From the Cotton Patch to the University

Book excerpt: This book is the autobiography of Dr. Larry Stephens. It traces his life from the time that he was born in 1941 in a rural setting in a small town called Pillowville, Tennessee. He was born in very poor circumstances and lived there the first few years of his life. His Mother and Father were share croppers during these early years. He lived on garden vegetables and squirrels and rabbits. He moved from these circumstances to a small city called Arlington, Tennessee. During these early years, education was not that important to him. Then he moved to a somewhat larger city which had a U. S. Naval base located in it. It was here that he changed his attitude about education when the Russians launched the satellite called Sputnik 1 into orbit in 1957. In the 11th and 12th grades, he took Algebra I and II, Geometry, Trigonometry, Chemistry, and Physics and made very outstanding grades in these courses. In the summers, he worked and helped pay his way through Memphis State University where he received his B. S. in Mathematics and Physics. He then moved to Tucson, Arizona and received his M. A. in Mathematics. Finally, he received his Ph. D degree from Oklahoma State University. He joined the staff at University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) in 1974 and is about to finish his career there.