Morehead State University welcomed five new members into its Halls of Fame and honored two individuals with the Founders Award for University Service Friday, Oct. 9, during its Homecoming Banquet.
The 2015 Founders Award for University Service was presented to Carol Johnson and the late W. H. “Honie” Rice.
Johnson is a 1967 and 1973 graduate of MSU. Johnson spent more than 40 years in service to the University and served as an assistant to seven presidents. Her professionalism and dedication was unwavering and much of her “behind the scenes” work went unrecognized during her long and impactful tenure.
Rice served for more than 30 years as superintendent of buildings and grounds during MSU’s most dramatic growth. Beginning with a staff of seven, he saw that number grow to more than 200 before his retirement. He was described as “knowing more about the entire campus than anyone else except maybe the president,” a role he didn’t take lightly. The Office of Facilities Management is located in Rice Services Building, which is named in his honor.
The Founders Award for University Service was established by the Board of Regents in 1978 and has been presented each year to individuals with records of outstanding service to the University over a sustained period.
Previous recipients have included W. E. Crutcher, 1978; Linus A. Fair, 1979; Carl D. Perkins, 1980; Dr. Warren C. Lappin, 1981; Dr. Ted L. Crosthwait, 1982; Monroe Wicker, 1983; Lloyd Cassity, 1984; Grace Crosthwaite, 1985; Boone Logan, 1986; Dr. Rondal D. Hart, 1987; George T. Young, 1988; John E. Collis, 1989; Dr. Wilhelm Exelbirt, 1990; Dr. R. H. Playforth, 1991; Dr. Mary Northcutt Powell, 1992; Senator Woody May, 1993; Dr. J. E. Duncan, 1994; Sherman R. Arnett and Harlen L. Hamm, 1995;
Dr. Adron Doran, 1996; Robert S. Bishop and Martin Huffman, 1997; Dr. Charles J. Pelfrey, 1998; Carolyn S. Flatt, 1999; Dr. Earl J. Bentley, 2000; Mrs. Mignon Doran, 2001; Dr. C. Nelson Grote, 2002; Merl F. Allen, 2003; Dr. John C. Philley, 2004; Dr. Charles M. Derrickson, 2005; Dr. John R. Duncan, 2006; Steve A. Hamilton, 2007; Dr. Marshall Banks, 2008; Dr. Randy Wells, 2009; Dr. Jack D. Ellis, 2010; Ms. Lucille Caudill Little, 2011; Rocky J. Adkins, 2012; Clyde I. James, 2013; and Keith R. Kappes, 2014.
Inducted into the Alumni Hall of Fame were:
Chuck Charles is a 1974 graduate residing in Ashland. He is the mayor of Ashland, as well as vice president and chief development officer for Our Lady of Bellefonte Hospital Foundation. A former member and past-president of the MSU Alumni Association Board, Charles served from 1998-2006. He was recently the recipient of the 2015 Leadership Tri-State Community Service award.
Kelly Kulick is a 2000 graduate residing in Union, New Jersey. She is a successful professional bowler who made history in 2010 when she became the first woman to win a national title on the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour. She was the 1997 and 1998 Collegiate Bowler of the Year while at MSU and a six-time member of Team USA.
Randy Lillard is a 1998 graduate residing in League City, Texas. He is the assistant director for advanced development projects at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). While a student at MSU, he was a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity, he also served as interfraternity council president, president of the Student Alumni Ambassadors and member of the Student Government Association.
Inductees of the Athletic Hall of Fame were:
Kandi Brown Parker is a 2004 graduate of MSU. A four-year starter for women’s basketball, she owns the MSU record for career free-throw percentage. Her foul-line percentage ranks third in NCAA Division I history and fourth among all divisions. She led the Ohio Valley Conference in free-throw accuracy all four seasons and places second in school history and fourth in the conference record book with 248 three-pointers made. She also ranks among MSU’s career leaders in several categories, free-throws made (5th), steals (7th), scoring (8th), games played (10th) and assists (11th).
Jim Wells is a 1973 graduate of MSU. A native of Morehead, Wells’ family ties to Morehead State go back multiple generations and he has spent nearly 40 years in direct association with MSU Athletics. He served as a student manager for the Eagle baseball program, a staff member for Sports Information, manager the University’s Sunnybrook Golf Course, an assistant softball coach in 1990 and led the Eagles to a 32-19 record as head coach in 1991. After his brief coaching stint, he spent 17 more years in a variety of roles in athletic administration until his retirement in 2008. He currently serves as the official scorer for Eagle men’s and women’s basketball games at Johnson Arena.
Additional information is available by contacting the Office of Alumni Relations and Development at 606-783-2080 or 800-783-ALUM.
