Colby Community College announced the names of four new members who will be welcomed to the CCC Alumni Hall of Fame. The class of 2016 includes retired instructor Carolyn May, retired instructor and current volunteer Tom Moorhous, and late softball coach and director of athletics Carl Adams.

A reception will be held in their honor Saturday, Nov. 5, in the lower level of the Colby Community Building from 5:30-6:30 p.m. A brief plaque presentation is scheduled between the CCC men’s and women’s basketball games that evening.

The Colby Community College Alumni Hall of Fame was established in 2012. Each year a committee selects individuals or couples who have made a substantial contribution to the college through personal time, effort and interest, or have contributed in a significant way to the lives of others after being part of Colby Community College.

A list of past recipients and nomination information is available on the college website.

The class of 2016:

Carolyn May

After teaching middle school students and working for the Northwest Kansas Educational Service Center as coordinator of media services, Carolyn May began her career at CCC in 1977 as an instructor and director of audio-visual services. For the next 32 years, she worked to improve opportunities for students.

May was instrumental in developing and advancing course articulation with colleges and universities. As part-time Fort Hays State University off-campus director from 1985-1991, May worked on enhancing articulation of all majors transferring to FHSU. During that time, she also developed and directed the “2 + 2” programs in elementary education with Saint Mary of the Plains College and Fort Hays State University so nontraditional students could earn degrees while staying in their hometowns. Throughout her career, she continued improving transferability with colleges and universities.

May increased enrollment in the CCC teacher education program, advised students, taught courses, and was the university supervisor for student teachers for Saint Mary of the Plains College and Fort Hays State University. For more than 30 years, she was an advisor to the Kansas National Education Association Student Program at CCC, an organization that won awards of excellence for 20 consecutive years until her retirement. Every semester she coordinated field trips to cities such as Topeka and Wichita so future teachers could gain insights into teaching and governance beyond their local observations.

May also served as Faculty Alliance president and in 2007 won the CCC Tangeman Award for Teaching Excellence.

Much of May’s professional work has continued into retirement. She served on the KNEA Cottonwood UniServ administrative board for many years and then on the state KNEA-Retired Coordinating Council. In 2015, she was the KNEA-Retired delegate to the NEA Representative Assembly. In 2014, she was instrumental in organizing Northwest Prairie Winds Retired Educators, a chapter of KNEA-Retired, and has been president since its inception.

May is a long-time supporter of the Colby Community College Endowment Association. She continues to be active with the United Methodist Church and serves as a local and regional leader in numerous ministries and activities.

“I appreciate the support of Colby Community College throughout the years as we improved students’ opportunities to make a better world,” she said. “I am humbled by this honor.”

Tom Moorhous

An alumnus of CCC, Tom Moorhous began teaching history as an adjunct instructor on campus in the fall of 1998. Two years later, he moved to a full-time position, adding political science and sociology classes.

His 15 years at the college were busy. During his tenure, Moorhous served two terms on the Endowment Foundation board. He also chaired the Dr. Max Pickerill Lecture Series board for six years and coached the quiz bowl team for eight years.

The respect he gained from his students and peers was recognized in 2001 when he won the CCC Tangeman Award for Teaching Excellence.

Moorhous has substantial experience teaching online. He was part of initial talks at CCC to begin an online virtual college and was one of the first to teach on-campus with an open-source online learning management system. He has taught for EduKan since January 2006 as well as Grantham University (2012-13) and Ashford University since September 2015.

Throughout his life Moorhous is one of the largest contributors to the Endowment Foundation. Since his 2013 retirement, he has served as a volunteer in retention, identifying and assisting struggling CCC students.

His professional career involves many memories, but one specific incident stands out.

“My most memorable moment and my proudest accomplishment was in the summer of 2013 when a handful of us held the college together as we experienced a massive employee turnover,” he said. “We were making 900 phone calls checking on students’ enrollment statuses.”

Moorhous holds an associate degree from Colby Community College and bachelor's and master’s degrees from Fort Hays State University.

Carl Adams

The late Carl Adams grew up on a farm near Grainfield and graduated from Hoxie High School. He attended CCC to wrestle and play baseball from 1971-73.

Adams returned to CCC in 1984 as an assistant women’s basketball and assistant softball coach. Three years later he was named head softball coach, and for the next 20 years built a program that was consistently nationally ranked in the top 20. At the time of his death in 2006, he had posted a career record of 554-467 and helped more than 60 players continue their softball careers at four-year colleges.

Adams had additional responsibilities at CCC, becoming a coordinator for the Living Center North dorm in 1984. After several years living on campus in a room he called “the hut,” he became known to many students as “Uncle Carl.”

In 1999 he became CCC’s athletic director, and also served on the board for the Colby Recreation Department for more than ten years.

He was one of the organizers, special advisors, and coaches of the Sweet Thunder, an organization developed to promote fastpitch softball for young female athletes across the tri-state region. For many years the Sweet Thunder raised funds to add lights to the CCC softball field, a venue that in 2007 was renamed Carl Adams Softball Field.

Adams’ former assistant softball coach and current CCC athletic director Ryan Sturdy said Adams always had the best interest of the student in mind.

“His dedication was evident by the numerous lives he positively affected over the years,” Sturdy said. “The leadership and mentoring he provided to the institution and softball program was invaluable. I am proud to have been a part of the legacy and to call him a mentor, but more importantly a friend.”