Grambling State University held a celebration reception for Dr. Mildred G. Gallot and the establishment of an Endowed Scholarship in her honor. The reception was held Friday in the Black and Gold Room of the Favrot Student Union.
Leon Sanders, Interim Vice President of Finance presided over the program. The invocation was given by Dr. Leon Whittaker, dean of Graduate Studies Emeritus, and music was provided by Sigma Alpha Iota International Music Fraternity.
GSU president, Dr. Frank G. Pogue presented Dr. Gallot and gave a presidential toast.
Dr. Gallot thanked everyone for allowing her to “smell her flowers before she passes on,” then spoke of her love for GSU, her alma mater.
“I have had a love affair with Grambling State University since I came here in 1955. I never left,” she said. “I graduated and got married.”
A GSU graduate, Dr. Gallot served as professor and head of the Department of History and Geography. She retired in 2003 after 44 years of service.
“It was a rewarding experience. I would not change anything if I could. I appreciated and enjoyed working with the students. I always put the student first,” she said.
Gallot enjoyed teaching so much that she has taught during the summer for free so students could get the classes they needed to graduate.
“It is rewarding and gratifying for students to say they really enjoyed my classes,” she said. She is the author of the book A History of Grambling State University.
Dr. Gallot is a former member of the Board of Supervisors of the University of Louisiana System, where she served as vice chair of the Academic and Student Affairs Committee. She was appointed to this position by Governor Kathleen Babineaux Blanco in 2005.
She jokingly said about the presence of some of the board members Dr. Randy Moffett and Wayne Parker, “Dr. Pogue, they finally came to us.”
Moffett and Parker were among the many who gave presentations and greetings. Others included GSU Student Government Association President Lamark Hughes, Miss GSU Solange Sayers, Louisiana Tech’s Ken Rea, Dr. Matthew Ware and Annie Hamlin.
Because she is known for being a kind and generous person, many were not surprised by her gift.
One person who experienced her generosity is Terry Lilly, who has known her since the early 1980s. He said that Dr. Gallot saw that he needed help and helped him in his formative years. He helps others just as she helped him.
Lilly said the establishment of the endowment is awesome, and all should aspire to achieve what she has on campus. He said, “If we all gave back as she did, imagine the scholarships we would have for our students.”
He said it is exciting when scholarships or buildings are named after people we know. “Since we know the importance of it, we do not take it lightly, especially when we know that people worked hard so that we can have them,” he said.
Many of the members of the Epsilon Psi Omega and Alpha Theta chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. attended the program to show support for their sorority sister Dr. Gallot. Also, members of the latter chapter served as ushers.
Sharanda Butler, an early childhood education major and member of Alpha Theta said,
Dr. Gallot contributed 44 years of services, and even though she is retired, she is still giving her services to the community.
She said, “It makes me proud to be a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha because she is upholding the goal of the founders which is service to all mankind.
Butler said the donation can provide great opportunities for students who do not have money because of the economy and budget cuts. “Students who want to excel in higher education can do so without extra stress,” she said.
Dr. Gallot is married to former Mayor Richard J. Gallot and is the mother of Daphne, Loretta and State Representative Richard Gallot Jr. She has six grandchildren.
Dr. Gallot’s children and the American Association of Women donated money to GSU in her honor.