Sandra Sims-deGraffenried to address Athens State graduates

Athens, Ala. – Dr. Sandra Sims-deGraffenried, an Athens State University graduate and the former executive director of the Alabama Association of School Boards, will be the keynote speaker at Athens State University’s summer commencement on Saturday, August 27 at 9 a.m.  Graduation exercises are planned to be held on Athens State’s campus in front of Founders Hall.  Approximately 200 students are expected to graduate.            

Sims-deGraffenried earned a bachelor’s degree in 1967 and her masters in 1970 from Athens State University.  In 1994 she was awarded the Athens State Alumni Achievement Award from the College of Education.  She earned her AA Certification from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and her doctorate from Vanderbilt University.

Sims-deGraffenried joined the Alabama Association of School Boards (AASB) in 1985 as assistant executive director. She became executive director in 1988, breaking ground as the first female executive director of a major Alabama education organization and the first female school boards association executive director in the Southeast.

She retired as AASB’s executive director in 2007 after serving more than 40 years in public education, including 19 years at AASB’s helm and 19 years as a teacher in Morgan and Lawrence counties, as a guidance counselor and as central office supervisor in Decatur.        

Sims-deGraffenried serves on the Southern Regional Education Board, on the Southern Growth Policies Board and is a past board member of the Southeastern Regional Vision for Education. Three Alabama governors – Governors Guy Hunt, Fob James and Bob Riley – have appointed her to task forces charged with examining public school funding, and she led the charge to end non-essential funding using education budget funds. She was recently appointed to serve on the Alabama Trust Fund Board, which oversees billions of dollars of Alabama’s oil and gas royalties.

Athens State University offers coursework at the junior and senior level and is the baccalaureate degree granting institution of the Alabama Community College System. It provides affordable education in an environment that recognizes diversity and nurtures the discovery and application of knowledge. Athens State prepares students for professional careers, graduate school, lifelong learning, and enrichment.

Guy McClure
Guy.McClure@athens.edu
256-233-8296
August 22, 2011
www.athens.edu