they influence still today as they look down on us from heaven.”</p><p> Hans came to E&H from Martinsville, Virginia, and is a champion for lessons learned in a liberal arts environment. “My college education taught me how to think freely and to interact with those who may have different opinions in a manner that is still respectful and loving.  We don’t seem to do this anymore today.  It is okay to disagree, but how you treat those who disagree can and often does affect your legacy.  That is something that Coach Johnson taught me.  He was a great man who focused on the mission, vision, values, and legacy.  Know where you are going and how to get there.  If you can show others and get them to believe then there is nothing they won’t do for you.”</p><p> Hans and his wife, Erin, and three boys, Landon, Isaac, and Levi, are often found on the soccer field (“Where else, right?!”).   They are members of the Church of the City in Franklin, Tennessee, and they enjoy any spare time with family. </p></div><a href="/live/profiles/2593-hans-hobson" 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/1304-laura-duncan"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,68,1092,1156/1928_IMG-1206.rev.1515599982.webp 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,68,1092,1156/1928_IMG-1206.rev.1515599982.webp 3x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,68,1092,1156/1928_IMG-1206.rev.1515599982.JPG 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,68,1092,1156/1928_IMG-1206.rev.1515599982.JPG 3x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,68,1092,1156/1928_IMG-1206.rev.1515599982.JPG" alt="Laura Craven Duncan E&H '84" width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,68,1092,1156/1928_IMG-1206.rev.1515599982.JPG 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,68,1092,1156/1928_IMG-1206.rev.1515599982.JPG 3x" data-max-w="1092" data-max-h="1088" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/1304-laura-duncan"><p> Laura Craven Duncan is a teacher with a passion for the environment</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Laura Craven Duncan (’84) is National Board Certified Teacher, but she is not only known for her teaching skills.  Now a first-grade teacher in Perquimans County Schools in North Carolina, Laura formerly taught at Ballentine Elementary in Irmo, South Carolina.  While at Ballentine, she and her classroom were written up in the regional school newsletter for raising more than $3,000 for the South Carolina Sea Turtle Rescue  – a sea turtle hospital located at the South Carolina Aquarium in Charleston.  This was their second year to accomplish this impressive feat.<br/><br/> She used the opportunity to teach her class about the plight of this endangered species, and the wonders of this magnificent creature. Students learned about South Carolina’s state reptile, the Loggerhead turtle, and got to see the Loggerhead up close when the senior biologist at the Sea Turtle Rescue visited the school. Her students visited the Sea Turtle Rescue facility to present the check, and to tour the operation. The school’s technology assistant creates sea turtle commercials to be shown during the school news each morning so that everyone in the school can learn about turtles.  Laura said the televisions spots had a dual purpose. “The commercials were so important to our students because they not only helped us advertise our fundraiser, but they also allowed students to share ways we can all make a difference in helping save the turtles.”  <br/><br/> Each year the class put together an item to sell that displays original artwork by the students –a calendar, a magnet, a book. One year they made reusable shopping bags which also encouraged less use of plastic bags.  (Bags floating in the water look like the sea creature that is a major part of a turtle’s diet:  jellyfish.)<br/><br/> “This experience impacted every child and showed them the importance of how we can protect endangered species. They are learning while making a positive difference for the environment.”<br/><br/> Now in a new school system, she received a grant in 2017 to take all the school’s first graders to the North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island this semester.”Most of our students have never been to the beach, only 55 miles away, or explored any of our county’s 100 miles of shoreline.It will be the chance of a lifetime for many.”</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/1304-laura-duncan" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2963-homecoming-contest"></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p><a href="https://www.ehc.edu/live/image/gid/68/width/650/4903_IMG-1479.JPG" class="lw_preview_image"><picture class="lw_image lw_image4903 lw_align_left lw_column_width_half"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/500/height/376/4903_IMG-1479.rev.1540254881.webp 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/500/height/376/4903_IMG-1479.rev.1540254881.webp 3x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/500/height/376/4903_IMG-1479.rev.1540254881.JPG 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/500/height/376/4903_IMG-1479.rev.1540254881.JPG 3x" data-origin="responsive"/><img width="500" height="376" alt="Friends reconnecting on Homecoming Day, 2018." src="/live/image/gid/68/width/500/height/376/4903_IMG-1479.rev.1540254881.JPG" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/500/height/376/4903_IMG-1479.rev.1540254881.JPG 2x, /live/image/scale/3x/gid/68/width/500/height/376/4903_IMG-1479.rev.1540254881.JPG 3x" data-max-w="3088" data-max-h="2320" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a>Homecoming is about alumni coming back to visit friends and see their old college. They want to hear what’s going on at Emory & Henry! They want to see what’s new on campus! They want to know about current students and what they’re doing!</p><p><strong>But how much do you know about alumni?</strong></p><p><strong><a href="/live/blurbs/1269-more-emory-henry-alumni-stories" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">CLICK HERE</a> to find a bunch of stories about former students.</strong></p><p> If you will share your favorite E&H alumni story on social media, you’ll be in the running for great prizes: an E&H blanket and more!!</p><p> So read a cool story…share that story with your friends…and screen shot it to share with the alumni office: 276-944-3516 or <a href="mailto:alumni@ehc.edu">alumni@ehc.edu</a>.</p><p> And let’s get to know our E&H alumni this Homecoming!</p><p>  </p><p> Please note: This contest is only for current students…not alumni. Sorry! :)<br/> Please include your name and current class year when you submit your entry. </p></div><a href="/live/profiles/2963-homecoming-contest" 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/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/1946-brooklyn-belk"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,28,347,376/3466_BrooklynSawyersBelk.rev.1520453426.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,28,347,376/3466_BrooklynSawyersBelk.rev.1520453426.jpg 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,28,347,376/3466_BrooklynSawyersBelk.rev.1520453426.jpg" alt="Brooklyn Sawyers Belk E&H 2002." width="345" height="225" data-max-w="347" data-max-h="348" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/1946-brooklyn-belk"><p> Brooklyn Sawyers Belk is an Assistant United States Attorney for the Department of Justice, United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Brooklyn Sawyers Belk is an attorney with Weinberg Wheeler Hudgins Gunn and Dial in Atlanta, Georgia. She is a Partner of Counsel, & Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer.</p><p> She was formerly an Assistant United States Attorney for the Department of Justice, United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee.  Sawyers Belk was admitted to the United States Supreme Court bar in November 2015. She is also an adjunct professor at the University of Tennessee (UT) College of Law, where she teaches trial practice and interviewing and counseling. Additionally, she teaches a host of undergraduate history and pre-law courses. </p><p><br/> Sawyers Belk graduated from Emory & Henry College in 2002 and serves on the College’s Board of Trustees. She obtained a Master of Arts degree in history in 2004 from East Tennessee State University and is a 2006 graduate of the UT College of Law. </p></div><a href="/live/profiles/1946-brooklyn-belk" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/2547-christian-tripp"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,855,832/6009_tripp.rev.1551228791.webp 2x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,855,832/6009_tripp.rev.1551228791.jpg 2x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,855,832/6009_tripp.rev.1551228791.jpg" alt="Christian Tripp, E&H Class of 2018." width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,855,832/6009_tripp.rev.1551228791.jpg 2x" data-max-w="855" data-max-h="832" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/2547-christian-tripp"><p> Christian Tripp is honing his acting craft.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Christian Tripp (E&H ’18) finished up his senior year at Emory & Henry in the usual way: plenty of studying, time with friends, and a ton of theater auditions. Well…maybe everyone doesn’t finish out college with auditions, but you do if you’re a theatre major.</p><p> To his delight, he was offered several jobs. Instead of stressing about finding a job, he was worried about how to choose between many great options. So he gave himself a deadline. “I told myself I would pick one on Friday. On Thursday I got emailed by the head of acting from the University of Alabama. He asked to see my audition package, I sent it via email, and the next day he gave me a full ride scholarship.”<br/><br/> He has also been offered two summer acting positions — one in Flagstaff, Arizona with the Flagstaff Shakespeare Festival (he’ll be Daniel De Bosola in <em>Duchess of Malfi</em>) and another in Camden, Maine with Camden Shakespeare Festival (he’s playing Horatio in <em>Hamlet</em> and Lucentio in <em>Taming of the Shrew</em>). So in the summer of 2019, he’ll be playing three supporting leads. Then he’ll head back to Alabama to start his second year of graduate school.<br/><br/> Christian is a true success story for the <a href="/academics/theatre/">E&H theatre department</a>, and he’s grateful for the experiences he gained as an undergraduate. “I feel that my time at Emory & Henry really prepared me to handle anything. I will be playing pretty heavy roles this summer back to back to back, and normally someone might pause at that. For me I see it as a great challenge I’m more than capable of handling.”</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/2547-christian-tripp" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/1229-michael-payne"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,270,270/1710_michael_payne.rev.1513720647.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,270,270/1710_michael_payne.rev.1513720647.jpg 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,270,270/1710_michael_payne.rev.1513720647.jpg" alt="Michael Payne attended Emory & Henry College." width="345" height="225" data-max-w="270" data-max-h="270" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/1229-michael-payne"></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Michael is a licensed and Certified Athletic Trainer (ATC) working through Doctors Hospital of Augusta, Georgia. As part of an outreach program, he works mostly with the athletes at a 6A high school in Georgia, but also work through the Physical Therapy Department with prehab patients. As an athletic trainer, he is responsible for collaborating with physicians to provide preventative services, emergency care, clinical diagnosis, therapeutic intervention and rehabilitation of injuries and medical conditions in the athletic setting.</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/1229-michael-payne" 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/1748-brian-wolfe"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,600,771/3168_brian_wolfe.rev.1518208834.webp 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,600,771/3168_brian_wolfe.rev.1518208834.jpg 1x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,0,600,771/3168_brian_wolfe.rev.1518208834.jpg" alt="Dr. Brian Wolfe" width="345" height="225" data-max-w="600" data-max-h="771" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/1748-brian-wolfe"><p> “I wholeheartedly believe in approaching a patient’s care as a partnership.”</p><p> –Dr. Brian Wolfe, ’97</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><div class="container"><div class="row"><div class="col-xs-8 col-sm-9"><div class="row"><div class="col-sm-5" id="clinicalLocinfo"><p> Brian Wolfe graduated from E&H in 1997. He received his medical degree from  Johns Hopkins University in 2001. He has been on the teaching faculty for Temple University Hospital and Vanderbilt University Medical Center. He is now affiliated with the University of Colorado Hospital in Aurora, Colorado. He interned at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center Program, and was Chief Resident, Internal Medicine, in 2005. </p><p> Dr. Wolfe has received the AANP Advocate State Award for Excellence, awarded for promoting the role of the nurse practitioner. He has received the Excellence in Clinical Innovation from the University Colorado Hospital Medical Staff for development of a post-graduate training program for physician assistants and nurse practitioners in hospital-based medicine. He received the Temple University Junior Faculty Residency Teaching Award. And in 2007, he received the award for Best Patient Advocate to the Vanderbilt University Emergency Department.<br/><br/> Brian’s philosophy about medicine is a personal one: “I wholeheartedly believe in approaching a patient’s care as a partnership. When a person is admitted to the hospital, this can be a stressful and disorienting experience. My role in the physician-patient partnership is to 1) understand a patient’s concerns and who he is she is as a person, 2) bring state-of-the-art care to the bedside, 3) communicate with the patient, the family, and the patient’s other physicians in a high level and meaningful manner.” </p></div></div></div></div></div></div><a href="/live/profiles/1748-brian-wolfe" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>
• <span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/3005-natalia-sutherland"><picture class="lw_image"><source type="image/webp" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,14,714,728/5663_Natalia_Sutherland.rev.1542303444.webp 2x" data-origin="responsive"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,14,714,728/5663_Natalia_Sutherland.rev.1542303444.jpg 2x" data-origin="responsive"/><img src="/live/image/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,14,714,728/5663_Natalia_Sutherland.rev.1542303444.jpg" alt="Sutherland, Natalia (E&H Class of 2017)" width="345" height="225" srcset="/live/image/scale/2x/gid/68/width/345/height/225/crop/1/src_region/0,14,714,728/5663_Natalia_Sutherland.rev.1542303444.jpg 2x" data-max-w="714" data-max-h="714" loading="lazy" data-optimized="true"/></picture></a></span><div class="lw_widget_text"><h4 class="lw_profiles_headline"><a href="/live/profiles/3005-natalia-sutherland"><p> Natalia Sutherland is a medical student at <a href="https://medicine.vtc.vt.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Virginia Tech Carilion Medical School</a>.</p></a></h4><div class="lw_profiles_description"><p> Life is not multiple choice</p><p> Natalia Sutherland is starting her second year at <a href="https://medicine.vtc.vt.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Virginia Tech Carilion Medical School</a>. She smiles widely when she talks about the other students in her cohort. “They’re from Duke and Johns Hopkins and Clemson and Vanderbilt…there are only 3 of us from liberal arts colleges.”</p><p> But this is what seems to give her an edge. Natalia is among the top tier of students in her class and she says, “You can tell Dr. Fleet I give her all the credit for that!”</p><p> She says her E&H Biology professor, Dr. Christine Fleet, insisted on project-based classwork that forced students  to truly understand and apply what they were learning in class. Granted, there are tests in medical school that are multiple choice, but Natalia says she feels like she has an advantage over many of her classmates because Emory & Henry gave her a framework for truly understanding the science.  She says it’s one thing to memorize the answers…but it’s another thing altogether to truly understand causes and effects and how systems in your body interact. She says Emory & Henry prepared her to be that well-rounded learner.</p><p> She beams when talking about how much she’s enjoying medical school, and about the work she did at E&H to prepare her for what she’s doing now. “I’ll come back to campus and talk to prospective students and families any time! Emory & Henry was a great place to get ready for medical school!”</p><p> Natalia is also the recipient of the <a href="https://medicine.vtc.vt.edu/giving/morgan-harrington.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Morgan Dana Harrington Scholarship</a>, and she expresses great honor in representing that award.</p></div><a href="/live/profiles/3005-natalia-sutherland" class="link-with-arrow gold">Keep reading</a></div>