Longwood Magazine | Spring 2026

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

’18

Exploring life after Longwood for alumni across generations

Halle Parker ’18

’72

We’ve had many alumni come back to us to tell us they felt prepared the second they showed up to their first jobs. They had already put their hands on equipment similar to what they’re asked to use as professionals—sometimes the exact same equipment.’

—PROF. JEFF HALLIDAY ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, COMMUNICATION STUDIES

“Putting on a Show,” Page 14

A Legacy, Expanded

Former president Dr. Janet Greenwood pledges 8-figure gift to launch academic support fund.

3

Lancers for a Day Award-winning partnership with Prince Edward Elementary turns fourth-graders into college students for a day.

4

18 The Sound of Music

Long interwoven into fabric of university, music remains core to Longwood’s academic mission and culture.

24

The Wig Master

Alum’s hairraising talents lend authenticity to Washington National Opera productions.

From the Ashes

25 years since “The Great Fire,” Longwood’s iconic dome remains beacon of campus spirit.

6

Where Are They Now?

Attorneys, educators, counselors and even brewers, Longwood alumni find their niche.

10

30 Longwood to the Legislature

Pair of alumnae elected to Virginia House of Delegates.

Putting on a Show

A look behind the camera at the students who bring Longwood to screens around the country.

14

32 Off The Clock

Alumnus and Admissions Engagement Director Aaron Sims ’17 ushering in new classes of Lancers.

On the Cover Exploring the winding pathways and diverse destinations of Longwood alumni, we take a look at where Lancers across generations have landed in the professional world. Page 10

A MAGAZINE FOR ALUMNI AND FRIENDS OF LONGWOOD UNIVERSITY

SPRING 2026

Editor Chris Cook

Graphic Design

Rachael Davis

Editor Emerita

Sabrina Brown

Associate Editors

Gina Caldwell, Dustyn Hall ’18, Matthew McWilliams, Lauren Whittington

Photographer Courtney Vogel

Contributors

Mandi Andersen ’21, M.S. ’22, Cathy McCoy Collier ’89, Terry Denton ’83, Ryan Donnell, Jordan Ellerson ’25, MBA ’27, Fian Arroyo Illustration, Charlie Fultz ’92, Mary McGregor Fields ’74, Ryan Fletcher, George Gaston ’24, Matt Graham ’03, Andrew Harnois ’21, Teddy Hodges ’85, Sam Hovan, Dwayne Jefferson ’97, Ashley Kaleta ’24, MBA ’25, Jamie Krogh ’07, Melody Crawley Margrave ’81, Parker Michels-Boyce, The Northern Virginia Daily, Amy Tardy Perez ’05, Nicole Perkins ’05, Loren Belcher Piotrowski ’94, Paula Prouty ’85, Russell Reed ’16, Christopher Siefke ’20, Dr. Mary Jo Stockton, Robert Watkins ’17, Davis Watson MBA ’22

Advisory Board

Sabrina Brown, Gina Caldwell, David Hooper ’00, Victoria Kindon, Matthew McWilliams, Nicole Perkins ’05, Justin Pope, Lauren Whittington

Board of Visitors

Ronald O. White, Rector Midlothian, Virginia

Jeffrey Nottingham, Vice Rector Raleigh, North Carolina

David Rose Richmond, Virginia

Kathleen Early ’92 Richmond, Virginia

Ian Bradley Falls Church, Virginia

Charles Fagan ’87 Manakin-Sabot, Virginia

Jacklyn McCaleb ’02 Mechanicsville, Virginia

Kristie Helmick Proctor ’04 Mechanicsville, Virginia

Kathryn Roberts ’97 South Boston, Virginia

Brian Schmalzbach Midlothian, Virginia

Raven White Dumfries, Virginia

Editorial offices for Longwood magazine are maintained at the Office of University Marketing, Communications and Engagement, Longwood University, 201 High Street, Farmville VA 23909. Telephone: 434-395-4944; email: cookcc@longwood. edu. Comments, letters and contributions are encouraged.

Printed on recycled stocks containing 100% post-consumer waste.

To request this magazine in alternate format (large print, braille, audio, etc.), please contact Longwood Accessibility Resources, 434-395-2391; TRS: 711.

FROM THE PRESIDENT

Published May 2026

Ashley Kaleta ’24, MBA ’25, with her Master of Business Administration during a degreesigning ceremony. Degree signings with the president and rector for select students are an annual tradition before commencement.

Era to era, the magic allure of Longwood is our people: our students, faculty and staff who keep campus driving with energy and enthusiasm every day—but just as importantly our alumni who hold the spirit high in their own communities. You are the reason the alma mater is strong as we head toward the beginning of our third century, in just over a decade.

It’s difficult to believe that earlier this spring we marked the 25th anniversary of the Great Fire in the Rotunda (p. 6). I remember talking to my grandmother, Marie Eason Reveley ’40, in the days that followed, and her sense of heartbreak. In the aftermath of that terrible April evening, however, the strength and resilience of Longwood shined through in powerful ways. The community rallied together, offering aid and shelter to those displaced by the fire, and President Cormier buoyed all spirits when she pledged to rebuild the Rotunda just as it was. This spring, as I’m writing this, students are walking by in graduation gowns on their way to take photos in front of our iconic building, at the heart of this place we love. I’m happy to share that we are refreshing both the dome and the interior spaces over the next several years so they gleam as brightly as ever for generations of Lancers to come.

Thinking about the effect the fire had on my grandmother, it’s a common thread among our alumni that while life and career take you from High Street, Longwood is never far from the heart, whether alumni are teachers or marketing managers or CEOs or strategists (p. 10). All of us have both shaped and been shaped by this great university. That’s worth reflecting on as we build the programs and initiatives that will shape the Longwood experience for current and future students.

Worldwide, these years since 2020 can feel like a riptide of history. With the pace of change, Longwood will no doubt have to continue to change to stay the same, creating opportunities for students to not only have the education, but also the experience to thrive in the job market (p. 14). We also have to continually create opportunities for them to shine while they are on campus, like the music students profiled in these pages (p. 18). We’re doing that, with a magnificent new music building taking real shape through next year.

The world around us is always changing. But that puts even greater importance on the things that do not—things like the Longwood spirit that has always taken root in the hearts of alumni. My grand mother’s Longwood was different from the Longwood of 2001 when the Great Fire broke out. But its essence and beauty go from age to age, with an unbreakable bond across all generations of the faithful and devoted.

Let’s continue to cherish, and cultivate, and count on that spirit—our greatest strength.

All my best,

W. Taylor Reveley IV President

Eugene Lim Wins 44th Dos Passos Prize for Literature

Boundary-pushing novelist receives Longwood’s prestigious writing award

Novelist Eugene Lim is the recipient of the 44th Dos Passos Prize for Literature, a literary award given annually by Longwood University to a talented American writer who experiments with form, explores a range of voices and merits further recognition.

Lim is best known for his novels “Search History” (2021), “Dear Cyborgs” (2017) and “The Strangers” (2013). He was selected from a shortlist of five finalists.

Lim visited Longwood’s campus this spring to receive an honorarium and medal, and share readings from his work.

“Eugene Lim’s work is completely unique in its formal innovations and its elegant yet accessible prose,” said Dr. David Magill, professor of English and chair of the Longwood Department of English and Modern Languages. “Lim manages to pack so much into every page, taking us on a wild journey of adventure with each sentence. He is breathtakingly original and a writer not to be missed.”

The John Dos Passos Prize for Literature, the oldest literary award given by a Virginia college or university, honors a writer whose work offers incisive and original insights into American themes while encompassing a wide range of human experience. The 2025 Dos Passos Prize selection jury comprised last year’s winner, novelist Angie Cruz; Rone Shavers, associate professor of English at the University of Utah; and Longwood professor of English and department chair Dr. David Magill, who serves as chair of the jury.

A Legacy, Expanded

Former president Dr. Janet Greenwood pledges 8-figure gift to launch KAE Fund

As Longwood University President from 1981-87, Dr. Janet Greenwood’s tenure was defined by her commitment to students—helping them use their voices, supporting their personal growth and professional success, and stewarding a campus culture that encouraged the values of a strong work ethic and community-mindedness, both locally and abroad, that were passed down to her by her mother, Kae.

Four decades later, Longwood’s path-breaking president from 1981 to 1987 continues shepherding those core components of the university’s longstanding mission, with a historic eight-figure donation she has pledged as part of an estate gift.

In March, Greenwood and Longwood University announced the transformational gift, which will establish the Longwood Keystones for Academic Excellence (KAE) Fund. The financial support will serve as an incubator and accelerator to launch new initiatives, expand proven ideas and respond to new opportunities to support student success and enhance Longwood’s academic reputation—two areas that were hallmarks of Greenwood’s tenure as president and remain at the core of the 186-year-old university’s mission today.

“I have trust and a belief in what Longwood has done and is able to do,” said Greenwood, who became the namesake of Longwood’s Janet D. Greenwood Library in 2004. “The KAE Fund will create opportunities for the university to continue evolving in two areas of specialty: academic excellence and excellence in student development.”

The KAE Fund, which will support both new and existing programs identified by Longwood’s leadership, also honors Greenwood’s mother, Kae Daly, a native of St. John’s, Newfoundland, whom Greenwood credits with modeling the personal values that came to define her Longwood presidency and acclaimed career.

“President Greenwood set the course for so many aspects of Longwood that we deeply cherish through all the years,” said Longwood president W. Taylor Reveley IV, who has led the institution since 2013. “This tremendous gift and her powerful legacy will continue to drive Longwood forward in the far future. It is an honor to follow in her footsteps, and such a joy to look ahead to the great good that will flow from the vision she set and from her visionary gift now.”—Chris Cook

Lancers for a Day

Award-winning collab with local elementary school puts fourth-graders in shoes of college students

The thrill of receiving mail is never lost on a 10-yearold. Especially when that mail is their first college acceptance letter.

This past March, by way of personalized letters, fourth-grade students at Prince Edward County Elementary School were “accepted” to Longwood and took part in the university’s award-winning Lancer for a Day program.

Launched in 2016, Lancer for a Day invites every fourth-grader in the neighboring Prince Edward County Public Schools division to campus for a full day’s worth of specially designed classes and programming whose aim is to expose young students in Longwood’s backyard to the college academic experience.

In short, Lancer for a Day is no ordinary field trip. Through a carefully curated schedule that has been honed over the 11 years the program has existed, Prince Edward fourth-graders take part in nearly every academic aspect of being a college student. After being “accepted,” they attend classes that range from biology to theatre, eat lunch (and dessert) in Dorrill Dining Hall, and, by the end of the day, “graduate” to become full-fledged Lancers.

“Lancer for a Day is an opportunity for Prince Edward fourth-graders to see themselves on a college campus, to feel a part of the college campus that’s in their hometown, to think about how

classes connect to careers, and to just imagine themselves as college students one day,” said Dr. Angela McDonald, dean of the College of Education, Health, and Human Services.

The program won this year’s Virginia School-University Partnership Project Award, presented by the Virginia Association of Colleges and Teacher Educators (VACTE), which recognizes collaborative projects that promote student learning, well-being and

Lancer for a Day is an opportunity for Prince Edward fourth-graders to see themselves on a college campus, to feel a part of the college campus that’s in their hometown, to think about how classes connect to careers, and to just imagine themselves as college students one day.’

—DR. ANGELA MCDONALD, DEAN OF THE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION, HEALTH, AND HUMAN SERVICES

improvement of teacher preparation. Longwood’s submission detailed the long-running program born of a collabo-

ration between the Longwood College of Education, Health, and Human Services and Prince Edward County Public Schools.

To date, Lancer for a Day has introduced more than 1,000 elementary students to Longwood’s campus and classrooms while strengthening both professional and academic pipelines with the only public school division in Farmville.

“We want to be a source of inspiration for kids in this community,” McDonald said. “To go to a K-12 school in a town that has two colleges, you shouldn’t leave without being on those campuses and without being able to identify with the college experience.”

Added Prince Edward Elementary School principal Teresa Vance M.S. ’10, who earned her Master of Education at Longwood in 2010, the five hours her students spend on Longwood’s campus can have a lifetime impact.

“For students who’ve never thought about college before, suddenly now they realize what it’s all about,” she said. “They get excited about it and realize that it’s real and it could happen to them. It makes it tangible.”—Chris Cook

More than

Mission Relevant

GEAR

UP infuses $7 million into institutional support of local schools

Improving K-12 education for students in Virginia has long been among Longwood’s most precious missions. This past fall, that institutional focus received a $7 million boost in the form of a highly competitive Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs grant, better known as GEAR UP.

Administered by the U.S. Department of Education (DOE), GEAR UP helps steward local partnerships between higher education institutions, state agencies, community organizations and K-12 schools. Already in motion on Longwood’s campus and at the 14 Virginia public school divisions that joined Longwood on the grant application, GEAR UP positions Longwood as one of three GEAR UP facilitators in Virginia, joining James Madison University and the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) in Richmond.

Farmville Civil Rights Icon

Barbara Johns’ Statue

Unveiled in U.S. Capitol

Moton Museum and Longwood celebrate national recognition of Prince Edward hero

This program, and Longwood’s involvement as a facilitator, is critical to these school districts that have very high rates of free and

reduced lunch and many, many families living in poverty.’

Through its grant facilitators, GEAR UP targets high-need K-12 schools with the goal of raising student awareness about opportunities for postsecondary education; increasing exposure to STEM-related careers; and improving student achievement in areas such as graduation rate, absenteeism and enrollment in Algebra I by ninth grade. The grant also positions Longwood to assist partner schools—which range from local Region 8 school divisions, such as Prince Edward County Public Schools, all the way to Allegheny Highlands—in implementing their own related programming, defined by each individual school and supported by Longwood.

—DR. ALIX FINK, ASSOCIATE PROVOST FOR RESEARCH AND ACADEMIC INITIATIVES

“This program, and Longwood’s involvement as a facilitator, is critical to these school districts that have very high rates of free and reduced lunch and many, many families living in poverty,” said Dr. Alix Fink, associate provost for research and academic initiatives at Longwood, who supported Dr. Paula Leach, Longwood’s director of the Institute for Teaching Through Technology and Innovative Practices (ITTIP) and K-12 outreach, in the grant application process.

“This is absolutely mission relevant for us in terms of our role in promoting prosperity in our region. We can make a difference with this program.”—Chris Cook

Longwood is now one of three GEAR UP facilitators in Virginia, receiving a $7 million grant that will benefit the university’s K-12 outreach initiatives.

Barbara Rose Johns, who led the student walk-out at Moton High School in 1951 and has since become the figurehead of the powerful civil rights story chronicled by Longwood partner Moton Museum, was posthumously honored with a bronze statue in the U.S. Capitol that was unveiled during a formal ceremony in December.

Also the namesake of Longwood’s Johns Hall residence hall, Johns’ statue is one of 100 on display in the Capitol and stands prominently in the U.S. Capitol Crypt, a vaulted, circular space in which 13 of those statues representing the 13 original colonies are on display.

For the dedication in December, representatives from Moton Museum, including executive director Cainan Townsend ’15, M.S. ’20, and Longwood University, including President W. Taylor Reveley IV, joined members of Johns’ family on site. Elected officials from Virginia and around the country also attended the ceremony, including newly elected Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger, former Governor Glenn Youngkin and House Speaker Mike Johnson.

Johns’ statue is now one of two representing Virginia in the Capitol. The other is George Washington, which was installed in 1934. Statues from other states include prominent leaders, politicians, religious figures, and trailblazers, such as pilot Amelia Earhart (Kansas), former President Ronald Reagan (California) and astronaut Jack Swigert (Colorado).

Longwood University and Moton Museum became formal partners in 2015 to preserve the museum’s site and educational mission in perpetuity. The museum, which occupies the former Moton High School building bordering the southern end of Longwood’s campus, tells the story of the school and its role in the American Civil Rights Movement.

25 Years Later

The Great Fire in Longwood’s Rotunda

A quarter-century since fire destroyed the campus icon, Longwood’s Rotunda remains a beacon of Lancer spirit

Twenty-five years ago, just after 9 p.m on April 24, 2001, flames appeared in Longwood’s Rotunda, the iconic domed building that had stood on High Street for nearly a century.

By morning the building was in ruins.

Grainger Hall was flooded with water and had significant smoke damage. Campus was devastated, but thankful that no one was hurt. The Rotunda had long been the physical and spiritual heart of campus, where generations of students had worn down the stone step at its entryway, climbed its curved staircases, attended classes, lived, met and studied under its painted dome.

Now a quarter of a century later, on the anniversary of “The Great Fire”—as the blaze became quickly known—the Rotunda continues to occupy that central place in campus life: the testament to a resilient and connected campus community who vowed to rebuild their iconic building just as it was before the fire.

“I have faith in the strength and character of this institution, and we will recover,” said then-Longwood president Dr. Patricia Cormier in an address to the Longwood community the day after the fire. “The damage is severe, but we will overcome it

The Rotunda is a special building. She has risen several times over the years and will stand far into the future as a testament to Longwood’s great spirit.’

— W. TAYLOR REVELEY IV, LONGWOOD PRESIDENT

because it is bricks and mortar. Not one student was injured, not one student died. This campus is a campus of character and you showed it in all of your glory last night. I thank you so much.”

Rise it did—a new Rotunda rebuilt as it was originally constructed just four years later, and an important legacy of Longwood was preserved—down to the angled stone step that serves as its entryway.

“President Cormier’s leadership in that moment was extraordinary,” said Longwood President W. Taylor Reveley IV. “Because of the strength and unity of purpose that she was able to summon amid so much destruction and pain, Longwood is what it is today—and a powerful symbol of the alma mater remains at the heart of all we do.”

This year, the 25th anniversary of The Great Fire, will launch the start of a yearslong project to refresh the exterior and interior of the building to ensure that its beauty is maintained for more generations to come. This summer, work will commence on refreshing the building while it continues to be used as classroom, office and meeting space for campus.

The first phase will return the dome to its original copper-clad exterior, which will over time develop a handsome patina. Additional exterior work will fix minor leaks, repair and repaint trimwork near the dome, and ensure that the building is as stately as it was when it was first designed and constructed more than 120 years ago.

Following the exterior work, the main lobby will receive new carpeting, paint, and become home to an extensive silver collection bequeathed in 2024 to the Longwood Center for the Visual Arts by collector Jack Blanton, which will be displayed in cases throughout the Rotunda. At the same time, classroom spaces will be improved with furniture and paint. Interior work will take place over the next several years.

“The Rotunda is a special building,” Reveley said. “She has risen several times over the years and will stand far into the future as a testament to Longwood’s great spirit.”

“It’s hard to overstate what this building means to campus,” said Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Larissa Smith, whose office is on the first floor of the building. “Almost every student who graduates from Longwood walks these halls or takes a course in one of its classrooms. In many ways it is the beating heart of campus. The legacy of the fire has become one of a great sense of community and resilience at Longwood that lasts today.”—Matt McWilliams

Record Philanthropy Fuels

Longwood’s Future

Historic year of giving delivers unprecedented support for initiatives at the heart of Longwood

The results speak for themselves: a record $29 million in giving. Four new campus, community and scholarship initiatives funded by philanthropic support from alumni and friends. And a record-setting Homecoming & Alumni Weekend that marked the largest alumni gathering in university history.

By all measures, the Longwood community sent a beaming signal during the 2026 fiscal year that Lancers are connected, thriving and united in support of a historic institutional mission that has endured for nearly two centuries.

Longwood shattered its previous fundraising record for total raised, doing so on the strength of more than 2,700 individual donors—also another new benchmark. Those contributions have created new programs that will bolster citizen-leader-minded programs, such as the Keystones for Academic Excellence (KAE) Fund, and strengthened existing ones, such as the BowmanAshby Scholars program.

“Year in and year out, the Longwood community never fails to demonstrate their support of our institutional mission through philanthropy and involvement, but this year that support reached another level,” said Courtney Hodges, Longwood vice president for institutional advancement.

“And while the amount raised will likely draw the most attention, the real impact is in what those gifts will fund. All of these initiatives lean into priorities that Longwood has long championed, from educational outreach in our surrounding

community to academic and financial support for our current and future students. We’re grateful to our donors not just for their support, but for validating the impact Longwood has had on alumni across generations and community members who continue to engage with our university.”

HIGHLIGHTS FROM FY2026:

• Record-breaking annual fundraising total of $29 million

• More than 2,700 individual donors

• 6,200+ gifts under $1,000 totaling more than $480,000

• Creation of 30 new endowed scholarships as part of Family of Scholarships 2.0 program

• New endowments of eight professorships

• Launch of Ready the Roster 24-hour giving campaign

• Record attendance at 2025 Homecoming & Alumni Weekend

• For the Blue and White Society (athletics) membership reaches 30 individuals

MAJOR GIFTS

• Keystones for Academic Excellence (KAE) Fund: Funded by an 8-figure gift from former Longwood president Dr. Janet Greenwood, the KAE Fund will serve as an incubator and accelerator to launch new initiatives, expand proven ideas and respond to new opportunities to support student success and enhance Longwood’s academic reputation.

• The Jones Center for P-12 Outreach: Funded by a $2 million gift from Mike and Tammy Jones ’81, the Jones Center will strengthen Longwood’s connections with local PreK-12 schools, benefitting both Longwood students on the cusp of beginning teaching careers and students who live and learn in the communities surrounding campus.

• The Bowman-Ashby Scholars Program: Funded by a $1 million gift from William Bowman and Shirley Ashby, in tribute to Bowman’s late mother, Anne Kelly Bowman ’39, the Bowman-Ashby Scholars Program will support five scholarships for graduate students seeking to advance their studies in educational leadership.

• The Honors Opportunities for Leadership Transformation (HOLT) Fund: Funded by a $1 million gift from Linda K. Holt, in honor of her late parents, Silas and Emma Holt, The HOLT Fund will support K-12 leadership curriculum development relevant to civics and other areas that tie into Longwood’s Civitae Core Curriculum.

Additionally, in a uniquely Longwood twist, the fundraising success is powered by more than major gifts. More than 6,200 of the donations received in 2025-26 were less than $1,000 but totaled more than $480,000. Those contributions were sparked by a series of micro-giving campaigns, including Longwood’s Annual Day of Giving and the inaugural Ready the Roster 24-hour giving campaign.

Additionally, the third annual Homecoming & Alumni Weekend drew another record crowd and a sellout basketball weekend that provided back-to-back Lancer wins. The event, which launched in 2023, has grown in not only attendance but scope as well, expanding to include a full weekend’s worth of events, including a pep rally, basketball tailgates, class reunions, distribution of the coveted Longwood scarves and more.

UPHILL WINNING AN

Record-setting Longwood cross country star conquers disability and record books

BY CHRIS COOK

At this point, sophomore Sophie Farley ’28 is setting a record for setting records.

Just two years into what is already an illustrious athletic career, Longwood’s cross country and track ace owns more school records than any runner in program history. That includes multiple records of her own that she has broken and re-broken, as well as new standards for the university’s newly added track and field program that debuted in 2024.

But for all the miles Farley has logged on her way to rewriting the record books, and for all the competitors her unyielding pace has left in her wake, there’s another driver behind her dominance. Because no matter how challenging the course she’s racing, she has navigated an even tougher road since before she could even walk.

Born with a brain condition known as polymicrogyria (PMG), Farley came into the world running uphill. Caused by abnormal brain development before birth, PMG can affect everything from swallowing and vision to coordination and mobility.

“You can lose your speech, or it can make you unable to walk,” Farley said. “When I was younger, even my doctor said I might not even be able to talk, but here I am running and giving an interview.”

After overcoming a brain condition from birth, sophomore Sophie Farley ’28 is on her way to becoming the most decorated runner in Longwood history.

That said, Farley’s road to success was not what runners would classify as an “easy run.” As a child, she was a late walker and a late talker. She underwent intense speech therapy and was physically unable to take part in many activities with her peers. Still, she persevered. Over time her speech improved, and one day an impromptu challenge during a middle school recess opened an entirely new world to her.

“When I was in sixth grade, we were out on a track and this kid wanted to race somebody,” she recalled. “Everyone just thought he was going to beat everybody, but I said, ‘You know what? I’ll give it a shot.’ My PE teacher timed us separately in the [400-meter race], and I beat him. He said, ‘Sophie, you’re fast. You should run track.’ I didn’t even know running track was a thing.”

By seventh grade, Farley was a fullfledged track star, and she’s been running ever since. At Fluvanna High School in her hometown of Palmyra, Virginia, she became an All-American in the 800-meter and helped her 4x800-meter relay team win a state title. She was an all-state selection in six different events and drew the attention of Longwood director of cross country and track and field Brooke Craig.

Craig notes that while Farley’s high school times were comparable to other student-athletes she was recruiting, she demonstrated an intangible that has become a hallmark of her racing style: grit. “If you’re going to beat Sophie, she’s going to make you,” Craig said. “And she’s going to make you work very, very hard to do that. She’s not afraid to push herself and put herself in it.”

Amplified by growing up with four brothers—all of whom played hockey— Farley’s grit has taken her and the Lancers far, and quickly. In her first collegiate race as a freshman in 2024, she broke Longwood’s 19-year-old 4K cross country record. By her fifth race, she broke Longwood’s 5K record. Now a sophomore, Farley holds all three of Longwood’s major cross country records—6K, 5K and 4K— and multiple track records. This past fall, she became the first Lancer to medal at the Big South Cross Country Championship, placing third in the 76-runner field while breaking her own 5K record yet again. And according to Craig, Farley still has room to grow. She has added weightlifting to her training regimen and is working

In just her second time at the event, Sophie Farley became the first Longwood

to gradually increase her weekly running volume, which already exceeds 50 miles. And as she keeps knocking down her running goals at a record pace, she has her sights set on an even bigger one in the future: competing in the 2028 Summer Paralympic Games in Los Angeles.

“With my disability, it’s been one of my goals to compete in the Olympics or Paralympics,” said Farley, who is also working toward a career as a middle- or high-school physical education teacher. “It’s a way to show people with a disability that they can do great things.”

Getting there is not just a pipe dream, either.

Qualified for the Paralympic Games due to her PMG disability, Farley is already running at a medal pace. She’s aiming to compete in the 1,500- or 5,000-meter track events, and her top times—also school records—would already have earned her a silver-medal finish in the most recent 5,000-meter at the World Para Championships.

Dr. Tim Coffey recognized as NCAA DI Faculty Athletics Rep of the Year

Longwood University’s Dr. Tim Coffey was named the Faculty Athletics Representative Association’s (FARA) 2025 NCAA Division I Faculty Athletics Representative (FAR) of the Year—a prestigious national honor that recognizes the critical role he plays advocating on behalf of student-athletes.

Coffey has served as Longwood’s FAR since the 2018-19 academic year, a role in which he serves as a liaison between Longwood’s Division I athletics department and the university, and as a representative of the institution in conference and NCAA affairs.

Sophie Farley (middle, #190) has elevated Longwood’s cross country and track programs in just two years as a Lancer.

If you’re going to beat Sophie, she’s going to make you ... work very, very hard to do that. She’s not afraid to push herself and put herself in it.’

—Brook Craig, director of cross country and track and field

“From the first time I sent her a training plan, it was clear that Sophie cares about this and sets big goals,” Craig said. “She’s already achieved almost every one of those she set. We’re still trying to figure out her ceiling.”

At this rate, Farley may not find that ceiling any time soon. But she will certainly find plenty more records to chase along the way.

“Dr. Coffey has been instrumental to our studentathletes’ success, inspiring them to meet and exceed expectations both in the classroom and in competition,” said Tim Hall, Longwood vice president for intercollegiate athletics. “Longwood is truly fortunate to have a leader who champions a culture of support, accountability and academic excellence— one that elevates our Lancers in every part of their college journey.”

Coffey previously worked in student affairs before moving to the academic side of college life as a faculty member. He said one of the main reasons he relishes his FAR role is that he gets to work with student-athletes.

“This award is a meaningful affirmation from my peers that championing student-athletes and their academic experience is a core duty for FARs, no matter the setting,” Coffey said. “The FAR role is uniquely fulfilling because student-athletes are always the focal point—from their experiences in the locker room and competitive arenas to their academic journeys.”

Longwood’s student-athletes have a strong track record of excelling in the classroom as well as on the field and court. In the past decade, four of the university’s valedictorians have been student-athletes,

Kathryn J. Laffey Montgomery ’78

Partner, WhitbeckBeglis law firm

Major: Social work Location: Wilmington, Delaware

Vice President of IT Business Services, USAA

Head Women’s Soccer Coach, Longwood University

Major: Physical education Location: Farmville, Virginia

Executive Director, Moton Museum

Major: Liberal studies & counselor education

Location: Farmville, Virginia

WHERE ARE THEY

NOW?

From Virginia’s classrooms to Yankee Stadium, Longwood grads are blazing trails everywhere

BY CHRIS COOK

With degree in hand, the pathways that await Longwood graduates are infinite. Some lead to a long-sought destination, while others wind to unplanned locations. Where one graduate may steadfastly tread a singular road for their entire career, another may free-spiritedly wander branching paths in pursuit of what life may bring.

And for all the pomp and circumstance that accompanies the dozen steps it takes a Longwood student-turned-alumni to cross the graduation stage, the steps they take after receiving their degrees should be equally observed and celebrated.

For nearly two centuries, Longwood graduates have navigated the diverging roads of life to fruitful and fulfilling careers, chasing dreams both long held and newly discovered. Some have made direct and frequent use of the knowledge they acquired in classrooms, while others have drawn on intangibles gained from a liberal arts education—such as adaptability, critical thinking and a penchant for learning—to blaze their own unique trail.

In this collection, we spotlight dozens of Longwood graduates from various decades, areas of study and professions to demonstrate the diverse passions pursued by our alumni and the pathways unlocked by a Longwood degree. Some of these alumni found careers directly related to their majors, while others found their final destinations in surprising fields decades later.

All, however, began their journeys by taking the same dozen steps across Longwood’s graduation stage.

Dr. Hollie MacDonald ’16

Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice Studies, Longwood University

Major: Psychology

Location: Farmville, Virginia

Becky Schnekser ’05, M.S. ’06

Assistant Professor of Elementary Education, University of Akron

Major: Liberal studies

Location: Akron, Ohio

Jhonnatan Medina-Alvarez ’21 Global Brand Advisor, NOX Sport Professional Pickleball Player, NOX

Major: Business administration

Location: Richmond, Virginia

Location: Richmond, Virginia

Paloma Alatorre ’17

Media Services Manager, FIFA World Cup 2026

Major: Business administration

Location: Miami, Florida

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Director

Major: Business administration

Hon. Bonnie Davis ’71

Judge (retired) of Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court, Commonwealth of Virginia

Major: English

Location: Chesterfield, Virginia

Dr.

Director of Athlete Mental Health and Sports Performance, Jacksonville University

Major: Sociology and mental health counseling

Location: Jacksonville, Florida

Dr. Jeffrey Abernathy ’85

President Emeritus and Professor of English, Alma College Major: English Location: Alma, Michigan

Amy McClain Ferrell ’86

Project Administrator, Delta Airport Consultants, Inc.

Major: Business Location: Midlothian, Virginia

Travis Lyles ’15

Director of Social Media, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Major: Communication studies Location: Atlanta, Georgia

Elizabeth Stanton Kostelny ’81

CEO (retired), Preservation Virginia

Art education Location: Richmond, Virginia

Jordan Miles ’10

Health and Aging and Local Government Policy Expert

Former Chairman of Board of Supervisors, Buckingham County

Major: History and political science

Location: Alexandria, Virginia

Dana Joss ’20, MBA ’21

Real Estate Attorney, Williams Mullen Major: History Location: Virginia Beach, Virginia

Chris Mitchell ’91

Head Equestrian Coach, Washington and Lee University

Major: Marketing Location: Lexington, Virginia

Kelsey McDonald ’15

Senior Manager/Strategy & Business Intelligence, New York Yankees

Adjunct Professor of Sports Analytics, St. John’s University

Major: Business administration

Location: Bronx, New York

Taylor Jennings Martin ’21

Evidence Technician, Nelson County Sheriff’s Office

and criminal

ESPN+ crew member and Longwood sophomore Jesse Turner ’28 goes through a pregame equipment check before the start of a Longwood lacrosse broadcast.

PUTTING SHOWON A

Longwood’s student-run ESPN+ crew brings Lancer athletics to audiences around the country

BY CHRIS COOK

IT’S ONE HOUR TO TIPOFF, and McKayla Moxcey ’26

sits in front of a brightly lit keyboard in the Joan Perry Brock Center’s broadcast studio. Through a bulky headset, she directs one of her camera operators to fine-tune his framing: Zoom out slightly. Pan right just a hair.

On a set of large television screens in front of her, the camera immediately adjusts to give a wider shot of the basketball court where the Longwood women’s team will soon face off against Big South Conference rival Winthrop.

“I’m a little nervous,” Moxcey whispers to the fellow ESPN+ crew member sitting to her right. >>

From left to right, Jose Ramos Flores ’26, McKayla Moxcey ’26 and Director of Video Operations Brandon Fenters ’21 run through final preparations before the start of a Longwood women’s basketball broadcast on ESPN+.

Location:

Location:

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Despite that confession, Moxcey’s nerves aren’t evident. They are, however, warranted: It’s her first time directing a Longwood basketball broadcast that will stream live to thousands of viewers through ESPN’s global online streaming service.

As soon as the game begins, though, Moxcey and her crew seamlessly slip into a highly coordinated operation they’ve executed dozens of times before—the only difference this time being Moxcey’s debut in the director’s chair. Cameras track the action on the court, the replay operator clips highlights, and Moxcey works her keyboard with the dexterity of a pianist, changing camera angles and adding graphic overlays to a broadcast that puts Longwood’s powerhouse women’s basketball team on screens around the country.

want to enter the broadcasting profession.

“I see students do what I did: They come in, they don’t know what they’re doing at first, and then the bug bites them,” said Brandon Fenters ’21, Longwood’s director of video operations and a former student member of the ESPN+ crew he now directs.

“I came in just approaching it as something I was required to do for a grade,” he recalled. “But once I was there, I was really intrigued by the board, the graphics and the replay machine. I immediately said I want to do that. After my third game, I was in the booth and I didn’t leave.”

Christian Fox ’17 Transmissions Engineer, NASCAR Productions

Major: Communication studies

Location: Concord, North Carolina

Autumn Childress ’18

News Reporter, WRICABC 8

Major: Communication studies

Location: Richmond, Virginia

Brandon Fenters ’21

Director of Video Operations, Longwood University

Major: Communication studies

Location: Farmville, Virginia

Outside of the final score and the dominant performance that led the Lancers to yet another win, the most impressive aspect of the broadcast is that the crew who made it happen is composed almost entirely of Longwood students.

As a member of the Big South Conference, Longwood produces more than 80 games annually on ESPN+, the subscription-based streaming service created by “The Worldwide Leader in Sports.” Utilizing modern cameras and broadcast equipment, including the JPB’s state-of-the-art studio, Longwood’s student-run broadcasts receive high marks from Big South Conference evaluators.

And just as the ESPN+ partnership has increased the exposure of Longwood through its Division I athletics teams, so, too, has it served as a launchpad for Lancer students who

Now as a full-time Longwood staff member, Fenters not only coordinates the production of Longwood’s home broadcasts every year, he also trains students on everything from how to frame their shots to how to direct entire games. He’s a mentor who bridges what students in his broadcast crew learn in the classroom and how they can apply it to the often unpredictable, real-world setting of a live broadcast.

“One thing I tell my students is there’s no learning on the job for the unemployed,” said Jeff Halliday, Longwood associate professor of communication studies. “If you’re choosing to hire a recent graduate who didn’t do live broadcasts versus one who has worked dozens of ESPN+ broadcasts over several years, which are you going to hire? Sometimes that experience speaks volumes beyond a GPA.”

a camera tripod during the pregame setup before a Longwood softball broadcast.

Halliday has long been a driving force for student involvement with ESPN+ and credits numerous university partners, including the athletics department, for providing outlets that allow students to apply what they learn in the classroom to real-world settings. Those partnerships have created a pipeline that has launched Longwood graduates into careers in broadcasting, from professional sports to local news, thanks to their early exposure to the world of 4K cameras, switchboards, encoders and more.

(above) Directing a lacrosse game from Longwood’s mobile broadcast studio, McKayla Moxcey ’26 works three screens and a TriCaster switchboard.

“Our students have demonstrated over almost 20 years now that they have the capacity to step into those roles and be successful,” Halliday said. “We’ve had

many alumni come back to us to tell us they felt prepared the second they showed up to their first jobs. They had already put their hands on equipment similar to what they’re asked to use as professionals—sometimes the exact same equipment.”

Our students have demonstrated over almost 20 years now that they have the capacity to step into those roles and be successful. We’ve had many alumni come back to us to tell us they felt prepared the second they showed up to their first jobs.’

—Jeff Halliday, Associate Professor of Communication Studies

Many of Longwood’s ESPN+ “alumni” are now part of broadcasting teams at organizations like NASCAR, regional news outlets around Virginia and even college athletics departments like Longwood.

“You can’t really replicate in a classroom setting what you experience live,” said Jose Ramos Flores ’26, who has been

part of the ESPN+ crew since his freshman year. “There’s a pressure to it. When I’m doing graphics, if the score or fouls are off by one, I know somebody out there is going to notice. If I’m on camera and my shot isn’t framed right, that impacts what the viewers see. If I’m calling a game and I say the wrong information, people notice.”

A four-year ESPN+ veteran, Ramos Flores is holding fast to his dream of becoming a basketball commentator, specifically for his favorite NBA team, the Chicago Bulls. And in addition to building a portfolio he hopes will one day get him there, he works regularly with professional broadcaster Sam Hovan, Longwood’s director of athletics communications and voice of the Lancers. That relationship has shown Ramos Flores how to prepare for games, share his insights in a way that enhances a broadcast, and deal with the unpredictability of a live show.

“You can’t predict what will happen during a live broadcast,” he said. “Things will go wrong, but you’re live, so you have to keep going. Learning patience and calm in the face of a crisis is crucial.”

Those are all lessons Longwood faculty like Halliday integrate into their syllabi, but it’s not until students are faced with those crises in a real-world setting that the lessons become cemented.

“I truly believe the best way to learn is to get thrown into the fire,” Fenters said. “For me, I looked at ESPN+ as a key that would open a door for me, and it’s done that for many of our students, too, be it something in sports or news or film or really anywhere. If you can hang in sports production, you can hang in pretty much anything.”

(top to bottom) Noah Hodges ’29, Miyah Speller ’26 and Johnniel Santiago-Barnes ’28 represent the diverse musical talents, interests and aspirations within Longwood’s music department.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Devon Shifflett ’24

Instructor of Music, Hampden-Sydney College

Major: Music education/piano

Location: Farmville, Virginia

Culture of camaraderie and inclusivity defines music department and music’s impact on campus

BY SABRINA BROWN

Jackie Stem Scott ’10

Elementary music specialist, Emerick Elementary School, Loudoun County

Singer and guitarist, Karma Creak bluegrass band

Major: Music education/flute

Location: Loudon County, Virginia

Derek Ramsey ’06

Director of Bands and Orchestra, Mills E. Godwin High School

Major: Music education/ saxophone

Location: Henrico, Virginia

Collaborative, friendly, supportive, close-knit.

That’s how current music majors, alumni and faculty describe Longwood’s music program. For those outside the world of advanced music education, that description may not seem unusual—but it is. Often music programs at the college level, especially those at music conservatories, are ultracompetitive and stress-inducing.

“During my college search, I toured one of the large schools in Virginia and visited the music department there. All of the students just looked miserable,” said Noah Hodges ’29, a violinist and music education major at Longwood who also plans to major in performance. “That experience was like turning out the lights. It was not a place I wanted to be.”

By comparison, Hodges said he has found Longwood’s program

“challenging—but it’s more like a comfortable challenge. I chose Longwood because I knew I would have a personalized education. You get to know the faculty on a one-on-one level, and they are there for you.”

Johnniel Santiago-Borges ’28, a clarinetist and music performance major, agrees.

“At Longwood, the challenge is more within yourself. You’re battling with yourself to get where you want to be rather than battling other students,” he said.

“Students getting to know their professors is really big here. We’re able to learn more because we know them so well.”

Says Longwood professor of piano and music department chair Dr. Lisa Kinzer, that culture of collaboration and accessibility not only boosts the experience of Longwood’s music students, it supports the holistic academic mission of the department.

“We are trying to educate music majors to be solid musicians with skills on their primary instrument as well as in music theory, music literature and music history,” she said. “And we work

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

boost in the form of a new, state-of-the-art building that will include classrooms, multiuse rehearsal and recital spaces, and a 500-seat concert hall.

Ben Tufts ’99, whose primary instrument is drumset, leveraged his music education to found Vanguard Arts Center, a music school in Chantilly, Virginia. About 20 teachers, including Tufts, provide instruction in more than 10 instruments, songwriting and production at the center, as well as recording services.

“Teaching is incredibly rewarding

hard to help them parlay those skills into whatever area they choose.”

Those areas of choosing range from education to performing and even entrepreneurship—through private lessons or opening full-on music studios. By graduation, Longwood’s music students have not only expanded their acumen and ability, they have performed in ensembles and, if desired, practiced as educators.

In its longtime home in Wygal Hall, the music department’s culture of collaboration and accessibility has been a significant driver of student success. But soon the program will receive a transformative

Teaching is incredibly rewarding because I often get to work with a student from the first time they hit a drum— sometimes until they go off to college.’

— BEN TUFTS ’99

because I often get to work with a student from the first time they hit a drum—sometimes until they go off to college,” he said.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Ben Titus ’06

Director of Instrumental

Music and Artistic

Director, Milwaukee School of Languages

Bass Guitarist, Pretty When She’s Angry, Milwaukee Alpenblaser and other bands

Major: Music education/ clarinet

Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin

HEAR SOLOS BY – Soprano Miyah Speller ’26 – Violinist Noah Hodges ’29

Clarinetist Johnniel Santiago-Borges ’28 and the premiere of the new edition of Colonnade by composer Rob Blankenship ’00

Todd Tinsley ’00

Band and Orchestra

Director, Glen Allen High School

Major: Music education/ trombone

Location: Henrico County, Virginia

Ben Tufts ’99

Owner and Director of Education, Vanguard Art Center

Bass Guitarist, GXB

Major: Music education/ drumset

Location: Chantilly, Virginia

“The influence you have on a person’s life when you hang out with them once a week for that long is immeasurable.”

Comparatively, flutist Jackie Stem Scott ’10 has pursued both teaching, as a music teacher at Emerick Elementary School in Loudon County Public Schools, and performing, as a guitarist and singer in the bluegrass band Karma Creak. One of her first claims to fame as a musician was winning Battle of the Bands as a solo act when she was a Longwood student.

“With both my band and in my classroom I try to prioritize the joyousness of the experience rather than hyperfocus on technicalities,” she said.

Prioritizing the joy of music education is also a tenet of Longwood’s program, supported in part by another keystone of the program afforded to music majors and nonmajors alike: the numerous ensemble opportunities

created and stewarded by music faculty. From longstanding choirs like Camerata Singers to instrumental groups like Jazz

Performing with the orchestra was thrilling and very inspiring. The professors have challenged me to work harder, and that has helped me become a better singer and a better musician overall.’

— MIYAH SPELLER ’26

Ensemble and Wind Symphony, and even the Stampede Pep Band that plays

at Longwood athletics events, those opportunities—some of them audition based—allow music majors and nonmajors to hone their abilities and earn valuable performance experience.

It was during one of those opportunities that senior Miyah Speller ’26, a music performance and music education major, showcased her talents by winning Longwood’s annual concerto competition. She performed the soprano aria “O mio babbino caro” from the Puccini opera Gianni Schicchi in a concert with the combined Wind Symphony and Chamber Orchestra.

“Performing with the orchestra was thrilling and very inspiring,” she said. “The professors have challenged me to work harder, and that has helped me become a better singer and a better musician overall.”

Likewise, Hodges, the violinist, has benefited in a very tangible way from how well Longwood music faculty know their students. His violin instructor, Dr. Emily Ilyes, who also is the director of the Chamber Orchestra, connected him with a foundation that lends fine string instruments to promising young players who could not afford to buy one. For Hodges that is an 1897 French violin. Ilyes also worked with the foundation to make an 1885 Italian violin available for violin majors who outgrow their personal instruments.

“Dr. Ilyes was there when I played that violin for the first time,” said Hodges. “It brought tears to my eyes, and she said it was like hearing a different voice speak.”

The Wig Master

1970s

Martha Brown Somers ’79 retired from Loudoun County Public Schools in August 2023 after serving 25 years as a business teacher. She and her husband, Bob, moved to Charlottesville and have since enjoyed caring for their grandchildren in retirement. Her son, John Somers ’18, married a fellow Longwood alum, Ryan Carey Somers ’19, and the couple lives in Richmond. John is an analyst for Citizens Bank, and Ryan is in pharmaceutical sales.

1980s

In retirement, Melody Crawley Margrave ’81 has become involved in the local arts community near her home in Henry County, Virginia. A former English major, she volunteers at a local art museum, is an active member of the Piedmont Arts Guild (PAG) and was recently named to the Piedmont Arts Board of Directors. She currently heads PAG’s Teen Arts Council.

Terry Denton ’83 spent a fulfilling career as a biochemist before pivoting to a new passion in retirement. The double-major in biology and chemistry authored a book of poetry, published through WestBow Press, titled “Homeward: Musings on Just Passing Through.” Per Denton, “It is a collection of poetry I’ve written over the years, along with relevant observations and background. Life can be hard. I put myself ‘out there’ in hopes that it helps people going through the ups and downs we all experience.” The collection is available for purchase from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and WestBow Press.

SEND US YOUR CLASS notes. If you have any news from your professional or personal life, we’d love to hear about it. Please email the details to us at alumni@longwood.edu Remember to give us your full name, the year you graduated and the degree you received.

Mini reunion. Returning to Longwood 50 years after they lived together in Curry Hall, Vicki Jones Baldwin ’75, Mary McGregor Fields ’74, Ellie Becker McDaniel ’73 and Riki Sanders Stone ’74 reunited on campus this past fall. The quartet lived together on the second floor of the high rise on what was then the Delta Zeta sorority floor. They reunited during their 50-year reunion at Longwood’s annual Homecoming & Alumni Weekend.

Cathy McCoy Collier ’89 authored a selfhelp journal titled “Braver Than I Knew: A 52-Week Prayer Journal for Women Navigating Divorce and New Beginnings.” A former Longwood Ambassador, Collier notes that the work “was inspired by my own experience starting over after divorce at age 58 and is designed to offer encouragement, reflection and faith-based support for women facing new beginnings.” A special education major at Longwood, Collier is a reading specialist who has published numerous works and served as president of the Virginia State Literacy Association.

1990s

Allen ‘Gilligan’ Beland ’92 has enjoyed numerous pursuits since his time on campus. An art education major, he earned an MFA from VCU and served as an adjunct faculty member in VCU’s photography department. He was a professional biomedical photographer with the Medical College of Virginia while also launching his own freelance photojournalism business. Additionally, he raced mountain bikes at the semi-pro level, taught photography at Yorktown High School in Arlington until retiring in 2023, and is currently a riverboat captain for the Potomac Riverboat Company where he helms sightseeing cruises. He notes that he still hasn’t been shot out of a cannon in the circus yet but that there is still time.

Charlie Fultz ’92 was named the 2025 recipient of the Leo Feser Journalism Award. The honor, selected by his peers, is given annually to a Golf Course Superintendent Association of America (GCSAA) member for the best superintendent-written article in Golf Course Management magazine. Fultz’s article, “Help Wanted,” focused on his journey to finding mental wellness and self-being in turbulent times. The article promotes seeking help from peers, friends and colleagues to help navigate life’s ups and downs. It was his second Feser Journalism Award, the first of which he won in 2005. A former physical education major and sports editor for The Rotunda, he is current-

ly the general manager and golf course superintendent at the Heritage Oaks Golf Course in Harrisonburg, Virginia.

Maj. Gen. John Rafferty ’92 was appointed Chief of Staff for the U.S. European Command in July 2025. Rafferty enlisted in the Army in 1987 before attending Longwood and went on to major in history.

LONGWOOD’S 1 HOUR

A MONTH program is a volunteer experience designed for alumni and friends. You’ll be rewarded with exclusive Longwood swag depending on your level of participation. Find out more at go.longwood. edu/1hour.

Dr. Indira Etwaroo ’94 was highlighted in The Network Journal’s “People on the Move in Entertainment and Education” feature in November 2025. The music education major serves as the CEO and artistic director for Harlem Stage, a performing arts center in Harlem that aims to empower artists of color. Prior to stepping in to run Harlem Stage in July 2024, Etwaroo was the director at the Steve Jobs Theater, an underground auditorium at Apple Park in Cupertino, California.

Loren Belcher Piotrowski ’94 is an eighthgrade English teacher and a proud Lancer legacy parent. Her son, Jacob Piotrowski ’29 is a sophomore at Longwood majoring in communication studies. She notes that she has enjoyed the nostalgia sparked by her son’s experiences at events and activities on campus.

Dwayne Jefferson ’97 was named principal at Kadena Elementary School in Okinawa, Japan, which is part of the United States Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) school system. A business administration major, Jefferson began his career in the Virginia public school system, where he was named teacher of the year at Woodville Elementary School in Richmond City Public Schools and a top-10 finalist for RCPS’ district-wide teacher of the year award. He joined DoDEA in 2014 and has spent more than a decade as a teacher and school administrator on United States Armed Forces bases in Japan. (continued on Page 25)

Bonded in blue. Five Longwood alumnae who bonded as members of the Lancer lacrosse team have maintained a deep friendship for more than four decades. Mariana Johnson Boska ’85, Sue Groff Costa ’86, Teresa Alvis Given ’86, Tammy Marshall ’86 and Ellen Cykowksi Sortore ’85 first met in 1983 and still gather periodically to celebrate their relationship. Most recently, the group met at Sortore’s home in New Hampshire and hiked the picturesque peaks of the region.

Hair Affair

Alumna

Samantha Wootten ’00 finds niche as wig master of Washington National Opera

Yak hair, cashmere or human hair?

Chances are that question is routine only for Samantha Wootten ’00 and others working in the same career.

Wootten is a wig master, the person responsible for designing, creating, fitting, styling and maintaining wigs, hairpieces and facial hair for theater and opera productions.

Over the last 24 years, she has put her somewhat unusual skills to work for several theater and opera companies, including the Washington National Opera (WNO), where she currently works, and the Los Angeles Opera—both considered top 10 U.S. opera companies.

She loves her work, but it’s not exactly what she had in mind when she came to Longwood. She initially dreamed of becoming an actor, but it quickly became clear that wasn’t the perfect role for her, so she found other ways to remain involved in Longwood theatre.

“I loved the process of it and the people. I looked for a niche,” she said. “I built sets. I did costumes. I did hair and makeup.”

How do you make the director and the designer feel heard and still produce an authentic look that keeps everybody feeling solid?”

Wootten added that the courses she took for her special education minor at Longwood help her navigate that aspect of the job. “You look for ways to communicate so that people feel safe and that they can understand. Those techniques can help you navigate what can be a highly emotional moment.”

As to her own emotions, Wootten finds joy and fulfillment in helping bring characters to life through the creativity of wig design. Her favorite creative challenge so far was a production of The Ghosts of Versailles staged by the Glimmerglass Festival, an opera company in Cooperstown, New York. The opera is set in an afterlife existence of the Versailles court of Louis XVI.

One thing you have to understand about hair and makeup is that it’s incredibly personal.’

— SAMANTHA WOOTTEN ’00

Wootten also switched her major to English, thinking she would become a teacher. During her student teaching, her roommate saw a poster for a hair and makeup design program at the University of Cincinnati and encouraged her to apply.

“I told her they were never going to talk to me,” said Wootten— but they did. She earned her master’s degree in theatrical design and production from Cincinnati in 2002 and immediately landed a position as wig master with the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis.

That’s when her real education in the day-to-day challenges of creating wigs and other hairpieces for performers began—and it didn’t have anything to do with yak hair vs. human hair. Or with the 60 to 80 hours of tying hairs one by one onto a lace cap, which is what it takes to make just one full wig.

“The biggest challenge was people skills,” said Wootten. “One thing you have to understand about hair and makeup is that it’s incredibly personal. How do you make your performers feel safe?

Washington National Opera wig master Samantha Wootten ’00 puts as much as 80 hours of work into a single wig.

“It spans multiple time periods, and it challenged me to think outside the box a lot. The elite female in the opera is Marie Antoinette, which makes it fun,” said Wootten. (Imagine sky-high white wigs with multiple layers of curls.) “They were made of yak hair, which is something we use frequently, especially if we’re making a white wig or need white for aging.”

Wootten prefers to work with natural hair—most often human hair, though cashmere and mohair, which come from specific breeds of goats, also work well in some cases. And sometimes synthetic hair is best, especially for wigs that are “super structural and crazy,” she said.

And why not use the performers’ own hair? “It takes more time and effort to style someone’s own hair than a wig. I can style and put a wig on someone in 15 minutes.”

Whatever production she’s working on, there’s a basic tenet of wig making that she keeps top of mind.

“I got told early on that you never want your wigs to be mentioned in reviews—unless they are extremely exaggerated in some way. The audience is just supposed to see people on stage telling a story.”—Sabrina Brown

Michele Noell Richardson ’99 recently accepted the position of administrative coordinator for the Office of Continuing Professional Development at Carilion Clinic in Roanoke, Virginia. She was a visual performing arts major at Longwood.

2000s

Trish Broome ’01 signed a contract to publish her first standalone collection of poetry, titled “Nine Months of Kimchi and Crying,” through Finishing Line Press. Per the book’s synopsis, “Broome takes readers on a heartfelt journey focused on loss, grief, motherhood and culture. Through firsthand experiences and detailed memories, Broome details the deeply emotional nine-month journey following her mother’s unexpected death.” Broome’s work has been published in several anthologies, and she has performed spoken word poetry at the Baltimore Book Festival. An English major at Longwood, Broome also credits Longwood English professor Dr. Craig Challender, a poet and author himself, as a source of inspiration.

Do you know a Longwood alum who deserves to be recognized for their good works?

Nominate them for an Alumni Award at go.longwood.edu/ alumniawards

Life in the Peace Corps

Frederick Wintermantel ’01 (left) is currently working for the Commonwealth of Virginia as a medical facility investigator. A biology major at Longwood, he worked in the medical field as a physical therapy assistant for several years. He also began his rugby career at Longwood, leading to an invitation to the United States rugby sevens camp in 2019. While playing for the Norfolk Rugby Club, he entered their Hall of Fame in 2023, as well as the Virginia Rugby Hall of Fame in 2024. He was a member of the American Professional Rugby Association and played with the D.C. Old Glory rugby team in 2019, earning the nickname “Ageless Wonder.” Wintermantel also represents the United States as a member of the Classic Eagles Rugby Team (ages 35 and older) and has coached at the high school and collegiate level.

As an English language teacher in the Peace Corps, Taylor Bauer ’20, M.S. ’21, (second from right) has immersed herself in Tongan culture.

Even after spending a semester abroad in Argentina as an undergraduate, Taylor Bauer ’20, M.S. ’21, knew acclimating to another new country and culture with the Peace Corps would be a challenge.

So when the Peace Corps assigned Bauer to an English language teaching position in Tonga—an island nation approximately 2,000 miles off the coast of Australia, its closest continent, and more than 7,000 miles from her hometown of Staunton, Virginia—she knew she had her work cut out for her.

Luckily for Bauer, she and her new Tongan neighbors quickly found they were both fluent in another common language: food.

“Feeding people is a way of showing respect and care and love in Tonga,” she said. “I don’t have a problem with that because I love to eat food and I can eat anything.”

I knew I wanted to be a teacher, and I’ve always loved learning about other languages and about other cultures and different ways of living you’ve never even considered.’

— TAYLOR BAUER ’20,

Leveraging that universal culinary connection and the Civitae-minded community engagement she practiced at Longwood, Bauer quickly endeared herself to her new neighbors on the Tongan island of ‘Eua. By schoolday she teaches English to students in the American equivalent of elementary and middle school; by night (and weekend), she lives as a Tongan.

Bauer majored in liberal studies at Longwood and went on to earn a Master of Science in special education. After graduating, she taught special education in Augusta County Public Schools in Fishersville, Virginia—a rewarding experience, she notes—but the draw of joining the Peace Corps persisted.

“I just figured so many people have helped me, and the opportunity to serve somewhere abroad doesn’t come up for everyone,” she said. “I felt a little obligated to say, ‘Do you need my expertise? What can I do? And in the meantime, what can I learn from you?’”

While her acclimation to Tonga has been a quick one, Bauer’s tenure with the Peace Corps is far from over. She will serve through September 2027, giving her plenty of time to improve at the Tongan sport of netball, learn lyrics to new Tongan songs and impart bits of educational wisdom that could one day make a difference in a student’s life.

And, of course, to share as much food as she can stomach.

Summer school. This past summer Mandi Andersen ’21, M.S. ’22 (left),and her colleague Patrick Bradley ’25 (educational leadership endorsement) took a group of middle school students from Bailey Bridge Middle School in Chesterfield, Virginia, to the Dominican Republic. The focus of the trip was to promote the importance of travel and expose their students to a new culture. Andersen was also recently named Bailey Bridge Middle School’s 2026 Teacher of the Year.

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Matt Graham ’03 is a digital media specialist in the department of communications for Chesapeake Public Schools and co-host of “Amplified: The Chesapeake Public Schools Podcast.” The Great Bridge Middle School Teacher of the Year and Chesapeake Middle School Teacher of the Year in 2021, he has also received awards for his communications work from The National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA), including for podcasting, newsletters, video and other marketing materials. His wife, Dr. Fallon Elizabeth Graham M.S. ’18, earned her master’s degree in educational leadership and administration from Longwood and currently serves as director of planning, policy and research for Chesapeake Public Schools. She has also won numerous awards, including Phi Kappa Phi Love of Learning, VERA Most Distinguished Paper, the Glen Earthman Fellowship and the Ken Underwood Scholarship.

Amy Tardy Perez ’05 held a screening of her documentary film, “Path to Heaven,” at Longwood’s High Street Theatre in November. The film tells the story of 2nd Lt. Thomas V. Kelly Jr. and the 10 other men who lost their lives when their B-24 bomber was shot down in 1944 over Hansa Bay on the north coast of Papua New Guinea. “Path to Heaven” is the second documentary Perez has produced with her husband, Christopher Perez, which they created in cooperation with Project Recover and through their film company, Media Evolve. Perez majored in sociology at Longwood and previously worked as a high school English teacher at the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, before earning her master’s degree in biology.

Hands-On Teaching

Resurrecting a lost art, one canoe at a time

For more than a decade, Russell Reed ’16 spent his days at Jamestown Settlement and Colonial Williamsburg hacking away at a series of 1,000-pound logs in front of curious spectators. His audiences came to the national historic sites to learn about Virginia’s early colonies and were drawn to the spectacle of Reed—a descendant of the Louisiana-based Atakapa tribe and a Native American historical interpreter—turning felled trees into canoes with little more than a handmade stone axe and a small fire.

The laborious process left plenty of time for conversation and questions— one of which Reed heard frequently.

“People would ask, ‘What would you do for a profession if you weren’t doing this?’” he said. “I would kind of jokingly

say if I could create a dream job, it would be traveling around and building dugout canoes for tribes and museums, resurrecting those skills because most tribes don’t have them anymore.”

Now Reed is doing exactly that.

Leaving behind his career as a historical

Russell Reed ’16 (left) built his first dugout canoe as a Longwood student and has since honed his techniques to replicate those of Virginia’s Native American tribes.

... [I]f I could create a dream job, it would be traveling around and building dugout canoes for tribes and museums, resurrecting those skills because most tribes don’t have them anymore.’

— RUSSELL REED ’16

dugout canoes on a contract basis—still one swing of his axe at a time.

Hired by museums, Native American tribes and even individuals in Virginia and the surrounding region, Reed now spends his days building canoes using tools and techniques similar to what Virginia’s original inhabitants would have used hundreds or thousands of years ago. For Reed, resurrecting and preserving those centuries-old methods is just as critical to his work as his finished boats that are now on display in museums and on Native land around the commonwealth.

“It’s become a lost art due to many generations of legal and cultural oppression,” he said. “There’s not really many people to learn from. I know a couple other canoe builders, but they mostly use modern tools, at least for parts of the build.”

And teaching those methods is as much a part of Reed’s work as the finished canoes. Many of his contracts also include live demonstrations of the methods Virginia’s original inhabitants would have used to create them. While Reed most often works as a boat-building team of one, his work still draws a crowd.

“Depending on the contract, sometimes I’m just building the canoe, but other times the educational component is a key part of the work,” he said. “I prefer the latter. I just like teaching people about the craft.”

Including his first boat—which he built with some fellow Lancers in Longwood’s Primitive Technology Club when he was a student—Reed estimates he has built more than a dozen dugout canoes. However, the larger impact, he says, is sharing the history of a lost art in real time. That’s a purpose he found at Longwood and one that he says he’s fortunate to be able to pursue as a career.

“When I got to Longwood as a freshman, I was already interested in history and traditional skills, so I was just excited that there was something like a Primitive Technology Club,” he said.

interpreter, at least full-time, the Longwood anthropology major is keeping an ancient tradition alive by building

“The connections I made at Longwood with professors like Dr. [Jim] Jordan definitely helped place me at Jamestown and kickstart the whole idea of working in public history.” —Chris Cook

Joshua Rolfe ’09 was named the leasing representative for St. John Properties’ Austin Regional Office overseeing the Central Texas region. In his new role, he oversees the St. John Properties’ portfolio of business communities in the Georgetown and Leander submarkets. A co-founder of Longwood’s “The Big Event” community service initiative, Rolfe earned an accounting degree from Longwood and went on to earn a master’s in real estate development from Georgetown University.

2010s

Katie McClane Robertson M.S. ’10 received the Outstanding Inclusive Educator Award from Loudoun County Public Schools. A specialized instructional facilitator for assistive technology at LCPS, Robertson not only created a proximity sensor that helps students with disabilities better engage with computers and tablets, she designed a tutorial to help other educators build similar switches themselves. The project involves entry-level electronics and can be completed with just $25 worth of materials. A fourth-generation Longwood graduate who earned her M.S. in communication sciences and disorders, she has presented the project at professional conferences, and her tutorial is available for free online at Instructables.com.

Adam Webb ’10 was named Mid-South national architectural manager at Vitro Architectural Glass. He will oversee the company’s operations in Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee, providing product, technology and service solutions to architects, specification writers, glazing contractors and façade consultants in the commercial construction market. A history major and recent inductee to the Longwood Athletics Hall of Fame, Webb helped lead the Longwood men’s golf team to the 2007 NCAA Regional and broke numerous school records during his four-year career.

Caitlin Johnson Gills ’12 was featured in The Roanoker’s “40 Under 40” feature. Gills is the marketing manager for Roanoke County Public Library (RCPL) as well as the public relations committee chair for Roanoke Valley Libraries and host of the monthly podcast “Beyond the Shelves.” A double-major at Longwood with degrees in history and anthropology, she has been recognized for her work establishing RCPL’s first Teen Advisory Board, restructuring RCPL’s marketing strategy to increase patron engagement and creating marketing materials that helped RCPL win the Outstanding Website Award from the Virginia Public Library Directors Association.

Emily Scott ’14 was named principal at Rivermont Schools’ Roanoke Southwest campus in June 2025. The appointment is

(continued

Something in the Water

In 2009 alumnae of Zeta Tau Alpha started noticing that they and their sorority sisters were having quite a few babies. That’s not really surprising—except that many of those babies were from multiple births.

“We’ve discussed it often and find it to be more than coincidental,” says Sarah Farmer Crook ’05, one of 13 (known) ZTA alumnae who are moms of multiples. Among them are 12 sets of twins and one set of triplets born from 2009 to 2023.

“Most, if not all of us, lived in Stubbs during our time as ZTAs, so we are pretty confident something was in the water,” joked Crook, the mother of identical twin girls. The group was already close—“Many of us still keep in touch,” said twins mom Angela King Boyce ’08—and parenting multiples has brought them even closer and provided a support group. “Parenting multiples is a unique experience,” said Crook. “Many of us texted our pledge sisters who had multiples for advice the minute we found out we were having multiples, too.” —Sabrina Brown

(from left, lower level) Sara Radford Flowers ’05 and her twin sons, Logan (mint green shirt) and Ethan; Sarah Farmer Crook ’05 and her twin daughters (in pink), Charlotte (left) and Addison; (from left, upper level) Chelsi Lee Simmons ’10 and her twin daughters (white hair bows), McKinley (standing) and Langley; Chrissy Ferguson Yake ’10 and her twin daughters (blue hair bows), Charlie (left) and Maddie; Angela King Boyce ’08 and her twin sons (seated), Brody (left) and Wyatt; and Margie Rowson Morgan ’05 and her triplets, Chloe (striped shirt), Madelyn and Grayson.

In Memoriam

1940s

Betty Little Duncan ’44 Dec. 29, 2025

Jane Rowe List ’47 June 15, 2025

Peggy Smith Crittenden ’49 March 6, 2026

1950s

Jean Turner Basto ’50 Nov. 10, 2025

Sarah Rippon Carignan ’50 Feb. 17, 2026

Majorie Agee Milam ’50 Feb. 10, 2026

Marian Higgs Kozar ’51 Dec. 11, 2025

Lauralee Fritts Whitmore ’52 Jan. 28, 2026

Anne Jones Gray ’53 Aug. 13, 2025

Cleo Holladay Partington ’54 Aug. 10, 2025

Elizabeth Islin Saffelle ’54 Oct. 13, 2025

Virginia Burgess Newcomb ’55 Nov. 25, 2025

Clare Davis Wallace ’55 Oct. 16, 2025

Ann Weatherholtz Lackey ’56 Nov. 12, 2025

Carolyn Overby Parrish ’56 Nov. 21, 2025

Weston Walker Gupton ’58 Jan. 6, 2026

Shirley Grubb Hall ’58 Oct. 13, 2025

Suzanne Barr Kendall ’58 Jan. 28, 2026

Patricia Anne Patton ’58 March 28, 2025

Annie Weaver Tull ’58 Sept. 18, 2025

Clarence Daniel Ferguson ’59 Dec. 19, 2025

Virginia Kuyk Lynch ’59 Jan. 17, 2026

Jerrye Edwards Mayhew ’59 Aug. 15, 2025

Linda Ann Vess ’59 Aug. 13, 2025

1960s

Carolyn Dehaven Dodds ’60 Dec. 10, 2025

Helen Garter Yowell ’60 Oct. 14, 2025

Gayle Paschal Rudacille ’61 July 5, 2025

Barbara Dunnavant Hedgepeth ’62 Feb. 4, 2026

Anne Jackson Henry ’62 Feb. 15, 2026

Susan Crutchlow Mosteller ’62 Nov. 14, 2025

Fran Gallahan Ware ’62 Jan. 29, 2026

Jean Penick Derrenbacker ’63 March 1, 2026

Judith Ashby Steed ’63 Jan. 11, 2026

Barbara Moyer Willis ’63 Aug. 18, 2025

Barbara Holderfield Bynum ’64 June 14, 2025

Sharon Coulter Gibb ’64 Nov. 24, 2025

Judith Ann Terwilliger ’64 Nov. 1, 2025

Mary Cashion Crowder ’65 Oct. 29, 2025

Frances Manning Gowen ’65 Jan. 27, 2026

Roberta Rice Sullivan ’65 Nov. 22, 2025

Ann Marie Kleese ’66 March 3, 2026

Alice Carolyn Coates ’67 Jan. 31, 2026

Renie Breslin Krebs ’67 Dec. 11, 2025

Nancy Anderson Haga ’69 Nov. 17, 2025

Ines Colom Ragland ’69 Dec. 27, 2025

Leslie Lynn Sedgwick ’69 Jan. 12, 2026

1970s

Angie Neri Hallberg ’70 Sept. 7, 2025

Jewell Catron Stuart ’70 Dec. 25, 2025

Joyce Gail Tolley ’70 Nov. 15, 2025

Bella Parks Burnett ’71 Dec. 28, 2025

Adriana Stagg Golden ’71 Dec. 24, 2025

Irene Stoneman Ellis ’72 Nov. 24, 2025

Teresa Williams Tyson ’72 July 23, 2025

Lynn Hanger Hill ’74 Oct. 2, 2025

Katherine Heath Whitfield ’74 Feb. 23, 2026

Emily Kaye Knight ’75 Sept. 4, 2024

Teresa Hoff Dillon ’76 Feb. 4, 2026

Douglas Richard Hoy ’77 Aug. 4, 2025

Melissa Bergeron Carter ’78 Oct. 25, 2025

Sylvia Randolph Lockett ’78 May 7, 2025

Betty Leigh Vaughan ’78 Nov. 2, 2025

Susan Morris Frost ’79 Sept. 16, 2025

Archie Calvin Gunn ’79 Sept. 17, 2025

1980s

Donald Joseph Inge ’84 Aug. 26, 2025

Avery Lee Rash ’84 Dec. 9, 2025

Thelma Patsy Taylor ’86 June 12, 2025

Donna Carroll Clark ’87 Nov. 28, 2025

1990s

Lori Buchanan Respress ’90 Jan. 7, 2026

Sandra West Boswell ’92 Jan. 26, 2026

Henry Lankford Thompson ’93 Jan. 26, 2026

Jane Compton Crews ’94 March 6, 2026

Elizabeth Grine Lyons ’94 Jan. 1, 2026

Shannon Davis Martin ’95 Oct. 3, 2025

2000s

Amanda Glasscock Flowers ’01 June 18, 2025

2020s

Jasmine Nicole Gullixon ’26 Nov. 21, 2025

Faculty, Staff and Friends

Raymond J. Cormier Jan. 2, 2026

Houston G. Hatcher Feb. 2, 2026

Michael K. Herndon Feb. 5, 2026

Celia M. Hevener Dec. 1, 2025

Linda H. Johnson Dec. 23, 2025

Donald L. Lemish Jan. 19, 2026

John William Magin Aug. 9, 2025

Gary T. Nelson Jan. 16, 2026

Gary P. Pridgen Jan. 27, 2026

Robert N. Sawyer Jan. 10, 2026

Charles W. Sydnor Nov. 28, 2025

Dr. Nancy Anderson Haga ’69

November 17, 2025

A beloved faculty member and titan of the Farmville community, Haga taught speech and theatre at Longwood from 1967-2000 and is credited as the creator of Longwood’s Forensic, Debate and Speech Team. She was deeply involved in the Prince Edward and surrounding communities as a member of the Prince Edward Volunteer Rescue Squad, Waterworks Players community theater, local 4-H chapter and numerous other local organizations.

Dr. Raymond J. Cormier

January 2, 2026

English faculty and husband of former Longwood president Dr. Patricia Cormier, Raymond Cormier was a renowned scholar in medieval comparative literature. He authored seven books and more than 100 journal articles on the subject, many of which he donated to the Greenwood Library. As a visiting professor in Longwood’s Department of English and Modern Languages during Cormier’s tenure, he earned the unofficial moniker “First Gent of Longwood” and, upon retirement, “First Gent Emeritus.”

Donald L. Lemish

January 19, 2026

Longwood’s former vice president for institutional advancement and later director of athletics and recreation, Lemish laid the foundation for Longwood’s modern advancement program and, later, transition to Division I athletics. Among his lasting contributions are the creation of the university’s annual giving program, telephone fundraising system and Longwood Ambassadors. In 1999, after a six-year stint as athletics director at James Madison University, he returned to Longwood to oversee the college’s exploration of moving to NCAA Division I athletics, which came to fruition in 2004.

Virginia Delegates Karen “Kacey” Robins Carnegie ’04 and Lily Franklin ’15 represent districts at opposite ends of the Commonwealth, yet both trace their paths to Richmond through Farmville—molded by their experiences at their alma mater.

“I think we would both say that Longwood shaped us and made us who we are today by creating that supportive community for us,” said Carnegie, who represents a Hampton Roads-based district that includes parts of Chesapeake City and Suffolk City.

Carnegie and Franklin were elected to the House of Delegates in 2025 and wrapped up their first General Assembly session this spring.

“Longwood prepared me for the real world,” said Franklin, who grew up in the Roanoke area and represents a southwest district that includes parts of her hometown and Montgomery County. “I had a lot of professors who pushed me to think critically and to really get involved and work hard. That’s important to what I’m doing now and my journey after graduating.”

After earning a degree in political science in 2015, Franklin spent a year teaching through Teach for America and then worked for five years as the chief of staff to a member of the House of Delegates. She now owns her own consulting business and serves as a swim coach. In her free time she also enjoys reading, a love that was fostered by a class she took with Dr. Derek Taylor, professor of 18th-century British literature.

Longwood to the Legislature

Alumnae find common ground in Richmond

an all-female law firm where the primary practice areas are estate planning, probate and a variety of civil matters.

Carnegie knew she wanted to go to law school before she got to college, because she wanted to be an advocate for people. But instead of majoring in political science or pre-law, she got hooked on sociology after taking an intro-level class. She also still uses the accounting skills she learned on a daily basis.

“Having that business background really made a big impact on me being able to run my own business and be a successful attorney,” she said. “I don’t know that I would have had such an easy transition opening my practice if I hadn’t had those skills.”

Both Carnegie and Franklin said they felt at home the moment they first stepped onto campus.

The thing that I’ve enjoyed the most is getting to know and collaborate with my peers on both sides of the aisle, because at the end of the day we’re all more alike than we think.’

— KAREN “KACEY” ROBINS CARNEGIE ’04

“I was really struggling in world literature class and he helped me through what I needed to do to think critically about works of literature,” she said. “He helped me learn how to enjoy reading and turned it into something that I am now passionate about. I read books almost every week.”

Carnegie, a Chesapeake native, graduated from Longwood summa cum laude in 2004 with a degree in sociology and business administration. She went on to earn a law degree from the University of Richmond School of Law. Carnegie owns and operates

“I was looking for something that felt like a community,” Franklin said. “I wanted the small-to-medium school vibes that Longwood has versus big universities. I felt that personal touch and Longwood just called me.”

Carnegie met her husband, Adam Carnegie ’04, at Longwood. She came to visit because her mother, Karen Perkins Robins ’74, is an alum, and ultimately it was the only place she applied.

“I immediately fell in love with it,” she recalled. “I loved the sense of community and belonging, and that it was a safe space to have your own thoughts and opinions.”

Carnegie and Franklin were welcomed to the General Assembly by one colleague who has long ties to Longwood and Farmville—Delegate Rodney Willett, son of former President Dr. Henry I. Willett Jr.

“It’s wonderful to see the Lancer spirit thriving in Richmond,” said Willett, who spent his formative years in Prince Edward County. “It is especially meaningful to share that spirit with two colleagues who truly embody it.”

With one General Assembly session under their belts, both alumnae emphasized how often cooperation outweighs partisan conflict.

“The thing that I’ve enjoyed the most is getting to know and collaborate with my peers on both sides of the aisle, because at the end of the day we’re all more alike than we think,” Carnegie said. “We look at these bills and most of us agree on them, except for a few key issues.”

“Most of the work that we do is bipartisan,” Franklin added. “We get along 90 percent of the time, and we’re doing a lot of good work to make sure everybody’s lives are better here in Virginia.”—Lauren Whittington

the latest step up in the public education field for Scott, who began her career as a special education teacher in Lynchburg City Schools and went on to lead the special education department at Patrick Henry High School in the Roanoke City Public Schools system. After earning her administrative endorsement from Longwood in 2021, she was named assistant principal at Morningside Elementary in Roanoke City. Rivermont Schools provides a therapeutic educational program for students with special needs, aged 5-22 in grades K-12, who have difficulty learning in a traditional school setting.

Catherine “Cat” Hubbard Arnold ’15 was featured on the HGTV show “Cheap A$$ Beach Houses” in November 2025. The reality show follows home-seekers in search of affordable, overlooked oceanfront or nearbeach homes.

Alexandra Ng ’15, M.S. ’16 published her debut children’s novel, titled “Umber and Belina,” this spring. Distributed by Orange Hat Publishing, the book tells the story of family dog Umber, who befriends a lost bumblebee named Belina and learns to overcome her fears by taking big challenges one small step at a time. The book is available at Barnes & Noble and through Orange Hat Publishing. A former special education teacher in the Virginia Beach City Public Schools system, Ng majored in elementary education at Longwood and now lives in Raleigh, North Carolina, with her husband and three sons.

Davis Gammon ’16 was appointed deputy legislative director in the Office of Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger. Gammon, a history major who served as a Longwood Presidential Fellow in 2016-17 and a Virginia Governor’s Fellow in 2018, was previously the senior director of policy and legislative affairs with the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association (VHHA) before his appointment.

Megan Carter Duregger ’18 was named Western Branch Primary School’s Literacy Teacher of the Year. Duregger majored in liberal studies and is a kindergarten teacher for the Chesapeake Public Schools primary school, which teaches students in preschool through second grade.

2020s

Christopher Siefke ’20 graduated from Elon University School of Law in December. A double-major in political science and history at Longwood, he also served as managing editor of the Elon Law Review.

Robert Watkins ’17 is the manager of digital content at National Wildlife Federation (NWF). A communication studies major, Watkins has spent nearly five years at NWF and oversees the omnichannel strategy for the organization’s digital presence, which includes producing and editing multimedia content for the sixmillion member nonprofit group.

Christian Wilson ’21 was promoted to senior communications associate at JPMorganChase in New York, New York. A communication studies major and former captain of the Longwood men’s basketball team, Wilson joined JPMorganChase in 2021.

Elizabeth Garri ’22 graduated second in her class from the University of Alabama School of Law. A communication sciences and disorders major at Longwood and a member of the Cormier Honors College, her next professional steps will be to clerk in federal district court and then join the firm Burr & Forman as a litigation associate.

SEND US YOUR CLASS notes. If you have any news from your professional or personal life, we’d love to hear about it. Please email the details to us at alumni@longwood.edu. Remember to give us your full name, the year you graduated and the degree you received.

Davis Watson MBA ’22 serves as the senior VDC group manager at Ferguson Enterprises, the largest United States distributor of products for plumbing, heating, ventilation, appliances and other household and commercial goods. In his role, Watson leads Ferguson’s national virtual design and construction (VDC), computer-aided design (CAD) and engineering teams on high-impact infrastructure projects nationwide.

George Gaston ’24 joined the famed Durham Bulls minor league baseball organization as the manager of game presentation and production. A communication studies major and former member of Longwood’s student-run ESPN+ production crew, Gaston previously served as production director for the Tri-City Chili Peppers collegiate summer league baseball team in Colonial Heights, Virginia.

Taylor Keenan, MBA ’24 was named senior vice president and director of human resources at Potomac Bank, headquartered in Charles Town, West Virginia. Appointed to the role in February 2026, her responsibilities include overseeing all human resources functions, including talent acquisition, performance coaching, training and leadership development, and overall human resources strategy for the company.

Hailey Rice ’25 endowed a scholarship at her high school alma mater, Blessed Sacrament Huguenot, in Powhatan, Virginia. The scholarship is specifically for first-generation college students like Rice. A business administration major at Longwood, Rice graduated in December 2025 and is currently an operations assistant with Highstreet Insurance Partners.

A Match Made on Campus

ANDREW

HARNOIS ’21 and his wife, VICTORIA SAUNDERS HARNOIS ’21, M.Ed. ’22, married in 2024. They met in a public speaking class during the spring of their sophomore year and were engaged the day after she graduated from her Longwood graduate program in 2022. Andrew is the owner and lead graphic designer of Apex Hue Digital, while Victoria is a teacher in Chesterfield County Public Schools. They recently celebrated their first year of marriage and six full years of being together.

Aaron Sims ’17

Admissions event planner extraordinaire, positive thinker, grill master

Ask Aaron Sims ’17 a question and you’ll get an answer that makes you smile, laugh or maybe even do some soul searching about whether your own outlook on life could use a boost in positivity. Whether he’s talking about his small-town upbringing in Cumberland County, Virginia, or his Longwood job of pulling off events for the 10,000 admissions-related visitors to campus each year, what Sims has to say is consistently uplifting, generous or thoughtful. He joined the admissions team in 2017 as an admissions counselor soon after earning his degree in kinesiology and has moved up through the ranks since then, most recently in 2022 as associate director of admissions engagement.

MY FAVORITE THING FROM MY CHILDHOOD is our family photo album—even though I haven’t been able to pry it away from my mother quite yet. Everything about our family—I was raised primarily by my mother and grandmother— lives in that photo album. I’ll always be able to look through that album and tell stories about these people and how they impacted my life and my development.

MY FIRST JOB was working for my uncle, who was like a grandfather to me. We did lots of landscaping, household chores, picking crops. It was my first experience with work, and I learned so much from him—that when you start a task, you finish it; about discipline and respect. I still practice all of the values he taught me.

WHAT I LOVE ABOUT WORKING IN ADMISSIONS is that it’s all about changing and transforming kids’ lives. We tell them that they have the potential to go out in the world and do great things, and that we’re willing to give them the chance to do that at our institution.

MY FAVORITE THING ON MY DESK is a photo of my wife, Caitlin Close Sims ’18. It was taken the day we made our relationship official. When I look at that photo from my senior year, I think, wow, this was the moment when I found the love of my life.

THE LAST BOOK I READ cover to cover was “You Owe You” by Dr. Eric Thomas, a motivational speaker. It’s about taking ownership of your own life.

OFF THE CLOCK

They keep the lights on, the syllabi current and so much more— seen and unseen— around campus. The faculty or staff member featured here in each issue calls Longwood home—and not just during working hours.

I’M CURRENTLY READING the Bible. I’m exploring my faith a little and how to become a better person overall. Also how to put a little kindness back into the world. It’s a very powerful tool.

MY FAVORITE THING TO DO is anything related to fitness and sports. In high school, I competed in football, wrestling, and shotput and discus. At this stage in my life, I’m focused more on working out. It helps to level me and helps me stay active in a way that makes sense for me.

I’D LIKE TO NEVER AGAIN let fear talk me out of something I’m capable of doing. I believe that if something is put in front of you, it’s for a reason. Don’t let your own doubt and fear get in the way of a blessing.

I’D LIKE TO GIVE THE WORLD a moment to slow down and appreciate the journey.

I’M HORRIBLE AT swimming. I’m a country boy, but I didn’t grow up near water. I’m not a swimmer—I’m a wader.

I’M VERY GOOD AT cooking. I do a lot of the cooking for myself and my wife. I do know my way around a kitchen and a grill. It’s very therapeutic for me.

201 High Street Farmville, VA 23909

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communication studies major, and Melonee Christophersen ’25, a music major, performed for the Longwood community during this fall’s Oktoberfest. See the story, “The Sound of Music,” on page 18 for details on how Longwood’s music department stewards opportunities for musicians—both music and nonmusic majors—across campus.