HILLSBORO, Kan.— Cathy (Faszer g’94) Beachy and Melinda Rangel, Ed.D., Marvin Sellberg Professor of Business & Entrepreneurship, will speak at Tabor College’s 115th Commencement exercises on Saturday, May 3.
The college will hold separate ceremonies this semester, honoring undergraduate students at 10 a.m. and master’s graduates at 2 p.m. Beachy will deliver the morning address and Rangel will speak in the afternoon.
Beachy is the founding director of the Copper Hills Center for the Arts in Peoria, Ariz., and has been a part of the Copper Hills Church staff for 26 years. The arts facility has become a staple in Peoria, welcoming nearly 700 students weekly in music, dance, theater, and other artistic disciplines. It will host 22 camps this coming summer. Her son, Zach, is also part of the upcoming graduating class.
“Speaking is a full-circle moment for me,” Beachy said. “I loved my time at Tabor and am grateful for the professors who invested in me and my peers who became life-long friends. I’m truly honored to speak to this group of students.”
After graduating from Tabor, Beachy was the director of music & worship at Ridgepoint (formerly First Mennonite Brethren) Church in Wichita, Kan. where she led and developed its worship ministries. Beachy said one of her highlights was conducting the combined choirs and orchestras of Tabor College and Ridgepoint in a joint celebration of Handel’s Messiah.
Beachy completed her B.A. in music education from Tabor, participating in traveling music groups and many other choirs, ensembles, recitals, and musical theatre productions. She also served as a resident assistant and as SAB president. She was a student representative on the Academic Advisory Committee and a Hiebert Merit Award recipient. Beachy finished her M.M. in music education-choral conducting from Arizona State University.
Rangel has taught at Tabor since 2019, currently serving as professor of business administration, and M.B.A. program director, and received one of the college’s first three fully funded endowed professorships in August 2023.
“I am honored to speak at this year’s graduate ceremony,” Rangel said. “I am privileged to celebrate these students’ achievements, encouraging them as they step into new opportunities to impact their communities and workplace.”
Under Rangel’s leadership, Tabor’s DECA chapter has thrived at every level of competition. At last year’s International Career Development Conference in Austin, Texas, eight students finished as national finalists after competing against major universities nationally.
Before Tabor, Rangel was an administrator for Newton USD 373 and was an adjunct professor at Bethel College and Baker University (Kan.). She earned her Ed.D., in educational leadership from Wichita State University, her MSSL in school leadership from Baker, and her M.S. and B.S. in business education from Emporia State University.
“I am honored to welcome Cathy and Dr. Rangel as our Commencement speakers,” President David Janzen, Ph.D., said. “Both are deeply invested in their careers, serving their community and our campus with their gifts and entrepreneurial spirit. I am thrilled to know our graduates will get to hear from them as they celebrate their accomplishments and embark on the next chapter God has put before them.”