Faculty Members to Retire

Inside April 22, 2003's Issue

-News-

Faculty members to retire at end of semester

George Simcoe wants to play more golf

By Julianna Hunt
Staff Writer

Dr. George Simcoe, professor of communications, will retire in June after a long career in college education.

George Simcoe is retiring Simcoe began teaching in the spring of 1969 as a graduate assistant at Murray State University in Kentucky, where he was working on his M.A. He was an English major at Florida Atlantic University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in 1968.

Simcoe said that he changed his major to communications because he “liked English, particularly journalistic writing, but also liked the areas of speech and mass media, too.”

The communications graduate program at Murray State was so new when Simcoe started his M.A. that each of his graduate classes only had about a dozen students in it. He then studied at the University of Denver, where he received his Ph.D. in 1974.

Before coming to Georgia, Simcoe taught for four years near San Antonio at Texas Lutheran University. He taught speech and journalism there, but wanted to return to the eastern part of the United States.

Simcoe has been teaching at Georgia Highlands College since the fall of 1997, after 12 years of teaching at Kennesaw State University.

Floyd has been a wonderful experience for me,” Simcoe said. “I enjoyed my experience at KSU also, but the classes simply got too big. I’m just not someone who can walk into a class of 40 or 50 students and be happy teaching there. I know that at the University of Georgia and Georgia State University there are class sizes of a few hundred or more. If I had to teach classes that big, I’d rather go work at a car wash.” Simcoe said that if he were to leave behind any advice for students it would be “education is the key to success.”

After he retires, Simcoe plans on playing more golf, traveling and joining the Master Gardeners of Georgia or the North Georgia Model airplane club. He also said that he doesn’t want to give up teaching entirely.

The thing that Simcoe liked best about Georgia Highlands College was the people. He said, “There is still a spirit, morale, a positive attitude that exists among the Floyd personnel, faculty, staff and administrators.”

“Yes, we’re each different in some ways, but we all have the desire to come together and get the job done, whatever it takes. Every now and then whenever any of us have our ‘grumpy’ days, we don’t take that grumpiness out on those around us,” he said.

Simcoe wants students of Georgia Highlands College to remember him as someone who not only enjoyed every minute of his teaching, but who also believed in the critical importance of human communication skills for success in life.

Billingsley looks to travel

By Jason Bourne
Staff Writer

Amelia Billingsley, professor of language arts, is retiring after 19 years at Georgia Highlands College.

Amelia Billingsley is retiring Billingsley has primarily taught English 0099, but has also taught Reading 0099, English 1101, FCST 1101 and other classes.

She claims to have liked “the people, students and faculty” best during her time at Georgia Highlands College. She said she will miss them when she retires.

Billingsley believes one of the greatest privileges of her life has been “students granting me a part in their lives.” Billingsley said she will miss seeing students grow in confidence and miss talking to them a couple of semesters after teaching them and hearing of their success.

Most of Billingsley’s good times involving the faculty of FC include lunches full of laughter and being part of a “family of faculty.”

She also pointed out that the faculty has been by her side through a lot of good and bad times.

She said she will not miss “English department grading sessions, committee meetings that go nowhere and anything with the words ‘Institutional Effectiveness’ attached to it.”

As to what she plans to do after she retires, Billingsley replied, “Whatever I want to! Whenever I want to do it! Probably a lot of traveling, hiking on the Appalachian Trail and writing a book.”

Suzanne Black plans to continue teaching part time in the fall

By Julianna Hunt
Staff Writer

Suzanne Black, assistant professor of psychology and education is to retire from Georgia Highlands College at the end of this semester.

Black has been a full time instructor at FC since 1993.

Suzanne Black is retiring She began her career at FC as a curriculum consultant, then coordinated the health services technician program, and later taught part-time before moving up to full-time status.

Black received her B.A. in sociology from the University of Richmond; she then received her Master’s in Science in Education Degree at Indiana University. She has also done graduate work at Virginia Tech and the University of Iowa.

Black became interested in teacher developmental psychology after working with the health service technician program. She was hired part-time to teach just the developmental psychology course, and since she became a full-time instructor has taught the entire gamut of psychology at Floyd College.

Black feels that it is time for a change in her life and is looking forward to not having the added stress of teaching on a full-time basis. Black is also looking forward to spending time with her husband and grandchildren and going on short trips.

Black said that she does not have any big plans in the near future but will continue to teach on a part-time basis in the fall.

Black stated that she was “excited to be a part of the mission of Georgia Highlands College.” She said that she has always enjoyed working with the students, especially those who might need a little extra help along the way.

She said that some of the things that are most meaningful to her are statements from students like “you listened to me” or “you made it possible for me to do what I am doing.”

The day-to-day interactions and the chance to do things for students are some of her favorite parts of teaching.

She said the things she would miss the most are the student contact in the classroom and her fellow faculty members.

Of the classroom interaction, Black said, “This is what you get into teaching for.”