Cowley recognizes 84th graduating class


An estimated 280 graduates in caps and gowns participated in Cowley College’s 84th commencement exercises May 5 in W.S. Scott Auditorium.

The graduates are part of a diverse class of 660 graduates receiving their associate degree from Cowley. A reception for graduates, family members and friends was held immediately following the ceremony in the Earle N. Wright Community Room inside the Brown Center.

Along with the conferring of degrees, College alumnus J.C. Louderback was presented with this year’s Outstanding Tiger Alumni Award. Louderback, a member of the college’s Tiger Athletic Hall of Fame, is a 1954 graduate of Cowley. He is retired and lives in Arkansas City.

Marlys Cervantes, an instructor in Cowley’s Humanities Department and fourth recipient of the Endowed Chair for Teaching Excellence and Student Learning, served as the featured speaker.

Members of Cowley’s faculty were also recognized, including Pam Smith, who was presented the Paul Stirnaman Award, and Chris Cannon, Tom Mason, and JoLynne Stalnaker, who were honored in May as Excellence Award recipients at the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development in Austin, Texas.

Krista Dopfel, a sophomore biochemistry major from Belle Plaine, Kan., who served as SGA president during the 2006-2007 academic year, also addressed the audience.

Steve Butler, director of piano and theory at Cowley, performed the piano prelude along with the processional and recessional. Special music was performed by the Cowley College Concert Choir under the direction of Cowley director of vocal music, Connie Donatelli.

Spring 2007