Lucia E. Jones is a professor emeritus from the University of Tennessee at Martin.
She graduated from Winthrop College in 1969 with a bachelor of science in physical
education. While at Winthrop she was the vice-president of the Women's Recreation
Association and Who's Who Among Students in American Colleges and Universities. Immediately
following her graduation this Lake City native entered the master of science program
at UT-Martin, where she completed her degree in 1970. She spent the next 33 years
at Martin as a teacher and a coach.
In her 33 years at UT-Martin, Lucia Jones coached her volleyball team to two state championships and five Tennessee College Women's Sport Federation Small College Championships. In addition, her badminton teams won six state or small college championships. UT-Martin acknowledged her coaching success by inducting her into their athletic hall of fame in 1993. She pioneered women's sports in Tennessee through her involvement with the Region II AIAW, where she served on the executive board from 1977-1980 and her service on the executive board of the Tennessee College Women's Sport Federation.
As successful as she was coaching, she was even more successful in the classroom. She has been named to Who's Who Among America's Teachers eight times! In 2003 she was given the Outstanding Educators Award by UT-Martin. The UTM National Alumni Association named her the Outstanding Teacher in 1992 and she received the Glenn S. Gallien Education Faculty Award in 2003. Students and colleagues established a scholarship on her retirement in 2003 in recognition of her exceptional teaching career. She has made numerous presentations at state and national conferences, facilitated over 70 workshops, and served on too many committees to list including NCATE Standards committees.
Lucia E. Jones is obviously a "gifted" teacher, who touched the lives of thousands of UT-Martin students. She gave her students a teaching model to emulate — a model which placed students first, a model which demonstrated commitment to the discipline each day, a model which set high standards but tempered her teaching with love.