Oct. 7, 2016
By Jack Smith
Hunger has bothered Dr. Harriet Giles since she was a little girl growing up in south Alabama.
"I remember crying as a young child when I would see people standing along the roadside with signs asking for money for food," Giles said. "I just couldn't understand why there were people around me who didn't have enough to eat."
She didn't understand it then. And she doesn't understand it now.
But as Director of External Relations for the College of Human Sciences and Managing Director for the Hunger Solutions Institute at Auburn, Giles can do something she couldn't do as a little girl saddened by what she saw.
She can wake up every day and serve on the front lines in the war on hunger.
It's a job Giles feels privileged to do, with or without recognition for all she and Auburn have done to become a leader in arguably the world's most pressing, but solvable, problem.
While not the type to seek the spotlight, Giles was recognized at homecoming on Saturday when she received the Pamela Wells Sheffield Award, which honors outstanding women for their selfless sacrifice and service to Auburn University and the Auburn family.
The 2016 Sheffield Award winner was humbled by the honor, which has gone to a who's who of outstanding Auburn women since the early 1970s.
"This distinguished honor means so much to me on two fronts," Giles said. "First, it signifies service and commitment to Auburn and the Auburn family. I have two degrees from this great university and have just begun my 34th year as a faculty member and now an administrator."
Giles has been an avid Auburn fan as long as she can remember, thanks to the influence of her parents, Billy Paul and Mary Watkins of Enterprise.
She 'always knew' Auburn home
"Like so many fellow alumni, I have loved Auburn since I was a little child, thanks to my father, who was an Auburn grad and one of the most dedicated Auburn fans you could ever meet. Because of his love for and pride in Auburn, as well as my mother's, I always knew I would come here for college."
Giles said the award is also meaningful because of its impressive list of previous recipients.
"This award is truly special because of all the women of achievement and noble character who have been previous recipients of this award," she said. "Many of them are women I personally know and have admired throughout my career."
Giles doesn't live with regrets after a fulfilling career that began in elementary school classrooms and ended up in Auburn, where she became a professor and then a key player in the war on hunger.
The only regret that crossed Giles' mind on a memorable homecoming weekend was that her father wasn't here to see his daughter's life and career honored at Jordan-Hare Stadium, one of his favorite places on earth.
College of Human Sciences Dean June Henton said the award was well-deserved. Henton and Giles have played a key role in Auburn becoming known for its efforts to help fight hunger.
"Harriet Giles is highly deserving of the prestigious Pamela Wells Sheffield Award," Henton said. "She gives 100% every day for Auburn University, and she does it with heartfelt conviction and loyalty. I am proud to call her a tremendously valued colleague and trusted friend."
Auburn Director of Athletics Jay Jacobs also praised Giles for her work for the "greater good." Jacobs said the success of the Hunger Solutions Institute under Henton and Giles' leadership got his attention, along with his experiences as a foster parent.
It led Jacobs to make ending child hunger the athletic department's signature cause.
"Dr. Harriet Giles epitomizes everything the Pamela Wells Sheffield Award stands for, and it's an honor for us to be able to recognize her many contributions to Auburn University, the community and the world," Jacobs said.
"She has enjoyed an amazing career as an educator, administrator and a soldier in the war on hunger. I personally appreciate her efforts to combat hunger through the Hunger Solutions Institute at Auburn and her willingness to partner with Auburn Athletics in the fight against child hunger as our signature initiative."
For the past 12 years, Giles has been on the front lines in the hunger effort. It began in 2004 when the World Food Programme invited Auburn's College of Human Sciences to be its lead academic partner in a student-led "War on Hunger."
Henton accepted the challenged and recruited Giles to be her chief lieutenant.
"And we have been at it ever since, with the help of some great people like Paula Hunker, who previously worked with the World Food Programme, and Kate Thornton, who handles our minor," Giles said.
Highlights of the 12-year effort have included the following:
- Development of the Auburn Hunger Model, a grassroots student platform of awareness, advocacy and action coupled with an academic agenda of teaching, research and outreach
- Establishment of the Committee of 19, the student leadership team for Auburn's War on Hunger representing every academic unit on campus and all major student organizations
- The launch of Universities Fighting World Hunger, a growing global network of universities working in partnership to stimulate student awareness about hunger as a critical global issue
- Implementation of a Hunger Studies minor open to all majors
- Establishment of the Hunger Solutions Institute, a partnership between the College of Human Sciences and the Agricultural Experiment Station
- Launch of End Child Hunger in Alabama as the first outreach initiative of the Hunger Solutions Institute
- Launch of Presidents United to Solve Hunger (PUSH), a commitment by nearly 90 presidents around the world who agreed to address food insecurity and malnutrition as institutional priorities and to work collectively to find innovative and sustainable solutions for a zero hunger world
- Development of a partnership with the Auburn Athletic Department to make ending child hunger the top community service initiative for Auburn student-athletes
A fitting legacy
Perhaps it's fitting that Giles' legacy will be defined at least in part by her efforts to tackle poverty and hunger.
She saw the challenges children from lower socio-economic environments face in the classroom at her first job, when she taught kindergarten for four years in a public school.
"I was a Title 1 kindergarten teacher, and most of my children came from lower socio-economic environments," Giles said. "I saw firsthand how food insecurity and poverty can impact all aspects of a child's health and well-being."
Giles was one of the first five students to graduate from Auburn with a degree in Early Childhood Education in 1972. Her career trajectory began to point back to The Plains when she returned to Auburn to receive a master's degree in her late 20s.
She then went on to the University of Georgia to pursue a doctorate in child and family development. In 1983, Giles' career came full circle.
"I had the great fortune of coming back to Auburn in 1983 to teach in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies (Family and Child Development at the time). It is here I met my future husband Bill, raised our daughters, Kate and Meg, and started on a career trajectory that has provided opportunities that I could have never dreamed of when I began over three decades ago."
Giles has also played a key leadership role in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies since 2000, when she joined the dean's administrative team fulltime.
The Enterprise native said the biggest thrill of her career has been seeing the light come on for students who want to work for the greater good, while also playing a "small role" in global efforts to end hunger during the twilight of her career.
"I've been privileged to teach and mentor bright, motivated and globally aware students whom I truly believe will change our world for the better," Giles said.