1780 – The Official Blog of Transylvania University

1780 | The Official Blog of Transylvania University

Transylvania honors two professors and six alums with Distinguished Service and Achievement Awards during Alumni Weekend

LEXINGTON, Ky.—During Transylvania’s recent Alumni Weekend celebration, long-time professors James Miller and Richard Thompson and alumnae Betty Scrivner Lollis ‘58 and Sarah Wyatt ‘58 received the University’s Distinguished Service Award for outstanding service to Transylvania, and four alums—William Christopher Hobgood ‘58, Lee Rose ‘58, Robert P. Dillard ‘63 and Carla Roberts Whaley ‘83—received the Distinguished Achievement Award for excellence in their profession or community service.

James MillerJames Miller, professor of computer science, has been a member of the Transy faculty for 42 years and was honored for his unfaltering commitment to the students and alumni and for his service to the community. Since 1992, Miller has helped coordinate Immanuel Baptist Church’s annual construction of a Habitat for Humanity house. He also has served on the boards of the Living Arts and Science Center, Central Baptist Hospital and the Kentucky Science and Engineering Foundation.
Richard ThompsonRichard Thompson, in his dual role at Transylvania as a professor of sociology and as a dean of students, has had great influence on the lives of hundreds of students. He has also has left a mark on the Lexington community, serving with the Episcopal Diocese AIDS Ministry and as a member of the Institutional Research Committee at Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Hospital.
Betty Scrivner LollisBetty Scrivner Lollis’ service to Transylvania has taken various shapes and forms. She has served Transylvania as director of alumni and parent programs, president of the Alumni Executive Board, coordinator of the Thomas Jefferson Scholars Program, forerunner of the William T. Young Scholars Program and admissions counselor. She is a member of the Transylvania Women’s Club and has served as a member of the reunion committee for her class’s 45th and 50th reunions. Lollis has been a host of Disciples of Christ Houses at the Chautauqua Institution in New York and is a member of the International Association of Infant Massage.
Sarah WyattSarah Wyatt credits faculty and staff at Transylvania for instilling a love for lifelong learning that has enabled her to improve the quality of life in the communities in which she has lived. She completed a master’s degree in social work and worked at Eastern State Hospital prior to moving to Washington and later to Louisiana. Wyatt served on the boards of Crawley Christian Care Center, Acadia Parish Medical Auxiliary, Acadia Arts Council and Lafayette Arts Council. The Louisiana Mental Health Association presented her with the State Education Award in recognition of her work. The Crawley Business and Professional Women’s Club named her “Woman of the Year.” Now a resident of Scott County, Ky., she volunteers for the Scott County Adult Education Council, Friends of the Library Board and the Arts Consortium. She served on the Alumni Executive Board from 1991-94 and on her class reunion committee in 2003. She has been a member and leader of the Transylvania Women’s Club since 1994.
Christopher HobgoodWilliam Christopher Hobgood has served for 25 years as a pastor and 17 as a regional minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). In 2003 he was elected to a two-year term as general minister and president. Hobgood is a former regional minister of Capital Area (DOC) churches and has served as a consultant for The Alban Institute for over 17 years. He earned a master of divinity degree at Lexington Theological Seminary, a master’s equivalency at the George Washington University and a doctor of ministry from Lancaster Theological Seminary. A member and leader in numerous ecumenical and interfaith organizations, he is author of several books about ministry and congregational life including “The Once & Future Pastor” (1998) and “Welcoming Resistance” (2001). He is pastor of Bethany Beach Christian Church in Delaware.
Lee Rose’s extraordinary coaching career dates to his college days and the influence of two mentors, Harry Stephenson and C. M. Newton. Rose served Transylvania as baseball coach and assistant and head men’s basketball coach. He was named the Sporting News National Coach of the Year in 1977, after taking the University of North Carolina-Charlotte to the NCAA Division I Final Four; four years later he took Purdue to the Final Four. He coached at the University of South Florida and then was an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs, New Jersey Nets and Milwaukee Bucks. He was vice president and director of player personnel at Milwaukee, then coached the Charlotte Hornets. From 2001-07, he served as NBA consultant for the coaches of the National Basketball Development League. Today he is an assistant coach with the NBA Charlotte Bobcats. Rose is a member of the NABC Final Four Coaches’ Club. For five years, he was Florida state chairman of Special Olympics and Florida state chairman of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He is a member of Transylvania’s Athletic Hall of Fame and the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame. He has been involved in the Appalachia Middle School Program through Forward in the Fifth and has spoken to more than 10,000 youth, encouraging them to stay in school. He also wrote “The Basketball Handbook.”
Robert P. Dillard, a pediatrician with board certification in pediatric gastroenterology and nutrition, has devoted his life to improving the health of children and teaching other doctors to do the same. He currently teaches pediatrics at the University of Louisville and is a former member of the faculty at the University of Kentucky, where he received his medical degree in 1967. Following a residency, a fellowship and a two-year tour of duty in the Navy, he established a private practice in Tampa and served as associate clinical professor of pediatrics at the University of South Florida College of Medicine prior to being appointed associate director of ambulatory pediatric medicine at the East Carolina University School of Medicine in December 1977. In 1995 he moved to Pensacola where he was director of pediatric gastroenterology and nutrition at Children’s Hospital at Sacred Heart. He later joined The Nemours Children’s Clinic in Pensacola as director of pediatric gastroenterology and nutrition.
Carla Roberts Whaley is an accomplished sales/marketing executive who has committed 25 years to the health care financing field. As vice president of sales for Humana-Kentucky for the last 11 years, she has been credited with helping to position Humana, with more than 5,100 clients and 663,000 members, as the largest commercial market shareholder in Kentucky. She oversees the Commonwealth of Kentucky account, which includes 250,000 insured medical members and 35,000 spending account members, as well as the Kentucky Teachers’ Retirement System. She has achieved President’s Club status in 15 of 17 years at Humana and was nominated for the 2006 “Woman of Achievement” award, sponsored by the River City Business and Professional Women. Whaley has served on several boards and is a graduate of Leadership Louisville. She also is a Bingham Fellow, Class of 2002