TROY, Ala. – Troy University Chancellor Jack Hawkins, Jr. has announced the selection of five Chancellor’s Fellows for 2008.

Selected were: Stephen Cooper, professor of English, Bernita Hamiton, director and professor of the School of Nursing, and Herbert Reeves, Dean of Student Services, all of the Troy Campus. Also selected were Joe Reynolds, who coordinates the Adult and Postsecondary Education programs at TROY’s Montgomery Campus, and Keith Seagle, director of Counseling and Career Services at the Dothan Campus.

“The Chancellor’s Faculty and Staff Fellowship Program enables qualified full-time faculty and staff to develop increased knowledge and understanding of the programs and operations of Troy University,” said Dr. John A. Kline, director of the TROY Institute for Leadership Development.

Participants, selected because of their leadership potential and past service to the University, will work under Kline’s direction. Each fellow is mentored by a member of the University’s senior administration.

The experience spans the spring academic semester during which the Fellows will have the opportunity to visit other campuses, benefit from briefings and meetings with senior University officials and take part in several field trips and visits with military leaders, chief executive officers and state government officials, Kline said.

The group will also work together on a project that will benefit the University. Past fellow’s projects have included a comprehensive proposal for a Troy Teaching Academy, a study related to the “One Great University” initiative, a study of the enrollment process at Troy University, Study Abroad Opportunities for faculty and students and a study of strategies to increase participation in the seeking and receiving of grants. The fellows are expected to report to the Chancellor and his cabinet in late spring or early summer, Kline said.

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Troy University Chancellor Jack Hawkins, Jr. (left) and Dr. John Kline (far right), director of the Institute of Leadership Development, are shown with the 2008 Chancellor’s Fellows (from left): Bernita Hamilton, Stephen Cooper, Keith Seagle, Joe Reynolds and Herbert Reeves following the University’s sixth annual Legislative Breakfast held recently on the University’s  Montgomery Campus.

Biographies of Chancellor’s Fellows

Stephen Cooper is professor of English at Troy University where he teaches courses in American, Southern, and African American literature as well as a course on the modern novel.  He received his B.A. in English from the University of Delaware and his M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  He is the author of The Politics of Ernest Hemingway and of journal articles and conferences papers on a number of modern American writers.  His most recent scholarship has focused on the literature of the American West.  Since coming to Troy in 1985, he has served on the Faculty Advisory Council, on the Chancellor’s Fellowship Committee, and as Mortar Board advisor.  His wife Jan is a Troy alumna and adjunct professor in the political science department.  He has three sons and two daughters, ranging in age from 10 to 23 years.

Bernita Hamilton is director and professor of the School of Nursing at Troy University.  She received her BSN and MSN from the UAB and her PhD in Nursing from the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta.  She rejoined the nursing faculty at TROY in 2000 after serving nine years as a member of the nursing faculty at Georgia Southern University where she taught obstetrical and pediatric nursing courses.  Her research interests include health promotion in children, caring and delegation.  Bernita has served in various leadership positions and is a member of Sigma Theta Tau International, the nursing honor society, the American Nurses Association, and the National League for Nursing.  She recently was project evaluator for the Healthy Schools Healthy Kids program in Pike and Bullock Counties.  Bernita and her husband, Bob, live in Greenville, Alabama, and have two children, Jennifer and Taylor.

Herbert Reeves is Dean of Student Services at Troy University’s Troy Campus.  Reeves received his B.S. in Criminal Justice from TROY in 1984 and his M.S. in Counseling and Psychology from TROY in 2004.  Reeves has served in the Student Services Office since 2000, first as Assistant to the Vice President and now as Dean.  Prior to that, he served in several capacities in the Housing and Residence Life Office.  Today, Dean Reeves supervises many Student Services areas including, but not limited to:  Housing and Residence Life, Dining Services, Recreation and Intramurals, Campus Safety and Security and Student Activities.  Reeves is a member of several national organizations including the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, National Association of College Auxiliary Services, and Association of College and University Housing Officers-International.  He also serves as co-chairman of the Alabama Special Olympic summer games held each year in Troy.   

Joe Reynolds coordinates the Adult and Postsecondary Education programs at Troy University’s Montgomery campus.  Reynolds earned his BS in Electrical Engineering from the USAF Academy; his MS in Telecommunications Science from the University of Colorado; an EdS in General Education Administration from Troy; and his EdD in Curriculum and Instruction from Auburn.  Reynolds spent 22 years in the Air Force as a Communications Engineer and then as an educator and platform instructor at the Air Command and Staff College.  He also lectured at other Air Force courses and developed materials for several USAF coursebooks.  Joe retired as a Lieutenant Colonel in 2003.  In his extra time he coaches the Prattville Flying Fish Swimming team and assists with the Montgomery YMCA Barracudas.  He is married to Mary-Heather (Camp) Reynolds and is the father of nine children, ages ranging from 6 to 22.

Keith Seagle is the director of Counseling and Career Services at Troy University’s Dothan Campus.  Seagle earned his B.A. in Psychology as a Distinguished Military Graduate from the University of South Alabama in 1978 and went on to serve as a U.S. Army officer.  He earned a M.S. in Counseling Psychology from TROY in 1994 and served as a substance abuse therapist until joining the Dothan Campus staff 1997 as the Student Support Service Counselor.  In 2001 he was honored as the Alumni of the Year for the Dothan Campus and promoted to his current position.  Seagle is a Licensed Professional Counselor actively involved in the Dothan community.  In 2007 he was elected to the Dothan City Commission where he serves District 6.  Seagle and his wife, Deborah, have two children.