East Georgia State College (EGSC) will hold its Spring Commencement Ceremony Friday, May 9, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. The ceremony will be held in the gymnasium on the EGSC Swainsboro campus. Family and friends of the graduates and community members are all invited to attend the event. The speaker for the ceremony will be EGSC Athletic Director Theo Howard, and Mary Grace Winfrey, a Spring graduate, will deliver the Reflection.4
Mary Grace Winfrey is the 20-year-old daughter of Craig and Amanda Winfrey of Kite, Georgia. She began dual enrollment at EGSC as a high school freshman with the goal of earning her associate degree alongside her high school diploma. In May 2022, she graduated from EGSC with an associate degree in general studies. Two weeks later, she graduated a year early as the Johnson County High School class of 2022 Salutatorian. She continued her education at EGSC, earning a second associate degree in social sciences in May 2023. She then joined the inaugural cohort of the Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice program, from which she is graduating this May with a concentration in social justice.
Throughout her time at EGSC, Mary Grace has enjoyed being involved on campus. As a Correll Scholar, she participated in the “Bobcat Buddies” program and various volunteer events. She has served as the Student Government Association President, a Student Ambassador, and a student conduct panel member. She worked as a tutor in the Academic Center for Excellence for two years and now works at Powell Home and Hardware in Wrightsville, Georgia.
In August, Mary Grace will be attending Mercer University School of Law as a George W. Woodruff Scholar.
Theo Howard is the athletic director and women’s basketball coach at EGSC. He has led the Lady Bobcats to three consecutive 20-win seasons, three consecutive trips the GCAA championship, has been ranked in the US Top 25 two of the last three years, won the school’s first GCAA Championship in 2024, and was the 2024 GCAA/Southeast District Coach of the Year. He has more than 30 years of coaching experience from college, high school, and AAU ranks. Howard spent three seasons as the women’s basketball recruiting coordinator/assistant coach at Columbus State University (CSU). Howard helped recruit a class in 2016 that lead CSU to a Peach Belt conference championship and NCAA region championship, with a trip to the NCAA Elite Eight. CSU was nationally ranked as high as 4th in the country in 2016-2017. He also served as the Athletics Director for Development while at CSU.
Howard has also served as an Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs at two University of North Carolina System schools for more than 13 years. His responsibilities included supervision of several key areas of student life including student activities, student government, homecoming chair, Greek life, student organizations, University Student Centers, residence life, campus recreation, career services, health services, Minority Male Mentoring Program, and counseling. His experience as an administrator plays an important role in how he interacts with student athletes and motivates them to grow, learn, and be great.
Prior to his stint in higher education, Howard served as executive director for the YMCA of Metropolitan Detroit where amongst many other things, he coached an AAU program that was ranked as high as #2 in the country and many of his players went on to participate in intercollegiate athletics at Division I Power 5 Conference schools. Howard also hosted basketball camps partnering with NBA athletes teaching and motivating hundreds of children.
Howard played basketball collegiately at Consumnes River College (Sacramento, CA) where he was a team MVP, and the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse where he was also a standout performer.
Howard obtained a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a masters in sports administration from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse (UWL). Howard was honored as a recipient of the Parker Distinguished Alumni Award from UWL in 2015.
Howard and his wife, Anita, have three children: Jason, Thallan and Theo II.
East Georgia State College invites the community and family and friends of the graduates to celebrate Friday, May 9. For more information visit www.ega.edu or the college’s social media pages.
