Riding the Zip Line

Last Friday, I had the wonderful opportunity (though I was decidedly overdressed) to ride the new zip line going from GA to AL over the whitewater course on the Chattahoochee River. What a treat! Dan Gilbert and his extraordinary team at Whitewater Express have done a great job with the zip line as well as with the two high ropes courses on the Alabama shore and the second zip line ride, running parallel to the river on the Alabama side. When you're done, you are transported back to the Whitewater Express outfitter store via power boat. Bundle these activities with one or more rafting rides down the Chattahoochee and you have an incredible set of experiences. What a wonderful opportunity for Columbus State University students and what a grand addition to our RiverPark Campus.

The Importance of Greek Life at Columbus State University

Over the years, many universities have run hot and cold in their treatment and support of Greek Life, fraternities and sororities. Thanks to the great work by our Division of Student Affairs and my colleague Britney Kelly, director of Greek Life, Columbus State University is seeing a surge of student interest in this wonderful co-curricular option. This week, some brothers from the Eta Theta Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi, including Reuben Riley who is also in the GA National Guard, came to visit me in my office. Some of these brothers now live in the designated CSU Greek Housing on Maryland Circle, but all want to know how they can help advocate for CSU. It was a great visit and to meet majors in business, psychology and criminal justice gives me great confidence in our collective future.

Key Elementary Stuffed with School Supplies

What a pleasure it was for me to join Mayor Teresa Tomlinson, Gina Sheeks, Columbus State's VP for Student Affairs, Chip Reese, Dean of Students and AVP, and Dana Larkin, Asst. Dean of Students, at Key Elementary School on Friday.

Special thanks to Rachel Green, Vice President-Scholastic Affairs in the Columbus State University Student Government Association. Rachel is a hyper-involved student leader majoring in early childhood education in the Servant Leadership Program; she is a mentor at Big Brothers Big Sisters and active in the AKA Sorority. Rachel galvanized a wonderful group of students who managed to secure over 400 book bags, stuff each with assorted school supplies and distribute them to every student and teacher at Key Elementary for the start of this school year. 

What a great morning it was! I am so very proud of these students and this important outreach into the community. This is Servant Leadership at work. This is what makes Columbus State University such a very special place.

Spirit of Suffrage Movement Captured During Women's Equality Day

My sincere thanks to Dr. Larry Dooley, Chair of Columbus State University's Department of Theatre, and six great theater majors (Natalie Brock, Allison Bennett, Brandon Mitchell, Rylee Bunton, Tate LeClair, and Devin Shaw) for their wonderful performance during Women's Equality Day at Ft. Benning. Commanding General Miller and his team orchestrated a fantastic event, keynoted by City of Columbus Deputy City Manager Lisa Goodwin. The students captured the spirit of the suffrage movement in period costume and set a wonderful tone for the event. What a fitting follow-up to great speeches by Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg (author of Lean In) and Spanx founder Sara Blakely at our Jim Blanchard Leadership Forum. Today's event was one more reflection of Columbus State University reaching into this wonderful community.

Students and Faculty Shine During CSU's Day of Service

I am so very proud of our Columbus State University family for the fantastic turnout at the 6th Annual Day of Service. Led by colleague Anne Vogler Brown (enthusiastically joined by her husband, Kevin), more than 500 students, faculty and staff worked across the region at 22 non-profits in Georgia and Alabama reinforcing Columbus State's core value of true servant leadership.

There was a wonderful turnout from our student-athletes in softball, men's and women's basketball, volleyball, golf, baseball, cheer, our Mascot Cody, and their coaches. Also, our VP for Business and Finance, Tom Helton; our VP for Student Affairs, Gina Sheeks; our AVP for University Relations, John Lester; our incoming Managing Director of the Cunningham Center, Ed Helton; our Director of Intercollegiate Athletics, Todd Reeser; and many, many others participated in the event.

My wife Lauren and I joined Columbus State's Director of Financial Literacy, Ginny Rae Turner, and her husband Brad at a battered women's shelter in Phenix City, Alabama. The center must open by October, and our students worked wonders preparing rooms for occupancy.

Later in the day, we all joined in a terrific cookout and shared stories of the day's adventures and fellowship. Special thanks to Potiphar Alexander, Director of Transportation, for assuring all ended up in the right place and eventually back on campus. This event has matured greatly over the years, and the involvement by our entire campus community is reflective of a caring culture.

Smooth Move on CSU Move-In Day

Kudos to Residential Life staff led by Jonathan Lucia, Steve Morse and team in Logistics, and so many others for a smooth early a.m. start to move-in day at our stunning River Park housing complex. It was nice to see Dean Richard and Tammy Baxter volunteering, and Professors John Finley and Kim Gill (right, with Cody), our faculty-in-residence on hand as well. 

This can be a stressful day for students and their families, but no institution handles this better than Columbus State University.

Preparing for Accreditation Visit Helps Us Focus on Progress

Our regional accrediting agency, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, recently held its summer meeting. I was proud to join a team of Columbus State University colleagues as we prepare for our 10-year maintenance of accreditation visit.

Additionally, and as importantly, the university team is working across the institution in the development of our new Quality Enhancement Plan. The QEP, linked to our mission and strategic plan serves to galvanize the focus of our institution and give us an overriding theme that will thread through thousands of courses, student activities, staff engagement and campus life for the foreseeable future.

While I have the opportunity to serve as a member of the Board of Trustees of SACSCOC, I learn a great deal from these meetings. I do so appreciate the work of our team and look forward to reporting on our progress over the next two years.