Dialogue: September 2020

The second chapter of the 2020-2021 President to President thought leadership series is now available online. In "Embracing Campus Capital: Formulating a Vocabulary for Change," Wofford College President Nayef H. Samhat, Ph.D., explores how periods of change can foster innovation and growth. He describes how his institution harnesses the momentum created by change, reimagining it as an opportunity to pursue the College's strategic vision for the future.

This year's President to President series, titled "Fostering a Culture of Innovation," features insightful real-world observations from leading college and university presidents. These industry experts share their perspectives on what it means to be truly innovative, especially in the face of the immense challenges our world faces today. We hope you enjoy exploring these ideas together and look forward to bringing you fresh perspectives in a new chapter published online each month.

Sincerely,

Executive Editors:

Dr. Scott D. Miller
President, Virginia Wesleyan University

Dr. Marylouise Fennell
Senior Counsel, Council of Independent Colleges and
Past President, Carlow University

President to President is an annual series with ten chapters authored by various thought leaders in higher education, published by Sodexo, world leader in Quality of Life Services.

Copyright © 2020, All rights reserved.

Sadly, our defending Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges (VFIC) Ethics Bowl Champions received some disappointing news this week. VFIC has made the tough decision to cancel the 2021 Ethics Bowl due to a wide variety of issues caused by the pandemic. The Marlins were scheduled to defend their championship at Randolph-Macon College in February.

This news is certainly disappointing for our 2020 Ethics Bowl champions—Anitra Howard '22, Alex Powers '21, and Criofan Shaw '23, led by Dr. Kathy Merlock Jackson—and the entire University. The Marlins performed extremely well in 2020, debating the topic “Ethics and Higher Education,” and brought home the Batten Cup for the first time in 20 years.

Virginia Wesleyan won the very first VFIC Ethics Bowl in 2000, deliberating the topic of “Ethics and Society.” The VWU team was awarded runner-up in 2014, deliberating on the topic of “Ethics and Health Care,” and again earned runner-up in 2019 on the topic of “Ethics and Social Justice.” I know the team was looking forward to defending its title this academic year, and I share in their disappointment.

Read more about our 2020 Ethics Bowl championship here.

We had a well attended and productive meeting of the Virginia Wesleyan University Alumni Council this month via Zoom Virtual Meeting.

In addition to updates on campus events and initiatives, the Council heard from Jason Seward '05, Associate Vice President for Campus Life and Operational Management, regarding the University’s new Work & Learn Program. The program is dedicated to providing students with meaningful work opportunities to develop the necessary skills and experiences to be competitive in today’s job market while also actively contributing towards the cost of their education. Jessica Harrington, Director of Career Services, presented the Council with opportunities for connecting with current students and new alumni to help them find internships, externships, and career opportunities.

During the meeting, the Alumni Council was tasked with increasing alumni participation in our upcoming virtual Homecoming and Family Weekend. Marlin alumni near and far can join in the fun through Marlin Spirit Day, our virtual pub trivia night, the virtual Marlin 5k, the fourth annual Chili Cook-Off, Esports competition, and so much more.

With Kelly Cordova moving from the Office of Alumni Relations to the Office of the President as Executive Assistant to the President, Kamryn (Kami) Clairmont moves from Coordinator of Alumni Records and Events to Coordinator of Annual GIving and Alumni Relations. We thank Kami for her creativity and energy as Homecoming and Family Weekend goes virtual.

Last week I attended the Virginia Private Colleges (a.k.a Council of Independent Colleges in Virginia) annual meeting virtually. It has been a pleasure to serve on the Executive Committee of this 27-member organization.

VWU benefits from this membership in so many ways. The 27 members of Virginia Private Colleges have greater lobbying and purchasing power when we work together. The results of our collective power include the Virginia Private Colleges Benefits Consortium, an employee benefit plan with affordable medical, dental, vision and/or prescription drug benefit plans for Virginia Wesleyan employees and their eligible family members, and the continued lobbying for the Virginia Tuition Assistance Grant (TAG) program, a needed and beneficial way for students across the commonwealth—including those enrolled at Virginia Wesleyan—to afford their education at private colleges and universities.

Throughout the annual meeting, it became clear that in the turbulent, often uncertain, world of higher education, many realities remain constant. These include the need to build and maintain healthy enrollments and endowments, to teach well, and to give our efforts an honest and thorough assessment. We need to recruit the best students, faculty, and administrative staff that we can. A mainstay of Virginia Wesleyan's history is the devotion of all members of the campus community to academic, career, and life success for students. Our beautiful campus needs constant care, too, and the challenges of security and resource development in every area of the University are ongoing.

Although there are many recent developments and trends that bring uncertainty and demand vigilance—for VWU and other institutions—I am confident that with persistent effort on campus and through strong connections to colleagues in the higher education community and beyond, we will continue to find success.

ET CETERA

A COVID Comment

In general the campus community has been vigilant in adhering to COVID-19 safety precautions, but again we ask that you do not let your guard down. Continue to protect yourselves and your Marlin family.

To keep the campus community informed, we have created VWU CovidSafe to provide information about the current number of confirmed cases impacting our community. It will be updated weekly on Wednesdays to keep the campus aware of our current situation.

It’s up to each of us to make the smart choices every day to safeguard our campus community. Thank you for your continued efforts to keep yourself, your classmates, and your coworkers safe.

Marlins Vote

Last Tuesday was National Voter Registration Day. Members of Marlins Go Green and the Student Government Association (SGA) hosted a voter registration table in the Jane P. Batten Student Center last week while members of Wesleyan Engaged created and distributed voter registration packets for the campus community.

The Wesleyan Engaged website is a great resource for information regarding the upcoming 2020 election, including local and national candidate information, a Virginia Beach sample ballot, and a listing of the proposed amendments to the Constitution of Virginia.

In-person early voting has started throughout the commonwealth, and the City of Virginia Beach will open satellite voting sites on October 19. Wesleyan Engaged will offer shuttle rides for students to vote early in-person at Bayside Recreation Center. Students will need to schedule a shuttle ride through the Wesleyan Engaged office. Thank you to Dr. Brian Kurisky, Executive Director of Civic Engagement and Service Learning and Chief Diversity Officer, for his hard work in this important area of civic engagement.

The University’s efforts are part of the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge (ALL IN), in which Virginia Wesleyan has joined more than 160 college presidents and chancellors in committing to full student voter registration and participation in all elections. The listing for all in-person early voting sites and schedules can be found here.

AROUND TOWN AND ACROSS CAMPUS

Recognizing Linda Ferguson and Travis Malone

The COVID crisis prohibited us from adequately thanking Dr. Linda Ferguson and Dr. Travis Malone as they concluded their service as deans in the spring. I invite you to view our special tribute here.

Although they are no longer deans, we’re pleased that they are still members of our faculty, and thank them for their ongoing support of our students in and out of the classroom.

Everett Tennis Center improvements complete

The resurfacing of the courts at the Everett Tennis Center has been completed. The tennis center is named for Trustee Emeritus and former Board chair (2010-2013) O.L. “Butch” Everett and his wife Carol. Along with the lead gift to fund the athletic facility in 2012, the Everetts created an endowment to fund future needs of the Center such as this. We are grateful for their foresight and look forward to the return of competitive play.

Student Activities in a Virtual World — Congrats Sarah Guzzo

Attending college during a pandemic is something no student dreams about, but Sarah Guzzo, Director of Student Activities, is determined to make campus life as fun and “normal” as possible for our Marlins. Recent student activities have included bubble soccer, a virtual Student Involvement Fair, face mask decorating, virtual game nights, and the return of a student favorite—yoga with goats.

These activities were not only COVID Considerate, but they were also well-attended and fun stress-relievers for our students in these uncertain times. My congratulations to Sarah and her entire team for their tireless efforts to engage students in creative and meaningful ways.

Progress on Renovation of Beverly Hall

Progress continues at Susan T. Beverly Hall (formerly known as the Fine Arts Building). The new entrance/lobby has been completely overhauled as well as the music studios and ensemble rehearsal room.

Over the next three months, renovation of the southern wing (visual arts studios) of the building will occur. Finally, Hofheimer Theatre will also receive some much needed attention as the finishing touch.

Advancing the VWU Brand — Kudos Christine Hall

I have received many positive comments on the beautiful new branding and logos seen around campus lately. Kudos to Christine Hall, Branding and Design Manager, for her artistry and creativity as she modernizes VWU branding for the newest generation of students.

When we moved from college to university and became Virginia Wesleyan University in 2017, Christine led a comprehensive rebranding of all institutional logos and designs. That led to a trademark licensing of our brand in 2018.

More recently, Christine’s work includes logos for the Marlin Family Campaign for Faculty and Staff, VWU Global Campus, UREC (formerly RecX), Off the Hook (formerly WAC), the Marlin Fringe Festival, and the Robert Nusbaum Center.

Thank you Christine for furthering the branding and reputation of the University.

Coastal 61 at Oxford Village Opens

Coastal 61 at Oxford Village, the new eight-building, 244 luxury-apartment community located on the north side of campus on Wesleyan Drive, is now open. Seven of the nine buildings are either complete or to be finished soon. The other two buildings on the west side of the complex are scheduled for completion in the next two months. We are proud to embrace both sides of Wesleyan Drive, expanding our presence as we expand our programs and enrollment. Learn more here.

$100 Million Sentara/LISC partnership begins — Kudos to Trustee Howard Kern

Kudos to VWU Board member Howard Kern (CEO of Sentara) and his colleagues for Sentara's outstanding partnership with Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) to provide financial literacy and job training to underserved populations in the Coastal Virginia community.

Sentara has been a wonderful partner to VWU through our on-campus Student Health Center, the sports medicine program and our newest venture—the joint Bachelor of Science in Nursing with Sentara College of Health Sciences. We are grateful to Howard for his leadership and excited to see a VWU partner making such great waves in our community. Read more about the Sentara/LISC initiative here.

A Transitional Visit From our New Vice President — Welcome Kim Hammer

We had a nice visit last week with Kimberley Hammer, who will join us as Vice President for Advancement/Special Assistant to the President later this fall. She is transitioning to VWU from Carlow University in Pittsburgh where she has served as Vice President for Advancement since 2016.

During her 28-year career in advancement, Kim has also served as vice president for development at Robert Morris University, director of development at The Pittsburgh Promise, executive vice president for development at the Children's Hospital Foundation of Pittsburgh of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, and vice president for development and donor services at the Pittsburgh Foundation. Prior to that, she was an attorney at Buchanan Ingersoll and Rooney.

She earned her law degree from the University of Cincinnati College of Law and her bachelor's degree from Ohio Wesleyan University.

We look forward to Kim officially joining the Marlin family on November 1.

Welcoming the New Virginia Beach City Manager to Campus

Last week we hosted Virginia Beach’s new City Manager Patrick Duhaney on campus. We had the opportunity to orient him to VWU and share our vision for the future.

Patrick is a U.S. Army combat veteran and holds a bachelor's degree in sociology and urban studies from Cleveland State University in Ohio as well as a master's degree in community planning from the University of Cincinnati.

Just 37 years of age, he has been city manager for Cincinnati since 2018. Prior to his this appointment, he served as the city’s assistant city manager and as the chief procurement officer overseeing the Finance Department’s purchasing division.

As city manager, Patrick will oversee a $2 billion budget and more than 7,000 full-time employees.

We welcome Patrick to Coastal Virginia and look forward to working with him.

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