JJWe will miss his knowledge, his insights and his skills. No one could ever really replace Lott Tucker. He loved Harding dearly:' -----'-------,---------- --------7 PRESIDENT DAVID BURKS LEADERSHIP -140 Through his 52 years of service, including seven years as senior vice president, Lott Tucker Jr. gained such a deep knowledge and insight into Harding that administrators knew few people would be able to match. In fact, the administration did not replace Tucker after his death in March 2004. instead, they reassigned his responsibilities separately to other Harding administrators and staff members. "[fucker] had a key administrative role and a knowledge of this school greater than any one person," President David Burks said. "We will miss his knowledge, his insights and his skills. No one could ever really replace Lott Tucker. He loved Harding dearly." wren TuckercametoHardingin 1951, he served in the business office. Over the course of his career, he was promoted to vice president for finance in 1970 and senior vice president in 1996. One of Tucker's responsibilities included working with the Graduate School of Religion and Harding Academy in Memphis. He also oversaw various fund raising efforts, such as the Searcy Fund Drive, which raised money from within the Searcy area. Because he was partially retired before his death, university officials had already planned how to delegate his responsibilities when he completely retired from his duties at Harding. Burks began preparing to take over the work with the two divisions in Memphis in 2003-2004, and Mike Williams, vice president for advancement, took over the Searcy Fund Drive this year. Latina Dykes, Tucker's secretary for 41 years, said the transition went smoothly since the people taking over Tucker's responsibilities already knew the university and its procedures. She recognized Tucker for his contributions to Harding and for his involvement with Searcy. He served on the Searcy Municipal Planning Corrunission for 36 years and on the Searcy Chamber of Commerce for three years. "[Tucker] worked hard to keep good relationships between Searcy and Harding," Dykes said. In 1998, the city honored Tucker by giving him a key to the city, and, after his death, the Searcy Oty Council passed an ordinance that renamed the part of Cross Street that travels through campus Lott Tucker Drive. "After all these years, I knew his loss would definitely make an impact," Dykes said. "Different people have taken over his responsibilities, but no one took over as senior vice president because that's a title that you earn. You don't just get named senior vice president; you get it through years of service." -OEANN THOMAS 4D.R.JJMJARR~_ Executive Vice President with Glenn Dillard (right), director of Enrollment Management 'R.K.!:<l
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