Warren and Mary Corman of Lawrence to receive Homecoming Spirit of 1912 Award
LAWRENCE — The University of Kansas Alumni Association and the student-led Homecoming Steering Committee have named Warren and Mary Corman as winners of this year’s Rich and Judy Billings Spirit of 1912 Award. The annual award recognizes Jayhawks who consistently display school spirit, pride and tradition.
The Cormans will ride in the Homecoming Parade at 5 p.m. Oct. 25 on Massachusetts Street in downtown Lawrence and receive their award at the Homecoming Reception before kickoff of the KU-Texas Tech football game Oct. 26.
Warren earned his KU bachelor’s degree in architectural engineering in 1950 after serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He worked for the Kansas Board of Regents for 31 years before joining KU in 1997 as university architect and special assistant to Chancellor Robert Hemenway. Throughout his 63-year career, he has overseen the planning and construction of more than 300 building projects at state universities in Kansas, including KU’s Multidisciplinary Research Building, the Hall Center for the Humanities, the School of Engineering’s Eaton Hall and the Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics.
In 1999 he received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the School of Architecture and Urban Design, and he received the Distinguished Engineering Service Award from the School of Engineering in 2004. He also was inducted in the Washburn Rural High School Hall of Fame in 2004. Since retiring from KU in 2010, he has participated in Jayhawks for Higher Education and the Alumni Association’s Endacott Society, and he serves on the Veterans Alumni Network advisory board. He and Mary Crissman Corman, who earned her bachelor’s degrees in psychology in 1973 and health information management in 1974, are Life members of the Alumni Association and Presidents Club donors. They also are longtime supporters of the Kansas Honor Scholar Program.
The Spirit of 1912 Award commemorates the first year of KU’s Homecoming and honors Rich and Judy Billings of Lakewood, Colorado, who in 2011 created an endowment to fund future editions of Homecoming.
The theme for KU’s 107th Homecoming is “Far Above the Golden Valley.” The Alumni Association and its Student Alumni Network Homecoming Steering Committee oversee this year’s event, which is sponsored by Best Western Plus West Lawrence; Crown Toyota, Volkswagen; and the KU Bookstore. A complete schedule of Homecoming week activities can be found at kualumni.org/homecoming.
About the KU Alumni Association
Through the support of members and donors, the KU Alumni Association advocates for the University of Kansas, communicates with Jayhawks in all media, recruits students and volunteers, serves the KU community and unites Jayhawks. For more information, visit kualumni.org.