Cobra alumni carry banner in legislatures
EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the first in a series of articles spotlighting alumni of local high schools, colleges and universities as they prepare for this month’s commencement ceremonies.
FOUNTAIN LAKE — Fountain Lake Charter High School prepares for graduation this week as two prominent alumni work in the highest levels of the federal and state governments.
The class of 2017 will graduate Friday at 7 p.m. in Bank of the Ozarks Arena. Fountain Lake is the first high school in the area to conduct its graduation ceremony this month.
U.S. Rep. Bruce Westerman, R-District 4, followed a career in the Arkansas General Assembly with his election in 2014 to the U.S. House of Representatives and serves on the Committee on the Budget, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and the Committee on Natural Resources, where he is the vice chairman of the Federal Lands Subcommittee. He also serves on the Majority Whip Team under the leadership
of House Majority Whip Steve Scalise.
Westerman graduated from Fountain Lake in 1986 and the University of Arkansas in 1990, before a 22-year career at MidSouth Engineering, where he was named Engineer of the Year in 2013 by the Arkansas Society of Professional Engineers. He earned a Master of Forestry degree from Yale University in 2001.
His political career began on the Fountain Lake School Board before he was twice elected to the Arkansas House. Westerman became the state’s first Republican House majority leader since Reconstruction.
Fellow 1986 graduate state Rep. Laurie Rushing, R-District 26, was elected to the state House as Westerman transitioned into his role in Washington, D.C. Rushing serves on the House Judiciary Committee, Select Committee on Rules, Legislative Joint Auditing Committee and the Committee on Aging, Children and Youth, Legislative and Military Affairs.
Rushing and her mother, Lorna Jean Nobles, opened Trademark Real Estate in 2002. She was named Realtor of the Year in 2009 by the Arkansas Realtors Association.
“It’s a much different school,” said Chip Culpepper, a 1982 graduate. “My graduating class would not recognize it if they hadn’t been back in 35 years. They probably wouldn’t recognize the place except for maybe the football field being up on the hill behind it.”
Culpepper’s family was embedded in the Fountain Lake community. His six older brothers also graduated from Fountain Lake and his father served on the school board. He said his English teachers laid the foundations for his work in marketing.
“They really laid a really good groundwork for what I do now every day, which is write,” Culpepper.
Culpepper is an owner and chief creative officer for the Mangan Holcomb Partners firm in Little Rock for advertising, marketing and public relations. He graduated from the University in Central Arkansas with a degree in business administration and marketing.
Fountain Lake boasts a history of distinguished alumni, including the developer of the 911 emergency telephone system. Travis Walker graduated from Fountain Lake in 1953 and left Arkansas to pursue a career in medicine in California.
Walker carved out a career with the Bell System and worked closely with several departments of the federal government, including NASA. He conceived the idea of a national emergency number while in San Francisco during his work on a project involving national defense and was made responsible for its implementation.
“I can’t tell you how many miles I traveled and how many legislative bodies I addressed in those two years,” Walker previously told the Fountain Lake Alumni Association. “I can tell you this though, I would have to write a tome in order to describe everything that was required during the next seven years to accomplish my task.”
The alumni association invited 2012 graduate David Harrison to celebrate its 10th anniversary in its 2015 All-Class Reunion. Harrison graduated in 2016 from the University of Oklahoma with a bachelor’s degree in meteorology and minors in computer science and mathematics.
“The thing I miss most about attending Fountain Lake is being around all of my friends and teachers every day,” Harrison said. “I loved spending time at school chatting with my teachers and mentors about everything from school work to valuable life lessons. I still go back every chance I get to see everyone.”
Harrison interned for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Severe Storms Laboratory and founded the Arkansas Weather Report. He recently completed the first year in a master’s program and continues to work closely with NOAA.
“I never would have made it this far if it wasn’t for the outstanding teaching and guidance of the faculty of Fountain Lake High School,” Harrison said.
Fountain Lake graduate Jared Ware followed high school with a distinguished military career that took him to Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, North Carolina, Virginia, Washington and a tour in Iraq. He earned a master’s degree from the University of Missouri in 1997 and a second master’s from Cranfield University in
2002 in England. Gunnery Sgt. Jerry Nobles graduated from Fountain Lake in
1984, enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps, served in Desert Storm and Desert Shield, and finished his military career in embassy duty. His career took him to California, Hawaii, North Carolina, Tennessee, Ireland, Japan, Korea, Paraguay and time aboard the USS Iwo Jima. He earned three awards of the Navy Commendation Medal, the Combat Action Ribbon, five awards of the Good Conduct Medal, combat aircrew insignia with one star and the Presidential Service Badge.