Elizabeth A. Rhodes '86, Sue Taylor '81, and Jack Elliott '84

Looking for a way to honor their mother and memorialize their father in the region where they lived and taught, the children of Jack and Lois Elliott recently established the Jack and Lois Elliott Scholarship.
“My parents believed in the importance of education; this will help others to carry on in that tradition,” daughter Liz [Rhodes] said of the scholarship.
The family has a long history with FSU, which dates back to the days of Frostburg Normal School No. 2, where the Elliott children’s maternal grandmother, Thelma Price Mackay, graduated in 1925. Their parents, Jack and Lois Elliott, both graduated from Frostburg State Teacher’s College in 1953. Jack went on to earn his master’s degree in 1963. Upon her retirement from teaching in Allegany County, Lois supervised student teachers at FSU. Skidmore graduated from FSU in 1986 and was recognized in 2008 by the College of Business as its Alumnus of the Year. [Rhodes]’s sister Sue graduated in 1981 and her brother Jack graduated in 1987. Grandchildren Travis and Donna are also FSU graduates.
The Elliotts both worked as elementary educators in Allegany County. Lois taught third grade and Jack began as a teacher before becoming principal. Jack was still working as principal at Westernport Elementary when he passed in 1979 at age 47.
[Rhodes] is still amazed that former students remember Jack more than 30 years after he taught them. Her sister ran into one of Jack’s former students recently on the South Branch of the Potomac River in West Virginia. That former student still vividly remembered Jack and recalled the ability he had to whistle in such a way as to get everyone’s attention. Lois frequently sees students in the community who immediately recognize her as their third-grade teacher. The students have obviously changed since they were in third grade, but they all remember Mrs. Elliott.
[Published August 2010]