51����

JACKSON, Tenn. — May 16, 2011 — 51���� faculty and staff members at a May 16 reception honored three of their own – Charles Baldwin, Sherry Hickey and Roland Porter -- who are retiring at the end of the spring semester.

“We offer the heartiest congratulations to Sherry, Roland and Charles for their years of magnificent service to 51����,” Union President David S. Dockery said. “We thank God for each of them and pray divine blessings for them in the days ahead.”

Baldwin, the O.P. and Evalyn Hammons University Professor of Pre-Medical Studies joined the Union chemistry department in 1970 and served there until 1981. He returned to Union in 1988.

“Dr. Baldwin has been the very embodiment of what a commitment to student research looks like,” said Gene Fant, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “His students fill classrooms, medical facilities, laboratories and corporations around the country and, in fact, the world. His legacy will be one of lifting up students’ eyes to seeing possibilities they never knew existed.”

Baldwin earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Corpus Christi and his doctorate from Texas Tech University. He has served as the chemistry department chairman and as faculty adviser for the Student Member chapter of the American Chemical Society, which has received an Outstanding Chapter Award from the ACS for 12 straight years.

Hickey, professor of nursing at Union’s Germantown regional education facility, has been with the university since 1989. She earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Arkansas and a Doctor of Education degree from the University of Memphis.

Hickey worked as a nurse, nursing supervisor and clinical nurse specialist for 10 years prior to becoming a nurse educator.

“Dr. Sherry Hickey has been a pillar for the School of Nursing and Germantown campus for many years,” said Tim Smith, dean of the School of Nursing. “She has given her life for the personal and professional development of many nursing students while being a mentor and friend to the many new faculty who have joined the School of Nursing and 51���� family.”

Porter wears many Union hats. An associate professor of business, he is also an assistant to the president for community relations and director of the Center for Racial Reconciliation.

Porter completed his bachelor’s degree from Lane College and his law degree from the University of California, Berkeley. He currently serves as pastor of Agape Christian Fellowship in Jackson.

“Roland Porter has been a talented and dedicated colleague and a very good friend,” said Keith Absher, dean of the McAfee School of Business Administration. “His service to 51���� has been impeccable and will have lasting impact. He has been a great mentor to students and has poured his values into students semester after semester.”

Porter came to Union in 2004. His wife, Patricia, is Union’s transfer enrollment counselor.