Jenny Lynn Martin Anderson (’85)

Jenny Lynn Martin Anderson (’85) and Mark Anderson (’85) spent a great deal of their time at Georgia Southern College in the Hollis Building.

Jenny Lynn could be found in her writing classes where she earned a degree in communication arts with an emphasis in public relations. On another floor in Hollis, Mark was taking business classes where he pursued a management degree. Mark never liked grammar, writing and spelling, but Jenny Lynn was a whiz at all three. Jenny Lynn never particularly enjoyed math, but Mark could easily crunch numbers.

“Although Jenny Lynn and I have different degrees, we have a common love for Georgia Southern which has led us to be more involved in our respective departments,” Mark said. Jenny Lynn has served on an advisory board for the Department of Communication Arts and Mark has served the College of Business Administration in its entrepreneurship program.

“Mark and I knew each other a little growing up in Statesboro,” Jenny Lynn said. “He was at Statesboro High and I was at Bulloch Academy. But, when we were at Georgia Southern, I had to have a date for a Phi Mu pledge dance. He was an ATO and I was a Phi Mu.” She and her roommate pulled out the fraternity composites and started looking through the members of Alpha Tau Omega. “I saw his picture and I thought, ‘Oh! I sort of know Mark Anderson! He’d be a good person to take on a blind date.’ So I called him and that’s how it all began.”

Many years ago the couple decided to commit more deeply to the University and create scholarships in each department.

Mark’s desire to set up the scholarship stemmed from him wanting to make education affordable to those who wanted to go to college but possibly couldn’t, due to financial hardship. “I grew up in a large family and had to work all during college and I know how much I would have appreciated a scholarship that could have assisted me financially,” said Mark. “This may help in a small way for a student to spend more time toward their degree rather than having to work during school.”

Jenny Lynn thought it was important to recognize students whose work ethic goes above and beyond the average student. “I’ve always felt if you work hard, you should be rewarded and the students eligible must maintain a 3.0 GPA or higher and must be recommended by their professors,” she said. “I was also interested in creating this scholarship so that I could say ‘thank you’ and honor the many professors who had an impact on my education.

“During my education, I had many beloved professors like Pam Bourland-Davis, Clarence McCord, Janet Bury, Dick Johnson and Bill Bolen,” said Jenny Lynn. “Each year when we award the scholarship it allows me to stop and reflect on these people who mentored me and instilled in me a great love for public relations.”