Andy Drinnon, an undergraduate history major who graduated this spring, will be trading the comforts of home in East Tennessee this September for the chance to begin working on his MLitt, a post graduate program in Reformation studies at the University of St. Andrews, Scotland’s first university.
Drinnon discovered his passion for Reformation studies after taking “Renaissance and Reformation,” instructed by assistant professor Allen Rushing, during his first semester at ETSU in fall 2005.
“I was blown away by all of it,” Drinnon said. “I became really interested in the time of the Black Death all the way through the Reformation, and how that shaped the world.”
Before winter break in 2005, Drinnon stopped by professor Rushing’s office and asked for any topic suggestions regarding his upcoming honors thesis, which he recently presented in the undergraduate research symposium.
“Professor Rushing told me he would be interested to see a comparison of the Anabaptist take-over of Munster, Germany in 1534 with the Branch Davidian sect in Waco, Texas,” Drinnon said.
Drinnon began reading and researching the Reformation period, checking out every book that Sherrod Library had on the Anabaptists, and gathering as much information as possible on the Branch Davidians.
“I went to Cambridge, England to study during the summer of ’06, got back in the fall, and started getting busy on my honors thesis,” Drinnon said. “When I got back from Cambridge, I really missed the U.K.”
Drinnon began applying to graduate schools like Ohio State and University of Mississippi, but they didn’t offer a concentration in Reformation studies.
“Those programs are very hard to get into and there are really only a few scholars studying the Reformation in the U.S. But at St. Andrews, there will be an entire group of people who share my interests.”
An average class size will be 5-6 students and the student-professor relationship is not limited to the classroom.
“You’re on a first-name basis with the professors,” Drinnon said. “They have you over to their house for dinner, or you might go get coffee or tea with them. They want to bring you in almost like family.”
Whereas the Sherrod Library offers limited resources about the Anabaptists, Drinnon will be studying original documents and pamphlets from the Reformation period, including original letters various pastors from that period wrote back and forth to each other – and if he needs more material, he can always fly to another country.
“I’ll have the opportunity to hop over to Germany if I want to . The airfare is cheaper in Europe, so I can get some more research material if I need it.”
But college, even history, wasn’t always part of Drinnon’s life plan. Drinnon worked as a drafter for companies like BellSouth, drawing various architectural and electrical plans. When Drinnon took a math course at a local community college he surprised himself by making an A.
“That made me start thinking, if I can make an A in a math class, then I can do anything,” Drinnon said.
At 26, Drinnon began taking night classes at a community college in Jacksonville, Fla.
“As a drafter, I got burnt out and I wasn’t happy switching jobs every three or four years,” Drinnon said. “In 2004, I lived through three hurricanes and lost my job. I decided to move back to Tennessee, back where my family is from and finish up at Walters State Community College.”
After he finished at Walters State, he transferred to ETSU and received the Midway Scholarship offered to outstanding transfer students. He owes a lot of his success to the encouragement of the late Dr. Jay Boland, former director of the Honors College, Rushing, Christa Hungate, an assistant professor in the foreign language department, and history professor Dr. Stephen Fritz, his official thesis adviser.
“For me, I’m 31 years old and I don’t want to waste anymore time,” Drinnon said.
That’s part of the reason Drinnon decided to study at St. Andrews. There he can combine his MLitt with their Ph.D. program in Reformation studies and could possibly graduate with a doctorate in three years. Then, he plans to return to this area where he hopes to teach history at ETSU.
While studying at St. Andrews, Drinnon will only be an hour away from cities like Glasgow and Edinburgh. He will also have to chance to enjoy the world-renown golf courses, home to the British Open, which are located in St. Andrews, though he might have some trouble with the public transportation system.
“Getting around is going to be difficult since I’m 6 foot 7 inches and I’ll have to squeeze onto a bus.

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