"People love passion," says Cyndi Allison Wittum, a Catawba College communication professor. "I always tell my students that everyone will forgive you almost any sin if you are enthusiastic and excited about what you're doing." Wittum will be blogging this summer for Sears on a "Grilling Is Happiness" project which includes some of the top grilling and barbecue writers across the country. Sears is hosting a corporate blog to help consumers learn about and enjoy cooking outdoors.

Charter members of the Catawba College Chi Omega chapter of the national Communication Association Lambda Pi Eta honor society welcomed four new members to the organization this year. New members included Rebecca Heffernan, Allison Justice, Melanie Mishue, and Leslie McMillan. They received stamped certificates and honor society pins.

Catawba College students from various disciplines shared their diverse research projects during the 2012 Interdisciplinary Research Symposium held Thursday, April 26 in the Leonard Lounge of the Cannon Student Center. Faculty, staff and students on campus dropped by during the two-hour event to listen and learn from these students.

Although he died in 1989, memories of U.S. Congressman Earl Baker Ruth flowed as freely on April 26 as traffic on the highway that was dedicated in his memory. A ceremony, emceed by N.C. Board of Transportation member, Ralph Womble, and attended by Ruth's family, past and present elected officials, and his former students, friends and colleagues, was held that day in Peeler Crystal Lounge on the Catawba College campus.

Catawba College student Christopher "Yung Citizen" Williams will have his Senior Showcase on Monday, April 30, 2012 at 6:00 p.m. in Hedrick Little Theatre on campus. Williams, a music business major from Charlotte, will be performing with fellow Catawba student, Jaymarr "J-Real" Williams of Stafford, Va.

Dr. Laurel Eason scurried to drape a table with books and roses before the 1:30 p.m. start time of her Southern Literature class at Catawba College on April 24th. She knew she was a day late for her celebration, but it did not matter.

The Catawba College Chapter of Kappa Mu Epsilon, the mathematics honor society, inducted five new members during an April 17 ceremony held in Ketner Hall on campus. Inductees included Andrew McCollister of Rockwell; Cameron Beard of Conover; Suzanne "Suzie" Williams of Efland; Jordan Hunsaker of Charlotte; and Luke Kooyman of Salt Lake City, Utah.

Dr. Michael Bitzer, Associate Professor of Politics and History at Catawba College, was an invited respondent to The University of Georgia's Future Faculty Program Conference held recently at Sapelo Island, Ga. During the conference, sponsored by UGA's Center for Teaching and Learning, Bitzer worked with doctoral students in their career preparations for teaching and serving as future faculty.

Thirteen students from Catawba College's School of Evening and Graduate Studies were commissioned as Junior Marshals in an April 14 ceremony held in the Hurley Room on campus. Dean of the School of Evening and Graduate Studies, Dr. Edith Bolick, and College Marshal, Professor David Pulliam, officiated at the ceremony.

Thirty-four Catawba College juniors and seniors, all pursuing academic majors in the Ketner School of Business, were inducted into the Business Honor Society during an April 12, 2012 ceremony held in the Hurley Room on campus.

Catawba College's Danceworks this year features 11 original dances choreographed by students. There is a wide variety of music and dance styles to be enjoyed, including tap, jazz, ballet, and contemporary dance forms. Performances are at 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 27, and Saturday, April 28 in Keppel Auditorium.

The Catawba Singers and Chamber Singers will present their final concert of the year and the final concert under the direction of Justin Hazelgrove, Catawba’s director of choral music, at 5:30 p.m. Sunday, April 29 in Omwake-Dearborn Chapel on campus.

Catawba College held its annual Awards Convocation on April 19 in Omwake-Dearborn Chapel. Students, faculty and staff were recognized for various achievements. Watch a video of the presentation of awards and highlights from the service...

The Center for the Environment at Catawba College received one of four 2012 N.C. Mobile Clean Air Renewable Energy (CARE) Awards from the N.C. Solar Center/N.C. State University on April 20 at the 9th Annual Sustainable Energy Conference in Raleigh. The Center's Campaign for Clean Air was the winner in the Policy/Organization Innovation category.

Catawba College President Brien Lewis had a chance to meet and learn about the achievements of some of the college's best and brightest students during his first week on the job. That opportunity came for Lewis at the college's annual Awards Convocation held April 19 in Omwake-Dearborn Chapel.

Catawba College will hold its annual athletic awards ceremony on Tuesday, May 1 at 7:00 p.m. in Keppel Auditorium. The ceremony will recognize the accomplishments of Catawba's athletic teams for the 2011-2012 year. Photos and a list of winners will be posted following the event.

Dr. J. Michael Bitzer, professor of politics and political expert at Catawba College, was one of four area political analysts to share their reactions to Wednesday's gubernatorial debate.

Dr. J. Michael Bitzer, Professor of Politics at Catawba College, was recently featured in an article on newsobserver.com. The topic of the article was the prospect of North Carolina changing its House delegation from a Democratic majority to a Republican super-majority and how a current scandal involving sexual harassment allegations comes into play.

Four new members will be inducted into the Catawba College Sports Hall of Fame on April 28, during the festivities of the Hall of Fame's 35th anniversary. The inductees are (with graduation year): John D. Coble '52 (deceased); Scherrie A. Dalton '98 of Martinsville, Va.; Gregory K. Payne '98 of Anderson, S.C.; and Bill H. Wilhelm '57 (deceased).

Catawba College is one of the most environmentally responsible colleges in the U.S.A. and Canada, according to The Princeton Review (www.PrincetonReview.com). The Salisbury, North Carolina-based college was one of 322 schools included in the third annual edition of "The Princeton Review's Guide to 322 Green Colleges: 2012 Edition." Catawba joins 10 other North Carolina colleges and universities included in this free, downloadable book...

"The most important thing this college did for me was let me become a student here," Dr. Joseph B. Oxendine recalled Sunday, April 15, as he accepted Catawba College's prestigious Adrian L. Shuford, Jr. Award for Distinguished Service. Oxendine, a 1952 alumnus of Catawba and chancellor emeritus of UNC Pembroke, was tapped to serve as interim president of his alma mater last March while a national search was launched for Catawba's next president.

EDITOR'S NOTE: James C. Lyerly, a graduate of Catawba College and the Cincinnati College of Mortuary Science, organized his own funeral home in Salisbury in 1957. His son Brent is now president of the Lyerly Funeral Home, which was destroyed by a fire on Friday, April 13, 2012. Though devastated by a lunchtime fire that destroyed Lyerly Funeral Home's main building Friday, Brent Lyerly said the business will rebuild. "We will be back, hopefully, with the Lord's help," said Lyerly.

Catawba College's new President Brien Lewis began his first day in the position April 16. His first day included meetings with campus constituencies and lunch with students in the dining hall. Catawba's Board of Trustees approved the selection of the former Vice President for University Development and Alumni Relations at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, S.C., in early March, following a recommendation by the College's Presidential Search Committee.

by Lauren Ebersole '07 - The last few months have been flying. The beginning of March was my close of service conference. Mostly three days being spoiled in a very nice hotel with good food and good friends. And also futsal and tennis. I basically did not teach the entire month of March due to practice national exams for grade 12, mid-semester exams for grades 10 and 11, and final school exams for grade 12. I'm back to teaching now and happy to be so, although next week will be another break for

Catawba College, in conjunction with The Salisbury Post and the Rowan County Chamber of Commerce, hosted several Candidate Forums on Wednesday, April 11, and Thursday, April 12 in Tom Smith Auditorium on campus. These forums were offered as a public service to the Salisbury and Rowan County community. Read recaps from the Candidate Forums by the Salisbury Post...

by Len Clark for SalisburyPost.com - Are You Lonesome Tonight? Well put on your Blue Suede Shoes and Surrender yourself to an evening chronicling the era and honoring the influence of the King of Rock 'n' Roll. If you don't laugh you have a Wooden Heart.

North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities (NCICU) has distributed $97,200 in UPS Scholarships at private colleges and universities in the state. The scholarships were made possible by a grant to NCICU from the UPS Educational Endowment Fund of the Foundation of the Foundation for Independent Higher Education (FIHE) which is held by the Council for Independent Colleges (CIC) in Washington, D.C.

Catawba College's Theta Phi Chapter of Kappa Delta Pi (KDP) education honor society installed new officers for the 2012-2013 year and inducted 25 new members in a ceremony held at 7:00 p.m. on April 3 in the Tom Smith Auditorium on campus. Faculty members from the Teacher Education Department played active roles in the ceremony.

Three Catawba College students and one faculty sponsor represented the North Carolina Omicron chapter at the super-regional convention of Alpha Chi, the national college honor society, March 22-24 in Baltimore, Md.

On Thursday, April 26, 2012, from 5:30-7:00 p.m., there will be a Special Education Awareness Fair held in Catawba College's Cannon Student Center. The fair will be sponsored by Catawba's Student North Carolina Association of Educators (SNCAE).

By Katie Higgins, Catawba College Student - Catawba College's production of the musical, "Huck Finn," will pay tribute to "Mr. Music" of Salisbury, 94-year-old Billy Burke, a college alumnus. The musical, based on Mark Twain's classic, "The Tales of Huckleberry Finn," will be performed in Keppel Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 19 through Saturday, April 21, and at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, April 22. The April 22 matinee will be presented by the Rowan County Concert Association.

Catawba College is one of 16 colleges and universities nationwide recognized by University Business magazine's Models of Efficiency program, which is sponsored by Higher One, a technology and payment services company serving higher education. The Models of Efficiency program recognizes innovative approaches for streamlining higher education operations through technology or business process improvements.

Longtime Catawba College trustee and benefactor, James F. Hurley III, the former editor, publisher, and head of the family who had owned the Salisbury Post for over 80 years, died Monday, April 2. The death of the 80-year-old Hurley, who joined the Catawba College Board of Trustees in 1977, brings to an end one of the most distinguished periods of personal philanthropy and social awareness in the history of Salisbury and Rowan County.