The Carter Center for Academic Success and the Panther Academic Den (PAD) recently awarded the inaugural Bob Davis Academic Grit Award to Jaylyn Gray-Palmore, a rising senior majoring in Health and Human Performance, from Charlotte, NC.

Gray-Palmore is an outside linebacker for the Ferrum College football team and has been selected as a 2022 team captain. He earned 2021-22 ODAC All-Academic Team honors and has earned Dean’s List recognition. Gray-Palmore is also a member of Ferrum’s Brother4Brother peer mentor program.

Gray-Palmore is a 20-year cancer survivor. His positive and effervescent personality has led to teammates referring to him as a “hype guy”.  He shared that he has fully enjoyed his Ferrum experience. “Jaylan wants to be remembered as ‘a good, smiling person who shows love to everybody’. This young man is the embodiment of the true meaning of student-athlete,” said Director of the PAD Tom Steele.

The award, named in memory of Coach Bob Davis, was made possible through a memorial gift from the Davis family following Coach Davis’ passing in May of 2021. The father-in-law of former head football coach Rob Grande, Coach Davis was an assistant defensive coach for the Panthers. He also served student-athletes as an academic tutor in the PAD. Coach Davis was loved and appreciated by all students with whom he interacted.

Steele shared, “Bob was one-of-a-kind, just a really fine individual. He was one of the most intelligent individuals I’ve known and possessed a gift of helping students process information. He was a dear friend and is sorely missed by his students and by all of us in the PAD.”

The Bob Davis Academic Grit award is given to the Ferrum football player who made the most improvement in GPA. Gray-Palmore was selected for the award due to his consistent work with Coach Davis in the PAD, which led to improving his semester GPA from 2.15 to 3.60. Coach Davis always referred to Gray-Palmore as “Dean’s List Gray-Palmore” and was extremely proud of this young man.

Ferrum College congratulates Jaylyn Gray-Palmore and extends sincere appreciation to the family of Bob Davis for keeping Coach’s legacy alive.

On May 11, 2020, Ferrum College alumna and Residence Life staff member Alli Colls Summers ’15 and Assistant Football Coach Luke Summers celebrated their one year anniversary as a married couple. Little did they know how unique their first married year together would be.

Over the course of a year, the Summers family continued renovations on their house, enjoyed a home overrun with adorable puppies from their two golden doodles Woody and Gracie, and embarked on a quarantined and socially distanced lifestyle thanks to COVID-19. In mid-April 2020, the couple learned they were expecting their next greatest adventure: a baby due around Christmas.

“It’s been quite a year and a half,” said Alli, who was also promoted to director of Ferrum’s Residence Life and Housing in June 2020. “We’ve been pretty busy! Luckily, most of it has been a lot of fun.”

Their healthy baby boy, Lincoln Keith Summers, arrived at 1:25 a.m. on Christmas Day 2020. He weighed 10 pounds, 5 ounces and was 21.5 inches long.

“Lincoln already knows what he does and doesn’t like and he’s going to let you know it,” Alli said. “He’s very snuggly and an incredible day sleeper! Shockingly, for a 10 pounder, he does not enjoy eating! He’s the sweetest baby. We’re so in love, but definitely exhausted!”

In 2019, Alli and Luke were featured as Ferrum College Sweethearts in this article.