1780 – The Official Blog of Transylvania University

1780 | The Official Blog of Transylvania University

Faculty & Staff

Michelle Rawlings promoted to registrar

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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

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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

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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

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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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Covert joins Transylvania as associate vice president for advancement

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Kara Little Covert has joined the Transylvania University alumni and development office as associate vice president for advancement. She has more than 20 years of higher education administrative experience, including her most recent position as associate vice president for development at Eastern Kentucky University. Covert is in charge of a newly formed major gifts section that will play a key role in fund-raising efforts as Transylvania aims to expand enrollment and create new academic and student-life programs over the coming years. “The university’s plans for expansion and progress are more extensive than any we have envisioned before,” Covert said. “It will take exceptional leadership from individuals, corporations and foundations to help us realize those goals.” Covert, a 1990 Transylvania graduate, feels the university’s move toward becoming a somewhat larger school and enhancing its academic and campus-life offerings is in tune with the times. “There have been points in the history of higher education when you could maintain the status quo and do very well, but we’re not in one of those periods now,” she said. “Partly because of economic factors, people are in a different frame of mind. You have to be that much better to even catch somebody’s attention, and then make sure they believe you are an institution they can invest in wisely.” Kirk Purdom, vice president for advancement, believes Covert’s experience in higher education makes her a perfect fit for her new position. “Kara has worked

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