August 18, 2023
Update from the President
Dear Wheeling University Community,
Many students are back, and I can feel the excitement building for the start of the new academic year. The Admissions team is still busy enrolling students – including several from Alderson Broaddus. I am grateful that we could help these young men and women make an easy transition to our learning community. We have committed ourselves to helping AB’s students continue their dream of achieving a college degree. I am very excited to tell you that our incoming Class of 2027 looks to be about twenty-three percent larger than a year ago – a number that could rise before next Friday when we welcome our new students to campus!
As we prepare to begin classes on Monday, August 28th, I am elated to announce that Fr. Freddie in addition to celebrating mass, offering confession, and spiritual direction, will be in the classroom, as Wheeling’s Professor of Theology teaching – “Catholic Social Thought.” As part of Wheeling’s core curriculum, this course will allow Fr. Freddie to enlighten students about the sacredness of human life with a particular focus on the economic, social, political, and ecological issues raised by globalization in the early 21st century.
Nelnet, our new online student payment system, is now operational. Nelnet allows students to see their account balance information in real-time. In addition to providing students with the ability to set up payment plans, it also offers them the ability to make a one-time payment on their account. Nelnet also has an option to set up past-due payment plans and this feature should be in place next week. Students should log into Self-Service, click “make a payment” and set up an account which will then take you directly to Nelnet. It is a much more user-friendly platform for our students and creates a significant improvement in efficiency for our Business Office. In addition to the ability to make payments, Nelnet will bill our students and send digital reminders of billing statements.
Last Saturday, former Football player Brandon Munoz helped the Jacksonville Sharks capture a National Arena League championship. The Sharks came from behind to beat the Carolina Cobras 54-45. The previous week, in the team’s semifinal win over Orlando, Brandon finished the game with 3 tackles, to go along with a half a sack. Congratulations to Brandon on pursuing his dream to play professional football and winning a championship! I couldn’t be prouder of Brandon. A special thanks to Brandon’s mom for sending me updates! I love following his progress! He was an outstanding member of the Cardinal football team and a first-generation Wheeling University graduate.
Finally, we received word of the passing of Dr. Paul Orr, who taught in the English Department from 1956 and until his retirement in September of 1996. Dr. Orr’s family has informed us that funeral services will be held in Wheeling. Once those details are available, I will be sure to share them with everyone. Please keep Dr. Orr and his family in your prayers – may God grant him eternal rest.
We are just one week away from New Student Move-In Day and the New Student Convocation. There are many activities planned next weekend for our new and returning students, including Saturday’s Make a Difference Day, where our incoming class is introduced to our mission and what it means to serve others. The start of a new academic year is exciting because it is filled with so many new opportunities for our students. I hope that they have an outstanding year – may they achieve great success in the classroom and grow in our mission.
Luceat Lux Vestra!
Ginny R. Favede
President, Wheeling University