BOLIVAR, Mo. – Southwest Baptist University conferred 218 undergraduate and 198 graduate degrees during two ceremonies Saturday, May 20, on the Bolivar campus. Another 129 degrees were conferred Thursday, May 18, in Springfield, to graduates of the Mercy College of Nursing and Health Sciences of SBU.
Life Beautiful Awards
The 2017 recipients of the Life Beautiful Award are Michelle Austin and Aric Gooch, both of Bolivar, Mo.
Austin graduated magna cum laude with a degree in web systems and design, with a minor in writing, and has received multiple awards at SBU, including the Robert W. Plaster College of Business and Computer Sciences Psalm 15 award for 2017. She also was awarded the Jack Henry scholarship for 2015 and 2016. Austin is a prolific writer and won SBU’s 2015 contest for best non-documented essay, as well as the 2016 contest for critical/linguistic essay. She was awarded the Betty Gipson Outstanding Writer Scholarship for 2016 by the Department of Language and Literature.
Austin has served as president of Sigma Tau Delta for the past two years, is a member
of Theta Alpha Kappa and the Association of Computing Machinery and has been admitted
to Georgia Tech University’s highly competitive graduate program in computer science.
“Shellie is among the very strongest students in the SBU Computer and Information Sciences Department,” SBU President Dr. C. Pat Taylor read from a nomination letter. “She is an enthusiastic learner, has compiled an impressive academic record of achievement in both the Department of Computer and Information Sciences and the Department of Language and Literature. Shellie is truly a Proverbs 31 woman.”
She is married to Jon, and they have four children, with their fifth child due soon.
Gooch graduated with degrees in social science education and political science. He has been recognized in Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges, is a member of Phi Eta Sigma and Alpha Chi and has served as an SBU Ambassador for two years. He has served on mission projects with SBU, as well as First Baptist Church of Bolivar. Gooch obtained a highly sought after internship in Washington, D.C., with Sen. Roy Blunt. He plans to attend graduate school and eventually teach at the college level.
“He is one of the hardest-working students I have encountered in the classroom, is a student who tackled all his assignments with purpose and determination, and one who kept class discussions alive with his insightful questions and contributions,” states a nomination letter. “His gentle spirit and affable personality served him well as a study session leader for my class as students related well to his mastery of the topics and ease of interaction.”
He is the son of Curtis and Vicky Gooch of Bolivar.
The Life Beautiful Award was established in 1937 by Rosalee Mills Appleby, a career missionary to Brazil. This award is given annually to an outstanding man and woman in the Southwest Baptist University spring graduating class. These individuals have demonstrated by their scholarship and character that they are living a “life beautiful.” The faculty selects the recipients, whose identities remain confidential until commencement.
Orien B. Hendrex Award
Dr. Bob Glasgow, professor of mathematics on the Bolivar campus, received the Orien B. Hendrex Distinguished Teacher Award.
The award is presented annually to a faculty member who has been judged by the previous three years’ graduating classes to be outstanding in both teaching ability and personal guidance. The SBU Board of Trustees designated this award in memory of Hendrex, a former academic dean.
Senior speaker and musicians
Senior Kaylee Dye, who graduated with a degree in commercial art, encouraged her classmates to practice what she began a few years ago to remember moments and lessons learned at SBU – moments and lessons she will carry with her throughout her life.
“When every semester or internship would come to an end, I would look back and pick three things to condense down that I wanted to remember and implement into my life,” she said while delivering the Bob R. Derryberry Senior Address. “The first lesson I take with me is the importance of community. Another thing I’ve learned in my time at SBU is what it truly is to love others and love them when I don’t feel like it.
“Lastly, I learned to not be afraid – to not be afraid of failure, to not be afraid to be passionate, to not be afraid to stand up when the world says to sit down, and to not be afraid to take a step out into the unknown. But most important, do everything in love. Pursue your passion, love well and change the world.”
Ashley Nicole Fox, who graduated with a degree in music education, performed “Amazing Grace,” as arranged by Paul Basler, on horn and was accompanied by Zach Shelton on piano, for the senior music.
Retirement recognitions
Faculty members Wayne Clark, Curtis Goss, Dr. Martha Hicks, Dr. Kelly Martin, Linda Tappmeyer ’76, Dr. Mark Tappmeyer ’74 and Dr. Linda Wooderson ’78 were recognized for their retirements from SBU.
Clark, chair of the department of accounting and assistant professor of accounting, has taught at SBU since 1992; Goss, assistant professor of Spanish, started at SBU in 1994; Hicks, chair of the department of music and professor of music, has taught at SBU since 1997; Martin, professor of criminal justice, started teaching at SBU in 2000; Linda Tappmeyer, assistant professor of English, has taught at SBU since 1992; Mark Tappmeyer, chair of the Department of Language and Literature and professor of English, started teaching at SBU in 1979; and Wooderson, professor of physical education, has taught at SBU since 1989.
Commencement speakers
During the Bolivar undergraduate ceremony, Chad McDonald ’99, senior pastor of Lenexa Baptist Church, Lenexa, Kan., said the pursuit of success is something that people have in common, but also disagree about its definition and how it is attained.
“The Bible is plain and clear on what it means to live a successful life,” McDonald said. “Great men and women are great because they do the simple things, the basic things, and they do them well over an extended period of time.
“There is one foundational key that rises above all the others – and that one key is Christ. The Bible tells us that true, lasting and eternal success is not found in some thing. It is found in some one. And, his name is Jesus. It is impossible to have success in the life to come apart from Jesus Christ.”
McDonald also gave the graduates some simple keys to live a successful life.
“Read your Bible,” he said, citing Deuteronomy 32:47 and Psalm 19. McDonald also encouraged the graduates to “develop convictions; live with excellence; go to church; live on mission; have fun; and remember that we win.”
“No reserves. No retreats. No regrets,” McDonald said, quoting missionary William Borden. “Why? Because I can tell you this – the treasure of Jesus is greater than any treasure that this world has to offer. Pursue him.”
During the graduate ceremony, Craig Wright ’06, ’09, financial advisor with Strategic Financial Concepts, Inc., encouraged the graduates to not let life overwhelm them, but to take it one step at a time.
“You achieve the impossible when you start with one step, and then another, and then another, and then another,” Wright said. “Many of you never thought you would be here today, but here you are, and it all started with one step.
“You are the sum of your life experiences. You can do what you’ve always done, or you can choose to do something great. Live a life of significance, one step at a time.”