A president emeritus, a state delegate and two longtime Mountainlair employees were honored Wednesday evening (Oct. 8) at West Virginia Universitys annual Student Affairs Awards Ceremony in the Mountainlair.
The awards recognize professionals who have provided excellent service to WVU students, said Ken Gray, vice president for Student Affairs.
Student Affairs presented an Outstanding Achievement Award to WVU President Emeritus David C. Hardesty Jr. and inducted three into its hall of fame: George Bryan Denis Sr. and Ilene M. Livengood, both former Mountainlair employees, and state Delegate Charlene J. Marshall, D-Monongalia.
Brief bios are as follows:
David C. Hardesty, Jr.Outstanding Achievement Award
Hardesty is a president emeritus and professor of law at WVU .
He holds degrees from WVU ; Oxford University, which he attended as a Rhodes Scholar; and Harvard Law School.
As the 21st president of WVU from 1995-2007, Hardesty led efforts to develop more than 25 student-centered programs, including a residential college experience.
Hardestys tenure was also marked by records in enrollment, research and sponsored programs, and private giving. Several teaching and research initiatives achieved national recognition, including forensics and biometrics, and more than $750 million in capital projects were launched, including the Student Recreation Center, Lincoln Hall and a major library addition.
He and his wife, Susan, also a WVU graduate, created the Mountaineer Parents Club in 1995 to help families stay connected with their studentseducation and life at WVU .
While serving as president, Hardesty was a member of the National Security Higher Education Advisory Council, chairman of the National 4-H Council Board of Trustees, vice chair of the Big East Conference and a representative on the BCS Presidential Oversight Committee.
George Bryan Denis Sr.Hall of Fame Inductee
Denis joined WVU in 1978. He started his career in the Mountainlair games area in 1982 and served as the night supervisor.
Four years later, he became the supervisor of the games area, where he stayed until his retirement.
During his 20 years in that position, Denis managed a bowling and billiards area, which is recognized as one of the top programs in the country by peer student unions and the Association of College Unions International (ACUI).
Denis coached the WVU mens and womens collegiate bowling teams, leading the mens team to the national competition in Milwaukee, Wisc. He also traveled with ACUI and ran the Region 4 Recreation Tournament for seven years.
Denis was recognized by his co-workers as a WVU Employee of the Quarter and nominated for Employee of the Year.
The best part of his job, he said, was working with the students and helping them with their problems. His unique ability to connect with the student staff is evidenced by the numerous alumni who stop by to see if he is still working at the Mountainlair.
Denis and his wife, Pearl, have four children, 11 grandchildren and two more on the way.
Ilene M. LivengoodHall of Fame Inductee
Livengood started working as a cashier at the snack bar of the Mountainlair on midnight shift in 1968, the year the current student union was completed. She was promoted to the salad department, where she remained lead worker until her retirement.
Livengood met her husband, Bill, while she was working midnight shift in the Mountainlair. The two fell in love, got married and now have three children and seven grandchildren.
Bill Livengood, a 2003 inductee into the Student Affairs Hall of Fame, worked in the receiving unit of the Mountainlair and their daughter, Sandra, worked in the kitchen. Together, the trio have devoted 91 years of service to the Mountainlair.
Former colleagues say Ilene Livengood was a dedicated and organized leader in her department, keeping hundreds of catering orders organized during each football and Commencement weekend. Counts and menus fluctuated constantly, but she stayed on top of everything and always remained calm.
She also knew how to break up the stress of a work day. She and her staff worked hard but enjoyed life, too. Livengood always stood behind her employees for what was right and fair, according to Student Affairs officials.
She retired from WVU after 29 years of service.
Charlene J. MarshallHall of Fame Inductee
A lifetime resident of Monongalia County, Marshall graduated from Bluefield State College.
She spent many years as a data technician at WVU , and in 1991, she won a seat on the Morgantown City Council and became the first black woman to be elected mayor in the state.
After serving as mayor until 1998, Marshall went on to the West Virginia House of Delegates and represented the 44th District for four terms.
She is past president of the Morgantown NAACP and a former advisory board member of the WVU School of Nursing.
Marshall has also served on the board of directors for the American Red Cross, Laurel Chapter, and she is a member of the African Methodist Episcopal Church.
Her many awards include Mayor of the Year for West Virginia, FBI Appreciation for Service in the Public Interest, the 1999 BPW Woman of the Year, the 2006 Public Citizen of the Year Award and the 2006 Mountain State Bar Award for Outstanding Citizen.
Marshall has three children and four grandchildren.