CONWAY, Ark. (August 22, 2014) – Four alumni will receive
Odyssey Medals during the Founders’ Day Convocation at 11:10 a.m. on Thursday,
Oct. 23, in Staples Auditorium on the Hendrix campus.
The
Odyssey Medal is awarded by the Hendrix College Board of Trustees to alumni
whose personal and professional achievements exemplify the values of engaged
liberal arts and sciences education.
Odyssey Medals will be presented to:
- Brad
Ford ’89 – Artistic Creativity
- Amanda Moore McBride ’93 – Service to the World
- Elsie
McKee ’73 – Research
- F.G.
“Buddy” Villines ’69 – Professional and Leadership
Development
Ford, McKee and Villines are the 2014-2015 Odyssey Medal recipients. McBride, who was awarded the medal in 2013-2014, was unable to attend last year's ceremony.
Odyssey Medalist Bios:
Brad
Ford ’89, Artistic Creativity
Brad Ford is a high-end
interior designer based in New York City. Originally from Russellville, Ark.,
he moved to Manhattan 22 years ago and established his own firm, Brad Ford ID,
in1998 with an emphasis on residential spaces. Ford holds a degree in Interior Design from
the Fashion Institute of Technology as well as his degree in Business and
Economics from Hendrix College. He honed his skills under such leading New York
designers as Thad Hayes and the late Jed Johnson.
Amanda
Moore McBride ’93, Service to the World
Amanda Moore McBride, Ph.D., associate professor of social work,
is an international leader, teacher and scholar in civic and community
engagement. Her work includes building international and national service
initiatives, applying youth service as a component of youth development, and
understanding and communicating the service mission of the academy.
As
director of the Richard A. Gephardt Institute for Public Service, a position
she has held since its 2006 inception, McBride promotes lifelong civic
engagement of undergraduate and graduate students, and engages the university
community through a variety of initiatives.
McBride
services as associate dean at the Brown School, is the research director for
the Center for Social Development, and serves as a faculty fellow for WUSTL’s
Institute for School Partnership. McBride’s research involves the study of
higher education’s role in international service efforts.
After
earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Hendrix College in 1993, she
worked briefly for the United Way of Greater St. Louis, then pursued graduate
studies at Washington University, earning master’s and doctoral degrees in 1995
and 2003, respectively. She has been honored for her teaching and mentoring and
recently received an Outstanding Young Alumna Award from Hendrix College.
Elsie
McKee ’73, Research
Elsie Anne McKee is professor of church history at
Princeton Theological Seminary in Princeton, N.J., and an expert in the history
and theology of the Reformation. She also has a strong interest in
cross-cultural issues developed by experience in central Africa. In addition to
her bachelor’s degree from Hendrix, McKee earned a diploma in Theology from the
University of Cambridge in England in 1974 and a Ph.D. from Princeton
Theological Seminary in 1982, graduating summa
cum laude. She has also studied at Columbia University and at the
University of Geneva in Switzerland.
McKee is the author of nine books, currently at work on her
10th, and editor or translator of three others. Her focus has been
on Calvin’s doctrine of the church and on the life and impact of 16th
century reformer Katharina Schütz Zell. “Research
leads to teaching,” she said, “the realm for inviting others to the game of
historical ‘come dig with me; finding out is such fun.’ The more players the
merrier; learning is for sharing.”
She shares what she learns through research in scholarly
articles, presentations and as a guest professor or lecturer in institutions
around the world, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon and
Rome.
F.G.
“Buddy” Villines ’69, Professional and Leadership Development
Buddy Villines has served county judge in Pulaski County,
Ark., since 1991, a position he was elected to after serving six years on the
Little Rock Board of Directors, including two years as Mayor of Little Rock.
His public service has been marked by leadership in issues involving economic
growth, education and the environment.
As County Judge, the chief executive officer of county
government, he has overseen the construction of nearly $150 million in projects
including the Two Rivers Park Bridge; the Big Dam Bridge, the world’s longest
pedestrian/bicycle bridge specifically designed for that purpose; and the
Junction Bridge, a historic railroad bridges converted for pedestrian use.
Villines earned degrees from Hendrix and the University of
Arkansas at Little Rock School of Law. He is a Vietnam veteran and recipient of
the Bronze Star. He has received awards recognizing his work as a humanitarian,
his support of green building techniques, and his role as an advocate and
leader in creating public spaces where people want to live, work and play. He
has served as president of County Executives of America, the National
Association of Regional Councils, and the National Association of Metropolitan
Planning Organizations.
Nominations
for the 2015 Odyssey Medals are due Dec. 31, 2014 and may be emailed to president@hendrix.edu.
For
more information and a nomination form, visit www.hendrix.edu/odysseymedal.
Founded
in 1876, Hendrix College is a national leader in engaged liberal arts and
sciences education. For the sixth consecutive year, Hendrix was named one of
the country’s “Up and Coming” liberal arts colleges by U.S. News and World
Report. Hendrix is featured in the latest edition of Colleges That
Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think about Colleges,
as well as the 2014 Princeton Review’s The Best 378 Colleges, Forbes
magazine's list of America's Top Colleges, and the 2014 Fiske Guide to
Colleges. Hendrix has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since
1884. For more information, visit www.hendrix.edu.