Dear Ferrum Friends,

Whether you are really “off” for the entire summer, or simply enjoying a change of pace in your work life and planning for some well-deserved vacation time, I hope the longer days are full of opportunities to spend these extra hours of sunshine with family and friends. Summer at Ferrum not only means a change of pace, but also a “change of hats” for some members of the Ferrum family. If visitors notice that the “students” on campus seem to be a little young for college, they are correct, since we stay very busy during this time with numerous band and music camps geared toward elementary and middle school-aged children (special thanks to Chip Phillips and his staff for their incredible work in organizing and keeping track of all of these groups). The practice notes of the Roanoke Youth Symphony could be heard throughout campus last week, and Wes Astin, Sasha Saari, Jane Stogner and Bev Thornton are among those faculty and staff members currently working with the summer enrichment camp.

A small number of tickets are still available for our Blue Ridge Dinner Theatre, which is celebrating its twenty-fifth year, and the fabulous Car Crazy exhibit at the Blue Ridge Institute & Farm Museum is breaking attendance records. Pete Crow’s second NEH Institute in June was a huge success, as the College hosted more than two dozen faculty from colleges and universities all over the country. Ferrum faculty are traveling the world this summer, to such far-flung destinations as Bolivia, China, Russia and Cambodia, to name but a few. I look forward to joining many of our friends and alumni on a cruise to the Caribbean on July 10, and later in the month I’ll be flying to Japan for a meeting on behalf of the Board of Global Ministries and Higher Education of the United Methodist Church.

This is also a very exciting time as we finalize planning details for our USDA construction and renovation projects that will begin in August. These projects will significantly enhance our campus and provide additional state of the art facilities and numerous amenities for our students.

I hope you enjoy all of the information in this issue. I would like to call your attention in particular to the following announcement of some important administrative appointments/restructuring initiatives. These changes will increase Ferrum College’s emphasis on student Success & Service.

As always, thank you for your continuing and generous support of Ferrum College. We wish you a wonderful Fourth of July holiday and hope you find time to enjoy the fireworks, fellowship and celebrations that will mark this 228th anniversary of our country’s independence. Even as we continue to pray for world peace and an end to all war, we have countless blessings and much to be grateful for as citizens of this great nation, and as members of the extended Ferrum College community.

Faculty & Staff Summer Travels
Here are some notable professional development trips the Ferrum community planned for the summer:

Dr. Braaten and Wes Astin will be joined by 38 other Ferrum guests on a cruise to the Carribean in July; Cy Dillon is an instructor this summer at the Appalachian College Association (ACA) Teaching and Learning Institute in Montreat, North Carolina and will also spend three weeks studying the theory of autobiography at the National Humanities Center as a participant in a Jessie Ball DuPont Summer Seminar; Rathin Basu will make two extensive trips abroad, one a Fulbright-Hays Summer Seminar Abroad to China entitled, "China: Social Trends/Popular Culture" and an ACA Shadowing Grant trip to India; Public Relations staff attended the MacDesign Conference in Chicago; Todd Fredrickson and three students - Adam McNeil, Shawn White, and Matt Dittler '04 are going on an ACA funded trip to Bolivia with other ACA faculty; Andrea Zuschin will attend the Higher Education Resource Services (HERS) institute located at the University of Denver; Richard Smith will be visiting Vietnam and Cambodia for research; Tina Hanlon and Sasha Saari traveled to Russia where they also met with former Ferrum exchange students from Pskov (Sasha Saari was also honored in Pskov for her efforts to promote the program); In addition to research trips to the Appalachian Trail, Bob Pohlad and Carolyn Thomas are attending the Ecological Society of America Meetings in Portland, OR to present a paper and looks forward to an Ireland trip for a week this summer to prepare for a sabbatical for the spring at the University of Ulster in Coleraine, Ireland; Ed Gloria took Ferrum students Travis Dean and Joey Conger to Italy (primarily Florence and Rome), Kevin Reilly presented two papers at the American Psychological Society in Chicago including one entitled Taming the Serpent: Treatments for and Moderators of Snake Phobia which he co-presented with Michael Coleman '04; Sheila Nelson-Hensley and Heather Hollandsworth will be attending the NASFAA (National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators) Conference; Marcia Horn will visit Spain on an ACA grant for a Faculty Development to study "The Heritage of Spain's Three Cultures: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam"; Jim Bier realized a life-long dream to travel in New Zealand which he did with a Habitat for Humanity Global Village Care-a-Van build project; Closer to home, Daryl Nash and two Ferrum agriculture majors, Derek Ritenour and Dave Evans, attended the 1st Annual Career Show at the 76th Annual Virginia FFA Convention at Virginia Tech.

Dr. Lee King to Return as V.P. for Institutional Advancement
Ferrum College announced in June that Dr. Lee King will return to Ferrum College as the Vice President for Institutional Advancement. Dr. Lee King leaves his role as the Executive Director of the Patrick Henry Boys and Girls Plantation in Brookneal to rejoin Ferrum College this August. Prior to his appointment at the Plantation, Dr. King was Associate Vice-President for Development at Ferrum College. Read more...

Rex Stephenson Honored In Celebration of BRDT 25th Season
In special honor of the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Blue Ridge Dinner Theatre, and in grateful recognition of the leadership of Rex Stephenson, the college will present a $250 Book Award in the fall of 2004 to a qualified student who has completed one year in the Dinner Theatre. At the opening of the 25th season, the critical importance of the Dinner Theatre was recognized by President Braaten who presented the Book Award and the college’'s gratitude. Rex Stephenson’'s dedication was also recognized by (click for copies of texts) Governor Mark Warner, Senator John Warner and the Franklin County Board of Supervisors.

BRI Jambooree
On May 14 the Blue Ridge Institute and Museum kicked off the 2nd Annual Ferrum Jamboree and Dance, a public concert series that will feature old-time and traditional music and dancing, on the second Fridays of most summer months. The community is invited to enjoy original sounds of the region in an outdoor venue highlighting the geography and beauty that inspired those chords. The event is free and open to the public. Read more...

Ferrum College Begins Degree Completion Program in Roanoke
Beginning this fall, Ferrum College will begin its degree completion program for bachelor’'s degrees in Business Administration with an Emphasis in Management and Criminal Justice at the Roanoke High Education Center.  With the appropriate number and type of prior college credits transferred to Ferrum College, students may complete a bachelor’'s degree in fewer than 18 months.  In keeping with an applied liberal arts education, the curriculum emphasizes a broad array of perspectives, while focusing on career enhancement.  The dynamics of the classroom are based on applying theories and concepts to real-world settings.  Student experience and faculty expertise are integrated to create a stimulating learning environment differing from the traditional lecture format. The degree completion process requires the following hour totals:  Criminal Justice Major, 45 semester hours; Business Administration with an Emphasis in Management Major, 52 semester hours.  All classes will be held at the Roanoke Higher Education Center. Read more...

Shepherd Named Men's Basketball Coach at Ferrum
Director of Athletics Abe Naff has named Scott Shepherd as Head Men's Basketball Coach at Ferrum College.  Shepherd recently resigned from the University of Virginia, where he spent the last five years with the Cavalier men's basketball program as an assistant coach. Shepherd served as Assistant Coach at Ferrum from 1991-93 under then Head Coach Bill Pullen.  He helped the Panthers win back-to-back league titles in the Dixie Conference (now the USA South).  Ferrum made its first-ever NCAA Division III Tournament appearance in 1992, advancing to the second round. Read more...

Ferrum Athletic News
The Athletics website features several new stories including:
Griffin, Sanchez Named All-Region in Baseball; Ferrum Co-Hosts Baseball Regional; Faircloth Assumes Soccer Post at Ferrum.  Read more...

Car Crazy
For over 60 years Southwest Virginia has had a love affair with fast custom automobiles, and the region has fostered a host of oval race tracks, drag strips, and car builders. Car Crazy: Racing and Rodding in Southwest Virginia, a new exhibit at Ferrum College's Blue Ridge Institute & Museum, showcases the regional speed scene from the early moonshine-liquor cars” through the "muscle cars" of the 1960s. Car Crazy opens May 1, 2004, in honor of the 100th anniversary of auto racing in the Commonwealth. Read & see more...

Alumni Weekend Honors Alumni
Ferrum College paid tribute to three of its former students with the Distinguished Alumni Award during its Alumni Weekend May 14-16, 2004.  The 2004 recipients are: Eunice Spencer Williams ’'46 of Wilmington, NC, James W. “Jim” Johnson ’'63 from Northglenn, CO and Betsy Baker Dietz ’'83 of Arlington, VA.

Reunions for the classes of 1984, 1989, 1994, and 1999 are being planned for Homecoming Weekend this fall. For information on any of these reunions, please contact the Alumni Office at alumni@ferrum.edu or 540-365-4216.

Plans are underway for a 2005 reunion celebration to honor Fifty Years of Ferrum Football. Former football coach Hank Norton is working feverishly to locate all former football players. Please contact alumni@ferrum.edu or call 540-365-4216 for more information or to assist with locating players. Please spread the word and mark your calendars for May 20-22, 2005!

Please see the Alumni Calendar of Events for Alumni gatherings in your area. Have ideas for Alumni events? Let us know! If you would like to see an event planned for an area not on the calendar, we would love to hear from you!

Young Alumni Working to Recruit New Students
The Admissions and Alumni Offices invited back a group of young alumni to our Spring Open House to discuss ways in which alumni can assist the college in attracting new students. This brainstorming session served as the foundation to launch an alumni initiative of letter writing, phone calling, and spreading the word about Ferrum. Reaching new students can be as simple as wearing your favorite Ferrum clothing! If you are interesting in getting involved, please contact alumni@ferrum.edu or call 540-365-4216.  

Alumni Calendar

Events In July:

Sunday-Saturday, July 11-17th
Alumni Cruise Eastern Caribbean

Tuesday, July 20th
Roanoke Chapter- Higher Education Center, 6:00 pm, Roanoke

Events In August:

Tidewater Event- TBA

Richmond Event-TBA

See the Alumni Calendar online for more events and details...

The President's Speaking Engagements :

Sunday, August 15th
Guest speaker at Rocky Mount Baptist Church

Refer A Student:

...And His or Her Fee Is Waived! Download the form for Alumni Referral, 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! Also suggest that they attend a Fall Open House on the Saturdays of February 7 & April 3. They can register online at this link...

On the Web:

Today you can check our the redesign of the Ferrum College front page, courtesy of Webmaster Suzie Kelly and Public Relations. New features include a sleek new design and an interactive calendar for all campus events! View your new homepage at: Ferrum.edu...

Blue Ridge Dinner Theater Celebrates 25 Years For the season schedule click here... For the BRDT Website click here...

The Strategic Plan Brochure
Download the PDF

Read Past Newsletters
A new archive is available for readers of Fe to browse past issues from our launch in March of 2003 to the present! Click to visit...

Miss our Commencement Coverage?
Click for more information, winners of awards & photos...