I
am proud to share that my longtime colleague and friend, Virginia Wesleyan University Senior Vice
President Dr. Mort Gamble, will be honored as the 2018 Outstanding Alumnus of
the West Virginia University Department of English. He will be
recognized by the
Eberly College of Arts and
Sciences
on April 7 at a ceremony in Morgantown, West Virginia.
Dr. Gamble majored in English for his undergraduate and
graduate degrees at West Virginia University, and received his
doctorate from WVU’s College of Education and Human Services in 2003. He
later served as a member of the English Department’s advisory Visiting
Committee, and praises the program for introducing him to some of the
most pleasurable reading, stimulating courses, and admirable faculty to
be found anywhere. He also credits the department with providing him
with the tools of writing and analysis that he has used every day of his
career, from teaching college-level courses to grant writing, to
serving as an advancement officer at seven highly regarded institutions.
In his current role as senior vice president at Virginia
Wesleyan, Dr. Gamble serves as my primary advisor and oversees all
external affairs of the University, including advancement and
communications. He also co-chaired the transition team that transformed
Virginia Wesleyan College to Virginia Wesleyan University in
2017. His previous professional roles include executive assistant to
the president at Bethany College; director of donor relations for The
George Washington University; vice president for institutional
advancement at Hood College; vice president for institutional
advancement and director of the Fairmont State Foundation, Inc. at
Fairmont State College (now University); vice president for
institutional advancement at Waynesburg College (now University); and
director of college relations for West Virginia Wesleyan College, where
he also served as a member of the English and humanities faculty.
In
addition to his work, Dr. Gamble manages to spend time with his
passions, researching and writing. A freelance writer for many years, he
was a regular contributor while at Bethany College to Goldenseal, West Virginia's nationally circulated magazine about the state's culture and history.
His
lifelong love of the circus inspired his master’s creative thesis at
WVU, the second-ever novel submitted as a graduate requirement at the
University. Formerly employed by a traveling big top circus, he is a
regular presenter on circus history, culture, and media exposure at
national conferences. He has authored book reviews, articles, essays,
and features on circuses for regional and national publications
including The White Tops, Bandwagon, and Spectacle.
Dr. Gamble contributed three chapters to the 2007 book The Many Worlds of Circus,
edited by Robert Sugarman, and is currently at work, with Maureen
Brunsdale of the Milner Library at Illinois State University, on a
book-length biography of former Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey
trapeze artist and manager Arthur M. Concello.
He is married to M.E. Yancosek Gamble, chair of the Department of Communications and Media Arts at Bethany College.
I
value Dr. Gamble's wisdom and
perspective and appreciate his outstanding leadership at this critical
period of growth and prosperity at Virginia Wesleyan. Please join me
in congratulating him for this prestigious and well-deserved honor.
