Jon Merryman
Karen (Stabley) Matros '92: Director of Student Financial Services
January 23, 2024Karen Matros is passionate about a few things – her family, her alma mater and serving others. Matros began working for Ouachita even before she graduated, serving part time in admissions counseling while she finished her degree. She graduated in May of 1992, was married a week later in Berry Chapel to Brant Matros ’93 and began working full time in admissions that summer.
If you’ve ever wondered why Minden, La., is called “the friendliest city in the South,” one visit with Sara McDaniel ’98 explains it all. She is genuine, friendly, humble and kind – much like others you’ll meet in this sweet, Southern town.
There are a few things that seem to be in Matthew Shepherd’s DNA—politics, law, Arkansas and Ouachita. He is a fifth-generation Ouachitonian, a family legacy starting with his great-great-grandfather, who attended Ouachita in the 1890s.
Growing up around Ouachita’s campus, Holly Kyzer knew Ouachita was going to be an integral part of her life, but she never guessed she would be a faculty member, much less an instrumental part of re-launching graduate programs at the university.
Some might think starting a track program would require a track. Not Steve Guymon. Sure, it would come in handy. But while plans are in the works to build one on campus, Guymon went ahead and grew Ouachita’s cross country and track & field teams from seven athletes in 2019 to 90 this fall.
Terry DeWitt ('88)
Chair, Department of Kinesiology, and professor of kinesiology
As a high school senior in Gravette, Ark., Dr. Terry DeWitt didn’t have college on his radar until just before graduation. A first-generation college student, DeWitt enrolled as a freshman at the University of Central Arkansas. But he transferred after just one semester when his aunt, Nancy Hardman, encouraged him to consider Ouachita and Coach Buddy Benson offered him a work- study job as an athletic trainer.
Jason Tolbert ('97)
Chief Financial Officer
As soon as Jason Tolbert started his college search as a high school student in Wynne, Ark., he knew if he could afford to go to Ouachita, he would. It’s not hard to believe that, even then, making the numbers work was a top priority for Tolbert, who now serves as Ouachita’s chief financial officer (CFO).
On this episode of the Tiger for Life Podcast, Ouachita graduate Michael Krikorian ('10) shares about his career in acting including roles on American Horror Story, NCIS: New Orleans, The Thing About Pam and many more.
When you think of Tigers for Life, the Johnson family may have set a record – six Ouachita graduates in eight years, and one more headed for the stage in 2023.
When Dr. Rachel Pool stepped onto Ouachita’s campus for Super Summer in high school, she fell in love. Not with a boy from another Arkansas town – she was in love with Ouachita.