Members of the Catawba College community gathered in Omwake-Dearborn Chapel on April 23 to celebrate achievement. The occasion was the annual Awards Convocation.Scheduled the day after Earth Day, the awards distributed were eco-friendly, made of Catawba blue, 100% recycled glass. They symbolized the college's commitment to environmental responsibility and are a reminder to the recipients to promote a greener, more sustainable lifestyle.

Children of a United Church of Christ ordained minister who have financial need and good academic standing will benefit from a new scholarship established at Catawba College by the Rev. Dr. Thomas R. Hamilton '55 and wife Jane Whitener Hamilton '53 of Newton. The couple, who met at Catawba while students, know how vital financial assistance can be to students attending college. "We know how important it is to have help when you need it," Jane explained. "A friend stepped forth and helped to make

Longtime Catawba College religion and philosophy faculty member, Dr. J. Daniel Brown, was honored at the college on Dec. 6 when his book collection was dedicated. The J. Daniel Brown Book Collection will be housed in room 312 of Hedrick Administration Building, a small, intimate seminar room with a large built-in bookcase. A commemorative plaque, describing the collection and including a photo of Dr. Brown, is displayed on the door into room 312.

by Doyle A. Luckenbaugh '62 (Religion and Philosophy / History Alumnus) - Luckenbaugh recounts how Catawba faculty and staff came together to help him find the light at the end of the tunnel in the most desperate of circumstances.

Catawba College's Gospel Choir, under the direction of Young-Artist-In-Residence and Inspire the Fire founder, Dennis Reed '06, will offer a free fall concert at 6 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 4. The concert, which is open to the public, is scheduled in Peeler Crystal Lounge of the Robertson College-Community Center.

Fourteen Catawba College students employed their unique gifts and talents in service to others as interns with tax-exempt nonprofit organizations during the summer of 2012. Funding and coordination for the program were provided through the college's Lilly Center for Vocation and Values. While these students clearly benefitted from the experiential learning opportunities offered through such internships, they also filled vital roles within the programs they served.

Mollie Landers, a 2008 Catawba College graduate, will be ordained into the ministry of the United Church of Christ at 3 p.m. on Sept. 15 at New Covenant United Church of Christ.

Mollie Landers, a 2008 Catawba College graduate, has been named as the Associate Director of Outdoor Ministries for the New Hampshire and Maine Conferences of the United Church of Christ.

Evangelist Bill F. Sheeks, a 1956 Catawba College graduate, will lead a four-day revival July 1-4 at Fellowship of Praise Church of God. Sheeks was born in Kannapolis, N.C., in 1934 and began his ministry after graduating from Lee College in 1954. He received his bachelor's degree from Catawba and his master's and doctorate degrees from the California Graduate School of Theology in 1979.

Catawba College and the Rev. Dr. Kenneth W. Clapp, the college's chaplain and senior vice president, were recognized at the annual conference of the Southern Conference of the United Church of Christ. The June 14-16 conference event, held at the Holiday Inn in Salisbury, was hosted by the Western Association.

A 1956 Catawba College alumnus and six-time U.S. Ambassador, William Lacy Swing, received the O.B. Michael Award for 2012 at the college's 10 a.m. commencement exercise on May 12. Swing, a native of Lexington, N.C., has enjoyed a long career at the U.S. Department of State, serving as a six-time ambassador and managing some of the largest diplomatic missions and foreign development and humanitarian aid programs in two hemispheres.

Thanks to a new $1 a year lease agreement between Catawba College and the Southern Conference of the United Church of Christ, Catawba will assume management of the 306-acre Black Lake Conference Center in Asheboro. The property is located adjacent to the N.C. Zoological Park in Asheboro.

What causes humans to be self-serving and self-indulgent? Are there biological or other bases for this behavior? Are we incurably captive to it, or is it possible to overcome such tendencies? If so, how? Over the past several thousand years, theologians and philosophers have constantly wrestled with this question. The Christian tradition attributes our corrupted nature to the Genesis "Fall," and the resulting concept of original sin, viewing it as something we are powerless to control...

Source: SalisburyPost.com - The Rev. Angela Burris was recently appointed to Shiloh United Methodist Church in Granite Quarry and will preach her initial sermon Sunday, July 10, at 11 a.m. A graduate of Catawba College and Duke Divinity School and an ordained elder, she most recently served in an internship at Faithwalk, a new United Methodist congregation in Gibsonville.

Again this year, Catawba College students from various disciplines shared their diverse research projects during the 2011 Interdisciplinary Research Symposium held Thursday, April 21 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.

Both of them are students at Catawba College in Salisbury, N.C., and although they're each 400 miles from their respective homes, they love life at their college. Ashley Acken of Marietta, Pa., and Kyle Hendrick of Palatka, Fla., have more in common than the 400 miles between Catawba College and their hometowns. They both are student leaders on the picturesque campus of 1000 students, and there, they have begun to discover themselves and their full potential.

by Rev. John A. Denlinger '65, Religion & Philosophy Alumnus - Denlinger shares one of his fondest memories of campus life that happened unexpectedly during an evening program at the old gym.

Meet 2010 Catawba graduate, Shane Aldridge. While a student at Catawba, Shane Aldridge '10 of China Grove, N.C., double majored in Religion and Philosophy and Political Science with an emphasis in the American Political Experience. An internship at the Rowan County Register of Deeds Office in Salisbury led to Shane landing a part-time position there after his May graduation.

A gray moustache, a rose bud boutonniere, a black beret and an unquenchable passion for teaching are just some of the most remembered attributes of the late Dr. David Earl Faust who served for 38 years on the faculty at Catawba College. Faust, a professor of religion and history, was also known for his memorable greeting, "There you are!" which he almost always enthused upon seeing a student, a colleague, an acquaintance or friend.

Catawba College has been honored by the Corporation for National and Community Service with a place on the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for exemplary service efforts and service to America's communities. The award was announced on Feb. 9th at the 91st annual meeting of the American Council on Education.

Please join Catawba College First-Year students and their First-Year Experience professors and peer mentors on Tuesday, March 24 at noon in Keppel Auditorium for a free lecture with JIM WOOTEN, ABC News Correspondent and author of "We Are All the Same." Reservations are not required. If you have questions, contact the Catawba College Public Relations Office at (704) 637-4393.

"The greatest crisis in America today is the crisis of masculinity," Catawba College's 2009 Lilly Colloquium speaker Joe Ehrmann told the audience gathered for his 11 a.m. address on February 24th in the Omwake-Dearborn Chapel. "Right behind that is the crisis of femininity and womanhood," he continued. Ehrmann, the guest speaker for the sixth annual Lilly Colloquium, is a former NFL Pro who played for 13 years for the Baltimore Colts.

Former NFL Pro Joe Ehrmann, now an ordained minister, will be the keynote speaker for Catawba College's sixth annual Lilly Colloquium on Tuesday, February 24. Ehrmann, who played professional football for 13 years and was selected as the Colts Man of the Year, followed his pro career by matriculating at Dallas Theological Seminary and Westminster Theological Seminary before being ordained in 1985.

"I'm telling you, I really go deep with Catawba," says Randy Southard of Stokesdale, a 1974 College alumnus, and as he explains, one realizes how truthful his statement is. Southard describes himself as "just a little wet behind the ears kid from Stokesdale" who ended up as a student at Catawba thanks to two people with ties to the institution, both of whom were named Ron.

Students majoring in religious studies at Catawba College will benefit from a new scholarship, the Raffaelli Family Foundation Scholarship that has recently been established.

Alumna Emily McGaughy '05 of Berkeley, Calif., who majored in religion and philosophy at Catawba, has earned her Master of Divinity degree from the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley. At May commencement exercises for the Pacific School of Religion, Emily was one of three students presented with special awards.

Two Catawba College Alumni from the class of 2008, Jon Rhodes of Virginia Beach, Va. and Aileen Thomson of Burlington, Vt., have accepted positions in South Korea working as English teachers (English as a second language) at private language school operated by Reading Town. The school is located in Jeonju (2 hours south of Seoul). The two begin work July 21 under a one-year contract at the institution.

Catawba College's Catawba ONE organization will host a forum on international development at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 27 in the Tom Smith Auditorium in the Ketner School of Business. Topics to be discussed include various aspects of international development such as political, economical, and ethical issues.

"Plant a tree," Pulitzer Prize winner Leonard Pitts, Jr. told the audience gathered at Catawba College on Thursday, February 21, 2008. "I stand in the shade of trees planted by others, so how can I not plant trees?" Pitts asked.

Two longtime members of the Catawba College Board of Trustees, both elected to their trustee posts by the Southern Synod of the Evangelical and Reformed Church, were honored Sunday, Feb. 17. Wade H. "Hamp" Shuford, Jr. of Hickory and Claude Shuford Abernethy, Jr. of Newton were presented with Catawba's inaugural Campus Ministry Church/College Award at a dinner held in Peeler Crystal Lounge on campus.

Catawba College Chaplain and Senior Vice-President Dr. Kenneth Clapp participated in the Institute on College Student Values held on the campus of Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida, Jan. 31-Feb. 2.

Leonard Pitts, Jr., winner of the 2004 Pulitzer Prize for commentary, will visit Catawba College on Thursday, February 21, 2008 as the featured speaker for the fifth annual Lilly Colloquium. The Lilly Colloquium is sponsored by Catawba College’s Lilly Center for Vocation and Values.

At 6 p.m. Sunday, November 18, 2007 the splendid acoustics of Catawba College's Omwake-Dearborn Chapel will resound with the sounds of hundreds of voices, brass, handbells, and the College's Casavant pipe organ. Members of the Salisbury community will be joining together to sing thanksgiving to God for the blessings received each day.

Is the belief that salvation requires a conscious, explicit faith in Jesus Christ essential to Christianity? Do other religious traditions offer different, yet equally valid paths to salvation? Is it even proper to apply Christian concepts like "salvation" to other religious traditions, which may have different ideas about the ultimate goal of human existence?

2006 Catawba College alumnus Dennis Reed of Charlotte will give his initial sermon on Saturday, October 13, 2007 at 6:00 p.m. at New St. John Baptist Church. While at Catawba, Reed was the first place winner of the BMI Foundation's 9th Annual John Lennon Scholarship Awards in 2006. In 2007, Reed was a finalist in the International Songwriting Competition (ISC).

On Sunday, Sept. 30, Catawba College Professor of Religion, Dr. Barry Sang, was the inaugural speaker in Salisbury's First United Methodist Church's new Preaching and Teaching Mission. The program is endowed by Margaret Parker, one of Dr. Sang's former students, in memory of her husband, Carl. Mrs. Parker audited Dr. Sang's Old Testament Introduction course last fall at Catawba, and insisted that he be the first speaker.

When Catawba’s chaplain and senior vice-president, the Rev. Dr. Ken Clapp, traveled to Maiden, N.C. on September 2 to preach the sermon for the Homecoming service at St. Matthews United Church of Christ, it was not just another homecoming.

Join us May 28-30, 2008 for a significant conference that will help to clarify the connection between faith and the environment. The conference will take place at the Center for the Environment at Catawba College. Hear renowned thought leaders from across the nation discuss the environmental challenges we face from a spiritual perspective.

The Fourth Annual Brenna Lee Lawrence Spreading Wings Scholarship Benefit was held July 14, 2007 in Jamestown, N.C. Over 100 people were in attendance at the dinner and silent auction which raised funds to be added to the Brenna Lee Lawrence Endowed Scholarship which was established in 2006 by her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Brent Lawrence, as a means of memorializing Brenna and assisting deserving Catawba students.

Jon Rhodes, a Catawba College junior from Virginia Beach, Va., was selected from the monthly winners of the institution’s Paul Fisher Service Award to receive the annual Paul Fisher Service Award. That annual award carries a $250 scholarship provided by F & M Bank of Salisbury and named in honor of the bank's Chairman of the Board Paul Fisher who exemplifies in his own life the spirit of service.

Betsy Rich of Salisbury is paying tribute to the kind, loving and resilient spirits of her late husband and son through a new scholarship she has established at Catawba College. The Maynard L. and Paul L. Rich First Family Scholarship will be awarded to a student who demonstrates financial need, who feels called to the helping professions (education, psychology, religion/philosophy and pre-med), and who demonstrates a caring spirit and a sense of high moral values.

The very humble and genial Dr. Martin Marty would not want to be called a genius but for the more than 600 students and community members gathered in the Omwake-Dearborn Chapel for the fourth annual Lilly Center Colloquium, there was a consensus that he should be categorized as such.

Preeminent American church historian and the author of more than 50 books on religion, faith and culture today, Dr. Martin Marty, will speak at Catawba College's 2007 Lilly Center Colloquium Tuesday, February 27. He will speak two different times during his visit to campus — at 11 a.m. in Omwake-Dearborn Chapel and at 7:30 p.m. in Hedrick Little Theatre and both sessions are free and open to both the public and the college community.

Today the world faces a crisis never before seen on this scale in human history. All over the globe, human beings of all faiths and of none are wrestling with the question: what exactly is the proper role of religion in the public life of nations? Proposed answers differ radically, even within individual nations. In the United States alone, some would welcome a system where religion dominates all phases of life, both public and private, while others argue with equal fervor that religion has no

Tara Ketcham, of Catawba College, received the inaugural North Carolina Campus Compact (NCCC) Community Impact Student Award on November 11, 2006 at North Carolina State University during the annual NCCC Student Conference. This award will be presented each year to students who have made significant, innovative contributions to campus-based efforts to address community needs. Ketcham was one of 21 college students from across North Carolina to be recognized for their outstanding achievements.

Phi Epsilon and the Lilly Center for Vocation and Values will sponsor a "Vocation and Values Dinner" on Wednesday evening, October 27 at 5:30 p.m. in the Hurley Room of the Cannon Student Center. All students, faculty, and staff are invited to sign up on a first come, first served basis. The meal is free. All we ask is that your conversation focus on the speakers' messages.

It’s thanks to funding from Catawba College’s Lilly Center for Vocation and Values that 2004 Catawba graduate Rachel Bahr of Plant City, Fla. will be going to divinity school at Chicago Theological this fall.