It's a great day to be a Marlin! We have just completed a successful Marlin Nation Orientation, which acclimated Virginia Wesleyan University's incoming Class of 2022 to campus through engaging information sessions and activities (view the photo gallery). We are proud to welcome approximately 450 new traditional students to campus for the 2018-19 Academic Year.

 

Another new Marlin arrived on campus on July 1 --- Tina Hill has officially joined us as Virginia Wesleyan's new Executive Director of Intercollegiate Athletics. As shared previously, Tina is one of the most experienced and respected athletic administrators in the field, having spent the past 28 years in NCAA Division III athletics. We are excited to have Tina with us and look forward, under her leadership, to building on a prominent list of athletic successes and facility improvements in recent years.

Also on July 1, I began a two-year term as chair of the Climate Leadership Steering Committee, the chief oversight body of the Presidents' Climate Leadership Commitments facilitated by the non-profit Second Nature (watch the video announcement ). The chair also serves on the Board of Directors of Second Nature. The Presidents' Climate Leadership Commitments is a signature program of Second Nature and includes a Carbon Commitment (focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions), a Resilience Commitment (focused on climate adaptation and building community capacity), and a Climate Commitment that integrates both. We are proud to be a part of this network, which is comprised of more than 600 colleges and universities who have committed to take action on climate change.

 

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Additional updates from the past month include:

 

Last month Provost/Vice President Tim O'Rourke, several of our VWU Trustees, and I traveled to the historic Homestead Resort in Hot Springs, Virginia, where Trustees of the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges (VFIC) gathered for their annual meeting. VFIC is an important organization that works to advance the distinctive values and strengths of 15 selective residential liberal arts colleges in Virginia. It was a pleasure to serve on a panel with a number of VFIC presidents discussing key issues in the Commonwealth and beyond. Dr. O'Rourke also spoke on a panel regarding academic issues at private colleges in the state. VFIC has been a wonderful partner with Virginia Wesleyan for many years, and a good many VWU Trustees and friends have served in the past and continue to serve on the VFIC Board.

 

We celebrated our repeat NCAA Division III national softball champions in June at "FanFest With the Champs." Several of our award-winning players and coaches joined us for the event at Shorebreak Pizza --- a Virginia Wesleyan favorite co-owned by VWU alumnus JB Maas '01 --- and many guests posed for photo ops with the 2017 and 2018 championship trophies ( view photo ). We will have many more opportunities to celebrate the team in coming months and will be sure to share those event details as they become available.

 

The Virginia Conference of the United Methodist Church held its Annual Conference in June at the Hampton Roads Convention Center. At the annual Presidents' Breakfast, I concluded two years as chair of the Association of Educational Institutions. We provided VWU materials at our table in the exhibit hall, and once again hosted a luncheon during the meeting for attending clergy members who are VWU alumni. Dr. Bryson Mortensen led the Wesleyan Chorale in a special performance during a Service for the Ordering of Ministry. The opportunity to perform during the conference is a great honor, and we are proud that our talented choir was selected for this occasion ( view photos ).

 

We had a productive few days at the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition (USGLC) State Leaders Summit Washington, D.C., last month. As a member of the USGLC's Virginia Advisory Committee, it's an honor to work alongside the organization to further educate the American public and policymakers on the importance of investing in diplomacy, development, and defense in building a strategic, modern foreign policy. I enjoyed meeting with past presidential colleague Richard "Dick" Celeste, former Governor of Ohio and U.S. Ambassador to India; former U.S Secretary of State Madeleine Albright; former U.S. Senator Tom Daschle of North Dakota; former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie; U.S. Senator Chris Coons of Delaware; and political consultant and commentator Howard Dean, who is also the former Governor of Vermont and past chair of the Democratic National Committee ( view photos ).

 

At the Executive Leadership Academy (sponsored by the American Academic Leadership Institute, the Council of Independent Colleges, and the American Association of State Colleges and Universities), it was wonderful to once again (for the seventh year) conduct a workshop for aspiring college presidents. My presentation, "Planning the First 100 Days," shared insight on navigating the months leading up to a college presidency, as well as the first critical days in office ( view photo ).

 

In recent media news, higher education news publication Education Dive invited me to participate in a video segment addressing a central question in higher education: "How can leaders ensure students are truly learning and not just working toward credentials?" Also, the 2017-2018 President to President thought-leadership series, co-edited by long-time colleague Dr. Marylouise Fennell and me, is now available for download . "How Disruptive Innovation is Shaping the Next-Gen Campus and Enabling Student Success" focuses on how new ways of thinking are altering the higher education landscape. Over the course of 10 chapters, college and university presidents share their experiences, insights, and approaches regarding the issues their institutions have faced.    

 

Construction is progressing on campus on a variety of projects. After falling several weeks behind as a result of heavy rain throughout the spring, the Susan S. Goode Fine and Performing Arts Center is now back on schedule for an early 2019 grand opening. It was fun to show off progress in June to Martha Goode, daughter of the building's namesake. Love of the arts runs in the family for the Goodes. Martha graduated from Boston University with a degree in technical production and sound design, and she worked with Virginia Wesleyan on its 2014 production of "39 Steps." As always, I invite you to follow progress on the Goode Fine and Performing Arts Center through our live construction cam.

The new East Gate entrance is completed at our outdoor athletic complex (off Baker Road), and the Marlin Way street sign is up at the Smith Drive intersection. East Gate is a secure entrance, but will be open to the public during larger outdoor athletic contests and events in the Jane P. Batten Student Center.

The new parking lot at Perry Field is completed and in full use. Additional piping, grading, and seeding has been completed at the outdoor athletic complex, and we anticipate that renovation will begin on TowneBank Park and Tom and Betty Broyles Field later this summer.

Finally, accolades continue for our Greer Environmental Sciences Center. The Society for College and University Planning (SCUP) and AIA Committee on Architecture for Education have honored the GESC with a Merit Award for Excellence in Architecture for a New Building. Read more on the SCUP website and also on VMDO architects' blog.

 

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It is, indeed, a great day to be a Marlin. Campus is bustling with activity. Summer Session is underway, and we have seen a significant 54-percent increase in our summer course enrollment compared to last year. There is still time to register for our next session, which begins July 9 in the classroom and online.  

 

The Tidewater Summer League (college-aged baseball players from around the country) returned for its third year at VWU. Tidewater Collegiate Academy completed its first full year on campus and is currently offering a 2018 Summer Camp. Several of our athletic programs are offering summer camps as well, and YMCA Camp Red Feather is in full swing on campus. And our acclaimed Opus program, which offers meaningful summer employment for students, continues with its second year.

These are exciting times at Virginia Wesleyan, and we appreciate your support of the University and our students.