A monthly
communiqué from
Dr. Scott D. Miller
President of the College
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Friends,
I hope this letter finds you all comfortably settled in to 2016 and that your New Year's resolutions are off to a great start. Special welcome back to students and faculty, who, with the exception of our Winter Session participants, have just returned from winter break. I hope you are all well rested and ready to begin the spring semester.
January was a busy time here at Virginia Wesleyan College. More than 600 students took concentrated courses during Winter Session; some here on our beautiful campus and others in fascinating learning environments around the globe. I am sure that many alumni reading this remember the intensity of "J Term"--a time of hard work and winter fun.
I visited with many higher education colleagues last month, sharing best institutional practices as well as new trends and initiatives affecting independent liberal arts colleges.
This year marked my 25th visit to the
Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) Presidents Institute,
the largest annual meeting of college and university presidents in the country. The meeting
explored the theme "Securing America's Future: The Vitality of Independent Colleges" and other important issues of presidential leadership. It drew on lessons learned from experienced presidents and the perspectives of other distinguished speakers. In a panel discussion chaired by Pacific Union College President Heather Knight, Annie and I joined former Wells College President Lisa Marsh Ryerson to discuss steps presidents and their spouses can take to ensure smooth transitions for succeeding campus leaders.
In addition to the scheduled sessions, I was able to accomplish planning meetings with Derck & Edson, the firm that will facilitate our master planning effort; Capital Education, a
full-service provider of online learning
; and Old Dominion Athletic Conference Presidents. I also met with the Academic Search, Inc. Board of Directors, a group that I chair; and the American Academic Leadership Institute Board of Directors, for which I serve as vice chair.
The month ended with the annual presidents meetings of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the Association of American Colleges & Universities (AAC&U), the National Association of Schools and Colleges of the United Methodist Church (NASCUM) and the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU). The time was very productive.
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Other January highlights included:
Groundbreaking for Greer Environmental Sciences Center:
We broke ground January 13 on the 40,000-square-foot Greer Environmental Sciences Center. This impressive facility, scheduled for completion in summer 2017, will provide state-of-the-art instructional and laboratory opportunities for our students and will help to expand our regional collaborations with organizations such as the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science.
Virginia Wesleyan College/Duke University Cooperative Degree Program:
The groundbreaking for our new environmental sciences center felt like a great time to remind our community of the
Cooperative College (3-2) Program, which allows students to proceed directly from three years of undergraduate study at Virginia Wesleyan to two years of study at Duke University's Nicholas School's Master of Forestry or Master of Environmental Management program. Participants have the opportunity to earn a master's degree in five years.
Founders Day Tradition Initiated:
As you may know, Virginia Wesleyan College was chartered in 1961 and the official groundbreaking occurred on July 16, 1965. Since the history of this College is indeed significant, we believed it essential to initiate a formal Founders Day during the academic year.
Our first Founders Convocation will be held on September 8 at 11 a.m. in the Convocation Center inside the Jane P. Batten Student Center. The occasion will celebrate our founding while ceremoniously marking the beginning of the 2016-2017 academic year and recognizing recipients of the 2016 Alumni Awards.
New Chief Information Officer:
On January 4 we welcomed our new Chief Information Officer, Robert Leitgeb, a strategic thinker who will bring visionary leadership to our technology areas.
Robert previously served as executive director of IT services at California's Fresno Pacific University, a liberal arts institution with an enrollment of 3,600.
Winter Homeless Shelter Celebrates 10 Years:
For a decade, Virginia Wesleyan's On-Campus Winter Homeless Shelter has offered safety and comfort for homeless men and women during one of the coldest months of the year.
I
spent some time at the shelter, and as with all of the College's community service initiatives, I was impressed. I appreciate the efforts of Director of Community Service Diane Hotaling and Professor of Sociology Kathy Stolley in this incredible undertaking. Special thanks to all the volunteers who over the years have devoted their time, energy and care to this unique project. The shelter is yet another example of what makes Virginia Wesleyan College so special.
College Stands With Community:
In response to increasing Islamophobia and xenophobia, the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities, Virginia Wesleyan's Center for the Study of Religious Freedom and other community partners hosted "Standing Together" on January 24. We brought together diverse groups in Hampton Roads to speak out for and to stand with the Muslim community and others. The standing-room only program, held at Slover Library in Norfolk, featured a press conference by area clergy and a panel discussion that explored themes of interfaith understanding, solidarity and community.
I shared support for this initiative in my January Virginian-Pilot column titled, "Building tolerance on American campuses."
2014-15 Annual Report:
In case you missed it,
Virginia Wesleyan's 2014-15 Annual Report is available on the College's
website.
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I look forward to 2016 with great optimism for our beloved College. We will move ahead with continued emphasis on affordability and growth of the student population; technology upgrades and expansion; academic excellence and enhanced student assessment; positive fundraising efforts; and development of our 10-year campus master plan.
These accomplishments will continue to position Virginia Wesleyan as Coastal Virginia's premier private national liberal arts college. This is an exhilarating time to be a Marlin, and we are greatly indebted to each of you for your continued dedication to this superb institution.
I offer my best wishes for a productive and fulfilling February as our new semester begins.
Sincerely,
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Scott D. Miller, Ph.D.
President
Virginia Wesleyan College
1584 Wesleyan Drive
Norfolk, VA 23502
Phone: 757.455.3215
Fax: 757.455.3139
Email: sdmiller@vwc.edu
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