Dr. Austine Hunter Wallis

We often hear that someone is "a born teacher." If this designation is, indeed, true, it could certainly be said of the late Dr. Austine Hunter Wallis.

As a little girl, she loved to play school, always appointing herself as the teacher. If siblings, cousins and neighbor children were not willing to play school with Austine, she lined up dolls in classroom formation and pounded away at basics of arithmetic and reading.
She also had several role models close to her who were teachers, and watching their performance, she wanted to emulate them. Among these models were her uncle, Charles Roscoe Collins, her mother's brother; and Dora Anne Hunter Allison Spiva, her father's sister. Older cousins were also teachers.

This educator-to-be was born October 12, 1927 to William Jesse and Sadie Collins Hunter. She was born in the historic house built in 1840 by her great grandfather, William Johnson Hunter (1813-1893) and his wife, Margaret Ann (Peggy) England Hunter (1819-1894).

The first child to be born in the house was Martha Hunter, born in 1840. The house is still standing on Liberty Church Road and is used by descendants of the William Johnson Hunter family. The house was well built with a skeleton frame and ceiled with hand-hewn lumber.

Austine had three older brothers, Jackson Creed, James Jasper, and Charles Milford, and two younger siblings, William Jack and Martha Sue.

Austine Hunter Wallis enjoyed genealogy and pursued it avidly. She helped to organize the Hunter Family Reunion that meets annually at Alexander's. With early settlers so tied together by marriage, she assisted with the puzzle of who married whom and how they were related.

Martha J. Hunter (1840- 1920), first child born in the Hunter house, married Ivan Kimsey Collins (1835-1901). Ivan was the youngest of ten children born to Thompson Collins (1785-1858) and Celia Self Collins (1787-1880), first Collins settlers in Union County. Martha and Ivan Collins were parents of ten children. The sixth was James Johnson Collins who married Margaret A. Nix. They were parents of Austine's mother, Sadie Collins Hunter.

On Austine's father's side, the youngest of William Johnson and Peggy England Hunter's children was Jasper Francis "Todd" Hunter (1863- 1897) who married Martha Lucinda Souther (1867-1937), daughter of John Combs Hayes Souther (1827-1891) and Nancy Collins Souther (1829-1888). Nancy Collins was a daughter of Thompson and Celia Self Collins. The Souther-Collins marriage February 6, 1852, linked another early settlers family. To Todd and Martha Souther were born seven children. Austine's father, William Jesse, was the second born. After Todd Hunter's death in 1897, Martha Souther Hunter married her late husband's brother James A. Hunter (1847- 1912), and to them were born three children, Dora Anne, Joseph Daniel and Dan D. Getting the family lines straight and recording genealogy became one of Austine's passions.

A precocious student, Austine Margaret Hunter attended Town Creek Consolidated School and Union County High School, graduating with high honors. Her repertoire of college graduations, each with high honors, included Young Harris College; Georgia State College for Women, (1951, BS in Education, Mathematics and English); George Peabody College, Nashville, TN (1954, M Ed. Secondary Education and Mathematics); Louisiana State University, (which she attended under a National Science Foundation grant in the Mathematics Institute,1962, M. A.); and University of Georgia (1968, D. Ed., Teacher Education and Supervision).

She met Dr. George Washington Wallis, a professor at the University of Georgia. They were married August 16, 1963. To them were born two children, Andrew and Susan. Before her death, Austine Wallis was glad to welcome her first grandchild, Michael Fahey. While the Wallises lived in Athens, Austine worked on the doctor of education degree at the University of Georgia, where, from 1966 through 1968, she was a research assistant and a teacher in the Education Research Project (the education program known as TERP).

Her roster of teaching assignments through fifty-nine years as an educator began when she was a young girl of eighteen, teaching on a Provisional Certificate, and working with her Uncle Roscoe Collins at St. Mary's School in Camden County, Woodbine, Georgia. Returning north, she taught both English and Mathematics at Airline School, Hall County, and then to her alma mater, Union County High School, mathematics teacher, 1949-1955. She taught math and was a counselor at Young Harris College. At Las Cruces High School in New Mexico she taught mathematics. Then for several years she taught in the Athens, Georgia area, at Athens High School, at the University of Georgia, and began her administrative career at Pattie Hilsman Junior High in Clarke County in 1968. She also worked in Oconee County as a principal, taught mathematics for Truett McConnell College, and after retirement, continued to teach until her illness with a brain tumor brought her long and illustrious career to a close with her death July 20, 2006.

My daughter-in-law, Debra Jones, who began as a paraprofessional under Dr. Wallis as principal, states: "Dr. Wallis is the person who inspired me to return to college and complete my degree and become a teacher. She pushed me, and I found my niche as a teacher. She made a tremendous difference in my life."

How do you measure the worth of a "born" teacher? By the honor societies in which she held membership, like Pi Mu Epsilon, Kappa Delta Pi, Delta Kappa Gamma?

By the educational associations in which she took an active part as a member and served as an officer? By the number of degrees after a name? By community service and efforts to promote education ? Dr. Wallis was a founding member of the Byron Herbert Reece Society and of the Dora Hunter Allison Spiva School of Education at Truett McConnell College. All of the above, and more; an extraordinary teacher is measured by the students she touches and inspires to achieve. And the chain goes on and on, one touching the other. They all look back and say, "Austine Margaret Hunter Wallis was my teacher, and she made all the difference in my life."

c 2007 by Ethelene Dyer Jones; published Mar. 29, 2007 in The Union Sentinel, Blairsville, GA. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Mrs. Dora Allison Hunter Spiva Honored

Mention the name of “Mrs. Dora” and many in Union County and throughout the North Georgia area know who she is: the beautiful, alert, retired teacher who worked for over forty years as an educator, the centenarian who enjoyed her 101st birthday on February 5.

This is a special “Happy Valentine’s Day” and “Happy Birthday” tribute all rolled into one for a noble teacher who was a major influence in my high school years and throughout my life.

A significant honor and well-deserved recognition was announced publicly on February 11, 2006 at a grand luncheon at Choestoe Baptist Church sponsored by Truett McConnell College of Cleveland, Georgia. The previous two-year college, now transitioning to a four-year program, has been approved by accrediting agencies to offer a four-year degree in education. The name chosen for the newly-confirmed division of the college is the Dora Hunter Allison Spiva School of Education. So as not to be such a long-drawn-out name, it may be shortened to the Dora Spiva education program. However, to those of us who have known and loved her as Mrs. Dora Allison and Mrs. Dora Spiva, we like the full name, giving her maiden name of Hunter, her first married name to the long-time ordinary of Union County, Frank Allison (1901-1969), and to her more recent (1974) marriage to her “childhood sweetheart” Daniel Spiva (1900-1985) after both lost their first spouses to death.

The event at Choestoe Church’s commodious new Family Life Center was held despite snow flurries and predictions of foul weather. Some braved four inches or more of snow in their respective locations to attend the “Dora Spiva Celebration.” Over 150 guests had made reservations to attend; some let the threat of snow hinder the travel. But still a wonderful and joyous crowd was there to enjoy the tributes to Mrs. Dora and the announcement of the School of Education to be named for her.

Pastor Dick Stillwell of Choestoe Church welcomed the guests and gave accolades to “faithful member” “Aunt Dora” who braves the elements still to be a regular attendee and participant in the services at Choestoe Church.

Her membership in and work at the church span more than nine decades, for there she has been a teacher. She helped to found Woman’s Missionary Union in 1929, and became a leader of this women’s organization in church, Notla River Association, and Georgia Baptist Woman’s Missionary Union as a divisional vice-president. She served as Superintendent of the Sunday School in a time when women were not usually elected to major leadership positions in a local church.

From Truett McConnell College were president Dr. Jerry W. Pounds, Sr. and his wife, Bayne; Dr. Sam Cash, Vice-President for Advancement Services; Dr. Susan Gannaway, Professor of Education who wrote the proposal for the four-year degree program approved by accrediting agencies; Dr. DeWitt Cox (and his wife Edna), special consultant for the campaign to raise funds for the Spiva School of Education; Ms. Edna Holcomb, now associate with Dr. Cash in the Office of Advancement as Dean of Institutional Support and long-time professor at the college; the Vice-President of Academic Studies; music professor Ms. Kathy Duren; students Rachel Bailey and Michael Bailey who sang; and student Brett Carson who rendered background piano music during the luncheon. Others from the college were present for the luncheon, with food provided by the ARAMark Food Service which also manages the cafeteria on campus.

The Blairsville Garden Club of which Mrs. Dora was a founding member made lovely arrangements not only for the speakers’ table but for each of the round tables where guests enjoyed a delightful meal, good conversation, and the program that honored “Aunt Dora.” Everywhere one looked were smiling faces, savoring the atmosphere and reveling in the association with one whom they loved and honored.

Representative Charles Jenkins of the Georgia Legislature, a student of “Aunt Dora,” Class of 1947, was present to present the Georgia House Resolution in her honor. However, the framed bill did not arrived due to the snow, because Representative Terry Johnson did not hazard mountain roads to be present.

There were light and serious moments interspersed as testimonies to Mrs. Dora’s influence came from County School Superintendent, Tommy Stephens. He said he was never known for his acumen in Mrs. Dora’s math classes as a high school student and it took a stint in the military and Truett McConnell College (he is an alumnus) to set him on the right course, as well as remembering Mrs. Dora’s sound advice when he “liked sports better than studies” in high school. Mr. Stephens lauded the integrity of Union County Schools, past and present, due to dedicated teachers. He is excited about the new School of Education which will train Christian teachers for future jobs in the county.

From her niece, Dr. Austine Hunter Wallis, an outstanding math educator, counselor, administrator and in “Who’s Who Among America”s Teachers” came funny stories about how the then near-centenarian, her real Aunt Dora and Austine’s Uncle Roscoe Collins could out-do her on trips to California and elsewhere. She said, in tribute, “My Aunt Dora inspired me to become a teacher.”

From Dr. Paul Abernathy, former student, came accolades of how Mrs. Dora inspired him to buckle down, study, seek higher education. For twenty-seven years he was on the science faculty of Purdue University.

Clyde Collins, retired educator and principal, gave a tongue-in-cheek report of how sometimes Mrs. Dora was late to first period Algebra class when he was her student, and he, therefore, just got “half a class of Algebra II.” But, before Mrs. Dora retired, he was her principal at Union County High School, and he could then tell her she must be on time, that punctuality is one of the sure marks of greatness.

In addition to Dr. Pounds, Dr. Cash, Dr. Gannaway, and Dr. Cox of the college, those on the Dora Spiva Campaign Steering Committee are Ethelene Dyer Jones (Union native now living in Milledgeville, or “yours truly”) Honorary Chair; and from Blairsville, Rev. Troy Acree, Mr. Clyde Collins, Mrs. Janet Hill, Representative Charles Jenkins, and Rev. Charles (Dick) Stillwell, and from Cleveland, GA, Rev. Doug Merck. We have a large challenge before us: Raising $1.1 million dollars to endow the newly-formed Dora Hunter Alllison Spiva School of Education at Truett McConnell College. If any of you reading this would like to show your own love and appreciation for this outstanding teacher who touched your life, you may send contributions to Truett McConnell College, Office of Institutional Advancement, 100 Alumni Drive, Cleveland, GA 30528. A million dollars is reached by small gifts and large gifts, donations of love to one who has made a difference in our lives and whose influence will continue to touch many lives in the future.

c2006 by Ethelene Dyer Jones; published Feb. 16, 2006 in The Union Sentinel, Blairsville, GA. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.