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Tori Murden McClure Captivates Scholars at the First Convocation

  • Journalists
  • Jul 3, 2019
  • 2 min read

By: Emma Eskridge


Tori Murden McClure gave the GSP Convocation tradition a phenomenal beginning. She intrigued scholars with her unbelievable stories of rowing across the Atlantic, skiing through Antartica, and working with boxing legend Muhammad Ali. Although her accomplishments were surprising and inspiring to scholars, her thoughtful yet witty life lessons are what truly stole the show. 


From start to finish, Mrs. McClure’s speech was applicable and captivating. It could not have been more appropriate for this particular group of students. She used the words of Shakespeare to deliver valuable life lessons, such as helping those in need and remaining humble. Mrs. McClure also emphasized the importance of being well-rounded and expanding one’s mind as much as possible— in today’s world, teens are expected to have the entirety of their life figured out, but Mrs. McClure tore this expectation down. She described her many career changes and broad resume, letting students know that having a finite plan for life only inhibits opportunities. By recounting how she lived her life fearlessly and purposefully, she showed students the value of striving to accomplish their goals and living to the full. After hearing about Mrs. McClure’s rich and vibrant life, it was hard to walk out and continue life without the incessant craving for more. 


Not only did Mrs. McClure stress the importance of well-roundedness, she also inspired students to be a light to those around them. Governor’s Scholars, as we all are keenly aware of, are the “best and brightest” of Kentucky youth. Rather than focusing on this fact alone, Mrs. McClure discussed how the intelligence and wit of the scholars can be used to uplift others in the community.

“It doesn’t matter if you are a lightning bolt or a lightning bug, as long as you bring light to the dark.”

This message resonated with the scholars and empowered them to change their communities. Supplemented with discussions in Seminar, her message pushed students to

“look through another’s window” and think outside of themselves.


In all, Mrs. McClure gave Convocations a fantastic start. Her quick wit and use of visuals magnetized students. Her speech was timely and accessible to all students. On behalf of all of the Governor’s Scholars Program and its administration, there is a simple phrase that needs to be said to Mrs. McClure: thank you.

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Faculty

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Jennifer Price grew up in Hopkins County, Kentucky and attended South Hopkins High School. She was a Governor’s Scholar at Murray State University in 1992, and was assigned the Social and Political Theory focus area. After high school, she attended Transylvania University and pursued a degree in Psychology. She finished her bachelor’s degree and then decided to complete graduate school at the University of Arkansas, where she received a doctoral degree in clinical psychology. She has been a member of the GSP faculty and staff for many years, ranging from 1994 to present. She has done every job available except be a focus area instructor. Jen was recently encouraged by her friends to begin running and even completed a half marathon last may. Jen is a wife to Pete, and a mother to two children, Jacob (15) and Eli (12).

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Josh Woodward was a 1992 scholar at Murray State University. After completing undergraduate school at the University of Kentucky, Josh obtained a Masters in Water Resources from Minnesota and a Masters in Teaching from Cornell University. Outside of the program, Josh teaches a variety of science classes at Berea Community High School. When asked about his favorite part of the program, Josh responded with, “My favorite part is the notion that the five weeks is not really the program. It is everything after.” Nearly thirty years later, Josh and his fellow scholars are still close friends. 

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Helen Heines grew up in Shepherdsville, Kentucky, which is in Bullitt County. She attended North Bullitt High School where she applied and was accepted to attend GSP at Murray State University in 2010. Upon graduation in 2011, she continued her education at Western Kentucky University with a degree in elementary education. Currently, Helen is a 5th grade social studies teacher in Louisville, and spends her summers deeply involved in the GSP community. She began working as a Resident Advisor (RA) at Bellarmine University in 2015. She began moving up the ranks to become head RA and then later she obtained the title of Assistant Campus Director, a title that she still holds. 

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