Jordan “Dewy413” Deuley hasn’t started playing for the Lyon College Esports team yet, but he has already won his first championship.
Deuley, of Van Buren, won an Arkansas State Championship for the game Rocket League on May 28. The Van Buren Pointers won against Bryant High School in a close match with an ending set score of 4 to 2.
Deuley was overjoyed to win the first championship in his esports career.
“I wasn’t really nervous, but that always changes once you get into the lobby.”
He continued, “I knew that we were going to do good, but I also knew that if I didn’t play smart we could easily lose.”
Deuley prepared for the match the same ways he always does, going to bed early and warming up beforehand.
“I will make sure that I have a good mind going into it by reminding myself that it is just a game for fun.”
To stay focused on the game, he tries to slow his pace down.
“With Rocket League being such a fast-paced game, it is really hard to jump straight back into that speed. You normally have to work your way back into it, so I just take a few deep breaths, think about the series and then I go back to it.”
His team had lost to Bryant in the semi-finals in 2019, so Deuley was excited for the rematch.
“[That loss] was good for me, though, because it gave me the motivation to really improve so I could finally win and become a state champion.”
Deuley enjoyed seeing his team improve with each season. They were one of the top four teams in their first season and qualified for the finals the next season.
“We made it to finals and got swept. It really wasn’t the best feeling in the world, but I am happy that we even made it to finals.”
He continued, “That also really fueled me to keep improving. I wanted to prove I was one of the best players in Arkansas. This season, I finally got to do so.”
Deuley has signed to play on the Lyon Esports team. He is looking forward to competing with the team while getting a good education.
“I really want to try to go pro. I have the motivation, and I know that all I am going to have to do is put in the time.”
Lyon College has signed its first three students for the new archery program, making Spencer Rhoden, Preston Linville and Havana Santis the first-ever Arkansas collegiate archers.
Head Coach Travis Linville, who is also the state coordinator for the USA Archery program, said Lyon is the first and only Arkansas college to offer archery as a sport and to provide scholarships for archery.
Linville said each Lyon Archery team member will have certifications to coach in both the National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) and the USA Archery program.
“Along with competing against collegiate archers at the state and national levels, Lyon archers will host tournaments where they will officiate and train future archers,” he said.
Linville has secured Lyon College as the 3-D Archery Host of the Arkansas State Competition.
Director of Affinity Mentoring Tommy Newton said Lyon researched archery programs and spoke with an array of local experts before officially forming a team.
“When we met Travis, we knew we had the right person to help make Lyon College synonymous with archery in the state of Arkansas!”
Newton continued, “Linville is a U.S. Army veteran who combines archery know-how with an indefatigable work ethic.”
“Signing our first three student athletes means that these students will get a great education,” Newton said, “and bragging rights for being collegiate archers with scholarships.”
“We’re going to be competitive right out the gate because of the level of archers these three are,” Linville said. “It’s an excellent program.”
Rhoden said continuing archery in college has been a dream of his.
“To sign with a college team was just amazing for me!”
Rhoden, of Alexander, first got interested in archery at a summer camp in sixth grade, and the camp staff encouraged him to join a team. He couldn’t find one in his area, so he ended up starting an archery team at his middle school and later at his high school, too.
“That team grew from about 10 to 15 archers to having over 200 students try out over just four years,” Rhoden said.
“I personally love archery because, for me, I fall into a zone of focus when I shoot that’s very relaxing and in general really fun!”
Preston Linville, of Bryant, got involved after attending an Arkansas Game and Fish archery event in sixth grade.
“I love how it’s competitive and you can have fun doing it.”
He is looking forward to continuing archery in college.
“It feels exhilarating to sign with Lyon. I was just doing archery for fun at first, but now it has helped me with college.”
Preston Linville continued, “I’m looking forward to having fun with my teammates, competing and seeing where it takes me.”
Santis, of Hensley, became involved with archery through Southwest Christian Academy.
“Teachers and students there have a passion for pursuing success in archery tournaments,” she said. “My favorite thing about archery is that it gives me the ability to compete and make new relationships.”
Santis said signing to compete at a collegiate level made her feel “very accomplished.”
“I am excited to grow as a person and an archer. I am looking forward to having many learning experiences inside and outside of the classroom.”
She continued, “I feel very prepared to grow mentally and socially while at Lyon College. I am grateful for the opportunities that I have been presented with, and I will try my best to use them wisely.”
Rhoden agreed, saying he is looking forward to learning and growing at Lyon.
“I have already met some of the amazing people at Lyon and am really looking forward to meeting more amazing people over the next four years.”
Associate Professor of Biology Dr. Cassia Oliveira won the 2020 Lamar Williamson Prize for Excellence in Teaching.
The Williamson Prize is awarded annually to a Lyon faculty member whose accomplishments as a teacher and a scholar, personal character and service to church and community make him or her deserving of such an honor. Nominations are solicited from faculty and students, and a Williamson Prize Selection Committee recommends a recipient to the Board of Trustees for its approval at its spring meeting.
Oliveira will receive a silver cup and a personal stipend of $2,500. She will give the annual Williamson Prize lecture next spring.
She said winning the Williamson Prize is an honor, especially considering how her academic journey began.
“To someone who grew up on a chicken farm in Brazil, this award is proof that dreams come true.”
Oliveira continued, “Although I grew up poor, I had a very happy childhood and never lacked for love or emotional support. My parents recognized that college was my best ticket to a better life.”
She attributes her success not only to her dedication and hard work but also to the opportunities and mentorship she has received over the years. She is especially grateful to those who served as her mentors during her pre-tenure years: Dr. Mark Schram, Dr. Tim Lindblom, Dr. David Thomas, Dr. Anthony Grafton, Dr. Gloria Everson and Dr. Virginia Wray.
“To my students, I am grateful for the honor of participating in their educational journey.”
Oliveira continued, “I also want to thank my husband, Dr. Ehsan Shakiba, for his love and support and my son, Darius- the light of my life.”
She concluded by thanking the Williamson family for their generosity and support of Lyon faculty for the past 41 years.
“It is a privilege to live in such a wonderful and caring community and to work at an institution that values the professional, personal and spiritual growth of its members.”
Lyon College announced that it intends to resume on-campus learning when the fall semester begins.
In the announcement shared on May 14, President Dr. W. Joseph King said the College’s “goal is to bring everyone back to a learning and living environment with safety measures in place, including continuing to sanitize residence halls and academic buildings.”
King also said while the College plans to be in residence this fall, the College is “actively developing a range of contingency plans.”
He added, “We will follow the Arkansas Department of Health’s guidelines as they are developed.”
Jim and Carole Williamson have made a $25,000 gift to the Lamar Williamson Prize for Excellence in Teaching, increasing the annual award amount from $2,500 to $3,500.
This increase allows the award to now not only benefit the recipient but also Lyon students.
Jim and Carole Williamson
The recipient traditionally wins a silver cup and a personal stipend of $2,500. Now, he or she will also receive an additional $1,000 to conduct a creative project or activity with students, in addition to giving the annual Williamson Prize lecture in the spring.
The Williamson Prize is awarded annually to a Lyon faculty member whose accomplishments as a teacher and a scholar, personal character and service to church and community make him or her deserving of such an honor. Nominations are solicited from faculty and students, and a Williamson Prize Selection Committee recommends a recipient to the Board of Trustees for its approval at its spring meeting.
Jim and Carole have added funds to the award over the years.
“We feel honored to be able to do so,” Jim said.
“The Williamsons are a wonderful example of a greater community of people throughout the region who, over the years, have recognized the exceptional quality of the teaching and learning that takes place at Lyon College,” said Vice President for Advancement Dr. David Hutchison, “and committed to supporting ways in which we can both enhance and celebrate that.”
Carole is glad the award will directly benefit both faculty and students now. She looks forward to seeing the new student project component in action.
“It’s nice to see it go directly to the students because it will help their educational goals.”
“Through their generosity, Jim and Carole are providing resources for creativity between faculty and students for generations to come,” said Hutchison.
The Lamar Williamson Prize for Faculty Excellence was established in 1979 in memory of Lamar Williamson of Monticello. Lamar was a distinguished lawyer, businessman, civic and Presbyterian Church leader and a lifelong friend and trustee of Lyon College, which he attended from 1901 to 1903.
J. Gaston Williamson of Little Rock originally started the prize and named it for his father. Gaston was a prominent attorney and civic leader, a Rhodes Scholar, and — like his father — a great friend of the College. Gaston’s son, Jim, who lives in Van Buren, is a former member of the Board of Trustees.
Jim said his family has always thought highly of Lyon College.
“The education that Lyon gives is tremendous.”
“And the ultimate results are good,” Carole added. “The students get into where they want to go and what they want to do for the most part.”
“It’s the value of the education that we find so special,” Jim concluded.
Dwayne Reliford, ‘94, never planned to attend Lyon College, but the school’s personal approach won him over, resulting in a lifelong love of his alma mater.
Reliford developed an aptitude for computers at an early age, putting him on track to be the first one in his family to attend college. His father was a factory worker, and his mother owned a cleaning business.
“My parents stressed education to all of us. They didn’t care what we did. They just wanted us to go to school, be the best we could be, and be able to obtain more things than they had.”
While his father supported historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), he discouraged Reliford from attending one since he wanted to study computer science.
“When you think back 20 to 25 years ago, computers were just starting to break ground,” Reliford said, “and the people working on them were often from different countries.”
“My father said ‘If you’re going to be doing that, you can’t go to an HBCU, son.’ He wanted me to go to a school where I would learn to deal with and mingle with people of different races, cultures, and ethnicities because I was going to be sitting alongside people who didn’t look like me.”
He wanted Reliford to learn not only how to work with computers, but also how to work with people.
“That was one of the best decisions I have ever made.”
Reliford began receiving application packets from colleges across the country his senior year of high school and planned on attending the University of Houston. One Thursday night while doing homework in his bedroom, he received a call from former Dean Jonathan Stroud of Lyon College, then Arkansas College.
“He talked to me about prospective student weekend and asked me why I hadn’t filled out an application. I said ‘I don’t know who y’all are. I’m going to be a Houston cougar.’ ”
After the call ended, Reliford found the application packet from Arkansas College. He saw Stroud’s face on the cover and was shocked to realize he had been speaking with the academic dean.
“Houston was so large that I would just be a number, and I was cool with that. It blew my mind that the dean of Arkansas College had personally called me. I figured I must be important.”
Reliford filled out the application that night and had his mom mail it the next morning when she went to work. Months later, he and his parents drove from Texas to Batesville for prospective students weekend.
“It was late February, so everything was covered in snow. It was beautiful,” he said.
“I remember getting in the car that Sunday to head home and saying ‘I think that’s where I want to go.’ I had a prospective student weekend for Houston the following weekend and told my dad I didn’t even want to go. I had fallen in love with Arkansas College.”
After majoring in mathematics with a minor in computer science, Reliford’s professional career spanned industries such as education, banking, finance, oil and gas, and telecommunications. He worked with AT&T as a Senior Database Marketing Manager for the last 14 years.
“The company moved me from Dallas to Houston, and we moved to Atlanta two years ago,” he said. “I had been with AT&T for such a long time that I was pretty much a subject matter expert.”
When, earlier this year, he learned that AT&T would be moving the entire department to California, Reliford began looking for opportunities in Atlanta and recently accepted the position of Senior Marketing Manager for TIAA, a retirement investment firm.
“The role is similar to my previous job, but it’s a totally different industry. For years, I’ve been in telecommunications, and now I’m in banking and finance. It’s a learning process.”
Fortunately, Reliford enjoys the challenge.
“With any change, there’s some apprehension and hesitation, but you’re getting to learn something new every day. I went from being a subject-matter expert to going to their experts with questions.”
“That’s the nature of the beast when you go somewhere new. You have to learn and go through the trenches. In time, I’ll be one of those subject matter experts here, too.”
He credits his adaptability to the well-rounded education he received at Lyon.
“Arkansas College definitely prepared me for my career. There were many times I thought about giving up because my professors were hard as hell.”
Dr. Doug Ponk, Reliford’s biggest mentor, taught him everything he knows about programming and math.
“In class, he would have you do exercises that made me think ‘I could do this so much easier.’ He was teaching you to think outside the box. I learned skills from him that I still use in my career today.”
Reliford concluded that, at Lyon, a liberal arts education meant “professors not only gave you what you needed for whatever field you were studying but also taught you so much about culture, differences, acceptance, and how to work with people. It was a well-rounded full-scale education from every aspect.”
A Lyon College professor has been named a Fulbright U.S. Scholar.
The U.S. Department of State and the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board announced that Dr. Scott Roulier has received a Fulbright award to Ahmedabad, India, to teach at the Centre for Environmental Planning and Technology (CEPT) and to research the Sabarmati Riverfront Development Project (SRDP).
Dr. Scott Roulier
Roulier, the David Trimble Sr. Professor of Political Philosophy at Lyon, is one of over 800 U.S. citizens who will teach, conduct research, and/or provide expertise abroad for the 2020-21 academic year through the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program. Recipients of Fulbright awards are selected on the basis of academic and professional achievement, as well as record of service and demonstrated leadership in their respective fields.
Roulier is thrilled and humbled to be the recipient of this award.
“Every person’s life is a repository of the kindnesses shown and the investments made by others. I am grateful for my supportive family and friends– and especially my colleagues and students at Lyon College.”
While some Fulbright awards focus on teaching or research, Roulier will enter a hybrid program. He will spend about half his time teaching and the other half researching.
He plans to teach two graduate level courses at CEPT: “The Politics of Urban Spaces” and “Critical Urban Theory.”
The Politics of Urban Spaces will explore different urban templates, such as suburbs, and study strategies to make cities more resilient. Critical Urban Theory will emphasize how “space” is socially constructed. The course will use readings from the fields of philosophy, political theory, anthropology, and geography to examine how spaces are produced and how they in turn shape human identity, economic opportunities, and democratic practices.
“This interdisciplinary course looks at how space isn’t just an empty receptacle. We produce these spaces, and that has all sorts of political and philosophical implications.”
For his research project, Roulier will apply postcolonial theory to the construction of the SRDP. Postcolonial theory considers how the political leaders and intellectuals of indigenous populations, though determined to chart a different course, often carry on colonial strategies of the former regime after gaining independence.
“Still, as insightful as postcolonial theory can be, its application can be taken too far, stifling legitimate development.”
He continued, “It is important for architects and urban planners to be able to sensitively and sensibly modify the built environment in order to promote the well-being of all citizens.”
The Fulbright Program is the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program and is designed to build lasting connections between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. The Fulbright Program is funded through an annual appropriation made by the U.S. Congress to the U.S. Department of State. Participating governments and host institutions, corporations, and foundations around the world also provide direct and indirect support to the Program, which operates in over 160 countries worldwide.
Lyon College French Club members started a French enrichment class at Southside Middle School during the 2020 spring semester. Katie Cruse, John Pruden, and Wilson Borkowski presented nine weekly lessons to a group of 20 students.
“The purpose of the class is not only to teach about French,” Cruse said, “but also to open the students’ minds to diverse opportunities.”
“I hope the class will help them see further than Arkansas,” said Assistant Professor of Biology Dr. Maryline Jones.
Many of the Southside students were unaware that international experiences are accessible to kids in rural Arkansas. In response, the French Club members held a panel discussion to share the opportunities they have received as a result of studying French.
Cruse mentioned essay competitions and study abroad scholarships, Borkowski described visiting Paris during a Nichols Trip, and Pruden highlighted study abroad experiences and college scholarships.
In addition, Jones, a native of France, visited the class to discuss some unique cultural aspects of her home country.
“They seemed eager to know more about life in France,” she said. “I hope this class helps them be open-minded about other cultures.”
Cruse agreed, adding that “learning to respect cultural differences could help the students form positive relationships with their classmates, teachers, coaches, and future coworkers.”
To further encourage students to seek out opportunities, the volunteer teachers also discussed college life.
“I was surprised to find that most of the students felt like they couldn’t afford a college education,” said Pruden. “That drove home how lucky I am to have the scholarship that I do.”
He advised the students to keep working hard on their education so they can receive student support at Lyon or another university.
Jones encouraged the students to pursue a college education, highlighting the unique advantages of Lyon’s liberal arts environment.
“We showed these young students that professors in college are accessible, that we care about our students, and that all we want is to give them the tools to reach any goal they have.”
The experience was beneficial to the Lyon students leading the course, as well.
“This is a fantastic learning experience for Lyon students,” said Jones. “They are fully in charge of developing and teaching the class and must be responsible, organized, and reliable.”
The Lyon students also enjoyed giving back to their college and community.
“Starting this class was my way to say ‘thank you’ to Lyon College,” Cruse said. “For three years, Lyon allowed me to take dual enrollment courses and participate in various campus activities. They helped open my eyes to opportunities, so I am glad to do that for others.”
Cruse hopes other Lyon students will offer new enrichment courses at Southside Middle School.
Pruden concluded, “I am 100% going to do this again next year.”
Lyon College is launching the Student Emergency Fund to support students with financial needs during the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Lyon took the unprecedented step March 16 of dismissing students from campus and preparing to convert the remainder of the spring semester to remote instruction. Vice President for Advancement Dr. David Hutchison said the coronavirus outbreak and its consequences will lead to unexpected challenges for many students.
“Within hours of President Joey King’s announcement on Monday, we heard from many alumni and friends who just wanted to say ‘let me know what I can do.’”
In that spirit, the Student Emergency Fund was established to help the most vulnerable students in their time of need. Hutchison said 100 percent of every dollar given to the emergency fund will be used to aid individual students’ needs. Lyon is establishing an online form for students to request aid.
A committee, led by Vice President for Student Life Dr. Patrick Mulick, will review each case submitted and determine the level of funding on a case by case basis. Payments will be made directly to the student’s account.
“We are navigating uncharted waters,” Hutchison said, “yet I am confident that when we come together as one Scots community, we will persevere.”
