A speech I gave in Danville, KY on October 14, 2023 when accepting the 2023 Distinguished Young Alumnus Award.
Mackenzie Tomlin’s introduction:
Dexter stated his dream would be to become a community organizer who could eliminate poverty – that is the type of person Dexter is. In his work as the Leadership Development Specialist with The Council of State Governments Dexter loves solving problems and working with state leaders to overcome the many challenges in our communities.
Being a Bonner Scholar at Centre College, Dexter’s commitment to helping others was evident early on. Bonner Scholars are matched with nonprofit organizations, schools, and government agencies that match their social interest. Dexter completed over 1,000 hours of community service and training, including a summer bicycling across the country to raise money and awareness for affordable housing. In addition to his volunteer work, Dexter was also a member of Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity and served as Community Service and Philanthropy Chair as well as Recruitment Chair and President of the Delta Chapter. And if all this was not enough, Dexter also served as Speaker of the House for student government, mentored students in the English as a second language program and worked for the admissions office.
After graduating from Centre College, Dexter earned his Masters of Public Administration from the University of Kentucky. Before Dexter’s position with The Council of State Governments, his career began with Ronnie Bastin for Mayor Campaign, then to a Project Manager position with the McNary Group and then served as a Development Associate with the Louisville Public Media.
Currently Dexter serves on the board of the Louisville Public Media. He has also served as Chapter Director and Recruitment Co-Chair with New Leaders Council, Vice Chair of the Community Investment Cabinet with Metro United Way, Vice President of Community and Director of Public Issues with Young Professionals Association of Louisville, and a Board Member with the Delta Chapter of Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity.
In grateful recognition of Dexter’s unwavering commitment to serve others and leadership, I am honored to recognize Dexter Horne with the 2023 Distinguished Alumnus Award.
Dexter Horne’s Remarks:
Thank you so much, Mackenzie for that introduction and thank you to the entire alumni community of Centre College for selecting me for this honor.
Also, yikes! I was telling Mackenzie over email that I was horrified to be reminded that I told the faculty and staff that my goal was to “solve poverty” when I was teenage student here. That’s insane. For those of you keeping score at home: no, I have not accomplished that yet. But, the fact that I’m up here getting the Distinguished YOUNG Alumni award and not the award for seasoned folks I think is Centre hinting to me; “there’s still time.”
So, here’s to trying. And coincidentally, that’s something that my time at Centre taught me that I carry with me every day: that there is virtue and reward in dreaming big things and doing your best to accomplish them. I’m willing to bet that you can walk around this campus now and survey the current students, asking them what they want out of their time on this planet, and – while most of them are probably smart enough to say something other than SOLVE POVERTY — almost every one of them will tell you they want something that is difficult to attain.
I loved Centre as a student, and I still love it now, because I see this as a place where young people come to be challenged, and where they leave prepared to do the difficult things our country needs and our lives demand.
Centre is where I was taught the skill of applying “healthy skepticism” to the information I’m given, and how to persevere through the discomfort of cognitive dissonance when approaching new ideas. Centre is where I was asked to do more than identify problems but try to solve them and then be held accountable for my proposed solutions.
Above all else, it was here at Centre where I was pushed to see my failures and bad decisions as part of the same grand story of progress. Centre gave me, and I think it gave most of us, the confidence to try, to fail, to learn, and to grow. That by itself is an invaluable gift.
To whom much is given, much is expected. And I do think that all of us alumni and friends of the college are expected to dream big, ambitious goals and with what we learn through failure, what we gain through working with each other, and by the opportunities time blesses us with, we are expected as adults to accomplish the lofty dreams for a better self and for a better world that we dared to dream as teenagers.
So, again, I am honored to be recognized today for where I’ve been and the things that I’ve done, but the true honor I am getting from this award is the reminder of what is expected of me and my fellow alumni in the face of all that we still must do.
I may not solve poverty, or any other huge issue that sat heavy on my heart at 18, but in the spirit of Centre and all I gained here, you can be damn-sure I’ll keep trying.
Thank you.
PolitiFro 