Four Hardin-Simmons University degree candidates were singled out for exceptional accomplishment at commencement exercises on Saturday, May 10th.

Jodi Zachry of Abilene, a speech-language pathology major and psychology minor, was named the recipient of the Julius Nelson Olsen Medal. She managed a high level of academic performance while working at HSU full-time as a staff member, first serving in the registrar's office for two years, and for the past eight years, as the administrative assistant to the Dean of the Holland School of Sciences and Mathematics, all while achieving and maintaining a cumulative grade point average of 4.00.

Zachary

A member of the Alpha Chi National Honor Society, she received the Holland Medal for the Speech-Language Pathology Outstanding Graduate Award this spring.

Balancing academics with a family, our honoree is married and has three children. She and her family are active members of Crescent Heights Baptist Church in Abilene. Serving as the only full-time staff employee for the Holland School, she coordinates activities for over 20 full-time and five part-time faculty members and supervises more than a dozen student workers. She is the daughter of Mary and the late Loyd Hazelton of Abilene and the wife of Russell Zachry.

Established in 1914, the Olsen Medal is awarded annually at Spring Commencement to the graduate who has the highest grade average, exemplifies the highest in scholarly achievement, and has completed 90 semester hours of residence credit at HSU.

Beth Craig was named the recipient of the Minnie L. Anderson Award. A mathematics major, with a minor in business administration, Craig distinguished herself in academics, athletics and service through tutoring other students. She was a member of the varsity soccer team for four years, earning academic all-region, and was named to the all-conference and all-tournament this year. She maintained a perfect 4.0 grade point average.

Craig

She is a member of Gamma Beta Phi National Honor Society and a member of Kappa Mu Epsilon National Honor Society in mathematics. She has made the President's List each of her eight semesters at Hardin-Simmons. She has received The Dean's Scholarship, the Eiland Mathematics Scholarship and a Holland Scholarship. She was recipient of the Freshman Mathematics Award, the Burnam Award in mathematics, and the Holland Medal in mathematics. In addition to all of her academic and athletic activities, she has also taught Mother's Day Out classes. The Midland, Texas, native is the daughter of Jan and Ken Craig.

The award is presented to a senior woman who excels in character, personal development, service to the university, and completes three or more years of residence credit at HSU.

McKade Marshall, of Tuscola, Texas, an accounting major with a double minor in mathematics and computer science, is the recipient of the George Skiles Anderson Award. He made the President's list and the National Dean's List and was named in Who's Who Among Students in American Colleges and Universities. He received the USAA All-American Scholar Award, the USAA Business Merit Award, the USAA Computer Science Award, and the Outstanding Freshman in Mathematics Award.

McKade

He served the Kappa Mu Epsilon Mathematics Honor Society as President, served the Delta Mu Delta Business Honor Fraternity as both Treasurer and President, and served as a member of the Freshman Leadership Council. He is a volunteer for the Boys and Girls Club and served as a student peer leader for New Student Orientation. For two of his college years, he was the full-time administrative director for the Jeff Berry Band. He also worked as an accounting intern for Action Professional Outsourcing and has built websites as a computer programmer for Christian Databases.

This semester concludes his service as chaplain for the Gamma Beta Phi national service honor fraternity, President of Students in Free Enterprise, and President of the HSU Student Congress. He is a member of the Texas Society of CPAs, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, and the Association of Information Professionals.

The award is presented to a senior man who excels in character, personal development, service to the university, and completes three or more years in-residence at HSU. He is the son of Mary Atwell and Mark and Sherry Marshall.

Carrie Tippen, a Hedley, Texas, native and candidate for the master of arts in English, was named the recipient of the Hemphill Graduate Honor Award.

Tippen

The Hemphill Award is presented each May by the Graduate School to the student who excels in academic studies, possesses character and behavior consistent with the university's purpose, and exhibits potential for significant contribution to his or her chosen field. Endowed by Dr. Lee Hemphill and Mrs. Lunelle Hemphill, the award is presented each year at the May commencement and includes a plaque and cash award.

While pursuing her Master's degree, she served as the literary editor of the 2008 Corral, HSU's Student literary/Art publication. She also worked as a graduate assistant, tutoring undergraduate students in developmental writing courses. Her creative writing talent is evident in her poetry and thesis. Dr. Robert Fink judges her to be "one of the finest graduate students" he has known in his thirty-one years of teaching at Hardin-Simmons.
She is the daughter of Mrs. And Mr. Eddie Helm, and is married to Mr. Jay