Nathan Kranowski came to Ferrum College’s Britt Hall recently to talk to students in the college’s Holocaust course. Kranowski, who was one of the hidden Jewish children in France during the Holocaust, survived after his parents were arrested and killed by the Nazis. His visit was covered by the Roanoke Times.
Dear Friends:
Happy Memorial day! We are now in the midst of our second "E-term" – the post-spring semester courses held during May that take our students far and wide as we highlight the “experiential” component of the Ferrum education. We thank Dean Leslie Lambert and the faculty and staff in Academic Affairs for their hard work and dedication that continues to ensure the success of this program.
We celebrated our 92nd Commencement on May 3 and send congratulations to our newest alums, the Class of 2008! In addition to the awards and honors presented to students, faculty and alumni at Commencement, we had a wonderful Academic Awards ceremony in mid-April where many more of our students were recognized for outstanding academic achievements. We also had end of the year programs, concerts and speakers that highlighted the multidimensionality of the Ferrum College community. Of particular note was the lecture in April given by Sister Helen Prejean, nationally acclaimed author of Dead Man Walking and Death of Innocents, as part of the Wright Lecture series.
In our ongoing efforts to streamline our electronic communications and avoid redundancy, Fe is now combined with the former Ferrum Dispatch. I hope you will click on the Fe icon on the front of our webpage to access all the daily and weekly updates that were previously contained in the Dispatch. You’ll find the latest press releases, information, pictures and feature stories that will keep you continuously in the know about the people, places and activities that make this such a special and exciting place.
We thank all of you for your care and service to Ferrum and ask that you continue to send us students and your gifts of time, talent and treasure as we continue to grow! We could not do any of this without you and are always blessed by your commitment to Ferrum.
Sincerely yours,
Jennifer L. Braaten
President
Jennifer L. Braaten
President
Ferrum Holds 92nd Commencement Ceremony on a Beautiful May Morning on the Campus Lawn
On Saturday, May 3rd at 10:30 a.m. 145 seniors graduated from Ferrum College during outdoor commencement ceremonies led by Dr. Jennifer L. Braaten, Ferrum’s 10th president. A Baccalaureate service was held in Vaughn Chapel the previous evening, Friday May 2nd, at 7:30 p.m.
Get commencement photo galleries, a full ceremony podcast, and more »
PR Director Natalie Faunce travels to Brazil with Rotary Group Study Exchange
Ferrum College’s Director of Public Relations, Natalie Faunce, just got back from a 5-week group study exchange trip to Brazil. The trip was part of the Rotary Foundation’s Group Study Exchange program (GSE), which sends and receives groups from paired countries for four to six weeks for cultural and vocational study. This particular group, which was made up of 6 women (5-non-rotarians and a Rotarian team leader) represented cities from the Rotary District 7570, which runs from as far south as Johnson City, Tennessee, to as far north as Winchester, Virginia. Each team member was carefully interviewed and selected to participate in the exchange program. Once the team was selected, the group met for several weekends leading up to the trip to get to know one another and to prepare for their group presentation, which was to be given at each Rotary meeting (in Portuguese) while in the visiting country. Faunce, who was sponsored by the Rotary Club in Rocky Mount, remembers meeting the group for the first time and says she felt an instant bond. "All of the women were absolutely incredible, we hit it off immediately. I could not have wished for a better team to travel with."Read more »
Click here to view photos from Natalie's trip »
Alumni News!
Greetings from the Alumni Office! We look forward to seeing you at an alumni gathering in your area soon!The dates for Homecoming have been set for October 10-12. The weekend will begin with the annual Corron Classic Panther Open Golf Tournament followed by the induction of the Class of 1958 into the 50 Year Club on Friday, October 10. Our other reunion years (1963, 1968, 1973, 1978, 1983, 1988, 1993, 1998, and 2003) will celebrate their reunions after Saturday's football game against Maryville College. Inductions for Distinguished Alumni Awards and our Sports Hall of Fame will also take place on Saturday, October 11.
Our Distinguished Alumni Award recipients are:
Mr. Ed Fitzgerald, IV '82Mr. Erik Robinson '94
Mrs. Joyce Bernice Cobbs '98
Our Sports Hall of Fame inductees are:
Mr. Bill Bennett, Jr. '57Mr. Coleman Starnes '58
Mr. Dan Hodges '65
Mr. James Hambacher '69
Mr. Keith Mayhew '95
Our Sports Hall of Fame special recognition inductees are:
Mrs. Lucy NortonMr. Abe Naff
Its not too early to start making your plans! Rooms have been blocked at the Comfort Inn (540-489-4000) and at the Holiday Inn Express (540-489-5001) in Rocky Mount. Ask for the Ferrum Alumni block when making your reservations.
Please see our photo galleries below for highlights from our spring gatherings. Keep sending us your photos and updates for our Ferrum Magazine!
Photo Gallery: Running of the Strawberry Hill Races »Photo Gallery: Staunton/Shenandoah Valley Alumni Gathering »
Photo Gallery: Senior Dinner Dance »
Ferrum College Brings Noted Author of "Dead Man Walking" for Wright Lecture Series
Ferrum College held the Wasena F. “Buddy” Wright Lecture Series on Monday, April 14th at 7:00 p.m. in Vaughn Chapel. This year’s lecturer was Sister Helen Prejean, an internationally known and leading advocate for the abolition of the death penalty. Sister Prejean is author of the best seller “Dead Man Walking” and the “Death of Innocents.” This lecture series is free and open to the public.Read more »
Visit Sister Helen Prejean's site »
Ferrum College Hosts 5th Annual Relay for Life April 4-5
Ferrum College held its 5th Annual Relay for Life recently, in honor of Joyce Jones, a former Ferrum College staff member. The event drew a crowd of students, faculty, staff and community members from 6 p.m. April 4 through 6 a.m. April 5 inside the Fitness Center.Relay for Life, a 12-hour walk is held each year to honor cancer survivors, pay tribute to the lives lost to the disease, and to raise money to help fight it. The event was sponsored by Student Leadership and Engagement, College’s Against Cancer, and other clubs and organizations. This year’s program, called “A Stampede Against Cancer,” centered around a jungle theme, with students dressing up as their favorite characters from “The Lion King.” Several games were held to keep everyone going throughout the evening including “kiss the pig,” a dunking tank, and a best costume contest. The night also featured great entertainment from the band “Kerosene Willy,” local Disc Jockey Jeff Crouse, and Ferrum’s favorite funny duo, “The Fabulous Blues Brothers,” Dave Newcombe and Justin Muse.
View photos from Relay for Life »
Ferrum College Hosts 11th Annual Women’s Leadership Conference
Ferrum College held the 11th Annual Women’s Leadership Conference Monday and Tuesday, April 14th and 15th on the College campus. The conference theme echoed the College’s 2007-2008 academic year theme of “Social and Economic Justice” and focused on the contributions of women in these areas.Read more »
Visit the WLC site »
Ferrum College Professor Serves as Consultant in Project to Improve the Management and Efficiency of China’s Water Supply
Ferrum College Professor of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Dr. Dave Johnson, spent nine days in March working as a consultant on a study in China as part of a team developing a decision support system to reduce nonpoint source pollution to China’s Han River, the largest tributary to the Yangtze River. Of special interest is Danjiangkou Reservoir, a large reservoir that will be part of the South-to-North water diversion project that will eventually supply drinking water to over 10 million people in Beijing. The study was made possible by a USTDA (United States Trade & Development Agency) grant that was awarded to Changjiang Water Resources Commission (CWRC), an agency under China’s Ministry of Water Resources (MWR) to promote an integrated water quality monitoring system. The CWRC selected MapTech, Inc. of Blacksburg, Virginia, a U.S. firm that specializes in watershed management, environmental monitoring and modeling technologies, to conduct the study. Dr. Johnson has served as a consultant with MapTech Inc. since 1994.Read more »
The Ferrum College SIFE TEAM Receives Top Recognition at Regional Competition
The Ferrum College SIFE (Students in Free Enterprise) team has returned to Ferrum, as winners after participating in the Charlotte North Carolina SIFE USA Regional Competition on Tuesday April 1, 2008.The Ferrum College SIFE team competed against other universities, including Winston-Salem University, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Bennett College, University of Charleston, Limestone College- Columbia and North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. The SIFE team received top honors in the Regional Competition as well as an award for becoming Finalists in the Financial Literacy Individual Competition presented by Discover Card.
Read more »