Join us for Homecoming Weekend, October 23-25, to celebrate and recognize the 2015 Alumni Award recipients: Tom Parham, Class of 1963; Mary Kay Irwin, Class of 1998; Katherine Smith Long, Class of 2012; Tony Tilley, honorary alumnus; and Gary W. Hall, Class of 1980. Please take time to read about each recipient in the articles below.
For more information about the 2015 Homecoming Weekend at Barton College on October 23-25, please contact Summer Brock, director of alumni and parent relations, at (252) 399-6383 or alumni@barton.edu.
Tom Parham, Class of ’63, Honored With 2015 Barton Distinguished Alumni Award
Tom Parham, a 1963 graduate of then Atlantic Christian College (now Barton College), has been selected to receive the 2015 Barton College Distinguished Alumni Award. He and fellow alumni award winners will be recognized at the Alumni Reunions and Awards Breakfast during Barton’s 2015 Homecoming Weekend on October 23-25.
Parham retired in 2004, having served as tennis coach for Elon University since 1985. Prior to that role, he was Athletic Director at Atlantic Christian from 1983-1985, and coached tennis at ACC from 1964-1983. Parham led the Bulldogs to NAIA National Tennis Championships in 1979 and 1984, and earned another NAIA National Championship for Elon in 1990. He was named NAIA National Coach of the Year in 1977, 1979, 1985, and 1990. For his service to collegiate tennis and his achievements in the sport, Parham was named to North Carolina’s Order of the Long Leaf Pine in 1979. He has received numerous awards throughout his career, and has been honored in several athletic halls of fame.
Parham holds a Master of Education degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Physical Education from Barton College/ACC. He serves on the N.C. Tennis Association’s Board of Directors. He is also the author of several books, including “The Little Green Book of Tennis” and “ALOT (A Level of Thinking).”
Established to honor alumni who have given outstanding service to Barton College and who have distinguished themselves as leaders in the areas of civic, religious, and/or professional life, the Distinguished Alumni Award is the highest award given to a Barton College alumnus/a. The recipient must meet all of the following criteria: a Barton or Atlantic Christian College graduate; shown continued support for Barton College since graduation and made significant contributions toward the advancement of its goals; distinguished him/herself as a well-known leader in his/her profession by being recognized for outstanding accomplishments; and distinguished him/herself as a leader in the affairs of his/her community, church, civic matters, etc.
Mary Kay Irwin, Class of ’98, Honored With 2015 Barton Alumni Achievement Award
Mary Kay Irwin, a 1998 graduate of Barton College, has been selected to receive the 2015 Barton College Alumni Achievement Award. She and fellow alumni award winners will be recognized at the Alumni Reunions and Awards Breakfast during Barton’s 2015 Homecoming Weekend on October 23-25.
Irwin serves as Manager of School Health Services at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and is an adjunct instructor in the School of Education at the University of Cincinnati. Prior to her role at Nationwide, she was a school intervention specialist and later manager of the School Intervention Program at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. From 1999 to 2005, Irwin taught at Sharon Elementary School in Newburgh, Ind.
Irwin holds a Doctor of Education degree in Special Education from the University of Cincinnati, as well as a Master of Education degree in Elementary Education from the University of Southern Indiana. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Deaf Education at Barton. Irwin holds positions and memberships in a number of professional organizations. She chairs the Association of Pediatric Hematology Oncology Educational Specialists; reviews for the Journal of Pediatric Nursing; and serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Physical Disabilities: Education and Related Services, among others.
Established to recognize alumni who have distinguished themselves as leaders in their chosen field of endeavor by demonstrating a high standard of performance over and beyond normal expectations and realizing exceptional achievement in that field, the Alumni Achievement Award is presented to no more than three alumni in a given year. The recipient(s) must meet all of the following criteria: actively involved in the affairs of his/her community, church, civic matters, etc., and shown continued support for Barton College.
Katherine Smith Long, Class of ’12, Honored With 2015 Barton Outstanding Recent Graduate Award
Katherine Smith Long, a 2012 graduate of Barton College, has been selected to receive the 2015 Barton College Outstanding Recent Graduate Award. She and fellow alumni award winners will be recognized at the Alumni Reunions and Awards Breakfast during Barton’s 2015 Homecoming Weekend on October 23-25.
Long is a registered nurse and has worked at Carteret General Hospital in Morehead City since July 2012. She is a staff RN in the Critical and Progressive Care units, and holds certifications in Basic Life Support, Advanced Cardiac Life Support, and Advanced Stroke Life Support. At the hospital, Long co-chairs the Clinical Practice Committee, whose mission includes ensuring quality, safe, and efficient practices and procedures. She is also working alongside doctors and administration to formulate a business plan for a new congestive heart failure outpatient clinical and education center. Since January 2013, she has played an instrumental role in restructuring and improving the hospital’s new hire orientation program.
In addition to her professional duties, Long is also an active volunteer. She devotes much of her free time to the Broad Street Clinic in Morehead City, area community health fairs, and numerous other causes.
Long earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree at Barton in May 2012. She holds memberships in the American Nurses Association, the North Carolina Nurses Association, and the American Association of Critical Care Nursing.
Established to honor graduates of 10 years or fewer who have given outstanding service to Barton College and who have begun to distinguish themselves as leaders in the areas of civic, religious, and professional life, the Outstanding Recent Graduate Award is presented to one alumnus/a each year. The recipient must meet all of the following criteria: a Barton graduate; shown continued support for Barton College since graduation and made significant contributions toward the advancement of its goals; distinguished him/herself as a well-known leader in his/her profession by being recognized for outstanding accomplishments; and distinguished him/herself as a leader in the affairs of his/her community, church, civic matters, etc.
Tony Tilley Honored With 2015 Barton Honorary Alumnus Award
Tony Tilley, a 1980 graduate of then Elon College (now Elon University) and director of ARAMARK Food Services at Barton College, has been selected to receive the 2015 Barton College Honorary Alumnus Award. He and fellow alumni award winners will be recognized at the Alumni Reunions and Awards Breakfast during Barton’s 2015 Homecoming Weekend on October 23-25.
Easy to spot anywhere on campus, thanks in large part to his signature “necktie tossed over the shoulder” look, Tilley is typically seen inside Barton’s Hamlin Student Center. With formal training in teaching, he has developed a close relationship with students in the College dining hall for more than 25 years. As food services director, Tilley has taught countless student workers in the “Caf” lessons on how to succeed in their careers and personal lives. A Barton legend in his own right, he is easy to recognize and impossible to forget; a man beloved by students, alumni, faculty, staff, trustees, and residents across the Wilson community. Tilley’s wife, Susan, and daughter, Katy, both earned their bachelor’s degrees at Barton. Because of his charismatic nature, his selfless service, and his never-ending dedication to the College, Tilley embodies what it means to be a Barton Bulldog.
Tilley holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Education from Elon. He also holds the unique distinction of being the only non-alumnus/a of the College whose likeness has been captured in a Barton bobblehead.
The Honorary Alumnus/a Award was established to recognize those persons who are not graduates but who have contributed significantly to Barton College as humanitarians and professionals by producing outstanding support and service. Recipients must meet all of the following criteria: a non-graduate of Barton; and contributed significantly toward the advancement of Barton College goals by providing outstanding support and service over an extended period of time.
Gary Hall, Class of ’80, Honored With 2015 Barton Employee Service Award
Gary W. Hall, a 1980 graduate of then Atlantic Christian College (now Barton College) and Director of Athletics Emeritus at the College, has been selected to receive the 2015 Barton College Employee Service Award. He and fellow alumni award winners will be recognized at the Alumni Reunions and Awards Breakfast during Barton’s 2015 Homecoming Weekend on October 23-25.
Hall has served Barton College for more than 25 years, the longest term of service to date in the role of Director of Athletics at the College. He joined Barton in June 1989, and was named Director of Athletics, Chair of the Department of Physical Education, and Head Men’s Soccer Coach. Barton’s Athletics Program grew from nine sports in place when Hall arrived, to 18 intercollegiate sports offered today. It has also celebrated countless academic and athletic successes during his tenure as director. Hall retired from coaching in 2007, a position he held for 18 years, having compiled an NCAA Division II record of 188-176-35. He stepped down as Director of Athletics in January 2015, and now lends his unmatched experience and expertise as Athletic Campaign Consultant for the College’s Division of Institutional Advancement.
In recognition of his selfless commitment to his alma mater and his unending dedication to collegiate athletics, Hall earned the NCAA Division II Athletic Directors Association’s 2015 Lifetime Achievement Award, the most prestigious given by the professional organization. This recognition is bestowed upon an individual who has served in college athletics for at least 25 years, primarily as an athletic director, and who has made an exemplary contribution to NCAA Division II Athletics and the student-athlete experience.
A native of Winston-Salem, Hall holds a Master of Arts degree in Physical Education from Wake Forest University, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Physical Education and English (magna cum laude) from Barton College/ACC. Earlier this year, the Gary W. Hall Excellence in Athletics Award was introduced at Barton, named in honor of the man who has faithfully served the College for so many years. The award will be presented annually to Barton student-athletes who demonstrate a strong work ethic, a passion for their sport, and a dedication for excellence in the classroom, campus, and community.
The Employee Service Award was established to recognize significant service to the College by any faculty or staff member who has given their time, expertise, and/or leadership generously, thereby ensuring the prolonged welfare of the institution for generations to come. Recipients must meet all of the following criteria: must be a current or retired faculty or staff member of Barton College; may or may not be an alumnus/a of the College; must exemplify service to the community through service to Barton College; distinguished him/herself as a leader or mentor to students; and embodies the mission and vision of Barton College.
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