June 30, 2016
I’m pleased to share that Virginia Wesleyan College has received reaffirmation of accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools - Commission on Colleges. Our ten year reaffirmation included no follow up reports or recommendations. Congratulations to all faculty and staff who worked so diligently on this for the past few years.
Our new student orientation on June 24 and June 27 brought incoming freshmen and their families to campus for advising sessions and information about becoming a Marlin. The Class of 2020 was engaged in “Welcome Aboard” sessions focused on topics from financial aid and roommates to the common freshman read and The Lighthouse, and more. Thanks to Vice President for Student Affairs Keith Moore and all faculty and staff who contributed to making the orientation events so successful. A feature and photo gallery is on our website: http://www.vwc.edu/news-a-events/news-releases/welcome-aboard
This week Dr. Soraya Bartol, professor of marine biology and director of undergraduate research, David Waggoner, vice president for enrollment, and I had a fascinating visit to the beautiful campus of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) in Gloucester Point to discuss collaborative opportunities. We met with Dr. John Wells, Dean of the School of Marine Science and Director of the Institute and Dr. Linda Schaffner, Associate Dean of Academic Studies. The School of Marine Science at VIMS is a graduate school of the College of William and Mary. VIMS offers both masters and Ph.Ds and has more than 50 faculty. We discussed collaborative opportunities for undergraduate research, internships, and dual degrees. We hope to develop a mutually beneficial relationship with VIMS in the near future.
I met with staff from The Port of Virginia, including Joe Ruddy ’83, Chief Innovation Officer, and Jim Bibbs, Chief Human Resources Officer. We discussed collaborative opportunities with The Port of Virginia and the outstanding work of two of our student interns at the Port.
I also attended the ACCESS Foundation Luncheon to be a part of the celebration for nearly 200 local high school students who will be attending college in the fall-- several of them are coming to Virginia Wesleyan--thanks to scholarship support from this incredible Foundation. ACCESS Scholars attending Virginia Wesleyan are Lorenzo Austin, Monique Ayers, Kaniah Elkerson, Rickiece Poulson, Jazmine Rogers and Myah Williams. We are happy to welcome them to our campus as members of the Class of 2020.
This afternoon, at the invitation of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, I will be exploring the Lynnhaven River at the Brock Environmental Center. Annie and I will be on the Bay Oyster, a skiff that is trailered at VWC, for about two hours and we are looking forward to this opportunity.
Last Saturday, the City of Norfolk held their Neighbors Building Neighbors Conference and Awards Luncheon on our campus. I had the pleasure of meeting Jim Herbst, senior neighborhood development specialist and many of the attendees. Special thanks to Amanda McKenna in Dining Services for coordinating this special event.
I’m pleased to share that Joanne Renn, Executive Director of Intercollegiate Athletics, represented me for three days of meetings at Harlaxton College in Grantham, England -- our newest international partner. I look forward to the information she will bring back to the College.
Finally, our enrollment consultant, John Dysart, will be here tomorrow for a day of consulting and planning with the Enrollment Planning Committee. I am encouraged by the progress we have made with enrollment planning and processes this year. We are on target to meet our goals.
