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CONTACTS

FIRST-YEAR:
Rebecca Eckstein
Dean of Admissions & Financial Aid
1-800-456-9595
(540) 362-6401
huadm@hollins.edu

TRANSFER:
Amanda Barnhart
Transfer Student Counselor
1-800-456-9595
(540) 362-6212
abarnhart@hollins.edu

INTERNATIONAL:
Dana Manuel
International Recruitment Coordinator
1-800-456-9596
huintl@hollins.edu

HORIZON:
Celia McCormick
Director, Horizon Program
(540) 362-6609
cmccormick@hollins.edu

Student accomplishments

Through a balance of challenge and support, students at Hollins test their limits and push their boundaries. When you're inspired to reach for your best — and even beyond your best — the results can be pretty amazing, as the following examples show.


Student Athletes of the Week for November 16: the Hollins basketball team. On November 15, Hollins beat Gallaudet 78-74 to snap a 63-game losing streak. In the first half Hollins was led by Tamara Phillips '11, who hit five three-pointers to help keep the score close. In the second half, Jasmine Greene '13 paced the team and ended the game with a team-high 31 points. Kendra McCain '13 scored nine points and had eight rebounds, while Brittany Hanavan '13 and Lacie Forrest '13 also made significant contributions to the victory.

A team of faculty and student scientists at Hollins has discovered that beverages from soda fountain machines can harbor microorganisms that may contribute to episodic gastric distress in the general population and could potentially pose a more significant threat to people with compromised immune systems. The research was completed summer 2009 and is available online in the International Journal of Food Microbiology (6-NOV-2009 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2009.10.031). Biology department faculty members Rene Godard, Amy White, Rebecca Beach, and students Carolyn Belling'11 and Vicki Kasza '09 co-authored the study.

WVTF Public Radio station (Roanoke, Virginia) interviewed Professors Godard and White about their research 11/17/09.

Student Athlete of the Week for November 9 is Katie Furches '10, a rider from Oley, Pennsylvania. On November 7, Katie won the Southwest Va. Hunter/Jumper Gold Medal Finals at the Virginia Horse Center. She had to qualify during the 2009 show season at various horse shows in the area and competed against 15 other riders from around the state, mostly college students. During this three-phase event, each rider performed a course of eight jumps, then competed in a "flat" phase (walk, trot, canter). Finally, the top four riders had to ride a test over jumps. This is the second time this fall that Katie has been named Student Athlete of the Week.

Katie Furches '10 was awarded a gold medal at the Southwest Virginia Hunter/Jumper Adult Equitation Gold Medal Finals, held at the Virginia Horse Center on Saturday, November 7. Meredith McDonnell '12 finished seventh in this prestigious class. Emma Lane Poole '13 finished fourth in the Children's Gold Medal Finals.

Student Athlete of the Week for November 2 is Sarah Jarosinski '12. This past weekend Sarah placed first in the Novice Equitation Over Fences at both the Bridgewater and UVa IHSA Horse Shows. Her performance at both events earned Sarah Reserve Champion High Point Team designation at each show. Sarah is a sophomore from Powhatan, Virginia. She is majoring in biology with a minor is chemistry.

The Hollins riding team competed at the Stone Bridge Farm Horse Show in Natural Bridge and at IHSA shows at Bridgewater College and the University of Virginia. Here are the individual results:

Stone Bridge Farm Horse Show - Oct. 31
Southwest Virginia Hunter Jumper Adult Medal:
1st - Meredith McDonnell '12
2nd - Michelle Agopian '12
3rd - Sarah Jarosinski '12

Bridgewater College IHSA Horse Show - Oct. 31
Open Equitation Over Fences:
1st - Katie Furches '10
1st - Emma Poole '13
Intermediate Equitation Over Fences:
2nd - Blair St. Ledger-Olson '13
Novice Equitation Over Fences:
1st - Sarah Jarosinski '12
Open Equitation on the Flat:
3rd - Katie Furches '10
3rd - Emma Poole '13
Intermediate Equitation on the Flat:
1st - Taylor Richardson '11
3rd - Julianna Day '12
Walk, Trot, Canter:
1st - Caitlin Shipe '13
Walk, Trot: 1st - Angela Wentz '10

University of Virginia IHSA Horse Show - Nov. 1
Intermediate Equitation Over Fences:
1st - Meredith McDonnell '12
Novice Equitation Over Fences:
1st - Sarah Jarosinski '12
Open Equitation on the Flat:
1st - Katie Furches '10
Novice Equitation on the Flat:
1st - Tyne Hovda '11
Walk Trot Canter Equitation:
3rd - Caitlin Shipe '13

Student Athlete of the Week for October 26 is Sage Otto '13, from Hampton, Virginia. Last weekend at Washington and Lee University she swam in five events and had her personal best times in four of them. She was also the leadoff swimmer in the 150 backstroke, in which the team took third place, their highest finish of the day. With her efforts Sage helped the team earn fifth place overall.
Dahlia Butler, current M.F.A. student in dance and Javits Fellow, had her work received for next year's Venice Biennale.
Bruce Wong, current M.F.A. student and Hong Kong Jockey Club Dance Award recipient, has been nominated for the Rolex mentorship in the arts.

Student Athlete of the Week for October 19 is Katie Furches '10, a rider from Oley, Pennsylvania. At the Hollins IHSA show on October 18, Katie placed second in over the fences and first on the flat. With those two finishes Katie earned the recognition of High Point Rider for the event. Katie is majoring in business with a minor in psychology.

Hollins riders won at Randolph College on October 16 and here at Hollins on October 18. Hollins scored 38 points to top nine other colleges, including Bridgewater (32), Randolph (30), Sweet Briar (26), and W & L (24). Katie Furches '10 was the high point rider with a win and two second-place finishes in her two classes. Final results:

  • Katie Furches '10: 2nd Fences, 1st Flat
  • Emma Poole '13: 1st Fences
  • Meredith McDonnell '12: 1st Fences
  • Blair St. Ledger-Olson '13: 2nd Fences
  • Sarah Jarosinski '12: 3rd Fences
  • Arden Cone '12: 1st Flat
  • Lauren Staley '11: 6th Flat
  • Amanda Dibben '12: 1st Walk Trot

On Sunday, Furches again paced the Hollins team to victory, winning top honors as high point rider. Overall, the team won seven blue ribbons and three seconds. In addition to the above riders, other team participants in this weekend's shows included Tyne Hovda '11, Taylor Richardson '11, Cailin Asip '11, Rachel Uliano '12, Allison Wiltshire '13, and Andrea Moreau '10. Currently, Hollins leads the region with 80 points, followed by Bridgewater (68), Lynchburg (50), Randolph (44), Sweet Briar (42), W & L (40), UVa (37), JMU (36), Radford (25), and Longwood (24).
Martha Sadler '10 has been accepted into the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) Undergraduate Fellows Program. The program is a mentoring program for undergraduate students wishing to explore the field of student affairs and/or higher education, with a specific focus on increasing the number of historically disenfranchised and underrepresented professionals in the field. If selected, students are given the opportunity to attend a national conference, participate in paid internships, and participate in the Summer Leadership Institute in addition to working with their mentor on-campus. Fellows also receive a complimentary membership in NASPA and opportunities to apply for special graduate school scholarships.
Student Athlete of the Week for October 12 is Colleen Thamm '10, co-captain of the Hollins soccer team. This season Colleen leads the team in goals scored with 11. Last weekend against Randolph College, Colleen scored both goals to beat Randolph 2-1. The winning goal came with less than 10 minutes left in the game and was a free kick 25 yards from the goal. Colleen is from Manassas, Virginia and is majoring in communication studies and minoring in studio art.
Student Athlete of the Week for October 5 is Morgan Dean '13, a goalkeeper for the Hollins soccer team. Last weekend prior to the game against Lynchburg College, Morgan was put in goal as a last-minute replacement for the starting goalkeeper, who was injured during warm-ups. Morgan recorded 17 saves against the ODAC preseason #1 pick. Morgan is from Draper, Virginia, and is planning to double major in biology and international studies.
Student Athlete of the Week for September 28 is Sara Nunnally '12 of the Hollins golf team. Sara had a great performance last weekend at the Piedmont College Fall Invitational, placing third overall in the tournament and shooting the lowest competitive round of her career at Hollins. Deservedly, she was named to the All Tournament Team. Sara is from Wilmington, North Carolina, and is majoring in art history with an arts management certificate and a minor in business.
Katie Furches '10 was Medal Class Champion and two teams from Hollins finished among the top six as Hollins hosted the Tournament of Champions Pre-Season Classic horse show on September 26 and 27. Furches rode "Piece of the Rock," one of Hollins' own horses, to the individual title. In the overall team competition, Hollins' "Green" and "Gold" teams finished fifth and sixth, respectively.
Student Athletes of the Week for September 21: Anne Ailstock '11 and Sarah Budrus '11. This past weekend the Hollins tennis team played two nationally ranked teams, Washington and Lee and Mary Washington. Anne and Sarah competed in the top A flight for doubles and beat Mary Washington 8-6. As a team they played strong and showed excellent teamwork. Anne is a junior from Dinwiddie, Virginia, majoring in mathematics. Sarah, a junior from Huntington, West Virginia, is also a mathematics major.
Destini Price '11 has been selected to represent Hollins on a statewide advisory council focusing on connecting private college students with top Virginia banks and corporations on internship and employment opportunities. Price is now serving on the Student Advisory Council for CAREER15, the innovative job placement network for students enrolled at the 15 private colleges and universities which are members of the statewide consortium supported by the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges (VFIC). Each institution is represented by one student on the Council -- students were selected on the basis of academic achievement and leadership on campus.
Kristen Norkus '12 of the Hollins soccer team is our Student Athlete of the Week for the week of September 14. In her past three matches, Kristen has not given up a single goal. As goalie for the soccer team this season, she hasn't been scored upon in over 300 minutes in goal. Kristen has 24 saves and three shut-outs for the season. Norkus, a sophomore from Gainesville, Va., is a film major with a minor in creative writing.
"The People Could Fly," an initiative led by Kalimah Abioto '10 and her sisters Intisar and Amenta, has been named one of the ten finalists for the Nau clothing company's first annual $10,000 Grant for Change, supporting those who instigate lasting, positive change in their communities. The mission of "The People Could Fly" is to uphold the dreams, ideas, and pursuits of young and emerging artists/thinkers/creators through the connecting power of travel, storytelling, and new media arts.
Brooke Bruce '13 of the Hollins soccer team is our Student Athlete of the Week for the week of September 7, 2009. Brooke is a first-year soccer player and biology major from Pacific Beach, California. On Sunday, September 6, Brooke scored three goals in Hollins' 5-0 victory over Mary Baldwin College.
Bekah Lee ’09 and Meghan Ewart '10 of the 2009 lacrosse team have been named to the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association 2009 (IWLCA) Academic Squad. In order to be named to the IWLCA Academic Squad, you had to have at least junior standing and have a cumulative GPA of 3.5.
The 2009 Hollins University tennis team earned the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-Academic Team award for the second straight season. The award is open to any ITA program that has a cumulative team grade point average of 3.20 or above. Anne Ailstock '11, Shawnte Woodson '12, Sarah Budrus '11, Meghan Ewart '10, and Emily Suggs '12 were named ITA Scholar-Athletes. The criteria for being named a Scholar-Athlete are: must be a varsity letter winner; maintain a grade-point average of at least 3.50 for the current academic year; and have been enrolled at their present school for at least two semesters.
For the second consecutive year, the Hollins University lacrosse team has been named to the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) Academic Squad. In order to be named to the IWLCA Academic Squad the team had to maintain a GPA above 3.0 for the entire 2008-2009 academic year.
Katie Dotson '11 and Shawnte Woodson '12 of the Hollins University tennis team have been named Student Athletes for the week for April 20. During the weekend of April 18-19, the Hollins tennis team played three matches in four days and needed victories in order to qualify for the ODAC tennis tournament. Katie Dotson and Shawnte Woodson were integral parts of the team's success. Katie moved up to the #3 spot for the three matches. She lost the first two single matches but won on Sunday against Roanoke College. Katie and her doubles partner won all of their doubles matches over the weekend. Shawnte won all three of her single matches. She paired with a new partner for doubles and they won two out of their three matches. Both Katie and Shawnte helped the tennis team make the ODAC tournament for the 12th time under Coach Leslie Bernard.
The Eleanor D. Wilson Museum at Hollins University and myscoper.com presented spacescape, a multi-dimensional approach to viewing and participating in space at the Waterheater in Roanoke. Students participating in spacescape were: Mary Sheridan '11, Ann Thweatt '11, Cameron Niedermayer '10, Sabrina Barnett '10, Tiffany Robinette '10, Lauren Grace Bakst '11, Emily Suggs '12, Effamore Bowen '12, and Kat Elizabeth [Allee] '10.
Sarah Budrus '11 has accepted a position in the Interdisciplinary — Computational Thinking/ iPLANT Program at the University of Arizona for the summer of 2009. The program consists of a 12-week paid summer research experience in laboratories of faculty who are affiliated with the university's Undergraduate Biology Research Program (UBRP) and with the iPLANT Collaborative, a National Science Foundation-funded initiative in cyberinfrastructure for plant sciences. According to Carol Bender, UBRP director, competition for positions this year was particularly intense and Sarah was one of the top candidates.
Sara Pena '11 has been accepted into the Rice University Summer Institute of Statistics Research Program for Undergraduates for the summer of 2009. This is a 10-week program whose goal is to prepare undergraduate students for a graduate research career in the statistical sciences, especially those students from underrepresented minority groups. Students will have access to cutting-edge computational facilities and state-of-the-art teaching classrooms.
A student team from Hollins was among 15 from Virginia private colleges and universities to take part in the 10th Annual Wachovia Ethics Bowl, a program of the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges (VFIC). Held February 8 and 9 in Lexington, the theme of this year's Bowl was "Ethics & Journalism." Teams debated case studies with ethical dilemmas facing reporters, publishers, television stations, and news photographers and videographers. The teams presented their analysis, positions and recommendations to panels of judges comprised of business, professional and educational leaders drawn from throughout Virginia. Katherine Crum '12, Katherine Gwaltney (Horizon), and Lana Parker '12 comprised the Hollins team, which won its first two matches against Lynchburg College and Emory and Henry College before falling to eventual champion Washington and Lee University and first runner-up Shenandoah University.
Tiffany Robinette '10, a studio art and psychology major, has been awarded a grant of artistic merit by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. Awards were made to 13 students from approximately 150 applicants who are currently in undergraduate art programs across the state. Tiffany was selected because of the high quality of her portfolio of recent works in painting and mixed media.
Three art reviews of "Taliaferro Logan: Georgianna Waxes," an exhibition at the Eleanor D. Wilson Museum, are posted on Myscoper.com by Sara Boddorf '12, Christal Pearson '10 and Sarah Mirseyedi '11. These reviews were composed as part of the Hollins J-Term semester course on Art Criticism.
The Hollins University Concert Choir and Chamber Orchestra spent a memorable week during Short Term 2009 touring one of the world's most picturesque and distinctive cities, Venice, Italy. Highlighting the tour, which took place January 14-21, were the choir and chamber orchestra's public performances of the Vivaldi Gloria, including a well-received concert at the renowned 17th-century church Chiesa degli Scalzi. Click here for a local television station's coverage of their preparations for the trip.
Ashlee Oliver '11 was appointed to the Student Advisory Council of AAUW (American Association of University Women). Ashlee is a gender and women's studies and biology major at Hollins.
Chelsea Eichenbaum '10, who is majoring in international business, was selected as a recipient for the nationally competitive Freeman-Asia Award. Eichenbaum will receive a $7,000 grant from the Freeman Foundation to support her yearlong study abroad experience on the Asian Studies Program at our partner institution, Kansai Gaidai University in Osaka, Japan. Freeman-ASIA Award recipients are expected to share their experiences with their home campuses to encourage study abroad in Asia by others, and to spread greater understanding of Asian peoples and cultures within their home communities. Chelsea plans to organize an international fair at Hollins when she returns to promote the Asian culture, and study abroad in general. In addition to the Freeman Award, Chelsea was also chosen as a recipient of a Bridging Scholarship for Study in Japan, offered by the Association of Teachers of Japanese Bridging Project (ATJ). Chelsea will receive $4,000 to assist with travel and living expenses associated with studying abroad in Japan for the year.