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Liveliness and Courage to Help Others

I met Dr. Emma Rhodes years ago when she was the GED_® Administrator for the state of Arkansas. As the GED Administrator, Dr. Rhodes was responsible for administering GED Tests_® to thousands of examinees needing a second chance. I was amazed at her liveliness and courage to help others prove they had the skills required to go on to college or to move on to a higher paying jobs. Dr. Rhodes is a woman of God and goes out of her way to help people whenever possible. In fact, Dr. Rhodes will tell you that her mission is to help others be all they can be by reaching their highest God given potential.

At the age of 24, Dr. Rhodes worked to obtain her GED credential while still caring for a growing family. She was a high school dropout, married and at age 16, a mother of seven children. Emma found time to attend a commercial business college and got a job as a secretary. While working during the day at Philander Smith College she attended classes at night.

Although she was widowed at 29, Dr. Rhodes continued her education and received a bachelor's degree in education in 1972. She then went to work as a business education instructor for the Education Department, pursuing advance degrees at nights and in the summers. She won her doctorate in education from the University of Arkansas in 1987. Dr. Rhodes became the statewide coordinator in 1988 and eventually was also named the State Administrator of adult education for the Arkansas Department of Education.

In 1996, I was thrilled that she was awarded the GED Testing Service_® Cornelius P. Turner Award because of her significant contribution to education, public service, and community service. Because of her continued community service, Dr. Rhodes has also been recognized by Arkansas Times as an Arkansas Hero and by Arkansas Business as one of "The Top 100 Women in Arkansas," featured in "The Looking Glass," a special on Black Achievers in Arkansas and has also been featured in Parade Magazine, a news medium serving millions of readers nationwide. Her most recent honor was induction into the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame, 2006.

An accomplished writer of three motivational books, Dr. Rhodes is also currently the owner/manager and director of Dr. Emma Kelly Rhodes Education and Multi-purpose Center located in Little Rock, AR. The center was developed to encourage business owners to return and give back to the community. Dr. Rhodes also owns two other businesses, the Brite-Rite Laundromat, Inc., and the Emma Rhodes Payment Center. Her motto is "None of these things shall move me, for I shall let nothing separate me from the love of God!"

Dr. Rhodes continues to help others help themselves. She is a wonderful mentor, a servant of the community, and an extraordinary woman. I am honored to know her and believe she is the type of leader we should all aspire to be!

—Submitted by Debra Louallen-Cole
   Program Associate
   Office of Women in Higher Education
   American Council on Education