Campus Events

Each August, prior to the start of the fall semester, Virginia Wesleyan University President Scott D. Miller delivers an annual State of the University address to the campus community. The address includes highlights, initiatives and significant accomplishments from the past year, recognition of faculty and staff, points of pride, recent University news and information, current campus projects and direction for the future of the University. The 2020 State of the University will be delivered virtually on Friday, August 21, at 1:00 p.m. The program will be streamed and archived on the VWU Digital Broadcasting Network and the Virginia Wesleyan University Facebook page.

Born in Alabama to a Korean mother and African-American father, Paul K. Chappell is a West Point graduate, former Army captain, and Iraq War veteran. His military service taught him that people don’t simply gravitate toward peaceful behavior, in large part because they aren’t trained to do so. In an era when humanity has the technological capacity to destroy itself, and when humans frequently don’t control their own dispositions, Chappell realized the pressing need for us to become as well-trained in waging peace as soldiers are in waging war. During the 2020 Justine L. Nusbaum Lecture, he shows how peace literacy frames peace not merely as a goal but as a practical skill-set that addresses the root causes of our human problems.

While Homecoming and Family Weekend 2020 will look different than prior years, we are excited for the opportunity to celebrate with alumni and friends near and far through a virtual version of the event. Guests will still enjoy campus traditions such as Marlin Spirit Day, the Chili Cook-Off and Class Reunions as well as some new events such as the Virtual Marlin 5K and an Alumni Esports Exhibition!
 

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Classes will be held.

*Postponed until further notice.* The Robert F. Boyd Institute will feature Rev. Olu Brown as keynote speaker on November 9 - 10, 2020. Rev. Brown is the lead pastor of Impact Church near Atlanta. In 2016, Impact Church was listed as one of the top 100 fastest growing churches in America. A graduate of Jarvis Christian College and the Interdenominational Theological Seminary, Rev. Brown says he is “truly a church planter at heart.” He is the author of Zero to 80: Innovative Ideas for Planting and Accelerating Church Growth, and Leadership Directions from Moses. His latest book, 4D Impact: Smash Barriers Like a Smart Church, was released in April 2019.

This two-day seminar focuses on how to anticipate and embrace change, particularly in an institution—the church—that frequently is reluctant to do so. Lunch is included on Monday and light breakfast on Monday and Tuesday. Monday, November 9, 9:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., and Tuesday, November 10, 9:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. This $75 seminar is open to all, but also awards one continuing education credit for clergy from the Virginia Conference of the United Methodist Church. If you are interested in registering for the 2020 Boyd Institute, please contact Kelly Jackson (kjackson@vwu.edu) at the Center for the Study of Religious Freedom.