In Their Shadows - Jeremy Willis
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Photography by Phil Shockley
When Jeremy Willis began his college search, the native of a Dallas suburb, Flower
Mound, Texas, knew he was interested in attending an out-of-state school. After visiting
Stillwater and securing a scholarship, he decided that OSU was the place for him.
“I really liked the OSU community,” Willis says. “People are easy to get along with.
It’s an ideal college town with everything surrounding OSU.”
Willis’ decision to major in education came naturally. His grandparents were teachers
and principals in the state of Texas. He also gained experience working with children
and young adults at church.
“Education is an area where I have the opportunity to make a difference,” he says.
Willis, a 2009 high school graduate, enjoyed a successful first year at OSU. He received
several scholarships from the Inclusion Center for Academic Excellence (ICAE), including
the Howard Shipp Jr. Scholarship, the Black Faculty and Staff Association Scholarship
and the ICAE Freshman and Leadership Scholarships.
He also worked part time at the Edmon Low Library, enjoyed playing basketball at the
Colvin Center and attended OSU Football games.
In June, following the end of spring semester, the secondary education and social
studies sophomore enjoyed a rare opportunity to shadow OSU’s College of Education
Dean Pamela Fry.
Willis’ Journal
It feels great to be back in Stillwater since the end of the spring semester. I felt
honored to follow Dean Fry for the COE magazine, but I was somewhat nervous as to
what I would be doing throughout the day.
I arrived at Willard Hall around 8 a.m. and went straight to the dean’s office on
the third floor. After meeting Dean Fry, the day began.
The dean met with administrative assistant Brenda Brown to review the day’s schedule.
She then spent time writing thank you notes to senators and representatives she met
the previous week in Washington, D.C., and follow-up notes to the individuals recently
inducted to
the College of Education Hall of Fame.
Just before 9 a.m., we headed downstairs to the Willard Hall Living Room where the
dean greeted incoming freshmen during their enrollment orientation. She introduced
herself and welcomed them to OSU and to the College of Education.
She asked students to share their names, where they were from and which College of
Education program they were majoring in. She was very encouraging and welcoming.
At 9:30 a.m., we went back upstairs for a meeting with Lisa Holder and Goldie Thompson
from the office of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education. College staff
members Holly Blakey and Candace Thrasher, and Susan Stansberry, the associate director
of professional education, also attended.
The meeting was about hosting a conference in conjunction with the Celebration of
Teaching, which the college holds annually. It features the Oklahoma and National
Teachers of the Year.
The college invites teachers from across the state, OSU teacher education candidates
and high school students interested in the teaching profession to attend. During this
meeting, Dean Fry asked for my input, and I was able to give a student’s perspective
about what kinds of things would be most interesting and valuable to a student attending
the event.
Following the meeting, the dean visited via teleconference with a colleague at the
University of Oklahoma, Dr. Debbie Rogers, about some research they are conducting.
I learned that even though she serves as dean, Dr. Fry remains a member of the faculty
and continues research and teaching.
Next up, we walked over to the Rancher’s Club on campus for a lunch meeting with the
senior director of development, Dr. Brenda Solomon, and Dr. Cecil Dugger, a former
faculty member in the College of Education, and his wife, Geneva.
Dr. and Mrs. Dugger are friends and supporters of the College of Education. This lunch
is an opportunity for Dean Fry and Dr. Solomon to thank the Duggers for their support
and visit with them about what is happening in the college.
Coming in, I anticipated that deans have a busy workday, and spending just a brief
time with Dean Fry confirmed my thoughts — and that was a Friday during the summer.
I can only imagine the amount of meetings and conference calls she would have during
the regular school year.
I instantly gained respect for the amount of work Dean Fry does throughout the day.
She is the leader and one of the faces of the COE.
She has to meet with alumni and really represent the COE well.
One of the most surprising things to me was there never seemed to be a time for her
to just relax or take a break.
I believe Dean Fry is very dedicated to her job. In order to be dean at any institution,
a person must be very friendly and approachable.
I learned that a dean must be a leader and have good social skills to communicate
with the various people. People turn to the dean for answers and guidance, and a dean
must be levelheaded and able to provide answers.
One day, I would definitely be interested in the position of a dean. Currently, I
am a secondary education major, but I hope to be a principal or work for my local
school board as a superintendent. Being a dean at a university would be the ultimate
goal I could set for myself and would be a great achievement in my career.
Fry’s Views
“I feel that my graduate degrees from OSU provided an exceedingly strong foundation
to prepare me for my academic career. As I interacted with faculty from institutions
all over the United States and beyond, I came to fully understand and appreciate the
quality of my OSU master’s and doctoral degrees.”
This article was featured in Education Magazine. View full publication below.