May 9, 2019 (Jackson, Miss.) - Belhaven President Dr. Roger Parrott awarded longtime educator Ms. Bettye H. Quinn '58 an honorary doctorate during the University's commencement exercises May 4, 2019.
With a combined 61 years of teaching experience, Associate Professor of Education Bettye Quinn has established a legacy of teaching that has influenced thousands.
Today, she continues to have a major impact on the many Belhaven students who sit under her tutelage. Quinn earned a Bachelor of Arts from Belhaven College in 1958 and a Master of Education from Mississippi College in 1961. She completed further graduate work at Mississippi State University.
She taught eight years with Jackson Public Schools before coming to Belhaven in 1966 to teach education and psychology courses. She has over 53 years of experience in teaching elementary education at a college level. In addition to teaching at Belhaven, she was an adjunct faculty member for Mississippi State University and the University of Mississippi at the R & D Center, where she taught education courses for ten years.
Since 1955, Quinn has worked at Mississippi Baptist Medical Center's Emergency Department, volunteering each Christmas Day. Through the years, Ms. Quinn has earned the title of state president for Alpha Delta Kappa, Mississippi Department of Classroom Teachers, Mississippi Association of College Teachers of Education, and the Association of Childhood Education. She has also carried the title of national secretary for Kappa Delta Epsilon Education Sorority.
Her many awards are evidence of her dedication to the teaching profession. Some of her awards include: Outstanding Young Education National Winner, Mississippi Economics Council Star Teacher, Alpha Theta Professor of Year, Belhaven College Alumnus of the Year, Belhaven College Board of Trustees Professor of Year
Headwae Award, Legacy of Learning, and Belhaven Leadership Council Faculty of the Year. In 2002, Belhaven honored her by naming the Bettye Quinn Alumni House and Welcome Center. She has been a member of Wells Methodist Church for 73 years and has taught Sunday school at the church for 65 years.