The student-faculty relationship is a cornerstone of higher education. Done well, bonds between teacher and student can awaken a passion for a subject or career that a student may otherwise have overlooked.
For Diane Bottoms Boxley ’72, that connection came during a calculus class taught by the late Dr. Merry Lewis Allen, a beloved Longwood mathematics professor who served the university for 32 years.
“It was on the third floor of Grainger Hall, and I can still see her at the blackboard,” Boxley said. “She had an eraser in one hand and a chalk-holder in the other. She would go across rapid fire, writing and filling up the board, erasing it and then going back. You had to keep up.”
Through the haze of chalk dust and a symphony of squeaks from Allen’s furious scribbling on the board, Boxley not only learned calculus, she discovered an aptitude for a subject that proved foundational for her future career as an actuary—one who uses advanced mathematical modeling to measure, predict and manage financial costs of risk and uncertainty.
“Longwood prepared me very well,” said Boxley, who graduated summa cum laude and went on to earn a master’s degree from Virginia Tech. “The first few exams to become an actuary were nothing but math, and they were easy for me. I attribute that to my education at Longwood.”
Now Boxley is putting that appreciation for Longwood’s faculty into action by establishing the Diane Boxley '72 Endowed Chair of Mathematics professorship. The endowment will support the work of a Longwood mathematics professor—to be named during the 2027-28 school year—who has a distinguished record of accomplishments in their field, and demonstrates professional accomplishment and a commitment to Longwood University’s mission. Above all, the recipient must demonstrate excellence in teaching and a commitment to creating the next generation of citizen leaders, much like Allen and her fellow Longwood faculty inspired Boxley to become more than 50 years ago.
Many universities have endowed professorships, and Longwood needs them as well. Of course it’s necessary to have good teachers, and that’s one thing I feel Longwood has more of than other universities.
Diane Bottoms Boxley '72
“Many universities have endowed professorships, and Longwood needs them as well,” Boxley said. “Of course it’s necessary to have good teachers, and that’s one thing I feel Longwood has more of than other universities. But you also need to have more faculty who are skilled at research, faculty who write books, and faculty who have the time and means to pursue those interests. A professor who does those things can mentor students who also want to do those things.”
Boxley’s professorship is part of a broader, university-wide fundraising campaign that yielded $3 million in total donations and eight new endowed professorships for the university. The new endowments will allow Longwood to retain and support talented educators who are dedicated to their students and work, as well as serve as a tool to attract talented candidates by supporting their work far into the future.
Each professorship also includes a 2:1 match from Longwood alumna and philanthropist Joan Perry Brock ’64, whose giving portfolio, like Boxley’s, spans multiple decades.
Boxley’s latest gift follows numerous other causes she has supported in a philanthropic career that also features multiple scholarships at her alma mater. Those include the Diane Bottoms Boxley Scholarship and the P. Seddon Boxley III Scholarship, the latter of which is named for her late husband. Her continued service to the university was also recognized in 2023 when she received Longwood’s Page Cook Axson McGaughy Lifetime Loyalty Award.
Without Longwood, I wouldn’t be in a position to even do this.
Diane Bottoms Boxley '72
“Without Longwood, I wouldn’t be in a position to even do this,” said Boxley, who put herself through school via scholarships, loans and money she earned during breaks from classes. “If I didn’t have the math education I received in school, I wouldn’t be able to earn the money I have. So if somebody wants a college education, and specifically a good college education, then I want to help them get that.”