Attendees of the inauguration of K-State's 13th president, Kirk Schulz, witnessed history in the making as a new component was added to the ceremonious event. While the procession made its way through Bramlage Coliseum, many eyes caught a first glimpse of K-State's very own academic mace. The mace was created for and donated to K-State by an alumni woodturner, Tom Boley, of Purcellville, Va.

The mace, which is a symbolic tool of power and position, has been prominent as a ceremonial tool since the Middle Ages. Originally a simple, barbaric weapon and later used to distinguish authority in the military ranks, the mace has evolved over the years to be made of wood or metal and is generally decorated in an ornate fashion.

Boley said in an academic setting or university, a mace embodies authority and honor, such as that to confer degrees and is seen on such occasions as commencement, inauguration and distinguished ceremonies involving honored faculty, deans and presidents.

The mace created for K-State is made of a very deep purple wood called Purpleheart, and an almost white maple to represent the colors of the university.

"The mace is 45 inches long, a comfortable length for carrying," Boley said.

"I developed the design of the mace by reviewing the [K-State] Web site, looking primarily at the mission, vision and history of the university," he said. After creating a design at his kitchen table, Boley sent it to the university where he coordinated with Charles Reagan, chief of staff and deputy to the president, until completion and delivery this month.

"This mace for [K-State] is special because it is for my own university," Boley said.

The symbolism involved with the new academic mace is complex, with a ball, representing the faculty and staff of K-State, adorned with a medallion of the official seal and encompassed by rings representative of the visions, missions and charges of the university.

"All of the rings encircle the mace and signify that K-State is a student-centered institution," Boley said.

He said the rings continue down the shaft, which represents the student body, while the flutes down the shaft stand for the undergraduate colleges. Two diamonds, the larger on top depicting the future and the smaller near the end representing the university's origins, are also on the mace.

Boley, who started his first mace in 2005, recently completed his 18th mace.

Boley is a 1970 graduate in bacteriology, a field in which he never worked. He retired after a career that led him through the Riley County Police Department, the U.S. Army and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, better known as NCIS. In retirement, Boley turned to wood working as a hobby and has now become a full-time, one-man lathe expert.