TJC honors Mize, fellow superintendents

Posted 10/14/21

The Tyler Junior College Alumni Association honored its 2021 class of award recipients in a glittering event Saturday, Oct. 2, in the new Rogers Palmer Performing Arts Center on the TJC main campus.

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TJC honors Mize, fellow superintendents

Posted

The Tyler Junior College Alumni Association honored its 2021 class of award recipients in a glittering event Saturday, Oct. 2, in the new Rogers Palmer Performing Arts Center on the TJC main campus.

“It’s exciting to host the TJC Alumni Awards at this location for the first time,” said Susan Farrington, TJC director of alumni relations. “We now have the ability to showcase student, alumni and faculty talent while honoring the best among us.”

Mitch Andrews, TJC vice president for institutional advancement and master of ceremonies, explained the focus of this year’s awards on two areas of significance to the college and to the future of the East Texas region.

“These awards represent the promise of a college education for our youth in return for their achievements in high school, including good grades, good behavior and community service,” Andrews said. “The TJC Promise was developed in 2016, through a partnership with six East Texas communities, and exists in large part because of the leadership of the ISD superintendents that we will honor here this evening.”

Andrews said, “The awards also represent a legacy and a vision for the arts of TJC, and we celebrate the extraordinary community support that made the Rogers Palmer Performing Arts Center not just a possibility but a reality. We honor Amy Faulconer, a very generous individual who significantly invested in this resource for TJC and the community. And finally, the new...center helps us to showcase the disciplined mastery and extraordinary talent of the college’s faculty and students. It also allows us to put a well-deserved spotlight on our legacy faculty and the many years of teaching excellence that they represent. Tonight, we honor the 50-year tenure of TJC professor of music, Frank Kimlicko.”

The Apache Spirit Award recognizes a person or group who has shown spirit and motivation through the contribution of time and energy to a program or activity, which measurably benefited the college.

This year’s award was presented to eight current and former area school superintendents, six of whom are TJC alumni, for their leadership in helping to create the TJC Promise program, which provides every eligible high school freshman with the opportunity to earn up to two years of a college education at TJC.

Recipients include Donni Cook, Ed.D., ’94, (retired) Chapel Hill ISD; Dr. Marty L. Crawford, Tyler ISD; Lamond Dean, ’93, Chapel Hill ISD; Don Dunn, ’88, Van ISD; Micah Lewis, ’90, Grand Saline ISD; Damenion Miller, Winona ISD; J. Cody Mize, ’02, Mineola ISD; and Stan Musial Surratt, ’84, Lindale ISD.