Summer/Fall 2021

A listing of recent books published by Vanderbilt alumni from the latter part of 2020 to fall 2021. Read More

Chronic illness prevented Jens Herman from earning his degree from Peabody more than a decade ago. The pandemic gave him a second chance. Read More

Last fall, five Buchanan Fellows at the Jean and Alexander Heard Libraries began a project to research Vanderbilt University’s first decade, from 1875 to 1885, and curate an online exhibit about what they discovered. In the process, the fellows learned how to find supporting materials, interpret historical objects, examine historically significant documents from Special Collections, and place all of them in the context of the university’s—and the nation’s—history. Read More

Lisa Dordal teaches in the Department of English at Vanderbilt and is the author of Mosaic of the Dark (Black Lawrence Press, 2018), which was a finalist for the 2019 Audre Lorde Award for Lesbian Poetry, and Water Lessons (forthcoming in April 2022). Read More

Zoe Antell and Jessica Kaplan, who launched the clothing company ready dress go as students, offer several tips for dressing for business success. Read More

The 2020–21 academic year in many ways was defined by urgency and imminent priorities—from the rapid implementation of COVID-19 safety protocols and weekly testing to the procurement of technology required for hybrid teaching and the herculean planning behind the two in-person Commencement ceremonies we hosted this spring, to name just a few. I remain inspired by the way our community responded to these challenges with such profound resilience and innovative problem-solving. Read More

Chancellor Daniel Diermeier and Cybele Raver, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs, helped lead the procession of first-year, transfer and Next Steps students during Founders Walk on Aug. 22. Read More

Former Vanderbilt University University Designer and book designer, Gary Giel Gore, of Nashville died March 28. He was 89. Read More

Andrew Howard Nichols, senior director of higher education research and data analytics at education nonprofit The Education Trust, died Jan. 26 of brain cancer. His studies of educational gaps and financial aid regularly revealed inequities affecting low-income and minority students. Read More

Vanderbilt Medical School Class of 1956 alumna Alice Hackney Altstatt of Finksburg, Maryland, died Jan. 10. She was 95. Read More

Vanessa K. Valdés and Nathan H. Dize, Vanderbilt graduates in Spanish and Portuguese and French and Italian, respectively, teamed up on a project in the field of Afro-Latinx studies--a translation of Makenzy Orcel’s heartbreaking novel set in Haiti, Les Immortelles, published by SUNY Press. Read More

The success of Aaron Berndtson and Zach Blitz contradicts every parent who has warned their teenager that they can’t make a living playing video games. The 2006 graduates, whose friendship was forged over Madden NFL and NCAA Football, now hold leadership positions on the cutting edge of the video-game industry. Read More

Warren Haviland, JD’69, and Karen Heffron funded a charitable remainder unitrust that will eventually establish the Warren E. Haviland and Karen M. Heffron Summer Stipend. The stipend will provide financial support to students at Vanderbilt Law School who are pursuing public interest careers. Read More

In a spirit of expanding our knowledge, I offer the following observations about how we made decisions as an organization, built trust within our community, and bolstered Vanderbilt’s reputation as an institution willing to confront difficult circumstances with hard work, compassion and commitment. Read More

General Motors' announcement that it would phase out combustion engines—the heart of its cars and trucks for more than 100 years—and move to an all-electric fleet by 2035 could have monumental implications for the global auto industry and broad efforts to combat climate change. The success of the initiative will depend on Vanderbilt alumni who hold key positions in the company. Read More

The first Black woman to receive an athletic scholarship from Vanderbilt, Bender was a member of the nascent women’s basketball program. Today she is the co-chairperson of the Black and Gold Club, Vanderbilt’s alumni association for former student-athletes. Read More

Alumna Alyssa Weinberg, cofounder of new music and contemporary dance collective Duende, creates new forms of expression as a composer inspired by artists in other disciplines. She also has written music for some of the country’s premier chamber ensembles, including Eighth Blackbird, So Percussion and Aizuri Quartet. Read More

Vanderbilt Blair School of Music, which offered online-only streamed concerts for most of the 2020–21 academic year, hosted two outdoor in-person performances on Wilson Lawn in April, including a production of Benjamin Britten's 'Albert Herring' by Vanderbilt Opera Theatre. Read More

Raver, an esteemed developmental psychologist who began her tenure as Vanderbilt’s provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs on July 1, 2021, talks with Vanderbilt Magazine about her path into higher education leadership and her aspirations to leverage the university's strengths to help solve the major challenges of today and those facing future generations. Read More

Dixon McDonald, BA'11, and teammates Jimmy Carroll, Todd Hooper and Jono Mawson rowed approximately 3,000 miles from the Canary Islands, just off the coast of Africa, to the Caribbean nation of Antigua in a boat only 28 feet long and a little more than 3 feet wide last December for the 2020 Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge. Read More