News and notes about William Woods students, faculty, staff, and alumni. Updated continuously throughout the semester.
William Woods Students, Faculty, and Staff
Ashley Allen Brown ’90 and ’03, Director of Marketing, received a nomination to the National Society of Leadership and Success through the Concordia University Chicago and is currently working toward getting her doctorate.
The National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (NIAAA) is pleased to announce that Dixie E. Wescott, Online Program Manager, M.Ed. in Admin – Ath/Act at William Woods University, has been recognized by this association as a Certified Master Athletic Administrator. To earn this distinction, Dixie has demonstrated exemplary knowledge, contributions, and on-going professional development in the field of interscholastic athletic administration. The voluntary certification process included a thorough evaluation of the candidate’s educational background, experience, NIAAA Leadership Courses, and professional contributions. It is culminated with a practical written or oral presentation project. Dixie is one of a very elite group of interscholastic athletic administrators nationwide to attain this level of professionalism.
Roberto Duro Sanchez ’21, a senior Physical Education major from Madrid, Spain, has been nominated for the prestigious Major of the Year award through MoSHAPE, the Missouri Society of Health and Physical Education. The MoShape award goes to outstanding future professionals from colleges and universities in the state of Missouri, from institutions in the state that offer undergraduate majors in physical education, health, recreation, dance, exercise science, sport science, kinesiology, or directly related fields. The award will be officially awarded in October 2020.
Jean Kraus was named the United States Dressage Federation’s (USDF) Volunteer of the Year for 2020. The USDF Volunteer of the Year award is given to an individual that has demonstrated exceptional commitment towards carrying out USDF’s mission, through consistent and cumulative volunteer activities. Kraus also currently serves as USDF Technical Delegates Committee Chair, as a member of the USDF Licensed Officials Education Task Force and Regional Championships Committee, and also serves on the USDF Rules Advisory Working Group and the Licensed Officials Working Group of the United States Equestrian Federation Dressage Sport Committee.
William Woods Alumni
Erin Troast ’11 is now a Client Representative at NetSmart. Also, she just graduated from Officer Candidate School and commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Kansas Army National Guard.
Suzanne Morr Humphreys ’83 served in Children’s Ministry for 8 years, and in 2018, Suzanne and her husband, Greg, moved to the beautiful Upstate of South Carolina. Greg and Suzanne are the Owners and Innkeepers of Sunrise Farm Bed and Breakfast, a country retreat, in Salem, South Carolina.
Caitlin Cook ’20 works as a Spanish teacher for Heritage Homeschool Academy, and started work at Saddle and Sirloin this summer with Jennifer Hutton, a current WWU student, as her assistant riding instructor. She has also started a full-time job in public health as a bilingual disease investigator for COVID-19 with her local health department and hospital. Through them, she is taking a Spanish Bilingual Assistant class so that she may speak directly to Spanish speaking patients as an investigator, or interpret for other investigators, doctors, nurses, etc., and their patients. This summer she started selling plants she has been propagating and growing to fundraise for veterinary school, and is planning on applying to MU’s veterinary school in September 2020.
Nancy Canestrari Williams ’76 has retired after a decade of teaching public relations in the Communications Department at Milligan College (now Milligan University), a sister institution to William Woods University. She continues to write as a PR/communications specialist, posts a weekly blog at https://lightbournecreative.com, and published her first book last year, “A Crocus in the Desert,” a devotional book for women suffering through infertility. She and her husband, Mark, live in Johnson City, Tenn., and have two adult children.
Martha Burton Long, JD, MCM, CIE (class of 1988) received the Chartrand Communications Award. This award is given to Insurance Regulatory Examiners Society (IRES) members who have made a significant difference to IRES through their actions and have actively demonstrated their support of the organization, helping to build support and membership. Martha served as the President of IRES September 2018-August 2019.