Our Greatest Tradition: The bonds between faculty and students

Millie, the wonderfully playful 9-month-old Goldendoodle, jumps into the lap of her mom, Allie Kleinman Lowe (’17). Millie has heard the name of Mary Dalton spoken over the computer, and she knows what that means. She’d better insist on some attention before mom gets to talking about the professor who inspired a special gift.

Too late.

“Mary Dalton shaped my Wake Forest experience,” Kleinman Lowe says, just getting warmed up as Millie presses nose to nose. “She wasn’t just a professor; she was a mentor, a guide, someone who really saw her students and supported them.”

So, within just a few months of graduating, Kleinman Lowe committed $100,000 to create the Mary M. Dalton Fund for Excellence in Communication, an endowed vehicle that will benefit the academic department that defined the donor’s education and the honoree’s work. Kleinman Lowe is one of the youngest alumni to make a statement of this magnitude, which includes more than money; it will deliver perpetual honor to an exceptional teacher-scholar.

I was kind of numb at first, then I thought about it for a few minutes, and I just felt such gratitude. It means we have a chance to do things at a really important time.

Mary M. Dalton (’83)

The gift continues the chain of what Dr. Ed Wilson (’43) called “our greatest tradition,” the bonds of scholarship and mentorship between faculty and students. Dalton got hooked on communication studies when she wound up in the classroom of Dr. Julian C. Burroughs (’51, P ’80, P ’83, GP ’11, GP ’14), who taught everything from public speaking to play production to radio and television at his alma mater from 1958-94. Dalton took everything she could from Burroughs, who hired her as an adjunct instructor while she earned her masters and doctorate at UNCG.

Dalton became a full-time faculty member and would soon attract the intellectual curiosity of her own generations of Wake Foresters.

Kleinman Lowe, who grew up half an hour away in Greensboro, North Carolina, didn’t know what she’d study. Until, that is, she found something called media studies in Carswell Hall.

“That would have never been on my radar if not for Mary Dalton,” she said. “It was just starting out back then. But I could see how deeply she cared and how much thought she put into her teaching – in and out of the classroom.

“There is a warmth to Mary Dalton. I took as many classes as I could with her. Everything she taught, I wanted to take. I often found myself staying after class, eager to talk with her about all kinds of things.”

Dalton’s classes are heavy on student participation and other personal touches. For example, she requires students in COM 120 (Introduction to Critical and Creative Media) to write observations in notebooks and turn them in for periodic review. That way, they’re not spending every moment in front of a screen of some sort.

As for the subject matter – whether film or TV or written communication – Dalton believes the value transcends plot details. She also suspected Kleinman Lowe was a good fit.

“She was quiet but determined,” Dalton said. “She was a dedicated student. Even more important to me, she is steadfast and kind. I value both of those qualities highly. Kindness most of all.”

Kleinman Lowe says she reaps the benefits of being on her toes every day. Her communication major, in conjunction with minors in entrepreneurship and journalism, prepared her for a series of multi-faceted jobs in Greensboro-based family businesses in commercial and residential real estate development, hospitality and related fields. She has worked in business management, recruiting and human resources for Daly Seven, which builds, owns and manages over 45 hotels in the Carolinas and Viriginia. She now works for PARC Companies, which has a deep portfolio of commercial and multi-family development projects.

Kleinman Lowe earned a master’s degree in hospitality from New York University and holds Professional in Human Resources (PHR) and Certified Hotel Administrator (CHA) certifications. With that hard work, she was in a place to consider expressing her appreciation in the form of an endowed gift. The fund’s specifics weren’t terribly important – it can serve nearly anything that enhances the department’s offerings and student experiences – but one thing did matter: The name had to honor Dalton but not the donor.

“It goes back to my parents, who have done most of their donations anonymously,” Kleinman Lowe said. “My faith has always guided me to give quietly and with purpose. My intention wasn’t recognition; it was gratitude.”

Kleinman Lowe agreed to waive her anonymity in the hope that her gift will inspire others.

Departmental funds are vital to the health of a broad academic experience because college students have changed in the past generation. In 2003, half of Wake Forest’s graduates declared the requisite single major but nothing else. In the Class of 2025, the portion of grads with a second major and/or a minor or minors hit 85%. That means all departments have far more invested customers than they once did.

“I wanted (the fund) to go to projects that Mary and the department felt were most important and that would help give students the opportunities they would need to learn.”

Allie Kleinman Lowe (’17)

“Communication is an incredibly versatile field because it connects to everything we do. It can be applied to any career or setting,” Kleinman Lowe said.

It is the most declared major at Wake Forest over the past 10 years (2016-25), in fact.

These days, Kleinman Lowe is working remotely from the Ann Arbor, Mich., home she shares with her husband, Dr. Matthew Lowe, an oral and maxillofacial surgery resident at the University of Michigan. Theirs is a good life rooted in strong values, backed by higher education and enhanced by Millie and a 3-year-old Goldendoodle, Remy.

And they don’t take any of it for granted.

“I chose an endowed fund because of the impact it could have not just for that time but for generations to come,” Kleinman Lowe said. “I wanted my story to be woven into the ongoing Pro Humanitate narrative of Wake Forest – not just as an alum but as someone who contributes to its future.”