CONWAY, Ark. (December
20, 2019) — As 2019 draws to a close, here’s a look back at a few of the
milestones, accomplishments, innovations, and honors at Hendrix College since
January of this year:
PEOPLE
Distinguished Professors Installed
Dr. John Krebs
became the Willis H. Holmes Distinguished Professor of Music and Dr. Matthew D.
Moran became the Elbert L. Fausett Distinguished Professor of Biology at an Aug. 29 installation ceremony. The College’s distinguished
professorships recognize an individual’s exemplary achievement as a teacher and
scholar, combined with sustained and noteworthy service to higher education,
including service to the College.
Odyssey Medalists Recognized
Hendrix College
awarded its 2019 Odyssey Medals to Patterson Clark ’77 for Artistic
Creativity; the Rev. Dr. Rebekah Miles ’82 for Research; and Mike Mills ’74 for
Professional and Leadership Development. The Odyssey Medal recognizes alumni
whose life achievements exemplify the ideals of the Hendrix Odyssey Program.
Presidential Transition Announced
Following
President Bill Tsutsui’s retirement announcement in November, the Board of
Trustees named W. Ellis Arnold III ’79 as the next President of Hendrix College. Arnold begins his new role on Dec. 31.
He will be the 12th President of the College, and the first Hendrix
alumnus named to the presidency since 1958.
Additional New Roles on Campus
Mary Kennedy joined the Hendrix staff in January as
the inaugural director/curator of the Windgate Museum of Art at Hendrix
College, which will open in 2020 on the first floor of the new Miller Creative
Quad. Politics and international relations professor Dr. Kiril Kolev
became the new director of the Hendrix Odyssey Program, the College’s
nationally recognized engaged learning initiative. And psychology professor Dr. Lindsay Kennedy (no relation to Mary) was named the
College’s inaugural Director of Well-Being; her Odyssey Professorship that
focused on well-being has grown into a campus-wide Well-Being Initiative
promoting mental health and resilience at Hendrix.
PROGRAMS
Tuition Advantage
In September, the
College announced that for qualified first-year students entering Fall 2020,
Hendrix will match the published tuition for the flagship public school in the
students’ home state. After all Hendrix College-provided aid is applied and a
qualified student still owes more in tuition and fees than the published rate
for their state flagship, Hendrix will award an additional scholarship to bring
the amount down to the flagship institution rate. The new Tuition
Advantage program is part
of the College’s commitment to accessibility and affordability.
Test Optional Admission
Prospective
Hendrix students now have the option to request their test scores not be
considered if they feel the scores do not represent their ability. Students may
indicate their preference to be considered as test
optional on both
Hendrix’s application and the Common Application. While Hendrix has long
considered applications holistically and never used test scores as a
make-or-break factor, test optional admission promotes equity and excellence
and recognizes that test scores do not equal merit.
Varsity Esports
Hendrix announced
the launch of its varsity esports program with the selection of inaugural esports head coach Logan
Horton in November. Horton, who officially begins his role in January 2020, hopes
to see 20 or more esports team members during the first season. Students will
try out for a spot on the team and, like other intercollegiate athletes, they
will practice five or six days a week, working on skills, communication,
teamwork, and bonding. Though esports is not yet officially recognized or
sanctioned by the NCAA, esports players will be held to the same standards as
the College’s NCAA Division III student-athletes, including academic
performance, drug screening, and fitness requirements.
POINTS OF PRIDE
Miller Creative Quad Opening
In August, the
upper floors of the Carolyn L. and David B. Miller Creative Quad welcomed 100 students to the new living
spaces in Arkansas Hall and Conway Corporation Hall. Work crews continued
preparing the ground floor for the Spring 2020 move-in of the Department of
Music, the Film Studies Program, and the Windgate Museum of Art at Hendrix
College. In a nod to history, the first floor of Conway Corporation Hall
features slate tiles that once covered the roof of Hulen Hall, which held the
student center, cafeteria, and ballroom that served campus for 60 years.
Ongoing National Recognition and
Achievement
- Hendrix
continues to hold the distinction of being the only top 100 nationally ranked liberal
arts college in Arkansas, with yet another appearance in the U.S. News &
World Report Best National Liberal Arts Colleges list, as well as its Best
Value and Most Innovative Schools lists.
- The
College also achieved a four-year graduation rate of 70%, the highest in Arkansas and among the
top four-year graduation rates in the country.
- In
its Survey of Earned Doctorates, the National Science Foundation recognized
Hendrix among the top national institutions in preparing doctoral-level science educators and researchers.
Individual honors
for Hendrix students include:
Athletics Honors for Hendrix Warriors
Baseball:
The team won a share of
the 2019 SAA Regular Season Championship, its first-ever SAA title. Andrei
Stoyanow ’22 was named SAA Newcomer of the Year, Head Coach Sean McSheffery was
named SAA Coach of the Year, and the team finished the season with a
program-best 30 wins. Pitcher Jack Hodgins ’23 was named to the D3baseball.com
All-South First Team and D3baseball.com Rookie of the Year. Softball:
Emily Stockalper ’19 tossed Hendrix’s 10th no-hitter and third-ever perfect
game in a 17-0 rout of the Sewanee Tigers on March 31. Volleyball: The team made
it to the semifinals of the SAA Championships for the seventh straight
postseason and earned a no. 3 seed for the tournament for the third straight
year. Lauren Dwyer ’20 was named a CoSIDA Google Cloud Second Team All-American,
the first Hendrix Volleyball player to earn that honor since 2016. Men’s
Basketball: the team upset NCAA Division II University of Arkansas-Fort
Smith Dec. 5, a rare exhibition win for any Division III basketball program and
Coach Thad McCracken’s first-ever exhibition victory. Seth Stanley ’22 was
named the 2018-19 SAA Newcomer of the Year. Swimming and Diving: Tony
Marleneanu was named the 2019 SAA Men’s Coach of the Year, the Men’s Swimming
& Diving team broke 17 school records, and the Women’s Swimming &
Diving team broke seven program records. Football: The team finished the 2019
season 7-3. Kip VanHoose ’21, Xavion Gardner ’20, Blake Hinton ’21, and Jared
Bazley ’21 earned All-SAA First Team honors, and Hunter Lawrence ’22 was named
CoSIDA Google Cloud All-District Team.
About
Hendrix College
A private liberal
arts college in Conway, Arkansas, Hendrix College consistently earns
recognition as one of the country’s leading liberal arts institutions, and is
featured in Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change
the Way You Think About Colleges.
Its academic quality and rigor, innovation, and value have established Hendrix
as a fixture in numerous college guides, lists, and rankings. Founded in 1876,
Hendrix has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. To
learn more, visit www.hendrix.edu.