During spring semester 2019, nearly 300 Ferrum College students received Dean’s List recognition and 82 of those students earned a place on the President’s List. Additionally, 79 Dean’s List recipients were student-athletes; 33 student-athletes were named to the President’s List.
To qualify for Dean’s List, a student must be full-time with a grade point average of at least 3.4 out of a possible 4.0. Students named to President’s List are full-time with a grade point average of 4.0 at the end of the spring and fall semesters.
Read more and find a list of spring 2019 Dean’s List students here and President’s List students here.
Find a list of student-athletes named to Dean’s List and President’s List here.
Alumna Alli ’15 and Luke Summers met at Ferrum College in 2016 and married on May 11, 2019.
“He’s kind of the strong, silent type,” Alli Colls Summers ’15, teased her new husband Luke, who rewarded her with a half-smile. Alli, who describes herself as “a bit extra” is a vivacious, enthusiastic personality who rarely meets a stranger. Luke is more reserved and practical with an easy-going personality and a ready grin.
A Ferrum College alumna from Smith Mountain Lake who majored in democracy, justice, and civic engagement, Alli began her career at Ferrum College in April 2016 as an admissions counselor. She eventually moved to residence life in August 2017 and now works as the coordinator of residence education.
She met her Ferrum College sweetheart, Luke Summers, in May 2016. Luke, who is originally from Youngstown, OH, graduated from the University of Mount Union in 2009 and accepted his current position at Ferrum College in January 2016 as assistant coach and offensive coordinator for Panther Football. The pair met in May 2016 when they realized they were recruiting the same students.
Due to busy schedules filled with football practices, games, and other campus activities, it took a while to get the romance started. “Football took a lot of my time,” explained Luke. “We’d see each other maybe once a week on a Friday night.”
“It didn’t get exciting until he came out of his shell,” laughed Alli. She describes their relationship as pretty easy-going. “Our first date was low-key with ice cream and a movie at Luke’s place,” Allie said. “It was some horrible Steven Carell movie. We both said we’d never watch it again.”
Since 2016, their relationship bloomed through the addition of two golden doodles named Woody and Gracie, and a home renovation project for a retired professor’s house bought through campus email. “YouTube tutorials helped,” said Luke. “I learned how to scrape off popcorn ceiling that way.”
Alli and Luke married on May 11, 2019, coincidentally the same day as Ferrum College’s 103rd Commencement. “We already had the venue booked before we knew it was commencement!” Alli explained. The couple knew it was a good sign when the rain that loomed on their wedding day miraculously stopped long enough for their 5 p.m. outdoor ceremony. “I was standing in a puddle during our vows. I was like, ‘Okay, I see you, God!’” said Alli, laughing. A drizzle resumed for their indoor reception.
So what is life like now for the newlyweds? “We take our dogs for walks around campus,” said Alli. “They have dog playmates so we have to stop at specific houses for them to play with their friends.” They enjoy their newly renovated home together. And although they work in different departments at the College, they team up. “We’ve made connections with students through each other that we may not have otherwise made,” explained Alli.
Alli, who holds a master’s degree in law from Regent University, wants to eventually become a dean of students at a college or university and work in the legal aspect of higher education. Luke is pretty content with coaching football. The future looks bright for the Summers family.
Read about other Ferrum College Sweethearts Aaron Conover and Hillary Hardison here.
Associate Professor of English Melvin Macklin’s proposal for a faculty Holocaust research project received a $30,000 professional development grant from Appalachian College Association. His project, Jewish Children Survivors of the Holocaust: Devastation, Re-humanization, and Recovery, will gather research on Jewish children who suffered the hostility of the Nazi war on East European Jews, and compile that research into a textbook for secondary education and college freshmen students. Students will then explore the ways these children became unwilling victims of terrible acts but still managed to live fulfilled and successful lives. “It will explicate how campaigns of human aggression affected youth survivors both physically and mentally,” explained Macklin, who has been co-teaching Holocaust courses at Ferrum College for the past decade.
Associate Professor of English Melvin Macklin
The idea for his project bloomed from what Macklin sees as a need for more educational works tailored to secondary education and college freshmen on the re-humanization and recovery of Jewish children victims. Macklin will conduct his research at the Ackerman Center for Holocaust Studies at the University of Texas at Dallas, and at the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C.
“I see beyond merely informing students about the horrors of what happened to Eastern European Jews and other ethnic groups,” Macklin said. “There is a broader message to alert individuals to the dangers of hatred and bigotry. This grant will enable me to accomplish two major goals: to add to the literature on how Jewish children were able to cope with and recover from the indescribable suffering inflicted upon them under Nazi rule; and to allow people to understand that if preceding generations cease to pass down their notions of preeminence to successive ones, dehumanization and extermination of our fellow man will also cease.”
Read more about the Ackerman Center for Holocaust Studies.
Learn more about the United States Holocaust Museum.
Rising junior Christian Haley of Boones Mill, VA, is Ferrum College’s newest McBroom student scholar. Set to graduate in 2021, Haley is a history major with a double minor in criminal justice and religion. He will spend this summer working at the College’s Blue Ridge Institute and Museum, the largest folklife museum in Virginia.
The McBroom Student Assistantship Program was established with a gift from the June M. McBroom Charitable Lead Trust in 2014. The program allows the director of the BRI to select a Ferrum College student in good standing to experience summer operations through the institute and museum, including living history interpretation, management of the museum and archives collection, summer camp programming, and event planning and production. Students who have an interest in history, agriculture, sociology, and recreation are given first preference.
Haley is exposed to a range of experiences through his work at the BRI. “My responsibilities are extremely broad, which is one of the things I love most about the job,” he said. “A typical day could consist of me taking care of our animals at the farm museum in the morning, digitizing and graphically editing artifacts in the middle of the day, leading an interpretive tour of the museum in the afternoon, and finally working to prepare the latest exhibit at the end of the day.”
“He has been absolutely outstanding,” said BRI Director Bethany Worley. “He is passionate about history and feels right at home in the archive, working on our upcoming exhibit, and on the 1800s farm in costume.”
When Haley is away from the museum, he can typically be found hiking, camping, fishing, rock climbing, and kayaking. “It’s where I’m most in my element,” he explained. And once he graduates from Ferrum College in 2021, he hopes to become a police officer and eventually enter federal law enforcement.
But he’s also keeping his options open to the possibility of graduate school and pursuing a career in the museum field. “Christian is getting what so many students need who are entering the job market or looking at graduate school: invaluable hands-on experience at the state’s largest folklife museum,” Worley said.
Read more about the Blue Ridge Institute and Museum here: https://dev.ferrum.edu/blueridgeinstitute/.
Ferrum College’s new honor society, National Society of Leadership and Success, won recognition from the national office for receiving accreditation as a leadership development program and achieving an induction rate of nearly 75 percent during its first semester.
Ferrum College’s NSLS chapter saw its first inaugural class in spring 2019. Out of 66 students who accepted the invitation to join NSLS, 51 successfully completed the steps to become fully inducted members of the society. To be invited to join NSLS, a student must be at least a sophomore, have a GPA of at least 2.75, and be in good standing within the college (without judicial or student accountability issues).
“I’m incredibly excited about the opportunities that will be afforded to our students as members of NSLS,” said Dean of Campus Diversity, Wellness, and Student Leadership Lynise Anderson, who also serves as the honor society’s chapter advisor.
NSLS is the first and only organization of its kind to become accredited as a leadership development program and honor society by AdvancED, a non-profit organization that reviews educational institutions to foster continual improvement. This accreditation opens education pathways to earn academic credit for achieving various levels or certification: “Having a chapter here at Ferrum will not only enhance the development of our student leaders, but will also serve as the cornerstone for an eventual leadership institute for the College,” explained Anderson. “The hope is that, in the not too distant future, all Ferrum College students will receive training and certification in leadership competencies as a core component of their co-curricular experience.”
Find more information about Ferrum College’s honor societies and student activities here.
Read more about NSLS and AdvancED.
Assistant Professor of History Nicole Greer Golda has been selected to attend the Council of Independent Colleges’ seminar, The Civil War in American Memory, at Yale University in New Haven, CT, from June 23 – 28, 2019. Greer Golda is one of only 25 faculty members from CIC institutions, like Ferrum College, chosen to attend this seminar.
“Since I arrived on campus two years ago, numerous students have indicated interest in Civil War history courses, research topics, and community debates regarding monuments and the legacy of the war,” explained Greer Golda. “I’m particularly interested in utilizing this opportunity to expand and develop courses on the Civil War at Ferrum, especially the May E-term Civil War battlefields tour.”
The seminar will be held at the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and will include discussion about the lasting historical memory of the American Civil War. Greer Golda will read relevant historical works on the Civil War’s legacy, discuss strategies for approaching the topic in the classroom, and think through how the after-effects of the war are still present in today’s communities. David Blight, a 1954 Yale University graduate and professor of American History at the institution, will lead the seminar. Blight also serves as the director of the Gilder Lehrman Center for the Study of Slavery, Resistance, and Abolition.
Read more about The Civil War in American Memory on CIC’s website.
Read more about Ferrum College’s affiliations.
About the Council of Independent Colleges: CIC serves small and mid-sized, independent, liberal arts colleges and universities in the United States, and focuses on providing services to campus leaders through seminars, workshops, and programs that assist institutions in improving educational offerings, administrative and financial performance, and institutional visibility. Read more.
On Saturday, May 11, 2019, 211 Ferrum College graduates walked the commencement stage on Hart International Plaza on campus to receive their diplomas. The commencement exercises began at 10 a.m. and included award presentations under threatening skies that eventually gave way to a light spring rain. The keynote speaker was Rev. Bruce Hitchcock, advocate for inclusion and district superintendent of The United Methodist Church’s Ohio Valley District, who roots his work in service not only to Ohio but to our local Appalachia region, as well.
Provost Aimé Sposato opened the commencement ceremony to welcome the crowd of family, friends, faculty, and staff on hand to celebrate the graduates’ achievements. “Commencements are often thought of as bittersweet endings,” Sposato noted. “But as the word ‘commence’ means, we are truly celebrating beginnings on our campus today. This is your moment to shine.”
Following the invocation given by Dean of the Chapel Jan Nicholson Angle, President David Johns greeted the crowd and instructed the graduates to thank their friends and families for their love and support, as “great achievement requires a group effort.” Johns then reminded the students of Mother’s Day, stating, “Your mother will always be smarter than you!”
In closing, Johns reflected: “Amazing things happen here at Ferrum College each and every day – sometimes in big and splashy ways, but very often, in small and incremental ways. And, before you know it, we gather together in this place to celebrate the transformation of lives that has taken place.”
Ferrum College Board of Trustees member Suzanne Smith ’98 and Alumni Association Vice President Twyla Tatum ’04 each gave their greetings on behalf of their respective boards. Five distinguished faculty members, who will retire after 154 years of combined service to the College, were recognized: Dr. Faye Angel, Dr. William “Dub” Osborne, Dr. Bob Pohlad, Professor Susan Spataro, Dr. Carolyn Thomas, and Dr. Demetri Tsanacas.
The presentation of awards followed. Associate Professor of Biology, Katie Goff, received the Exemplary Faculty Award, which recognizes a full-time faculty member at Ferrum College who exemplifies excellence and commitment to teaching. Goff, who was recently honored at the College’s employee recognition lunch for 10 years of service to the institution, is beloved by her students and passionate for the campus community. Along with her commitment to guiding students on their career pathways, she is the dedicated advisor for Minds-N-Medicine, a club that supports students’ experiences as early career health professionals.
Three graduates received the Senior Academic Excellence Award: Leya Deickman, of Fayetteville, NC; Koby McMahon, of Annapolis, MD; and Joshua Wright of Stuart, VA. The award is based on grades earned in all college courses by a full-time student, including those taken at Ferrum, as well as those received in transfer from other colleges or universities. All three seniors maintained a 4.0 GPA. Deickman earned a Bachelor of Arts in psychology; McMahon received a Bachelor of Science in criminal justice; and Wright received a Bachelor of Science in mathematics.
Leya Deickman ’19 also received the Arthur S. Owens Leadership Award, which is presented annually to the senior chosen by the faculty who best exemplifies the qualities leadership, initiative, honor and outstanding character. Recipients of this award must also hold an excellent academic record, have participated in extra-curricular activities, and shown creative initiative in making Ferrum College a better place to study, work, and live.
Following the awards presentations, Rev. Hitchcock addressed the graduates. “Life is yours,” he said. “There is nothing that can hold you back. You were educated for a purpose.” Hitchcock closed with a charge to the graduates: “You are going to change the future; we depend on you. Ferrum, get busy living!”
Student Government Association President Lawrence Baranski ’19, of Williamsburg, Va., then introduced Senior Class President Andrew Meadows ’19, of Chatham, Va. After presenting the senior class gift to President Johns, Meadows introduced Deickman as the senior class speaker.
After thanking the class of 2019 for the honor of being asked to speak, Deickman referenced her extraordinarily busy schedule as a full-time student, full-time mother to her four-year-old son, residence hall advisor, and athlete, among other activities. She explained that she was able to do it all with the support of this graduating class. “Whether we do it intentionally or not, we all contribute to the success of others by simply supporting them in both small and large ways,” Deickman said. She closed with advice: “While this moment will pass us by, just as all of the experiences of college, let us be mindful of those who surround us in support and who have led us to this very day. Be willing to accept help when it is offered so you can be successful…and always be willing to give help, so you can be that support for someone else.”
After the conferring and awarding of degrees by Johns and Sposato, a celebratory picnic lunch was held under tents on Franklin Hall quad for all in attendance. The weekend events also included a traditional Baccalaureate service on Friday evening in Vaughn Chapel followed by a candlelight ceremony at Hart International Plaza symbolizing the light of knowledge that the new graduates will carry forth into the world.
Set up continues for Ferrum College’s 103rd commencement.
Ferrum College will celebrate the 103rd commencement on Saturday, May 11, 2019 in Hart International Plaza in the center of campus. The College is expecting approximately 211 seniors to walk the commencement stage to receive their diplomas. The ceremony, beginning at 10 a.m., will include the presentation of student, faculty, and alumni awards.
Advocate for inclusion and longtime friend of President David Johns, Rev. Bruce Hitchcock, will address the 2019 graduates. “I am pleased Bruce Hitchcock will join us for this year’s commencement ceremony,” said Johns. “We both grew up in Ohio and I am eager to introduce him to Virginia’s Blue Ridge and to the fine people of Ferrum College.”
Graduates will also participate in a traditional Baccalaureate service on Friday evening at 7:30 p.m. in Vaughn Chapel. The service will conclude with a candlelight ceremony at Hart International Plaza to symbolize the light of knowledge that the new graduates will carry forth into the world.
Please note:
Davon “D” Robinson ’21, a rising junior from Richmond, VA, who is majoring in social work and minoring in recreational studies, is troubled by the negativity seen in the world, so he pledged to promote positivity no matter the circumstances. Already known at Ferrum College for his positive Instagram workout videos, he took on a heftier endeavor to spend his last day on campus prior to summer break recording members of the campus community as they shared their goals and words of positivity. Robinson recorded and edited this video in only 10 short hours.
“I want to show people that no matter what they go through in life, they can make it,” explained Robinson. “The purpose of the video I made is to show that we may have different goals but we all can be positive towards ourselves and each other.”
Check out Robinson’s Instagram at dhr._VmlldyUyMFJvYmluc29uJUUyJTgwJTk5cyUyMHBvc2l0aXZlJTIwdmlkZW8lMjBoZXJlJTNBJTBBJTBBJTNDY2VudGVyJTNFJTNDaWZyYW1lJTIwd2lkdGglM0QlMjI1NjAlMjIlMjBoZWlnaHQlM0QlMjIzMTUlMjIlMjBzcmMlM0QlMjJodHRwcyUzQSUyRiUyRnd3dy55b3V0dWJlLmNvbSUyRmVtYmVkJTJGdHZzWW15S1dlazglMjIlMjBmcmFtZWJvcmRlciUzRCUyMjAlMjIlMjBhbGxvdyUzRCUyMmFjY2VsZXJvbWV0ZXIlM0IlMjBhdXRvcGxheSUzQiUyMGVuY3J5cHRlZC1tZWRpYSUzQiUyMGd5cm9zY29wZSUzQiUyMHBpY3R1cmUtaW4tcGljdHVyZSUyMiUyMGFsbG93ZnVsbHNjcmVlbiUzRSUzQyUyRmlmcmFtZSUzRSUzQyUyRmNlbnRlciUzRQ==
Ferrum College’s 103rd commencement speaker is Rev. Bruce Hitchcock, an advocate for inclusion within the United Methodist Church. He is pictured here with his wife, Melissa.
Advocate for inclusion, Rev. Bruce Hitchcock, believes all are welcome within the United Methodist church. He will address Ferrum College’s 103rd graduating class as commencement speaker on Saturday, May 11, 2019, at 10 a.m. in Hart International Plaza on the College’s campus. Over 200 seniors are expected to walk the commencement stage to receive their undergraduate degrees.
Hitchcock, who currently serves as Ohio Valley District superintendent, believes “a Christian [can be] a brother and a sister of someone who has a different thought. We have to discover God within, in other people, and all around us, and the more we do that, the more human, the more decent, the more compassionate we become.”
United Methodist Church Bishop Tracy Malone described Hitchcock as “a visionary leader, a strategic thinker, and one who brings many learnings and experiences from serving in a variety of ministry settings. He has a deep faith and has demonstrated throughout his ministry a strong commitment to discipleship, evangelism, and mission.”
President David Johns met Rev. Hitchcock during their college days and the two remained in contact throughout the years. “I am pleased Bruce Hitchcock will join us for this year’s commencement ceremony,” said Johns. “We both grew up in Ohio and I am eager to introduce him to Virginia’s Blue Ridge and to the fine people of Ferrum College.”
Read more about Rev. Bruce Hitchcock in this East Ohio Conference announcement and in this Herald-Star article.
More about Rev. Bruce Hitchcock: Hitchcock was ordained a deacon in 1987 and then an elder in 1989. While serving as pastor of Pleasant Grove United Methodist Church in Carroll County, Ohio, he obtained his bachelor’s degree from Malone College, and then his Masters of Divinity from United Theological Seminary while pastoring State Road United Methodist Church in Germantown, Ohio. Additionally, he has served other Methodist churches: East Rochester-Bayard UMC (1989-1993), East Sparta UMC (1993-1996), and Huron UMC (1996-2002). Hitchcock worked as executive director of Urban Mission for nine years before pastoring at Geneva UMC in the Western Reserve District from 2011 to 2018. Hitchcock currently resides in Ohio with his wife, Melissa. They have two sons and one daughter.
Leya and her four-year-old son, nicknamed “Little Kendall.”
Leya Deickman does all the things.
A senior from Fayetteville, NC, set to graduate on May 11, 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, Leya has truly taken advantage of every available Ferrum College opportunity. She is a residence hall advisor and serves as president of the College’s campus chapter of Help Save the Next Girl, an organization dedicated to the safety of girls and women. She is an intercollegiate wrestler, serving as captain from fall 2016 to present, and has been named Academic All-Conference, Academic All-State, and Academic All-American. She is involved with the College’s orientation team and the Sister 4 Sister mentoring program for African-American students, and served as a Gatway mentor and a PAL tutor for two years. Leya is a Boone Honors Program mentor, a cohort representative to the Honors Advisory Council, and was nominated for the 2019 Honors Scholar of the Year through the Virginia Collegiate Honors Council. She has consistently maintained a 4.0 GPA.
As if those activities weren’t enough to keep her busy, she also stepped in to serve as an editor for Ferrum College’s magazine, Chrysalis Literary & Arts, which won her the Chrysalis Staff Member of the Year Award during the College’s recent Academic Awards Ceremony on April 12. Leya was named to the National Society of Leadership and Success, Psi Chi, and Sigma Tau Delta. She received the Unsung Hero Award during her second year at Ferrum College, which is given to a person who works tirelessly but unselfishly, without the motive of drawing attention to oneself. Without question, Leya exhibits the College’s motto: Not Self, But Others.
Leya’s long-term goal is to be an educational psychologist, but she is currently considering additional higher education. “I want to be involved in the lives of young adults,” Leya explained. “This is a delicate time where we are in between teenagers and adulthood and people expect young adults to have everything figured out. I really want to be able to model that anyone can achieve their goals despite adversities. I want to guide them through this journey and provide them with the resources necessary to make their goals come true.”
“Leya’s academic success at Ferrum and the impression she has left upon the faculty are uniformly outstanding,” remarked Professor of English and Director of the Boone Honors Program Lana Whited, who nominated Leya for the 2019 VCHC award. “It is no exaggeration to say that her faculty cannot figure out when Leya Deickman sleeps, or how she maintains her characteristic cheery, upbeat disposition. She is a remarkable young woman.”
She “has a level of maturity and ability to manage any number of activities that I’ve seen in very few students – maybe only three or four – in 35 years of teaching,” explained Katherine Grimes, associate professor of English, who taught Leya three English courses and an honors seminar.
But her most important accomplishment makes all the rest pale in comparison. Despite her rigorous schedule, Leya is the dedicated mother to little Kendall, a happy, remarkably adorable four-year-old boy. She and Kendall’s father, nicknamed Big Kendall, are both students at Ferrum College and are steadfast in their commitment to family and education. Despite their youth, they show up for each other in big ways: Big Kendall held off on his education for a year to watch Little Kendall while Leya began her studies at Ferrum, and Leya has been diligent in her goal to graduate. She will complete her undergraduate work in only three years, as opposed to the traditional four. Big Kendall is on track to graduate in 2021 with a degree in health and human performance and coaching.
Big Kendall attributes the family’s success to their commitment to each other: “All three of us feed off of each other. Believe it or not, our four-year-old will try to motivate us in the best way he can! We are a team,” and to their network of Ferrum College friends: “People offer to watch Little Kendall while we write a paper or do a project. The College is great, but the people make it even greater.”
Leya agrees and is adamant Ferrum College gave her the tools to be successful. “When I found Ferrum, I instantly found a second home. From day one, I felt like I belonged here,” Leya explained. “Through thought provoking conversations, individualized classroom settings, and countless hours of community service, Ferrum has prepared me to help others. If I can give people half of what Ferrum has given to me, I know I can help make the world a better place. I am not only excited, but honored to be an alumna of such an inspirational institution.”
Ferrum College alumna Brianne Scott is living her dream career as a forensic autopsy technician in the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Roanoke, VA.
A May 2018 graduate and native of Ferrum, VA, Scott majored in biology and minored in chemistry and forensic science at the College, and began working in the Chief Medical Examiner’s Office in November 2018. “From the very beginning, I knew I wanted to do something in science, specifically forensics,” explained Scott. “When I started at Ferrum, I decided I wanted to be a forensic DNA analyst and my ultimate goal was to work at the forensics lab in Roanoke.”
Then, Scott took the class the changed her career course. “I took human anatomy and physiology with Dr. [Katie] Goff. I loved the cadaver experience and I knew then that I wanted the hands-on experience of doing autopsies, especially on the forensics side.” Scott was eager to do her own independent research, which she completed during her time at Ferrum College.
Now, between leading a youth group at her church, reading forensic and mystery books, and working as an assistant site director for YMCA youth, Scott often returns to her old stomping grounds to speak with Goff’s human anatomy classes, as well as the Minds-N-Medicine students, a club dedicated to supporting each other’s experiences as early career students of health professions. “I am so thankful for the chance to come back to my Alma Mater to speak about something I am so passionate about,” noted Scott. “I enjoyed these experiences very much!”
Katie Goff, associate professor of biology at the College, fondly remembers her time with Scott. “I’ve had the pleasure of instructing Brianne during her college days, and now working with her as a partner in teaching my current human anatomy and Minds-N-Medicine students,” remarked Goff. “She has proven to be a dedicated and capable instructor, offering expert insight into her everyday work. Current students find her stories fascinating and want her to come back again as soon as possible!”
On Friday, May 3, Scott returned to Ferrum College’s cadaver lab to talk with students about her work.
Pictured from left to right: Amy Chattin, Brianne Scott ’18, Tina Young, and Katie Goff.
Read more about Ferrum College’s biology program here.
Per their website, “the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner is responsible for determining the cause and manner of deaths that occur under certain circumstances in Virginia.” Read more about their work here.
