Barnett went to class during lunch hour and at night, but plans to stick with his job in athletics.
September 1998: Vol. 77, No. 4
It's never too late to learn
Barnett went to class during lunch hour and at night, but plans to stick with his job in athletics. |
By Phil Williams
n 1993, Freddie Barnett's brother Alvin died of a brain tumor at the age of 46. Freddie, a custodian at The University of Georgia, was deeply moved by the turn of events. "It was almost like a religious experience," he says. "It made me think of my life. I was 41 and thought I should do something more than what I've been doing."
What Barnett did--by taking classes during lunch hour and in the evening--was complete an English degree at the University in slightly more than four years while he also worked full-time as a building supervisor at the Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall. Barnett, 46, received his diploma this spring.
A native of Athens, Barnett joined the army after high school, then came home to work at a local plant. But frequent layoffs forced him to seek another job and he wound up at UGA in 1982, working in the Physical Plant warehouse.
Going back to school in later life is a tradition in the Barnett family. Barnett's eldest sister went back to school at age 50 and completed a degree at New York University, and another sister in her 30s finished a degree seven years ago. A third sister completed college degree requirements in her 40s.
There's another reason Barnett is attached to UGA. While tracing his family genealogy, he discovered that his great-great-grandfather had been a slave on a plantation in Oglethorpe County before and during the Civil War. The man, who was known as something of a hard head, was owned by relatives of a man who later served as an administrator at UGA. After he was freed, Barnett's great-great-grandfather became a pillar of his community and was recalled with affection by the administrator and other family members.
"When I knew that he rebelled against slavery, that really put a lot of pride in me," says Barnett. "I have always been interested, though, in what made him change."
A long-time lover of books, Barnett decided to major in English at UGA. Among the writers he admires are Shakespeare, Faulkner, and Mark Twain.
"All the teachers I had were good, but a really important one was Dr. Barbara McCaskill," says Barnett. "She just exudes confidence and has so much knowledge that she was glad to share with us."
Barnett says he never could have finished the degree without the financial support of a family member who lent him money to pay tuition, and the emotional support of his wife and daughter. "They're both elated," he says. "In fact, a lot of other people I know are reacting more to this than I am."
Even with his newly earned degree, Barnett will continue his work at the Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall.
"My job isn't high-paying or glamorous, but it's honest work and I don't go home every night with a headache or an ulcer," he says. "I just feel a real loyalty to UGA and the athletic department."
Lisa Coole (1975-98)
 The Lisa Coole Memorial Swimming Scholarship is already halfway to its $100,000 goal. Send gifts to UGA Athletic Association, P.O. Box 1472, Athens, GA 30603. |
By Jack Bauerle
was hoping it would be easy to write down my thoughts about Lisa Coole because I knew her so well and she meant so much to me and the Georgia swimming program. She won two NCAA titles--one when she was so sick she barely remembered the event afterward. She led our women's team to the school's first SEC championship in history. And she was named NCAA Woman of the Year for both her academic honors and the selfless things she did for other people, including those at the Athens Homeless Shelter.
The problem I had when I sat down to write this tribute to Lisa is there are so many best and worst things to say that I didn't know where to begin.
The best thing is that we knew Lisa, that we could feel the warmth and affection she had for people. The worst thing is that we lost her in a car accident on Saturday morning, May 16, when she was on her way to adopt a greyhound.
I got the news in Arizona, where the night before I had received a coach of the year award that she made possible.
The best thing about Lisa is that she accomplished all the goals we set out for her--and more--even though swimming was no longer her number one focus for the last couple years she was in school. She was very involved with her studies and in getting into vet school. The worst thing is that she'd just finished her first year at the University of Illinois vet school, and they thought she was special, too. She would have done so much good for society with her Pets for People project, and when she refused to do experiments on live animals--saying she could learn all she needed to from textbooks--the Illinois vet school said okay.
The best thing about Lisa is that she was the embodiment of that Beatles lyric: "The love you take is equal to the love you make." She was a Foundation Fellow and an Honors Program student, but she never acted like she was special. Some star athletes surround themselves with stars, but Lisa was the same to everyone. She took Kristy Kowal aside when she was a nervous freshman and said, "I want you to be my practice partner." The worst thing is that I was looking forward to the time when my relationship with Lisa would evolve from coach-athlete to friend-friend. That was just happening when Lisa died.
The best thing about Lisa is that, despite all the things she had going for her, she was also the captain of our team. She was one of the most incredible swimmers I've ever seen--so good, in fact, that I think she could've won two or three more NCAA titles if she hadn't been so busy. But the most important thing to her was the success of our team. The worst thing is that we lost Lisa. And somewhere down the line we'll have to find a place to put that.
In the meantime, we're going to miss her every day.
Best gig
Political science major Rob Gibson fell in love with jazz at the UGA radio station. Now he's a Peabody winner, a Juilliard lecturer, and a buddy of Wynton Marsalis
By Kent Hannon
he Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra has arrived at Chastain Park for a five o'clock sound check, and Rob Gibson is going over the set list for tonight's concert with musical director and trumpet player extraordinaire Wynton Marsalis.
Stop the action right there.
It's summertime in Atlanta, an afternoon shower has provided some respite from the heat, and the outdoor bandstand has come alive with Ellington and Mingus riffs. Bottom line: Life is good, even for those of us in the audience. But for Rob Gibson (AB '81), who discovered jazz at UGA's student radio station WUOG, life is even better, because this is what he does for a living.
"I'm responsible for what you might call The Grand Vision," says Gibson of the five-year plan that he and Marsalis, artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, have drawn up to spread the gospel of America's original art form. "The plan includes orchestra tours and an educational outreach program where Wynton gives master classes in schools. I don't care if it's Amsterdam or Denver, Wynton will spend three hours with a band--and they sound so much better. He's not afraid to get in people's faces either and say, 'Hey, you guys just aren't swinging!'"
Gibson and Marsalis work so closely together that, for short hops like the one they will make to Charlotte after the Chastain Park concert, they travel in Marsalis' Winnebago. You won't find a political science major with a better gig--and Gibson knows it.
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 Gibson and Marsalis have created a five-year plan for Jazz at Lincoln Center to spread the gospel of America's original art form throughout the world. |
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Rob Gibson File Age: 39 Home: New York City Education: Marist H.S., Atlanta; The University of Georgia (AB '81) Spouse: Caroline Howell (AB '80) Occupation: Executive producer/director, "Jazz at Lincoln Center" Honors: Peabody Award for NPR's "Jazz From Lincoln Center" Quote: "I love this job and can't believe I get paid to do it!" |
"I grew up listening to Duane Allman, Led Zeppelin, and Keith Richards," says Gibson, who is executive producer and director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. "But when I started working at WUOG in 1978, I traced all that rock 'n roll back to Muddy Waters, who came to UGA when I was there. Then you go back to T-Bone Walker, Charlie Parker, and Coleman Hawkins. And finally you get to Louis Armstrong--which brings you to what Bing Crosby called "the beginning and end of American music."
Gibson grew up in Atlanta and discovered these musical giants in the WUOG library. He played their records for his college audience, read every book and liner note he could get his hands on, and became a walking encyclopedia of jazz. So steeped is Gibson in the subject that he now teaches a History of Jazz course at Juilliard. He also produces "Jazz from Lincoln Center," an NPR series narrated by Ed Bradley that won a Peabody Award this year.
"I especially wanted to see tonight's concert at Chastain because I put on many a concert here when I was head of the Atlanta Jazz Festival," says Gibson, as Marsalis & Co. head backstage to put on tuxedos.
Seven years ago, Lincoln Center went looking for someone to establish a year-round jazz program. A nationwide search turned up Gibson, who knew the turf and whose smooth, easy-going manner seem perfectly suited to the job. Starting as a one-man department, he has developed Jazz at Lincoln Center into one of the full-fledged constituent organizations headquartered around the familiar fountain at West 65th Street in New York. It is the newest of the 12 constituent organizations--which include the New York Philharmonic, the Metropolitan Opera, and the New York City Ballet--and it's destined for new digs.
"The City of New York is building a massive office-hotel-entertainment complex on the site of the old New York Coliseum at Columbus Circle, and Jazz at Lincoln Center will have 100,000 square feet of space in that building," says Gibson. "Included in the project is our own concert hall, which will be the first ever dedicated strictly to the performance and preservation of jazz."