Here are a few stories to watch for in the new year among some of the local area colleges and universities. Liberty University On Jan. 18, businessman Donald Trump is set to be the latest in a parade of presidential candidates appearing at one of Liberty University’s thrice-weekly student convocations in the Vines Center. Earlier this fall, prospects looked good for Liberty University to host a GOP sponsored debate in February, but party leaders instead opted to hold the debate in South Carolina, a decision that flowed from choosing Fox Business as the network host for the event.
President Jerry Falwell Jr. suggested last month Liberty might host a candidates’ forum in February, and the GOP may be interested in holding a debate at Liberty in the spring if there still is a serious contest for the nomination after March 16.
In an email Tuesday, Executive Vice President Randy Smith said the school does not have any candidate forum in February planned.
“That could change, but I don’t anticipate it,” Smith wrote.
Liberty University will, however, host the Commonwealth Games for the first time this summer. The games feature a wide variety of amateur sports competitions, with nearly 70 sports open to people of all ages. Most of the events will occur in the Lynchburg area, and many will be at Liberty. The main weekend will be July 22 to 24.
As far as construction goes, the school plans to complete its Residence Commons II this month in time for the start of the semester. The building partially was in use during the fall. The school is in the process of demolishing old dormitories and plans to pull down the last one after this spring’s graduation.
Six new tennis courts with additional seating and a new restroom building are set to be complete this summer and a new auditorium wing of the Center for Music and Worship Arts should be ready for use by then.
The DeMoss Student center is on target to open for the fall semester and the new indoor track should be done by Nov. 1. The new Freedom Tower won’t be finished until 2017.
Lynchburg College
Lynchburg College hopes to renovate the organ in its landmark Snidow Chapel for the chapel’s 50th anniversary.
Local alumni couple Larry and Betty Arrington donated $100,000 and challenged the rest of the Lynchburg College community to raise another $125,000 needed for the repair. A $50,000 grant will count toward that, so the school now is looking for gifts to cover the remaining $75,000. Lynchburg College hopes to do the work during the summer.
“The renovation will repair some problems that the organ has developed in recent years,” college spokesman Bryan Gentry wrote in an email. “Some keys and stops no longer work, meaning that those who play the organ have to ‘play around the problem’ a bit. The music department faculty members hope the repair will allow them to hold more organ recitals with guest artists, as well as provide a more reliable instrument for students who want to learn the organ.”
The organ console, where the organist sits, will become moveable, allowing flexibility for different kinds of performances.
School leaders continue to work on the school’s new strategic plan. The Board of Trustees will take a look at a draft of the plan in February to provide feedback and could vote on adoption as early as May.
That’s likely the soonest leaders might come to a decision about a possible name change for the school, which is part of the strategic planning process. Lynchburg College, which has a growing range of graduate programs, is considering calling itself a university instead of a college.
Sweet Briar College
Sweet Briar College is busy working to recover from the attempted closure of the school in 2015 by the school’s former leaders.
In a Dec. 18 email, Sweet Briar staff projected it is likely to see an increase over fall enrollment this spring. At that point, the school had received 19 commitments to return from students who transferred to other schools for the fall semester, as well as deposits from six new students.
The school is planning to make reunion an all-classes event, rather than just for certain graduating years. It is set for June 3 to 5.
Central Virginia Community College
This year, CVCC is expanding the Student Assistance and Intervention for Learning Success online system. The SAILS system is meant to help faculty identify students struggling in their classes and to direct students to help. Likewise, faculty can use the system to send congratulations to students doing well.
CVCC also is making a special effort to increase the number of courses that do not require the purchase of textbooks.
Several new career studies certificates are anticipated to debut this year. Those include Energy Technology and Industrial Maintenance. Solar Energy and Cybersecurity likely are coming in the fall semester.
Randolph College
Randolph will celebrate its 125th anniversary this year with a variety of events and activities.
On Jan. 22, the school’s Maier Museum will host an opening reception for a special exhibit highlighting the top 125 paintings in the college’s collection.
The actual anniversary of the founding falls on March 10, during spring break, but the school nonetheless plans to celebrate with faculty, staff and students still in the area. Up to 40 birthday parties will take place in other locations around the country and provide an opportunity for alumni and students traveling on break to gather and celebrate.
The school’s homecoming Oct. 8 will serve as the culminating event of the anniversary celebration.
The college is planning to bring back its Pearl S. Buck Award, which has honored women such as former President of the Philippines Corazon Aquino and architect Maya Lin. The plan for now is to resurrect the award this year in honor of the anniversary, but it may return for other special occasions or landmark years.
