Lambuth College - Lantern Yearbook (Jackson, TN)

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Diary Of Anne Frank 26

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Horry Wesley Gilmer-Fourreenrh President of Lomburh College Harry Wesley Gilmer was elected fourteenth president of Lambuth College on February 5, 1980, and assumed the duties of that office on June 1, 1980. He has served as a campus minister and has been associated with United Methodist institutions of higher learning as a professor, a department chairman, associate dean and dean of faculty. Born Apr il 11, 1937, in Bristol, Virginia-Tennessee, Dr. Gilmer attended primary and secondary schools there, graduating as valedictorian of Bristol, Tennessee High School in 1955. He is the son of John A. Gilmer, Jr., a native of Russell County, Virginia, and Ella Porter Gilmer, a native of Lynchburg, Virginia. Both parents reside in Bris- tol. Dr. Gilmer graduated from Emory and Henry College in 1959 with a B.A. cum laude with majors in English and history. His B.D. degree was completed at Candler School of Theology of Emory University in 1963 with concentra- tion in teaching and research. In 1969, he was awarded the Ph.D. from Emory University, where he was a member of the International Society of Theta Phi religion honor society. Dr. Gilmer ' s graduate studies were in the area of biblical research and near eastern history and religion. While at Emory, he was awarded a National Defense Fel- lowship and a Dempster Fellowship. His doctoral disserta- tion was later published in 1975 under the title The If- You Form in Israelite Law. In 1965, Dr. Gilmer assumed teaching responsibilities at Wesleyan College, Macon, Georgia, where he gave leader- ship to curricular reform. Later he was appointed chairman of the Department of Religion and Philosophy and Bradley Professor of Religion. In 1974, he became Associate Dean of the College and held that post until his appointment in 1977 as Dean of the Faculty and Professor of Religion at Millsaps College, a sister Methodist college in Jackson, Mississippi. Throughout his professional career, Dr. Gilmer has been active in community and civic affairs. He served on the Board of Directors of the Macon Community Concert As- sociation, the Boards of the Macon Urban Ministry, and Volunteer Macon. He was President of the Macon Council for the Experiment in International Living 1971-73 and was active in the Macon Council on World Affairs. Presently he is a member of the Jackson Rotary Club and is participat- ing in Leadership Jackson. Lambuth ' s fourteenth president is married to the former Jackie Lynne Herron, also a native of Bristol. Mrs. Gilmer is the daughter of the late Mack C. Herron and Evelyn L. Herron of Bristol, Tennessee. She received her undergrad- uate education from Virginia Intermont College and Wes- leyan College where she obtained the A.B. degree magna cum laude with a major in early childhood education. The Gilmers have two daughters, Jennifer Lynne, who is a student at Mississippi State University, and Kelley Eliza- beth, a student at Tigrett Junior High School. The Gilmer family has been active in the Experiment in International Living and is committed to the furtherance of international understanding through such programs. Committed to the liberal arts tradition and to the Chris- tian college, Dr. Gilmer has said that the fundamental justification of the small church-related, liberal arts college is its unique possibility for furthering the growth of the individual student toward intellectual, religious and person- al maturity. 28