Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

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  Macie Latham, ‘21, Participates in Internship After Easing of COVID-19 Restrictions

  Office of University Communications and Claire Coile

  Like many college students, Macie Latham, a rising senior at Gardner-Webb University, has learned to be flexible this summer. At first, her summer internship was cancelled due to the coronavirus and its repercussions. Then, as stay-at-home restrictions began to be lifted across the state, she was invited to fulfill her internship.

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  Gardner-Webb Hires Director of Diversity and Intercultural Initiatives

  Office of University Communications

  JeNai Davis, of Greensboro, N.C., has been hired as director of Diversity and Intercultural Initiatives at Gardner-Webb University. This office was created in 2018 by GWU to serve the needs of the various ethnic groups within the student body through programs designed to promote intercultural understanding, awareness, and collaboration. Davis begins on July 13 to prepare for the fall semester.

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  GWU Student-Athlete Group Sponsors Virtual 5K Race to End Racism

  Office of University Communications

  The Gardner-Webb Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) is sponsoring a virtual 5K to end racism and raise awareness of racial inequality. The GWU Race to End Racism will be held on June 19, which is the celebration of Juneteenth, the oldest national commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. Dating back to 1865, it was on June 19 that the Union soldiers, led by Major General Gordon Granger, landed at Galveston, Texas, with news that the war had ended and that the enslaved were now free.

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  Gardner-Webb Physician Assistant (PA) Studies Program Adjusts Traditional Ceremony

  Office of University Communications

  The Gardner-Webb University Physician Assistant (PA) Studies Program wasn’t going to let the Coronavirus Pandemic prevent the Class of 2021 from observing an important milestone in their academic journey. The traditional White Coat Ceremony is held every year to recognize when PA students complete their classroom component and transition to the clinical environment. Usually held in Tucker Student Center with friends and family, this year’s recognition had to incorporate Covid-19 social-distancing guidelines.

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  GWU Hunt School of Nursing Receives National and State Top Rankings

  Office of University Communications

  The Hunt School of Nursing (HSON) at Gardner-Webb University has received both national and state honors from RegisteredNursing.org, a nursing advocacy organization. The HSON Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) in Nursing Administration program is ranked No. 3 in the nation and No. 1 in North Carolina.

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  Alumnus Accepts New Leadership Role in School District During Coronavirus Pandemic

  Office of University Communications

  While schools everywhere were transitioning to remote learning because of the coronavirus pandemic, Chad Holloman, an alumnus of Gardner-Webb University, accepted a new leadership role a few weeks into the conversion. An assistant principal in the Johnston County (N.C.) Public Schools, he was promoted to Director of Transportation Services and responsible for the day-to-day operations and maintenance of the 300+ bus fleet. With the system’s more than 37,000 students staying at home, Holloman needed to provide meaningful and relevant telework for the department’s employees.

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  Graduate Student Adjusts Her Role in Special Education During Coronavirus Crisis

  Office of University Communications

  Gardner-Webb University graduate student Laura Shipman finished this unusual school year with creativity and collaboration. When schools around the country transitioned to remote learning because of the coronavirus pandemic, personnel at the charter school where she works quickly formulated a plan. Shipman completes her add-on licensure for executive leadership studies and school administration from GWU this summer.

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  Longtime GWU Administrator Announces Plans to Retire

  Office of University Communications

  A longtime administrator of Gardner-Webb University, H. Woodrow “Woody” Fish, has announced his plans to retire. Fish, also a two-time alumnus, has served GWU in various capacities. He will step down at the end of June from his role as vice president for University Advancement.

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  Gardner-Webb University Condemns All Forms of Racism

  William M. Downs and Office of University Communications

  Our nation is, sadly, broken and divided. Struggling to emerge from months of suffering at the hands of a global pandemic, Americans witnessed the tragic and inexcusable death of George Floyd at the hands of a police officer in Minneapolis on May 25. That event has since unleashed a fury of protests across the country, calling on all of us as a people to do more—and to do better—in pursuit of justice, fairness, and civility.

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  Gardner-Webb Community Remembers Contributions and Service of Dr. Jack Hunt

  Office of University Communications

  Dr. John Jackson “Jack” Hunt, who once reminded all elected officials that service is not about the “Love of Power” but the “Power of Love,” passed away May 27, 2020. The public servant, dedicated supporter of Gardner-Webb University and namesake for the Hunt School of Nursing is being remembered and celebrated by the GWU campus and community.

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  Gardner-Webb Student Uses Time at Home to Expand YouTube Channel

  Office of University Communications and Claire Coile

  When Gardner-Webb University officials responded to the Coronavirus pandemic by switching to online delivery of classes and suggesting students stay home for the remainder of the spring semester, junior Savannah Parton came home to finish her classes. She also kicked her work routine into high gear. Parton is a communication studies major with a concentration in public relations and is active in the communication honors society, Lambda Pi Eta.

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  GWU Alumna Encourages Teachers and Students During COVID-19 Pandemic

  Office of University Communications

  The Gardner-Webb University School of Education has alumni located across the state, serving at all levels, from superintendents to classroom teachers. When public schools closed in North Carolina on March 14, 2020, educators were asked to switch to distance education—a task most had never attempted before. Amid this current crisis, these educators have adjusted.

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  Nursing Scholar Pays Tribute to Dr. Jack Hunt

  Office of University Communications

  To our readers: Charity Bennett graduated in May from the Hunt School of Nursing’s traditional Bachelor of Science in Nursing program at Gardner-Webb University. She met Dr. Jack Hunt in 2019 to thank him for providing the scholarship that enabled her to attend nursing school. From that meeting, she and Hunt became friends.

  Youtube: Dr. Jack Hunt Tribute « Charity Bennett, 20

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  Gardner-Webb Paces Big South With Four 2020 Christenberry Award Winners

  Office of University Communications

  Gardner-Webb University once again led the way, as the Big South Conference announced a record 12 student-athletes as recipients of the 2020 George A. Christenberry Award for Academic Excellence. The Runnin’ Bulldogs had four recipients. No other Big South school had more than two.

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  GWU Faculty Member Serves Military Community During COVID-19

  Office of University Communications

  Dr. Sharon Webb, coordinator for Clinical Mental Health Counseling Programs and associate professor at Gardner-Webb, is working with the American Red Cross (ARC) during the COVID-19 crisis as a facilitator for online, interactive workshops for the military community. The programs are designed to help military personnel manage COVID-19 pandemic-related stress and learn healthy coping methods. Although members of the military are accustomed to handling constant change and uncertainty, COVID-19 is adding a host of different stressors.

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  Bulldog Bash Raises More than $45K for Gardner-Webb Athletics

  Office of University Communications

  The second annual Bulldog Bash student-athlete fundraiser ended recently, bringing in more than $45,000 for Gardner-Webb University’s student-athletes. Despite the challenges of COVID-19 and moving to an online exclusive format, the two-day event exceeded last year’s total by $18,000. Sponsored by the Gardner-Webb Bulldog Club and GWU Athletics, this year’s fundraising auction drew the support of 268 bidders through email and social media channels.

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  Gardner-Webb Alumna Conducting Tests on COVID-19 Virus

  Office of University Communications

  In early January, before COVID-19 and coronavirus became daily news, a Gardner-Webb University alumna worked in a lab that was gearing up to study the disease. Dr. Carrie Long, who graduated in 2011 with a degree in biology, is an independent research scholar at Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Hamilton, Mont., part of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which is a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

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  Research by GWU Professor and Staff Member Published in Forensic Science Journal

  Office of University Communications

  Research by a faculty and staff member in the Gardner-Webb University Department of Natural Sciences could improve how arson investigators do their jobs. The scientific, peer-reviewed paper by Venita Totten, professor of chemistry, and Jacob Willis, GWU chemistry lab and undergraduate research coordinator, will be published in the prestigious Elsevier journal Forensic Science International in July.

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  Flexibility of Writing Career Allows GWU Journalism Alumna to Stay at Home with Children

  Office of University Communications

  Erin Boyd Odom, a 2003 Gardner-Webb University alumna, is a published author of two books, wife, mother of four children, blogger and website manager. Plus, during her “spare time,” she is constantly whipping up healthy, new recipes in the kitchen. With recent COVID-19 shelter-in-place orders, Odom and her family have transitioned to a new normal.

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  Alumna Valued ‘Community’ Aspect of Classes in GOAL—The Degree Completion Program

  Office of University Communications

  Kara M. Finch, ’05, entered the human services field, because she saw the toll caregiving took on her grandmother.

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  GWU Alumnus Opens Dental Practice With Emphasis on Giving Back to the Community

  Office of University Communications

  When Trey Miller graduated from Gardner-Webb University in 2008, the thought of becoming a dentist hadn’t entered his mind. The Kannapolis, N.C., resident certainly had no idea that in the middle of a pandemic he would open his own practice, Smile Solutions Dentistry in Harrisburg, N.C. Despite the uncertainty, Miller said people call his practice every day to schedule appointments.

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  GWU School of Education Secondary Education Programs Achieve Perfect Score

  Office of University Communications

  For the second semester in a row, the Gardner-Webb University School of Education and its secondary education programs have received a perfect—100 percent pass—rate on the edTPA. This performance-based, subject-specific assessment and support system is used by teacher preparation programs throughout the United States. Success on the edTPA demonstrates a student candidate’s readiness for a full-time classroom teaching assignment.

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  GWU Hunt School of Nursing Recognizes BSN Student in Celebration of National Nurses Month

  Office of University Communications

  Charity Bennett, a senior in the traditional Bachelor of Science in Nursing program at Gardner-Webb University, can’t remember a time when she didn’t want to be a nurse. “Growing up, I always heard stories about my grandparents who were medical missionaries in South Africa,” she shared. “Hearing how my Grandma brought both physical and spiritual hope to patients through nursing inspired me to follow in her footsteps.”

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  GWU Hunt School of Nursing Recognizes DNP Student During Celebration of Nursing Profession

  Office of University Communications

  As a clinical supervisor at Atrium Health-Lincoln, Jason Wesley DeFreitas, ’21, helps his colleagues and patients manage the challenges of the Coronavirus pandemic. The Gardner-Webb University graduate student is one of three supervisors on a 30-bed medical-surgical unit. He is responsible for managing 80 health care teammates, including registered nurses and health care technicians.

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  GWU Hunt School of Nursing Recognizes RN to BSN Student in Celebration of Nursing

  Office of University Communications

  The World Health Assembly designated 2020 as the “Year of the Nurse” long before the Coronavirus pandemic began. The celebration recognizes the 200th anniversary of the birth of Florence Nightingale, the founder of nursing. Further, the American Nurses Association, which traditionally observes National Nurses Week May 6-12, has expanded the recognition to the entire month of May.