Sunday, August 17, 2014

Wildcat Dreams - Vol 2., No.1

Sunday, August 17, 2014 • Vol. 2, No.1

Wildcat Dreams is Fort Valley State University President Ivelaw Lloyd Griffith’s tri-weekly e-newsletter. As an additional resource to stay connected to FVSU, Wildcat Dreams highlights various campus activities and updates about new initiatives and programs. Readers are encouraged to share with friends and family. We welcome your feedback. Please send comments to fvsu_pr@fvsu.edu. Thank you and happy reading!

Read more news on the FVSU Review. 


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Dr. Ivelaw Lloyd Griffith's special "Welcome Back" Message











Geneva West

Alumni Spotlight: Geneva West

This month's spotlight features Fort Valley State University alum Geneva West, a community leader who is helping young girls accomplish their dreams of pursuing careers within the sciences while building their self-esteem.
West is the founder and executive director of the Real I.M.P.A.C.T. Center, Inc. The acronym stands for Intelligent and Motivated People Actively Changing the Times. The organization is seeking to identify the causes of poor academics and interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) areas, and is seeking to offer real solutions by providing STEM workshops in hopes of making a real impact in the lives of young girls and communities. 
West is a native of Pineview, Ga. She is the youngest child of four sisters and three brothers. Her father built air conditioners for the Marvair Corporation, and her mother was a homemaker.
“I had a very fun childhood, and I was very involved in the community. I enjoyed working with my father and brother in the yard and in the garden. I am somewhat of a girly-girly with a splash of tomboy,” West said.
Read more here







Fort Valley State University hosts move-in day for freshmen



There’s a surge of new energy in Wildcat Country. Early Thursday morning, cars began lining up at FVSU’s main entrance for Freshman Move-In Day. 
Eager first-time college students embarking on a new adventure checked into their rooms, unpacked and registered for classes. To see more photos of the exciting day, click here.




FVSU's AG Extension celebrates 100 years of service





In 2014, Fort Valley State University's Ag Cooperative Extension Service celebrates the Smith-Lever Act, which established the Cooperative Extension Service, a unique educational partnership between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the nation’s land-grant universities that extends research-based knowledge through a state-by-state network of extension educators.

For 100 years, the Smith-Lever Act has stimulated innovative research and vital educational programs for youth and adults through progressive information delivery systems that improved lives and shaped a nation.

Join us as Fort Valley State celebrates 100 years of extending knowledge for inspiring lives!










Fort Valley State University to launch the Advance2Go Program for Adult Learners 


Fort Valley State University is expanding opportunities for adult learners to earn their college degrees and enhance their on-the-job skills thanks to new grant funding recently obtained from the Georgia governor’s office. The university received $25,000 to start implementing the “Advance2Go” program for adult learners on campus.

“One of our ultimate goals in graduate studies is to double our efforts in servicing nontraditional students with passion and commitment," said Dr. Rayton Sianjina, FVSU's Dean of Graduate Studies and Extended Education.

The Advance2Go program is a new initiative designed for adults 25 years and older that have been out of high school for five years, or started college and dropped out.

The program falls under the Georgia Governor’s Complete College Georgia initiative that was started in 2011 by state governor Nathan Deal. The goal of the program is to add 250,000 post-secondary graduates to Georgia’s rolls by 2020.

Read more here.



FVSU becomes tobacco and smoke-free campus 


Fort Valley State University will implement a new system-wide policy this fall that prohibits the use of tobacco products on campus.

Starting August 18, FVSU will officially become a tobacco and smoke-free campus to be in line with with the new University System Board of Regents Policy 9.1.7 that was approved in March 2014. The policy states that the use of all forms of tobacco products on campus is prohibited.

Read more here.




Lisa Wilson

FVSU Director Named to Fulbright Review Board

A Fort Valley State University director will learn the requisites of attaining Fulbright funding thanks to a recent appointment to a prominent federal committee.

The Council for International Exchange of Scholars (CIES) recently invited Lisa Wilson, director of FVSU’s Office of Sponsored Programs, to serve as a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Discipline Peer Reviewer for 2015-2018 on the Business Committee. The position will allow Wilson to review, score, rank and recommend the award of Fulbright Scholar proposals from around the nation for the 2015-2018 funding cycles, before they are sent to regional reviewers.

Read more here.




Samuel Cartwright

FVSU professor receives his doctorate degree

Congratulations to Fort Valley State University assistant professor of mathematics Dr. Samuel Cartwright.  

Cartwright recently graduated from the University of Georgia with a doctorate degree in mathematics education. This summer, Cartwright was also approved for tenure at FVSU.

Charlie Grace, Fort Valley State University’s Dougherty County extension agent, will serve as regional director for the Southwest Georgia Future Farmers of America District Area Five in Georgia. 
 

Extension agent named regional director for Georgia’s
Future Farmers of America


A Fort Valley State University county extension agent is filling a key position in Georgia’s Future Farmers of America (FFA) State Alumni Association. Charlie Grace, FVSU’s Dougherty County extension agent, will serve a three-year term as the regional director for the Southwest Georgia FFA District Area Five.
As regional director, Grace will act as a liaison for FFA alumni chapters and the state council board across the region. His duties will include assisting existing FFA and alumni chapters in the development of new FFA alumni chapters. Grace also will attend chapter meetings to provide updates relating to current events, activities and membership enrollment issues.


 Read more here.

FVSU Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation Summer Research Experience
students and their mentors.

FVSU LSAMP Research Experience holds its summer closing ceremony 


Eleven students in Fort Valley State University’s technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines skipped their summer vacations to sharpen their research skills during an eight-week summer program. Students conducted research during the FVSU-Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation Summer Research Experience and presented their findings during the program’s closing ceremony

Read more here.

Faculty members conversing during a break at the 2014 Faculty Staff Institute
held in the C.W. Pettigrew Center.

FVSU holds Faculty/Staff Institute

Employees learned about the current university opportunities and challenges facing Fort Valley State University during an institute designed to prepare them for the upcoming school year.

During the 2014-2015 Faculty/Staff Institute held on Monday, August 11, FVSU President Ivelaw Lloyd Griffith talked about the issues the university will need to overcome during his State of the University Address.

Additionally, administrators, department heads and chairs delivered updates about their areas and forecasted changes for the upcoming year.

Read more here.



FVSU College of Education students participated this summer in the
 NASA Pre-Service Teacher Program.

FVSU future teachers attend NASA institute


Future educators from Fort Valley State University’s College of Education learned advanced teaching techniques during an institute at one of the nation’s leading space centers. FVSU students attended the NASA Pre-Service Teaching Institute at the George C. Marshall Space Center in Redstone Arsenal, Ala..
The program provides teachers with the latest instruction techniques science, technology, engineering and mathematics areas. NASA’s Pre-Service Teacher Institute, or PSTI, was developed to provide more in-depth experience for pre-service teachers.

Read more here.

Providing Awesome Wildcat Service Award winners Bryan Bird, director of Campus Life (left); Dr. Romelda Simmons, director of FVSU's Office of Career and Alumni Services; and Willie Johnson, assistant director of Head Start Manager and Education and Mental Health manager, accept their awards from FVSU President Ivelaw Lloyd Griffith.

FVSU honors employees that provide excellent customer service


 Fort Valley State recently recognized three employees for going above and beyond the call of duty to provide excellent customer service for students.

FVSU President Ivelaw Lloyd Griffith presented the Providing Awesome Wildcat Service Award to FVSU Director of Campus Life Brian Byrd, Director of Career and Alumni Services Dr. Romelda Simmons and Assistant Director of Head Start and Education and Mental Health Manager Willie Johnson (far right) at a recent ceremony in the President's Conference Room.

Read more here.

Dr. Peter Dumbuya, FVSU professor of history and Fulbright scholar.

FVSU Fulbright professor returns to campus


Fulbright professor Dr. Peter Dumbuya recently returned from his one-year sojourn overseas. The Fort Valley State University professor spent a year in the African nation of Sierra Leone, where he conducted research on gender mainstreaming in Sierra Leone since a brutal civil war that killed nearly 75,000 people. During this 11-year war that started in 1991, women and children were the most-targeted victims of violence.

“I decided to conduct my research on gender mainstreaming, a concept was developed within the last decade or two, which helps to bring about gender equality in the workplace, private as well as governmental,” Dumbuya said.

Read more here.

Chamique Holdsclaw, former WBNA player, will be the keynote speaker at the 100 Women in Gold's Fifth Anniversary Scholarship and Awards Reception at 5 p.m. Saturday, August 23 in the C.W. Pettigrew Center.

Former WBNA player to headline scholarship fundraiser
for FVSU female athletes 


A retired Women’s National Basketball Association player and author is headlining a special scholarship fundraiser to support Fort Valley State University athlete-scholars. Chamique Holdsclaw will be the keynote speaker at the 100 Women in Gold’s Fifth Annual Scholarship and Awards Reception on Saturday, August 23 at 5 p.m. in the C.W. Pettigrew Center on FVSU’s campus.

 The goal of WIG is to promote, support and empower women athletes matriculating at Fort Valley State University. The annual scholarship and award reception honors women in the field of sports (coaches, administrators, sports writers, etc.)

Read more here.



James E. Lowe 2014-2015 Book Scholarship Recipients 


The Fort Valley State University Macon-Bibb Alumni Chapter recently awarded seven deserving students book scholarships during their July 26th monthly meeting.

Chapter President John Simmons, FVSU President Ivelaw Lloyd Griffith, and scholarship chairperson Charles Adkins presented the future FVSU Wildcats with the $1,000 James E. Lowe Book scholarships. The awards can be used to procure books, paper, pens, notebooks and other related academic items.

 Read more here.

AllState Insurance company's  HBC "I Owe U" program will help raise scholarship money for Fort Valley State University students.

Allstate Quotes for Education to raise money for FVSU students 


This fall, individuals can support Fort Valley State University Wildcat students by allowing a national insurance provider to educate them on how they can save money.

Allstate Insurance is holding its HBC "I-Owe-U" program to help raise money for the nation’s HBCUs. For every quote that Allstate obtains, it will provide $10 to the Tom Joyner Foundation up to $200,000. That money, in turn, will help Fort Valley State students. The HBC-I-Owe-U program is an Allstate Quotes for Education initiative that was launched in 2009 as a way to financially support students at historically black colleges and universities.

 Read more here.


Fort Valley State University Global Initiatives Council meets for second time to develop new programs for the campus.

FVSU Global Initiatives Council hosts its second meeting 


 The Fort Valley State University Global Initiatives Council recently held its biannual meeting in Atlanta. At the July 28 meeting, the group brainstormed to identify new initiatives that will help push FVSU forward.

 “The council has four aims: to help recruit international students; acquire corporate, grant, and other resources for teaching, research, other initiatives; create sustained study abroad programs and cultural and sporting exchanges; and strengthen international faculty collaboration, especially in relation to research grants and contracts,” said FVSU President Ivelaw Lloyd Griffith.

Read more here.

Members of The Fort Valley Links, Incorporated present Fort Valley State University President Ivelaw Lloyd Griffith with a check for scholarship funds for students.

 Fort Valley Chapter of  The Links, Incorporated makes donation to the school


 A Fort Valley civic organization recently donated money to ensure that scholars matriculating at Fort Valley State University can fulfill their dreams of earning their college degrees. The Fort Valley Chapter of the Links recently donated $5,762.80 to its Fort Valley Links Incorporated endowment, which provides scholarship money for students attending the university.

In attendance were, Fort Valley Links, Inc. president Dr. Josephine Davis, immediate past president Robertina Fletcher, chairperson of the Social Committee Cheryl McNeil-Jordan, financial secretary Starlac McGhee, and members Sylvia Malone, Barbara Palmer, Shirlyn Grandville and FVSU vice president for External Affairs Dr. Melody Carter.

Read more here.


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FVSU president hosts campus visit with GMC leader



Dr. Ivelaw Lloyd Griffith, president of Fort Valley State University(right) recently hosted a campus visit by Lieutenant General William B. Caldwell IV, president of Georgia Military College (GMC) on August. 6. 

Caldwell's visit is part of Griffith's ongoing pursuit of a partnership with GMC and other institutions. Griffith and Caldwell signed an articulation agreement on June 10 on GMC's campus in Millidgeville, Georgia that makes its easier for GMC students to attend Fort Valley State.




Jhameka Jones, senior family and consumer sciences major, recently earned “The Most Outstanding Student Award” from the National Coalition for Black Development in Family and Consumers Sciences. 

Family and consumer sciences student recognized as “Most Outstanding” by a national coalition 


Jhameka Jones, a 21-year-old family and consumer sciences major, earned “The Most Outstanding Student Award” from the National Coalition for Black Development in Family and Consumer Sciences, an affiliate of the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (AAFCS). Jones received the award in St. Louis, Mo. during a banquet this summer.

Read more here.

Dr. Edward Hill, Fort Valley State University's Dean of the College of Education, (not pictured) encouraged Twiggs County fathers to play a larger role in their children's lives during a recent workshop.

FVSU dean gives advice Twiggs County parents 


A Fort Valley State University dean gave advice to parents that will help their young sons and daughters attain their very best grades in school.

 Dr. Edward Hill, dean of Fort Valley State University’s College of Education, served as the workshop leader and keynote speaker for Twiggs County High School’s “Dad’s Are Parents, Too” workshop on August 2.

 The event, which was a Title 1 Family Engagement Program, was sponsored by Fort Valley State University and Central Georgia Technical College. “In Twiggs County High School’s attempts to reorganize and put things into prospective, [getting father’s involved] will be one of the key elements for changing achievement,” Hill said. “Once the students know that their father’s are involved, there will be a definite increase in success in behavioral or academic issues.”

Read more here.




Macon-based attorney and FVSU Global Initiatives Council member Christopher N. Smith

To maximize global commerce new partnerships are needed 


By Christopher N. Smith, a business and personal injury attorney located in Macon, Georgia.

 What is the first picture you think of when you hear the term “Global Commerce”?
 For many, visions of CEO’s touching down in their Gulf stream jets in glamorous capitals of the world come to mind. Global commerce is indeed an integral part of many corporate business plans. It is a source of revenue that fuels economies across the planet. However, its reach extends far beyond jet-setting executives. Small and medium-sized companies can participate as well.

Both exporting and global investment have flourished in recent years. A review of data provided by the U.S. Department of Commerce indicates that US exports have increased by an approximate 200% from 2003 to 2013. Similarly, imports to the United States have increased by an approximate 180% during this time period.[1] Part of this rapid increase in trade can be attributed to many small and mid-sized companies who are exporting for the first time.

Smith maintains a statewide practice with an emphasis on business and personal injury law.  He also serves as the Honorary Consul of the Kingdom of Denmark in Georgia and is a member of the FVSU Global Initiatives Council.  More information on Smith may be found at www.cnslaw.com 

* This article was first published on www.dialoguereview.com).

Learn more about Christopher N. Smith and FVSU's role in creating global partnerships by reading the entire article here.



Former Fort Valley State University Wildcats football player Trey Wolfe was re-signed by the Seattle Seahawks.



FVSU in the News










Listen to our promotional radio spots for the upcoming International Cultural Festival and Soccer Exhibition. Download and share both the flyer and radio spots on your social media platforms!









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