Sewanee News

Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe will preach and the Rt. Rev. Dr. Jacob Owensby will preside at both services in All Saints’ Chapel on Sunday, Jan. 26. The services are Rite 1 Holy Eucharist at 8 a.m. and Rite 2 Holy Eucharist at 11 a.m. A reception following the 11 a.m. Eucharist will be held in Convocation Hall. Additionally, a public panel discussion will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 26, also in Convocation Hall. The discussion will feature Presiding Bishop Rowe, Chancellor Owensby, and Vice-Chancellor Rob Pearigen. The entire community is welcome and encouraged to attend.

The University’s Easter Convocation will be held at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 17. New members will be inducted into the Order of the Gown, and the teaching and scholarship of the faculty will also be recognized and honored with a convocation address delivered by a member of the University faculty. This year’s remarks will be given by Professor of Biology David Haskell.

Sewanee's 65th Festival of Lessons and Carols was celebrated at All Saints' Chapel at three services on Saturday, Dec. 7, and Sunday, Dec. 8. In addition to the students, staff, and faculty of the University, the service was open to the broader community in Sewanee and beyond. A video recording of the 7 p.m. service on Dec. 7 is available online.

The Babson Center for Global Commerce welcomes Blair Overman, C’07, to campus as an Advent 2024 Bryan Viewpoints Speaker. Overman is the principal and chief operating officer of Andart Global, a boutique consulting firm based in Dubai that focuses on the space, tourism, technology, and sustainability sectors. While on campus, she will meet with students and deliver a presentation in which she will reflect on how her own career, which has spanned multiple industries and continents, illustrates the importance of embracing change and following your passions.

Her presentation, "Sailing the Uncharted Course: Reimagining the Typical Business Career Track," will take place at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 24, in the Torian Room in duPont Library. All are welcome to attend this event co-sponsored by the Department of Politics, the Department of English, and the Office of Civic Engagement.

Nine members of the Class of 2025 have been elected to membership in Phi Beta Kappa. The initiation ceremony was held on Thursday, Sept. 29. Election to Phi Beta Kappa is perhaps the most prized honor a college student can receive. Members are elected on the basis of high scholarship, good moral character, and vital interest in the educational progress of the College.

The University of the South held an Opening Convocation on Friday, Sept. 27, to induct new members into the Order of the Gown, announce the recipients of awards and prizes, and install Scott Wilson as University provost. The ceremony featured a convocation address given by Vice-Chancellor Rob Pearigen, titled “Baffled Minds and Impeded Streams.”

Among the 22 new professors joining the College this semester is Sewanee’s first-ever faculty cohort: the Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation (TRHT) Scholars. Hired as a cohort, the three new tenure-track professors will be affiliated with the University’s TRHT Center. The cohort includes: Assistant Professor of Politics and Women's and Gender Studies Cecilia Cerja, Assistant Professor of English Britt Threatt, and Assistant Professor of Theatre Jordan Vera.

The University of the South will hold the Foundation Day Convocation on Friday, Sept. 27, coinciding with Family Weekend. Vice-Chancellor Rob Pearigen will give the Convocation address. The ceremony, which will be held at 4:30 p.m. in All Saints' Chapel, will include the installation of Scott Wilson as provost and the induction of new members into the Order of the Gown. The Convocation will be livestreamed.

The Sewanee Athletics community gathered at the Sewanee Inn on Sept. 13 to celebrate the induction of five new members into the Sewanee Athletics Hall of Fame. It was an evening filled with recognition, reflection, and a sense of pride for the University's athletic legacy.

At their meeting on Sept. 12, the University’s Board of Regents elected Dr. Renia Dotson, C’88, to serve a two-year term as chair. Currently the director of the Center for Public Health Transformation at the Mississippi State Department of Health, Dotson has extensive experience as a surgeon and as a leader in Mississippi healthcare. Dotson began her term on the Board of Regents in 2018 and was named vice chair in 2023. She succeeds Jim Folds, C’86, who served as chair from 2022 to 2024.

The Clery Center has awarded the University of the South its 2024 Campus Safety Impact Award for a program spearheaded by the University’s Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. The Clery Center guides institutions of higher education to implement effective campus safety measures, and the Campus Safety Impact Award highlights a program or initiative at an institution of higher education that demonstrates innovation, collaboration, and equity in enhancing safety on campus. The C.P.R. (Compliance, Prevention, and Resources) in Action Initiative was established at Sewanee in 2021 to address sexual violence and improve the overall safety and well-being of students.

Vice-Chancellor Rob Pearigen and Chancellor Jacob W. Owensby have announced the appointment of the Rev. Dr. Nancee Martin as interim University chaplain. Martin will begin her service on Oct. 1. A graduate of the School of Theology (M.Div. in 2000 and D.Min. in 2008), Martin currently serves on the Alumni Council of the School of Theology and has served on the Board of Trustees and the Board of Regents. Martin succeeds the Rev. Peter Gray, who served as University chaplain from 2020 to 2024.

The Humphreys Entrepreneur-in-Residence program brings outstanding and innovative business leaders and entrepreneurs to the University to provide experiential perspectives to undergraduates. The founder of his eponymous shoe company, Weitzman designed and sold his shoes for more than 50 years. His entrepreneurial spirit and creativity launched his company into over 70 countries with celebrities like Beyoncé, Kate Middleton, and Taylor Swift, wearing his shoes on the red carpet, on volleyball courts, in sold-out arenas, and beyond. While on campus, he will meet with students and deliver a presentation, “Be Courageous: Entrepreneurship Insights with Former Designer & CEO Stuart Weitzman,” at 4:30 p.m., Monday, Sept. 9, in Convocation Hall.

The Office of the Dean of the College has announced the appointment of 22 new faculty members for the 2024-25 academic year.

The Sewanee Summer Music Festival has announced its new artistic and executive director, Dr. Hillary Herndon. A nationally renowned violist with degrees from both Juilliard and the University of Rochester's Eastman School of Music, Herndon has been a professor of viola at the University of Tennessee (Knoxville) for more than fifteen years and has taught at Eastman and at multiple national festivals.

Vice-Chancellor Rob Pearigen announced the appointment of the Rev. Leigh Preston as interim associate university chaplain in an email to campus this morning. Preston will begin her service on July 1, 2024. "Among a talented field of candidates, including clergy from three different countries and representing 12 Episcopal dioceses, Leigh stood out as a leader who couples pastoral warmth and care with a deep investment in the lives and experiences of students at both the College and the School of Theology," Pearigen wrote. "She is a respected leader in Latinx ministry across the Episcopal Church, and an ally and advocate in helping the church that she serves share the Gospel of Christ and be ever more inclusive and just. Having been shaped by the Episcopal campus ministry at the University of Georgia and Peterkin summer camp in the mountains of West Virginia, she brings enthusiasm for the many ways that an adaptive church can support the spiritual lives of young adults."