Wofford College

Wofford College awarded 452 baccalaureate degrees during the 171st Commencement Exercises on Sunday, May 18. Honor Graduates, Sullivan Award winners and graduates who were commissioned into the U.S. Army were also recgonized during the ceremony.

Wofford College celebrated student achievement at its annual Honors Convocation on May 16, presenting awards to dozens of students as well as several faculty and staff.

Jenna Hollis '26 and Tianna Kidd '25 are helping the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning further its mission of promoting effective and innovative teaching practices that engage and cultivate student learning as student fellows.

The winners and second-place finishers for the Helmus Award in Poetry and the Journal Award in Fiction were announced by the Department of English.

Wofford's chapter of Phi Beta Kappa welcomed 39 members into the nation's oldest academic honor society during an induction ceremony at Leonard Auditorium on May 1.

Three Wofford students joined Dr. Dawn McQuiston, professor of psychology and director of the South Carolina Innocence Initiative, to attend the Innocence Network Conference held April 3-5 in Seattle. The attendees were Sydney Holland '25, Teagan McIntosh '27 and Nick Ross '26.

Graham Segars '25 became a sepsis survivor at the age of 21. He has now pledged to increase sepsis awareness across the United States. Segars spoke at the fifth-annual World Sepsis Congress, held virtually April 8-9, as the North American representative for the Global Sepsis Alliance. During his session, he gave his testimony of his experience with sepsis and provide insights on how to encourage advocacy through sepsis education.

West DeWaard '27 took home first place at the ninth-annual Terrier Startup Challenge. The student-led business event is organized by the Career Center's Launch Program, which aims to support and guide students in growing their entrepreneurial skills and ventures. DeWaard's fledgling business Raised Outdoors aims to divert wood waste by upcycling wooden pallets into raised flower beds.

Cole Anderson '27, a computer science and Chinese major, has been awarded a 2025 Critical Learning Scholarship to study Chinese in Tainan, Taiwan. The CSL program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and provides immersive study abroad opportunities for students to learn languages deemed essential to American foreign relations. Anderson, who is from Charleston, South Carolina, was one of 500 students accepted out of a pool of about 5,000 applicants, according to an announcement about this year's recipients.

As Wofford's 2025-26 Presidential International Scholar, Margeaux Stapleton '26 will immerse herself in three locations across the world to understand birthing practices and outcomes, especially preterm and special needs births. Each year Wofford's Presidential International Scholar is chosen by the college's president as the student with "exceptional potential to benefit humankind as evidenced by a demonstrated passion for service learning combined with a globally minded intellectual curiosity." The scholarship rewards these students with the funding to carry out independent research in non-traditional locations around the world.

Joe Cahill '26, an environmental studies major with minors in Chinese and economics, has developed a passion for sustainability, and he's acting on it every chance he gets. Cahill is now a marketing and research intern with GIC Group, an international agribusiness company specializing in financial advisory services based in Bethesda, Maryland. Through his work with the GIC Group, Cahill was given the opportunity to research, write and publish an article for the Global Food Safety Forum on sustainable food packing and its effect on safety as well as the economy.

Emily Schwendemann '25 spent their Interim looking toward the stars as part of an independent study in the field of astrophysics. Schwendemann, a math, physics and computer science triple major from Fountain Inn, S.C., brought together all their interests to dive into the chemical composition of celestial bodies.

Gabriel Tawiah '25 spent part of his winter break doing community service in Asheville, N.C, which is still recovering from Hurricane Helene. He worked behind the scenes preparing and cooking food, providing manual labor on the farm and filling boxes with supplies in partnership with three local organizations.

On Jan. 15 Schwarzman Scholars announced its 10th cohort, and Chandler Compton '20 was selected to the Schwarzman Class of 2025-26. He will attend a one-year, fully funded master's degree program in global affairs at Schwarzman College, Tsinghua University in Beijing, China.

Wofford College provost Dr. Timothy Schmitz has announced Dean's List students for the fall 2024 semester.

Two Wofford College students - Grant Blackwell '27 and Hank Thomas '27 - saw the devastation of Hurricane Helene as an opportunity to give back. Blackwell, an environmental studies major from Charleston, South Carolina, and Thomas, a business economics major from Powdersville, South Carolina, both sprang into action, finding communities in need of assistance and communities supporting them.

Grace Loughlin '27 brought home a victory at the National Horse Show at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky, earning first place in her Amateur Hunters division. "It's such an honor to get to compete at this venue, let alone win," says Loughlin of the National Horse Show, which has hosted some of the highest-achieving riders and horses in the world. This year, Loughlin was one of only 15 women in her section invited to compete.

Sydney Heslop '28, Maura Jackson '28, Carlee Mason '28 and Grant Owen '28 received a "Just Because" ambush philanthrophy grant from the Spartanburg County Foundation. The students decided to give the grant to Housing360, Spartanburg Housing's nonprofit affiliate. The funds will purchase healthy snacks and other supplies for the Determind Minds afterschool program.

Tianna Kidd '25, a biology and French double major from Greenwood, South Carolina, is using French to study fashion and identity in Africa this fall as Wofford's 2024-25 Presidential International Scholar. Kidd is currently based in Cameroon, with plans to travel to Morocco in January. She also has conducted a second independent study on breast cancer awareness in Cameroon. Each year Wofford's Presidential International Scholar is selected by the college's president as "the student most likely to make a difference in the future." The scholarship rewards students who have shown a passion for service learning and global intellectual curiosity with the funding to conduct independent research in non-traditional locations around the world.

Chanson Bullard '26 and Dr. Matt Cathey have been invited to Oxford University to present their research on King George III's mysterious illness at the British Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies' annual conference in January. They will also participate in a roundtable discussion featuring scholarship from the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada. Bullard and Cathey spent the summer reviewing royal physician diaries and recording values for information logged, such as sleep, pulse, medicines administered, mood, bowel movements, exercise and much more. The database they developed has more than 100 categories.

A professor in Australia challenged Wofford students Lilly Bridges '26, Archer Meares '26 and Strom Thurmond '26 to write and publish an article on the conservation of a specific bird species. Getting the article published turned out to be the easy part. The real challenge was the rain-drenched search for the declining species and the sense of responsibility the trio of biology majors now carry to help tell the story of the threatened but resilient tooth-billed bowerbird.

When Marga-Rita Van Der Linde '25 was sworn in as Campus Union president for 2024-25 on April 22, she became the first woman since Claudia Albergotti Ruffin '11 to serve in the role. The new vice president, secretary and treasurer are also women, making this the first all-female executive cabinet since the 1995-96 academic year. It's something that Van Der Linde takes seriously but doesn't dwell on. She and the other women on the executive council have plans for enhancing the Wofford experience for all students. "Wofford has done a great job at putting the students' needs first, and I want to continue building on the foundation that the previous student body presidents have laid," says Van Der Linde, who is joined on the cabinet by Simrin Channa '25, vice president; Julia Brooks '25, treasurer; and Geneva Kowbeidu '26, secretary.

Five Terriers have joined forces with Dr. Kimberly Hall this summer to discover how artificial intelligence can more effectively be incorporated in a college setting. Susann Breazele '26, an English major from Pickens, South Carolina; Maggie Head '26, a chemistry and philosophy double major from Lexington, South Carolina; Kate Podrebarac '26, a computer science and applied mathematics double major from Friendswood, Texas; Sam Turnipseed '25, an English and philosophy major from Columbia, South Carolina; and Rivers West '25, an environmental studies major from Oak Ridge, North Carolina, signed up to take part in Hall's research project "Developing Undergraduate Humanistic AI Research Capacity at a Small Liberal Arts College." Hall, an associate professor of English who leads the college's AI Working Group, says current research focuses on how faculty and administrators view generative AI - a platform like ChatGPT for instance. She is making sure student perspectives are included.

This summer, two Wofford students have picked up where they left off last summer. Clayton Hixon '26, a government major from Jackson, Georgia, and Julio Del Jesus '25, a government major from Kissimmee, Florida, are back in the courthouse with the Hon. Timothy Madden '85, continuing their legal internship with the 13th Judicial Circuit in Greenville, South Carolina. Last summer's internship enabled Hixon and Del Jesus to learn various components of law and how they interconnect. This year, they are making connections by visiting courthouses across the state, learning about different specialties in law, meeting with lawyers and networking in the legal community. Madden, a family court judge, has also taken the students to visit the University of South Carolina's Joseph F. Rice School of Law, where he completed his Juris Doctor degree.

A chance connection with a Wofford alumna has led to a dream internship for Marlee Bland '25, a finance major from Charleston, South Carolina. Bland is spending her second summer at Sea Fox Boat Company, based in Charleston, honing her skills under the guidance of Tanner Renken '19, director of IT and marketing and fourth-generation leader of the family-owned company. After contacting Sea Fox about a potential internship last summer, Bland landed the opportunity and connected with Renken.

When Ellis Parsons '26 pursued research opportunities this summer, he opted for an experience that would take him out of his comfort zone. Parsons, an international affairs and history double major from Landrum, South Carolina, chose to work with Dr. Daniel Helman, visiting assistant professor of environmental studies, on a study that could illuminate the beginnings of life on earth. "It's outside of my field a little, but I think that is what attracted me to it," Parsons says. "I was interested in gaining experience in research and challenging myself to go beyond my abilities."

Joel Gammah '26, a computer science major from Ghana, made a Terrier connection that led to a transformative summer internship thanks to a conversation with Wofford College President Nayef Samhat. In the spring Gammah was on the guest list for a dinner for international students at the President's Home hosted by Nayef and Prema Samhat. During a conversation with the president, Gammah shared stories of his work as a Bonner Scholar at the Adult Learning Center in Spartanburg. Samhat immediately texted Bill Brasington '89, executive director of the Adult Learning Center, to expand the connection.

In February, Samuel Cornett '26, a finance major from Nicholasville, Kentucky, decided to seek summer internship opportunities near Wofford College's campus. He searched "wealth management" and found 1670 Wealth Management among the top results. "I wanted real-world experience, and, with my summer football schedule, I was looking for something in the area" says Cornett, a quarterback for the Terriers and member of the student-managed James-Atkins Investment Fund. "They were only about a mile from campus, so I sent them an email."

Wofford College provost Dr. Timothy Schmitz has announced Dean's List students for the spring 2024 semester.

Two years ago, Andrew Arends '24 made a commitment. Inspired by the example of his former classmate Emily Hathcock '23, Arends signed up for the stem cell donation registry NMDP, formerly the National Bone Marrow Donor Program and Be the Match. "Emily set up a table in the Mungo Student Center and encouraged people to come by," says Arends, who is originally of St. Matthews, South Carolina. "You could submit a mouth swab to see if you're a DNA match. It was a super easy process. So, I did it." As the months passed, Arends admits he forgot about the commitment. To his surprise, he received a call in January while interning in Washington, D.C.