2009-10: The Year in Review
August 2009: Class of 2013 arrives
The campus community welcomes the 401-member class from 34 states and 14 countries.
August 2009: NSF Grants support new instruments
Whitman receives two National Science Foundation grants totaling about $800,000 for instruments that faculty say will transform their departments and their work, and increase opportunities for student-faculty research.
September 2009: Core converts to Encounters
The two-semester foundational course for first-year students is now called Encounters and expands from Western civilization to include new genres, including film, and other world views. See New “Encounters” expands geographical, genre boundaries of first-year exploration
September 2009: Whitman professors No. 9 in nation
In its “The Best 371 Colleges” guide, The Princeton Review names Whitman as a “Best Value” school and ranks its professors No. 9 in the nation. Whitman also is ranked No. 13 by The Washington Post; 20th by Forbes; and 36th by U.S. News & World Report.
September 2009: Capturing the sun's power
The 21kW photovoltaic solar array installed in summer 2009 on the Bratton Tennis Center roof is activated. The new system is expected to produce 25,000 kWh annually.
September 2009: Sherwood Center is new again
The Sherwood Athletic Center reopens after an 18-month, $15.5 million facelift that transformed the 40-year-old structure into a state-of-the-art facility.
October 2009: Student engages Latinos in election
Pedro Galvao ’10 organizes a debate between political candidates that attracts a Latino crowd by offering Spanish translation of the debate and focusing on issues of interest in the Latino community.
October 2009: Welty, Young co-chair Penrose Society
Dr. Elizabeth “Libby” Main Welty and Robert “Bob” W. Young ’55 are named co-chairs of the Stephen B.L. Penrose Society. See Stephen B.L. Penrose Society membership grows.
November 2009: Withycombe named a Professor of the year
Professor Bob Withycombe is selected as Washington State’s Professor of the Year by the U.S. Professors of the Year program. (Back row, center at the Washington, D.C., ceremony.)
November 2009: Whitman a “Best value” private college
Kiplinger’s Personal Finance ranks Whitman No. 20 in its Top 50 liberal arts colleges in the nation for the 2009 version of its “100 Best Values in Private Colleges.”
January 2010: Glover Alston Center opens
The renovation of an historic home at 26 Boyer Ave. provides a safe space for meaningful conversation and interaction to facilitate Whitman’s commitment to sustaining a diverse community.
February 2010: Second Global Studies Symposium: “Contagion”
The 2010 Global Studies Symposium, “Contagion,” assembles experts from various disciplines to speak on this timely subject.
March 2010: Beloved professor emerita passes away
Mary Hanna, Miles C. Moore professor of politics, emerita, passes away March 3.
March 2010: Two students earn Watson Fellowships
Nadim Damluji ’10 and Seth Bergeson ’10 receive prestigious Watson Fellowships. Students and alumni garner the widest range of fellowships, scholarships and grants in Whitman history.
April 2010: HJT alumni and friends celebrate 50-plus years of Whitman theater
The Harper Joy Theatre reunion draws hundreds of alumni and friends. Among attendees are an award-winning playwright, actors and many other theater professionals.
May 2010: Juan Williams delivers Commencement address
Juan Williams, author, journalist and national media personality, receives an honorary degree and delivers the Commencement address. James Hayner, attorney and trustee emeritus, also earns an honorary degree, and 371 students graduate.
May 2010: Faculty chair honors Dr. Ball
Dr. George Ball, Weyerhaeuser professor of biblical literature emeritus, turns 95 on Commencement day, May 23, and the establishment of the George Ball Chair in the Humanities is announced.
May 2010: Class of 1960 flocks to 50th
Fifty-three percent of the Class of 1960 turned out for their 50th Reunion event, marking the second- highest 50-year attendance rate in Whitman history. (Highest was 56 percent for the Class of 1952.)
May 2010: Trustees and overseers elect new members
Trustees elect Andrew Ferrari ’68 and Ryan Crocker ’71 to join their ranks. Overseers elect eight new members.
June 2010: Whitman adds field station at Wallula Gap
Led by Tim Parker, assistant professor of biology, Whitman establishes the Wallula Gap Biological Station at the college’s Braden Farm. It is the first academically affiliated biological field station in the Northwest’s desert region.