Virtually Shorter
April 2007

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Quite the reason to celebrate! Shorter College alumna Kristy L. Treadaway (’95) served as the keynote speaker at the college’s inaugural Celebrate Shorter event, a day focusing on student achievement. On Tuesday, March 27, Shorter honored students' hard work in the classroom, their intensive study in the field, and their creativity and skill in each academic discipline. From science presentations such as "Thermogenesis in Plants and its Role in Pollination" to business presentations such as "Demographic Change and Sectoral Demand in Canada," and from award-winning poetry readings to theatre showcases, the morning and afternoon student symposia spanned the spectrum of academic disciplines.

Students presented their research and projects to large audiences in classrooms across the campus. Celebrate Shorter also included award programs throughout the day to recognize student success and achievement. Parents, scholarship donors and community members joined faculty, staff and classmates for this significant campus-wide event.

Photo courtesy of Indiana University.

Shorter Alum wins with Metropolitan Opera On Sunday, April 1, Shorter alumna Jamie Barton was one of six winners of the Metropolitan Opera’s 2007 National Council Auditions, a program designed to discover promising young opera singers and assist in the development of their careers. Jamie and the other finalists were featured live from the Met in the competition that was aired on many NPR stations nationwide. A Rome native, Jamie earned her Bachelor of Music in voice performance from Shorter in 2004; she is currently in graduate school at Indiana University. Jamie is the fifth Shorter College music graduate to win this national competition. Other winners include Jacquelyn Benson-Kenley, Shorter College Class of 1968; Phebe Odom Settles, Shorter Class of 1971; Indra Thomas, Shorter Class of 1993; and Theresa Hamm-Smith, Shorter Class of 1996.   For additional information on Jamie’s success, click here.

Home sweet home : Construction begins on new 48-bed residence hall Shorter College announced in mid-March that it has signed a contract with Pinson’s Inc. of Rome to construct a new residence hall on the Rome campus. The estimated cost of constructing and furnishing the residence hall is $2.644 million; $1 million of the funds has been provided by the Georgia Baptist Convention.

The three-story apartment-style building will provide living space for an additional 48 students, according to President Harold E. Newman. “The residence hall construction project is a symbol of the positive growth of Shorter College. In the fall of 2006, we had 1,046 students enrolled in our traditional programs, which filled our existing residence halls to capacity. This new construction will allow us to be prepared for the 1,100 students we anticipate for Fall 2007,” Dr. Newman said.

The new residence hall will be located behind the Sheffield-Thompson building and west of Roberts Hall. Construction has begun with a target date for completion set at Aug. 15, 2007.

Scholarship endowment honors beloved Knights The Charles and Carole Lamar Fund of the Baton Rouge Area Foundation has made a $25,000 gift toward the endowment of the William and Mary Ann Knight Scholarship Competition. In addition to this gift, the foundation has issued a challenge grant, promising to match all additional amounts raised by the college up to $37,500.

Through other friends, the college has raised to date $11,810, and the Charles and Carole Lamar Fund has matched this amount, bringing the total current amount of the endowed competition to $48,620. The Lamar Fund’s gifts and challenge seeks to bring the total raised to $100,000.

Mrs. Lamar is the niece of Mr. Knight, retired distinguished professor of piano at Shorter. The Knights both have taught piano at Shorter College for more than 40 years. Mr. Knight retired in 2004; Mrs. Knight, still an active member of the music faculty, is in her 42 nd year at Shorter.

The Lamar Fund’s contributions will endow future scholarships; they also gave an additional $2,500 to fund the scholarships that were awarded during the Monday, March 5, competition.

Shorter College music majors compete each year in the Knight Performers’ Competition, vying for one of two scholarships awarded. There are two rounds of competition with two different panels of judges. The final round, which is open to the public, features finalists in both keyboard and voice; the winners are announced at the end of the evening’s event. The 2007 winners are Jonathan Easter in the keyboard competition and Andrew McLeod in the voice competition. Easter, a Roswell, Ga., native, is a junior majoring in organ performance and church music. He is a student of Dr. Peter DeWitt. A Calhoun, Ga., native, McLeod is a junior voice performance major. He studies voice with Dr. Linda Lister.

Pictured from left to right are: Dr. Harold E. Newman, president of Shorter College; Jonathan Easter, winner of the 2007 keyboard competition; Andrew McLeod, winner of the 2007 voice competition; and William and Mary Ann Knight.

“We are pleased by this generous support by the Lamar Fund of the Baton Rouge Area Foundation and hope that the many friends of music in our Shorter family will help us by responding to the challenge grant,” said Dr. Robert Shippey, Shorter’s vice president for institutional advancement. “Every dollar we receive will be matched by this foundation, so friends who love music and who have benefited from the Knights’ years at Shorter have an opportunity to give and have their gift matched. Through such generous support, the Knight Competition will continue to sustain the quality of talent that is the hallmark of the Shorter College School of the Arts.”

Contributions to the William and Mary Ann Knight Performers’ Scholarship may be sent to the Shorter College Office of Institutional Advancement, Campus Box 28, 315 Shorter Avenue, Rome, GA 30165.

School of Business reorganized With successful growth in both the traditional and professional studies business programs, Shorter’s School of Business has been divided into two representative schools. “This change will facilitate a number of exciting developments that are in process for both areas,” said Dr. Craig Shull, provost.

The traditional undergraduate business program is now the School of Business Administration with Dr. Robert “Dub” Darville serving as dean. Dr. Darville has served as a professor of accounting at Shorter since 1985.

The Professional Studies business programs are now organized in the School of Business Management with Dr. George Dupuy serving as dean. Dr. Dupuy has served as a professor of business and as dean of the former School of Business at Shorter College since 2004.

Rebuilding lives in New Orleans Though Shorter’s Spring Break has passed and the final weeks of spring courses have arrived, the memories and impacts from a Spring Break mission trip will remain. A group of Shorter students used the week to serve the citizens of New Orleans. Twenty-eight Shorter students, 2006 alumnus Jonathan Shaw and BCM campus minister, the Rev. David Roland, joined an additional 20 volunteers from West Rome Baptist Church and Berry College to participate in construction and worship opportunities in New Orleans from March 10 to 17.

Shorter’s team worked with the Baptist Crossroads Project, jointly coordinated by First Baptist of New Orleans and Habitat for Humanity. They stayed in residence halls at the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary while they helped the communities continue to rebuild.

“It’s such a blessing that churches continue to provide funding and resources for disaster relief so that groups like us can do this work,” said the Rev. Roland. “We received a great deal of support that has enabled us to bring more students and provide transportation, lodging, equipment and supplies.”

Some of Shorter’s team has planned a return trip for this summer when they will continue the rebuilding projects. To see other upcoming mission trips sponsored by Shorter’s Baptist Collegiate Ministries visit www.shorter.edu/student_life/bcm/missions_bcm.htm.

Smith to lead Shorter’s new sound Tom Smith, a highly respected conductor and scholar, has been named director of Shorter’s band program. In his career, Smith has formed more than 40 community and regional large music ensembles, has conducted award-winning bands at the university level, and has completed five Fulbright professorships in Romania. A talented trombonist, he has performed with artists ranging from Louie Bellson and the Manhattan Transfer to Marshall Crenshaw and Cher and from Henry Mancini and Tommy Dorsey to Gladys Knight and the Temptations. Read more at thsmith.com.

He will begin work in the early summer, recruiting and training students in the college’s inaugural band program. If you know of talented musicians who might be interested in band at Shorter, have them call Shorter’s Admissions Office at (706) 233-7319 or e-mail admissions@shorter.edu. Band scholarships are available for qualified students and may be added to academic scholarships and other financial aid.

Extreme Web site Makeover: Shorter Edition As promised in last month’s Virtually Shorter, your alma mater now has a new look for the entire Shorter College Web site. From enhanced admissions components to an alumni Web community, www.shorter.edu has fresh features, photographs and links that connect you back to campus. Please explore the Web pages and feel free to e-mail Web manager Dana Thompson at dthompson@shorter.edu and let her know if you have a question or suggestion.

Additional Online Updates:

Submit a Photo of the Week: An interactive component of Shorter College’s Web site redesign is the Photo of the Week. The Office of Institutional Relations invites you to submit great photos of the Shorter College experience for our Photo of the Week page. Photos taken on any of Shorter’s four campuses, at any Shorter College event or with any Shorter alumni are welcome.

Submissions should be e-mailed to Tracy Batchelor at tbatchelor@shorter.edu. Please only submit photos that you have taken and include your name along with a description of the photo. Each week the Office of Institutional Relations will then select one photo to be linked from the homepage as the college’s Photo of the Week. Whoever takes the photo will receive photo credit, and it will be a fun way to spread the news about current happenings connected to Shorter.

Please encourage fellow alumni to e-mail photo submissions from a visit with other alumni or a unique shot of campus. So keep your camera (or camera phone) handy, and e-mail a good photo to tbatchelor@shorter.edu soon!

Shorter Magazine Online: Although you should have already received it by mail, don’t forget that you can also read Shorter magazine online at www.shorter.edu/about/magazine.htm. From Dr. Carmen Acevedo Butcher (’82) being named Georgia Professor of the Year to the music department’s ‘spectacular next generation’ of faculty, and from a current student’s ties to medical missions in Ghana to photos of Homecoming and Alumni Weekend 2006, the current issue is ready to download in PDF format. As always, this issue includes class notes from fellow alumni that you won’t want to miss!

Alumni Web Community: What does Shorter’s alumni Web community provide? Find out for yourself by selecting the Alumni & Friends tab from Shorter’s homepage. From there (hawkspace.shorter.edu), alumni may sign up for access to an alumni directory, online event registration, personal giving history, alumni news submissions and online sign ups for Shorter Magazine and other campus publications.  Be sure to check back frequently because additional features such as a career center, personal pages, and a Shorter e-mail address for life will also be developed.

Music faculty member sings to national success Dr. Matthew Hoch, assistant professor of music, has been named one of two national recipients of the 2007 NATS Vocal Pedagogy Award. The award is presented annually by the Foundation of the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) to fund educational projects related to vocal pedagogy and voice science.

Dr. Hoch will use the grant to obtain teaching certification in Somatic Voicework Training, the only graduate-level certification course in the country devoted to the pedagogy of Contemporary Commercial Music (CCM). CCM pedagogy concerns the teaching of non-classical vocal styles including rock, pop, country, jazz, gospel and folk.

Dr. Hoch was inspired to pursue further education in this area because of the thriving musical theatre program at Shorter College.

Sudanese refugee speaks on the Hill Valentino Achak Deng, a refugee from Sudan’s civil war, spoke to students and faculty on Monday, March 19, in Brookes Chapel. Separated from his family as a child, Deng became a refugee in war-ravaged southern Sudan; he then endured 13 years of difficulty in Ethiopian and Kenyan refugee camps. Dave Eggers’ latest novel, What is the What, is a novelized autobiography of Deng, from his pre-war life in Marial Bai to his resettlement in the United States. Deng’s visit to Shorter is part of his national tour to discuss the novel and share his story with the public. To learn more about Deng and the novel, visit Deng’s Web site at www.valentinoachakdeng.com.

Reserve your ticket for Hawks Super Night April 13 at The Forum Shorter College’s football booster club will host the second annual Hawks Super Night at the Forum in Rome on Friday, April 13, at 6 p.m. The event will feature legendary University of Georgia football coach Vince Dooley as the keynote speaker and will also include a silent auction, catered dinner and live auction featuring sports items, services and gift certificates. The event is open to the all alumni, parents, fans and community members. “This is sure to be one of the premier events in Rome this year,” said football booster club president Bo Hamil. “Last year, we raised over $30,000 to support the football team, and with someone like Vince Dooley coming in, this year’s event promises to be even better.”

During his 25-year coaching career at UGA, Dooley compiled a 201-77-10 record. His teams won six Southeastern Conference titles and the 1980 National Championship. After the 1980 season, Dooley was recognized as college football's "Coach of the Year" by several organizations, including the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association. Dooley's teams were known for their hard-nosed defense and conservative, yet fundamentally sound, offenses.

During his 25-year coaching career at UGA, Dooley compiled a 201-77-10 record. His teams won six Southeastern Conference titles and the 1980 National Championship. After the 1980 season, Dooley was recognized as college football's "Coach of the Year" by several organizations, including the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association. Dooley's teams were known for their hard-nosed defense and conservative, yet fundamentally sound, offenses.

There are three levels of entry into the event: corporate sponsorship ($1,500), table sponsor ($700), and individual tickets ($60). They can be purchased from Shorter College’s box office manager Cindy Gomez at (706) 233-7448.

Outback Steakhouse and 95.7 The Ridge are the sponsors for the event.

Athletic leadership restructured Shorter College President Harold E. Newman announced the restructuring of the college’s athletic leadership team, effective March 16. Seasoned business executive Bill Peterson will now serve as Athletic Director, overseeing the college’s intercollegiate athletics program.

Previously, he was president and co-founder of Horizon Medical Products, a publicly traded corporation headquartered in Atlanta. Under his direction, that organization grew to more than $75 million in sales and 150 employees. Peterson has also served as a National Board member of Florida State University’s Seminole Booster organization and is a certified public accountant.

“Shorter’s athletic programs have grown exponentially over recent years, and we are fortunate to have a person with Coach Peterson’s business expertise to serve in an executive role within our athletic program,” Dr. Newman said. “His administrative skills and experience leading a large organization will be extremely valuable to Shorter College.” The college now fields 16 intercollegiate teams that include more than 420 athletes.

Ricci Lattanzi, who has served as the college’s athletic director, will now become Director of Operations for the department. He will be involved in many of the hands-on operations of the athletic department, including game day operations, facilities management, concessions and community relations.

As the college’s athletic director, Lattanzi has overseen the growth of the program from approximately 85 student-athletes to the current levels. He has twice been named Athletic Director of the Year and is given credit for bringing a number of sports onto the Shorter campus. During his tenure, Shorter has added cross country, football, soccer, softball, track and field, and volleyball.

“Ricci Lattanzi has guided Shorter’s athletic programs through a crucial growth phase, and we are grateful for his many significant contributions to the success of Shorter College,” Dr. Newman said. “He excels in the day-to-day operations of our many sports, and the new structure will allow him to focus his energies in that area.”

In addition to these changes, Phil Jones, head coach for football, and Vic Mitchell, head coach for women’s basketball, have been named Senior Associate Athletic Directors. Both will continue their head coaching duties.

Lady Hawks on par at two tournaments Shorter’s golf team recently won first place at the West Georgia Invitational on March 27. Shorter Lady Hawk Daniela Vargas fired a tournament-best 73 during round two at the Oak Mountain Championship Golf Course to upend West Georgia's top golfer by two strokes. Vargas and the Shorter Hawks ran away with the tournament, beating the field by 32 strokes.

In the team tournament, Shorter led after day one by an eight-stroke margin. But on day two, every player scored less than 88, and the Hawks finished the second round with a tournament-best round of 322. Over the two days, Shorter had a combined total of 651.

Additionally, the women’s golf team had an incredible showing at the Savannah College of Art and Design Invitational on March 5 and 6, finishing second in the overall tournament, and Daniela Vargas finishing second overall.

Remember to catch all the Hawks’ upcoming game schedules and scores online at athletics.shorter.edu.

“We couldn’t be more happy about our third season,” said head coach Phil Jones. “We’re hoping to put ourselves in position to be contenders for a conference title, and our non-conference games should be just as exciting.”

The Hawks’ season begins with two away games against NCAA Division II opponents: Brevard College on Sept. 2 and Stillman College on Sept. 9.

The Hawks will play their first game at home on Sept. 15 against NCAA Division III LaGrange College in the Battle for the Governor’s Cup. As part of the day’s festivities, the winning team will be presented the “Governor’s Cup,” emblematic of Georgia’s small college football champion. It will then reside at the winning school until next year’s game. In addition to the trophy presentation, this day will also be “Legislative Day” at Barron Stadium, where legislators from all over the state will be honored. To show Shorter’s appreciation for the local school system, senior high students from Rome and Floyd County schools will also be admitted free to this opening day event.

After traveling to Campbellsville University on Sept. 22, the Hawks will play Union College ( Ky.) on Sept. 29 for Homecoming and Alumni Weekend. Shorter College’s homecoming king and queen will be crowned during halftime of the game, and alumni activities are currently being planned.

On Oct. 6, Shorter will face West Virginia Tech for Championship Saturday and Boy Scouts Day. All boy scouts in uniform will be admitted free to this event and past and present championship teams from Shorter College will be celebrated. The Hawks will then travel to Georgetown College on Oct. 13 and Belhaven College on Oct. 20.

Youth Football/Cheerleading Night will take place during the Hawks’ special Thursday night game this season on Oct. 25 against Bethel College at 7 p.m. This night will feature youth teams and cheerleaders from the Greater Rome Area and every youth in uniform will be admitted free. Weather permitting, youth teams will play mini-games both before the game and at half time.

After their final away game on Nov. 3 against Cumberland University, the Shorter Hawks will play their final game of the season at home on Nov. 10 against Lambuth University. In addition to honoring Shorter’s senior football players and their parents, this day will honor our military personnel. Senior high school students from Bartow, Polk, Chattooga and Gordon county schools will also be invited to attend this final game for free.

If you’re already excited about next fall’s schedule, visit www.hawksbooster.com to find out how you can get involved to support the Hawks.

UPCOMING ALUMNI EVENTS

For more information on the events below, visit Hawkspace, call the Alumni Office at (800) 868-6980, ext. 7353 or (706) 233-7353 or e-mail sgraves@shorter.edu.

Second Annual Hawks Super Night Dinner & Auction (football booster club fund-raiser)
Friday, April 13, at the Forum
Keynote speaker: Vince Dooley

For sponsorship and ticket information, visit athletics.shorter.edu or contact the Shorter Box Office at cgomez@shorter.edu or (706) 233-7288.

Sunday at Shorter (Prospective student event)
Sunday, April 15, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m., Rome campus

For information contact Rebekah Moody at rmoody@shorter.edu.

Conversations with President Harold Newman
A conversation with Dr. Harold Newman & Mini-Recital by Shorter's New Music Faculty
Thursday, May 3, 2:00 p.m.
For more information, please contact Carol Kirby at (706) 233-7242 or ckirby@shorter.edu.

Spring Commencement
Saturday, May 5, Winthrop-King Centre
10 a.m. keynote speaker: Dr. Jamil S. Zainaldin , President of the Georgia Humanities Council
2 p.m. keynote speaker: David Hankerson, CEO for Georgia’s Cobb County

MARK YOUR CALENDARS NOW

Check this e-newsletter and your mailbox for details to come.

Homecoming & Alumni Weekend
Sept. 28-29, 2007

This year's theme is "Plug In," so be sure you get plugged in to all the exciting events happening during the weekend.

Also, if you graduated in a year ending in 2 or 7, this is your reunion year! Please be on the lookout for communications from your classmates regarding class reunion plans. Also, we still need volunteers to serve on class reunion planning committees! If you would like to help plan your class reunion, please contact Stephanie Graves, sgraves@shorter.edu or (706) 233-7305.

Reunion celebrating 40 years of the Shorter Chorale
Nov. 9-10, 2007

SHORTER ALUMNI BENEFITS

Liberty Mutual: Savings on auto and homeowner’s insurance to Shorter alumni

For a free, no-obligation rate quote, call Beth Blalock at (770) 924-6464 x 206 or e-mail Beth.Blalock@LibertyMutual.com.

"I've switched my homeowner's and automobile insurance to Liberty Mutual. Not only does Shorter receive a portion of my payments, but coupled with the discount for alumni, I've realized an annual savings of more than $1,300. I've also made a new friend in Beth Blalock, who
is Liberty Mutual’s quote representative for Shorter.”
Shorter alumnus Clark Samples (’71)

Shorter College Alumni Association
Platinum Plus MasterCard Credit Card

"The Bank of America credit card is a wonderful tool for alumni to promote Shorter through name recognition. Every time I present the card, a new person sees the Shorter College name, and often asks about the college.
Shorter alumna Patsy Drummond (’62)

Travel Benefits: Savings on resort vacation
condominium rentals for Shorter alumni

To review available locations and dates as well as booking information, visit www.alumnitravelbenefits.com/shorter.asp or call (888) 729-3842. Use Shorter’s code AGA-002.

"We had a wonderful trip to Disney World! The condo through Alumni Travel Benefits was beautiful; it exceeded our expectations in every way!”
Shorter alumna Tina Chapman (’04)

Got news? Maybe a new job or a new baby? Recently married? Share the good news with your friends through class notes in Shorter magazine. E-mail your news to ckirby@shorter.edu . Be sure to include your full name, class year, e-mail address, mailing address and phone number. Please let fellow alumni know that they can subscribe to Virtually Shorter by visiting Shorter's alumni web community Hawkspace. You also can reach the Alumni Office at (800) 868-6980.

Virtually Shorter is compiled by the Office of Institutional Relations. If you have questions, comments or suggestions for our e-newsletter, e-mail Tracy Batchelor at tbatchelor@shorter.edu.

Read past Virtually Shorter issues.