Elizabeth “Lizzie” Dunnet, a theatre arts
and English major, waves to friends as she
passes through the faculty gauntlet during
Saturday’s 125th Commencement exercise
at Hendrix College.CONWAY, Ark. (May 9, 2009) – Hendrix College conferred degrees upon 232 of its students during the college’s 125th commencement ceremony Saturday. Dr. Benjamin B. Dunlap, the President of Wofford College, was the commencement speaker.
The exercises took place inside the college’s Wellness and Athletics Center. More than 1,500 people were in attendance.
The Class of 2009 is the first Hendrix College class required to complete projects in the college’s Odyssey Program, an experiential learning program that encourages outside-the-classroom educational experiences that in many cases are designed by the students themselves. The Hendrix Odyssey Program, established in 2004, gives students transcript credit for the projects and requires Hendrix students to complete three Odyssey experiences during their undergraduate career in areas selected from six categories: Artistic creativity, global awareness, professional and leadership development, service to the world, undergraduate research and special projects.
Kelly Ann Zalocusky of Belleville, Ill., carried the college’s banner during the ceremony as the 2009 recipient of the Hendrix President’s Medal. First awarded in 1980, the President’s Medal is the top honor given to a graduating senior at Hendrix and is presented annually to the student who best exemplifies the highest ideals of the college.
Honors graduates Saturday included:
- Summa cum laude – Sally Dee Cunningham, Rachel Lynn DeCuir, Thomas Michael Dornhoffer, Jordan Scott Frazin, Elizabeth Greaves, Adam Michael Jacobs, Leslie Michelle Levy, and Zalocusky.
- Magna cum laude – Samantha Elizabeth Bridges, Alana Lea Buie, Chelsea Suzanne Cupp, Alissa Camille Hellie, Leah Pitchford Horton, Eric Nathaniel Joseph, Travis Thomas Kauffman, Kirby Loret Martinez-Fonts, Lara Cathering Morrow, Sarah Katie Rhoads, Erica Anne Siebrasse, and Justin Michael Whorton.
- Cum laude – Kevin Scott Autry, Jeffry Thomas Baker, Rebecca Ann Callahan, Melissa Kathleen Campbell, Lynne Margaret Christenson, Elizabeth Carol Dunnet, Bethanie Rachele Edwards, Luke Adam Erickson, Alexandra Elizabeth Graddy-Reed, Zaccheus Daniel Harmon, Ashlyn Elizabeth Holeyfield, Fraser McKeever Holmes, Paul David Hughes, Sarah Elizabeth Hughes, Sara Nicole Hunter, Joseph Krebs Muller, Rachel Katherine Newberry, Sarah Louise Norman, William D. Rawlinson, Amy Ruth Reynolds, Elizabeth Louise Stevens, Craig Randall Thomas, and Ahren Stephen Wardwell.
The 10th President of Wofford College, Dunlap’s academic fields include literature, intellectual history, Asian studies, film history and criticism, fiction writing, and the arts. Dunlap’s many publications include poems, essays, anthologies, guides, and opera libretti as well as two novels in manuscript, Famous Dogs of the Civil War and Sunshine: The Autobiography of a Genius. He also previously performed as soloist and principal dancer for the Columbia City Ballet.
Hendrix College, founded in 1876, is an undergraduate liberal arts college emphasizing experiential learning in a demanding yet supportive environment. The college is among 165 colleges featured in the 2009 edition of the Princeton Review America’s Best Value Colleges. Hendrix has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. For more information, visit www.hendrix.edu.