Walter McCoy Receives Final Convocation Awards at Hampden-Sydney College

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Walter McCoy, left, with Dr. Michael Utzinger

HAMPDEN-SYDNEY, VA (05/10/2013)(readMedia)-- At Final Convocation on April 25, Hampden-Sydney College senior Walter Floyd McCoy III received three awards. The Brown Teaching Fellowship, presented by Dr. J. Michael Utzinger, Elliott Associate Professor of Religion and Associate Dean of the Faculty, recognizes a student who is committed to teaching at either the elementary or secondary level.

The Robert H. Porterfield '29 Drama Award, presented by Professor Shirley Kagan, Elliott Professor of Theatre, was established in memory of a distinguished alumnus and founder of the Barter Theater in Abington, Virginia, and is presented to the student who has made the greatest contribution to the community through theatre arts.

The Grace and Hassell Simpson Prize, presented by Dr. Evan R. Davis, Elliott Associate Professor of English, was established in honor of retired professor of English Hassell A. Simpson and his wife Grace, former Poet Laureate of Virginia. This award recognizes outstanding scholastic achievement in English. Walter recently completed his Honors project in English, a transformation of Tennessee Williams's The Glass Menagerie into a screenplay.

A Patrick Henry Scholar, Walter serves as President of the honorary societies Sigma Tau Delta (English) and Alpha Psi Omega (theatre arts). He is also President of both the Hampden-Sydney Jongleurs (theatre arts) and the Animation Society. In the theatre arts, Walter has participated as an actor, Assistant Director, or Director in multiple H-SC productions. He is a member of the Future Educators Club and the honor society Omicron Delta Kappa (leadership) and received the Philip H. Ropp Literary Award at Final Convocation in April 2012. An English major, Walter graduated from Staunton River High School and is the son of Jeffrey L. & Deborah O. McCoy of Goodview.

A private college for men, Hampden-Sydney is ranked in the top tier of liberal arts colleges by U.S. News & World Report. The College is known for its liberal arts curriculum, the Honor Code which stresses individual and collective responsibility, and a focus on the education of young men.