Dialogue

Friday, May 5, 2023

Tides Game with Gavin

Beautiful night for Norfolk Tides v Durham Bulls with Gavin

Norfolk Forum with David Cameron

The Norfolk Forum concluded its 90th anniversary season with a fabulous Board of Directors reception and dinner with former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom David Cameron at the Chrysler Museum. The dinner was followed by a keynote presentation and moderated discussion at Chrysler Hall. Thanks to Harry Gerwien for snapping this photo of Annie and me with the Prime Minister.

Thursday, May 4, 2023

Honoring Service Milestones

Today we honored retirees and service milestones at a campus-wide employee appreciation celebration at DeFord Manor. I’m pictured with Dr. Joyce Howell, Professor of Art, who is retiring after 39 years with Virginia Wesleyan.

Lunch with Sabrina Wooten and Delceno Miles

Enjoyable lunch at The Town Center Club with Virginia Beach City Council member Sabrina Wooten and Delceno Miles, CEO of The Miles Agency. Delceno and I are President and Vice President, respectively, of Virginia Beach Vision — the advocacy organization of business leaders in Virginia Beach.

Tuesday, May 2, 2023

Rep. Jen Kiggans

Thanks to Rep. Jen Kiggans for hosting the 2023 Congressional Art Competition reception in the beautiful Watts Grand Lobby of the Susan S. Goode Fine and Performing Arts Center.

Diploma Frame for Abby Mahoney

It has been my practice for 32 years to gift a diploma frame to graduating Presidential Associates. Congratulations, Abby Mahoney, VWU Batten Honors College Class of 2023! We are pictured with Kelly Cordova (Chief of Staff) and Anja Serby-Wilkens (Administrative Assistant to the President).

Monday, May 1, 2023

Hosting Jay Lemons and Shawn Hartman at DeFord Manor

Great spending some time at DeFord Manor with Jay Lemons (center), President of Academic Search, Inc., and Shawn Hartman (center right), Chief Operating Officer at ASI & American Academic Leadership Institute. Joining us were VWU VPs Sue Larkin and Keith Moore, both participants in ASI/AALI leadership programs. I’m chair of the Board of ASI and vice chair of AALI.

Hosting Barbara Henley

Delighted to host Barbara Henley, Virginia Beach City Council member, for a tour of our talent development classrooms and technology in Clarke Hall and the Greer Environmental Sciences Center. We then enjoyed lunch at DeFord Manor with David Black, Executive in Residence.

Recognizing Mike Maxey

Such a pleasure to join colleagues from the Washington, D.C.-based Council of Independent Colleges in their recognition of long-time friend and colleague Mike Maxey, President-emeritus of Roanoke College, with the Charles W.L. Foreman Award. Mike retired last year after 15 years as president of RC. Joining us for the picture, Mike’s wife, Terri, and Matt Shank, President of the Virginia Foundation of Independent Colleges. The CIC State Councils are meeting in Virginia Beach this week.

The President's Letter: Celebrating Students, Alumni, and Planet Earth

Celebrating Students, Alumni and Planet Earth

May 2023

Dear friends,

This time of the year is always a flurry of activity recognizing student accomplishments. Student scholars from all academic areas were celebrated during events like Spring Honors Convocation, Academic Symposium, the student Art Major Exhibit: Not Just Refrigerator Art, and the inaugural Louis and Prudence Ryan Environmental Research Symposium. We sent a delegation (representing Venezuela) to the National Model UN in New York where our 16 participating students earned Honorable Mention during the closing ceremony. Shack-a-thon returned to campus thanks to a revival of the student organization, and Sentara Cares presented a generous gift in support of student scholarships.

In partnership with the City of Virginia Beach and The Gunn Group, we celebrated Earth Week and our campus's continued efforts in preserving and saving our planet. Our weeklong celebration included the student-led Marlin Business Conference: A Greener Tomorrow and our keynote panel, Generations Uniting to Address Climate Change.

We are proud of the outpouring of support from the Marlin community during our Spring Alumni Weekend. This year's event included the First Five Class Reunion for the pioneering students of the first graduating classes of Virginia Wesleyan (1970-1974). During Earth Week, we planted the First Five Pioneers tree in honor of these special alumni and our recognition as the only Arbor Day Foundation Tree Campus Higher Education in Virginia Beach. We also acclaimed outstanding alumni and friends with the announcement of our 2023 Athletic Hall of Fame inductees.

We look forward to celebrating the Class of 2023 next week during Commencement with our keynote speaker Hilary Harp Falk, President of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. We wish our graduating Marlins the best as they embark on the next steps of their journey and can't wait to hear what the future brings for each of them as they become the newest VWU alumni.

Sincerely,

Batten Honors College Students Shine at the Ryan Environmental Research Symposium

Senior Abby Peterson was awarded top prize at this inaugural event.