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McKinley Award, September 2003 Winner — Ruby Howard
UA Press Announces McMillan Prize

McKinley Award, September 2003 Winner — Ruby Howard

Ruby Howard

Ruby Howard, secretary in the department of anthropology within the College of Arts and Sciences, was named the McKinley Employee Award winner for September 2003. Her nominator, Dr. Ian Brown, director of graduate studies for the department, notes especially Howard's constant vigilance in overseeing the office operations.

According to Brown, Howard was in the department when he came in 1991 as a new faculty member. "She was the person who helped me get settled, find a home, and introduce me to the workings of the Department of Anthropology and the University overall," he wrote.

In the five years he has been director of graduate studies, Howard has been Brown's secretary. "It is no exaggeration to say that I simply would not be able to do this job were it not for the constant vigilance of Mrs. Howard in overseeing all matters relating to our graduate students," wrote Brown.

Pamela Chesnutt, also a secretary for the department, wrote on behalf of Howard: "Ruby has been a constant source of information for our department. [She] continually goes above and beyond the call of duty."

Former graduate students also wrote on behalf of Howard. Jon Marcoux earned his master's degree in the department and is now at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill working toward his doctorate. He wrote: "During my years in the M.A. program, Ruby was as much of an integral part of my graduate experience as classes, professors, and my research."

Being an enterprising employee who, by action or idea, contributes to the University mission of teaching research and service is a characteristic of McKinley winners, and by all accounts, Howard fulfills this trait.

The McKinley Award was established by Helen H. and John K. McKinley of Darien, Conn., and Tuscaloosa in honor of John McKinley's father, Vergil Parks McKinley. The award recognizes enterprising employees who, by action or idea, contributed to the University's mission of teaching, research and service. The monthly award carries a cash prize. Vergil Parks McKinley came to UA in 1918 and retired as head of the College of Education's trade and industrial development department in 1945. If you would like to nominate an employee for future awards, contact Human Resources at 348-6690.

UA Press Announces McMillan Prize

Book cover - In the Trenches with Jesus and Marx, Harry F. Ward and the Struggle for Social Justice The UA Press has announced the winner of the 2002 Anne B. and James B. McMillan Prize: In the Trenches with Jesus and Marx: Harry F. Ward and the Struggle for Social Justice by the late David Nelson Duke, former professor of religion at William Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri. Given annually since 1995, the prize is awarded to the manuscript chosen the "Most Deserving in Alabama or Southern History or Culture" by the UA Press Editorial Board.

Published in May, the book is an insightful biography of a passionate, stubborn and zealous religious and political leader, Harry F. Ward. The prize honors Dr. James B. McMillan, founding director of the UA Press, former chair of the English department, and a renowned dialectologist. For more information and to order the book, contact Priscilla McWilliams at 348-9534.