“Dr. Brown was unmatched in the care he exemplified for our students and his deep desire to be a part of the Hollins community,” said Hollins President Mary Dana Hinton. “Every person with whom we consulted spoke to his quiet presence and yet his strength of character as a leader and supporter of students. I believe he will elevate student success, well-being, and belonging to new heights and am excited to have him join the team.”

Brown comes to Hollins from Elizabeth City State University in North Carolina, where he was vice chancellor for student affairs since 2018. Last year, he was also named interim vice chancellor for university advancement. He previously served for 11 years in various roles including dean of students and interim vice chancellor for student affairs at North Carolina Central University, and two years in North Carolina Wesleyan College’s Division of Academic Affairs.

Wilson is among six faculty members from the VFIC consortium of schools who were recognized for their dedication to higher education and student success.

A member of the Hollins faculty since 2002, Wilson teaches courses in both the biology and environmental studies programs. Trained as a physiological ecologist, much of his research has focused on the physiology and behavior of birds. However, his field-based invertebrate zoology course, directed research with students, and an immersive field-based course in the Caribbean have led him to expand his research interests to include freshwater macroinvertebrates and the dynamics of coral reefs. His research has taken him to the edge of the Arctic, the Appalachian Mountains, the Mississippi Delta, the prairie pothole region of North Dakota, and coral reefs of the Caribbean.

The Harris family endowed awards to cite distinction in undergraduate teaching and instructional technology, and to showcase professors who are rising stars, as a way to highlight the special features of VFIC colleges and universities. The awards recognize faculty members “whose professional history reflects a strong, clear, and abiding commitment to excellence in classroom teaching within the undergraduate liberal arts and sciences.”

“Over the course of the past 10 weeks, these students have been engaged in a wide variety of projects tackling real world programs in many disciplines,” Keri Swaby, director of the Office of Undergraduate Research at VT, stated at the conference. “As always, I am humbled by the quality of work and wealth of research that took place this summer.”

Jill C. Sible, associate vice provost for undergraduate education at VT, added, “Summer affords undergraduates the opportunity to dedicate significant time and effort to the planning, execution, and analysis of a research project. They have also had the chance to become authentic members of research teams by working with faculty, graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and research staff. Many thanks to all who have mentored undergraduates this summer.”

The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association named the Hollins Women’s Track & Field team to the NCAA Division III All-Academic Team for 2023. Teams must have earned a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.1 on a 4.0 scale during the 2022-23 school year to qualify for All-Academic Team status. Hollins Track & Field earned a team GPA of 3.45.

Sixty-four Hollins student-athletes were named by the Old Dominion Athletic Conference to its All-Academic Team for 2022-23. Prospective honorees must achieve a 3.25 GPA or higher for the academic year to be considered.

Six student-athletes representing basketball, soccer, tennis, and volleyball earned Academic All-
State team honors for 2022-23 from the Virginia Sports Information Directors. To be eligible, undergraduates must be sophomores, juniors, or seniors and have a cumulative GPA of 3.25.

College Sports Communicators (CSC) recognized Hollins student-athletes in two categories. Six members of the soccer team were named by CSC to the NCAA Division III Academic All-District Women’s Soccer Team, while the association placed three volleyball team members on the NCAA Division III Academic All-District Volleyball Team, both for 2023.

“The commendation reflects the financial and travel support Hollins provides for students and faculty to participate each year in the KCACTF Region IV Festival,” explained Playwright’s Lab Director Todd Ristau. “Hollins has seen a remarkable level of participation at the festival and a consistent level of success across many award categories.”

The festival annually showcases work from student theatre artists representing colleges and universities in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Virginia.

A national theatre program, KCACTF brings together 18,000 students annually from colleges and universities across the United States. Since its inception, KCACTF has given more than 400,000 college theatre students the opportunity to have their work critiqued, improve their dramatic skills, and receive national recognition for excellence.

The initiative is proving to be an unqualified success. Now in its second academic year, HOPE boasts 62 scholars who because of the program are able to realize their dream of attending college.

“HOPE makes a college education affordable for young women regardless of their ability to pay and supports them in taking the next step toward achieving their academic and professional goals,” said Ashley Browning, vice president for enrollment management.

As part of Hollins’ efforts to further enhance the already vibrant community of students from the Roanoke area and build a pipeline for HOPE, the university has launched a residential summer experience for local students with limited financial resources. Designed to support underserved high school students, Knowledge for Freedom (KFF) is an immersive, two-week liberal arts program in which “young women who are curious about college life can live on campus, explore their interests, and discover new opportunities for their future,” Browning explained. “The program is completely free to participants, including housing on our beautiful campus and food expenses. KFF provides students an opportunity to study and build connections with Hollins students and professors who are invested in their growth early in their college search.”

The 2024 KFF Summer Program will take place July 14-27. Visit ĚÇĐÄ´ŤĂ˝.edu/kff or scan the QR code to learn more.

“The board of trustees has the highest confidence in President Hinton, who has demonstrated outstanding leadership,” said Board Chair Debra Meade. “As we prepare for a bold future ahead for Hollins in an ever-changing world, it is essential that we ensure her visionary leadership remains in place through 2030.”

Meade cited Hinton’s numerous achievements of the past three years, including her and her team’s “steady, caring and successful leadership during the pandemic”;  her vision to create and fund an Imagination Campaign that led to updated facilities, new academic programs, and enhanced access, including the HOPE scholars program for students in the greater Roanoke region; and her work to foster student success, well-being, and belonging with an integrated approach that gives students better support and has improved retention rates.

Meade added that Hinton’s fundraising success has been “unmatched,” securing more than $100 million in gifts to the university in her first three years, including the single largest gift in the history of women’s colleges.

This past year, Hinton has overseen the development of a collaborative, transformational strategic plan for Hollins, while preparing to launch the largest comprehensive campaign in the institution’s history, Meade said.

“We could not be more pleased to have President Hinton as a part of our community, and we are grateful for her ongoing leadership.”

I am delighted to share with you our Transforming Learning, Transforming Lives: The Levavi Oculos Strategic Plan in this issue of the Hollins magazine. What you will encounter in these pages reflects more than 18 months of work and engagement.

To create such a bold and transformational plan requires the work of many. I want to extend my most heartfelt gratitude to the on-campus community, led by our strategic planning teams, for their many hours of engagement. Students, faculty, and staff shared many hours visioning, planning, and collaborating.

I am truly grateful to the many alumnae/i who shared their hopes, fears, wisdom, and insights as we crisscrossed the country for presidential roundtables and various conversations.

A special debt of gratitude is owed to the Hollins Board of Trustees who, as my thoughts partners and coleaders, learned together and issued a bold charge to me and the Hollins community to draft this plan. I am equally grateful for their commitment to supporting the plan and the deep trust they have offered our community.

And I want to thank those donors who have already invested in the plan and are committed to ensuring we can live up to our promises. Thank you for supporting our community and our future.

As you read the feature story about this plan, you will see that it is a collective tapestry. The plan reflects the hopes and aspirations of many and is not a self-portrait of any one person. It is all of us at our best.

Thank you for trusting me with the leadership of Hollins and for supporting the Transforming Learning, Transforming Lives: The Levavi Oculos Strategic Plan.

Levavi Oculos,

President Mary Dana Hinton

The victorious Hollins Ethics Bowl team is pictured with President Mary Dana Hinton (third from left); Jane Batten ‘58 (second from left), a devoted believer in both Hollins and the Ethics Bowl; and Allison Goguen ‘24 (fourth from left), one of several student volunteers for the event.

Team members included Merritt ’24, Shasta Power ’26, and Zoe Simotas ’25. Associate Professor of Philosophy James Downey and Visiting Assistant Professor of Philosophy Charles Lowney are the Hollins Ethics Bowl team’s faculty coordinators.

Student teams representing Virginia’s leading independent colleges and universities deliberated a variety of case studies related to this year’s theme, “Ethics and the Environment.”

At each Ethics Bowl, professionals from a variety of fields listen to four rounds of team presentations and award points based on their evaluations. The two top teams advance to the final round of head-to-head competition, which this year featured Hollins and the University of Lynchburg. The winner receives the coveted Batten Trophy, named for the event’s initial funders, Jane and Frank Batten.

“The Ethics Bowl serves as a testament to the quality of not only VFIC students but also the colleges and universities in our consortium,” said VFIC President Matthew Shank. “Our schools provide a broadly pragmatic liberal arts and sciences education in environments that value and encourage ethical leadership and responsible citizenship. VFIC students are astute, informed, and articulate.”

This is Hollins’ second Ethics Bowl championship; the university won its first title in 2014.

At the event’s annual dinner on January 28, the VFIC honored Jane Parke Batten, a member of Hollins’ class of 1958, for her dedication to higher education, her community, and the Ethics Bowl program. She is a civic leader, community volunteer, and VFIC Honorary-Life Board Trustee.