WFU in the news: March 27-April 2, 2023

FEATURED NEWS

Kathy Killian Noe to deliver 2023 Commencement Address
By Kim McGrath | Wake Forest News
Kathy Killian Noe (’80) author, pastor, community builder, visionary and founder of Recovery Café and the Recovery Café Network, will deliver Wake Forest University’s commencement address on Monday, May 15. Recovery Cafés, started by Noe in 2002, offer spaces where those who have suffered homelessness, addiction and other mental health challenges can experience a sense of belonging and an opportunity to contribute to the community. The baccalaureate speaker will be Bishop Kym Lucas (‘92), the 11th bishop of the Episcopal Church in Colorado and the first woman bishop as well as the first African American bishop in the diocese’s 132-year history. – 3/31/2023

NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL

The Iraq War wasn’t simply a mistake
By Sahar Khan, Julian Mueller-Kaler, Kelly A. Grieco, C. William Walldorf | Ink Stick Media
“Adults in a Room” is a series in collaboration with The Stimson Center’s Reimagining US Grand Strategy program. The series stems from the group’s monthly networking events that call on analysts to gather virtually and hash out a salient topic. Politics professor Will Walldorf and Non-Resident Fellow, Defense Priorities, participated in this analysis. – 3/30/2023

The GMAT is changing: Here’s what to know
By Cole Claybourn | U.S. News & World Report
At Wake Forest, applicants meeting GPA and work experience parameters may be eligible to waive the standardized test requirement. Nearly half of the class that began in the fall of 2021 received a test waiver, said Kevin Bender, executive director for MBA enrollment management and recruiting at the School of Business. Based on current trends, that number will likely reach 75% for the class set to start in the fall of 2024, he said. – 3/28/2023

America’s unique, enduring gun problem, explained
By Zoey Khalid | The Globe Echo
“America is unique in that guns have always been present, there is wide civilian ownership, and the government hasn’t claimed more of a monopoly on them,” said sociology professor David Yamane, who studies American gun culture. – 3/27/2023

Build your own college rankings
By Quoctrung Bui, Jessia Ma | The New York Times
This new interactive tool allows users to pick the factors they value most to generate individualized rankings of “the best American colleges.” Using the tool’s interactive sliders, users can assign weights to 10 separate factors that consider campus life, academics, cost of attendance and post-graduation income earnings, among other factors. The tool ranks Wake Forest University in the top three schools in N.C. with the highest earnings 10 years after graduation. – 3/27/2023

Dillon Johnston, founder in 1975 of WFU Press dies
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Dillon Johnston, founder in 1975 of Wake Forest University Press and emeritus professor of English at Wake Forest, where he taught for 27 years, died on December 26 at the age of 84. Wake Forest University Press continues to be the leading publisher of Irish poetry in the United States. – 3/29/2023

REGIONAL & TRADE

Which NC college graduates earn the most money? Here’s what NYT rankings say.
By Korie Dean | News and Observer
A new interactive tool from The New York Times is allowing users to pick the factors they value most to generate individualized rankings of “the best American colleges.” Using the tool’s interactive sliders, users can assign weights to 10 separate factors that consider campus life, academics, cost of attendance and post-graduation income earnings, among other factors. The tool ranks Wake Forest University in the top three schools in N.C. with the highest earnings 10 years after graduation. – 3/30/2023

Wake Forest names Jacqueline Travisano executive vice president and CFO
By Carl Wilson | Triad Business Journal
Travisano will begin her role at Wake Forest in July. She currently serves as executive vice president for business and finance and chief operating officer at the University of Miami. “Dr. Travisano brings deep higher education expertise to the EVP role and has been widely recognized for her ability to effectively manage complex organizations,” said Wake Forest University President Susan R. Wente. – 3/27/2023

Miseducated: What even is PrEP?
By William Martin, Katy Cox, Alexander M. Matheson, Gavin Lowder | WFDD-FM (Winston-Salem, NC)
Data from the latest Forsyth County Youth Risk Behavior survey shows teens are having sex. The same survey shows that about half of those sexually active teens are having unprotected sex. According to Allison Mathews, executive director of the COMPASS Initiative Faith Coordinating Center and research fellow in Faith and Health at Wake Forest University, this type of risky behavior could result in the transmission of HIV. – 3/27/2023

LOCAL

“Face to Face” season ends with actress Kristin Chenoweth
By Kaela Carter | WXII-TV (Winston Salem, NC)
National Public Radio Senior Arts Critic Bob Mondello will be in conversation with award-winning actress Kristin Chenoweth on April 12 at LJVM Coliseum. Mondello appeared on “The Local Vibe” to share a preview of topics for the event. – 3/30/2023

Business Milestones
Winston-Salem Journal
Wake Forest University President Susan R. Wente has appointed Jacqueline Travisano as executive vice president and chief financial officer. Travisano will begin her new role at Wake Forest in July. – 4/02/2023

Ask Sam: Why have gas prices gone up?
By Melissa Leonard Hall | Winston-Salem Journal
“There is a shift from winter-grade to summer-grade-fuel around this time (spring),” said business professor Haresh Gurnani. “Due to production issues — like longer production time and lower overall yield — it is more expensive to produce summer-grade fuel with approximately 15 cents/gallon additional cost. This can partially explain the price rise at the pumps around this time of the year.” – 3/27/2023

Great Decisions: ‘Economic Warfare’
Winston-Salem Journal
Waging economic warfare consists of a variety of measures from implementing sanctions to fomenting labor strikes. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, economic warfare has been the main means for the west to challenge Russia. How effective will these sanctions be at convincing Russia to cease its war? Economics professor Robert Whaples will deliver the “Economic Warfare” Great Decisions lecture in Scales Fine Arts Center Room on April 20. The event is free and open to the public. – 4/02/2023