November 27, 2008

Thron Named Miss Memphis Princess 2009

Lacey Thron, a Junior at Arlington High School, was recently crowed Miss Memphis Princess 2009 at the 62th annual Miss Memphis sholarship pageant.

She is the daughter of Debbie and Jimmy Thron; and the grandddaughter of Bill and Betty Thron and Frankie and Barbara Fili.

A member of the St. Louis Church youth group, Lacey is also a religious education teacher at the parish.

The Miss Memphis organization is known for their great volunteer work. During her reign she has volunteered at the Arlington Fire Department raising funds for fallen firefighters families, at the Buddy Walk for Down Syndrome, and at the Race for the Cure for breast cancer awareness. She will participate in the Reading Awarness week in the inner city schools early next year.

She will compete in the Miss Tennessee Princess Pageant in March 2009.

Ekmark Named Distinguished Alumnus of the Year at CBHS

By John Morris

Director of Communications and Alumni Relations - Christian Brothers High School

There are many thousands of Christian Brothers High School alumni who have left CBHS and gone on to success in business, the arts, religious life, married life… many thousands of alumni of whom the Christian Brothers can be proud. Each year since 1993, the Christian Brothers High School Alumni Association has honored one of these men as Distinguished Alumnus.

The Distinguished Alumnus Award is the highest honor the Association can give to one of the more than 10,000 living CBHS alums. The guidelines for the award require that the recipient should be named based on his… "significant and broad accomplishments in business or professional life, which reflect distinction upon himself and thus upon CBHS."

Over the years the Alumni Association has honored men from a variety of vocations, who have lived their lives of distinction in a variety of ways. Some of the former recipients are Tim McCarver '59 (National baseball announcer and retired veteran major league player); Rt. Rev. James Coleman '47 (Retired Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of West Tennessee); Br. John Johnston, FSC '51 (Former worldwide leader of the Christian Brothers); H. Lance Forsdick, Sr. (Founder of RFS, a Memphis-based commercial real estate development company)and Robert Orians '74 (Attorney).

Ekmark graduated from the CBC class of 1957. He received an associate degree in Electrical Engineering from Southwest Community College. He founded Ekmark Electric Company in 1981 and oversaw its growth for 20 years until turning it over to his son, David. He and his wife of 50 years, Lena, have three children: David (Class of 1977), Steve, and Karen. They have five grandchildren. Karl and Lena are active members and supporters of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Germantown.

One of the hallmarks of the CBHS Distinguished Alumnus Award is that it is given not just based on success in business, but also on service to church and community. Karl has not only stayed involved at CBHS, but also in the Memphis community. He was instrumental in forming a local chapter of the Independent Electrical Contractors and was recognized with a lifetime achievement award by them.

CBU Education Program Earns National Accreditation

Christian Brothers University's (CBU) Department of Education received professional accreditation from the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). CBU joins 622 distinguished, accredited institutions which produce two-thirds of the nation's new teacher graduates each year. This accreditation exemplifies the academic-intensive education programs offered by CBU.

Talana Vogel, Chair of the Education department, said, "As a nationally accredited teacher education program, our students will be assured that their program is of the highest quality possible." CBU's accreditation, according to Vogel, solidified the Department's values and principles of their conceptual framework such as servant leadership, builders of vibrant learning communities and champions of individual learners. "Pursuing and achieving the NCATE accreditation demonstrates the Department of Education's commitment to excellence," states Vogel.

NCATE-accredited schools must meet rigorous standards set by the profession and members of the public.

The U. S. Department of Education recognizes NCATE as a specialized accrediting body for schools, colleges, and departments of education. NCATE is composed of more than 30 professional and policymaker organizations representing millions of Americans committed to quality teaching.

For more information about CBU's Department of Education, contact Talana Vogel at tvogel@cbu.edu. More information about NCATE is available at www.ncate.org.