Biographical Text
Associate Professor Emerita of English Ruby Lavelle Akers (September 13, 1908 -), college professor, was born in Nettleton, Mississippi, the daughter of L.G. and Laura Adeline Akers. Miss Akers attended Sherman High School during 1925-1929 and was graduated as valedictorian of her class. Akers is a member of a large family of brothers and sisters, all of whom are deceased except Mrs. Milton L. Kantz (Beulah Akers Kantz) of Ferndale, Michigan. Akers was an honor graduate from Hillman Junior College in 1931, having attended from 1929-31. Top grades in her class earned her a scholarship to Mary Hardin- Baylor College. Also, she was granted the Hillman-Braugh Award for Meritorious Citizenship. After teaching two years, Akers earned her degree in the spring quarter and first summer term of 1934. After Akers left Hillman Junior College, she served on the faculty at Randolph High School, Randolph, Mississippi, from 1932-36 where she taught English, history and drama and coached basketball. In 1936 she left Randolph High and became a faculty member at Mooreville High School, Mooreville, Mississippi, where she taught junior and senior English and coached basketball and directed school plays until 1941. For the next year, 1941-42, Akers in conjunction with the University of Alabama set up a corecurriculum at Marion County High School, Guin, Alabama. In 1942 she went back to Mississippi to head the English Department at New Albany High School, New Albany, where for the next nine years she taught English, journalism and reading. At New Albany High School she was the chairman of the English Department and dean of women. During this time Miss Akers began her graduate work at the University of Mississippi and Indiana University. She was the first classroom teacher to serve on the Problems and Policies Commission of the Mississippi Education Association, serving from 1946 until she came to North Carolina. Akers attended Appalachian State Teachers College (now Appalachian State University), Boone, North Carolina, where she received her M.A. degree in English in 1954. While working on her M.A., Akers served as a graduate assistant at Appalachian High School where she taught junior English, coached the debate team, sponsored the yearbook and newspaper and taught over-flow classes at Appalachian State Teachers College (A.S.T.C.). After her first year in graduate school Akers became a member of the faculty at Appalachian High School, (then a part of A.S.T.C.) where she taught English, journalism, remedial reading and methods and continued to teach over-flow classes at A.S.T.C. Her masters thesis was "A Comparison of Methods of Teaching High School English Grammar and Composition." After Akers received her M.A. degree she moved to Charlotte, North Carolina, where she served on the faculty teaching English and psychology at Central High School until 1955. In 1955 she moved back to Boone and taught English and methods at Appalachian High School as well as journalism, and overflow college courses. In 1958 Akers again left Boone, this time to head the English Department at Holmes Junior College in Goodman, Mississippi, where she taught English and journalism until 1960. In the summer of 1958 she was a visiting teacher in the English Department of A.S.T.C. During other summers Akers also taught at Chickasaw College, Pontoloc, Mississippi; Mississippi Southern College, Hattiesburg, Mississippi; and Blue Mountain College, Blue Mountain, Mississippi. In 1960 Akers returned to Appalachian as an assistant professor in the English Department. While teaching, Miss Akers also served on the University Committee on Student Life (formerly the Student Publications Committee), and the Admissions Committee. Because of her diligent and outstanding service Akers was reappointed to these committees on several occasions. She also assisted in the guidance program, observed English majors in student teaching, served on Southern Association teams in evaluating high schools, acted as a curriculum consultant and a reading consultant, conducted workshops, and taught credit and non-credit off-campus courses. Akers spent many long hours enriching her teaching through study at the University of Oslo (1963), and the Shakespearean Institute (1967), on Danforth grants. She also attended the Yeats International Summer School in Sligo, Ireland, at her own expense in 1968. Akers taught freshmen and sophomore classes at Appalachian as well as upper-level undergraduate and graduate courses. She taught twentieth century fiction (American and British), survey of English Literature, advanced grammar, advanced composition, honors courses in freshmen English and Ibsen, and graduate courses in contemporary American literature and non-fiction prose of the Victorian era. Professionally, Akers was a member of the National Education Association, the North Carolina Education Association, the Local Education Association, the North Carolina English Teachers Association, and the Business and Professional Women's Club, where she was chairman of the Education Committee and Tar Heel Woman's Representative for District II. She has also been affiliated with such groups as the Modem Language Association, Southern Studies Association, and Delta Kappa Gamma. Her publications include poems, short stories, and impressionistic essays. Akers was promoted to the rank of associate professor in 1970. She held this position until her retirement in 1974 when she was granted emerita status by the Board 40 of Trustees for her outstanding achievements. Akers served as the faculty marshal for the 1974 commencement to honor her contributions to the institution. Akers was honored, along with Daisy Eggers and Hans Heymann, when the first of the Chancellor's Scholarships was named for her. During the following year Akers accepted a part-time teaching position at Appalachian in the Department of English and the Department of Reading Education. Akers' last appointment came in the 1975-76 academic year when she taught one section of English each of the two semesters. For one and one-half years since retirement she headed, for Caldwell Community College, the School of English as a Second Language, teaching Laotians, Vietnamese, Pakastanians, and Spanish speaking students. Besides part-time teaching and English- as-a-second-language teaching, since her retirement, Akers has done volunteer work of various kinds: making tapes for teaching the blind, reading to and otherwise assisting the blind, helping with publications of her church, and working at Watauga County Hospital. She reads extensively, both serious and light works. In addition, she has been active in church work, clubs, and care of her family, as well as socializing with friends and relatives. Sources: Appalachian State University files, long association, and personal interviews. - Dr. Richard D. Howe
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