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The Dean: Memoirs & Missives
340 pages, Hardcover
Published August 15, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 26, 2025
Dean Reardon, or “Sparky” as he is known throughout Rebel nation, offers wisdom, poignancy, and interesting tales in this memoir of his life. For those of us who were privileged to go to Ole Miss during the late 1970s, this book is a welcomed stroll along Memory Lane. We remember Mae Helen, Ronzo, Dean Moak, Mr. Kiamie mowing the lot next to his bowling alley, Pizza Bob, Ruth & Jimmie’s, and many more. We were on the Sardis beach for “Shrimp & Beer”, Archie was our childhood hero, and we know who Janice was. Sparky… thanks!
May 4, 2026
I listened to the audiobook in my car; however, there were sections I wanted to reread, so I purchased the book. Reardon’s writing made me recall my own time at Ole Miss, as he writes, “What came first and where it happened matters little when one chooses to revisit a cherished memory…This is a memoir. This is how I remember it”. This is a book that will bring back memories. My Ole Miss is different than his, but he provides the landmarks and events for my own journey back. As he told his stories, I too begin to recall events long forgotten. His story at Ole Miss starts with the last generation not to grow up with the Internet and ends with Facebook posts, it is quite a tale.
When I was at Ole Miss I knew of Sparky but was not sure what he did. He had something to do with fraternities (I was an independent) and rock concerts (I never went) and if you passed him on campus he always said hello. I was in Willie Morris class, and he was a welcome guest, and I looked forward to his comments. In 2006 I brought a group of French professors to Ole Miss, and they asked me about dry counties. I found myself repeating comments Reardon made in Willie’s class on Delta boys drive-time for cold beer. My next residential campus after the other Oxford was the other Cambridge and as I read, I compared my time at Ole Miss and Harvard. His description of the Chi Omega tragedy where he prayed with the students would never happen at Harvard – and if it did occur, they probably would have prayed down, not up. The same for the students. My Ole Miss was poor students who lived in the older dormitories and depended on the meal plan during the week and peanut butter on weekends for sustenance – yet no one locked their doors. At Harvard you locked your door if you went down the hall to the bathroom. Ole Miss students went to church on Sundays, at Harvard on campus services were sparsely attended and were more of a philosophy lecture than religion. As a fellow Southerner said as we left Harvard services, “It wouldn’t hurt if the preacher mentioned Jesus”.
As recent reports have shown, most elite colleges do not tolerate free speech, yet Sparky shares his policy at Ole Miss on outside speakers not to show he is a crusader for the First Amendment but that he is doing the decent and right thing as an American. His description of Ole Miss, the decency of both students and administrators, the delight in telling stories and love for learning unfortunately is preaching to the choir – there will always be a significant part of the population that will look down on the state. During one of my first classes at Harvard Business School, a classmate whose family name was known in NYC, asked me in all seriousness did we wear shoes to class. I replied the same way telling him when I shared my acceptance letter, my father said Yankees wore church shoes every day and we had to go a town over to get some. In my first month there I saw the products of elite colleges that I never would have dreamed of applying as a high school senior, and was thankful I went to Ole Miss. Even then I was concerned what would happen to the school if it was discovered. Sparky’s arrival was when there were under 8000 students, now there are over 28,000, it is a different school.
He mentions some on campus had a negative view of him and I experienced this as a dormitory president. My dorm had no air-conditioning and was slated for complete renovation and thus priced lower and the home for foreign students and those on tight budgets. There were vacancies, which meant when a fraternity house was closed for disciplinary reasons, we received them. On arriving at our residence hall, they informed us they were being “punished” (their description) to live among us since Sparky unfairly closed their house. Their description of the “innocent hazing” they performed, aka atrocities including what a Vietnamese student said was a Viet Cong torture, were bad enough. What was worse was the older men visiting them who had taken part and supported this kind of behavior and told them it was acceptable. They loathed Sparky for ending their annual fraternity row pilgrimage to engage in beating boys’ buttocks. In his epilogue he says there are other stories, some that he says “Should I wait until they’re gone…” so perhaps there will be another article or book in the future.
I finished this book a week before my Christmas Party. After the party we had a bottle of champagne left and as my house manager started to put it on the wine rack, I stopped her and said, “Put it in the refrigerator”. I read a book by an Ole Miss dean and now will always have a chilled bottle of champagne - there is a song, poem or story there somewhere.
While the story takes place at Ole Miss, the advice applies everywhere. It should be a graduation gift to any student going away to college. I’ve already sent a copy to a high school senior.
When I was at Ole Miss I knew of Sparky but was not sure what he did. He had something to do with fraternities (I was an independent) and rock concerts (I never went) and if you passed him on campus he always said hello. I was in Willie Morris class, and he was a welcome guest, and I looked forward to his comments. In 2006 I brought a group of French professors to Ole Miss, and they asked me about dry counties. I found myself repeating comments Reardon made in Willie’s class on Delta boys drive-time for cold beer. My next residential campus after the other Oxford was the other Cambridge and as I read, I compared my time at Ole Miss and Harvard. His description of the Chi Omega tragedy where he prayed with the students would never happen at Harvard – and if it did occur, they probably would have prayed down, not up. The same for the students. My Ole Miss was poor students who lived in the older dormitories and depended on the meal plan during the week and peanut butter on weekends for sustenance – yet no one locked their doors. At Harvard you locked your door if you went down the hall to the bathroom. Ole Miss students went to church on Sundays, at Harvard on campus services were sparsely attended and were more of a philosophy lecture than religion. As a fellow Southerner said as we left Harvard services, “It wouldn’t hurt if the preacher mentioned Jesus”.
As recent reports have shown, most elite colleges do not tolerate free speech, yet Sparky shares his policy at Ole Miss on outside speakers not to show he is a crusader for the First Amendment but that he is doing the decent and right thing as an American. His description of Ole Miss, the decency of both students and administrators, the delight in telling stories and love for learning unfortunately is preaching to the choir – there will always be a significant part of the population that will look down on the state. During one of my first classes at Harvard Business School, a classmate whose family name was known in NYC, asked me in all seriousness did we wear shoes to class. I replied the same way telling him when I shared my acceptance letter, my father said Yankees wore church shoes every day and we had to go a town over to get some. In my first month there I saw the products of elite colleges that I never would have dreamed of applying as a high school senior, and was thankful I went to Ole Miss. Even then I was concerned what would happen to the school if it was discovered. Sparky’s arrival was when there were under 8000 students, now there are over 28,000, it is a different school.
He mentions some on campus had a negative view of him and I experienced this as a dormitory president. My dorm had no air-conditioning and was slated for complete renovation and thus priced lower and the home for foreign students and those on tight budgets. There were vacancies, which meant when a fraternity house was closed for disciplinary reasons, we received them. On arriving at our residence hall, they informed us they were being “punished” (their description) to live among us since Sparky unfairly closed their house. Their description of the “innocent hazing” they performed, aka atrocities including what a Vietnamese student said was a Viet Cong torture, were bad enough. What was worse was the older men visiting them who had taken part and supported this kind of behavior and told them it was acceptable. They loathed Sparky for ending their annual fraternity row pilgrimage to engage in beating boys’ buttocks. In his epilogue he says there are other stories, some that he says “Should I wait until they’re gone…” so perhaps there will be another article or book in the future.
I finished this book a week before my Christmas Party. After the party we had a bottle of champagne left and as my house manager started to put it on the wine rack, I stopped her and said, “Put it in the refrigerator”. I read a book by an Ole Miss dean and now will always have a chilled bottle of champagne - there is a song, poem or story there somewhere.
While the story takes place at Ole Miss, the advice applies everywhere. It should be a graduation gift to any student going away to college. I’ve already sent a copy to a high school senior.
October 23, 2025
Let me get this out of the way first, as it surely influences my rating and review: I didn’t attend Ole Miss for undergrad, but I did graduate from its law school more than 25 years ago. My two daughters are current undergraduates at the flagship university, as are my two nephews. My wife and I make the ten-hour round trip to Oxford, Mississippi, many times a year and rarely miss a football game.
This book—essentially a collection of Sparky Reardon’s legendary Facebook posts, emails, and letters—felt written for me. I am squarely in its target audience, but there’s plenty here to move readers far beyond the Oxford city limits.
I loved this book. I didn’t (and still don’t) know Sparky Reardon personally, but I’ve long known his name and heard the stories of the man who served as Dean of Student Activities at the University of Mississippi for more than three decades. After reading this, I feel like I know him—and now I understand why everyone who does know him speaks his name with such affection. His love for his students, for our university, for Oxford, for Mississippi, and for this country shines through on every page.
It’s always refreshing to read a fellow Mississippian’s reflections and recognize a kindred spirit. When the Dean writes about events in Washington, D.C., or anywhere beyond the Magnolia State, I feel as if I’m sitting across from a friend in a coffee shop or a bar, just talking. His tenure at Ole Miss was marked by milestones—some joyous, others set against racially and politically charged times—and his steady hand guiding students through tragedy, whether after the death of a classmate, 9/11, or January 6, makes me wish he were still there.
Finally, I am glad to see someone highlight the side of Ole Miss and Oxford that most outsiders never see. Namely: Ronzo, Willie Morris, the Hoka, Thacker Mountain Radio, and all of the characters that play opposite of the stereotype. It's more than seersucker, Greeks, bourbon, boutiques, and football.
His words of wisdom to freshmen and seniors alike will have me returning to this book every August and May. And now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to call Square Books to reserve four more copies—for those aforementioned daughters and nephews.
This book—essentially a collection of Sparky Reardon’s legendary Facebook posts, emails, and letters—felt written for me. I am squarely in its target audience, but there’s plenty here to move readers far beyond the Oxford city limits.
I loved this book. I didn’t (and still don’t) know Sparky Reardon personally, but I’ve long known his name and heard the stories of the man who served as Dean of Student Activities at the University of Mississippi for more than three decades. After reading this, I feel like I know him—and now I understand why everyone who does know him speaks his name with such affection. His love for his students, for our university, for Oxford, for Mississippi, and for this country shines through on every page.
It’s always refreshing to read a fellow Mississippian’s reflections and recognize a kindred spirit. When the Dean writes about events in Washington, D.C., or anywhere beyond the Magnolia State, I feel as if I’m sitting across from a friend in a coffee shop or a bar, just talking. His tenure at Ole Miss was marked by milestones—some joyous, others set against racially and politically charged times—and his steady hand guiding students through tragedy, whether after the death of a classmate, 9/11, or January 6, makes me wish he were still there.
Finally, I am glad to see someone highlight the side of Ole Miss and Oxford that most outsiders never see. Namely: Ronzo, Willie Morris, the Hoka, Thacker Mountain Radio, and all of the characters that play opposite of the stereotype. It's more than seersucker, Greeks, bourbon, boutiques, and football.
His words of wisdom to freshmen and seniors alike will have me returning to this book every August and May. And now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to call Square Books to reserve four more copies—for those aforementioned daughters and nephews.
February 5, 2026
The book read as a poetic description of the author’s career as Dean of Students of Ole Miss, the University of Mississippi. Full disclosure, I am an old friend of the author. And I read it because, after all, I knew the author in high school. I chose the Audible version as I often do when authors read their own books. In no time at all I found myself engrossed. He described his memories, warts and all, but those memories wrapped themselves in wisdom and compassion.
This book is especially important for: those applying to or enrolled in college; parents; and anyone wanting enlightening info on youth and the possibilities for life.
This book is especially important for: those applying to or enrolled in college; parents; and anyone wanting enlightening info on youth and the possibilities for life.
October 7, 2025
Great easy to read book.
It is basically Sparky reposting all his emails he sent yearly to friends and family.
Kinda like a digital Christmas card letter.
I loved it. I loved being reminded of all things Ole Miss.Great memories and great book.
It is basically Sparky reposting all his emails he sent yearly to friends and family.
Kinda like a digital Christmas card letter.
I loved it. I loved being reminded of all things Ole Miss.Great memories and great book.
May 3, 2026
This was a good read for Ole Miss people especially. I enjoyed it, although it was repetitive at times.
Read
May 5, 2026Enjoyed!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews