The Greater Good
The Power of a Vanderbilt Education
Aug. 4, 2020—Even at 104 years old, Helen Sterling, BA’36, MA’38, handled aging with optimism and grace. Her affection for her alma mater motivated her to include the university in her estate plans. Thanks to her $1.6 million bequest for unrestricted support at Peabody College and the College of Arts and Science, her legacy at Vanderbilt endures.
Strong Shoulders: Dr. David Patterson
Aug. 4, 2020—Dr. David Patterson, BA’81, MD’85, is proof the Vanderbilt experience doesn’t have to end after graduation. Patterson has served Vanderbilt as a trustee since 2013. He also is a member of the Vanderbilt University Medical Center Board of Directors, and past president of the Vanderbilt Medical Alumni Association.
Fostering Inclusion and Diversity in Business through Philanthropy
Feb. 17, 2020—Jasmine Greer, BE’16, applied to only one MBA program: Vanderbilt Owen Graduate School of Management. She wanted to stay at Vanderbilt and chose Owen not only for its top-flight academic program but also its collaborative environment. At Owen, Greer has immersed herself in several entrepreneurial pursuits. She and her team won first place in the...
Putting Philanthropy into Practice: McCartney Kay Wilkins, BS’01, and Jay Wilkins, BS’99
Feb. 12, 2020—The Wilkinses recently made a sizable commitment to Experience Vanderbilt, a program that provides students with need-based financial aid for extracurricular activities that require fees for participation, such as club sports, arts and cultural experiences, Greek life and service trips like Alternative Spring Break.
Emerita Faculty Leader Continues to Inspire through Opportunity Vanderbilt Scholarship
Nov. 7, 2019—It wasn’t the unfamiliarity of a new city or the intimidation of a new faculty position that stood out to Fräncille Bergquist when she first came to Vanderbilt in 1977. The new professor of Spanish was taken aback by the rolling hills and green trees of Middle Tennessee—a stark contrast from the dry, flat landscape...
Virginia Shepherd and Charles Brau: Promoting STEM Education
Nov. 7, 2019—Virginia Shepherd knew in eighth grade that she wanted to become a scientist. Her education and training eventually led to a tenured research scientist position at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Nashville’s Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Shepherd’s passion for science education grew after she attended a national meeting where top scientists encouraged participation in the...
Armstrong Family Inspires Biochemical Breakthroughs
Aug. 20, 2019—The story of Richard Armstrong is a shining example of how one person’s legacy can have a powerful ripple effect on others. A basic sciences professor of biochemistry and chemistry from 1995 until his 2015 death, Armstrong was known for his groundbreaking biochemical research. In his honor, his family established the Richard N. Armstrong, Ph.D.,...
The Hindles: Leading by Example
Aug. 20, 2019—The establishment of the Hindle Family Scholarship in 2014 was one more way for John Hindle, BA’68, PhD’81, and his wife, Joan Barr Hindle, to pay forward the lifelong success they have achieved, which John credits in large measure to his Vanderbilt education. At the time they created the fund as part of Opportunity Vanderbilt,...
Three Decades of Impact
May. 23, 2019—On clinic day every week, first-year nursing student Brooke Hazen’s 12-hour shift starts at 6:30 a.m. “We’re taking vital signs, helping patients shower and walk, administering shots and IVs, and interpreting lab results,” she says. Hazen is in Vanderbilt School of Nursing’s prespecialty program, which provides a two-year path to a master’s degree for students...
Alumna Pays It Forward Through Advocacy
May. 23, 2019—Karen White, BA’11, was born to be an advocate. Her first experience in advocacy was for herself at the age of 15, when she left a volatile home life and struggled to support herself through periods of homelessness. “I remember sleeping on the couch in the tattoo parlor I worked at and thinking, ‘This can’t...
Alumna Grateful to Donors Who Help Her Inspire Young Minds
Feb. 19, 2019—A classroom of elementary school students in New York City is receiving a well-rounded education thanks to their teacher, Sarah D’Amico, BS’16, who returned to her neighborhood after graduation to pass the torch of knowledge and ignite passion for learning. While in high school D’Amico did not believe attending Vanderbilt was a possibility—but a donor-funded...
New Fund Helps Make International Travel Accessible to Owen Students
Feb. 19, 2019—Xiaoyan Jiang, MBA’01, is a strong believer in the transformative power of international travel. While working in global business, she logged addresses in Nashville, Cleveland, Tokyo, Hong Kong and New York. Jiang credits travel as the catalyst that set her on a path to Vanderbilt’s Owen Graduate School of Management and motivated her to establish...