IN THIS ISSUE (click on an item to go directly to it)
NEWS
New York Times columnist David Brooks to address graduates May 21
David Brooks, a columnist for The New York Times and a regular analyst on the "NewsHour with Jim Lehrer" and National Public Radio's "All Things Considered," will deliver Wake Forest University's 165th commencement address and receive an honorary doctor of humane letters degree May 21. This will be Brooks' first commencement address at any college or university. Approximately 1,451 undergraduate and graduate students will receive diplomas at the 9 a.m. outdoor ceremony on Wake Forest's Hearn Plaza (the Quad). Details | Top
 Jill Tiefenthaler appointed provost
Wake Forest University has appointed Jill Tiefenthaler as the university's new provost. Tiefenthaler, professor of economics and consultant to the president at Colgate University, will be Wake Forest's first female provost. On Aug. 1, Tiefenthaler will begin serving as Wake Forest's chief academic officer with responsibility for supervising and administering the academic programs and plans of the university's Reynolda Campus. Details | Top
WFU receives $1 million gift for entrepreneurship program
 Russ Hobbs, entrepreneur and founder of Blue Ocean Software, has donated $1 million to Wake Forest University for the Office for Entrepreneurship and the Liberal Arts (OELA). This is the first major endowment gift for the OELA. Hobbs, a Tampa, Fla., resident and 1988 graduate of Wake Forest, established the Russell D. and Elfriede Hobbs Fund for Entrepreneurship and the Liberal Arts in honor of his parents. The fund will provide seed grants, internships and similar funds for undergraduate students who want to launch socially beneficial organizations, including charitable, educational, scientific and artistic enterprises. Details| Top
Nanotechnology Center breaks record with solar cell efficiency
 The global search for a sustainable energy supply is making significant strides at Wake Forest University as researchers at the University's Center for Nanotechnology and Molecular Materials have announced that they have pushed the efficiency of plastic solar cells to more than 6 percent. In a paper to be published in an upcoming issue of the Applied Physics Letters journal, Wake Forest researchers describe how they have achieved record efficiency for organic or flexible, plastic solar cells by creating "nano-filaments" within light absorbing plastic, similar to the veins in tree leaves. This allows for the use of thicker absorbing layers in the devices, which capture more of the sun's light. Details| Top
Dr. Hatch appears on UNC-TV
On April 23, President Nathan O. Hatch was featured on UNC-TV's daily news program, North Carolina Now. During the interview, he discussed his vision for the future of Wake Forest University as well as the forum "Jumping the Sun: Creating Competitive Advantage in an Increasingly Flat World," which was hosted by the university April 10. Video of the interview is available online» UNC-TV also recorded the "Jumping the Sun" forum for broadcast. A 60-minute version will air 10 p.m. May 31. The forum will also be broadcast on UNCNC, UNC-TV's digital multicast channel. The UNCNC program service is available through a free over-the-air broadcast signal to everyone in North Carolina who has a digital television receiver and to digital cable subscribers on: Time Warner Cable in the Triangle, Charlotte, Triad and Wilmington areas; Cox Cable in the Rocky Mount, Greenville, and New Bern areas; Lexcom Cable in the Lexington area; and Charter Cable in the Asheville, Hickory and Boone areas. The full 75-minute version will be aired on UNCNC May 5 at 6 p.m. and 9 p.m., May 14 at 1 p.m. and 9 p.m. and May 15 at midnight. The 60-minute version will be aired on UNCNC May 19 at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. and June 4 at 1 p.m. and 9 p.m. Audio or video| Top
ACADEMICS
 Randall Rogan travels to Israel to study terrorism
Randall Rogan, professor and chair of communication at Wake Forest University, has been accepted to attend "Defending Democracy, Defeating Terrorism," the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) fifth annual academic fellowship in Israel this summer. The program, taught in conjunction with Tel Aviv University, provides an intensive series of lectures provided by academics, diplomats and military officials from India, Israel, Jordan, Turkey and the United States on the latest trends in terrorists' ideologies, motives and operations. Details| Top
Wake Forest art professor featured in traditional home magazine
Paintings by Page Laughlin, professor and chair of the art department at Wake Forest University, are featured in the May issue of Traditional Home magazine. Laughlin's large-scale oil paintings are based on photos of room interiors. One of her paintings, "Mirror, Mirror 2000" is in the permanent collection at the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh. Details | Top
Professor co-authors new history of Virginia
Anthony S. Parent Jr., professor of history at Wake Forest University, is one of four authors to chronicle the history of Virginia in a new book, "Old Dominion, New Commonwealth: A History of Virginia, 1607-2007," scheduled for publication by University of Virginia Press in May. Historians Ronald L. Heinemann, John G. Kolp, William G. Shade and Parent collaborated to provide a comprehensive, one-volume history of the state, the first of its kind since the 1970s. Details | Top
 Wake Forest physicist recognized for sickle-cell research
Daniel Kim-Shapiro, professor of physics at Wake Forest University, recently received a MERIT Award from the National Institutes for Health to continue his pioneering research on sickle-cell anemia. Rarely granted, the MERIT (for Method to Extend Research in Time) awards extend funding for promising research without requiring the researcher to apply for additional funds. The $343,920 MERIT award is renewable each year for up to 10 years. Details | Top
ACTIVITIES/EVENTS
New date added to Walking Through Provence travel tour
By popular demand, a second date of October 5-14 has been added to our Walking Through Provence trip at a reduced rate. Limited space is available, so act now! A few spaces also remain for Iceland, Italy and France. For a complete list of remaining 2007 trips, as well as a list of 2008 destinations and dates, visit Details| Top
Book discussion and signing
Join us Tuesday, May 15 for an evening celebrating the release of A World of Her Own Making, the story of Katharine Smith Reynolds and the landscape of Reynolda. Author Catherine Howett, along with Barbara B. Millhouse, founding director of Reynolda House and granddaughter of Mrs. Reynolds, will discuss the book in the Mary and Charlie Babcock Wing of the Museum at 5:30 p.m. A reception and book signing will be held in the Reynolda Gardens of Wake Forest University following the program, with Reynolda Gardens staff on hand to answer questions about the restored historic garden. Admission is $8, Members/students $5. Details | Top
SCHOOLS OF THE UNIVERSITY
Babcock School: Finance students shine in national competitions
A team of first-year Babcock MBA students turned in impressive performances this spring in national finance case competitions. The Babcock team won the 2007 Wachovia Finance Case Competition at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and finished second at the Rolanette and Berdon Lawrence Finance Case Competition at Tulane University. At the Tulane competition, the Babcock team was the only one composed entirely of first-year students and both competitions featured schools such as UNC-Chapel Hill, Rice, Vanderbilt, Virginia and UCLA. Details | Top
Calloway School: Students crunch numbers for tech start-ups
Students are helping entrepreneurs at start-up companies make the connection between good ideas and sound financial practices through a class taught in the Calloway School's MS in Accountancy program. Teams in the course, "Accounting and Financial Management for Entrepreneurs," consulted with six companies to provide financial analysis and to develop spreadsheet tools for financial projections. Three of the companies are local biotechnology companies, and the remainder include a software company, a theater production company and a nanotechnology company. Details | Top
Divinity School: Dean Bill Leonard to receive prestigious award
On June 8, the Baptist History and Heritage Society will present its most prestigious award, the 2007 W. O. Carver Distinguished Service Award, to Bill J. Leonard, dean and professor of church history at the Wake Forest University Divinity School. As a longtime member of the Baptist History and Heritage Society, Leonard has participated as a speaker at the society's annual meetings, written articles for "Baptist History and Heritage" and authored society publications. Details | Top
Law School: Dean Walsh honored at tribute gala
Robert K. Walsh, dean of the School of Law since 1989, was honored recently at a gala tribute attended by the law school's alumni benefactors, faculty, staff and friends. The festive tribute included music, humor and heartwarming testimonials of Dean Walsh's accomplishments over the past 18 years. Details | Top
Medical School: Two Wake Forest students chosen as Schweitzer Fellows
Shayla Nesbitt and Bryant Cameron Webb, two Wake Forest University School of Medicine students, are among 21 graduate students from health professional schools in North Carolina who will participate in the Schweitzer Fellows Program. Details | Top
ATHLETICS
WFU teams get ready for post-season
May is all about the post-season for Wake Forest's spring sports. Men's and women's tennis will both compete in NCAA regionals May 11-13 with hopes of advancing to the NCAA Championships, which begin about one week later in Athens, GA. Women's golf will play in an NCAA regional May 11-13 in Baton Rouge, LA., hoping to earn a spot in the NCAA Championship, which begins May 17 in Daytona Beach, Fla. Men's golf plays in the NCAA East Regional May 17-19, looking to secure a bid in the NCAA Championship at the end of the month in Williamsburg, VA. Men's and women's track and field participate in the NCAA regional beginning May 25 in Gainesville, FL. The Deacon baseball team is hoping to be one of eight teams in the ACC Tournament in Jacksonville, FL., which begins May 23. To earn a bid, Wake Forest must do well in ACC series vs. Miami (May 11-13 in Winston-Salem) and vs. Virginia Tech (May 17-19 in Blacksburg, VA). Details | Top |
