As a young woman, Evelyn wanted to pursue a seminary degree and become ordained. When husband Frank was enrolled in the Master of Divinity program at Southern Seminary in Louisville in the 1930s, Evelyn was permitted to take the same classes and sit for all the exams, but she could not receive credit since the seminary did not grant degrees to women. However, she performed so well that she was asked to grade the papers of the beginning students in New Testament Greek. Sarah Frances Anders wrote that the course report would list the men by name and add that "one unnamed woman" made one of the few A's. Throughout her marriage, she worked behind the scenes as the first reader and unofficial editor for dozens of journal articles and 10 books written by her husband. Evelyn graduated from Louisiana College in 1934. In later years Mercer University awarded her an honorary degree to recognize her early scholastic achievement and lifetime of shared ministry.Anders, Sarah Frances. "Baptist women walking together in America, 1950-2000." Baptist History and Heritage, Summer-Fall, 2005
