Vanderbilt Magazine

I’ve been fortunate to know and experience this great institution from many perspectives: as a student, member of staff, parent, faculty member, alumni volunteer—even as a patient. In each of these roles, I’ve come to understand more deeply the needs, concerns, hopes and contributions that bind the Vanderbilt community—on and… Read More

Let’s face it. We feel most connected to Vanderbilt when we associate with alumni who share our interests—whether it’s a former student activity, current career or professional interest, religious or lifestyle affiliation, or cultural passion. Common Connections, a new Vanderbilt Alumni Association program, celebrates this collective… Read More

Head Football Coach Bobby Johnson announces his retirement in a July 14 press conference. Bobby Johnson retired as head coach of Vanderbilt football July 14, a decision that took the Vanderbilt community by surprise. “This is Bobby’s decision,” said Vice Chancellor David Williams of the announcement. “When he informed me,… Read More

Sophomore Marina Alex won the SEC individual women’s golf championship and her first individual title as a collegian at the NorthRiver Yacht Club in Tuscaloosa, Ala, in April. She also was named a first-team selection to the National Golf Coaches Association’s All-American squad following her consistently high finishes throughout the… Read More

Vanderbilt’s men’s and women’s basketball teams advanced to postseason play in the NCAA Tournament. The women finished the year with a 23–11 overall record, 9–7 in regular-season SEC play. They advanced to the semifinal round of the SEC Tournament in Duluth, Ga., and the second round of the NCAA Tournament… Read More

Catherine Newman was named a third-team Academic All-American by ESPN The Magazine and CoSIDA in June. Track and Field: Commodores Break School Records Junior Katherine Hendricks set a new Vanderbilt record in the pole vault at 12-00.50 feet at the Sooner Invitational held in Norman, Okla., last April, and senior Buky Bamigboye set a… Read More

A 2008 pitch broke almost every bone in Andrew Giobbi’s face. Only four weeks later he was back in the game. Gramps, old man, super senior. Vanderbilt catcher Andrew Giobbi has heard it all before. As one of two fifth-year seniors on the roster for 2009–10 (shortstop Brian Harris was the other)… Read More

Leslie Lava on the court with her doubles partner, a San Quentin State Prison inmate. Leslie Lava, BA’78 San Quentin State Prison. Opened in 1852, it’s California’s oldest prison and the stuff of legend. Overlooking San Francisco Bay on 275 acres of waterfront property, the prison is home to 5,400… Read More

Dr. Alexis Rodriguez with Dr. Liliana Belskus, another volunteer, after a successful emergency C-section. Dr. Alexis Rodriguez, BA’05 Dr. Alexis Rodriguez had just earned his medical degree from the University of Illinois when he headed to the Guatemalan highlands last fall for three months’ work as a volunteer physician at… Read More

Anna Curry with her father, Ashley, at the summit. Anna Curry, BA’02 In January 2007, Anna Curry stunned friends and family when she announced her intentions to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, the world’s highest freestanding mountain. Curry has osteogenesis imperfecta, or brittle bone disease, a genetic disorder characterized by fragile bones. Read More

Food Equality and Obesity I was disappointed that “Flood Tide in Tennessee” [Spring 2010] didn’t discuss the causes of childhood obesity. One off-hand reference to “food inequality” does not do the issue justice. Fast food and other highly processed foods provide the greatest caloric density for families with… Read More

Editor GayNelle Doll Art Director and Designer Donna DeVore Pritchett Editorial Associate Editor and Advertising Manager Phillip B. Tucker Arts & Culture Editor Bonnie Arant Ertelt, BS’81 Class Notes and Sports Editor Nelson Bryan, BA’73 Photography and Imaging Director, Photography Services Daniel Dubois Photographers… Read More

C.F. Payne C.F. Payne’s artwork has graced the covers of Time, Reader’s Digest, Sports Illustrated, The New York Times Magazine, MAD Magazine, Der Spiegel, U.S. News & World Report, The Atlantic, Texas Monthly and more. He has been commissioned to paint countless politicians, authors and entertainers and has illustrated 10… Read More

The rain began in the early morning hours of Saturday, May 1, cleansing a layer of spring pollen from car windshields as students slept or crammed for finals. By the time most Nashvillians stirred, the rain was falling in great unrelenting sheets. I had planned to spend the weekend with… Read More

“Culture is an open palm. A closed culture becomes a closed fist.” —Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel, winner of the 1986 Nobel Peace Prize, during an April 12 Project Dialogue lecture sponsored by Vanderbilt Hillel and the Office of Religious Life… Read More

Dalton The Vanderbilt University Board of Trust has unanimously elected New York businessman Mark F. Dalton as its chairman-elect, to succeed Martha R. Ingram. A 1975 graduate of Vanderbilt Law School, Dalton is co-chairman and CEO of Tudor Investment Corp. and its affiliates. Before joining Tudor in 1988, Dalton spent nine years with Kidder, Peabody… Read More

A packed house of Vanderbilt alumni, parents and friends gathered to hear an update about the university from Chancellor Nicholas Zeppos at the City Club of San Francisco on Jan. 28. Here the chancellor, left, chats with (clockwise) Meredith Thacker, BS’97; William Linsenmeyer, PhD’72; Doug Asiell, BA’92; Marjorie Sennett,… Read More

Billy Ray Caldwell All good things must come to an end. As my term as president of the Vanderbilt Alumni Association Board of Directors comes to a close, I am reminded about exciting changes that have taken place the past couple of years and look forward to the future—of… Read More

Last October alumni members of the Vanderbilt Atlanta Chapter were presented a President’s Volunteer Service Award recognizing the group’s nearly 400 hours of service to the Atlanta Community Food Bank during the previous year. Chapter members have been volunteering for the food bank on a monthly basis since 2007. “We… Read More