The Jennie Mosby Cochran Council Scholarship
 

Jennie Mosby Cochran — a commanding figure on the Ole Miss campus and around Oxford during the 1940s and 1950s — did what she could to help students steer a clear course through their college years.

Her title on paper was house director for the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority. Her title in the hearts of students was “Aunt Jennie.” Dr. Lannelle Guyton Gafford of Jackson, one of the many students who benefitted from Aunt Jennie’s attention, has endowed a Women’s Council Scholarship in her name.

“In those years immediately following the war, the campus was severely overcrowded, and the faculty and staff were doing well to schedule classes and find beds for all the students,” said Dr. Gafford. “Little or no thought was given to advisers or mentors. Groups who had a good house director were very fortunate, and Aunt Jennie was one of the best of these mentors during my years on campus.”

Born in 1885 in Love Station (now Coldwater), Aunt Jennie joined the Ole Miss family after all her children had been raised, except for her youngest son and daughter. The widow overcame many obstacles in her life and still managed to send her children through college.