In anticipation of an excellent new academic year at Olivet Nazarene University, and in celebration of the many faculty and staff accomplishments of the previous year, University president, Gregg A. Chenoweth ’90, with his wife Tammy (Salyer) ’89, hosted the annual President’s Dessert Reception on Thursday, August 20.
Current Olivet faculty, staff and administrators joined retirees and noted guests for a celebration of professional achievements, meaningful fellowship, sweet treats, and a unifying message as the campus community prepared for a new academic year.
Following the summer break in which most faculty and some staff are gone from campus, this annual gathering is one that facilitates great moments of social connection while centering all personnel on a unified theme for the year.
At the beginning of the event, Mrs. Chenoweth greeted the attendees with an encouraging word and a liturgy for a fresh start to the new year. In his address to the faculty and staff, Dr. Chenoweth spoke about the University’s established values — how they’re already being lived out through the work of employees — and encouraged the faculty and staff to keep the six principles in mind as they head into a new semester.
“The further we get from our origin, and the faster the pace of change is, the better it is to check-in on what holds us together,” he said. “Tonight, we look at vignettes of our values — not our doctrinal values but work style values — and it’s a very encouraging scene.”
Dr. Chenoweth explained the six values — Christ-centered, community, heritage, distinction, stewardship and innovation — with examples of good work already being done on campus. These were later emphasized in a video of faculty and staff from various departments and divisions talking about how their work connects to each specific value.
“We are 119 years old; our founders sacrificed time and treasure, at great personal risk, to create Olivet, as a solution for a problem,” Dr. Chenoweth said in conclusion. “We don’t want to do things which would make them roll over in their graves, but to sit up and applaud us. I think what we heard tonight gives us confidence they are applauding.”
Tom Ascher, director of Human Resources, recognized years of service milestones for faculty and staff, with special mentions to those who have worked at Olivet for 25 and 30 years. He also presented Shelly (Mendell) Stroud ’90, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Social Work and Criminal Justice, as the faculty member of the year, and Chris O’Brien ’96, director of infrastructure operations in Information Technology, as the staff member of the year.
In talking about her work, Dr. Stroud emphasized the importance of remembering that justice affects everyone’s lives.
“We should all strive to be people who daily stand up for others by acting justly, loving mercy and walking humbly with God,” she said.” “Micah 6:8 has always felt important to me, and I advocated that we adopt it as a departmental verse. It should be a daily question for us all: what does the Lord require of me? In the field of criminal justice, many of our alumni will be in jobs in which they encounter people at their worst, but I hope they can cultivate the ability and strength to hold on to hope and treat people with dignity and respect.”
Of his work, Chris explained that his goal is to solve information and technology issues before the campus community event realizes they might have an issue.
“As the Internet has shifted from a novelty to a basic utility, we’ve seen an explosion in the services that we needed to offer. It’s difficult to stay on top of rapid changes in technology; you have to be very scrappy,” he said. “Data sitting by itself doesn’t do anyone any good — my job is to communicate effectively to others how data is accessed and processed in a way that also makes them feel like their problems are getting solved.”
The University welcomed four new faculty, including Kevin Berry (professor, McGraw School of Business), K-Shalya Lafayette ’14/’24 MSN (assistant professor, School of Nursing), Moranda Matheson ’21/’22 MBA/’24 MSN (assistant professor, School of Nursing), and Josh Ring ’13, DMA (assistant professor, School of Music). There were also 34 new staff members recognized, all of whom were hired since the previous year’s reception.
The reception was the first time most employees got to see the beautiful new renovations to Chalfant Hall. Over the summer, the building received major updates and changes to interior design elements, a new sound system, enhanced lighting, and a restoration of its iconic stained glass.
To view the event program, which includes expanded bios of award recipients, a full list of new faculty and staff members, and highlights of employee professional accomplishments, click here. For more information about employment at the University, visit Olivet.edu/Employment.
