Ready
to rock
the world
New paths await a remarkable Spartan class.
Scarlett Nuñez ’22, two majors,
many honors, boundless potential.
’22, Here’s to you
We are a force to be reckoned with. That’s something we’ve shown over the course of the pandemic. And I think that’s a trait that is going to be very beneficial in life because you never know what’s going to be thrown at you.”
–Nicole Rowe ’22
As the academic year comes to a close, I think of all the Commencement ceremonies this campus has seen and the tremendous impact our graduates have made.
Since our doors opened to students in 1892, unlocking potential in people not traditionally served by higher education has been encoded into our DNA.
Here at UNC Greensboro, we believe excellence in education changes lives. It’s why we have been recognized by U.S. News & World Report for providing paths to prosperity for more first-generation and lower-income students than any other public university in the state. And, because 85 percent of our graduates remain in North Carolina to live, work, or attend graduate school, their impact will be felt across the state for generations.
The academic and social counseling and financial assistance that help these students stay on track to earn their degrees are not inexpensive. It is here the generosity of our alumni and donors makes the biggest impact. That investment in named professorships, scholarships, and student success programs will truly “light the way” for our students, helping them earn their degree and make their mark on the world.
Where are
they Now?
We’ve met many UNCG alumni and learned their stories, over the years, through the pages of this magazine. Let’s check in with them. Where to begin? Let’s go back to the start of the last UNCG campaign. A team of writers reached out – through calls, through Zoom, coffee shop chats, hugs-and-smile-filled and sometimes tear-filled visits – to nearly 50 alumni featured in these pages since 2004. Make yourself comfortable, sit back, and let’s all catch up.
Such a Diva
Beth Leavel ’80 MA owns some of Broadway’s biggest awards, as this magazine has reported.
In May, she’ll receive an honorary degree from our University. And she will address the graduates as the commencement speaker.
“They’re getting a storyteller – who was one of the stories. I hope I can share something, impart something – I hope I can be entertaining. And I hope they leave with more joy in t heir hearts.”
Star Teacher
Leslie Ross ’97, ’08 MEd, when interviewed for a 2016 UNCG Magazine cover story, said, “Teaching is a work of the heart.” An educator and activist, she’d recently returned from a US Department of Education panel on high-need schools and a White House lunch with then-President Obama.
She’d won national recognition, as she’d been selected from more than 400 teachers in 39 states to receive the first annual Fishman Prize, an award given by The New Teacher Project to four educators working in high-need schools
Minerva’s Maker
Jim Barnhill ’82 MFA The artist who created UNCG’s Minerva statue, a gift of the Class of 1953, is Jim Barnhill, who first sculpted live models here as a master’s student at UNCG.
He’s been in the magazine a few times in the past decades, with a large feature in 2018.
He created the General Greene statue in downtown Greensboro and the iconic statue of the Greensboro Four at NC A&T, where he has taught art since 1996.
Class Day procession in Foust Park. Class of 1965 sophomores hold the Daisy Chain while the graduating Class of 1963 walk down the center aisle, class mascots in tow.
Class Acts
Commencement week has always been special on our campus, marked by ceremony and tradition.
And daisies, thousands of daisies.
For many decades, the big event for seniors was the Class Day ceremony, held the day before commencement – usually in Foust Park. Class Day Committees planned the programs to reflect each class’s unique “personality” and showcase their accomplishments. Typically included were the presentation of the Class Gift, naming the Everlasting Class Officers and outstanding seniors, retiring the Class Colors, and singing the Class Song.
Class identity was the nexus of campus social occasions such as bonfires and teas, musical and theatrical productions, and athletic competitions. The adoption of “Sister Classes” – juniors and freshmen, seniors and sophomores – further instilled bonds among students.
newsfront
‘Read at whim,’ Fred Chappell advised Maria Hummel
‘Fred Chappell is like Whitman. He contains multitudes,’ says Rodney Jones
Fred Chappell: One of us forever
thestudio
Setting the Stage
Broadway COVID Safety, with Hugh Hysell
Lorraine O’Grady exhibition from Brooklyn Museum of Art
A lesson of their own, with Geena Davis
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