I Spy: Travis Overton, dean by day, cake chef by night
Coastal Carolina University Dean of Students Travis Overton has a tough job, guiding students, serving as their advocate, resolving behavioral problems and supporting them through crises in their lives. Yet he’s known for his affability, his hearty smile and his freshly pressed suits. But he might be best known for his pound cake – his teal pound cake, that is.
It is the pound cake of renown, the pound cake that he makes with his late mother’s secret recipe and sells for $1 a slice ($15 a cake) to raise money for campus fundraisers, mostly Relay for Life, the charity closest to his heart. He has actually received as much as $60 for a single teal pound cake (from a generous staff member), and he raised around $1,200 to $1,500 from the cakes that he donated to Coastal Carolina University’s Relay for Life earlier this spring.
In fact, Overton made so many teal pound cakes leading up to this year’s April cancer walk that he lost count. But no matter, it is one of his favorite things to do because “it’s like spending time with Mom.” He lost his mother, Angela Murray, to cancer in August 2013. They were very close, and the loss is something he shares with incoming students in his Orientation talk to emphasize the importance and need for support when tragedy strikes.
“Relay for Life is my coping mechanism to manage the physical transition of my mother from this earthly world,” Overton shared on a Facebook post recently. “She was my heart and best friend. Relay for Life for me helps me keep her memory alive. And I promised her that her memory will stay alive.”
Another unique fundraising opportunity was Overton’s one-day stint as an assistant server at Rotelli’s on his March 2 birthday to raise money for Relay for Life. He raised more than $200 refilling water and tea glasses and visiting with friends/customers, but the restaurant owners Michael and Megan Daugherty rounded out the amount to make a $500 donation.
Overton is vice president of student rights and responsibilities and dean of students, he’s held a similar position since 2012. He joined the CCU staff in the summer of 2007, was coordinator of Greek life for two and a half years before taking charge of the student conduct office in 2009 and later became dean of students. His bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business are from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, where he interned in the Office of Student Activities. It was his first opportunity to see how a university department operated and was when he first realized one could work professionally at a university.
“I loved it, but I went back and forth between higher education and business,” said Overton, who during his college career also managed a collegiate apartment community.
In his current position as dean of students, Overton helps and guides students, and he reviews and develops policies that may affect students on campus. He spends much of his days counseling students, attending athletic events, and going to club and organizational meetings. I
Overton loves what he does and is quick to tell you, “I love getting up and going to work every day.” And he means it.
And if you’re wondering about those suits, Overton says a personal mentor at UT-Chattanooga always told him to dress for the job you want in your future, plus he just enjoys matching shirts and ties.
“I love the way I feel in a suit. I’m really a business-minded person who was influenced by my brother to reveal the fun side through socks,” he says, pulling up his suited pants leg to reveal a teal argyle and grey sock.
That same mentor shared this life philosophy, by which Overton operates:
Good, better, best,
Never let it rest
Until your good is your better
And your better
Is your best.
“That resonated with me and stayed with me,” he says. “It speaks to what I believe – you don’t stop until you give it all you’ve got.”
Sometimes, giving it all you’ve got can land you in the kitchen, cracking open eggs and softening butter. You can still order that teal pound cake, but don’t even think of asking for the recipe.
