Tommye Lou Davis Appointed Special Assistant To The President
Tommye Lou Davis, associate professor of classics and Master Teacher, has been appointed special assistant to Baylor University President Robert B. Sloan Jr., effective Aug. 1.
In her new assignment, Davis will assist the president with strategic, communication and organizational issues, project management and constituency relationship management. As a senior adviser to the president, she will develop and maintain processes and practices to ensure the effectiveness of the president and his office. Davis also will deliver presentations, as appropriate, to various constituents on behalf of the president and Baylor.
"I am very pleased to welcome Tommye Lou Davis to my staff," Sloan said. "She brings to this important position more than 35 years of teaching experience at Baylor, outstanding organizational skills and extensive networks within the Baylor community and the community at large. She exemplifies the best of Baylor's traditions and the forward-thinking that characterizes the Baylor of today."
A 1966 and 1968 Baylor graduate, Davis has taught Latin to thousands of Baylor students during her distinguished teaching career. Two weeks after earning her undergraduate degree, Davis began pursuing her master's degree, while also teaching full-time in the department of classics. In 1972, Davis was appointed assistant professor of classics with tenure, and in 1993, she was designated Master Teacher and associate professor. She also has served as acting chair of the department of classics.
"I care deeply about Baylor University," Davis said. "What the various constituencies that comprise the 'Baylor family' think and feel is of utmost importance to me. I value beyond measure my faculty colleagues, fellow alumni, students, the administration and the Waco community.
"I am honored to be offered this opportunity. I appreciate Dr. Sloan's confidence in me and I look forward to working with him on a daily basis. I hope I can be a part of bringing the Baylor family together at this exciting and significant time in Baylor's history, and that all of us will commit ourselves to moving the university forward."
Active on the Baylor campus and in the Waco community, Davis has served in several leadership positions and as a member of numerous boards and councils. At Baylor, Davis has served as a member of the Faculty Senate and has served on the board of directors for the Baylor Alumni Association. She chairs the George W. Bush Museum planning committee, as well as the Faculty Athletics Council, of which she has been a member for 13 years. Actively involved in Greek life on campus, Davis has served as faculty adviser for Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority and was selected the Outstanding Adviser on Campus in 1996. She also is the adviser for Alpha Chi Honor Society.
Davis is a member of the American Philological Association, the Classical Association of the Middle West and South and the Texas Classical Association. She was named Outstanding Professor by the Baylor Women's League for 2001-02 and was presented with the Mortar Board Circle of Achievement Award in fall 2002 in recognition of her outstanding teaching and meritorious service to students.
In Waco, Davis is a sustaining member of the Junior League, serving as president of the organization from 1982-83. She also has been general chairman of the Waco Cotton Palace Pageant and serves as secretary of the organization's corporate board. Her past and present community involvement includes the Waco Music Theatre board, Waco Symphony Council, the Lyric Opera, Keep Waco Beautiful Commission, Strecker Museum Board, Waco Art Center Associates and the Historic Waco Foundation.
Davis and her husband, Donald, are members of First Baptist Church of Waco. They have four children, two of whom are Baylor graduates, and three grandchildren.