''Mental Floss'' Highlights Berea
5/18/2009
Author(s): Jay Buckner
The popular, alternative magazine Mental Floss has highlighted eight tuition-free colleges, including Berea, in a recent article on their Web site.
The article was also published by the Wall Street Journal.
Berea has received plenty of national media attention in the last year. On May 2, 2009, Time magazine featured Berea in the article "Deci$ion$: How One College Snags So Many Students."
On July 21, 2008, the New York Times referred to Berea as an institution that provides the "best education that money can't buy." One day later, on July 22, Associate Provost Joe Bagnoli appeared on Fox News.
5/24/2009
Author(s): Jay Buckner , Julie Sowell
May 24: Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum, president of Spelman College, will be the speaker for Berea College’s 137th Commencement.
Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum, president of Spelman College |
Tatum will address the expected 212 candidates for graduation as part of exercises beginning at 2 p.m. in Seabury Center. Tatum also will be awarded an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Berea.
Receiving their diplomas that day will be 188 seniors while another 24 are expected to complete their degree requirements by the end of the summer.
Rev. Dr. Bill Leonard, Dean of the School of Divinity at Wake Forest University, will speak at the Sunday morning Baccalaureate Service, scheduled at 10:30 a.m. in Phelps Stokes Chapel.
The day’s other public events include the Nurses Pinning Service at 8 a.m. in Union Church and a reception at 4 p.m. on the College quadrangle for graduates and guests. Rain site will be Old Seabury Gymnasium in Seabury Center.
Since 2002, Dr. Tatum has served as president of Spelman College, the nation’s oldest historically black college for women, located in Atlanta, Ga. In addition to being an accomplished administrator, Tatum is recognized as a scholar, teacher, race relations expert and leader in higher education. A clinical psychologist by training, Dr. Tatum holds M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in clinical psychology from the University of Michigan as well as an M.A. in Religious Studies from Hartford Seminary. The recipient of numerous honorary degrees, in 2005 Dr. Tatum was awarded the prestigious Brock International Prize in Education for her innovative leadership in the field, and recently was named among “Most Influential Georgians” by “Georgia Trend” magazine.
Her academic best-sellers include “Can We Talk About Race? And Other Conversations in an Era of School Resegregation,” (2007) and “Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? And Other Conversations About Race” (1997). She is also the author of “Assimilation Blues: Black Families in a White Community.”
A member of the President’s Advisory Board for the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Dr. Tatum also serves on national boards including the Institute for International Education and the Council of Independent Colleges. She is a former trustee of the Association of American Colleges and Universities and past chair of the American Council on Education Commission on Racial and Ethnic Equity in Education.
Baccalaureate speaker Rev. Dr. Bill Leonard has been a member of the faculty at Wake Forest since 1996, where he is Professor of Church History in the Department of Religion as well as serving as dean of the Divinity School. In Kentucky, he was Professor of Church History at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville from 1975-1992 and from 1988 to 1995 was a member of the summer faculty of the Appalachian Ministries Educational Resource Center (AMERC) based in Berea. He currently serves on the board of AMERC. Leonard has also held teaching positions at Samford University, Yale Divinity School and Gakuin University in Fukuoka, Japan.
An ordained Baptist minister, Rev. Dr. Leonard has served as pastor of First Community Church in Southboro, Mass., and as interim pastor of more than 25 congregations in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Kentucky, Indiana and North Carolina. Among the 15 books he has written or edited are “The Nature of the Church: Word of God Across the Ages,” “Appalachian Christianity,” “Baptists in America.” He is a frequent lecturer on college and university campuses and his specialization in American and Southern studies makes him a frequent commentator on popular religion in the U.S. Leonard holds a B.A. from Texas Wesleyan College, a Master of Divinity degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and a Ph.D. from Boston University.
Berea, the South’s first interracial and coeducational college, focuses on learning, labor, and service. Berea charges no tuition, admitting only academically promising students, primarily from Appalachia, who have limited economic resources. All students must work 10 hours weekly, earning money for books, room and board. Graduates from Berea go on to distinguish themselves and the College in many fields, living out the College's motto "God has made of one blood all peoples of the earth."
| Special Ceremony Commemorates Campus Centers |
5/12/2009
Author(s): Monica Leslie
Dull and dreary rains did not dampen the warm reception and celebration held in Union Church to honor Loyal Jones and the late Willis D. Weatherford, Jr.
Photographs courtesy of Kelsey Crim |
Faculty, staff and the Berea community gathered on May 2 in the warmth of Union Church to celebrate the renaming of two of Berea’s most influential campus centers. The event featured performances given from fellow Bereans who have been connected with the Appalachian Center and the Campus Christian Center at Berea College. Billy Edd Wheeler, Lee Morris, the Berea College Bluegrass Ensemble, all gave very heartfelt and soulful performances and “preachments” before the unveiling of the plaques memorializing this historic change. This was followed by remarks from President Shinn, Loyal Jones and Anne (Mrs. Willis D.) Weatherford.
The Board of Trustees made the decision to rename the centers after David O. Welch, a member of the Board, made the recommendation that the centers be rededicated in honor of Loyal Jones and Willis D. Weatherford. In passing the resolutions, the Board of Trustees cited the exceptional accomplishments each individual had made in connection with these Centers.
The Appalachian Center now known as the “Loyal Jones Appalachian Center” was renamed earlier that morning in a dedication ceremony honoring Loyal Jones, the renowned Appalachian scholar. Jones was the director of the Appalachian Center from 1970-1993. Jones, who graduated from Berea College in 1954, has dedicated his entire professional life to Appalachia and was the founding Director of the Appalachian Center at Berea College, the first in the United States. He is also a founding member of the Appalachian Studies Association. Larry Shinn, Berea’s current President described Jones contribution to the Berean Community and the impact he has had in generating more positive perceptions of the art, history, values and culture within Appalachia stating, “Loyal has long been a passionate voice of this region.”
The Campus Christian Center, now known as the “Willis D. Weatherford, Jr. Campus Christian Center” was also renamed that morning to commemorate the late Willis D. Weatherford, the former Berea College president. Dr. Weatherford served as Berea College’s sixth president from 1967-1984. Dr. Weatherford was responsible for the creation of the Campus Christian Center. According to President Shinn, Weatherford worked with The Lilly Foundation to secure the support and endowment for the Campus Christian Center, the staff and the Eli Lilly Chair of Religion. Shinn shared, during his informative and charismatic address that it was Weatherford’s belief that “education should result not only in knowledge, but also in moral compassion. By establishing the Campus Christian Center, Weatherford sought to place Berea’s inclusive Christian ideals at the heart of the intellectual life of the college.”
These Centers reflect two of Berea College’s eight Great Commitments that include teaching more inclusive Christianity consistent with the vision of its founder John G. Fee and promoting the education of the Appalachian region and its culture. The work of these Centers, as well as of the men responsible for their establishment, has done more than enrich the life of the Berea community. The impact of these vital programs can be felt all throughout the Appalachian region but instilled in Berea's graduates and implemented throughout the world.
5/4/2009
Author(s): Jay Buckner
On May 2, 2009, Time Magazine featured Berea College in the article "Deci$ion$: How One College Snags So Many Students."
Authored by Laura Fitzpatrick, the article details Berea's "yield," the number of accepted students who enroll at Berea.
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Joe Bagnoli Responds to questions regarding information in the Time Magazine article: The fact is that no student is ever asked to pay for tuition at Berea. Tuition (which does not include room, board and fees) includes a gift from the College to every Berea student. Its total value is over $100,000. This is an undisputable fact. But it isn’t the whole story. Students are asked to contribute toward the cost of room, board and fees (term bill) according to the level of contribution the federal Department of Education determines a family should be asked to pay, the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). Berea doesn’t decide what that amount should be and Berea cannot give grant assistance to cover that amount without breaking the law. The amount a term bill increases depends upon the new EFC each year and the amount of additional earnings expected in the Labor Program. Berea is required to increase your term bill because the federal Department of Education sees your earnings in the Labor Program as an additional resource available to assist with college costs. The alternative would be to freeze labor earnings in order to eliminate an increase in the term bill. In fact, that is precisely what the College has done this year. Since wages won’t be going up next year, neither will term bills unless the EFC has increased from last year to this year. __________________________________________________ Perhaps these questions and answers will be helpful to some: How can Berea College claim to have a No Tuition policy? Because we don’t charge tuition (the cost of paying for the bills directly associated with your education). Why does Berea College charge students for Room, Board and Fees (Term Bill)? Berea wants to help deserving students attain an undergraduate degree. Education is important and self-help is a valuable component of it. We don’t apologize for your role in paying for a small portion of your college costs- we applaud it! Furthermore, if we don’t charge the student and family their Expected Family Contribution (EFC), the federal government requires us to send back the federal and state financial aid the student is otherwise eligible to receive. Why does the Term Bill sometimes increase? The first reason is because the EFC (i.e., family resources) sometimes increases. It also increases because the federal government sees earnings in the Labor Program as a resource available to assist with educational expenses. All other things being equal, if Berea doesn’t increase your portion of the term bill when EFC or wages increase, we would break the law. However, for next year, since student earnings (as well as employee earnings) have been frozen, term bills are not expected to increase unless your EFC goes up. Can it be proven that Berea’s financial aid and educational program is any better at helping students who have limited resources graduate from college? According to Tom Mortenson, editor of Postsecondary Education Opportunity (March 2009), when enrolled at other institutions, low income students (less than $40,000 annual income) graduate at a rate of 25%. At Berea, students in the same income category graduate at a rate of 64%.
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