The winners will compete in the EUSPBA Championship in Anne Arundel, Md., in October. The Southwest branch is comprised of bands from Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma.

All of the bands will march in the Parade of Clans and Massed Bands, which highlight the opening ceremonies at 1 p.m. Saturday. Members of the various clans and societies will lead the parade displaying their clan colors.

Also new this year will be performances by fiddlers, harpists, cloggers and country dancers. Area music groups will perform outdoors at Edwards Commons.

The annual Feast and Ceilidh will be at 7 o’clock Saturday night, April 24, in Becknell Gymnasium and will include an authentic Scottish feast and entertainment. Tickets to the Feast and Ceilidh are $25. Tickets to a cocktail reception before the feast are $10.

Advance two-day tickets to the festival are $16 for adults and $8 for ages 12-17. One-day tickets are also available in advance. Advance tickets for Saturday only are $10 ($12 at the gate) for adults and $5 ($6 at the gate) for ages 12-17. Sunday advance tickets are $5 ($6 at the gate) for adults and $2 ($4 at the gate) for ages 12-17. Children under 12 will be admitted free if accompanied by an adult.

Lyon faculty and staff and their immediate families will be admitted free to the festival (except the Feast and Ceilidh) with a Lyon ID.

To reserve tickets, send a check for the correct amount to Arkansas Scottish Festival, Lyon College, P.O. Box 2317, Batesville, AR 72503. Checks should be made payable to Lyon College. Ticket orders received after April 16 will be held at the main gate. For ticket information, call (870) 698-4382, e-mail festival@lyon.edu or visit www.lyon.edu/scotfest/.

Lyon’s Derby Center to be dedicated April 22

The Derby Center for Science and Mathematics at Lyon College will be dedicated April 22. The dedication ceremony at 4 p.m. in Couch Garden also will include the presentation of an honorary degree to Dr. Alan G. MacDiarmid, a Nobel Prize-winning scientist.

Construction of the 60,854-square-foot building was completed in December. The $11.8 million facility serves all Lyon College students and houses the college’s anthropology, biology, chemistry, computer science, environmental studies, mathematics, physics and psychology programs.

Dr. MacDiarmid, the Blanchard Professor of Chemistry at the University of Pennsylvania, was one of three recipients of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2000. He shared the honor with two other scientists. The prize was awarded for work all three had done in the discovery and development of conductive polymers (plastics that conduct electricity). The holder of 30 U.S. patents, MacDiarmid, 76, has been at Pennsylvania since 1955.

The building is named in honor of Lawrence H. Derby Jr. and in memory of his late wife, Marilyn Church Derby, of Warren, whose leadership gift helped make the building possible. Derby is a member of Lyon’s Board of Trustees.

The Bellingrath Wing is named in honor of Mr. and Mrs. Ferd M. Bellingrath Jr. of Pine Bluff, in recognition of their leadership gift to the college. Mr. Bellingrath is a former Lyon trustee.

An interactive tour of the Derby Center can be found at www.lyon.edu/derbytour.

Dr. Alan H. McNamee, the Frank and Marion Bradley Lyon Professor of Accounting at Lyon College, will deliver the 2003-04 Williamson Prize Lecture at 11 a.m. Tuesday, March 30, in Nucor Auditorium.

Dr. McNamee will present a lecture titled “Corporate Governance, Accounting and the Capital Markets: Connecting the Dots.” The public is invited and admission will be free.

The Lamar Williamson Prize for Excellence in Teaching is awarded annually by Lyon College to the faculty member deemed to be the most outstanding in four categories: professional competence, scholarly ability, exemplary humane and Christian values, and contributions to the community.

McNamee is the 24th Lyon professor to receive the prize, which was established in 1979 by the Lyon Board of Trustees in memory of Lamar Williamson (1887-1974) of Monticello, Arkansas. A distinguished lawyer, businessman and civic and Presbyterian Church leader, Williamson attended Lyon College from 1901-1903 and remained a friend of the college for the rest of his life.

The Williamson Prize confers upon the recipient a silver cup and a stipend from a memorial fund, both of which were given by J. Gaston Williamson of Little Rock in honor of his father. The award is announced at commencement each May. The winner of the prize presents a public lecture at a convocation the following academic year.

Award-winning author Lee Smith will present the Leila Lenore Heasley Prize Lecture at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 30, at Lyon College. The lecture will be in the Bevens Music Room of Brown Chapel. A reception and book signing will follow the lecture, which is free and open to the public.

Ms. Smith will present a fiction-writing workshop at 8 a.m. on March 30 in the Union Conference Room in Edwards Commons. She also will participate in a “Writer’s Life” interview and luncheon in Bevens Music Room at 11:45 a.m. the same day. A buffet luncheon will be available for purchase.

Ms. Smith has written more than a dozen novels and short-story collections. Her works portray the richness and diversity of the modern South while exploring and illuminating the importance of personal and family history.

A native of Grundy, Virginia, Smith draws on her Appalachian roots in such novels as “Oral History” (1983), “Family Linen” (1985), and “Fair and Tender Ladies” (1988). Her other works include “Black Mountain Breakdown” (1981), “The Devil’s Dream” (1992), and “Saving Grace” (1995). Her most recent novel is “The Last Girls” (2002).

The Leila Lenore Heasley Prize is awarded annually to a distinguished representative of American or international letters, theatre, or cinema, with the recipient of the prize giving a public lecture, performance, or reading at Lyon.

Japan lecture series ends Dr. Mark Ravina, associate professor of history and director of East Asian Studies at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, delivered the final installment in the first year of Lyon College’s Japan Lecture Series Thursday, March 18, in Nucor Auditorium. His lecture was titled “The End of the Samurai Class.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Harlequin Theatre to perform Oscar Wilde comedy April 1-4

	Photo by Maylynn Kittrell Jack Lofton and Gretchen West rehearse a scene from the play.

By Josh Manning

Lyon College’s Harlequin Theatre will perform Oscar Wilde’s comedy of manners, “The Importance of Being Earnest,” during the first week in April. The play, done frequently by many colleges, is a staple comedic play for theatres that perform classics.

Dealing humorously with the idea that many people led double lives in Victorian society, the play operates on two levels. The first addresses the fact that many men and women led adulterous lives that they disguised using a façade of conservatism; the second addresses the idea that many homosexuals led double lives as well, because their actions were illegal and scorned.

Filled with double meanings, this “trivial comedy for serious people” (as Wilde described it) is a well-crafted play that has been sustained for years by its depth of meaning. Dr. Michael Counts, associate professor of theatre at Lyon, said that the play is similar to Shakespearean works in that some of the lines are easily recognized because they have passed into popular sayings.

Counts, who is directing the play, has high hopes for the production and its impact on his students’ resumes. “We try to build up our theatre majors’ resumes, and these plays are very impressive to have on one’s resume,” said Counts.

The stage space for the production will be arranged “in-the-round” in an effort to bring the audience into the play. Gary Harris, associate professor of theatre, is the designer/technical director. Harris said, “Traditional productions of this play are typically placed on proscenium (picture frame) stages. But, Dr. Counts and I want the audience to feel a part of the play. Much of the comedy arises from conventions of socially acceptable behavior. Wilde not only points his finger at the characters in his play, but at the audience as well.”

Cast members include Jack Lofton, Jason Bugeja, Christina Cody, Zac Cunningham, John Earney, Jance Floyd, Amanda Pickett, Alyssa Starkey and Gretchen West.

Cast member Christina Cody, playing the part of Cecily Cardew, said, “This is the most fun I have ever had onstage. It’s been an exciting process, watching the other actors build their characters and just really mold them into such hilarious people. . . I really am a big fan of tragedy and drama, but we all need a break like this once in a while just to come to the theatre for a great laugh and a fun story.”

Zac Cunningham, who plays Algernon Moncrieff, said, “This is a play about mistaken identity, going to any lengths for the ones you love . . . and the double life that many people led at this time. This is a very humorous play.”

Performances will run at 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, April 1-3, and at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 4. Ticket are $5 for adults and $3 for senior citizens and students. Those interested in tickets should call 793-1749 for box office reservations.

	First Presbyterian in LR celebrates 175th anniversary Rev. Mark W. Lenneville (from left), associate general presbyter;  Mrs. Dale Hicks; Ms. Claudia Marsh, Lyon director of church relations; and Dr. Basil Hicks visit at a luncheon in Little Rock to celebrate the 175th anniversary of the First Presbyterian Church - Little Rock on Sunday, March 21.

Matt Nathanson concert planned for April 3

Lyon College’s Student Activity Council has announced an upcoming concert by Matt Nathanson at 8 p.m. Saturday, April 3, in the Lower Union Starlight Lounge in Edwards Commons.

In the past two years, Nathanson has played more than 250 live shows, selling out rooms across the country and opening for popular musicians John Mayer, Train, Howie Day, OAR, Maroon 5, Guster and Five for Fighting. His music has been featured in “Road Rules,” “Dawson’s Creek” and “Smallville.” Most recently, he recorded a version of “Laid” for the “American Wedding” soundtrack.

More information on Matt Nathanson can be found on his web site: www.mattnathanson.com. Nathanson is currently on a nationwide tour. His Lyon performance will celebrate Lyon College’s annual Accepted Students Day.

Tickets will not be sold in advance to this concert; however, there is an admission fee of $5. Doors to the public at large will open at 7 p.m.. For more information, contact Jason Russell, director of student activities (870) 698-4369 (e-mail: jrussell@lyon.edu) or the Student Activities Council office at (870) 698-4284. More information, including directions to the concert location, is also available on the Student Activity Council web site at sac.lyon.edu.

Scot yearbooks on sale now

Scot yearbooks for 2002-2003 are now on sale. Don’t miss your chance to order your book now. Supplies are very limited. The cost is $45 (shipping and handling included) per book. To order your book please e-mail Jason Russell at jrussell@lyon.edu or call (870) 698-4369. You may also mail an order to: Scot Yearbook, 2300 Highland Rd., Batesville AR, 72501. Checks and credit cards are accepted.

Sports

Indoor baseball facility dedicated at Lyon; named for head coach

	President Roettger (left) and others hold up lettering for the building that will identify it as the Lyon College Kirk Kelley Baseball Complex. Also pictured are Coach Kelley (waving to the crowd), Doug Gillam and Fred Wann, Booster Club president.

The first day of spring brought a big boost to the Lyon College baseball program. The college’s new Kirk Kelley Baseball Complex was dedicated Saturday before a crowd of about 300 gathered in front of the new facility near Scots Field, the home of the Lyon baseball team.

A few surprises were in store for the crowd, especially head baseball coach Kirk Kelley, who did not know that the new facility would bear his name. Doug Gillam, who spearheaded the building project, dedicated the facility in honor of his former head coach. 

Coach Kelley, in his 12th year as the head coach of the Scots, was lauded as one of the  “best small college baseball coaches in the country.”

The foyer of the facility was named in honor of Athletic Director Terry Garner, who has been Lyon’s athletic director for nine years following 15 years as head basketball coach.

The facility was built by Gillam and his family. Gillam, a 2003 graduate of Lyon, was a four-year letterman on the Scots baseball team. A Beebe High School graduate, Gillam played second base for Lyon. He is the son of Dennis and Eva Gillam of Judsonia. The Gillams operate Gillam Farms near Judsonia in White County.

Lyon President Dr. Walter Roettger explained how the baseball complex became a reality. “About  a month after graduating, (Doug) came to see me and said he and his family wanted to give back to Lyon,” Roettger said. “They wanted to acknowledge the quality of the Lyon experience in and out of the classroom by giving back so that future generations of Lyon students and their families could enjoy an even better education.

“They proposed to do it in a wonderfully unique way – by gifting to the college this facility, which they wanted to build,” he said. “I cannot imagine a better symbol for those ideals that we at Lyon say matter most – courage, creativity, responsibility, integrity – than this building. And, I cannot image a better bedrock on which to build and with whom to work than the Gillams.”

Roettger also read a letter from U.S. Sen. Blanche Lincoln commending Doug Gillam and his family.

The dedication ceremony also included remarks by Athletic Director Garner and Coach Kelley and expressions of appreciation by Dr. Edward N. Mosley, representing the Lyon faculty; Fred Wann, president of the Booster Club; Bill H. Walmsley, a member of the Lyon Board of Trustees; and Taylor Guillory, representing the baseball team. Guillory presented Gillam with a framed collage of photographs.

During his remarks, Coach Kelley thanked the Gillams for “the privilege of coaching their son.” He also expressed appreciation to his family. He and his wife, Marcia, have six children: Kristen, Katherine, Kraig, Kendra, Kourtney and Kade.

The ceremony concluded with a traditional ribbon cutting, followed by an open house.

The 7,200-square-foot indoor practice facility includes a 60 x 80-foot workout area with two retractable batting cages. It provides space for batting, fielding and throwing drills. There also are three coaches’ offices, a locker room and a dressing room for umpires.

Construction of the building began in September and was completed in time for the Scots to use the facility prior to this season.

Gillam served as the general contractor for the project. Larry Kirchner of Kirchner Architecture of Little Rock was the architect.

In conjunction with the dedication ceremony, Hall of Fame third baseman and legendary broadcaster George Kell broadcast a portion of that afternoon’s game between the Scots and Lee University on radio station SKY 99.5.

Basketball

Andrea Sublett signs to play with Pipers

Lyon College has signed Andrea Sublett of Highland High School to a letter of intent to play basketball for the Pipers next year. Head Coach David McClure was on hand for the signing in the Highland school library.

Sublett, a 5-foot-9 guard from Hardy, finished her prep career with 1,654 points (15.8 per game) and 228 3-pointers in 105 games for the reigning Class AAA-Region 3 champion Lady Rebels.

Highland Coach Harlan Davis said Sublett is probably the best shooter he has coached in his nine years at the school. Sublett shot 40.5 percent from 3-point range for her career and hit 41.7 percent this season. She averaged 3.0 steals and shot 78.5 percent from the free-throw line her senior year.

As a junior and senior, Sublett made the Class AAA All-State and 2-AAA All-District teams, as well as all-tournament teams for the state and region events, Lyon College, Northeast Arkansas and Kell Classic. She was also selected to the all-state tournament, all-district and all-NEA teams as a sophomore.

She is part of a class that has won 21 championships and runner-up finishes in tournaments since junior high. In 2002, she helped Highland win the state championship in Class AAA.

Lyon College head basketball coach Kevin Jenkins has announced the signing of Jonathan Donaldson (Beebe High School – Beebe, Arkansas) to a letter of intent to play basketball for the Scots beginning in the 2004-2005 season.

Jonathan is a 6’4”, 190-pound combo guard that will bring added athleticism and scoring to the Scots line-up. According to Coach Jenkins, “We feel like Jonathan is one of the best players in the graduating class in Arkansas this year. He should be able to step in and contribute right away next year.”

Jonathan is the son of Jake and Mary Smith of Beebe. He is also the brother of current Scot basketball player, Jason Donaldson. At this time Jonathan is undecided on his intended major at Lyon College.

The Piper golf team defeated Drury University on Friday at the West Plains Country Club in West Plains, Missouri. The Pipers shot a team score of 368 to win the dual match by 21 strokes. Lyon junior, Adriane Barnett, shot the day’s low score of 86. The Pipers will be in action again on March 29-30 in the Evangel University Spring Invitational in Springfield, Missouri. The Lyon College women’s golf team is currently ranked 25^th in the NAIA national poll.

Baseball

The Scots (29-10 overall and 2-4 in the TranSouth Conference) swept two games against Crichton at Scots Field Tuesday. The Scots won the first game 10-0 and took the second 12-3.

Louis Raptopoulos (7-1) was the winning pitcher, going four innings before being relieved by Josh Talbot. Talbot hit a double for the games’s only extra-base hit.

In the second game, Jose Rivas hit a home run and a tripled to lead the Lyon offense. Brady Fath hit a triple and Sam Cooke had a double. James Coulter (2-0) got the win, with Josh Dickey relieving in the second inning.

The Scots are scheduled to travel to Henderson, Tennessee, to take on conference opponent Freed-Hardeman at 6 p.m. today and in a doubleheader Saturday, beginning at noon.

Tennis

The Scots defeated the University of the Ozarks 7-2 in Clarksville on Tuesday. The Pipers suffered a 5-2 loss to Ozarks. Juan Herrera, Daniel Angel, and Cody Cox had singles wins for the Scots.

Both squads are scheduled to play Lemoyne Owen at 4 p.m. today on the Lyon courts and will host Bethel beginning at 2 p.m. Saturday.