Methodist University - Alumni Awards

» About Alumni Affairs

» Scholarships

» Related Links

MU Home » Institutional Advancement » Alumni Affairs

Alumni Awards

New Alumni Awards Ceremony and President’s University Update Held During 2012 Homecoming Weekend

Homecoming 2012 featured a new event honoring several truly outstanding Methodist alumni as well as two of Methodist’s most successful coaches. On Saturday, November 3, 2012 at 10:00 a.m. in Yarborough Auditorium, the MU Alumni Association Awards were presented to four Distinguished Alumni and two Outstanding Faculty/Staff of the University. President Ben Hancock gave a brief welcome and University update. For photos of the event, click here.

Methodist University Alumni Association Distinguished Alumni Award recipients for 2012 include the following:

Ed McEnroe ’94 is Executive Vice President IGP Sports & Entertainment Group and Director of the Honda Classic Tournament on the PGA Tour. The Honda Classic has raised more than $18 million for children’s charities since its inception in 1972, and over $4 million for charity since it moved to its present location at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., three years ago. Ed has been with IGP since 2006, and prior to that held executive positions with the Ford Championship at Doral, a PGA Tour event; Royal Caribbean International; and Executive Sports International. After earning his B.S. in Sociology at MU in 1994, Ed went on to receive a Master’s in Sports Management from St. Thomas University (Miami). He is married to alumna Sharon McEnroe ’96, and they have one son and one daughter. He said of his Methodist experience that “From the moment I first stepped on campus, I knew Methodist University was a special place. I connected easily to amazing people, both students and staff who were extremely helpful in developing structure in my life, building faith, and developing core values that I’ve carried with me into my professional and personal lives.”

Dr. Dwayne Mack ’93 is Associate Professor of History and holds the Carter G. Woodson Chair in African American History at Berea College in Kentucky. In 1996, he received his Master’s degree in American History at North Carolina Central University, where he also taught. He then began teaching American History at Washington State University, including African American History. Dwayne earned his Ph.D. in 2002 from Washington State in American History and Public History with a secondary field of study in Latin American History. He obtained an assistant professorship at Berea College in 2003. He is author of numerous articles published in books, and has three book projects in progress, including Long Road to Freedom: Berea College’s Participation in the Selma to Montgomery March. In 2006, Dr. Mack served as Methodist’s Spring Convocation speaker on the topic of the 1965 Civil Rights marches. Dwayne is married and has four children.

Wanda Herring ’66 is a native of Fayetteville, N.C., although she spent her childhood moving from one military post to another until her father retired from the army when she was in junior high school. After graduating with a B.A. degree in English from Methodist, Wanda taught in the Cumberland County and other area schools. For the past twenty years, she has resided in Florida, where she developed an interest in native plants, started a community gardening club, and wrote a gardening newsletter. Wanda also has experience in business, running her own import company and serving as an officer of a manufacturing company. In 1991, she returned to the field of education as a founder and Director of the Adult Literacy Ministry of First Baptist Church of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. For over ten years she was involved in teacher training, student evaluation and placement, and curriculum development. She co-authored Hospitality English, a teacher’s manual for English as a second language. Wanda’s fascination with her family's tales of the “good old days” growing up in rural Grays Creek, N.C., in the early 1900’s inspired her to write a collection of short stories entitled Down the Chicken Foot Road. She has since written two other books and is also a Managing Partner of Sharp and Schuler Press.

CPT Manuel “Manny” Menendez, P.A. ’04 is the 2012 recipient of the U.S. Army Surgeon General’s Physician Assistant Recognition Award. This high honor is given to one active duty Army physician each year who has made significant contributions to military medicine. In his nomination, Capt. Menendez’s battalion commander, Lieutenant Colonel Marcus S. Evans, spoke highly of Manny’s versatility and skills, often exercised under fire during combat. In 2011, Capt. Menendez deployed twice, each time serving as the lead medical officer for a joint special operations task force with more than 500 soldiers, providing expert medical support to more than 200 missions. He received a Bronze Star Medal and an Army Commendation Medal for his actions. “His leadership, clinical acumen, knowledge and experience have made him an indispensable asset to the unit whether he is delivering life-saving, point-of-injury care on the battlefield or designing, developing and reviewing protocols and guidelines that can impact medical personnel throughout the army,” Lt. Col. Evans said. Off the battlefield, Capt. Menendez helped redesign the 3rd Ranger Battalion’s Combat Trauma Management Course, the new format of which is now the standard followed by all four Army Ranger battalions. He developed the Advanced Ranger First Responder Course, which provides enhanced trauma management skills to the non-medical rangers of the battalion, and he improved protocol for pain management and helped to revise the Ranger Medic Handbook and the Physician Assistant Handbook. Manny, who is originally from Puerto Rico, joined the Army in 1997. He is married to Wendy Menendez, also a Methodist alumna, Class of 2005. They have one daughter.

Methodist University Alumni Association Outstanding Faculty/Staff Awards for 2012 were presented to the following:

Head Baseball Coach Tom Austin, who has coached the Monarchs for 33 years and surpassed the 1,000-win mark this season. His teams have won 13 conference titles, 20 NCAA appearances, and six trips to the NCAA World Series. In addition, Austin has coached 28 All-Americans and 128 First Team All-Conference selections. He has been selected as Region Coach of the Year seven times and Conference Coach of the Year nine times. Coach Austin has represented Methodist University and the Monarchs in a first class manner for over 30 years, and his influence on his players is evident in the numerous MU baseball alumni who have gone on to coach at the high school and college levels. He is married and has three children.

Head Women’s Basketball Coach DeeDee Jarman has been with the Lady Monarchs program since 1995. In recent seasons, the Methodist University women's basketball program has reached new heights, and a majority of that success is a credit to DeeDee. She is entering her 17th season overall at Methodist. She is also in her 13th year as the Senior Woman Administrator for the Methodist athletic department, and in July of 2004, she added Associate Athletic Director to her duties. In her 14 seasons as head coach, Jarman has amassed a 237-166 record, making her the winningest head coach in the history of women's basketball at Methodist. She ranks first all-time in victories at Methodist, and her winning percentage of .588 ranks second amongst any Lady Monarchs head coach. In addition to her coaching skills, DeeDee encourages her players to perform community service through a number of different programs, most notably their annual Play4Kay effort. She and her teams have raised over $30,000.00 for cancer research. She coordinates Special Olympics on campus and has a heart for service to our community and students that has been an inspiration to me and many others at Methodist University.

Click here to view a list of past recipients.

Nominations now being accepted for 2013!

If you would like to nominate a fellow classmate or faculty/staff member for one of the awards to be presented at Homecoming 2013, Saturday, October 26, you can download a nomination form HERE. Please e-mail the completed form to or fax to (910) 630-7683, or mail to the address below.

Methodist University
Office of Alumni Affairs
5400 Ramsey Street
Fayetteville, NC 28311

Deadline for 2013 nominations is March 30, 2013. The Alumni board will review the submissions and make their selection at the April board meeting.

Other Awards Honoring Alumni

Economic and Business Alumnus of the Year: Presented in the fall during the Economic Outlook Symposium

Athletic Hall of Fame: Presented during Homecoming.