Faculty & Staff Archives

Transylvania University names director and assistant director of student involvement and leadership

Posted on September 14, 2012July 14, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University has named Amy Jo Gabel director of student involvement and leadership and Aaron Roberts assistant director. Gabel has been at Transylvania since 2009 as advisor in Greek affairs and assistant director of residence life and student activities. In her new role, Gabel will advise and support over 70 campus groups and clubs and coordinate programs to give students practical leadership experience. “I am most excited about offering meaningful opportunities for our students to develop the skills necessary to better themselves and their communities,” Gabel said. Gabel has a master’s in education and a bachelor of science in middle grade education from Eastern Kentucky University. In her prior positions, Gabel provided leadership and support to campus groups such as the Panhellenic Council, Interfraternity Council and Order of Omega. She also led the training for Transylvania’s resident advisors and oversaw all residence hall programs and staff. As assistant director, Roberts will create a holistic campus leadership curriculum for students to supplement their liberal arts education. The curriculum includes identity development and skills identification through experiential leadership opportunities with faculty and campus groups. “I am humbled to join the seasoned, diverse and visionary student life staff,” Roberts said. “I am most looking forward to working with students directly and helping them acquire the skills necessary to obtain an education, graduate and hold the keys necessary to being responsible-minded individuals in their families and communities.” This May, Roberts completed a

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Michelle Rawlings promoted to registrar

Posted on July 2, 2012July 14, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

LEXINGTON, Ky.—Michelle Rawlings, who has served as assistant registrar at Transylvania since 2009, became registrar effective July 1, filling the vacancy left after Jim Mills’s retirement. Mills came to Transylvania in 1984 from Western Kentucky University, where he was assistant registrar. Rawlings will be a familiar face to students returning in the fall, as she’s worked closely with hundreds of students for the past three years. “Just about every student that comes in, I know their face or their name,” she said. “I like knowing that the students know they can come in anytime.” “Michelle will do great,” Mills said. “She’s very good, especially with the new online registration. If it wasn’t for her, I don’t know how we would have gotten by the last few years.” Rawlings previously was registrar at Sullivan University. She holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Kentucky and a master’s in business from Sullivan.

Transylvania University names Barbara LoMonaco vice president for student affairs and dean of students; Mike Vetter special assistant

Posted on June 25, 2012July 14, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

LEXINGTON, Ky.—President R. Owen Williams has announced that anthropology professor Barbara LoMonaco will become vice president for student affairs and dean of students on July 1. Mike Vetter, who served in the position for 15 years, will serve as special assistant to the university, where he will work with the development, alumni relations and admissions offices as well as the president on special assignments. LoMonaco came to Transylvania in 1996 after earning her B.A. in philosophy and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees, both in cultural anthropology, from Southern Methodist University. During her tenure at Transylvania, an anthropology major was added to the curriculum. LoMonaco’s extensive faculty service record includes a number of positions directly related to student life, including her membership on the Alcohol Task Force, Judicial Council (chair), Selection Committee for Student Orientation Leaders, Sexual Grievances Judicial Board, Delta Delta Delta First-Year Woman Award Selection Committee and the Transylvania Scholarship Committee (chair). “I am delighted that Barbara has accepted this key position,” said President R. Owen Williams. “She is a one-woman nuclear power plant who will completely transform the face of student affairs on our campus. From her earliest days at Transylvania, Barbara has been heavily involved in student affairs. She has an excellent rapport with students as advisor and mentor, and I am sure she will bring energy and dedication to her new role.” LoMonaco said she has ideas for initiatives in several areas of student life, including community

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Transylvania University names Dickinson associate dean for religious life

Posted on June 13, 2012July 14, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

LEXINGTON, Ky.—T. Wilson Dickinson, a 2002 graduate of Transylvania University, has been named associate dean for religious life at the university, effective July 7. Dickinson will help the university integrate religious life with the liberal arts. The position is a natural outgrowth of Transylvania’s commitment to ecumenism, reconciliation and inclusion in a 21st century context. “Transylvania is committed to enabling students to know and experience the history and practices of various religious traditions and to interact with people of other faiths and practices,” said President R. Owen Williams. “This provides the tools they need to become informed and proactive leaders in today’s diverse world.” Dickinson will promote spiritual development, theological reflection and social awareness on campus and will serve as chaplain for the campus community, adviser for student religious organizations and liaison between the university and the various religious bodies of Central Kentucky. Dickinson received a master of divinity degree from Vanderbilt University and a Ph.D. in religion from Syracuse University. He served as a visiting assistant professor of philosophy at Transylvania during the 2011-12 academic year. Dickinson is an ordained minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). He cofounded Young Adult Ecumenical Forum, which offered conferences for college students of diverse backgrounds to engage in open theological conversation on issues such as poverty, ecological justice, violence and human trafficking. For the past year, Dickinson has been a worship leader at the Fayette County Detention Center. Dickinson says

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Prominent Kentucky poet Manning joins Transylvania faculty

Posted on January 24, 2012July 14, 2020 by Office of Marketing and Communications

LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University has hired notable Kentucky poet Maurice Manning as professor of English. He will join the faculty full time in September; until then he will organize readings on campus during the winter and May terms. Manning, who lives in Washington County, Ky., has published four books on poetry, including his most recent, “The Common Man,” which was one of three finalists for the 2011 Pulitzer Prize in Poetry. His first collection, “Lawrence Booth’s Book of Visions,” was selected for the 2000 Yale Series of Younger Poets. He has had his works in publications including The New Yorker, Washington Square, The Southern Review, Poetry, Shenandoah, and The Virginia Quarterly Review. “I am delighted to be coming to Transylvania and certainly look forward to this wonderful opportunity,” Manning said. “My mother’s parents were Transylvania grads, and so are some of my cousins. It feels as if I have a family connection, and the warm atmosphere of the campus makes that sense of connection all the more pleasant. I can tell good things happen at Transylvania, and I will be glad to be part of that.” Manning has taught the past seven years at Indiana University as associate professor of English and assistant director of creative writing after four years as assistant professor of English at DePauw University. He also teaches in the M.F.A. Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College. IU granted him the prestigious John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship in

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