Centre News

Richard Trollinger (right), vice president for college relations,
presented the 2012 Associate of the Year award to the James
Graham Brown Foundation at the Associates Dinner on Jan. 27.
Austin Thompson Anderton ’01 received the Young Associate of
the Year Award at the Associates Dinner on Jan. 27.

Centre College announced that the James Graham Brown Foundation has been named the 2012 Associate of the Year and Austin Thompson Anderton ’01 has been named the 2012 Young Associate of the Year. The College made the announcement at the Centre Associates Dinner on Jan. 27 at the Seelbach Hotel in Louisville.

“The James Graham Brown Foundation’s imprint on Centre is indelible, touching every aspect of the College — from students, to faculty, to the buildings in which we work and educate students,” said Richard Trollinger, vice president for college relations.

James Graham Brown, a successful lumberman, horseman and entrepreneur, shared his fortune with his fellow Kentuckians through the work of the James Graham Brown Foundation. Brown formed the Foundation to help bring positive change that would both enhance the quality of life in Kentucky and transform the reputation of the state.

Centre College has benefitted from the Foundation’s generosity, from funding for campus building projects to endowed faculty positions. The Foundation has also funded what has become the College’s largest endowed scholarship program, which provides aid to needy and worthy students from Kentucky.

More recently, the Foundation’s trustees have initiated and funded programs and projects that will, over time, enhance the quality of life in Kentucky and transform the reputation of the state. As a result of a strategic visioning and planning process, the Foundation decided four years ago to launch the Brown Fellows Program on the campuses of Centre College and the University of Louisville. The Brown Fellows Program brings ten of the nation’s best and brightest high school graduates to Centre each year. The program has strengthened Centre’s ability to compete with other top liberal arts colleges for these gifted students.

The Young Associate of the Year distinction honors recent alumni who have achieved impressive records of professional success, civic engagement and service to Centre.

Anderton serves as the Vice President and Wealth Management Banking Team Lead with Merrill Lynch Global Wealth and Investment Management. She is on the Board of Trustees for Louisville Collegiate School, has served as a “Friends of Speed” committee member for The Speed Art Museum and is a youth volunteer for Second Presbyterian Church.

At Centre, Anderton was a three-time All American Division III field hockey player, was active in the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority, studied abroad in Greece and served as chair for the senior fundraising campaign.

As an alumna, Anderton serves as secretary of the Alumni Association Board of Directors and as a member of the leadership team for the Centre Club of Louisville. She has also served as a member of the Class of 2001 Reunion Planning Committee and has twice participated in GOLD (Graduates of the Last Decade) Rush, a career planning service staffed by young alumni.

Have comments, suggestions, or story ideas? E-mail elizabeth.trollinger@centre.edu with your feedback.

Centre College, founded in 1819 and chosen to host its second Vice Presidential Debate in 2012, is ranked among the U.S. News top 50 national liberal arts colleges, at 42nd in the nation, and ranks 27th for best value among national liberal arts colleges. Forbes magazine ranks Centre 34th among all the nation’s colleges and universities and has named Centre in the top five among all institutions of higher education in the South for three years in a row. Centre is also ranked fourth in the nation by U.S. News for its study abroad program. For more, click here.