Ouachita Stories

ARKADELPHIA, Ark.—Ouachita Baptist University trustees heard updates on two endowed academic chairs during their Sept. 11 board meeting on the Arkadelphia campus.

Ouachita President Rex M. Horne Jr., announced to trustees that fellow trustee J.D. Patterson of Searcy has completed funding for the E.A Provine Chair of Chemistry. Trustees also voted to appoint Dr. Kent Faught to the Jay and Lynn Heflin Chair of Business.

Dr. Provine served as a professor of chemistry from 1929 until his retirement in 1966. A former president of the Arkansas Academy of Science, he also served as chair of Ouachita’s chemistry department. The university’s former Hamilton Moses Science Building, which was renovated and renamed in 1974, was named the Moses-Provine Science Center in his honor.

Patterson, a 1947 graduate of Ouachita and a university trustee since 2005, funded the Provine Chair of Chemistry in memory of his former professor who died in 1985. Patterson, who has practiced dentistry for more than five decades, is a member of Temple Baptist Church in Searcy. A longtime Ouachita benefactor, Patterson also funded the J.D. Patterson Chair of Biology and the J.D. Patterson School of Natural Sciences is named in his honor.

Dr. Horne emphasized that Patterson “continues to set an exemplary model for us” as a faithful supporter of Ouachita. He affirmed Patterson’s “generosity that he has given to our students, to our staff, to our faculty and to our chairs.”

Dr. Joe Jeffers, dean of the J.D. Patterson School of Natural Sciences, noted that Patterson has helped fund a variety of university programs and projects over the years, including the school’s summer research program. Patterson’s support of Ouachita “gives him energy,” Jeffers added. “He gets great joy out of it.”

Patterson told trustees that a significant portion of the funding for the E.A. Provine Chair of Chemistry came from the sale of greatly appreciated stock that Patterson’s father had purchased more than 80 years before in the 1920s.

Reflecting on Patterson’s various gifts to Ouachita, Horne cited Patterson’s “depth of commitment to Ouachita.”

“His gifts are a result of planning and sacrificial giving,” the OBU president added. “It’s been a choice to live a life of commitment and generosity.”

Trustees appointed Kent Faught, associate professor of management, to the Jay and Lynn Heflin Chair of Business. Faught succeeds Bryan McKinney who was named dean of Ouachita’s Hickingbotham School of Business earlier this year.

Faught, who has served on Ouachita’s faculty since 2000, holds degrees from Sam Houston State University, the University of Texas-Houston and the Sam Walton College of Business Administration at the University of Arkansas. He currently chairs the university’s Institutional Review Board.

Faught and his wife, Danielle, have two sons, Tyler and Sean. They are members of Oaklawn Missionary Baptist Church in Hot Springs.

In other board action, trustees approved eight administrative staff recommendations, including:

Michael Barnes, student relations coordinator of the Upward Bound program. A native of Benton, Ark., he is a graduate of Henderson State University.

Michael Cox, director of residence life and hall director of Daniel North. Cox, a 2004 Ouachita graduate, holds a master of arts degree from Wheaton College. He previously was a graduate resident advisor at Wheaton.

Reo Cummings, a learning specialist for the Academic Enrichment Center. A native of Wynne, Ark., he holds degrees from Henderson State University. He previously was employed by the Arkadelphia Public School District.

Luke Howard, assistant baseball coach. Howard, who is from Springboro, Ohio, will serve as pitching coach and recruiting coordinator. A graduate of Ohio University, he has served as an assistant baseball coach at Springboro High School, the University of Cincinnati and Murray State University.

Daniel Jarboe, university counselor. A graduate of California Baptist University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Jarboe is a licensed professional counselor with more than 20 years experience in a variety of clinical and ministry settings. He and his wife, Kyle, served most recently with the Southern Baptist International Mission Board in Moscow.

Chris Moddelmog, head baseball coach. Moddelmog, a graduate of Neosho County (Kan.) Community College and Murray State University, served the past five seasons at Fort Scott (Kan.) Community College.

David Owens, energy manager. Owens is a graduate of the University of Central Oklahoma and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He also serves as bivocational pastor of Evergreen Church in Gurdon.

Kirt Thomas, admissions counselor. Thomas is a 2007 Ouachita graduate from Hot Springs. He previously was the office manager for Ouachita’s admissions counseling office.

Trustees also approved an environmental stewardship policy detailing Ouachita’s commitment “to being a responsible steward of the Lord’s creation and the resources He has entrusted to us.”

Brett Powell, Ouachita’s vice president for administrative services, explained that the program includes energy and fuel conservation, energy efficiency through building design and renovations, water conservation and recycling.

“The main thing we have done over the last six months is to start our own energy conservation plan,” Powell told trustees. “A key part of that is changing people’s behavior and usage” related to environmental stewardship issues.

In other business, trustees approved a 2.8 percent rate increase for tuition, room and board for the 2009-2010 academic year. The overall rate increase will average $335 per semester.

by Trennis Henderson