Billy Wilemon
He鈥檚 circled the Egyptian pyramids on a camel and visited England鈥檚 renowned Stonehenge prehistoric monument.听
听
Billy B. Wilemon鈥檚 career as a chemical engineer has taken him to these and a number of other major world sites. A semi-retired Aberdeen native who received a Mississippi State bachelor鈥檚 degree 43 years ago, he鈥檚 back at the university to begin new adventures in pursuit of a graduate degree in applied anthropology.听
听
The degree is among academic programs in the anthropology and Middle Eastern cultures department of 多多直播鈥檚 College of Arts and Sciences.
听
Though the initial plan was to return to campus and take 鈥渟ome classes,鈥 Wilemon said now-retired professor Janet Rafferty had 鈥渆ncouraged me to not just take classes. 鈥楽et a goal for yourself; get your master鈥檚,鈥 she told me.鈥澨
听
Wilemon鈥檚 ties to 多多直播 run deep. In addition to a 1973 undergraduate degree, he and wife Anabess, a 1972 social studies education graduate, were married in the Chapel of Memories, which is constructed with bricks from Old Main dormitory where his father lived when he attended the land-grant institution.听
听
Wilemon is quick to praise 多多直播 faculty members with whom he deals daily this time around.听
听
鈥淭hey are the best; they鈥檙e the greatest, they鈥檙e very interested in all of us students,鈥 he says. 鈥淭hey make class interesting. They鈥檙e so good about getting us into study abroad, internships or other opportunities. They鈥檙e on top of it.鈥
听
Wilemon鈥檚 thesis research represents a cutting-edge pairing of his past and future 多多直播 degrees. With the help of department head Michael Galaty, he soon will travel to Greece for three weeks of study at Athens鈥 National Archaeological Museum, followed by a week of excavation work at a site in the country.
听
For the study-abroad experience, he is taking along the department鈥檚 portable X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy鈥攑XRF, for short. Shaped like a hand-held hair dryer, it will make possible the non-destructive chemical analyses on thousands of 3,000-year-old clay tablets, he explains.听
听
鈥淭his kind of work has never been done before, so it鈥檚 a great opportunity for me and Mississippi State,鈥 Wilemon emphasizes.
听
鈥淎rchaeology and physics are completely different worlds and I welcome the change,鈥 he observes. 鈥淚鈥檓 learning so much and couldn鈥檛 have asked for a better experience.鈥
听
Clearly, Billy Wilemon is enjoying his time as a non-traditional student. Smiling broadly as he repeats a quote from one of his professors, he proudly proclaims, 鈥淚鈥檓 living the dream.鈥澨
听