Dialogue: Nota Bene: Weekly Update

I hope everyone had an enjoyable fall break, and thanks to VWU staff who played a vital role in keeping our campus community safe and comfortable during the power outage.

ALUMNI COUNCIL LEADERSHIP ANNOUNCEMENTS AND NEW MEMBERS
The 2018-2019 fiscal year brings positive growth and transition for our Alumni Council which exists to strengthen the bond between alumni and their alma mater.

I am proud to announce Rob Kohler '93, Vice President at Crane Tech Solutions LLC, will serve as secretary. He joins Troy DeLawrence '93 and Kevin Otey '05 who serve as chair and vice chair of the Alumni Council. Rob Gillikin '00, Attorney at Rutter Mills LLP, will chair the Alumni Resource Committee, and Jennifer Smith Boyd '94, Realtor at Rose & Womble Realty Co.,will chair the Alumni Engagement Committee. We are grateful to each of them for their ongoing support and contributions to VWU.

Welcome to our newest members on the Alumni Council: Brandi Calica '14, Events Manager for the We Promise Foundation of Chartway Federal Credit Union; Sydney Covey '15, Sustainability Solutions Manager at STRUCTR Advisors, a subsidiary of the Hourigan Group; Alisa Crider '10, Public Relations Coordinator with Hampton Roads Transit; and Dominique Fowler '12, Director of Student Activities and Leadership at Virginia Union University.

Thank you to all of the members of the Alumni Council for their service and commitment to our VWU.

Congratulations to two Virginia Wesleyan alumni on the following accomplishments:

David Green '98, a leader in higher education, on being named Chief Financial Officer at Georgetown University! David assumed this position last week after serving as the Vice President of Financial Operations at The George Washington University where he received his MBA in 2005. Read more here.
Rodney Young '07 on being promoted to sergeant with the Norfolk Police Department. Rodney was a member of the 2006 NCAA National Championship men's basketball team and was honored with the Alumni Graduate of the Last Decade (GOLD) Award in 2016. Members of our faculty, staff, and alumni network attended the promotion ceremony on October 11--some of whom are pictured here with Rodney.

ET CETERA
Part of my fall break was spent participating in the Council for Independent College's (CIC) biennial "Conversation between Foundation Officers and College and University Presidents." For approximately 20 years, I've been part of a select group of presidents from liberal arts colleges across the country who meet in New York each October with three main purposes: to discuss trends among leaders of some of our nation's top foundations, to provide an opportunity for the philanthropic community to learn more about the interests of colleges and universities in the CIC sector, and for college and university presidents to learn more about the interests of philanthropic organizations. For most of that time, Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association (TIAA) has hosted us at their headquarters.

This is a unique dialogue to discuss philanthropy in a changing context. My thanks to longtime friend and colleague Richard Ekman, President of Washington, D.C.-based CIC, for organizing the conversation.

I particularly enjoyed the lunchtime discussion on Cathy Davidson's new book, "The New Education: How to Revolutionize the University to Prepare Students for a World in Flux." Other session topics centered on higher education and the public good; inclusive excellence in STEM education, supporting education and youth leadership on both sides of the fence, supporting innovation in humanities research and education, and promoting completion with purpose.

My special thanks to participants Michael Gilligan, President of the Henry Luce Foundation; Eugene Tobin, Senior Program Officer of the Andrew Mellon Foundation; Stephanie Bell-Rose, Head of the TIAA Institute; Andrew Delbanco, President of The Teagle Foundation; Sarah Simmons, Assistant Director of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute; Rebeca Vargas, President and CEO of the U.S.-Mexico Foundation; Sean Buffington, Vice President of the Henry Luce Foundation; and Daryl Graham, Senior Vice President of the Strada Education Network.

My presidential colleagues MaryAnn Baenninger (Drew University), Mark McCoy (DePauw University), Elizabeth David (Furman University), Brad Creed (Campbell University), Mary Dana Hinton (College of Saint Benedict), Michael Maxey (Roanoke College), and Lester Newman (Jarvis Christian College) have my appreciation for leading rich and engaging discussions.

TIDEWATER COLLEGIATE ACADEMY PARTNERSHIP
Virginia Wesleyan's partnership with Tidewater Collegiate Academy (TCA), which began in 2016, is a great source of pride for VWU. TCA, a private homeschool, is located on our campus in Frank Blocker, Jr. Youth Center and serves as a laboratory for our preK-12 teacher-education students.

The relationship has flourished beautifully for both TCA and VWU, and the following project updates are provided by Wendy Scott, Founder and Director of TCA:

VWU students Zack Burkhart and Hunter Majewski are the first to be selected for the new TCA Fellowship Program. They're teaching at TCA for 10 hours a week under a master teacher mentor, receiving a membership to a teaching organization of their choice, have all expenses covered for a professional development conference, and are involved in developing a teaching portfolio using Portfolium. Hunter is developing and leading meaningful learning experiences in the Lower School, while Zack is facilitating art lessons in both the Lower and Upper School.
TCA has applied to be a certified Green School by Project Learning Tree with the help of VWU employees Don Coberly, Director of Physical Plant Operations, and Mike Rigby, Assistant Director of Physical Plant Operations, Grounds, and Housekeeping. TCA students spent a year investigating a variety of environmental topics impacting TCA space and then developed, implemented, and reflected on action plans to make a positive environmental impact based on sustainable development goals.
Three TCA high school students were represented at the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation Agents of Change program recently and were selected based on their character and leadership to learn about being a servant leader in the community through an understanding of historical models. Read more here.
District 6 History Day FAQ Reception will be held this Friday, October 26, by TCA on VWU's campus. Teachers and administrators from all over Coastal Virginia have been invited to come and learn about History Day.

Again, kudos to Wendy Scott. We're pleased to have such an innovative program as a valued part of our campus community.

MARLIN ATHLETIC FUND
As we prepare our approximately 400 VWU student-athletes for lives of leadership and social responsibility, I invite you to join us in making an impact on their development. Learn more here.

CENTER FOR SACRED MUSIC
Mark your calendar for a great lineup of events hosted by VWU's Center for Sacred Music this fall. View the newsletter here.

THE EDGE 5K FUN RUN BENEFITING THE EXCELLENCE FUND
Kudos to Don Coberly, Director of Physical Plant Operations, and his staff for an outstanding fundraiser hosted to benefit the student scholarship fund. We are happy to report that Aramark Higher Education raised approximately $6,000 for VWU's Excellence Fund. Not only was it for a great cause, but the 5k Fun Run was a success in so many ways. The website includes highlights from the event.

CLIMATE LEADERSHIP NETWORK
As Chair of the Climate Network Steering Committee, I recently led a discussion and, ultimately, action by the Committee on the Kigali Amendment.

As you may know, there is a bi-partisan effort to support ratification of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol. The Montreal protocol was an international agreement signed in the late 1980's to phase out chloroflourocarbons (CFCs). The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol is an agreement signed in 2016 to additionally phase out hydroflourocarbons (HFCs), which largely are found in refrigerants. The Senate needs to ratify the amendment for it to become a law.

The Kigali Amendment is widely supported by North American industry as they have been investing in new HFC-free technology for years. This includes a Chamber of Commerce and National Association of Manufacturers--supported effort found here. Additionally, 13 GOP senators have sent a letter to the administration encouraging them to support ratification. Given this support, the Trump administration is open to endorsing it.

Ryan Martel, Director of Federal Policy for Ceres, joined us for part of our Steering Committee call. I'm proud that Second Nature and the Steering Committee is taking a leadership position on this initiative.

AROUND TOWN AND ACROSS CAMPUS
It was great to catch up with Joe Thomas--former Virginia Wesleyan Trustee and retired Regional Vice President of GEICO. We are pictured here on a tour of the Susan S. Goode Fine and Performing Arts Center with Eric Harrison of Hourigan Construction.

I enjoyed visiting with students from our American Culture and Tourism Management Internship Program during their visit to campus earlier this month. Students from across the globe take part in credit-earning studies through Virginia Wesleyan combined with a Leisure and Tourism Management at Busch Gardens. More information about the program can be found here.

So nice to host on campus recently two instrumental leaders from Norfolk. We enjoyed sharing progress and programs with Andria McClellan, Norfolk City Council Member, and Dr. Noelle Gabriel, Norfolk School Board Chair.

Congratulations to VWU Senior Vice President Dr. Mort Gamble on receiving the 2018 Outstanding Alumnus Award of the West Virginia University Department of English (WVU Eberly College of Arts and Sciences)! I am incredibly proud of my longtime colleague and friend for this prestigious and well-deserved honor.

Wonderful to visit with our partners at Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS). VWU and EVMS have collaborated on a number of academic initiatives in recent years. Pictured here with Maynard Schaus, VWU Associate Provost, Rick Homan, President of EVMS, and Don Combs, EVMS Vice President and Dean, School of Heath Professions.

It was an honor to speak about the importance of cooperation and partnership among institutions at the 2018 Association for Collaborative Leadership Annual Conference: The Changing Landscape of Higher Education, hosted by Virginia Tidewater Consortium (VTC) for Higher Education. It was nice to see long-time colleague and friend Alice Brown in the audience for my comments and panel discussion. For 25 years, Alice was the President of the Appalachian College Association--a 35 college/university collaborative that I was actively involved in during my presidencies at Lincoln Memorial University and Bethany College.

A unique view of the Greer Environmental Sciences Center from the top of the Bell Tower (soon to be The Beacon). It's 101 steps up the scaffolding to the top. This Wednesday, October 24, at 12:30 p.m. we are unveiling a special cornerstone of the Susan S. Goode Fine and Performing Arts Center. Join us at the construction site for this milestone. Progress continues on the new stands at the Betty S. Rogers Track and Field Center.

Good to visit with Congressman Scott Taylor on his visit to campus last week before he spoke to our students, faculty, and staff in an open forum.

A sneak peak of new work by John Rudel, Professor of Art and Coordinator of Exhibitions, during installation at the Offsite Gallery in the World Trade Center of Norfolk before his opening last Friday, October 19. His show is titled "re-ligare" and it runs through November 20. Congratulations, John!

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HIGHLIGHTS FROM MY WEEKEND READING

Economists say our community lacks identity. Read the article in The Virginian-Pilot.
Find out how much Virginia Beach made in tourism here.
A reflective piece by a presidential colleague: "President Speaks: The role of higher education in a 'post truth' era." Read more here.
With "scooter wars" occurring in Norfolk and Virginia Beach, I thought you'd enjoy this Inside Higher Ed article.
A disheartening new Gallup survey shows public confidence in higher education is falling. Ready why here.
This Gallup survey shows a widening partisan divide attributed in part to the belief that college campuses promote a liberal agenda.
Enjoy this PBS News Hour, "Will the traditions of tiny Tangier Island survive or sink?", which features VWU student Cameron Evans.