Author Archive
Oglethorpe to Award Three Honorary Degrees at May 7 Commencement
Posted by: | April 15, 2011 | Comments
Researcher and author Dr. Richard Wrangham is a trustee of the Jane Goodall Institute and a former trustee of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund.
Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed
The Oglethorpe University 2011 commencement ceremony will be held on Saturday, May 7, 2011 at 9:00 a.m., on the academic quadrangle of the OU campus. President Larry Schall will preside over the ceremony that will honor more than 250 graduating students.
This year, Oglethorpe will present honorary degrees to three distinguished members of the civic and academic worlds:
Award-winning poet Linda Bierds
- Award-winning poet and University of Washington Professor of English Linda Bierds will receive a Doctor of Letters honorary degree.
- The Honorable Kasim Reed, Mayor of Atlanta, will receive a Doctor of Laws honorary degree.
- Dr. Richard Wrangham, the Ruth Moore Professor of Anthropology and Chair of Biological Anthropology at Harvard University, will receive a Doctor of Sciences honorary degree.
Additional commencement ceremony details may be found at www.oglethorpe.edu/commencement. Read More→
OU Student’s Internship Offers Real World Experience
Posted by: | December 07, 2010 | Comments
OU junior Nicole Kang curated and organized the art exhibit "Push It" at Chastain Arts Center and Gallery.
More than half of college students nationwide complete internships, making the experience an essential credential for competition in the current job market. Oglethorpe places a high priority on providing opportunities for students to gain practical experience through internships and other experiential learning.
Here, studio art major Nicole Kang ’12 shares her internship experience:
I am currently the head intern at Atlanta’s oldest gallery, Chastain Arts Center and Gallery. The gallery director, my supervisor, asked me to curate and organize a college student show inbetween major exhibits at our gallery. In this exhibit, the student work was pinned on the gallery walls by the students themselves—hence the title of the exhibit, “Push It.”
As students expressed interest in participating, I was in charge of jurying the pieces that could be part of the exhibit. I wanted the show to feel dynamic and exciting, so I selected works that varied in media, size, colors, and concepts. After denying and approving images of works for the show, I kept the participants in close contact to provide them with information and procedures. To market the event, I created fliers and posted them across the Oglethorpe campus and throughout the arts center. Through Facebook, I was able to announce the event and invite everyone and anyone I knew.
Everything came together on the day of the opening reception on November 12. Right after classes, I spent the day at the Center setting up food, drinks, and waiting for participants to arrive one by one with their works. I directed the participants with the arrangement of their works in the gallery space, and made sure that all of their works were properly catalogued. In all, the show included between two and eight works of art from 20 different student artists, including photography, drawing, painting, prints, and mixed media. Several students ended up selling some of their works. I played the role as the intermediary between the artist and the buyer.
The show attracted 130 people. I made sure to greet and introduce myself to all of the groups that came to the reception. I took time to speak with family and friends of each artist, and encouraged them to further their 
exploration in art. The event was a great success and a wonderful experience.
OUr Atlanta Trips: ‘the world in a completely different light’
Posted by: | December 03, 2010 | Comments
Students in the Fresh Focus Class "Diseases in Our Time and Place," taught by Dr. Karen Schmeichel and Dr. Daniel Schadler, toured the CDC Global Information Center in October 2010 as part of an Our Atlanta trip, arranged by the Center for Civic Engagement.
The Center for Civic Engagement works with faculty and staff to coordinate OUr Atlanta Trips for Oglethorpe students to explore all our city has offer throughout the academic year. This fall the Center organized 24 trips in Atlanta for Fresh Focus classes, First Year Seminar classes, student organizations, as well as an anatomy class and an athletic team. One popular destination was the Dialogue in the Dark exhibit at Atlantic Station, which allow visitors to experience the world as if they could not see.
Sophomore Ali Hadd shared her experience at the Dialogue in the Dark exhibit:
Once upon a time, I was grocery shopping. Deep, I know. I was walking down the aisle of a super market; I picked up an apple, and it smelled like autumn. I opened the fridge: cheese, milk, eggs, cold air. I found pumpkins placed delicately in a basket hanging on the end of a shelf.
OUr Atlanta trip: A Freshman Focus class for international students, taught by Dr. Stephen Herschler and Philip Peroune, visited the Atlanta History Center.
Oh yeah—I was blind… but only for an hour. And what an hour.
You see, I knew that coming to Oglethorpe would open up many doors to new experiences. What college doesn’t? But what I didn’t know is that most of my doors had been more like walls—that eventually came down with the help of Oglethorpe. I had never seen an opera—but Oglethorpe let me. I’d never volunteered at the Atlanta Food Bank—but my school said, “Why not?” And, I’d never experienced a day in the life of the blind—but OU sent me to Dialogue in the Dark.
OUr Atlanta trip: Dr. Bradford Smith and his First Year Seminar class visited the Etowah Mounds.
Being a First Year Seminar mentor, I get to experience what its like to be a freshman again. It’s wonderful to be a part of Oglethorpe’s commitment to finding innovative ways to blend different academic disciplines and to provide out-of-class experiences to complement in-class learning. My First Year Seminar, led by Ms. Henry-Miller, was focused on positive psychology, communication, and culture. It seemed perfectly appropriate to attend an exhibit that enhanced my understanding about a group of individuals who use creativity and communication to overcome the obstacles of everyday life.
I thought it would be terrifying. I’m not a total wimp (ahem), but the dark is something I’d rather face with the light on. Read More→
OU at the 3-Day for a Cure
Posted by: | October 29, 2010 | Comments
Last weekend, Oglethorpe University served as a Pit Stop along the way during Atlanta’s 60-mile Susan G. Komen 3-Day for a Cure walk that ended at Turner Field.
Among the thousands walking for a cure were at least two OU alums…
“I’m not sure who set up for OU to host a Pit Stop for the Komen Atlanta 3-Day Walk, but I couldn’t have been more thrilled! I walked this year, for the third time, and I was so pleasantly surprised to walk down Peachtree and find that my alma mater was hosting almost 3,000 walkers! It was even more special to have one of my old OU roommates walking with me and sharing our memories of college. Thanks so much for reaching out to the community and such a great cause!”
– Stephanie Ervin Szalkowski ’89
Kick Off a New Season with OU Theatre
Posted by: | August 23, 2010 | Comments
Oglethorpe’s Theatre Department is starting the year off right by welcoming new Theatre Director/Visiting Assistant Professor Matt Huff and by offering ways for both Theatre and non-theatre majors to get involved.
The 2010 Season kicks off this week with Georgia Shakespeare’s “Welcome Back” Mixer for OU Students on Wednesday, August 25 at 6 pm in the Conant Performing Arts Center. (Georgia Shakespeare is Oglethorpe’s professional theatre in residence.) Come schmooze and eat pizza with the GA Shakes staff, OU Theatre faculty and students and learn about the exciting theatrical opportunities available to you this year.
Immediately following the mixer, auditions for Stop Kiss by Diana Son and Women Beware Women by Thomas Middleton will be held from 7:30-10 pm in Rehearsal Room A (third floor of Conant). All actors are welcome! Auditions will consist of cold readings of scenes from the scripts that will be provided. Not familiar with the plays? Check out copies in the Theatre Office (2nd Floor, Conant)–but please return them quickly as there are only a few copies of each.
Callbacks for Stop Kiss will be held the following night, Thursday, August 26 from 6:30-9:30pm. Rehearsals will begin the weekend of August 28. Callbacks for Women Beware Women will be scheduled in a few weeks.
In Stop Kiss, hardened New Yorker Callie befriends an optimistic newcomer to the city, Sarah, and the two unexpectedly fall for each other. Their first kiss, however, is violently interrupted forcing both women on a journey to discover who they are and what they are willing to commit to. Stop Kiss will run September 23-25.
Women Beware Women, Thomas Middleton’s salacious examination of sex, power and politics, is as shockingly depraved today as it was in the 17th century. This rarely performed Jacobean thriller spins a tale of lust and betrayal so destructive, the play easily lives up to its title. Women Beware Women will run November 18-20.
Make plans to take part in these productions–either on stage or in the audience–and be reminded why Princeton Review ranked OU’s Theatre among the top twenty theatre programs in the country.