Scottsdale, Ariz., Couple Named 2011 Baylor Parents of the Year

September 23, 2011
News Photo 5233

(L to R) Baylor University Parents of the Year for 2011 Holly and Darius DiTallo of Scottsdale, Ariz., with their son Hunter, a senior at Baylor.

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Darius and Holly DiTallo of Scottsdale, Ariz., have been selected as the Baylor University's Parents of the Year for 2011. The couple - both Baylor graduates - will be honored on Parents Weekend during halftime of the Baylor vs. Rice football game Sept. 24 at Floyd Casey Stadium in Waco.

"We are thrilled to have the opportunity to honor Darius and Holly," said Judy Maggard, director of parent programs for the Baylor Parents League. "They have remained loyal and faithful to Baylor University through the years and are very proud of their Baylor roots. When their son Hunter arrived at Baylor they immediately became involved with the Phoenix Parents League Chapter by hosting the send-off party for Phoenix-area students and their families for the past four years. Holly has led the 1st Call to Prayer group for several years, which has provided a meaningful way for parents to support their Baylor students through prayer and each other."

Both the DiTallos graduated from Baylor in 1979, with Darius earning his BBA in accounting and Holly earning her BA in history and Spanish. Darius was born in Ohio and later moved to Scottsdale as a teenager, before attending Baylor. Raised in Fort Worth, Holly and her brother, Mike, followed in the footsteps of their Baylor graduate father, W. Truett Myers '43, and attended the university. The DiTallos met at Baylor and married in 1980. They have two children, Devin, who earned her nursing degree from the University of Arizona, and Hunter, a senior social entrepreneurship major at Baylor.

Since 1999, Darius has served as CFO at ImageTag Inc., a software company based in Tempe, Ariz. He started his accounting career with Price Waterhouse in 1980, serving in Germany from 1984-87 before returning to Scottsdale, where the DiTallos have lived ever since. For the past 17 years, Holly has taught eighth grade language arts at Cheyenne Traditional School. She was co-founder and co-owner of Scottsdale Education Center from 2000-07.

The DiTallos are active members of Scottsdale Bible Church and their local community.

Both Hunter and Devin DiTallo said words are simply not enough to describe their parents.

"The love and passion that they live their lives with constantly pushes me to become a better man," Hunter said. "My parents have never forced me to do anything in life, but when I decided to attend Baylor and follow in their footsteps, you could tell it was one of the proudest moments of their lives. Knowing this, and my parents, I couldn't have been happier and more excited to attend a school where I knew my full potential and purpose as a servant to God would be reached."

"We have enjoyed our involvement with Baylor, particularly during the years that Hunter has been a student," Holly said. "We look forward to continuing to hold a place in the Baylor Line!"

For more information, visit the Baylor Parents League at www.baylor.edu/parents or contact Judy Maggard, director of parents programs, at (254) 710-2561.

About Baylor University

Baylor University is a private Christian university and a nationally ranked research institution, classified with "high research activity" by Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. Baylor provides a vibrant campus community for approximately 15,000 students, blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating Texas university. Located in Waco, it welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 80 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 11 nationally recognized academic divisions.
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