As the semester comes to a close, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College honored three staff members who will retire with 71 years of collective service.
Staff members Deanna Bradley, Susan Gresham and Mary Dugan were honored in a ceremony recently.
Bradley, athletic director, began her employment at SMWC in August 1991 after spending several years as the coach for the women’s basketball program at Delta Junction High School in Alaska. Most of her years as athletic director were coupled with her coach duties of the women’s basketball program from 1992 to 2018.
“Deanna arrived to SMWC full of passion, a vision for athletics, and the drive to develop student-athletes at a time when SMWC desired to begin intercollegiate athletics. Coaching has always been her sincere passion and her love of basketball helped to drive her and the department forward,” said Brennan Randolph, vice president for enrollment and information technology.
“Deanna faced many challenges during her career including the possible disbandment of athletics during the 1992-93 season. While this trial might have run another athletic director off, Deanna took action. She formed a task force to prove the importance of athletics which brought the addition of scholarships for student-athletes, with the 1994-95 season of women’s basketball being the first scholarship program at The Woods,” said Randolph.
She was involved in the 1999-2000 transition from the National Small College Athletic Association (NSCAA) to the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA), a key growth for the department and institution.
As coach, Bradley led the Pomeroys to five winning seasons, six national tournament bids and a 1999 NSCAA Runner-Up finish. Bradley also served in a number of capacities with the USCAA and in June 2019, Bradley was inducted into the USCAA Hall of Fame at its national conference. She is as a member of the Ripley County Basketball Hall of Fame, the first female athlete from South Ripley High School to receive this honor and was inducted into the SMWC Inaugural Athletic Hall of Fame in 2017.
In 30 years, the SMWC athletic department has grown to an impressive 15 competitive varsity sports and this July will become a provisional member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA).
Randolph added, “Deanna has successfully led the athletic department through many growth opportunities and has put the entire department on a path toward the future.”
In 2014, Bradley witnessed a professional dream come true as the College opened the Jeanne Knoerle Sports and Recreation Center. The institution had been without a facility for Bradley’s entire career. President Dottie King, Ph.D., announced in March the naming of the Hamilton Arena basketball court Bradley’s honor – a fitting tribute.
Gresham, a 1979 alumna of SMWC, began her career in 1990 as the as coordinator of Career Development. For her first eight years, Gresham was the lone staff member dedicated to career services for the College. During her time, she has built the career program for students from the ground up, being named director of the career development center in 2000.
Gresham was the lead on two Lilly Endowment Inc. grants in the early 2000s dedicated to establishing and growing the career focus and services for students. The funding enabled the College to expand the career center and offer new program such The Mane Event – a career fair and panel for equine students.
She also obtained other grant awards through the Career Development Professionals of Indiana and College Career Center Consortium.
“Over the years, Gresham has been very involved with the College Career Center Consortium and ICI Career professionals, opening doors for students to attend larger career fairs and networking with other college career professionals,” said Janet Clark, Ph.D., vice president for academic and student affairs. “She works hard to have strong relationships with the faculty and is very involved throughout the entire College.”
Gresham severed as a member of Academic Council, the Program Development Team, Make-A-Difference Committee and the Aspire Higher Strategic Plan Steering Committee Assessment Pillar. Gresham’s excellence in both her work in the Career Center as well as across campus was recognized when she won the Carolyn J. Mock Staff Excellence award in 2001.
“Susan is best known for always being professional in every setting and being a role model to our students in professionalism. Also, it is well known that she expects a well-dressed professional to always have a jacket or sweater even over a dress!” said Clark. “I am truly appreciative of the countless hours she has given to create new programs and help students take that next step in their journey to secure internships and employment.”
Dugan joined the College in 2009 at a time when the financial aid office was in need of someone that would make student/customer service a priority.
“Mary wrote the book on customer service! Students and families would line up to be able to meet with Mary as she advised them on their financial aid,” said Randolph. “She is a relationship builder and excellent at helping students sift through the countless fund sources to adequately pay for their education. She has been an advocate for students, working to find a path inside and outside her department to ensure students, faculty and staff were all served well.”
Randolph explained that financial aid rules and regulations are constantly changing and complex, but Dugan has been a continuous learner in the material.
“Mary was never a stranger to a challenge. Whenever there were tasks that needed completed, she was always the first one to jump in and say, ‘I will learn that.’ In fact, Mary oversees some of the most critical tasks in the financial aid office such as processing and managing VA benefits, R2T4’s, private loan disbursements and packaging,” said Randoph.