R. Owen Williams

LEXINGTON, Ky.—The Transylvania University Board of Trustees has approved the university’s strategic plan: Transylvania 2020, a comprehensive roadmap for the next seven years that encompasses enrollment growth, expansion of campus facilities, and enhancements to academic and student life programs. “The vision of this plan is that Transylvania will be recognized as one of the nation’s finest liberal arts colleges,” said President R. Owen Williams. “The plan builds on the national reputation for excellence that Transylvania already enjoys and takes the university to an even higher level.” Transylvania 2020 is organized around four primary goals: enhance innovative thinking, develop the whole person, promote civic engagement and social justice, and enhance campus infrastructure sustainably. Among highlights of the specific strategies are a planned enrollment growth from the present size of approximately 1,100 to 1,500; the addition of residence, academic, student life, and athletics infrastructure; creation of an experimental pedagogy laboratory to explore innovations in teaching and learning; expansion of interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary programs; and a commitment to serving as a model of sustainable land management and development in an urban setting. An over-arching goal is for the energy and scope of the plan to help move Transylvania from its present status as a top 75 national liberal arts college into the top 50 ranks. “The most valuable aspect of this strategic planning exercise was the process we went through, which made the board fully analyze the college’s current situation and where it

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Portrait of Henry Clay by Matthew Harris Jouett LEXINGTON, Ky.—Many would agree that if the country ever needed a good compromiser, now is the time. The Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship hopes to improve the climate for political negotiation in the future through its prestigious summer Student Congress, which promotes the ideals of enlightened compromise and civil discourse that Clay championed throughout his distinguished political career in the 19th century. Historically, the center has brought top college students from across the nation to Lexington for its one-week academic immersion into Clay’s principles of debate, diplomacy, communication and beneficial compromise. Beginning in 2014, the program will instead bring outstanding high school students from all around Kentucky to participate in the event. By educating these potential leaders, the center aims to have a positive impact on the nation’s public conversation. The center’s core mission is to promote the ideals of statesmanship that Henry Clay exhibited in his public life from 1806 until his death in 1852. Clay was Secretary of State under President John Quincy Adams, a senator and representative (Speaker of the House for six congresses) from Kentucky and a three-time presidential candidate. His skill at diplomacy earned him the title of the Great Compromiser. A recently signed agreement between the center, Transylvania University and the University of Kentucky makes Transylvania the primary location for the center and the Student Congress. “We are thrilled to be working in association with the

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Thirteen Transylvania University students and university president R. Owen Williams were recently inducted into the Lampas Circle of Omicron Delta Kappa. Omicron Delta Kappa, a national leadership honor society, was founded in 1914 at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Va., by fifteen students and faculty members. In the tradition of the idealism and leadership of George Washington and Robert E. Lee, the founders of ODK formulated the idea that leadership of exceptional quality and versatility in college should be recognized. Students apply for ODK membership in their junior or senior year. Selection is based on academic ranking, extracurricular activities and leadership roles. New members are selected by current ODK members and must pass with a 75 percent approval rating. The new members are: President R. Owen Williams Junior Cody Steven Barnett of Viper, Ky. Senior Cassie Caudill of Henderson, Ky. Junior Abigail Elliston of Lexington, Ky. Junior Brianna Hill of Lexington, Ky. Junior Kristina B. Houchins of Winchester, Ky. Junior Brian Hudson of Shepherdsville, Ky. Junior Kelsey Michelle Meece of Somerset, Ky. Junior Melissa R. Moberg of Waxahachie, Texas Junior Emily Novak of Naperville, Ill. Junior Karl Alexander Schmitt of Fort Mitchell, Ky. Junior Maria Angela Starck of Louisville, Ky. Senior Caroline Tapscott of Franklin, Tenn. Junior Raisa Olivia Tikhtman of Lexington, Ky. Transylvania, founded in 1780, is the nation’s sixteenth oldest institution of higher learning and is consistently ranked in national publications as one of the top

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Marion Nestle, one of the nation’s top experts on nutrition, was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree by Transylvania University on Tuesday, Oct. 23, in Haggin Auditorium. Nestle was recognized for her distinguished career in the field of nutrition as a teacher, scholar, author, public servant and advocate for enlightened policies on dietary guidance, social and environmental influences on food choice, the politics of food safety and the effects of food industry marketing on children’s diets and health. President R. Owen Williams conferred the degree prior to Nestle’s presentation of the fall 2012 Kenan Lecture, “Food Politics: How the Food Industry Influences Nutrition and Health.” Nestle talked to the 700-member audience about rising obesity rates in the United States and how they correlate with several changes that have taken place in the food industry and food politics over the past 15-30 years. She cited research that shows the obesity rate in the early 1980s was around 15 percent, and in the early 2000s, that number jumped to 33 percent and is still rising. She said the average American eats between 200-700 more calories per day than they did in the 1980s. Several factors have led to people eating more, Nestle said, including deregulation of agriculture, Wall Street, and food marketing, which have allowed for much cheaper food to be available outside the home and created more pressure on the food companies to raise their profits. “Much of that

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