The 2011 Alumni Awards were presented during the Alumni Reunion Celebration Brunch on Nov. 12, 2011. This year's recipients were (pictured above from left to right) Karl Folkens '78, Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award; Vivian Moore Carroll '73, Alumni Distinguished Service Award; Meghan Terry '04, '06, Outstanding Young Alumni Award; Dr. Andy Wilson '96, Alumni Professional Achievement Award; and Laura Manheim Hewitt '61, Mary Mildred Sullivan Award (far right). Winthrop President Anthony DiGiorgio (second from right) attended the brunch.
Mary Mildred Sullivan Award Citation
Laura Manheim Hewitt, Class of 1961, you are a perfect example of a Winthrop graduate, a person who achieves high standing in her community after graduation. Winthrop University and the Alumni Association consider it a true honor to award you the 2011 Mary Mildred Sullivan Award.
As president and reunion chair of the Class of 1961, you have helped a diverse group of women bond over shared experiences at Winthrop 50 years ago. Your classmates have said that you have had a powerful influence on them as you celebrate your golden anniversary this year.
A long-time philanthropist and civic leader, you approach each project with gusto and vision. You have donated your considerable talents and energy to the Winthrop Foundation Board, the university’s first capital campaign A Lasting Achievement – The Campaign for Winthrop and to this first combined Homecoming and Alumni Reunion Celebration.
In addition to your contributions to Winthrop, you have helped shape the food and art offerings in the Lowcountry. Your patronage of the BB&T Charleston Wine + Food Festival helped elevate it to national prominence and solid financial grounding, while your support of the Spoleto Festival and arts in general have enriched the cultural life of the Charleston community.
As important as community service is, you have found that your family and your faith rank among your highest priorities. You and your husband, Bill, reared four children with accomplishments of their own and are now devoted grandparents.
Laura Manheim Hewitt, we at Winthrop University thank you for the selfless dedication you have made in supporting the development of this university. As an earlier recipient of the Alumni Distinguished Service Award, your constant energy and enthusiasm remain an inspiration to your classmates and other alumni. With deep gratitude and appreciation, we say "thank you" for the honor you have brought to your alma mater.
Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award Citation
Each year, Winthrop reaches out to recognize a student’s selfless contributions to community, family and alma mater. This year, Winthrop will bestow for the first time the same honor on an alumnus, the
Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award.
It is with great pleasure, therefore, that Winthrop hereby recognizes,
Karl Folkens, Class of 1978, for so graciously lighting the path for others. In all phases of your life, you have shared what you have learned to benefit those who followed behind.
As a Winthrop student, you stretched in every direction. Once you left Winthrop, you earned your law degree from the University of South Carolina and set about a law career that is filled with many accolades. Listed as one of the Best Lawyers in America and as one of South Carolina’s Super Lawyers, you are admitted to practice before all state and federal courts, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and the U.S. Supreme Court.
At Winthrop, you have helped guide the university for the past two decades as chair, vice chair and now Finance Committee chair for the Board of Trustees. You also were the first male president of the Winthrop Alumni Association and are a former Winthrop Foundation member.
You possess an innate curiosity about the world, having traveled to all 50 states and to many countries abroad. A trip to Tanzania in East Africa prompted you to work on improving the standards of living for the people that reside there.
In your local community, you have helped make a difference in advocating for victims of sexual and domestic abuse and those suffering from mental health problems. You also take time to conduct training sessions on various legal issues and are among the state leaders in bringing technology to the law profession.
On behalf of all alumni and in an effort to recognize the university’s rich heritage and its best traditions, we thank you, Karl Folkens, for the honor you have brought to us. This presentation represents a modest effort to express our heartfelt gratitude for the time and talent you have so generously given others.
Alumni Distinguished Service Award Citation
Vivian Moore Carroll, Class of 1973, you have faithfully contributed in many ways in making Winthrop a better university. The Alumni Association considers it an honor to award you the
2011 Alumni Distinguished Service Award.
Over the past decade, you have displayed a willingness to donate much of your time and efforts to your alma mater. You have provided strong leadership in several key areas across the university in helping guide the pace of Winthrop’s growth.
As president of the Winthrop University Alumni Association, you have encouraged alumni to share their Winthrop Experiences and to spread the word about Winthrop’s expansion and its many accolades. You have committed to helping Winthrop prepare for the future as co-chair of the recently announced
Distinction: The Campaign for Winthrop to raise $50 million. As a Winthrop Foundation Board member, you have helped manage the university’s assets and supported the university’s objectives to teach students a global perspective.
As long-time supporters of the College of Business Administration, you and your husband Larry have helped shape the next generation of business leaders at Winthrop. You have donated funds to create Vivian Moore Carroll Hall and have stressed the importance of financial literacy for all students.
Conscientious about giving back to young people, you serve as a trustee to the YMCA of Greater Charlotte and have been a member of the Board of Directors of the Hornets Nest Girl Scouts. Those who have volunteered with you reflect on your generosity and passion for Winthrop.
Vivian Moore Carroll, we thank you for the countless sacrifices you have made in support and encouragement of this university. We are honored to celebrate you with this award in gratitude and recognition of your dedication and enthusiasm for your alma mater.
Alumni Professional Achievement Award Citation
Andrew Wilson, Class of 1996, the Winthrop University Alumni Association is proud to honor your outstanding accomplishments in higher education administration by presenting you its 2011 Alumni Professional Achievement Award. You are a rising star in upper-level student affairs administration, and your work at Emory University is well-known across the country.
This honor recognizes significant contributions alumni have made to their fields while exemplifying high moral and professional ethics. As assistant dean for campus life and director of residence life at Emory University, you have worked tirelessly in the areas of student affairs to help students transition from high school to college and have contributed to their personal growth.
Your Winthrop mentors have watched you advance with great pride as you earned an M.A.Ed. at Virginia Technical College and a Ph.D. at the University of Georgia. As you took university jobs at Virginia Commonwealth University and Washington University, you also gained expertise in sexual assault education, social justice and leadership programs.
You are very knowledgeable, compassionate, hardworking and have plenty of managerial savvy – all of which are prerequisites for advancement in student affairs. Your ability to forge multiple partnerships has coalesced to fuel your success, and all the while, your dedication to helping others has guided many students along paths of opportunity.
Those who work in student affairs view their profession as a calling. You had your first experiences at Winthrop as a resident assistant, Orientation leader, peer mentor, Winthrop Ambassador, fraternity member and Wesley Foundation member, and you used those experiences to contribute to an admirable profession.
You continue to support your alma mater through assistance to the Winthrop Fund and in helping create an affinity group for the many Winthrop graduates now working across the country in student affairs.
Andrew Wilson, throughout your illustrious career, you have maintained a deep and abiding respect for the value of education.
The Winthrop University Alumni Association is proud to honor you as a graduate who has successfully drawn upon the Winthrop Experience as a basis for continuous professional advancement and for community involvement.
Outstanding Young Alumni Award Citation
The alumni of Winthrop University represent the true success of this venerable institution. For 125 years, Winthrop graduates have made positive contributions to their alma mater and their communities throughout South Carolina and the nation.
Meghan Terry, Class of 2004 and 2006, you serve as an exceptional example of the best of Winthrop’s hopes and expectations for its young graduates. Active as a Close Scholar, Orientation leader, peer mentor and sorority and Student Alumni Council member during your college years, your devotion and loyalty to Winthrop is palpable to others. You never miss a chance to talk about your Winthrop experience and how attending this university had a deep impact on your life.
Your classmates knew you as a student who exuded grace but also was very focused and tenacious.
An accounting major who obtained an M.B.A. degree, you earned a law degree from Regent University School of Law. Within the last three years, you have worked at a Rock Hill law firm, as a Congressional intern and as a clerk for the American Center for Law & Justice and for a local circuit judge. Now an assistant public defender with the Seventh Judicial Circuit Public Defender Office in Spartanburg, S.C., you represent indigent clients with felony and misdemeanor charges.
As an advisor for Alpha Delta Pi, you provide a strong role model to Winthrop college students and help guide them in becoming accomplished members of our community. You impress others with your vision and appreciation for the simple things in life, despite a life of avid traveling.
Meghan Terry, the Winthrop community celebrates your special talents and your selfless gifts of time and energy. You embody the spirit of achievement and loyalty we desire in all of our graduates. The Winthrop University Alumni Association honors you with the 2011 Outstanding Young Alumni Award.