Enjoying our incredible community connections

It was, once again, a most incredible weekend at Columbus State University.

Friday evening, on the green, at the Saunders Center for Music Studies in front of Columbus State's Schwob School of Music, Dr. Alex Pershounin led our CSU Jazz Orchestra in a wonderful concert under the stars. We brought lawn chairs and joined so many others for a truly remarkable performance. Immediately after, Dr. Matt McCabe led a multi-talented band of students in a terrific contemporary concert that kept everyone engaged.

We were on the lawn as the Ron White show ended at RiverCenter's Bill Heard Theatre, and I could sense so many wished they had joined us for the evening of food and fun outdoors, perfect weather and great talent.

On Saturday, CSU students partnered with the First Freedom  Climb, a fundraiser for the Fountain City Chapter of the national Federation of the Blind of Georgia and, at our world-class Student Recreation Center, helped an incredibly brave group of friends maneuver and climb the 40-foot vertical walls. Our students served as spotters and belayers and again reflected that culture of servant leadership that is such a dynamic part of our university.

Lauren and I had the great opportunity to watch our men and women's tennis teams battle it out at the NCAA Regional Tournament at the Blackmon Tennis Complex on campus. The women compete in the finals this afternoon and the men lost a heartbreaker. The tenacity and focus of these student-athletes is incredible, and we still marvel at how they balance full-time academics with an incredibly rigorous competitive schedule.

This morning at 6:30, I met Lt. Col. Feret and the Cougar ROTC Battalion at our intramural field. I joined them on a 5k run and proudly brought up the rear!  What a commitment these students have in terms of academics, country and more. It was a real treat to join in the cadence calls of the battalion, and I thank Lt. Col. Feret and his team for the great work they are doing.

Oi Sigma Alpha, Pi Alpha Alpha induct new members

Kudos to the students involved in these two academic honorary societies for political science and public administration for a great induction ceremony. Dean David Lanoue, Dr. Kimberly Gill, Dr. Kyle Christensen and Ms. Amber Dees, along with chair Dr. Tom Dolan, were in force with a number of their faculty colleagues.

Gerald McKenna, finishing up in a couple of weeks shared insights on his 10-year service as a Marine working at embassies around the globe and how this along with his great CSU academic experience is shaping his future. The evening featured Israel's consul general for the Southeast, Opher Aviran, who delivered a terrific message and challenge to those in attendance. This was truly a wonderful celebration of academic success.

Volunteers rally to deliver CSU Day signs

Today is the 18th annual kickoff for CSU Day at our university. For 18 consecutive years, faculty, staff, students, friends and alumni have fanned out across the region to deliver CSU Day signs to residences and businesses throughout the region. We had a great pancake breakfast this morning, and Kelley Gibson, director of our Annual Fund, and Russ Carreker, this year's campaign chair, rallied our supporters for this important event.

Jimbo Davis, an assistant athletic director, paid special tribute to Sharon Wiley, who has worked tirelessly on this campaign for 18 years and will be retiring in June. There was a great turnout this a.m., including our Cougar ROTC Battalion, Lady Cougars soccer team, deans, provost and more to get the day started right. When you travel the region in the next few weeks and see thousands of CSU Day signs, you realize the impact of the university on this region and our community.

Holiday Weekend Celebrates Inclusion

I want to begin by wishing all who celebrate a happy holiday weekend. The combination of both Easter and Passover over the same weekend reinforces our exceptional commitment to celebrating diversity and inclusion. Our recent Legacy Celebration served to remind our campus of our unwavering commitment to inclusiveness on the Columbus State University campus. Indeed one of our core values reads: "Inclusion – Fostering and promoting a campus that embraces diverse people, ideas, views, and practices." I want to thank our Student Affairs team for choreographing such a wonderful and spirited event.

It's been another great week for faculty and student music on our campus. The LegacyLive concert by professors Sergiu Schwartz and Alexander Kobrin was moving and powerful. The packed house was so very impressed by the performance of these faculty, performing works from Mozart to Mendelssohn. Three days later, professor Kobrin performed with professors Wendy Warner and Lisa Oberlander, offering another exceptional evening, including works by Schumann and Brahms. Last night, Legacy Hall rocked with the sounds of the CSU Jazz Band led by professor Alex Pershounin. The 17-piece band has grown in such popularity that the concert was moved from the Studio Theater to Legacy Hall. The audience cheered, and the students responded. It was a great evening for all.

Finally, yesterday, I had the great pleasure of introducing Georgia's gifted Attorney General Sam Olens at the Columbus Chamber of Commerce. The AG was here to promote his food bank campaign across Georgia involving attorneys and law firms. This great effort will provide a much-needed boost to Feeding the Valley, and it was a great honor to participate in this visit.

Busy Campus Keeps Us on the Run

For the 20th consecutive year, our College of Education and Health Professions (COEHP) brought the National Teacher of the Year to Columbus. This year, Michelle Shearer, an AP Chemistry teacher at Urbana High School in Frederick County, Maryland, spoke to COEHP students and faculty, to the Columbus Rotary and to honorees in the 2012 Muscogee County Teacher of the Year program. Ms. Shearer embraces technology and teaching strategies and pushes students to push themselves into the STEM disciplines. Her talks were inspiring, and the STEM focus was incredibly appropriate, given our participation in the UTeach program. What a treat to have her on campus.

This past weekend, professor Alex Kobrin, who directs our piano studio in the Schwob School of Music, performed at Legacy Hall in a special concert with some of his students. The concert, performed on four Steinway concert pianos, was truly exceptional. No less exceptional was the performance of our Women's Tennis Team, a gifted group of international student-athletes who remain undefeated, and the great first place showing of our Women's Golf Team in a tournament in Carrollton.

By the way, I did manage to finish in the middle of the pack in Cody's Run on Saturday, a 5K coordinated by our Sustainability Committee.

CSU ensemble wows National Band Directors Association audience

I know this is homecoming weekend, and Lauren and I look forward to continuing to participate in an exciting array of activities (including getting a whipped cream pie in the face for charity).

But today I had the remarkable pleasure of driving to Atlanta to attend a meeting of the National Band Directors Association, where our Schwob School of Music Wind Ensemble was invited to play before attendees. Under the direction of  Dr. Jamie Nix, the students (over 60, in all) were truly remarkable. The students, taught by 15 wind and percussion faculty, were poised for a great evening. Additionally, Dr. Amy Griffiths performed flawlessly in conjunction with the ensemble in the Concerto for Saxophone by Ingolf Dahl. I was so very proud of this magnificent performance.

Perhaps the greatest tribute to Dr. Nix and the ensemble was the thundering standing ovation delivered by a very grateful audience.  To which I say, bravo!

Terrific students make for terrific programs, events

Special thanks go out to so many Columbus State University students who committed so much time, energy and effort to fighting cancer with a series of special events at our men's and women's basketball games this week. The players were adorned in pink, and the efforts of these students and funds raised  will contribute wonderfully to cancer research. For our family, where my wife Lauren is a 20-plus year survivor, this is most important work. Thank you.

Both our men's and women's basketball teams will play in the Peach Belt Conference Tournament, which will be held in our own Lumpkin Center arena. We are thrilled.

Last Sunday, Lauren and I, had the opportunity on our anniversary to hear our violin studio gala featuring the students from the studio of professor Sergiu Schwartz, the William B. and Sue Marie Tuner Distinguished Faculty Chair in Music. There are 18 students in the studio from the U.S. and seven other countries. What a concert!  Immediately after, we went to Columbus' famed Liberty Theater to hear the Pershounin Project, the jazz quartet led by Schwob School of Music faculty Alex Pershounin and Paul Vaillancourt. It was a truly great evening.

Today, our Student Government Association learned their voices were heard as our 2012-2013 senior meal plan for residential students was modified to meet the needs and desires of students. A great shout out goes to SGA President Antonio Orsborn for his wonderful work.