WFU in the news: Jan. 30-Feb. 5, 2023

FEATURED NEWS

Civil Rights drama to engage Winston-Salem local community in retelling the story of Selma
 By Kim McGrath | Wake Forest News
A $10,000 National Endowment for the Arts Challenge America grant will help support a collaboration between Wake Forest University and Loire Valley Theater Festival to bring the civil rights musical drama, “Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom,” to Wake Forest in October 2023. The play tells the story of the young people in Selma, Alabama, who risked their lives in 1965 to win the right to vote for African Americans. Joshuah Brian Campbell, director of music and arts at the Wake Forest School of Divinity and director of the University Gospel Choir, is the music director for the production. – 2/02/2023

NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL

New gun research center funded by firearms executives aims to diversify debate
By Zusha Elinson, Cameron McWhirter | The Wall Street Journal
David Yamane, a Wake Forest sociologist studying American gun culture, said he hoped the center in Wyoming would work to include differing views when holding conferences or producing research. But he worried it might become just a resource for gun-rights advocates to turn to bolster their arguments. “I do feel like it’s going to be a he said-he said or they said-they said situation,” he said of the work the Firearms Research Center will produce compared with that from other academic institutions. – 1/29/2023

Notable new grant awards
By M.J. Prest | The Chronicle of Philanthropy
The Lilly Endowment will give $30.7 over five years to Wake Forest University to enhance its Program for Leadership and Character and create a national network dedicated to teaching character within colleges and universities. – 2/01/2023

In child custody dispute, breastfeeding mom is ordered to use bottle
By Justin Moyer | The Washington Post
Meghan Boone, an associate professor at the Wake Forest University School of Law who studies pregnancy and parenting rights, said breastfeeding is just one factor some state courts consider when setting visitation schedules. The idea that only women can care for young children has been discredited because it may be considered sex discrimination by men seeking custody. “You’re not supposed to use the tender years doctrine anymore. If we’re talking about the need for a child to be with mom and not dad, that sounds like tender years.” – 2/01/2023

Higher education grants or gifts of interest to African Americans
The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education
Here is this week’s news of grants or gifts to historically Black colleges and universities or for programs of particular interest to African Americans in higher education. Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North, Carolina, has received a $1 million grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to create a model program for engaging scholars and the local community in advancing environmental justice. – 2/01/2023

REGIONAL & TRADE

WFU’s Center for Entrepreneurship receives national innovation award for teaching method
By Lillian Johnson | Triad Business Journal
The Center for Entrepreneurship at Wake Forest University has helped students create startups worthy of “Shark Tank” and Oprah’s Favorite Things – and now it is being recognized for its proprietary teaching method with a national award. The United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship awarded the 2023 Excellence in Pedagogical Innovation Award to Wake Forest’s Center for Entrepreneurship for its teaching method called IDEATE. – 2/02/2023

The Winston-Salem Journal also covered this news.

WFU prepares middle and high schoolers for college, career and beyond
By Liz Bell, Kirsten Chang | EducationNC
Wake Forest University, one of five participants in IEI’s educational attainment community cohort, offers a range of programs designed to help prepare middle and high school students for college or a career by exposing them to many possibilities for their futures. – 2/05/2023

Opinion: What to do when politics enters the workplace
By John Hood | Triangle Business Journal
Should businesses weigh in on political controversies? According to a recent Gallup poll, the general public is closely divided on the question, with 48% in favor and 52% opposed. Not surprisingly, young people are friendlier to the idea – but even their preferences are more nuanced than a single yes-or-no question can convey. That’s one of the findings of a new study from Wake Forest University’s Center for the Study of Capitalism. – 2/03/2023

LOCAL

Winston Cup artifacts at center of sports marketing lawsuit
By Richard Craver | Winston-Salem Journal
ITG appears to be looking to capture the nostalgic memories surrounding Winston Cup, particularly in age-restricted sites at racing venues, according to marketing professor Roger Beahm. “While positioned as ‘entertainment,’ this historical messaging from Winston Cup sponsorship can still have some value by appealing on an emotional level with fans who still remember the days of Winston Cup racing.” – 2/01/2023

NC Senate bill would give attorney general more oversight over health-care system deals
By Richard Craver | Winston-Salem Journal
Law and public health professor Mark Hall said SB16 “aims to give the attorney general more authority to block changes in hospital ownership or control that are contrary to the public’s interest, and more authority to monitor ownership changes for any negative effects on health care costs, quality or accessibility.” – 1/30/2023

Beloved professor Ed “Mr. Wake Forest” Wilson turns 100
By David Ford | WFDD-FM (Winston-Salem, NC)
Ed Wilson, beloved emeritus professor and provost affectionately known as “Mr. Wake Forest” celebrates his 100th birthday Wednesday. The Leaksville, North Carolina, native began classes at Wake Forest as a 16-year-old, graduated at the top of his class, and went off to serve during World War II. Wilson later earned advanced degrees from Harvard before returning to his alma mater where his legendary career began in the 1950s. – 2/01/2023

Rockingham native “Mr. Wake Forest” turns 100
Greensboro News & Record
Wake Forest University’s leaders called for the ringing of the bells at Wait Chapel in celebration of the 100th birthday of Rockingham County native and legendary educator Edwin G. Wilson. Wake Forest Provost Emeritus Wilson is known for having steered the Winston-Salem institution through decades of growth and innovation. – 1/31/2023

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