Celebrating Life After Work
Celebrating Life After Work - Alumni & Friends - Grove City College
Celebrating Life After Work - Alumni & Friends - Grove City College
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Winter 2013<br />
r. John Sparks ’66 came<br />
to Grove City College<br />
as a freshman in 1962,<br />
not realizing the lifelong<br />
impact of his college<br />
decision. An economics student, Sparks<br />
served as a resident assistant, the chair<br />
of freshman orientation, The Collegian<br />
editor and classmate of President Richard<br />
Jewell ’67. He also met and married his<br />
wife, Marion (Malarkey ’67); their two<br />
children John ’95 and Elizabeth ’99 would<br />
be future students, and their son-in-law is<br />
also an alum. He will retire as Dean of the<br />
Calderwood School of Arts and Letters at<br />
the end of the 2012-13 academic year.<br />
Sparks went on to earn his law degree<br />
from the University of Michigan Law<br />
School and spent six years at Hillsdale<br />
College before returning to Grove City<br />
College in 1976 as a professor. Though<br />
he advanced to Dean of the Calderwood<br />
School in 2004, he continued teaching<br />
constitutional and business law.<br />
Sparks loves being in the classroom.<br />
“The vitality and energy of the students is<br />
my favorite part of teaching,” he explained.<br />
“I love seeing them gain knowledge they<br />
didn’t have before and really appreciate it.”<br />
Sparks has earned a number of awards<br />
on campus including Man of the Year<br />
in 1966, Professor of the Year in 2001<br />
and the Jack Kennedy Memorial Alumni<br />
Achievement Award in 2002. “I spent four<br />
years here as a student and 37 as a faculty<br />
member. That’s 41 of my 68 years of life<br />
spent on this campus. It’s fair to say that<br />
Grove City College has essentially been my<br />
life, and that’s been a real blessing.”<br />
<strong>After</strong> retirement, Sparks will continue to<br />
teach and advise pre-law students. “I knew<br />
I would miss the classroom most of all,<br />
so I decided not to give that up entirely.”<br />
He also plans to comment more on public<br />
policy, practice law in Mercer County and<br />
see his grandchildren more often.<br />
Well over 25,000 students have passed<br />
through the halls of Grove City College<br />
during the tenures of Dr. Arnold, Ms.<br />
Grundy and Dr. Sparks. It’s fair to say<br />
that the country—and the world—has<br />
benefited from the dedicated service given<br />
by these three. Thank you from Grove<br />
City College. ■<br />
the G ē D U N K www.gcc.edu | 29
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