Issue: Spring 2018 | Posted: June 1, 2018
Steve Beverly
Distinguished Service Award
Presented to a member of the Union community for distinction in his/her profession, service to mankind, and/or contribution to Union University.
Steve Beverly, associate professor of communication arts, said teaching broadcast journalism at Union allows him to make a difference in more places and over more time than any other profession.
“I love the relationships,” Beverly said. “In my time at Union, I have had the opportunity to work with and mentor some of the best young people around. Now I see them working in newsrooms around the country.”
Beverly teaches classes in broadcast news and produces the daily local news program Jackson 24/7, which is run entirely by Union students. He joined the faculty at Union in 1993 after spending 19 years in television news broadcasting. He said he loved the newsroom, and he always knew that if anything could take him away from it, it would be the opportunity to teach at a Christian school.
“God opens doors to where he wants you,” Beverly said. “Union is a special place that prizes excellence in education but also takes its foundation of Christian faith seriously.”
Beverly said at Union, he has been able to use his gifts as a broadcaster to host events, broadcast basketball games and do many other things to “make Union University and its people look good.”
Beverly loves to laugh, and he said the camaraderie he has found with his fellow faculty members in communication arts is second to none. He said his students also bring him laughter and joy every week as he works with them on the newscast.
“News can be a high-stress venture,” Beverly said. “You have to have a sense of humor.”
He said in his time at Union, many students with many different backgrounds and stories have crossed his path, and they have taught him more than he could ever teach them.
“They’ve changed me,” Beverly said.
