Wofford College

Dozens of Wofford College students were recognized for academic excellence, leadership and citizenship on Friday, May 20, at the college's annual Honors Convocation held in the Jerome Johnson Richardson Theatre in the Rosalind Sallenger Richardson Center for the Arts.

Wofford College awarded 374 Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts degrees to 357 graduates during the college's 168th Commencement Exercises on Sunday, May 22.

Tiwandi Jones always kept her son, Quashon Greenlee '22, focused on two things when he was growing up in Anderson, South Carolina: education and football. Education was the key to a better life. Football was the vehicle that would get him the education she wanted him to have. And then, when Greenlee was 16, his mother died of complications from congestive heart failure.

Paola Cruz '23 understands the healing and therapeutic benefits of writing. Her smartphone has more than 800 notes that capture the moments she's needed to record thoughts and feelings. "My mom passed when I was 14," says Cruz, a double major in sociology and anthropology and Spanish from Charlotte, North Carolina. "The only way I could grieve was by writing. It turned my life around. The social worker told me every time I had a dream about my mom to just write it down." Cruz's mother died from gastric cancer. Her journal entries eventually turned into poems and songs. The writing is inspiring her research as Wofford College's Presidential International Scholar for the 2022-23 academic year.

Wofford College's fraternities and sororities held their annual Greek Week the week of April 25 and concluded it with the annual Greek Awards that recognized both organizations and individual achievements of members. Additionally, organizations raised $27,051 for the Grateful Hearts Project, started by Cate Whitlatch '24, a psychology major from Greensboro, North Carolina. The project creates themed boxes of decorations for kids admitted to the hospital.

Mia Kilpatrick '22 spent Interim on a 6,000-mile road trip to 10 U.S. presidential libraries. Her research took her from Atlanta, Georgia, to West Branch, Iowa, and as far north as Boston, Massachusetts. "My research centered around the question of whether presidential libraries reflect the legacy of the presidents," says Kilpatrick, an international affairs and Spanish major from Hartsville, South Carolina. "For example, Nixon doesn't have a great legacy. How would his library compare to someone like Reagan or Roosevelt?"

An evening last year watching comedian Chris Rock's 2009 documentary "Good Hair" led Dieran McGowan '22 and Fadzai Mushayamunda '22 to develop an independent study project focused on the ways hair has shaped the social and historical experiences of Black women. Rock's joke about actress Jada Pinkett Smith's short hair during the Oscars' ceremony also reflects what their research noted. "Is hair just hair was our question going into this," says McGowan, a finance major from Taylors, South Carolina. "The answer is no."

Many students concentrating on pre-medicine at Wofford College have plans of working on the clinical side of healthcare. John Harrington '23 is exploring the administrative side as well. Harrington, a biology major from Houston, Texas, spent Interim studying at Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System. He split time between the health system's Spartanburg Medical Center and Pelham Medical Center campuses.

Wofford College was represented at the largest annual meeting of mathematicians in the world when Dr. Rachel Grotheer and Chase Creamer '23 presented at the Joint Mathematics Meetings. The conference was be virtual.

For Kate Timbes '23, studying in another country was not the most exciting part of her experience in Copenhagen, Denmark. The studio art major from Columbia, South Carolina, was given the opportunity to become a part of the media team for the Danish Institute for Study Abroad (DIS) and a chance to paint a mural on the wall of their student hub. They started planning the mural in October 2021 and painting began two months later. While working on the mural, Timbes led a group of 10 to 15 individuals from the community who helped her during her 10 days of work.

The name of the class was "Classic Reads," and Will Hammontree '23 and Kriti Baral '25 took the title to heart. Hammontree, a biology major from Greer, South Carolina, took on "War and Peace" and Crime and Punishment." Baral, an undeclared major from Spartanburg, South Carolina, went after "Wuthering Heights," "Anna Karenina" and "Jude the Obscure."

For two years, the SpartanDogs faced an obstacle they couldn't go over, under or around. The Spartan race team, started in 2019, competed in one event before COVID-19 shut them down. The team returned to action in November and has another event coming up April 10 in Concord, North Carolina.

For two hours, prosecutors and defense attorneys peppered witnesses with questions and sparred with each other over procedural issues. Jurors, tasked with deciding the innocence or guilt of a defendant charged with arson and murder, listened intently. The drama didn't unfold in a courtroom, however. Instead, this case was contested in a classroom as part of Wofford's mock trial Interim class.

Students in the "Take a Walk!" Interim class walked throughout the month of January. Some walks were in silence while paying close attention to their surroundings. There were walks that included interviews with Spartanburg residents using a popular trail. Some were in city neighborhoods. Others were in the woods. All walks provided time to reflect on an activity that can be taken for granted. While in the classroom, students discussed readings focused on historical, spiritual and cultural themes related to walking. There also were conversations about the walkability of communities.

Isa Ortiz Calzada '24 never had a doubt about the Interim experience she wanted this year. Calzada, an international affairs and French double major from Greenville, South Carolina, selected "Build an Affordable House - Save the Environment - Transform a Community." She spent January helping Habitat for Humanity build two houses in Spartanburg County. "I grew up in government-assisted housing," Calzada says. "Being able to help somebody who is in that position is an amazing experience. It helps you to really appreciate what you have."

Dr. Timothy Schmitz, interim provost of Wofford College, has announced Dean's List students for the fall 2021 semester.

It's a busy time of year for Lauren Scalise '24. She's juggling her academic work, serving as a team manager for the Wofford College women's basketball team and editing the Bohemian, the college's yearbook. She also has the role of chief financial officer with her family's nonprofit, Strides for Survivors: Steps to Breast Cancer Rehabilitation.

When the set designer, lighting director and the villain in Pulp Theatre's production of "The Fairytale Lives of Russian Girls" have a meeting, Joanna Burgess '22 does all the talking. That's because Burgess, a physics and theatre double major from Clinton, South Carolina, has all three jobs. "These are all things I have a passion for, and it's been really fun," Burgess says. "It's been a lot of work, but we have a great crew that has helped make the vision a reality."

Prices' Store for Men opened in downtown Spartanburg in 1904 and has been supplying Wofford students with clothing and opportunities ever since. "As I understand it, in the early 1900s, many Wofford students were from rural communities in the South," says store owner Harry Price. "When they would arrive in Spartanburg, Prices' would outfit them in proper college attire. That relationship has been built upon for almost 120 years."

The first time Jacqueline Hansen '24 met the students she would be working with in an after-school homework club, she was hooked. "I just fell in love with it," says Hansen, a sociology and anthropology major from Clover, South Carolina. "The kids are always so happy and eager to learn. When I go there, even if I've had a bad day, they just make everything better."

If she wanted, Grayson Carter '22 could add a line to her resume that would make her the envy of current and former IndyCar drivers everywhere: "Wrecked Mario Andretti."

Before the fall semester began, Lizzie Richards '23 figured law school was in her future after she graduated from Wofford College. Working with Dr. Youmi Efurd, Wofford's curator, on a restoration project has her going in a new direction. "It took me about two seconds to sign up," says Richards, a history and art history major from Columbia, South Carolina. "I was excited, and now I want to be a conservator."

When Emily Hathcock '23 signed up to be a bone marrow donor, she never imagined she would deliver someone's Christmas miracle. Hathcock, a biology major from Summerville, South Carolina, flew to Seattle, Washington, on Dec. 19 to make her donation. The patient, a man who has been diagnosed with a rare blood cancer, was scheduled to receive the transplant shortly after Christmas.

Jason Kellinger '24 earned an opportunity that he will always treasure. Kellinger, an undeclared major from Calne, England, represented Great Britain in the Scottish Open Fullbore Rifle competition. "Representing Great Britain will always be a proud moment of my life," says Kellinger, who was one of 12 selected for Great Britain's under-19 team.

Capture the "everyday." That was one of Walker Antonio's assignments in a beginner painting class during the spring semester. What he captured expressed both the everyday and the extraordinary. "I decided I wanted to paint those who take care of not only me, but so many others every day," says Antonio '23, a studio art major from Kilmarnock, Virginia. "When times got hard due to COVID-19, these workers took extra time out of their day to ensure the safety of not just their coworkers, but the students as well."

In a small community in the eastern corner of the Dominican Republic, Santa Rhina Barett Figaro has a thriving business where she sells bread, sandwiches, fried chicken and fresh juices. It was all made possible by a $100 loan through funding provided by the James-Atkins Student-Managed Investment Fund.

Two Wofford College students with a fourth-place finish in a statewide venture pitch competition last week won the college's sixth annual Terrier StartUp Challenge. Cassie Figueroa '24 and Alec Schrader '24 won $4,500 of the contest's $10,000 in start-up funding for their concept Campus Connections. The business is a consolidated website where college students can offer services, including haircuts, photography, oil changes, rides, etc. Students wanting to use those services could book appointments and pay through the website.

Seventy-five Wofford College students are studying abroad during the fall semester, and a few are offering insights on their experiences through blogs. Ten students are blogging, and it's proven to be a good exercise for them to journal and help the college's faculty and staff identify challenges students might experience.

Chardonnay Durrah's days often consist of 5 a.m. physical fitness tests with the Wofford College Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC), classwork and service with a couple of campus organizations. Whenever she needs some words of encouragement or help keeping things in perspective while honing her leadership skills, her dad is just a phone call away. Durrah '23 is a government major from Roebuck, South Carolina. Her father, Leroy Durrah '92, served 30 years in the U.S. Army before retiring in 2018 at the rank of master sergeant.

Dr. Lori Cruze and Dr. John Moeller and their students are working on a research project that's for the birds. Really. The purpose of the project is to measure the impact of different variables on the foraging habits of songbirds. Cruze, assistant professor of biology, and one of her classes started the project in the spring, setting up bird feeders on the periphery of campus. They measured the amount of seed the birds ate and whether the amount changed depending on whether the seeds were shelled or unshelled. They also introduced predators (fake owls) to gauge the impact of their presence on the birds' eating habits.