A Message From The President

Dear Ferrum Friends,

Happy 4th of July! I hope you will all enjoy this time of family reunions, celebrations and fireworks displays. It is good to gather and remember how fortunate we are to have the freedom and independence associated with our country’s historical and constitutional heritage.

When we gathered recently at the Annual Conference of the Virginia Conference of the United Methodist Church, we also held a celebration, this one in honor of Ferrum’s 90th birthday. We remembered the faith pioneers who established this wonderful place in 1913 in these beautiful mountains. Their vision of Ferrum embodied the Wesleyan commitment to “education for the common good” and linked learning with vital piety. We sang hymns and gave thanks for the wonderful mission and heritage of Ferrum College. That tradition remains today as we focus on our outstanding academic and athletic programs that enable our students to become successful global citizens.

The Annual Conference also affirmed our most recent additions to the Board of Trustees, Mrs. Nancy Sink Cross ‘69, Mr. Tommy Garten ‘72, Dr. E. Wayne Harris, Mr. Dana Hunt ‘49, Rev. Margaret Turbyfill and Dr. Betty Whitehurst. We welcome them and look forward to their participation in helping us frame the “Ferrum of the Future.”

We also want to thank our Board members who retired effective June 30 for their years of dedicated service in carrying out their responsibilities as trustees. They are Mr. N.L. Bishop, Mrs. Ethel Born, Mrs. Violet Carter and Mr. Mike Ferguson ‘81.

And as always, thanks to all of you who care for and support the College so generously. We particularly appreciate those of you who embody the Ferrum motto, “Not Self, But Others” with your lives of giving and service. Let us continue to enjoy and celebrate all our blessings!

Sincerely yours,

Jennifer L. Braaten
President

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Recent News:

A Memorable 87th Commencement
Ferrum's Commencement on May 10 marked Dr. Braaten's first such ceremony as President and also was highlighted by great weather, remarks and awards. The school’s highest alumni honor, the Benjamin M. Beckham Medallion, was bestowed on Mr. Bobby W. Thompson ’70, vice president for business affairs for Ferrum. Faculty awards included: The Cheatham Fellowship, awarded to Associate Professor of Political Science Dr. Frederic Belle Torimiro and the Exemplary Faculty Award given to Rachel K. Denham, associate professor of art. Revisit Commencement via the Commencement Website where you can: see the photos from the events; read the speeches by Keynote Speaker Former Virginia Gov. Gerald Baliles and the Senior Class Speaker Kristen Cardinale; listen to the first ever audio broadcast of a Ferrum Commencement over the internet; find the Fact Sheet; and read how 30% of Ferrum Graduates finished with honors. Read more..

Alumni Weekend '03: Fun, Memories
On May 16-18, Ferrum hosted decades of Ferrum Alumni, including 1928 Graduate of Ferrum Training School Julia Southard Campbell. Distinguished Alumni Award Recipients included Campbell '28 from Orlando, FL; Susan Shiflett Weisberger '82 from Rocky Mount, VA; and Annie Reynolds Looney '53 from Roanoke, VA. Visit a website full of photos from the weekend event. Read more...

Outstanding Educator Speaks
Pete Crow was been named Outstanding Educator of the Year by the United Methodist Higher Education Foundation and was the keynote banquet speaker at the June 22-24, 2003 Institute of Higher Education in Nashville, sponsored by the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry of the United Methodist Church. He was again presented with the Outstanding Educator of the Year Award by Ms. Cheryl Davis, Executive Vice President of the United Methodist Higher Education Foundation and his address was entitled "Homer, Impediments to Campus Diversity, and a Problem of Faith". Read more...

New Giving Club To Honor Dr. Ralph Arthur
In honor of Dr. Ralph Arthur, Ferrum's president from 1954-1970, Ferrum has created an exclusive giving club known as The Arthur Society. Alumni, friends, businesses and others may become members with annual gifts of at least $1,000 to the Ferrum Fund. We encourage you to consider joining this special group by honoring Dr. Arthur's legacy and significantly supporting Ferrum College. For more information please contact Dr. H. Lee King, director of development at (540) 365-4330 or Mrs. Joanna Coleman, director of the Ferrum Fund at (540) 365-4310. Read more...

Development News
The raising of monies for the Tennis Renaissance Project and Bud Skeens Memorial Pavilion continues. Call the Development Office at (540) 365-4221 for details and to find out how you can contribute to this special renovation project. Read more...

Ferrum Athletic News & Rankings
The Athletics website is brimming with news on our Spring Sports, including a large slate of Ferrum Players named to All-State teams including several nods for Softball's Lindsey Cox. Other athletic honors include Ferrum Baseball players named to the 2003 ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division III All-America Baseball Team. Ferrum Cheerleading competed in the Busch Gardens Spring Fling Classic and placed first overall. Visit to see how your Ferrum Sports finished their seasons (check out the special section on Men's Tennis). Read more...

Potter-Mania Includes Ferrum Professor
Recent buzz about a certain Muggle has included Ferrum's Dr. Lana Whited, whose book The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter: Perspective on a Literary Phenomenon (now in its second printing) has attracted the attention of media around the world including Agence France Presse and The Australian. This summer Whited has appeared at bookstores in Roanoke and Christiansburg and participated in a Harry Potter panel at “Nimbus 2003: A Harry Potter Symposium,” the first all Harry Potter conference, held in Orlando, Fla. A conference for high school students and scholars to be held at Ferrum College is being planned for November. Read more...

Faculty Accomplishments & Travel
The Profess journal will be released electronically towards the end of July. Check this website later this summer for the release. In Faculty travel news: Rachel Denham has returned from a trip to the British Isles. The trip included faculty and students from four ACA schools and was funded by the Berger Foundation. Rachel took two Ferrum students and they went for three weeks to study art history; Rex Stephenson and Mike Trochim wrote, and Mike acted in, the play that recently finished at the Blue Ridge Dinner Theatre called, Bar Room Smasher: The Life and Time of Carrie Nation. Jody Brown also acted in that production. Jody Brown has retired as a full-time faculty member, but will continue as Executive Director of the Blue Ridge Dinner Theatre; Rathin Basu will attend the Salsburg Seminar in Salsburg, Austria. The fellowship is being funded by the Appalachian College Association; David Howell is studying at Oxford this summer. Dave has a Doctor of Philosophy from Oxford, and he is returning there to study for the summer; Bob Pohlad and Carolyn Thomas are taking some Ferrum students, along with faculty and students from other ACA schools, on an environmental research and service trip to Malawi, Africa.