News Type: Faculty

BUCKHANNON, West Virginia – West Virginia Wesleyan College Student Senate recently announced awards recognizing a Faculty and Staff Member of the Year at the annual Academic and Leadership Awards Ceremony.

Dr. Travis Zimmerman, assistant professor of criminal justice for the past seven years at WVWC, is this year’s recipient of the Faculty Member of the Year Award.

Zimmerman is said to make students want to attend his classes by keeping them engaged and sharing his knowledge and lifelong experience in the criminal justice field. He was also recognized at the 133^rd Commencement by the graduating class as the Distinguished Faculty Member of the Year.

“To be selected by the student body holds special meaning to me,” Zimmerman said. “Our students are what makes a faculty member’s job at Wesleyan one of the best jobs on the planet. Like all Wesleyan faculty, I feel like our commitment to making sure we prepare students for a successful future in their prospective fields is our most important job. I’m very proud to receive this recognition of my small part in this holistic student experience!”

Kenna Whitcomb, assistant director of campus life since November 2022, was named Staff Member of the Year. Whitcomb works very hard at making sure students are entertained outside the classroom through her leadership with Bobcat Entertainment and Campus Life.

Whitcomb said, “Being recognized by Student Senate as Staff Member of the Year makes me feel appreciated. I am glad that I get to serve and work with our students in this role.”

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN COLLEGE
West Virginia Wesleyan College (WVWC) is a private, four-year residential liberal arts and sciences college in Buckhannon, West Virginia. A tradition of excellence for more than 130 years, West Virginia Wesleyan is home to 14 Fulbright Scholars. The Princeton Review ranked Wesleyan as one of its 2023 Best Colleges in the Southeastern Region of the United States. U.S. News & World Report’s 2022-2023 Best College Rankings designated Wesleyan seventh in Best Value – Regional Universities (South). WVWC offers students nearly 60 majors and 40 minors; graduate programs in athletic training, business administration, creative writing, nursing and clinical mental health counseling; 20 NCAA Division II athletic programs; multiple performing arts groups; and more than 50 organizations. Founded in 1890, the College is closely affiliated with the United Methodist Church and abides by the Wesley doctrine that emphasizes service to others. For more information, visit wvwc.edu.

BUCKHANNON, West Virginia –  Three West Virginia Wesleyan College communication majors attended the Eastern Communication Association Convention held in March in Boston, Mass. The students submitted seven submissions and earned all seven acceptances into the convention.

Danica Propst ’26, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, was accepted for “Fourth-Wave Feminism on Social Media and Generation Z” based on her work in the Ledford Scholars program, and  “Magic, Dragons and Postmodern Feminism: How Female Authors are Taking Over Bestselling Lists in Previously Male-Dominated Genres.

Chloe Sotomayor ’24, of Spencer, West Virginia, submitted “We got the Pynk: Reclaiming Femininity and Sexuality Through Black Queer Artists and “Life is Plastic, It’s Fantastic (When You’re White): Analyzing White Feminism in The Barbie Movie.”

Faith Yoho ’26, of New Martinsville, West Virginia,, presented “When You Wish Upon a Star….Have Live-Action Remakes Gone Too Far: Exploring the Racial Connotations Behind Claiming “POC Representation” Within Recycled Media.”

In addition, Propst’s poster presentation “The Hunger Games and Hegemony: The Politics of Panem” and Yoho’s “This is the skin of a toxic male, Bella!”: Observing Toxic Masculinity Within Young Adult and Romance Novels” were both accepted.

Dr. Nancy Bressler, chair of the Department of Communication,  gave two research presentations at ECA entitled “Those Were the Days”: The Legacy of Norman Lear” and “I Don’t Care If You Think I’m Good at This or Not Anymore. I Care About Whether or Not I Can Make a Change”: The Influence of Quinta Brunson and Feminist Humor.” Bressler also taught a short course on media literacy and diversity, as well as a teaching activity entitled “Listen To the Song Here in My Heart”: Exploring Ways to Improve Listening and Provide Feedback.”

The Communications Department and Lambda Pi Eta Honor Society hosted the students at the end of the semester to present their research to fellow students and faculty/staff.

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN COLLEGE
West Virginia Wesleyan College (WVWC) is a private, four-year residential liberal arts and sciences college in Buckhannon, West Virginia. A tradition of excellence for more than 130 years, West Virginia Wesleyan is home to 14 Fulbright Scholars. The Princeton Review ranked Wesleyan as one of its 2023 Best Colleges in the Southeastern Region of the United States. U.S. News & World Report’s 2022-2023 Best College Rankings designated Wesleyan seventh in Best Value – Regional Universities (South). WVWC offers students nearly 60 majors and 40 minors; graduate programs in athletic training, business administration, creative writing, nursing and clinical mental health counseling; 20 NCAA Division II athletic programs; multiple performing arts groups; and more than 50 organizations. Founded in 1890, the College is closely affiliated with the United Methodist Church and abides by the Wesley doctrine that emphasizes service to others. For more information, visit wvwc.edu.

Bishop Sandra Steiner Ball to Give WVWC
Baccalaureate Address

BUCKHANNON, West Virginia – West Virginia Area Bishop Sandra Steiner Ball will give the address at the Baccalaureate Service for graduates. The ceremony will be held at 7 p.m. on Friday, May 10 in Wesley Chapel. Following the Baccalaureate, will be the return of another Wesleyan tradition –  ice cream on the chapel oval lawn.

Steiner Ball is a graduate of Dickinson College and Duke Divinity School and earned her Doctorate of Ministry from Wesley Theological Seminary. She was ordained a deacon and elder in the Peninsula-Delaware Conference. Steiner Ball was elected to the episcopacy by the Northeastern Jurisdictional Conference in 2012 and was assigned to the West Virginia Area. She has served on the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry’s Personnel and Policies Committee, Global Education and Ministry Committee, Audit and Review Subcommittee, and as the chairperson of the Division on Ministry.

Bishop Steiner Ball and her husband, The Rev. Barry D. Steiner Ball, have two daughters:  Sarah Elizabeth and Sandra Rebekah.

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN COLLEGE
West Virginia Wesleyan College (WVWC) is a private, four-year residential liberal arts and sciences college in Buckhannon, West Virginia. A tradition of excellence for more than 130 years, West Virginia Wesleyan is home to 14 Fulbright Scholars. The Princeton Review ranked Wesleyan as one of its 2023 Best Colleges in the Southeastern Region of the United States. U.S. News & World Report’s 2022-2023 Best College Rankings designated Wesleyan seventh in Best Value – Regional Universities (South). WVWC offers students nearly 60 majors and 40 minors; graduate programs in athletic training, business administration, creative writing, nursing and clinical mental health counseling; 20 NCAA Division II athletic programs; multiple performing arts groups; and more than 50 organizations. Founded in 1890, the College is closely affiliated with the United Methodist Church and abides by the Wesley doctrine that emphasizes service to others. For more information, visit wvwc.edu.

BUCKHANNON, West Virginia – West Virginia Wesleyan College’s SPACE Club, Physics and Engineering Society and Sigma Pi Sigma, will sponsor a solar eclipse event from 2-4:30 p.m. Monday, April 8 in the Chapel Oval of Wesleyan’s campus.   Buckhannon will see a 90 percent eclipse, starting at 1:58 p.m. The peak of the eclipse will occur at 3:16 p.m., and the eclipse will end at 4:29 p.m.  Those attending will be given a pair of eclipse glasses and instructions on how to construct a pinhole camera. A few telescopes will also be available for use.

North America will be privy to a solar eclipse on Monday, April 8. Anyone within the path of totality will be able to see a total eclipse, where the moon completely covers the sun and the sun’s tenuous atmosphere, the corona.  Although this 110-mile-wide path across the United States, from Texas to Maine, will present a total eclipse, those not in the path of totality will still experience a partial eclipse where the moon covers part of the sun’s disk.

“One of the neatest ways to see the eclipse is to look at the shadow of a tree,” Dr. Tracey Delaney, associate professor of physics, said. “As the sunlight makes its way through the leaves, the system is very similar to pinhole projection and so you will see all of the little sunbeams coming through and hitting the ground in the shape of crescents.

Viewing any part of the bright sun through a camera lens, binoculars, or a telescope without a special-purpose solar filter secured over the front of the optics will instantly cause severe eye injury.  When watching the partial phases of the solar eclipse directly with your eyes you must look through safe solar viewing glasses (“eclipse glasses”) or a safe handheld solar viewer at all times. You can also use an indirect viewing method, such as a pinhole projector.

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN COLLEGE
West Virginia Wesleyan College (WVWC) is a private, four-year residential liberal arts and sciences college in Buckhannon, West Virginia. A tradition of excellence for more than 130 years, West Virginia Wesleyan is home to 14 Fulbright Scholars. The Princeton Review ranked Wesleyan as one of its 2023 Best Colleges in the Southeastern Region of the United States. U.S. News & World Report’s 2022-2023 Best College Rankings designated Wesleyan seventh in Best Value – Regional Universities (South). WVWC offers students nearly 60 majors and 40 minors; graduate programs in athletic training, business administration, creative writing, nursing and clinical mental health counseling; 21 NCAA Division II athletic programs; multiple performing arts groups; and more than 50 organizations. Founded in 1890, the College is closely affiliated with the United Methodist Church and abides by the Wesley doctrine that emphasizes service to others. For more information, visit wvwc.edu.

BUCKHANNON, West Virginia – A team from West Virginia Wesleyan College recently attended the Division II Athlete Prevention Programming and Leadership Education Institute in Orlando, Florida and are implementing initiatives to bring awareness to student-athlete supports on campus.

West Virginia Wesleyan College was selected by the Mountain East Conference to attend the APPLE Institute where they spent three days attending workshops and forming a student-led campus action plan to implement when they returned to campus.

Jackie Hinton, Director of Compliance; Shauna Jones, Director of the Center for Counseling and Well-Being; Dr. Theresa Black, Associate Professor of Nursing; and student-athletes Sneha Sundaraneedi ’27, of India, and Erik Rostoen ’26, of Norway attended a variety of workshops covering culture of care, vaping, supplements, hazing prevention, consent, strengthening the school’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and other topics.

Rostoen, a member of the men’s soccer team and exercise science major, said the workshops provided a lot of knowledge about student-athletes and drug use including “how little you need to consume to start having negative effects.”

The NCAA’s Sports Science Institute funds the APPLE Institute and 27 schools and approximately 200 participants attended the DII APPLE Institute conference.

Sundaraneedi, a physics major and member of both the women’s tennis team and WVWC’s SAAC, said, “We talked a lot about hazing, consent and sexual assault and how alcohol plays a role.” 

She said partnering with the SAAC makes sense as the conference offered ideas on promotion of events and initiatives from interactive posters to sidewalk chalk messages, social media posts and more. 

Rostoen and Sundaraneedi will complete an internship to earn credit for implementing the plan in the 2024-2025 academic year and more students will join each year to provide continuity.

One of the first initiatives the team wants to tackle is already in place at other institutions. They want to create a medical amnesty policy in which student-athletes can ask for help for addiction recovery without being penalized, which will put students on a path to recovery and support and allow them to stay in school.

Jones said, “We don’t feel our student-athletes need to choose between recovery and education.” 

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN COLLEGE
West Virginia Wesleyan College (WVWC) is a private, four-year residential liberal arts and sciences college in Buckhannon, West Virginia. A tradition of excellence for more than 130 years, West Virginia Wesleyan is home to 14 Fulbright Scholars. The Princeton Review ranked Wesleyan as one of its 2023 Best Colleges in the Southeastern Region of the United States. U.S. News & World Report’s 2022-2023 Best College Rankings designated Wesleyan seventh in Best Value – Regional Universities (South). WVWC offers students nearly 60 majors and 40 minors; graduate programs in athletic training, business administration, creative writing, nursing and clinical mental health counseling; 21 NCAA Division II athletic programs; multiple performing arts groups; and more than 50 organizations. Founded in 1890, the College is closely affiliated with the United Methodist Church and abides by the Wesley doctrine that emphasizes service to others. For more information, visit wvwc.edu.

BUCKHANNON, West Virginia – West Virginia Wesleyan College’s Center for Professional Development will host a Career and Graduate School Fair on Thursday, March 21 from 3 to 6 p.m. in the Annie Merner Pfeiffer Library.

The fair is designed to help WVWC students build professional connections and pursue next career steps.

Dr. Justin Bowers, director of career services and experiential learning said, “The Center for Professional Development is excited to once again host several businesses and graduate schools here on campus to support our students in pursuing their next vocational steps. We have over 20 organizations joining us for this event, and we still have room for those who might like to participate.” 

Graduate schools and/or employers interested in setting up at the fair should fill out the form found here. 

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN COLLEGE
West Virginia Wesleyan College (WVWC) is a private, four-year residential liberal arts and sciences college in Buckhannon, West Virginia. A tradition of excellence for more than 130 years, West Virginia Wesleyan is home to 14 Fulbright Scholars. The Princeton Review ranked Wesleyan as one of its 2023 Best Colleges in the Southeastern Region of the United States. U.S. News & World Report’s 2022-2023 Best College Rankings designated Wesleyan seventh in Best Value – Regional Universities (South). WVWC offers students nearly 60 majors and 40 minors; graduate programs in athletic training, business administration, creative writing, nursing and clinical mental health counseling; 20 NCAA Division II athletic programs; multiple performing arts groups; and more than 50 organizations. Founded in 1890, the College is closely affiliated with the United Methodist Church and abides by the Wesley doctrine that emphasizes service to others. For more information, visit wvwc.edu.

BUCKHANNON, West Virginia – The West Virginia Wesleyan College Department of Theatre & Dance presents “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” based on the comic strip by Charles Schulz, Thursday through Saturday, Feb. 22-24 at 7:30 p.m. and also Saturday, Feb. 24 at noon in the Virginia Thomas Law Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets are available at the door one hour prior to curtain and are $10 for general admission, $5 for seniors, students or anyone with a WVWC ID. 

In the musical Charlie Brown and the beloved Peanuts gang explore life’s great questions as they struggle with homework, sing songs, swoon over their crushes, and celebrate the joy of friendship. The show runs just over one hour, with no intermission, and is appropriate for audiences of all ages.

This revival version was presented on Broadway in 1999, featuring book, music and lyrics by Clark Gesner and additional dialogue by Michael Mayer, additional music and lyrics by Andrew Lippa and Tony Award-winning performances by Roger Bart as Snoopy and Kristin Chenoweth as Sally. 

Wesleyan’s cast includes junior musical theater majors Ben Long ‘25, of Buckhannon, West VIrginia, as Schroeder and Sydney Stewart ‘25,  of Barboursville, West Virginia, as Lucy, freshman biology major Kaylie “Kai” Toler ‘27, of Harts, West Virginia, as Woodstock and Peppermint Patty, freshman English major Amelia Hughes ‘27, of Bridgeport, West Virginia,  as Sally, senior biochemistry major Owen Hess ‘24, of Bridgeport, West Virginia,  as Linus, sophomore musical theater/communications double-majors Ashton Nardella ‘26, of Bridgeport, West Virginia, as Snoopy, and Julius Pretlow ‘26,  of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, in the titular role of Charlie Brown.

Senior acting/directing major Ellery Brown ‘24, of Bay City, Michigan, serves as assistant director and stage manager, assisted by freshman business administration major Christina Green ‘27, of Huntington, West VIrginia. Additional crew includes costume designs by freshman psychology major Kostadena Matina Hartley ‘27, of Las Vegas, Nevada, properties design by junior psychology major Cam McGriff ‘25, of Wilmington, Delaware, sound design by freshman acting/directing major Rhyan Sebring ‘27, of Caldwell, Ohio, social media outreach by freshman computer science major Tawny Haines ‘27, of Romney, West Virginia, and deck chief freshman acting/directing major Elijah Dickey ‘27, of Chloe, West Virginia, with scenic and lighting designs by David Hartley, Director of Technical Theater. Musical direction is provided by Associate Professor of Music, Dr. R. Daniel Hughes while Adjunct Instructor and Dance Team Coach Lesa Dencklau serves as choreographer. The musical is directed by Associate Professor of Theatre Arts Thomas Schoffler. 

“You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Tams-Witmark LLC.

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN COLLEGE
West Virginia Wesleyan College (WVWC) is a private, four-year residential liberal arts and sciences college in Buckhannon, West Virginia. A tradition of excellence for more than 130 years, West Virginia Wesleyan is home to 14 Fulbright Scholars. The Princeton Review ranked Wesleyan as one of its 2024 Best Colleges in the Southeastern Region of the United States. U.S. News & World Report’s 2023-2024 Best College Rankings designated Wesleyan eighth in Best Value – Regional Universities (South). WVWC offers students more than 50 majors and 40 minors; graduate programs in athletic training, business administration, creative writing, nursing, and clinical mental health counseling; 20 NCAA Division II athletic programs; multiple performing arts groups; and more than 50 organizations. Founded in 1890, the College is closely affiliated with the United Methodist Church and abides by the Wesley doctrine that emphasizes service to others. For more information, visit wvwc.edu

BUCKHANNON, West Virginia – West Virginia Wesleyan College’s Department of Biology and Chemistry acquired a new EVOS Imaging System microscope thanks to the generosity of an alum and the Star Instrumentation Grants Program.

The EVOS Imaging System is a fully integrated digital inverted microscope for four-color fluorescence, transmitted light and color applications. The Celeste Image Analysis System allows for real-time imaging and 3-D reconstruction of fluorescently stained cells and tissues.

The late Robert H. Sammis ‘56, a long-time benefactor of the science programs at the college, provided $25,000 in funding and the rest came from the grant.

The new microscope arrived at the end of the 2022-2023 academic year and was put to use almost immediately.

Dr. Luke Huggins’ research looks at plant natural products as novel cancer treatments.His students in molecular cell biology performed two-color fluorescence staining of HT1080 fibrosarcoma cells to examine the effects of reishi mushroom extract of matrix metalloproteinase-2 production.

“This microscope allows us to do publication-quality, multi-color fluorescence and three-dimensional imaging,” he said. “We couldn’t do the three-dimensional imaging and the color is much better. This is bringing us up to state-of-the-art. We have replaced a good microscope that was 20 years old with a really modern research microscope.”

Dr. Bruce Anthony’s lab examines the effects of drug abuse on the central nervous system. With the new microscope, research students are able to examine the changes in both a 2-D and 3-D structure and to determine neuroplastic dynamics during drug recovery. Over the summer, students used the system to look at the effects of ethanol on neuronal stem cells.

Other classes will also benefit from the microscope.

Between 50 and 75 students will be trained to use the new microscope each year. The focus on experimental design, analysis and written communication in these courses is essential to the development of the critical thinking skills needed by biomedical graduates and the microscope provides another tool. Another five to 15 research students will have the opportunity to use the system as part of the West Virginia Wesleyan Summer Undergraduate research or through the Maier Foundation.

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN COLLEGE
West Virginia Wesleyan College (WVWC) is a private, four-year residential liberal arts and sciences college in Buckhannon, West Virginia. A tradition of excellence for more than 130 years, West Virginia Wesleyan is home to 14 Fulbright Scholars. The Princeton Review ranked Wesleyan as one of its 2024 Best Colleges in the Southeastern Region of the United States. U.S. News & World Report’s 2023-2024 Best College Rankings designated Wesleyan eighth in Best Value – Regional Universities (South). WVWC offers students more than 50 majors and 40 minors; graduate programs in athletic training, business administration, creative writing, nursing, and clinical mental health counseling; 20 NCAA Division II athletic programs; multiple performing arts groups; and more than 50 organizations. Founded in 1890, the College is closely affiliated with the United Methodist Church and abides by the Wesley doctrine that emphasizes service to others. For more information, visit wvwc.edu.

BUCKHANNON, West Virginia – The Center for Restorative Justice at West Virginia Wesleyan College recently received its second Generous Promise grant from The Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph, a religious order and philanthropic organization whose grant-making philosophy focuses on systemic change through justice and peace initiatives.

The $30,000 award will support the efforts of the Center’s partner organization, The West Virginia Restorative Justice Project, a diverse network of persons and agencies dedicated to addressing harm restoratively in K-12 education, the criminal courts, juvenile justice, and addiction recovery.

The Honorable Michael John Aloi ‘80, who is a member of the advisory team, notes that “the work of healing the harms suffered by so many in our communities, especially the most vulnerable, is more important than ever. I am honored to be a part of the West Virginia Restorative Justice Project, and grateful to the Center for Restorative Justice and to Dr. Debra Dean Murphy ’84 for bringing together practitioners from across the state who are passionate about changing narratives and changing lives.”

Murphy, co-director of the CRJ at WVWC along with Dr. Jessica Scott ’04, and also a member of the WVRJP advisory board, wrote the grant.

She added, “The shared work of the Center for Restorative Justice and the West Virginia Restorative Justice Project is not only transforming lives around the Mountain State through a range of initiatives, it is shedding a positive light on and bringing renewed visibility to the College’s commitment to serve West Virginia, Appalachia and the greater region.”

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN COLLEGE
West Virginia Wesleyan College (WVWC) is a private, four-year residential liberal arts and sciences college in Buckhannon, West Virginia. A tradition of excellence for more than 130 years, West Virginia Wesleyan is home to 14 Fulbright Scholars. The Princeton Review ranked Wesleyan as one of its 2024 Best Colleges in the Southeastern Region of the United States. U.S. News & World Report’s 2023-2024 Best College Rankings designated Wesleyan eighth in Best Value – Regional Universities (South). WVWC offers students more than 50 majors and 40 minors; graduate programs in athletic training, business administration, creative writing, nursing, and clinical mental health counseling; 20 NCAA Division II athletic programs; multiple performing arts groups; and more than 50 organizations. Founded in 1890, the College is closely affiliated with the United Methodist Church and abides by the Wesley doctrine that emphasizes service to others. For more information, visit wvwc.edu.

BUCKHANNON, West Virginia – Visiting Associate Professor of Biology Dr. Yi Charlie Chen has been awarded a grant to continue his cancer research with Marshall University.  The grant, of which Chen will receive slightly under $100,000, was approved by WV-INBRE and National Institute of Health and is focused on non-pungent capsaicin analogs and ovarian cancer therapy.

“The long-term objective of my laboratory is to investigate the anti-tumor activity of capsaicin (the spicy pungent component of chili peppers) in human cancers,” Chen said.

Capsaicin may have potential applications in the treatment of ovarian cancer after being shown to decrease the viability of human ovarian cancer cells in cell culture systems.

Chen arrived at West Virginia Wesleyan College this fall after teaching at Alderson Broaddus University for 23 years. At WVWC, he teaches Principles of Molecular Biology, Ecology, Research, Principles of Organismal Biology and Senior Seminar as well as the accompanying labs. Chen earned his Ph.D. in Entomology and Molecular Biology from Washington State University. He is a member of the steering committee of WV-INBRE.

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA WESLEYAN COLLEGE
West Virginia Wesleyan College (WVWC) is a private, four-year residential liberal arts and sciences college in Buckhannon, West Virginia. A tradition of excellence for more than 130 years, West Virginia Wesleyan is home to 14 Fulbright Scholars. The Princeton Review ranked Wesleyan as one of its 2024 Best Colleges in the Southeastern Region of the United States. U.S. News & World Report’s 2023-2024 Best College Rankings designated Wesleyan eighth in Best Value – Regional Universities (South). WVWC offers students more than 50 majors and 40 minors; graduate programs in athletic training, business administration, creative writing, nursing, and clinical mental health counseling; 20 NCAA Division II athletic programs; multiple performing arts groups; and more than 50 organizations. Founded in 1890, the College is closely affiliated with the United Methodist Church and abides by the Wesley doctrine that emphasizes service to others. For more information, visit wvwc.edu.