Reflecting on Recent Campus and Community Events
Recent events on and near campus, including concerns about sexual assault policies, instances of racial profiling and a shooting at a high school near campus have caused unease in the Wake Forest community. Many community members have expressed concerns about safety and are asking for support and access to resources and information as they navigate these issues and challenges.
“We have had to deal with so much during the first few weeks of this academic year. While all of us are excited to be back on campus, there is a palpable sense of both psychological and emotional fatigue,” said President Susan R. Wente. “I feel it, too. COVID-19 remains with us and continues to challenge us. We are all continuing to process events on campus and in our local community, our country and around the world. Our community is also mourning the loss of a student in last week’s school shooting at Mount Tabor High School.
“It is understandable that in the wake of these challenges some community members are feeling less safe and welcome on campus, which is unacceptable. We must condemn in the strongest terms acts of sexual and relationship violence, as well as acts of racism and racialized threats at Wake Forest. I am deeply committed to creating a safe, welcoming campus for all Wake Forest community members, and we will work collaboratively to address any gaps or challenges the past several weeks have revealed.” Read more
Categories: Presidential News, University Announcement
Wake Forest receives Silver Anvil Award from PRSA for Call to Conversation program
Wake Forest staff with Silver Anvil Award in New York City
PRSA, the nation’s leading professional organization serving the communications community, presented Wake Forest University with the Silver Anvil Award at a ceremony in New York City on June 6.
Wake Forest won the award in recognition of its Call to Conversation program, which began in 2017 and has become an international movement with one goal: to spark more meaningful conversations.
From its first days as a pilot program of moderated, small-group dinner conversations with alumni and parents, Call to Conversation now reaches out to the entire Wake Forest community—on- and off-campus. In such gatherings, participants “share a meal, discuss a single timely topic and form relationships based on empathy and mutual respect,” according to a story posted online last fall.
The Call to Conversation website explains that “the immediate impact of the Call to Conversation will be new relationships and a stronger community. Long term, a culture of conversation will be a recognized signature of the Wake Forest Experience.”
At the June 6 awards event, PRSA handed out 50 Silver Anvil Awards and 62 Awards of Excellence. The full list, which includes Wake Forest, is available here.
“This year’s entries were among the most innovative we’ve seen in the history of the awards, truly reflecting the rapid transformation that technology, social media and myriad cultural forces are bringing to the communications industry,” said Debra Peterson, 2019 PRSA chair.
Wake Forest’s award was in the category of internal communications for associations/government/nonprofit organizations. Many of the recipients included some of the best-known companies in the world, whose communication projects were managed by top international public relations and design agencies.
Staff representing Wake Forest at the awards event were Brett Eaton, Melody Miller, Hannah Duane, Hannah McGee, Megan Donovan, Lindsay Hudson Ortyn, Andrea Ellis and Shakinah Simeona-Lee.
Categories: Inside WFU, Staff News
January 2016 faculty and staff milestones
See a list of faculty and staff milestones in January 2016: Read more
Categories: University Announcement
CER raises the bar for Commencement 2015
For Wake Forest Communications and External Relations (CER), commencement planning begins early. All of CER — events, creative, digital, news and photography — begin laying the groundwork for graduation months in advance.
This year, University events, in addition to handling the distribution of 13,788 commencement tickets and managing a production schedule around campus renovation work, the team was responsible for overseeing a new commencement experience for graduates and their guests. Geni Greiner, who joined Wake Forest in February 2015, managed Commencement with her new team for the first time this year.
Categories: Staff News
Faculty, staff hit the bricks
Bill Kane listens to some helpful hints from the Deacon.
Faculty and staff helped the Wake Forest community “Hit the Bricks” hard this year, joining with students to run nearly 23,000 laps around Hearn Plaza and to raise close to $30,000 for cancer research and the Brian Piccolo Cancer Fund.
Overall, 17 faculty and staff teams participated this year. Click to view a photo gallery »
The top five teams in the faculty/staff division were:
- Crusaders (504 laps): Charlene Buckley, James Buckley, Kevin Cox, Ryan Scholl, Brett Eaton, Sean Daly, Rob McNamara, Phil May, Michael Shuman, James Torrible
- The Committee (Undergraduate Admissions, 417 laps): Dawn Calhoun, Paul Gauthier, Frank Brown, Lori Pilon, Brett Kaiser, Victoria Hill, Jennie Harris, Megan Massey, Ethan Groce
- Alumni Haul (Undergraduate Advancement, 378 laps): Paul Wingate, Mark Anderson, Mike Haggas, Stuart Tucker, Sarah Boerkircher, Megan Donovan, Pamela Bunten, Liz White, Curtis Bloomer, Sandy Saulpaugh
- Chemistry Department (378 laps): Megan Rudock, Rebecca Alexander, Mark Welker, David Wren, Amanda Jones, Kathryn Riley, Craig Clodfelter, Sarah Bergman, Lindsay Macnamara, Justin Piedad
- ZSR Library (290 laps): Barry Davis (captain), Susan Smith, Rebecca Petersen, Joy Gambill, Peter Romanov, Patrick Ferrell, Craig Fansler, Bill Kane, Chelcie Rowell, Lauren Suffoletto, Rosalind Tedford, Tanya Zanish-Belcher (for more from ZSR, see their blog, Flickr)
“Hit the Bricks” is part of a series of student-run events and activities to honor the former Chicago Bears running back, Brian Piccolo, who attended Wake Forest in the 1960s. The 1971 film, “Brian’s Song,” was based on the real-life relationship between teammates Brian Piccolo and Gale Sayers and the bond established when Piccolo discovers he is dying of cancer at the age of 26.
Categories: Events
