As I prepared this message, I reflected on the words I wrote for my 2020 New Year’s where I discussed our vision for the next ten years for Converse and noted that, “2020 will be a pivotal year for Converse. It will deepen our commitment to developing a vibrant community, expanding our tradition of academic excellence, and working together to ensure a strong and sustainable future for Converse.”

Well, here we are, at the close of one the most unusual years we have ever seen and I can honestly say it has been quite the pivotal year. But, my message for 2020 remains true today.

We were driven to adapt and evolve – from classrooms to residence halls to food service to the very way we provided Converse’s distinctive educational experience to our students. Because of the hard work of our campus community, the College was able to successfully navigate the return to campus during an unprecedented year. It is clear to me that despite the challenges we faced, Converse was able to support a healthy learning and living environment – together.

In addition to successfully operating this fall during a pandemic, Converse celebrated a number of institutional achievements, including:

• We marked the 20th anniversary of the Nisbet Honors Program thanks to the overwhelming generosity of Class of 1962 alumna, Marian McGowan Nisbet ’62;
• We added a new Master of Management in Professional Leadership Program and a degree completion program in Child and Family Studies alongside our degree completion program in business administration;
• We expanded our Master’s in Marriage and Family Therapy program to our University Center of Greenville site with the help of a $90,000 grant from the Fullerton Foundation;
• We added 5 new men’s teams to our 12 NCAA Division II women’s teams, including Men’s Basketball, Cross Country, Soccer, Tennis, and Track & Field. We also transitioned our Equestrian program to include men and we hired our new eSports coach to lead a co-ed team;
• We received $145,000 from Bank of America to support the upfitting of Converse’s new data analytics laboratory in support of our new data analytics program;
• We partnered with Spartanburg District Seven to create the Valkyrie Middle College, a new dual enrollment program for highly-qualified high school students who wish to become K-12 educators;
• We received a National Institute of Health grant for $750,000 to support our faculty-led biomedical research and to expand research opportunities for our students;
• We launched the Converse Guarantee, a program guaranteeing that our undergraduate students will graduate in 4 years and gain employment or graduate school acceptance within 6 months after graduation;
• We implemented a tuition freeze, reaffirming our commitment to affordability and accessibility during this difficult time;
• We received a $2 million unrestricted gift to support the educational mission of the College;
• We increased the enrollment in our doctorate degree program to 86;
• We completed a market study and have begun a strong marketing plan. You may have seen our billboards along Interstate 85 and in the Upstate.

And, despite all of the changes, we were thrilled to see that our alumni stepped up and increased their giving this year and helped us to once again break records for Rock the Tower, our annual giving day.

As we look to 2021, we will continue the work we are doing to make Converse a stronger university and one that is a destination of pride nationally and internationally.

The difficult decisions we made in 2020 have made us stronger and more resilient during this pandemic and have placed Converse on the path to be a thriving institution in the decades to come.

Merriam-Webster revealed that their word of the year for 2020 is “pandemic.” But for Converse I believe that our word of the year is “together.” Together we took on the challenge to return to campus during a pandemic and we did so with a positive, can-do attitude. Together, we successfully and safely adapted to meet and learn in this new environment, taking care of each other by following our safety guidelines. Together, we supported each other and grew as a community.

As we plan for the rollout of our name change to Converse University on July 1, 2021, we have begun the introduction of a new brand and marketing campaign for Converse that captures the energy and optimism our campus has for the future as well as Converse’s “can do” attitude.

That is why we chose the battle cry “We Will”. This message highlights that we will be agents of transformation, never standing still and refusing to be complacent. We will foster the future leadership of this country by helping our students find the power of their own voices and then teaching them how to use their voices to make a real difference. We will provide a rich educational experience that is accessible to all qualified students. We will demonstrate to each other and our community that we are born of creativity and ingenuity, as we innovate, problem-solve and mentor the groundbreaking and ceiling-smashing leaders of tomorrow. We will embrace the diversity and perspectives of all while providing a supportive community. And we will do all of these things together – as a student-focused community of scholars.

Together, we will celebrate one another, and we will lift each other up, and by doing so we will drive our institution, our city, and our region forward.

Together we will become nationally recognized as an excellent doctoral university, acclaimed as a center for creative thinking and learning, and will set the bar for how a community can produce engaged citizens who effect positive change. We are who we are at Converse because of our community, and our commitment to each other and our collective success.

I am immensely grateful for each student, faculty and staff member, parent, alumni, and friend. Thank you for your love and support of Converse.

SUMTER, S.C. (courtesy morris.edu) — Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS) and Morris College are partnering to provide extensive resources for their students through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) agreement that also trains candidates for SRNS jobs at the Savannah River Site (SRS).

The extensive list of resources includes funding for scholarships, paid internships, and computers donated by SRNS to Morris College.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has been particularly difficult for a significant percentage of college students across the nation,” said Stuart MacVean, SRNS President and CEO. “We’re confident that this MOU with Morris College will provide much needed assistance for many of their students while ensuring that our pipeline of qualified job candidates will continue to be ready to draw from over time.”

To date, SRNS officials have established MOUs with 17 local colleges, universities and veteran programs, including MOUs recently signed with Benedict College, Denmark Technical College, Voorhees College, and Allen University.

“We are looking forward to working closely with interns from all of these colleges and universities,” said MacVean. “We realize that internships often lead to employment, and we’re confident this will be true for many of the students who choose to learn about and gain experience within our company.”

The last five MOUs signed with Historically Black Colleges and Universities offered potential tours of SRS for students and faculty (post-COVID); provided subject matter experts to serve as advisors and/or mentors; and offered a series of workshops to help students improve their resume writing, and job interview skills.

Also, as a result of the agreements, SRNS personnel will promote careers and degree programs related to current and potential future workforce needs associated with cybersecurity, engineering, and business management. This information will be available at www.savannahrivernuclearsolutions.com.

In return, Morris College officials will collaborate with SRNS personnel to ensure curriculum alignment with existing missions and workforce requirements at SRS.

“We are looking forward to a long-term partnership with SRNS,” said Morris College President Leroy Staggers. “We are pleased with their desire to assist our students with their occupational plans and needs, now and upon graduation as many will seek rewarding careers at the Savannah River Site. This MOU reflects our continual desire to make excellence a hallmark of Morris College.”

Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, a Fluor-led company with Newport News Nuclear and Honeywell, is responsible for the management and operations of the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site, including the Savannah River National Laboratory, located near Aiken, S.C.

TIGERVILLE, S.C. (courtesy ngu.edu) North Greenville University (NGU) and OneLifeX (OLX) have aligned to provide OLX students with innovative hands-on coursework. The partnership, which begins this academic year, will equip students with skills to not only get started in a career but instill passion and rapid progression in a profession.

OLX, based in Marietta, S.C., is an eight-month Christian entrepreneurship camp (gap year experience) designed to teach a small group of inspiring young leaders how to start and run a business all while earning credits towards their college degree.

The program’s mission is to take students and equip them in new life skills needed to not only get started in a business career but also to progress rapidly through it — all while improving themselves personally and discovering a hidden passion for what is beyond them. The business of OLX is to empower the next generation of leaders to perform past what is required of them and stay focused on their true reason for life in Christ and the marketplace.

“In our search for the ideal institutional partner, we looked for an organization that would help hone the primary tenets of OLX: discovering unique giftedness, develop emerging leaders, and deploy them into their God-given calling,” said OLX Founder and CEO Peter Sullivan. “We hoped to find a university that would mirror our vision for this experience, and in doing so, we found North Greenville University to be the perfect fit as it is truly where Christ makes a difference. We resonate with Dr. Fant’s passion for developing programs where we have the honor of shaping and influencing lives providing life-changing opportunities and cultivating transformational leaders.”

Sullivan says the NGU and OLX partnership will together make a difference on this planet for Christ, equipping students who will be not be defined by what they extract, but by what they give.

“OneLifeX is the outgrowth of an audacious vision for young people who have a heart for God,” said NGU President Dr. Gene C. Fant, Jr. “We are incredibly privileged to partner with them as this entrepreneurial ministry launches this new phase of their programs and look forward to seeing how God uses this partnership for many years to come.”

OLX students will live and complete their coursework at the Marietta-based camp. Students will begin their college transcript by earning full college credit, which may be transferred to other colleges and universities according to their institutional policies for accepting credit.

“We are thrilled to be able to enter into a strategic alliance with OneLifeX to provide coursework for this unique training and development program. It will prepare groups of emerging leaders to become successful entrepreneurs and have a Kingdom impact in the marketplace through their business endeavors,” said NGU Dean of the College of Business and Entrepreneurship Dr. John Duncan.

Duncan says students will earn nine semester hours of credit in marketing, management, and entrepreneurship, and they may choose to take additional courses from NGU in an online format. At the same time, they make their way through the one-year program.

“This is another excellent opportunity for us to fulfill the mission of the College of Business & Entrepreneurship to honor God by transforming students into innovative thinkers and entrepreneurial problem-solvers who create value that leads to human flourishing in a dynamic marketplace,” Duncan said.

NGU will provide courses in Principles of Marketing, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and Management Directed Internship. NGU, consistent with requirements for regional accreditation, will be responsible for the institutional and academic oversight of all courses offered.

“At the end of the program, the participants may choose to launch the businesses that they have been working to create and work full-time, or they may choose to go back to college to complete a degree. We hope that some of the participants will choose to continue their education at NGU,” said Duncan.

To learn more about NGU’s nationally recognized academic programs, visit ngu.edu/academics.

GAFFNEY, S.C. (courtesy limstone.edu) — The curtain will rise on the 2020-2021 season for the Limestone University Department of Theatre with two virtual performances this fall, followed by at least one live stage production in the spring.

It was recently announced that due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, Limestone’s Department of Theatre will open its new season November 6-7 (changed from October 9-10) by streaming William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” and that will be followed by an online performance of “Beehive: The 60’s Musical” running November 15-18.

The University’s actors hope to get back in front of live audiences in early 2021 with four performances of “Silent Sky” scheduled for February 25-28 inside Limestone Theatre. A second live production might also be added in the spring, according to Limestone Theatre officials.

“This season and performance venues are subject to change as current projections on the COVID-19 pandemic are updated,” said Dr. Tim Baxter-Ferguson, Director of Theatre and Musical Theatre. “The faculty and staff of Limestone University Theatre and Limestone University know that safety is the first priority, and we will make any changes as necessary. We appreciate the continued support from the University and the Gaffney community.”

Limestone Assistant Professor of Theatre Bill West-Davis noted that Limestone University Theatre has worked extremely hard to make the 2020-2021 season possible.

“I am very happy and relieved that we’re able to have a season,” West-Davis said. “A lot of larger universities have had to change their season or cancel completely due to having a larger student population. Fortunately for us, our small program size allows us to continue making art and educating our students in a safe environment. We look forward to having three – and possibly four – very distinctive shows for this academic year.”

“Hamlet” will be a filmed performance adapted by Baxter-Ferguson, who will serve as Director. Adapted for the contemporary era, it will stream via showtix4u.com (link is external). Tickets will be available for purchase soon. Set in Denmark, the play depicts Prince Hamlet and his revenge against his uncle, Claudius, who has murdered Hamlet’s father in order to seize his throne and marry Hamlet’s mother.

“I had wanted to revisit Hamlet for some time,” said Baxter-Ferguson. “We had performed what is arguably Shakespeare’s greatest play some twelve years ago before we had our new theatre space. During the COVID pandemic shutdown, I had a lot of time to think, like all of us, about the toxicity in our country; the unerring belied that we are right and just and anyone else is wrong. We are no longer a country that seeks consensus through careful debate, but instead seeks affirmation through bullying. The loudest voice wins. And, like all of us, I felt it painful to be online. The hatred and discourse were deafening. So, I thought, there’s something there that can connect to Hamlet’s quest for vengeance. Something to explore through the lens of social media politics, and discourse.

“Because of COVID, we had to figure out a way to do theatre and keep our students as safe as possible,” he continued. “The idea of doing ‘Hamlet’ as an exploration of toxic social media came up. It allows us to provide the production like a film and explore both the contemporary issues we all are facing, along with the issues that Shakespeare was illuminating.”

“Beehive: The 60’s Musical” was created by Larry Gallagher and will be directed by Baxter-Ferguson, with music direction by Professor of Music Dr. David Thompson. It will stream November 15-18 at 7 p.m. each day. The streaming platform and ticket information will be announced soon.

Told from the perspective of six young women who come of age in this enigmatic decade, the production celebrates the powerful female voices of the 1960’s with such timeless hits as “My Boyfriend’s Back,” “Be My Baby,” “Son of a Preacher Man,” and “Me and Bobby McGee.”

“I’m so excited to work on this fabulous show,” Thompson said. “I have always been a fan of the great music of the 1960’s, with its powerful females singing us through this everchanging decade. This fast-paced show will certainly have the audience singing and dancing in their seats.”

“Silent Sky” by Lauren Gunderson will have Ashley West-Davis step into the role of Director. Unless plans change due to the COVID pandemic, the live performances will run at 8 p.m. February 25-27, and at 3 p.m. on February 28. Tickets will be on sale soon at showtix4u.com (link is external)..

The true story of 19th-century astronomer Henrietta Leavitt explores a woman’s place in society during a time of immense scientific discoveries, when women’s ideas were dismissed until men claimed credit for them.

“I am thrilled to be making my directorial debut at Limestone University,” Ashley West-Davis noted. “‘Silent Sky’ is an exploration of the life of one of science’s first female astronomers, Henrietta Leavitt. In an age where women were not allowed to vote, much less touch a telescope, we follow Ms. Leavitt as she makes groundbreaking discoveries in astronomy that remain important today.”

For more information on Limestone Theatre, visit limestone.edu/theatre.