Opal Conley — 05/06/08

Sat, May 17 2008

— As a teacher at Ashland Community College for more than four decades, Opal Conley touched the lives of hundreds of college students, helping to learn and even enjoy science classes that many students loathe. Mrs. Conley, 86, died Friday.
Mrs. Conley’s abilities as a teacher — and the admiration her students had for her — is evidenced by one fact: She was a two-time recipient of the Great Teacher Award from the University of Kentucky Alumni Association. Back in the days when the state’s community colleges were part of the University of Kentucky, the Great Teacher Awards were presented annually based on the recommendations of former students. Mrs. Conley is one of the few to have received the coveted award more than once.
Mrs. Conley received her undergraduate and master’s degrees from the University of Kentucky and completed all the academic courses needed for a doctorate from the prestigious University of Chicago.
Mrs. Conley began teaching in what was then known as the Ashland Center of the University of Kentucky in 1958. She continued teaching at the two-year college on a full-time and then a part-time basis for the next 45 years. She was 82 when she taught her last class at the college, which had gone from being the Ashland Center to Ashland Community College to Ashland Community and Technical College during her long tenure.
Mrs. Conley’s popularity with her students was not because the courses she taught were easy. Just the opposite, in fact. Her anatomy and physiology classes were demanding, but through her abilities as a teacher, Mrs. Conley was able to impart a great deal of knowledge to her students and inspire them to work harder.
Mrs. Conley, whose funeral is today, also received the Ashland Community College Distinguished Service Award, and she was recognized by the International Conference on Teaching Excellence in 1983. As an indication of how she was respected by her colleagues, she was chosen by them to be the first community college representative on the University of Kentucky Board of Trustees, serving from 1981 until 1984.
However, like all great teachers, Opal Conley’s most lasting achievement is in the success of her many students. Among them are many who continue to be leaders in this community and throughout the nation. They are part of her legacy.