A Message From The President

Dear Ferrum Friends,

Thanks to all of you who let us know how much you enjoyed the first issue of this newsletter. As the spring semester draws to a close, I can report that it has been a very exciting six weeks since I last wrote to you.

Introduction on Leadership
So many significant and uplifting things have happened during this time that I am inspired to focus on the theme of leadership for this update. There are many quotes on leadership to contemplate, but I like the idea of keeping leaders humble, so it is good to remember John Maxwell’s words, which I’ll paraphrase. “A good leader is a person who takes a little more than his (or her!) share of the blame, and a little less share of the credit.”

I also like the definition given by Alexander Astin, director of UCLA’s Higher Education Institute, and his wife, Helen Astin, who authored a report several years ago entitled “Leadership Revisited: Engaging Higher Education in Social Change. Their report defines a leader as “anyone, regardless of formal position, who works effectively to make change.”

This statement challenges us to go beyond the notion of what we might think of as a conventional leader, such as an elected official, the CEO of a major corporation, or even the president of an educational institution. I’ve chosen to further broaden the definition to reflect the Ferrum motto, “Not Self, But Others,” and to include anyone who makes a difference in the lives of others.

History
The members of the Woman’s Missionary Society of the Virginia Annual Conference, who co-founded Ferrum College many years ago, certainly changed the lives of countless young people who, without Ferrum Training School, would not have had the opportunity for an education. The initial resolve of that noble group of women has echoed through the years to where we are today. They were truly leaders with a vision, people who made a difference.

Board of Trustees
Our dedicated Trustees, past and present, have continued to keep this mission alive through the 90 years of Ferrum’s history. First and foremost, we acknowledge and thank them for their selfless leadership as they have protected our legacy while envisioning the future.

Students
Student Government Association (SGA) elections were held last month and the results are in. I’m happy to report that Joanna Bosik will serve as SGA president for 2003-2004. A record number of students participated in this election. Many thanks to retiring SGA president John Bogo for his leadership this year and for providing us with his unique insight into the student experience.

I will highlight just a few of the many student accomplishments this spring. Ten of our students, including nine Bonner Scholars, traveled to the Navajo Station in Arizona during spring break in March to tutor Navajo and Hopi students at the Tuba City elementary school. These students certainly deserve the credit for living out our motto through activities such as these.

Also during spring break, Wes Astin, College Chaplain, and David Howell, associate professor of religion, accompanied a group of students on a trip to Malta. The trip featured exploration of the archaeological and theological significance of this historic Mediterranean island.

The SIFE team (Students in Free Enterprise) has qualified to go on to the international competition in Kansas City in May. Delia Heck, assistant professor of business, continues to do a fantastic job in her leadership and mentoring of this exceptional group of young men and women.

Our athletic teams have also exemplified the qualities of leadership this semester. Both the baseball and tennis teams are having sensational seasons! Our baseball team is currently ranked 4th in the nation and 1st in the south in Division III by the American Baseball Coaches Association. Many thanks to baseball coach Abe Naff and all those associated with the team, in particular the students who have made us so proud through their talent and determination.

We have also had the opportunity this semester to expand our knowledge through many outstanding student presentations, and we’ve been entertained with terrific performances by our student theatre and musical groups.

Faculty/Staff
Our faculty members continue to be recognized in various publications and areas of leadership, and I will give just two recent examples. I am elated to tell you that Pete Crow, Chair of the Division of Language, Literature, Philosophy and Religion, has been named Outstanding Educator of the Year, a prestigious national honor, by the United Methodist Higher Education Foundation.

David Howell has been chosen by the National Endowment for the Humanities to study at Oxford University’s Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies in England this summer. David was selected from a national pool to participate in a program entitled “Representations of the ‘Other’: Jews in Medieval Christendom.” Congratulations, David!

We are planning to launch an electronic version of our acclaimed faculty publication, Profess, in the near future. I will bring you details of this in the next newsletter.

Many thanks also to our dedicated staff for their countless hours in support of the College mission and their numerous contributions to campus life. We will be thanking many of them personally at the Employee Recognition Dinner on Monday, April 21.

I am eagerly looking forward to meeting many alumni during Alumni Weekend, scheduled for May 16-18. Please make your plans to attend if you haven’t already done so.

Future Amenity
The College has taken a major leadership role in the area through plans to enter into an agreement with U.S. Cellular for the construction of a cell tower on campus. Franklin County has approved the proposal and if all goes as planned, the tower will be in place by the beginning of the fall semester. This will greatly improve the quality of the Ferrum experience for our students.

These are just a few shining areas of what continues to be a wonderful and exciting semester. It’s clearly evident that we are surrounded and blessed by leaders – alumni, students, faculty and staff. Our Trustees, too, encompass a breadth of leadership that would be hard to match anywhere. All of you are the ones who deserve the credit for truly making a difference at Ferrum College.

Sincerely yours,

Jennifer L. Braaten
President

(Please click on any of the links listed below to find additional information about many other exciting events and news releases.)

Recent News:

Roanoke Times Features Afghani Student
Ferrum student Mina Ayob from Afghanistan was featured in the Roanoke Times in a story entitled: "Afghan woman gets chance at dream" remarking, "She once hid from the Taliban but now attends Ferrum College."

Awards Abound
Dr. David B. Howell has been selected from a national applicant pool to attend a summer study institute in Oxford supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities; Pete Crow has been named Outstanding Educator of the Year by the United Methodist Higher Education Foundation; Gary Evans' new book Music Inspired By Art has been nominated by the ARSC for Historical Recorded Sound Research in the category: Best Research in General Discography and History of Recorded Sound; Nantahala Review, an online arts journal supported by the Appalachian College Association, received the e-Appalachia Award for 2003 at the Appalachian Studies Association's annual conference in Richmond, Ky; Ferrum's Cy Dillon is the fiction editor.

Ferrum Athletic News & Rankings
Check the Scoreboard for the latest on Men's and Women's Tennis, Women's Lacrosse, Golf, Softball. The Ferrum College Women's Basketball team had three players earn All-Conference honors in the Dixie Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and Head Coachwoman Donna Doonan was named Co-Coach of the year for Ferrum's first Dixie regular season title. Ferrum College Baseball captured the Dixie regular-season title...Read more...

Development News
Show your Panther Pride by making your gift today! Every gift counts! Contact Joanna Coleman, Ferrum Fund Director at 540-365-4310.Read more...

Graduate Survey from Career Services
A simple 10 question form designed to record your Ferrum experience and/or your current employment or graduate school experience. Designed for the class of 2002, but applicable to any Ferrum graduate. Take the survey...

Refer A Student And His or Her Fee Is Waived
Download the form for Alumni Referral and give it to a prospective student and they can use it to defer the application fee! It's a small Word document file that could make a big impact! Download here...