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OUTSTANDING TIGER ALUMNIOutstanding Tiger Alumni for 1999 were Rod Elder, left, and Logan McCabe.Grads from '72, '38 honored by collegeRod Elder and Logan McCabe were honored May 8,1999, as recipients of the Outstanding Tiger AlumniAward. They were honored during commencement exercisesin W.S. Scott Auditorium.Summer Olympic appointmenthighlight for '72 grad ElderHe admits he lacked focus his first time at CowleyCollege, but things have turned out nicely for Rod Elder.The 1972 graduate of Cowley has spent his career asan architect,designing schools and accommodating thedisabled. His experience ensuring that structures meetAmericans with Disabilities Act requirements earnedhim an appointment to the Paralympic Games in Atlantain 1996."1 didn't know what I was doing when I went toCowley," Elder said. "I hadn't planned well."Elder graduated from Arkansas City High School in1966 and enrolled at Cowley that same year. He attendedfor two years but had no direction, so he enlisted inthe U.S. Navy in 1968. He saw active duty until 1971 andwent into the Naval Reserves. He went back to Cowleyin the fall of 1971."I had less than a stellar performance those first twoyears at Cowley," Elder said. "There's a lot of kids rightout of high school who don't know what they want, andthat's the way I was."During his second stint at Cowley, Elder remembersaccounting instructor Catherine Goehring fondly."I failed her accounting class the first time (in1966)," Elder said. "I didn't do any work. I came backand took her class again and got an A. She was a superlady. I don't think she ever knew that I thought of her thatway."Elder earned a bachelor's degree inarchitecture in1977 from Kansas State University, and a bachelor's inconstruction from KSU a year later. During that time hewas inducted into Sigma Lambda Chi, the constructionscience honorary society. He had finally figured outwhich direction to take.His appointment to work with the ParalympicCommittee in Atlanta was a result of his experience inthe Navy."I had been commanding officer of a Navy constructionbattalion in Louisiana and they (OlympicCommittee) were looking for a Naval Reserve commanderwith construction management experience andaccessibility experience," Elder said. "There were onlytwo or three of us with that combination, and they selectedme to fill the job in Atlanta."His orders forced him to miss 1 8 months of work athis job in Topeka as architect for the Kansas Departmentof Education. But Elder said it was an interesting assignment.See Alumni, Page 16