Dr. Russell T. Wigginton Jr. is president of the National Civil Rights Museum. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Rhodes in 1988 and returned to his alma mater in 1996 to teach in the history department. In 2003, President Emeritus Bill Troutt tapped him to serve as special assistant to the president to build meaningful partnerships in the Memphis community. His more than 20-year career at Rhodes also includes serving as vice president for college relations, vice president of external programs, and vice president of student life.
In 2019, Wigginton joined Tennessee’s State Collaborative on Reforming Education as its chief postsecondary impact officer. He became president of the National Civil Rights Museum in 2021.
Active in the Memphis community, Wigginton has served on numerous boards including Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Facing History and Ourselves, ArtsMemphis, Knowledge Quest, Bridges USA, Ballet Memphis, Memphis Literacy Council, and Memphis Symphony Orchestra, just to name a few.
Wigginton holds a master’s degree and doctorate in history from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Distinguished Alumni Award
Established in 1983, the Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes an alum who has brought honor to Rhodes through extraordinary achievement in their profession and community. Recipients enter the Alumni Hall of Fame, which is located outside of Hardie Auditorium in Southwestern Hall. The Distinguished Alumni Award is presented at the Annual Convocation of the Rhodes College Alumni Association during Homecoming each October,
Eligibility and Nominations
All living alumni who are members of a class that graduated at least 10 years prior to the nomination date are eligible, with the exception of:
- Members of the Rhodes Board of Trustees
- Current faculty and staff
- Members of the Alumni Executive Board
- Recipients of a Rhodes honorary degree
Nominees for the BSA Distinguished Alumni Award will also be considered for the Distinguished Alumni Award. Nominations are invited from any Rhodes alumni, students, faculty, staff, parents or friends of the college. You can make your nomination today by filling out the online form on the front page.
Distinguished Alumni Award Recipients
2021 Dr. Stephen C. Threlkeld ’86
2020 Allen Reynolds '60
2019 William Van Davidson '62
2018 Dr. Herbert Hill '67
2017 Dr. Joe McCord '66
2016 Mike Cody '58
2015 Vicki Gilmore Palmer '75
2014 Mary Frances Files Silitch '57
2013 Harry L. Swinney '61
2012 Sidonie Sansom '82
2011 Brian R. Wamboff '96
2010 Dr. William O. Coley ’50
2009 Raymond E. Bye, Jr. ’66
Jocelyn D. Wurzburg ’62
2008 Robert S. Edington ’50
2007 Martha Ellen Maxwell ’51
Robert H. Crumby ’53
2006 William Cleage Threlkeld ’53
2005 Jason Turnbow Pettigrew ’96
Louis Ruffin Pounders ’68
2004 Ray U. Tanner ’54
2003 Katherine Hinds Smythe ’53
William Hamilton Smythe ’52
2002 Margaret Rose Gladney ’67
Sidney Strickland ’68
2001 W. Henry Mosley ’55
R. Susan Wood ’70
2000 Jacquelyn Dowd Hall ’65
1999 Arthur L. Kellermann ’76
1998 Pauline Jones Hord ’29
1997 C. Stratton Hill, Jr. ’50
1996 William G. Mankin ’62
1995 Richard B. Dixon ’50
1994 James T. Robertson ’53
1993 James H. Fall, III ’65
1992 Mary Jane Smalley Roberts ’58
1991 Charles J. Ping ’51
1990 S. Shepard Tate ’39
1989 Susan Burnside Fleming ’73
1988 John B. Ricker, Jr. ’38
1987 J. Thayer “Toto” Houts ’37
James G. Hughes ’32
1986 Ada Jane Walters ’56
J. Russell Perry ’33
1985 Elder L. Shearon, Jr. ’42
Margaret Boisen Nash ’50
Jere B. Nash, Jr. ’50
1984 Judith Deavenport Mitchener ’56
Steven J. Schmidt, Jr. ’72
Robert K. Armstrong ’37
1983 Lewis R. Donelson ’38
James F. Gladney, Jr. ’38