Good morning,
Being a college president these days leaves precious little time for reflection. I'm on the road and away from campus at least a third of each year. But as we look toward the spring term at Virginia Wesleyan, I'd like to offer a few thoughts on how where we're going has been positively influenced by where we've been in recent years and why your support has made such an incredible difference in the process.
Let's start with communication. Our challenge is to continue to stay ahead of the technology "curve" by securing the latest tools to take Virginia Wesleyan to the world. Revamping our website and communication strategies has been an enormous advantage to Virginia Wesleyan's marketing program. We're now using online versions of this letter, my daily blog Dialogue and a number of e-newsletters, webcasts of certain campus events, and social media like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Flickr. As a result, we've expanded our audience to be truly worldwide. More alumni, friends, families, and prospective students than ever before can access Virginia Wesleyan College for breaking news, sports statistics, and live events. Following consumer preferences in other organizations, we're launching a new portal that will permit us to have an internet and intranet presence.
A second key area of progress is campus facilities. With a substantial investment of millions of dollars, the Virginia Wesleyan campus has been enhanced while preserving the traditional splendor of our historic buildings and natural environment. A few highlights are construction of the Greer Environmental Sciences Center and the VWC/YMCA Partnership Building, plans for the Susan S. Goode Fine and Performing Arts Center, a new track, and the Oxford Village housing development across Wesleyan Drive.
Predictably, Virginia Wesleyan's challenge is to implement the recommendations of its nearly completed Campus Master Plan to upgrade classrooms, labs, residence halls, and student- and faculty-support facilities. It's vital to our recruitment and retention of students and faculty in the coming years to foster the best possible teaching and learning environment for Virginia Wesleyan.
A third area of innovation is academic partnerships. During the last year, Virginia Wesleyan College has significantly expanded its synergistic partnerships with other institutions. They include dual-degree completion programs with Duke University, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Shenandoah University, and Old Dominion University. Our global initiatives include expanded offerings through partnerships with Harlaxton College in England, the Heidelberg University of Education in Germany, Rikkyo University in Japan, and Arcadia University's Global Campus Program.
Our new Batten Honors College has begun recruiting for the first cohort of 20 full-tuition Batten Fellows for fall 2017. The Batten Honors College will provide a transformative experience for high-achieving students, equipping them with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of an ethical, thoughtful, and influential global citizen. Batten Fellows will pursue a core learning experience designed to build skills in analysis, synthesis, problem solving, communication, and leadership.
Along with expanding an already active internship program with corporate and organizational partners in major U.S. cities, Virginia Wesleyan must continue to develop such collaborative initiatives -- including increased emphasis on study-away opportunities -- to give our students the best possible start on their careers.
Fourth, affirming that the core of our mission is and will remain the liberal arts, we have focused on making that mission even more meaningful and marketable to a new generation of Virginia Wesleyan students. Today's students, however, want specific advantages tied to our good name, as they should in order to pursue the latest opportunities available to them in a hotly competitive career marketplace.
That means that Virginia Wesleyan must redouble its planning for academic initiatives three, five, seven years out. Progress is promising thus far. Two new graduate programs -- a Master of Arts in Education and Master of Business Administration -- and the online division, are ways that our liberal arts college is offering big advantages to career-minded students. Combined with Virginia Wesleyan's marketing and communications expertise, academic innovations will offer a highly visible, attractive, and advantageous package for students who seek an updated residential campus experience for their 21st-century expectations and ambitions.
Additional updates and highlights from this past month:
- A year ago, I announced a $350,000 grant from an anonymous donor to facilitate a comprehensive campus facilities condition assessment. A space-utilization study has been completed, a corrective maintenance plan has been drafted, and a 10-year Campus Master Plan is on track for completion this month. The next phase in the process will be the initiation and formulation of a new strategic master plan in mid-spring, including a new vision statement. Thank you to all of our stakeholders-including Board of Trustees, faculty, staff, students, and friends of the College-who took part in our roundtable discussions to review the final draft of our Campus Master Plan. Thanks also to the Virginia Beach City Council for their participation in the process. I value your continued input as we work collaboratively to develop plans for our foreseeable future and will share the final document when it is available.
- I am proud to share that Virginia Wesleyan's own Dr. Craig Wansink has been selected by the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities to receive the 2017 Tidewater Humanitarian Award. This award honors individuals and organizations who have demonstrated a commitment to the promotion of respect and understanding among people of diverse racial, ethnic, and religious backgrounds. This is a charge Dr. Wansink takes seriously, and he embodies this commitment on a daily basis through his roles as VWC Professor of Religious Studies and the Joan P. and Macon F. Brock, Jr. Director of the Center for the Study of Religious Freedom. With Dr. Wansink's award in mind, and in view of current protests over the government's new rules on immigration, we are reminded that VWC is a welcoming, inclusive community, one of diversity, tolerance, and acceptance. We teach and learn with our fellow students, faculty, and staff members with fellowship and intellectual vitality. The 53rd presentation of VCIC's Humanitarian Awards will be held March 30. Please join me in congratulating Dr. Wansink on this most worthy achievement. May we all follow his example and lead our lives with open minds and hearts.
- I recently announced a new educational partnership between Virginia Wesleyan College and Tidewater Collegiate Academy (formerly Tidewater Community Academy). I'm pleased to share that this relationship is off and running and TCA has a new home on the College's website at www.vwc.edu/tca. Beginning in July, TCA, which serves Pre-K through 12th grade students, will rent space on our campus in areas of Pruden Hall and the forthcoming VWC/YMCA Partnership Building. It will function as an on-campus laboratory school for our teacher-education students, enriching learning experiences while generating revenue and providing additional opportunities for dual enrollment at the College. Outstanding high school juniors and seniors enrolled at TCA will have the opportunity to gain real-world college experience by taking dual-enrollment classes at Virginia Wesleyan. Upon successful completion of the coursework, students will receive a college transcript reflecting their achievement and positioning them to graduate early from a higher educational institution. Naturally, we hope they continue their educational experience at Virginia Wesleyan. For more information about Tidewater Collegiate Academy and our enrollment initiatives, visit the VWC website or stop by the Center for Enrollment Services in Godwin Hall.
- As I mentioned earlier in this message, Virginia Wesleyan will soon expand its academic program to include a Master of Arts in Education (summer 2017), an online Master of Business Administration (summer 2017), and two online bachelor's degree-completion programs for adult students (fall 2017). Last week, VWC formally marked a new partnership with The Learning House, the premier provider among private colleges nationwide for enrollment management and marketing support services of online programs. A signing ceremony was held in The Lighthouse where members of the VWC community and officials from The Learning House celebrated the occasion (view photos). The Learning House will meet recruitment performance goals, invest in marketing, and implement best practices for the College's online programs. Online learning no longer plays a supporting role in higher education-it plays a leading role. And though it will never replace our residential, campus life experience, online options will be increasingly valuable as we reach out to new audiences seeking a distinctive, affordable, and convenient way to take courses. Thank you to our faculty and staff for their hard work in bringing this important project to fruition.
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I could cite numerous other areas where the best of what we have accomplished in recent years foretells continued progress for Virginia Wesleyan College. My colleagues and I are committed to realizing the ultimate goals of our strategic-planning process by building on that success.
And here is where you, our alumni and friends, come in. Your generous commitment to Virginia Wesleyan through gifts and grants has made, and will continue to make, possible our plans in the above areas and more. Our $60 million comprehensive campaign, VWC 2020: Pathway to Prominence, is having direct impact on our ability to recruit top students and faculty, fund academic innovation and collaboration, and tell the Virginia Wesleyan story with exciting new narratives of scholarship, service, and global leadership.
We therefore thank you for your direct support through The Excellence Fund. I invite your continued giving in 2017 and promise to share exciting updates each month.
