History of abraham baldwin agricultural college

Tom Cordell received the Carlton Award for Administrative Excellence at Honors Day in 1976. Helen Strickland was selected for the Carlton Award for Faculty Excellence, and Mary Lewis Walker received the Carlton Award for Staff Excellence.

United States Congressman Ronald “Bo” Ginn (Class of ’53) from Millen was selected for the Distinguished Alumnus award at Homecoming by the ABAC Alumni Association. He served the First District in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1973-83. Other award winners were Franklin Sutton, Master Farmer; Lee Manning Lee, Master Homemaker; and Jerald L. Carter, Master Young Farmer. Buddy Burke was elected as the 1976-77 Student Government Association President. The 1976 TABAC received first place honors for the fifth year in a row at the Southern Regional Press Institute. Denese Walker Anthony is the editor. The Stallion also won first place for the fifth year in a row. Greg Spicer is the editor.

The New Christy Minstrels performed at the 1976 Dollars for Scholars event. Tyron Spearman (Class of ’65) left his position as Director of Public Relations in 1976 to become Executive Director of the Georgia Peanut Commission. He was replaced by Jim McDonald in November. McDonald came to ABAC from Clinton (N.Y.) Community College where he was the public information director. Enrollment for the 1976 fall quarter dipped slightly to 2,577.

ABAC golfers Jack “Skipper” Torbett from Brunswick and William M. Dobrosky from Fernandina Beach, Florida passed away in a tragic accident in their apartment on January 24 when a gas heater malfunctioned.

Billed as the largest tractor pull ever held in the state of Georgia, the AET Club hosted the ABAC Nationals on March 4-6 featuring Cracker Jack, the ABAC pulling tractor driven by Jimmy Grubbs.

John Henry Davis was named the Distinguished Alumnus at Homecoming by the ABAC Alumni Association. Other award winners were Alonzo T. Rigsby, Jr., Master Farmer; Bonita Butler Green, Master Homemaker; Bobby J. Rowland, Master Young Farmer; and Charles A. Harris, Honorary Alumnus.

Robert M. Stone received the Carlton Award for Staff Excellence at Honors Day. Wayne Cooper was named the Carlton Award for Faculty Excellence winner, and Comptroller J. Talmadge Webb received the Carlton Award for Administrative Excellence.

Coach Tom Moody’s Golden Stallions won the 1977 regular season baseball title with a record of 26-5 overall and 9-1 in conference action. ABAC is ranked 13^th in the nation. Third baseman Jorge Lezcano led the way with a .386 average.

Ray Stevens, a native of nearby Albany, was the featured performer at the 1977 Dollars for Scholars show. The Baldwin Players performed Little Mary Sunshine during the spring quarter. James “Sonny” Burt directed the production. Sam McConnell from Webster, Fla., was selected as the 1977-78 president of the Student Government Association. Charlotte Stallworth from Warner Robins is the new station manager for WABR-FM.

Former Valdosta State assistant coach Donnie Veal was named as the new men’s basketball coach, replacing Peter Dees.

Joy Cleveland, a sophomore from Blakely, was selected as Miss Homecoming at the TABAC Beauty Revue on February 14. Forty-four contestants competed in the event, sponsored by the campus yearbook, TABAC, which is an acronym for The Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College.

On February 25, ABAC dedicated the Torbett-Dobrosky Memorial Golf Practice Center in memory of former ABAC golfers Jack “Skipper” Torbett from Brunswick and William M. Dobrosky from Fernandina Beach, Florida. The two students died a tragic death in their off-campus apartment on January 24, 1977 when a gas heater malfunctioned. Charles Oxford, chairman of the Board of Regents, spoke at the ceremony as well as ABAC President Stanley Anderson and golf coach Wayne Cooper.

Margie York from Sylvester averaged 24.6 points per game for the ABAC Fillies basketball team during the 1977-78 season. She was selected for the 1978 all-state team. Coach Ron Evans’ women’s basketball team did not win a game. Evans resigned his post at the end of the spring term. Ulysses Teague averaged 21 points and 11 rebounds for the Stallions basketball team. He wound up as the second leading scorer and fifth leading rebounder in the state. Teague was selected for the all-state and all-conference teams. He has signed with Morris Brown University. Under first year head coach Donnie Veal, the Stallions compiled a record of 9-18.

Dr. Frank Thomas received the Carlton Award for Administrative Excellence at Honors Day on May 3. This administrative award was not presented again until 2000 when it was renamed the E. Lanier Carson Leadership Award for College Administrators. John Dell Evans received the Carlton Award for Faculty Excellence, and George Odom received the Carlton Award for Staff Excellence.

Cliff Bailey ran unopposed for the SGA presidency on May 3. Ed Avery will be the student manager for WABR-FM for 1978-79. Lynn Medford from Tifton will serve as TABAC editor, and Tim Chason from Lakeland will serve as editor of The Stallion. Craig Wells from Tifton will be the Pegasus editor.

A tornado did $6,000 worth of damage to the roof of Gressette Gym on May 8. The tornado also ripped a huge chunk from a tree on Moore Highway. Maintenance Supervisor Nathan Dyer reported the damage.

The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia met at ABAC on May 9-10. Assistant Coordinator of Continuing Education Bob Keith handled the arrangements.

Baseball Coach Tom Moody said the 1978 Stallions were the best hitting team in the history of ABAC. Moody said the team batting average was .348. Larry Pittman hit .442, Billy Collins hit .429, and Chuck Scarborough hit .383 to lead the way for ABAC, which ended its season with a record of 20-16. The ABAC men’s tennis team finished second behind Gainesville in the 1978 state tournament. Andres Flores won the men’s singles title in the state tournament. Coach Wayne Cooper’s ABAC golfers finished second in the 1978 state tournament. Three golfers were named all-state, Jody Joiner, Rich Bellinger, and Ben Weeks.

Sam McConnell from Webster, Fla., and Cathy Cox from Bainbridge were voted by the students as Mr. and Miss Baldwin on May 24. McConnell is SGA president, and Cox is co-editor of TABAC. Mona Beth Parkman received the SGA Impact Award at the student activities banquet on May 25. Pacesetter winners were Walter Simpson, Dianne Cowart, Jeff Summey, Paul Gaines, Gail Wood, Mark Majors, Dr. Gaye Elder, John Fountain, Alan Livingston, Chet Kimmell, Linda Spikes, and Dr. Leon Benefield. On May 26, Dr. George Conger contributed $15,000 toward the Baldwin Memorial Gardens campus beautification project initiated by President Stanley Anderson. Conger is a 1916 alumnus of the Second District A&M School and president of the Conger Life Insurance Company.

The Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow (ACT) honored The Agriculturist and Pegasus with national awards at their national convention in Atlanta. Lisa Ray, a sophomore from Fort Valley, won a first place award for a story in The Agriculturist on the Coastal Plain Experiment Station. Ray was also elected ACT national vice president. The literary magazine received its first place award in the miscellaneous publication category. Kathy Beard was the Pegasus editor. Helen Strickland advises both publications.

Director of Public Relations Jim McDonald resigned from his position on June 30. He joined the college staff in November, 1976.

A total of 29 students received their pins at the annual ABAC nurses’ pinning ceremony on June 8 in the Chapel of All Faiths. Carol Lawrence was the 1978 Dollars for Scholars performer.

Melvin Merrill became the Director of Development at ABAC on July 1, replacing Bob Ragsdale, who took a position at the Rural Development Center. A North Carolina native, Merrill had been serving in the development office at Berry College.

The Sunbelt Agricultural Exposition opened at its new Spence Field site near Moultrie on October 10-12. The Expo began as a series of small equipment shows on the banks of Lake Baldwin at ABAC in 1964. ABAC had a stage featuring student entertainment in front of the air traffic control tower. ABAC students distributed round, gold stickers with ABAC #1 on them, signifying the claim as “Georgia’s Number One Junior College.”

Bob Sise, a marketing management major from Thomasville, won the national championship in the category of General Merchandising in the 1979 Distributive Education Clubs of America competition in Houston, Texas. Lester Simpson and John Overman are the advisors to DECA.

In what Coach Donnie Veal called “his best night ever,” Jeff Gill scored 27 points to lead the Stallions to an 80-75 basketball win over the North Georgia Tech Thunderbirds on February 3. Gill scored 27 points. Franklin Patten added 19, and Viviano Reaves had 15. ABAC wound up with a record of 12-16 overall and 9-11 in league play. The Stallions were seeded eighth in the conference tournament at Brewton Parker but did not attend the tournament because ABAC President Stanley Anderson had written a letter to Wendell Whiteside from NJCAA Region XVII on September 18, 1978 that stated that if ABAC was not one of the top four teams, the Stallions would not compete because of budgetary constraints.

In an article in The Stallion, Anderson said he had seen two other colleges “completely do away with” their athletic programs. “ABAC is close to the same situation, and I don’t want to lose our athletic program,” Anderson said. In their third year of existence, the ABAC Fillies completed their 1978-79 basketball season with a 0-16 record. Jeff Kincaid (Class of ’74) was the coach.

The ABAC Nationals Tractor Pull was held on March 2-4. Pullers competed for $25,000 in prize money. The AET Club assisted the National Tractor Pullers Association with the event. Student Union President Mark Von Waldner arranged for Molly Hatchet, Stillwater, and Starbuck to present a concert on March 9.

Michael Learned and Anthony Zerbe performed in Dear Liar on the Howard Auditorium stage on March 13 as a part of the Tiftarea Concert Association performance season. Learned is best known as Olivia Walton on The Waltons. The Southern Regional Press Institute awarded TABAC and The Stallion with first place awards. ABAC students Tim Malcolm, Tim Raynor, Pat Thrift and Johnny Burge have formed a gospel singing group called The Spiritual Awakening.

Suzanne Spinks from Tifton was crowned Miss Homecoming 1979 at the 11^th annual TABAC Beauty Revue on April 5. Homecoming award winners on April 7 were Dr. Audrey VanLandingham, Distinguished Alumnus; George P. Conger, Distinguished Business Leader; Talmadge Webb, Faculty Service Award; Brenda Morris, Master Homemaker, Melvyn Rowan, Master Farmer, Hugh Matthews, Master Young Farmer; and Pauline Stephens, Honorary Alumnus. Elna Bragdon from Nashville was named president of the ABAC Alumni Association, and Glenn Parkman was named president of the Young Alumni Council.

Nathan R. Dyer received the Carlton Award for Staff Excellence, and Marolyn Howell received the Carlton Award for Faculty Excellence at the 1979 Honors Day. Melba Cooper, assistant professor of business, was selected for the top statewide award presented annually to a college professor by the Georgia Business Education Association.

ABAC yearbook editor Lynn Medford presented student Pacesetter awards to Randall Morris, Tim Chason, Pat Barron, Mark von Waldner and Karen Wainwright at the annual student activities banquet on May 15. Other Pacesetter winners were former ABAC President George P. Donaldson, Andrea Pate, and C.B. Mathis. John Ellington was sworn in as the SGA president, and Danny Smith was sworn in as the SGA vice-president at the banquet.

Michael D. Chason began his job as the Director of Public Relations on May 15, replacing Jim McDonald who resigned from the position on June 30, 1978. Chason is the former sports editor of The Valdosta Daily Times.

The Baldwin Players presented A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Georgia Agrirama for their spring production. Sonny Burt was the director.

ABAC President Stanley Anderson said on May 22 that the Donaldson Dining Hall will be available for use the Dollars for Scholars Benefit Banquet and Show on May 25. The dining hall has undergone a $1.3 million renovation which increased the seating capacity from 500 to 950.

“This gives us the largest dining facility south of Atlanta in the state except for the one at Jekyll Island,” Anderson said. “The students used to have to line up outside. Now, there’ll be no need for that.”

Country music star Barbara Mandrell was the featured performer at the eighth annual Dollars for Scholars Benefit Banquet and Show on May 25. She was voted as the top female vocalist the recent Country Music Association awards show for her song If Loving You is Wrong, I don’t Want to be Right. Mandrell and her entourage stayed at the Howard Johnson’s Motel on Highway 41. Dining Hall Directors George and Aliene Graul put together a fabulous buffet for the event.

Associate Professor of Chemistry Sydney Smith retired on July 1. He began his ABAC career in 1956. Dean and Coordinator of Continuing Education Tom Cordell retired on August 31 after a 39-year career. Bob Keith was named Acting Director of Continuing Education.

Dr. Fred Reuter, chair of the Division of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation, called a square dance in Red Square in Moscow on a trip to the Soviet Union and Poland during the summer. “I am one of only three people to call a square dance in Red Square,” he said.

Bookstore Manager Emory Johnson was one of the performers on the ABAC stage during the Sunbelt Agricultural Exposition in October. The Expo actually began as a series of small equipment shows on the shore of Lake Baldwin in 1964. It moved to Spence Field near Moultrie in 1978. Other performers were the Travelin’ Stallion square dance team, the ABAC Cloggers, the ABAC band, and the Golddusters’ dance team.

Comptroller J. Talmadge Webb told The Stallion on October 23 that ABAC will experience a two per cent budget cut for the year because of a drop in enrollment. Registrar Paul Gaines said the enrollment declined from 2,430 students in the fall term of 1978 to 2,372 students in the fall quarter of 1979. Webb also said that several hundred dollars’ worth of silverware, salt and pepper shakers, and drinking glasses have been taken from the dining hall. “We don’t want to know who took what,” Webb said. “If the students will just quietly return anything they have taken from the dining hall, there will be no questions asked.”

The ABAC Stallions opened their season with a 73-68 loss to Santa Fe on November 20. Public Relations Director Mike Chason did his first ever radio play-by-play on Tifton radio station WWGS.

Dr. Lew Akin said the WABR-FM radio antenna is now atop the Student Center as of November 20. The station went off the air at the end of the 1978 fall quarter when the tower had to be removed from the ABAC water tower. He expects broadcasting to resume “any time.”

Financial Aid Director Bud Holtzclaw passed away due to an apparent heart attack on November 23. He joined the ABAC administration in 1975. He had headed up the financial aid operation for the past five years. The second annual Faculty-Staff Dinner and Dance sponsored by the ABAC Music Program was held November 29 in the dining hall. Admission was $7.50.

Ray Barber, an ABAC biology instructor, wrote a song about ABAC during the fall quarter titled, ABAC, The Place for You and Me. One of the lines from the song: “Our campus is real pretty, come and see it you’ll agree; another asset of good ol’ ABAC is the friendly faculty.” Barber and his brothers recorded the song with their company, Gabriel Recording.

1980

Dr. James Burran was named assistant to the academic dean on January 1. Burran joined the ABAC faculty in 1978 as an assistant professor in the Division of Social Science. Registrar Paul Gaines said the enrollment for the 1980 winter quarter is 2,142 students. ABAC President Stanley Anderson said Dr. William Wheeler will take over duties as evening program director in addition to his responsibilities as Director of Special Studies.

After two straight winless seasons and five losses to open this year, the women’s basketball team at ABAC recorded a 79-60 win over Middle Georgia on January 18. Nancy Anderson led Coach Jeff Kincaid’s Fillies with 15 points and 12 rebounds. She received ample support from Lisa Arrington with 14, Sheila Williams with 13, Donna Ranew with 11 and Becky Thomas and Shari Strickland with 10 apiece. The Fillies wound up 5-13 on the year. With an average of 15.9 points per game, Anderson was selected for the all-conference team. Coach Donnie Veal’s Stallions finished with a 9-19 record and a first round loss in the state tournament.

Development Director Melvin Merrill announced the kickoff to the “ABAC in the 80s” fundraising campaign with a goal of $1,000,000. WABR-FM received approval from the FCC to resume full scale programming on January 18. The station has been off the air for over a year. The 10^th annual convention of the Georgia Young Farmers Association met at ABAC on January 25-26. The Baldwin Players under the direction of Sonny Burt performed “The Mousetrap” on February 11-15. Cast members included Lauren Whitfield, Paul Humphrey, Chris Robertson, Darith Russell, Lee Norris, Andy Gibbs, and Kevin Lawton. The roof was completed on the new picnic pavilion at Lake Baldwin on February 12.

Waylon Jennings performed in Gressette Gym on March 25. He was scheduled to perform on February 26 but cancelled the show at the last moment. In an interview, Albany Herald reporter Charles Postell asked Jennings if the rumors were true that he cancelled the show because the stage was too low and the students refused to furnish him with whiskey. Jennings said, “I don’t remember. That sounds pretty good.” Postell asked him which one of the reported reasons was true. “Either one,” Jennings said.

Bud Laird said he came to ABAC from Morrow “to pick bluegrass and get an education.” Laird is a member of the Pony Express Bluegrass Band which features Laird on mandolin, Joe Wright from Jasper on guitar, Mark Graves from Marietta on banjo, and Barry Cantrell from Marietta on bass. Arts Experiment Station folklorist-in-residence Dennis Coelho helped to put the group together. Wesley Baker has been named editor of The Agriculturist. Helen Strickland is the advisor. Nolan Gibbons coordinated the ABAC Nationals Tractor Pull on March 28-30. Registrar Paul Gaines said 1,963 students enrolled for the spring quarter. The Weltner Hall Annex closed after the winter quarter.

Kellie Smith was crowned Miss Homecoming 1980 on April 2 at the 12^th annual TABAC Beauty Revue. ABAC Alumni Association award recipients at Homecoming on April 5 were Emma S. Murrah, Distinguished Alumnus; Robert L. Webster, Sr., Master Farmer; Jane Grogan Gibbs, Master Homemaker; Jack G. Chandler, Master Young Farmer; and George P. Donaldson and Tom M. Cordell, Honorary Alumni.

The Arts Experiment Station sponsored the first ever Arts Circus on April 12. Arts Experiment Station Director Syd Blackmarr said the purpose of the event is to promote the arts among young children. The Arts Circus later became the much acclaimed Tifton Love Affair. Doris Sears received the Carlton Award for Staff Excellence, and Melba Cooper received the Carlton Award for Faculty Excellence at Honors Day on May 7.

Famed pianist Roger Williams was the Dollars for Scholars performer in the annual benefit sponsored by the ABAC Foundation to raise money for student scholarships on May 23.

The Forestry-Wildlife Building opened on September 18 at the start of the 1980 fall quarter. The building was later named for Vernon Yow, a longtime Professor of Forestry and a former Dean of Men at ABAC. The fall quarter enrollment was 2,450.

1981

The statue of the Golden Stallion mascot was stolen from its perch in front of the Student Center on January 17. The statue has been on campus since the early 1960s. This is the fifth time it has been taken since being moved to this Student Center location in 1976. Public Relations Director Mike Chason received an anonymous phone call at his home on January 22 from a quail hunter who said he had seen the statue at the edge of a field near Brighton Road. Chason and Director of Development Melvin Merrill traveled to that location that night and found the statue. Physical Plant personnel returned the statue to the campus on January 23. No suspects or leads in connection with the theft ever developed.

The first ever Discover ABAC: College Exploration Day was held on March 3. Admissions Director Garth Webb said the event attracted over 1,100 prospective students from 100 different high schools.

Denise Brewer from Tifton was crowned Miss Homecoming 1981 at the TABAC Beauty Revue on April 2. Director of Public Relations Mike Chason was the emcee for the first time ever. Former ABAC President George King was honored with a portrait dedication at King Hall on April 4 during Homecoming. Alumni Association award winners were John Strickland (posthumously), Distinguished Alumnus; Andy H. Miller, Master Farmer; Martha Spell Lee, Master Homemaker; and Julian Morgan, Master Young Farmer. Strickland died in a traffic accident near his home in Lanier County on August 25, 1979. He was the husband of ABAC Student Publications Director Helen Strickland and president-elect of the ABAC Alumni Association. Tyron Spearman won the first ever Outstanding Young Alumnus Award.

World renowned drummer Buddy Rich performed at ABAC on April 7. At an awards banquet for the ABAC basketball teams on April 8, Jenni Collins was named Most Valuable Player of the women’s team, and Woodrow Clemons was named Most Valuable Player for the men’s team. The annual Tractor Pull was held on April 10-12. Jesse Chambliss and Nolan Gibbons coordinated the annual event, which attracted 11,000 spectators. The annual Golddusters Show was held April 23-25 in Howard Auditorium. Andrea Pate is the advisor for the dance team.

At the annual Honors Day ceremony on May 6, Betty Henning received the Carlton Award for Staff Excellence, and Dr. Ron Jones received the Carlton Award for Faculty Excellence. Dollars for Scholars was held on May 8 with featured performer Debby Boone. She enthralled the crowd with her big hit, You Light up my Life.

George Walter Bird, III, state president of the Georgia FFA in 1979-80, was selected as president of the ABAC Student Government Association for the 1981-82 year.

A dinner honoring the service of Jesse Chambliss was held in the dining hall on May 22. Chambliss will retire at the end of the spring quarter with 34 years of service. He will be honored with the title of Professor Emeritus of Agricultural Engineering. Osborne Day was held at Possum Poke in Poulan on May 24 to honor Stellanova Osborne, widow of former Michigan Governor Chase Osborne. Possum Poke is owned by the ABAC Foundation.

Admissions Director Garth Webb reported that the females outnumbered the males at ABAC for the first time since 1944 during the 1981 summer term with 425 female students and 424 male students.

ABAC baseball player Ralph Bryant was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first round of the 1981 amateur draft. The power-hitter from Fort Gaines made his professional debut with the Dodgers on September 8, 1985. He spent the next three years traveling between the major and minor leagues. Bryant then found a home with the Chunichi Dragons and the Kintetsu Buffaloes in Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. He was the 1989 Pacific League Most Valuable Player when he hit 49 home runs and tied Sadaharu Oh’s career record by blasting three homers in a game on five different occasions. He retired in 1995 with 259 home runs for his career. Bryant was named to the ABAC Athletics Hall of Fame in 2015.

ABAC student Cindy Mott from Hahira was named Miss Rodeo Georgia 1981. Dr. Vernon Yow has been selected for induction into the Georgia Foresters Hall of Fame.

For perhaps the first time in history, four members of the same family were enrolled at ABAC during the 1981 fall quarter. The Vano family from Walden, N.Y., sent Lynn, Judy, Barbara, and Rich to the college. ABAC alumnus and former faculty member Baldwin Davis died on September 16. He served the college for 15 years as a faculty member and was named Associate Professor Emeritus of Agriculture upon his retirement on August 5. The fall quarter enrollment was 2,322.

Keith Barr (Class of ’72) was named the new head women’s basketball coach in 1981, replacing Jeff Kincaid (Class of ’74), who resigned after three years to attend dental school. ABAC alumnus William Thomas Greer, Jr., (Class of ’62) was named the 17^th president of Andrew College on October 22.

In the November 17 edition of The Stallion, President Anderson said the fiber glass statue of the Golden Stallion mascot “would remain in storage indefinitely until the students can devise a plan to make sure the Stallion will not be damaged.” The Stallion statue was taken from its perch in front of the Student Center several times in 1981 with the last two thefts coming only 10 days apart. Stallion Editor Russell Camp suggested that the college get a bronze statue of the Stallion. Thirty-two years later, the college did just that.

President Anderson selected Dr. Lew Akin as the chair for the ABAC Golden Anniversary Celebration committee in November. Anderson said the celebration would last from September, 1983 until June, 1984 when ABAC would celebrate 50 years as ABAC and 75 years as an institution. Other steering committee members were Lamar Branch, James Burran, Mike Chason, Ronald Faircloth, Marolyn Howell, Rosemary Johnson, Ron Jones, Tyron Spearman, and Joann Thornhill.

Cindy Mott from Hahira, the reigning Miss Rodeo Georgia, competed in the Miss Rodeo America competition in Oklahoma in December.

Development Director Melvin Merrill said the ABAC Foundation had its best year ever in 1981 with total income for the year exceeding $390,800. The largest single gift ever received by the Foundation was $153,180 from the Rankin family to endow the Weetie and Homer Rankin Scholarships.