The Rollins College Hamilton Holt School is pleased to announce that Holly Tanyhill, a senior in Communications Studies at the Hamilton Holt School was presented with the 2013 University Professional and Continuing Education Association’s (UPCEA) Continuing Education Student Award at their annual conference in Birmingham, Alabama on October 17, 2013. Tanyhill won the award based on her demonstrated leadership and organizational skills in her educational and work-related activities in continuing education at the Rollins College Hamilton Holt School.
Tanyhill has been a strong role model for her two daughters who have persevered over many of life’s abundant challenges to both successfully complete law school and pursue their career ambitions in law. Tanyhill provided a strong, nurturing home environment and a never say die attitude which aided her daughters and enabled them to thrive in today’s competitive job market.
Tanyhill began her educational journey at Valencia College where she completed an Associate of Arts Degree in 2011. She started her studies at the Hamilton Holt School, the evening program for adult students at Rollins College in January 2012. Tanyhill took a communications class from Dr. Rick Bommelje in 2012 that changed her life. The course, COM 305: Listening, taught her to listen differently, tuning in to those around her, listening to questions, non-verbal communication, and not interrupting silence – as even in silence, communication is still going on.
Serving as the program director at student-run radio station WPRK, Tanyhill has utilized her listening skills to serve as a catalyst for community action on topics ranging from Earth Day to student participation in the democratic process. She has promoted on the air diverse musical genres including African soul and punk rock.
At the Hamilton Holt School, Tanyhill has been a leading advocate for older adult students who are continuing their education and their pursuit of knowledge in the new Rollins Center for Lifelong Learning (RCLL). For the RCLL, which began in March 2013, Tanyhill has served as a registrar, class advisor, program promoter, evaluator, and faculty assistant, which has resulted in more than 200 members registering for the fall semester.
Having writing experience penning her daughter’s plays in elementary school and serving as a feature writer for the Sandspur, the Rollins College student newspaper, Tanyhill was perfect for serving as co-editor of the Holt Connections Magazine, a 32-page full-color publication for the Holt School at Rollins. Like an experienced news editor, Tanyhill put together an annual magazine that included everything from substantive articles on the dramatic changes taking place in higher education to highlights of Rollins faculty’s accomplishments. One of her faculty interviews of Dr. Eric Smaw, who teaches a pre-law prep course at Rollins, illuminated for Holly a potential new career path so familiar to her from her daughters’ experiences. Tanyhill will soon be taking Dr. Smaw’s prep courses in law to hone her skills in logic, analytical reasoning, and legal reading and to further explore her interest in law as a career.
Wherever Holly goes in her academic and career journey after Rollins College, she will put into action her adult education leadership and organizational skills that will bring all those in her circle pride, fulfillment, success, and perseverance.
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