Dialogue: October 2022

October 31, 2022

Good morning,

Happy Halloween, Marlins! Have fun and be safe.

Joseph P. Ruddy, VWU Class of 1983, has been elected to the Virginia Wesleyan Board of Trustees. The 2018 recipient of the VWU Distinguished Alumni Award, Joe has served as Chair of the President’s Council, the University’s advisory group of local business and community leaders, since 2018.

Joe is the chief operations officer for Virginia International Terminals (VIT), LLC and in this role he is responsible for all operations, information technology, safety, security, capacity expansion projects and maintenance at state-owned and privately-operated marine terminal facilities in Norfolk, Portsmouth, Newport News, Richmond and Front Royal, Virginia. He also is responsible for the Hampton Roads Chassis Pool – wholly owned by VIT, which operates and manages the intermodal chassis and empty container yards. Joe returns to this role that he held previously from 2011 to 2014.

In 2014 he was appointed as the port’s first chief innovation officer, helping to create the strategic planning and analytical and process excellence teams. In 2008, he was appointed and served as the director of operations and labor at VIT. From 2004 to 2008, Joe helped develop and was named general manager at Virginia Intermodal Management, a subsidiary company responsible for managing and administering all aspects of a port-wide chassis pool.

We look forward to welcoming Joe to his first meeting of the Board of Trustees this winter.

The Marlin Business Conference is pleased to share that Bruce Thompson, CEO of Gold Key-PHR, a Virginia Beach-based hospitality company that owns hotels, restaurants, and condominiums, will be the keynote speaker at their opening session on November 15 at 6:00 p.m. in the Joan P. Brock Room of Brock Commons. The fall conference theme is “Creating Careers for Change” and will take place November 15-19.

Bruce Thompson has been a leader in the travel industry for more than 30 years. His first venture grew to become the largest ski operator on the East Coast. That company evolved into Professional Hospitality Resources (PHR) as Bruce expanded into hotels and restaurants. In 1986, he entered the vacation ownership industry, co-founding the highly successful Gold Key Resorts. Today, his companies generate annual revenues exceeding $140 million and employ over 2,400 associates. Learn more.

I hope our Marlin community makes plans to join us for this special session with an industry leader.

Our annual Veterans Day ceremony will take place on Friday, November 11, at 12:00 p.m. on Godwin Lawn. Our special guest speaker will be Cory Franklin, Class of 2020, VWU adjunct faculty member, and Marine Corps veteran. Cory received a Bachelor of Arts in Music from VWU and his Master of Music Education from Old Dominion University.

As a Marine Corps veteran, his Military Occupational Skill was 2823 Technical Control Chief with 20 years of tactical telecommunications experience in management, integration, network system repair, and operations. He engineered, analyzed, and optimized long-haul telecommunication networks, converging secure and non-secure voice, data, and video networks, leading co-workers to accomplish tasks with deadlines and limited resources.

We hope all Marlins join us on Godwin Lawn on November 11 to commemorate this important day honoring our nation’s veterans.

ET CETERA

Each year Virginia Wesleyan presents an award on Martin Luther King Jr. Day to a student who practices the ideals set forth by Dr. King—courage and conviction in valuing differences, commitment to seeing beyond borders by building inclusion, compassion for humanity, and/or commitment to social change. In early 2021, the award was named The Mavis McKenley ’11 Award in honor of our esteemed graduate and Trustee.

The Office of Academic Affairs is currently seeking student nominations for the Mavis McKenley ’11 Award to be presented on Monday, January 16, 2023. Nominations are due on December 15 to academic-affairs@vwu.edu.

We are pleased to award a Doctor of Humane Letters (honoris causa) to James V. Koch, Ph.D., noted economist and leader in higher education, at the VWU Global Campus Commencement on December 17. Earlier, we announced Congressman Bobby Scott as the keynote speaker and recipient of the Doctor of Laws (honoris causa).

Dr. Koch served as President of the University of Montana (1986-1990) and Old Dominion University (1990-2001) and was named one of the 100 most effective college presidents in the United States. He has published 14 books and 120 articles in refereed journals. Among his most notable books are Presidential Leadership: Making a Difference; Born, Not Made: The Entrepreneurial Personality; The Caterpillar Way; The Impoverishment of the American College Student; and Runaway College Costs: How College Governing Boards Fail to Protect Their Students. He has a forthcoming book, Vital and Valuable: The Relevance of HBCUs to American Life and Education.

For 18 years, Dr. Koch produced the widely cited State of the Region Report for Hampton Roads. Beginning in 2015, he added a State of the Commonwealth Report that focuses on Virginia economic issues. He has also served as a consultant/expert witness for more than 100 legal firms, corporations, and universities, including Virginia Wesleyan University. His op-eds have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, and Wall Street Journal.

Dr. Koch earned a B.A. from Illinois State University and a Ph.D. from Northwestern University.

As a reminder, TODAY is the deadline for students participating in the VWU Global Campus Commencement Ceremony to submit their Graduation Cap and Gown and Commencement Fee (which includes the cost of ceremony regalia). For more information on the December 17 ceremony, please visit our website.

AROUND TOWN AND ACROSS CAMPUS

Holiday Party for Faculty and Staff: December 15

Please save the date for a night of holiday fun.

Senior Timothy Tep Competes in Davis Cup

Congratulations to VWU student-athlete Timothy Tep who helped Team Cambodia win the promotion from Group IV to Group III in the Davis Cup, which is considered the World Cup of tennis. Team Cambodia defeated four countries-Bhutan, Mongolia, Turkmenistan, and Singapore-to be promoted to Group III. Learn more.

Mark Your Calendar for the One Act Festival

Students enrolled in the "Directing" course (TH 412) this semester, taught by Professor of Theatre Sally Shedd, Ph.D., will present the culmination of their work during the One Act Festival in Susan T. Beverly Hall on November 12 at 7:30 p.m.

City Council Candidate Amelia Ross-Hammond on Campus

It was such a pleasure to welcome Dr. Amelia Ross-Hammond to campus last week. Amelia is running unopposed for the City Council seat representing VWU's district. She has been a wonderful friend to the University, and we look forward to her service on the Virginia Beach City Council.

BHC Students at the Norfolk Forum

Students from the Batten Honors College joined Dr. Travis Malone, Dean of the program, and Dr. Jill Sturts, Assistant Dean, at the Norfolk Forum to see political contributor Mara Liasson speak on the status of politics in the US. The Batten Honors College is a proud sponsor of the Norfolk Forum, America’s oldest publicly-supported speakers series celebrating its 90th anniversary.

VWU Alums Amid Top Forty Under 40

Congratulations to all our Virginia Wesleyan graduates who were honored as the Top Forty Under 40 by The Virginian-Pilot—Kelley Healey ‘08, Leyla Sandler ‘05 and Chris Taylor ‘06.

VWU Featured in The Princeton Review Guide to Green Colleges: 2023 Edition

The University is once again among 455 institutions chosen based on its commitment to the environment and sustainability. Learn more.

Faculty Dinners at DeFord Manor

Annie and I always enjoy hosting dinners with the faculty of the University. Held at DeFord Manor, these small group dinners are a way to share updates and each other’s company as we continue with the good work of VWU.

Virginia Beach Dedicates New City Hall

On October 19, the City of Virginia Beach dedicated its new City Hall, after being under construction for nearly three years. The building will house more than 300 employees including offices and meeting areas for City Council members. Take a peek inside.

NACU Partner to Retire

Devorah Lieberman, Chair of New American Colleges and Universities the past two years, has announced her retirement as President of the University of Laverne, effective at the end of the academic year. She has been a good friend and colleague, and I am very happy for Devorah, her spouse Roger, and their family.

Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges Annual Report

VWU is a proud member of the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges, a consortium of the 15 selective traditional private liberal arts colleges in Virginia. These institutions educate over 22,000 undergraduates each year, providing small classes, low student-faculty ratios, personal attention to students, and a time-tested liberal arts experience—important and distinctive options compared to large public universities. I am pleased to share with you the VFIC Annual Report here.

UMC News

According to the UM News, several U.S. annual conferences are scheduling special sessions in 2023 to deal mainly with church disaffiliations. Most will be online. In the meantime, 14 more special sessions are scheduled for this year.

Construction Updates

Construction has begun on Phase II of the Clarke Hall modernization. Made possible through workforce and talent development grants, Phase II will feature:

Modernized classrooms and new technology featuring interactive projectors and Poly Eagle Eye video conferencing system
Finance and Investment Lab with live NASDAQ NYSE, and CME data streamed directly to trading stations,
Small audience classroom
Conference/board room with video conferencing system
State-of-the-art writing and speaking studio
Renovated Learning & Advising Center featuring individual and group study pods
Renovated Beasley Foundation Technology Center featuring all new computer stations (concept drawing pictured above)

My thanks to John Almeter and NetTek for their continued service as our local technology partner.

These updates to Clarke Hall will increase VWU’s talent development capabilities, while also providing students with unique and transformational learning experiences. Phase II will be completed in January 2023.

STAY CURRENT ON VWU NEWS AND FEATURES

Virginia Wesleyan University Magazine

The Pharos

REFLECTIONS

I hope you find these links useful to my recent columns and publications:

University Business