Many professors here at Western have interesting stories to tell. But how many can count REM frontman Michael Stipe as a former student? Art Department chairperson Dr. Allison Sauls can. But that seems to be only the beginning.
Dr. Sauls, who was raised in the deep South during the civil rights movement, originally was interested in being a novelist, and received her bachelor’s degree in English with a double major in Art History from Huntingdon college in Montgomery, Ala. But the story of that double major is a humorous one. After telling the head of the English department that she had figured out Shakespeare and concluded that everyone in his stories are either killed and dragged off or are married and walk off the stage, the professor yelled “HERETIC!”, and Dr. Sauls said, “I became an art history major by the time I had reached the bottom step, so I ended up with that double major.”
After graduating and still somewhat interested in being a novelist, Dr. Sauls moved into author of The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald’s guest house, for inspiration. It was mainly a room with a large brass bed, and although she tried, she concluded that she just didn’t have the life experiences to write the great American novel.
After working at a company that wrote manuals for the U.S. military, and soon growing tired of the tedious work, Dr. Sauls decided to go back to graduate school. She decided to enroll in Master’s degree courses in art history at the University of Georgia, and had decided that maybe archaeology was the way she should go. But she soon realized, after her first dig, that archaeology wasn’t for her either. “It was nasty, dirty, and there were mosquitoes everywhere,” she said, “and so I then decided that I should choose a career where the art was brought to me in the comfort of an air-conditioned museum.”
It was at the University of Georgia, after receiving her Master’s degree, that she got the chance to teach an art class. “They had a professor lined up and ready to go, and he never showed up. So, expecting me to hate it, they hired me for the position, and I knew that it was what I was supposed to be doing,” Sauls said.
That class is where Dr. Sauls first taught Michael Stipe.
“Michael stood out, and I knew that there was something different about him. Many years later, I went to an REM show, and sent a note, written on a deposit slip, backstage. I never received any word back though. And my bank account balanced never changed, either,” Sauls said.
After deciding for sure that art was her calling, Dr. Sauls decided to get her Ph.D. in it as well. For this, she attended Emory University in Atlanta. “Emory was amazing. I sat down and told a professor ‘this is what I want to do’, and talked with them about going to school there. I ended up getting a full ride.”
After graduating from Emory, Dr. Sauls filled out job applications, and decided that with her two small children, she needed a safe environment to raise them in.
“My kids were three and four, and I just wanted a stable place for us. So we came to the heart land,” Sauls said.
Geo Sipp, an instructor in the Art department, enjoys being a colleague of hers.
“I enjoy working with her very much. She has been very supportive and has been able to fulfill many of the requests we have made. The department has grown significantly since she became chair, and we have also recently gotten the OK Master’s of Applied Arts in Integrated Media degree,” Sipp said.
Students also enjoy their connection with Dr. Sauls.
“She listens very well, and genuinely cares about what we do. I’ve had her in all of my art history courses, and she always welcomes any questions we might have. She is a great professor and a great friend,” said junior Beth Penland.
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