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- Holmberg awarded honorary doctorate
- Ground broken for Student Recreation Center
- Nursing team provides care in Jamaica
- Vice Chancellor for Student Development selected
- Campus beautification
Holmberg awarded honorary doctorate
Chancellor Roger Brown presented the Doctor of Humane Letters to Ruth Sulzberger Holmberg during May commencement exercises at McKenzie Arena. It was the first time since 1986 the University has bestowed an honorary doctoral degree.
“Throughout her professional career and civic activities, Ruth Sulzberger Holmberg has offered her tremendous leadership and has continued to support opportunities for learning,” Brown said.
A New York native, Holmberg received a bachelor's degree in history from Smith College, and the University of the South awarded her the honorary Doctor of Civil Law.
After beginning her career as a newspaper reporter, she became a magazine writer at the New York Times. Later, Holmberg served as publisher of The Chattanooga Times from 1964 to 1992, when she was named Chairman of the Times Printing Company, a position she held until 1999. She was the second woman tapped for the Associated Press Board of Directors, following Kay Graham, the late publisher of the Washington Post. Holmberg also served as director of the New York Times Company.
In addition to her professional career, Holmberg has a long history of philanthropy and civic leadership. For more than 20 years, she served as a director of The New York Times Foundation. She was a national board member of the Smithsonian Institution and the Public Education Network. In 1992, she was appointed to the Tennessee Higher Education Commission. Holmberg served as president of the Southern Newspaper Publishers Association in 1984 and the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce in 1988.
A founding member of the Tennessee Arts Commission, Holmberg served as chair of the Public Education Foundation, a director of the Chattanooga Symphony & Opera Association, and chair of the Hunter Museum of Art board of directors. She is a founding member of the Tennessee Arts Commission. Her board leadership is extensive, with membership on the boards of the Chattanooga Community Foundation, RiverCity Partners, and the Tennessee Aquarium.
"The University has benefited from her service as a Trustee of the University of Chattanooga Foundation," Brown said. "The Ruth S. Holmberg Professorship in Music was established by her many friends to recognize her long-time support of the arts."
She has been named a Tennessee Woman of the Year as well as the recipient of the Kiwanis Distinguished Service Award in 1989, the Liberty Bell Award in 1990, and the Smith College Medal in 1988.
Today, Holmberg is Publisher Emeritus of The Chattanooga Times. Her many distinctions include being the first woman to head a major Chattanooga business, to serve as president of the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce and to serve as president of the Chattanooga Symphony Association.
Dr. Michael DeBakey was they last recipient of an honorary doctoral degree from the University when he participated in the University's Centennial celebration.
Ground broken for Student Recreation Center
After decades of planning, a groundbreaking ceremony in the spring began construction of a new student recreation center, to be built in the field across from the McKenzie Arena. The facility is being funded by a dedicated student fee imposed by a student vote. Construction is expected to take approximately two years.
“We are thrilled to finally begin to see progress on this project,” said Chancellor Brown. “This has been a student driven project. They came to the administration with the idea, and they believed in it enough to impose a dedicated fee upon themselves to pay for it. The students have been anxious to see dirt moving and construction begin so that the project is real. I believe when this is finished, it will be a huge benefit to our students and a tremendous recruitment tool for students to live on campus.”
Nine Student Government Association presidents, all instrumental in moving the recreation center forward, attended the event. They were, Marty Bell, Mark Swafford, Skip Pond, Kino Becton, James Armour, David Cope, Amy Prevost, Lydia Grafton, and current SGA President, Bill Staley.
Chancellor Roger Brown and former chancellors Dr. Fred Obear and Dr. Bill Stacy also attended the groundbreaking, along with retired administrators Dr. Charles "Rocky" Renneisen and Dr. Robert Norred.
Chancellor Brown said the building will be “a reminder to us all, faculty, staff and students, that universities nurture bodies and spirits, not just minds.”
The project will be built in two phases.
Phase 1
- $16.5 million includes construction, design, and furnishings
- About 100,000 square-feet
- Gymnasium with two full-size basketball courts (can be converted to four indoor soccer areas)
- Martial arts room
- Aerobics and yoga studios (small & large)
- Free weights, workout machines
- Cardio space
- 1/8 mile indoor walking track
- Climbing wall and bouldering wall
Phase II
- Indoor pool
- Design to begin this summer with construction beginning after Phase I opens
- Estimated cost $7.3 million
Nursing team provides care in Jamaica
The weather was hot, and UTC students and faculty were busy in their hands-on educational learning experience in Montego Bay, Jamaica, West Indies. Nursing faculty supervised 15 undergraduate and graduate student nurses as they worked in collaboration with the Jamaica Ministry of Health and regional health authorities.
Health screenings and educational sessions by the nursing group benefited Caribbean Christian School for the Deaf, local orphanages and basic elementary schools. The group spent time interacting with nurses, physicians, and other health professionals at Cornwall Regional Hospital. UTC students and faculty compared and contrasted nursing curriculum and educational experiences with students and faculty at the Cornwall School of Nursing.
“We set up a health clinic providing blood pressures checks, blood glucose checks, clinical breast exams and counseling, and health education stations on such topics as stress management, skin protection from the sun, and general hygiene,” said Lisa Muirhead, MSN, ARNP-CS, ANP and Assistant Professor in the School of Nursing. “We also provided donated reading glasses to those who needed them.”
While Muirhead served as team leader, additional faculty traveling in Jamaica included Cindy Morgan, Dr. Miram Zwitter, Dr. Susan Davidson and Dr. Martina Harris.
International hands-on service learning experiences allow for immersion in a community, Muirhead said. Students also discover an awareness of what drives health related behavior, including values, beliefs and resources or lack of resources.
“The people of Jamaica were overwhelmingly accommodating, supportive, and quite appreciative. Our student nurses far surpassed our expectations, performed well, and learned lots!” Muirhead said.
This international educational experience will further aid students and faculty in gaining interpersonal skills necessary to meet the realities of the global community, broaden their perspectives of nursing internationally, and lend to professional and personal growth, according to Muirhead.
Vice Chancellor for Student Development selected
Dr. John Delaney has been named Vice Chancellor for Student Development. He has served since 2000 as Dean of Students at Ohio Wesleyan University, a private, residential national liberal arts college.
Delaney received the Doctor of Education in Higher Education Administration from Vanderbilt University. He also received the Master of Education from Vanderbilt University and he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Rice University, where his major was English. He received an Associate of Arts degree from Brevard College in North Carolina.
Prior to his appointment at Ohio Wesleyan University, Delaney was Associate Vice President for Student Services and Dean of Student Life for six years at Sam Houston State University in Houston, Texas. From 1990-1994, he served as Assistant Dean of Students at UTC. At that time, he reported directly to the Vice Chancellor for Student Services and he was responsible for the oversight of a variety of services and programs.
"We are delighted to see John return to the University after building upon his professional achievements," said Chancellor Roger Brown. "I am confident he will lead his staff to strengthen the bonds between students and challenge students to engage in the Chattanooga and global communities."
As Delaney prepares to return to UTC, he is encouraged by recent campus developments. "I have heard very positive feedback on the present strength of the campus and on the efforts to become a model metropolitan university. I appreciate what that means for student involvement and success, and I look forward to being a part of what looks like a very bright future."
Delaney's professional activities include a presentation on "Preventing Campus Violence: A Strategically-Designed, Proactive Model" at the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) National Conference. He published "Student Services In American Colleges and Universities" in Perspectives In Higher Education Reform.
Delaney is professionally involved in the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, Association for Student Judicial Affairs, and the American College Personnel Association. He has had extensive committee experience in the Southern Association for College Student Affairs. Delaney has been honored with the Delaware Police Department's Citizen Award and the Marshall Award, a Greek Leadership Award. While he served at UTC, he received the Division of Student Affairs Outstanding Employee Award and he was named an honorary member of Golden Key National Honor Society.
Campus beautification
A celebration of campus history is underfoot in Heritage Plaza and the Pedestrian Mall. New medallions were recently installed to commemorate Chattanooga University, University of Chattanooga, Zion University and the University of Tennessee, completing the attractive walkway now landscaped with shrubs and trees. The Pedestrian Mall includes the landscaped grassy area from East Fifth Street, between the UC and Grote Hall, to Vine Street. Heritage Landing is the portion of Vine Street located near the UC.
Contributions from the Tonya Foundation, the Lupton Renaissance Fund and private gifts from Brenda Lawson, Whitney Durand, Ruth Holmberg, and Bryan Patten support the evolving campus landscaping plan.
The Douglas Street entrance to Boling Apartments was also recently improved with new landscaping. Nearby above McKenzie Arena, look for the new UTC flag flying the blue and gold beside the U.S. and Tennessee state flags.
An exciting new construction project could come from Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen’s proposal to fund a new $48 million library for UTC, included in an amendment to his original budget. The 33-year old Lupton Library is the oldest library in the UT System. The University has proposed building the new structure on the corner of Vine and Douglas Streets, where Parking Lot 3 is located adjacent to Chamberlain Field. If the new library is built, the Lupton Library would be used to house classrooms and labs.
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