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,