by Anna Grace Galkin, Student Public Relations Writer
Cedarville University will honor six outstanding alumni at the Alumni Honors Luncheon on Friday, October 1st following the State of the University chapel.
The university will recognize the following Alumni Award recipients:
Dr. Matthew McLain, the winner of the Young Alumnus of the Year award, earned a Bachelor of Science in geology from Cedarville University in 2012 as part of the first graduating class of geology majors.
Since graduating, he earned his Ph.D. from Loma Linda University in earth sciences and now teaches at The Masters University in Los Angeles, California. He has published 14 peer-reviewed articles, regularly presents at conferences, and advises Ph.D. students.
Dannah Gresh, this year’s Alumna of the Year, graduated from Cedarville University in 1989 with a Bachelor of Arts in liberal arts (organizational communications). Gresh is a best-selling author, having written 27 books, and she also founded True Girl, a worldwide ministry that provides girls, teens, and moms with resources for their walk with Christ. She is also a co-host with Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth of the Revive Our Hearts podcast.
Dr. Deforia Lane is this year’s Honorary Alumna of the Year. She earned her Ph.D. in music education/music therapy from Case Western Reserve University and joined the Cedarville University board of trustees in 1997, having served now for 24 years.
Dr. Lane was a music therapist for more than 40 years and devoted her career to reaching hospice and hospitalized patients through music. Currently, she is an honorary member of the Oncology Nursing Society and serves as an international music therapy consultant for institutions such as Mayo Clinic and the National Institutes of Health.
This year’s Cedarville Athletics Hall of Fame inductees include:
Kelsey (Jones) Carter graduated from Cedarville University in 2006 as an award-winning student-athlete on the women’s volleyball team. A talented setter, Carter became the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) National Player of the Year in 2004. The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) named Carter as Region IX Player of the Year and to the All-America Second Team in 2005. The same year, Carter led her team to the 2005 NCCAA National Championship and was named the 2005 NCCAA National Tournament MVP. Carter remains Cedarville’s all-time leader in assists (6,662).
Kari (Flunker) Hoffman began her career as a Cedarville student-athlete in 2001, playing for the university’s women’s basketball team while earning her degree in multi-age physical education. By graduation in 2005, Hoffmann was the second-highest all-time scorer, a title that she holds to this day. In the same year, she received the NCCAA National Player of the Year award.
Hoffman completed a master’s degree in administration and coaching education at Concordia University, returning to her alma mater in 2010 as an assistant coach for the Yellow Jackets women’s basketball team. She was named head coach in 2016. After leading her team to 106 victories, three regular-season conference championships, and earning numerous Coach of the Year awards, Hoffman accepted a position as Wright State University's head women’s basketball coach in May 2021.
Jason Scott graduated from Cedarville in 2007 with a degree in exercise science, but only after earning two NAIA indoor national championship pole-vaulting titles, one outdoor national champion title, and setting the school’s record for outdoor vaulting.
After moving on to United States Sports Academy, where he received his master’s degree in sports coaching, Scott served as the assistant track and field coach for Hannibal-LaGrange University in Missouri from 2009-2013. He since transitioned back to Cedarville University and for eight years, assistant-coached both men’s and women’s track and field. He now serves in the same role at Montreat College in North Carolina and remains, to date, Cedarville’s most awarded pole-vaulter.
Located in southwest Ohio, Cedarville University is an accredited, Christ-centered, Baptist institution with an enrollment of 4,715 undergraduate, graduate, and online students in more than 150 areas of study. Founded in 1887, Cedarville is one of the largest private universities in Ohio, recognized nationally for its authentic Christian community, rigorous academic programs, strong graduation and retention rates, accredited professional and health science offerings, and high student engagement ranking. For more information about the University, visit cedarville.edu.