Find out what’s happening with your fellow alumni

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’30s

Dr. Morris E. Katz  ’37 of Sarasota, FL, has celebrated his 96th birthday.

’40s

Constance Witham Higgins ’40 of Babylon, NY, and Faith Witham Robertson ’43 of Flushing, NY, write that they are thankful to be in relatively good health for their ages.

’50s

Rudy Menkens ’58 of Largo, FL, recently returned home from a trip to Spain and France. “Brought home lots of great wine, photos and memories,” he writes. “Right now, Florida is cold, some snowbird left the door open. Should you come across it, please close it. Peace and prayers to you all.”

’60s

Ian and Gail (Brunner) Baird ’60 ’63 of Naples, FL, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in November.

Peggy Hayes Ottinger ’62 of Greeneville, TN, has retired from her career as an elementary teacher. She taught at Nolachuckey Elementary School.

Edward Ramm ’62 and his wife, Anna, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on November 5, 2010. The Ramms were able to enjoy the celebration with their family. The guest list included their three children – Debra, Ed and Cindy and their spouses, nine grandchildren and two great-grandsons.

’70s

Jane O’dell Bell ’78 of Greeneville, TN, is principal of Camp Creek Elementary School.

’80s

The Rev. Nell Stanton Grimm ’85 of Lillington, NC, recently graduated with a master’s degree in community counseling from Campbell University. She is now working as a court advocate for SAFE of Harnett County.

David Harris ’88, a member of the Virginia Army National Guard, has been deployed to Shindand, Afghanistan, as a non-commissioned officer in charge of a Signal and IT Section for a battalion. He was deployed in March of this year and is scheduled to return home in March 2011.

’90s

Nolan Nevels ’90 ’95 of Knoxville, TN, has been named the director of Roane State Community College’s Advanced Materials Training and Education Center in Oak Ridge. The Advanced Materials Training and Education Center will train individuals for entry-level materials technician jobs in two high growth industries – the carbon fiber and solar energy. Nevels has considerable manufacturing and training experience. He recently retired from a 12-year career at ALCOA, where he held various supervisory positions. Nevels brings an understanding of the hardships of trying to learn new skills as an adult learner. He attended a traditional college program in Alabama after high school while working full-time. He eventually turned his attention fully to the work force and spent the early part of his career in the construction industry. Constantly moving his family to keep up with the construction job market convinced him to go back to school. Nevels’ family settled in Knoxville and he entered Tusculum’s Graduate and Professional Studies program, earning both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in organizational management. Nevels and wife, Donna ’90, have two children, Nolan II and Jennifer.

James T. “J. T.” Vogt ’90 starts a new position as deputy director of the U.S. Forest Service, Southeastern Region Forest Inventory and Analysis Unit on January 30, 2011. Vogt and his family will be residing near Knoxville, TN, where the position is based. He would like to hear from former classmates. His e-mail is bug_doctor@hotmail.com.

’00s

Scott Williams ’06 ’10 of Sevierville, TN, started his own business as a consultant, Management Concepts LLC, after graduating with a master’s degree in human resource development in May. He has obtained a distributorship with Inscape Publishing in Minnesota. Many Tusculum students are familiar with the DiSC Assessment, which is a product of Inscape. Williams recently attended a new distributor class in Minneapolis, hosted by the company that highlighted the newest online learning tools used to illuminate workplace relationships and achieve organizational effectiveness.

Michelle Arbogast ’09 of Greeneville, TN, has assumed the role of executive assistant to the vice president and chief financial officer at Tusculum. Michelle previously served her Alma Mater as assistant bookstore manager and served as a student account clerk in the Business Office. Michelle took over the position from Susie Jones, who worked for the College for 19 years in a variety of administrative departments, including the Office of Institutional Advancement, where she worked closely with the College’s Church Relations program, Pioneer Club efforts and was interim director of alumni for one year. Jones is the wife of Charles Jones ’95 and mother of Eben ’95, Frank ’99 and Rustin Jones ’06.

Nikki Blankenship ’09 of Elizabethton, TN, is a math coach at Unaka Elementary School. The position is a new one for the school, created to help sixth and seventh graders improve their math skills. She has been using real world activities, such as fantasy football, to help students learn a variety of fundamental skills.

memorials1

’30s

Elizabeth Wilson Tallent ’36 of Greeneville, TN, passed away December 8, 2010. Mrs. Tallent was a retired educator and a leader in a variety of activities relating to history of Greeneville and Greene County.  She was the first child born at the former Greeneville Hospital, which was located in what is now the restored Dickson-Williams Mansion. Mrs. Tallent taught at the elementary level in the Greeneville City Schools for 33 years, including periods of teaching at the former Roby Fitzgerald School, the former Crescent School, the former Andrew Johnson School and EastView School. One of her proudest achievements was writing, in collaboration with her principal, the school system’s first curriculum for severely developmental disabled students. She was also noted within the school system and community for co-directing a citywide musical extravaganza that involved more than 2,000 students in grades 4-12 in the production and was told with narration, patriotic songs and folk dances. Mrs. Tallent was selected as a Leader of American Elementary Education in 1971 and was a charter member of Alpha Delta Kappa, the International Sorority for Women Educators. Patriotism and the preservation and promotion of this historical heritage of Greeneville and Greene County were major interests of Mrs. Tallent. She was a longtime member of the Greeneville Historical Zoning Commission. Mrs. Tallent was an active member and former regent of the Nolachuckey Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR). She was one of the individuals who spearheaded the cleanup and restoration of the Old Harmony Graveyard, where one of the College founders and a former president are buried. She received a Veterans of Foreign Wars Community Service Award for her role in the restoration. Mrs. Tallent was a former member of the board of directors of the Greene County Heritage Trust, and took a leadership role in the successful petition effort to have West Main Street included in the Greeneville Historic District. A third-generation Presbyterian, she was a life-time member of the First Presbyterian Church of Greeneville, Tusculum’s mother church. She was an active member and lay leader in the church and had served as an elder. Mrs. Tallent was also a member of the Andrew Johnson Woman’s Club, the Tuesday Book Club and the Little Theatre of Greeneville, Inc. She was a charter member of the Civic Music Association, the predecessor organization of the Community Concert Association. She was also a member of the board of directors of Oak Grove Cemetery.

’50s

Billy Don Weems ’52 of Gray, TN, passed away November 30, 2010, after an extended illness. Mr. Weems worked for a number of years as an accountant for the Magnavox Co., and retired as an accountant from BASF Corporation. A veteran, he served as a member of the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, NC, in the 1940s. An avid hiker, Mr. Weems had explored most of the southern region of the Appalachian Mountains. As a youth, he was involved in boxing and fought two years in the Knoxville Golden Gloves.  Mr. Weems was a private pilot and a very experienced skydiver. He served as the first East Tennessee Safety Officer representing the U.S. Parachute Association.

’80s

Marianne McCorry ’86 of Bergenfield, NJ, passed away on May 19, 2010. Ms. McCorry was a teacher, having served at the A to Z Child Development Center. Survivors include her sister and alumna Lynn McCorry ’84.