Harding College - Petit Jean Yearbook (Searcy, AR)

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DR. Cox Receives Axvixnd lon speech BILLY RAY COX, M.B.A., LL.D., C.P.A., Vice-President, received widespread recognition from the Freedom Foundation for his public address, Rebirth of a Nation. The speech, relating to the Bicentennial celebration, was printed and distributed widely. A popular speaker, Cox lectured often for business groups, providing management seminars. He served as director of the American Studies Program which brought many well known speakers to campus. One of his main projects was guiding the American Studies group on a tour in the spring of 1976. The group toured Jamestown, Williamsburg, Philadelphia, Valley Forge and Washington, D.C. Cox attended the meeting of the National Council of Philanthropy and the National Prayer Breakfast both in Washington, D.C., in the fall and spring of 1976. He accepted ap- pointments to serve on the National Board for Young Americans for Freedom and the Board of the National Advisors for the Security Council. He was instrumental in aiding the nursing program to receive a 5,401,325 grant from the Kellogg Foundation and was in charge of a seminar for nurses and hospital personnel in Arkansas that was funded by the federal government. He served as a deacon at the College church of Christ and taught a Sunday morning Bible class which was popular among students. An oasis of decency in a desert of sin - a body of calm ih a troubled sea - represent part of that which Harding means to me. The opportunity to live at one's best level of service - to contribute meaningfully to the lives of others - to hold youthful joy and ideals through working with those who are young - represent a part of what Harding means to me. To have the opportunity to serve in a community where the Kingdom is continually advanced - where power is used for the right - where most of those whom you know are equals through the blood of Christ - is a part of that which Harding means to me. To see life's rough gems polished into Christ-like beauty - to see those who are lost find the Master Teacher as I did on the Harding campus is all representative of that which Harding means to me. Believing that from the quiet moment of test tube observation to the high note of the chorus - from the solitude of chapel to the zest of the teams - that the Master Teacher is involved in the community we call Harding makes it very special to me. The Master Teacher abides in our midst, and, through His influence, we have the world's best hope of building a community in which might is used for right, discrimination is abolished decency prevails, honesty abides, and love over- cometh. Here hope still prevails that a community may be built where man treats his brother as he would like to be treated, and there is still a belief that there is a Kingdom where the least shall be heard and considered side by side with the greatest. To me, there is other place just like Harding! -Billy Ray Cox id I 1. SPEAKING at the President's Develop- ment Council banquet in Sept., Dr. Cox entertains guests. 2. DURING the Development Council banquet, Dr. Cox talks with Dr. Ganus. 3. BILLY RAY COX, Vice- President. 4. AFTER the A Cappella chorus sings, Dr. Cox applauds their banquet per- 5. GREETING friends at a reception, Dr. Cox enjoys a social evening. formance. 22 VICE-PRESIDENT

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X chapel every day. Later in life many of the people who get a little tired of it will wish they could come back and go to chapel. They will really think of chapel as being a highlight of their experience at Harding. I have had this told to me over and over by alumni, not while they are in school, but when they get out. They think back, You know - my what I missed, what I could have had. So I guess it's just a fact of life. I think it's a great advantage in a Christian college in being able to study with so many young people with like faith. I didn't have this when I was growing up in New Orleans where there were only two or three Christians my age. So when I came to Harding it was like a little bit of heaven because we had so many and then we only had 379 students. And too, this is a wonderful place to find a Christian mate. There is no guarantee you will find one, you still have to look, but at least there's 'a better opportunity in a place like Harding. Here you see one another under all types of pressures. These are some of the advantages I think you have at a Christian school, there are others of course. Petit Jean: Why did you choose Christian education as your Held? Ganus: I know an education is important, but I would not teach in a school that was not a Christian school. For the simple reason that I feel a Christian education is the best kind of education. Sometimes l've had people say, Brother Ganus, l'd like my child to have a Christian education, but I want him to have a good education. As if it is the case of 'either-or', but it's not to me, it's 'both-and.' When you get a Christian education in a school such as Harding you have strong academic work and this is evident by our students who go on to graduate school and do outstandingly in professional work. For example, we've had.156 young people to go through Pre-medicine at Harding and go on to medical school, but only one has failed to make the grade. One out of 1563 that's tremendous. That is an in- dication of the quality of our science and pre-medical programs. The same can be said for other areas, not necessarily in the same numbers, but it is tremendous when they go on and write back to us and say how well they were prepared in history, mathematics, psychology or social work. This is an indication that Christian education can be strong academically. Petit Jean: How did you get into this field? Ganus: When I graduated from Harding, I was going to preach. I started preaching when I was a fresh- man here in 1939 and have been ever since. I was moving to Charleston, IVliss., to preach for two years, and I decided to go ahead and get my Master's degree. Dr. Benson, who was president then, asked me to come back to Harding and teach. The president of David Lipscomb College in Nashville, Tenn., also asked me to come over there with a view of ultimately becoming head of the history department. I visited Lipscomb, but I knew Harding and I decided to come back to Harding because here I could teach Bible as well as history. I loved Harding and always have. I decided I would teach Bible and history and preach each weekend. This is my 31st year teaching at Harding, except I don't have much chance to teach anymore, just occasionally. Petit Jean: What are the personal rewards you have gained from being at Harding? Ganus: I suppose the feeling of being able to assist thousands of young people to realize their am- bitions, their goals educationally, assist them to grow into a more mature relationship with God, assist them to become better Christians and better , I ffl I fs I 9 ' In , at P-K ' lfl L4 1 ri! QL . . if , x I' fit I i citizens of this nation in which we live is my personal reward. I'm not in Christian education for the money. I want to see young people grow and develop, and I love the institution, its purpose and what it's trying to do. Because Christian education is Christ in education is the only reason I would be at a school like Harding. I have gained personal benefits from having our children here in this community and with the wonderful associations that my family and I have with thousands of Christian people. My own opportunity to grow spiritually and to mature and develop is a reward of a Christian college. But I really believe that my best reward is wat- ching young people come here im- mature, unlearned and somewhat weak at times and then see them leave as strong faithful Christians. That to me is one of the great joys of being at a Christian school. Occasionally it goes the other wayp you see them go downhill, but it's so seldom in com- parison to the number that grow, blossom, mature and develop. And that's what it's all about. 1. CLIFTON L. GANUS. JR., President of the College. 2. DR. GANUS makes an an- nouncement in a chapel service. 3. LAUGHING with alumni, Dr. Ganus enjoys the Black and Gold banquet in November. 4. LISTENING to a friend, Dr. Ganus pauses at the November Homecoming game. PRESIDENT - 21

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DR. PR OR SERVES AREA ExrENsivEl JOSEPH E. PRYOR, Ph.D., Vice- President of Academic Affairs and Dean of the College, continued his outstanding service to the college and its students. On campus he sented as chairman of four committees, Academic Affairs, Athletic, Rank and Promotion and the Distinguished Teacher Award Committees. He was the Co-sponsor of the TNT social club and the Arkansas Eta Chapter of Alpha Chi. He served for his 33rd year as faculty advisor to the Petit Jean. Pryor chaired the annual meeting of the Arkansas Deans Association in Conway, October 4-5, and served as vice-president of the Arkansas ln- tercollegiate Athletic Conference. He attended the yearly meeting of the Association of College Honor Societies in New Orleans in February and chaired a panel on improving the activity of chapter sponsors for chapters of honor societies. He also served on the Executive Committee of ACHS. Pryor served as Secretary-Treasurer of the National Council of Alpha Chi and attended the 1977 biennial meeting of Alpha Chi in San Antonio, March 17-19. He installed chapters of Alpha Chi at several colleges in Nlissouri, Tennessee and Virginia. He attended the annual North Central Association meeting in Chicago in April. He served as an elder of the College church of Christ and as chairman of the elders. V 2 1. PRESENTING awards at the Arkansas Collegiate Press Association in Conway on Sept. 19, Dr. Pryor announces the winner of the General Excellence division. 2. JOSEPH E. PRYOR, Dean of the College. 3. LISTENING intently to Susan Alston, Dr. Pryor counsels on academic and personal matters. Christian education has played a tremendous role in my life. The four years that I spent as an undergraduate at Harding College were outstanding years. I participated extensively in co-curricular activities, obtained a meaningful educational base, formed en- during friendships that have blessed my life, and obtained a concept of and dedication to undenominational Christianity that has un- dergirded my life. Resources of Harding were meager then, the curriculum was limited and faculty members were fevw howeven when I enrolled at one of the best graduate universities of the south, I found that I had excellent preparation for graduate study, better than most of my peers. I soon learned that I had been associated at Harding with some of the greatest people I have ever been associated with - outstanding teachers who were great men of God. Their example and their teaching was a great source of strength in many trying circumstances. When I was asked to return to Harding to teach chemistry and physics after completing the Ph.D. degree in physical chemistry, I felt honored because of the stature of my teachers at Harding and because of the great challenge that Christian education provided. Even though I had had other professional goals since my high school days, in the providence of God I did return and the 33 years that I have now been a teacher at Harding have been very rich years. There has been tremendous improvement in resources, great expansion of the curriculum, and equally great increase in faculty, however, the great basic objectives of Harding remain unchanged. From my obsenfation of current students and recent alumni the same great impact that was made on me is still being made, perhaps to a greater degree than in my era as a student because of the large number of faculty members whose lives are truly dedicated to helping students achieve the same great goals in life that have meant so much to me through the years and that also have meaning for eternity. -Joseph E. Pryor k. .J vice-PREsioENT,AcAoEMics 23