It is my pleasure to announce the election of two new members of the Virginia Wesleyan University Board of Trustees--Mavis McKenley '11, Vice President and Trust Officer at AMG National Trust Bank, and Doug Wilson '86, Executive Vice President of LifeNet Health. They both bring enthusiasm to serve, support of our mission, and a desire to continue to contribute to the work of the University. I've shared more information about our newest Trustees below.
Mavis (Escoffery) McKenley '11 earned a B.A in business from Virginia Wesleyan's Adult Studies Program in 2011. Mavis is vice president and trust officer at AMG National Trust Bank. She's also certified as an accredited estate planner (AEP), certified trust and financial advisor (CTFA) and a certified financial planner (CFP)--designations she is proud of. She serves as vice president for her local estate planning council and has served as board president for Samaritan House, an area nonprofit that provides advocacy and services to victims of domestic violence and homeless families. In addition to those roles, Mavis served two terms on Virginia Wesleyan's Alumni Council and currently serves as immediate past chair. Mavis enjoys playing tennis, painting and spending time with her son and her husband of over 30 years, Wayne. The family lives in Norfolk.
Doug Wilson '86 earned his B.A. degree in political science, with focus on communication from Virginia Wesleyan in 1986. Doug's entire career has been spent in biologics. He started working in transplantation as an administrator for a blood center and joined LifeNet Health in 1989. Beginning as a field representative, Doug went on to establish the marketing and sales departments at LifeNet Health. In August 2006, Doug was promoted to Executive Vice President and is responsible for the Marketing and Business Development, Corporate Public Relations (PR) and Legal Matters. He also serves as Vice President of the LifeNet Health Foundation, which provides resources for the research and donor family support missions of LifeNet Health. Doug has received the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Medallion Award for Excellence in Communications. In 2017, Virginia Wesleyan honored Doug with the Distinguished Alumnus Award, recognizing him for outstanding achievements in his profession. Doug and his wife Cindy, who is also a Virginia Wesleyan graduate, have two children and reside in Norfolk.
Doug Wilson '86 earned his B.A. degree in political science, with focus on communication from Virginia Wesleyan in 1986. Doug's entire career has been spent in biologics. He started working in transplantation as an administrator for a blood center and joined LifeNet Health in 1989. Beginning as a field representative, Doug went on to establish the marketing and sales departments at LifeNet Health. In August 2006, Doug was promoted to Executive Vice President and is responsible for the Marketing and Business Development, Corporate Public Relations (PR) and Legal Matters. He also serves as Vice President of the LifeNet Health Foundation, which provides resources for the research and donor family support missions of LifeNet Health. Doug has received the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Medallion Award for Excellence in Communications. In 2017, Virginia Wesleyan honored Doug with the Distinguished Alumnus Award, recognizing him for outstanding achievements in his profession. Doug and his wife Cindy, who is also a Virginia Wesleyan graduate, have two children and reside in Norfolk.
Please join me in welcoming Mavis and Doug to the Virginia Wesleyan University Board of Trustees! We are fortunate to have a strong Board that provides exceptional stewardship for our institution. I thank them for their commitment to VWU.
ET CETERA
Virginia Wesleyan Commemorates 18th Anniversary of 9/11
The Virginia Wesleyan community held its annual 9/11 Remembrance Service in the Peace Garden between Godwin and Clarke Halls. Commemorating the 18th anniversary of the attacks, Dr. Susan Larkin, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, shared a reflection, sophomores Cora Wilson '20 and Selena Chambers '20 offered powerful quotes and prayer, and Dr. Bryson Mortensen, Aleigha Johnson '21, Jennifer Vega '21, and Lindsay White '22 led the community in a performance of "America the Beautiful." University Chaplain Greg West closed the ceremony with remarks and prayer. Please enjoy photos from this meaningful event.
The Virginia Wesleyan community held its annual 9/11 Remembrance Service in the Peace Garden between Godwin and Clarke Halls. Commemorating the 18th anniversary of the attacks, Dr. Susan Larkin, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, shared a reflection, sophomores Cora Wilson '20 and Selena Chambers '20 offered powerful quotes and prayer, and Dr. Bryson Mortensen, Aleigha Johnson '21, Jennifer Vega '21, and Lindsay White '22 led the community in a performance of "America the Beautiful." University Chaplain Greg West closed the ceremony with remarks and prayer. Please enjoy photos from this meaningful event.
Virginia Wesleyan Celebrates Constitution Day
We proudly recognized Constitution Day last week to commemorate the signing of the U.S. Constitution on the seventeenth of September in 1787. To commemorate the occasion, an engaging exhibit--complete with miniature Founding Fathers--continues to be available at the Virginia Wesleyan University Hofheimer Library.
AROUND TOWN AND ACROSS CAMPUS
We recently recognized Virginia Wesleyan students who were named to the President's List for the spring 2019 semester at a reception in the Greer Environmental Sciences Center. These impressive students earned a grade point average of 4.0 while matriculating as full-time students, and we congratulate them! View photos from the event here and the President's List here.
Four-time Grammy winner Steve Buckingham recently gave a special presentation on campus. He discussed how music--particularly blues, jazz and soul music--shaped our country in the 1950's and 1960's, and impacted segregation. Steve teaches a course at Virginia Wesleyan entitled "Rhythm and Blues Tore Down the Walls of Segregation," in which he explores through archival films and photos, interviews, and extensive use of music. Read more in The Virginian-Pilot.
The first broadcast recording from the Goode Center, "Sonatas and Stories," aired recently on WHRO-FM and WHRV-FM. The event, hosted by WHRO and WHRV at the Goode Center, features VWU Performing Artist faculty and applied instructors Billye Brown Youmans (soprano), Lawrence Clemens (trumpet), Kirsty Barnett Green (violin), Elizabeth Richards (cello), Todd Holcomb (guitar), and Rachel Ordaz (flute), and also Professor Vivian Teter and VWU student Jayla Cross '20, each reading their own original poetry. In addition, there are several other musical performers and writers from the community. Listen to the broadcast recording here! Kudos to our talented faculty and staff for their contributions to this program. For more in The Arts at VWU, view this month's newsletter.
It was great to visit with benefactor and Trustee Emeritus John A. Trinder recently on campus. The Trinder Center, home to grass-field Marlin sports is named for John as is the Trinder Advancement Center in Godwin Hall. His son Ken currently serves as a Trustee of VWU.
Site preparation has concluded for Coastal 61 at Oxford Village and work crews from Marlyn Development have begun construction on two of the buildings. View photos here and learn more about this project at coastal61.com.
Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer was the featured speaker at the monthly meeting of the Virginia Beach Vision Board of Directors. I appreciated his shout-out to Virginia Wesleyan and his strong comments about the important role of educational institutions in the growth and prosperity of Coastal Virginia.
John Cook of George Mason University's Center for Climate Change Communication was the featured speaker at last week's Virginia Aquarium Foundation Board of Directors meeting. His presentation focused on "Making Sense of Climate Change Misinformation." It is such a pleasure serving on the Board of this important Coastal Virginia organization.
Members of the Virginia Wesleyan University Dining Services team were recognized on campus and featured in the Sodexo University Segment News, a national publication. We thank this hardworking team for their dedication to our campus!
I had the opportunity to see the new Virginia Beach Sports Center. Virginia Wesleyan looks forward to the opening of this beautiful new facility which is located adjacent to the Virginia Beach Convention Center.
There are many amazing things happening at VWU's Center for the Study of Religious Freedom this fall. Check out the offerings in the latest issue of the CSRF newsletter "Understanding Religious Freedom."
A reminder that Homecoming and Family Weekend is less than two weeks away! View the schedule of events and more details at vwu.edu/homecoming.
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