The University of the Ozarks’ Office of Advancement and Alumni Engagement has announced its philanthropy and friends awards for Homecoming 2023, scheduled for Sept. 25 through Oct. 1.
The recipients will be recognized during the Ozarks Awards Ceremony at 6 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 29, in the Rogers Conference Center.
The 2023 recipients will include (pictured, clockwise from top left) Vernon McDaniel ’55 of Ozark, Ark., with the Alumni Legacy Award; Bryan and Shannon (Carlisle) ’91 Huggins of Arlington, Texas, with the Pay it Forward Champions Award; Dr. Jessalyn Halsted ’08 of Rogers, Ark., with the Emerging Philanthropist Award; and the City of Clarksville with the Community Champion Award. The recipients were chosen by University administrators.
McDaniel, who graduated from then College of the Ozarks in 1955 with a degree in sociology and political science, has supported Ozarks for more than 35 years and recently established the Vernon McDaniel Endowed Scholarship for communication majors. Following graduation from Ozarks, McDaniel went on to earn a master’s degree in social welfare and journalism from Florida State University. He later served Ozarks as an associate professor of journalism as well as director of public relations. He has also taught journalism at colleges in Kansas and Missouri and served as the mayor of Ozark for 12 years. McDaniel currently heads the Salvation Army Service Unit in Ozark, volunteers at the Ozark Museum, and works part-time at the city’s newspaper, The Spectator.
Bryan and Shannon Huggins have supported Ozarks for more than 25 years. After graduating from Ozarks in 1991, Shannon went on to earn a master’s degree in healthcare administration from Texas Woman’s University and currently serves as senior vice president for Dallas-based Methodist Health System. Bryan is a district business manager for Kennametal, an international productivity solutions company for the metalworking and manufacturing industries. The couple have been married for 30 years and have two sons, John (26) and Daniel (24). Bryan and Shannon have both served their community through various civic, educational and church volunteer roles. Shannon has recently completed two terms on the Alumni Association Board of Directors, including as president, and currently serves on the University’s Board of Trustees.
Halsted, an optometrist in Northwest Arkansas, has supported the Ozarks Annual Fund for nearly a decade. Born and raised in Harrison, Ark., Halsted graduated with Magna Cum Laude honors from Ozarks in 2008. She was a collegiate athlete at Ozarks, starring in both soccer and tennis. She earned her doctor of optometry degree at Southern College of Optometry in Memphis. Halsted completed clinical externships at Vision Enhancement Clinic and the Missouri Eye Institute, both located in Missouri. She currently practices in Rogers, Ark., at Jeffries Eye Associates. Halsted is married to Alex Gossett, a fellow 2008 Ozarks graduate, and they have two sons.
The City of Clarksville will receive the Community Champion Award, which was established in 2019 and is given to an individual or company that has worked “cohesively with University of the Ozarks to move the University and community forward together.”
The city has collaborated with the University in numerous recent projects, including a downtown restaurant, a recreational shooting range, crosswalk flashing signs on campus and lighting on perimeter of campus to help increase the safety of students and staff.
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