Shenandoah University

Shenandoah University's McKenna Newcome was named the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Women's Soccer Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 13 following a pair of two-goal performances last week. The midfielder scored twice in Shenandoah's 2-0 win over Bridgewater on Oct. 8 and followed it up with a two-goal performance on Saturday in an 8-0 rout of Hollins. The sophomore scored her first goal of the week in the 10th minute of the game against the Eagles, and added another one in the 49th minute to help the Hornets pick up their first home win over Bridgewater since 2006. Newcome then went on to score two goals in the first 10 minutes of the team's victory over Hollins.

Eleven students and two faculty members from Shenandoah Conservatory's acting program participated in the York Plays 2025 in Toronto, Canada. The event featured 50 short plays in 35 clusters, each produced and directed in medieval style by a different contributing group. Shenandoah Conservatory was one of 17 performance groups from across North America that participated in the event. Organized and hosted by Toronto's Poculi Ludique Societas (PLS) and the Center for Renaissance and Reformation Studies (CRRS), the event converged at Burwash Quad at Victoria University of the University of Toronto. Each play was performed on replica medieval wagon stages across three performance stations outdoors. In true medieval style, there were no chairs set up at any of the stations and audiences wandered from play to play at will. This was only the third known time the cycle has been performed in its entirety since 1600. Shenandoah Conservatory produced and performed three episodes from the biblical plays: "The Flight Into Egypt," "The Slaughter of the Innocents" and "The Remorse of Judas." They also participated in the grand finale "The Last Judgment" with all performers. Participating Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting students included Emrie Branch '25, Giavanna Bruno '26, Dylan Buchwald '25, Megan Griffin-Ferry '28, Maggie Herber '26, Katherine Marston '26, Izzy Miller '26, Wyatt Moore '27, Emma Reed '26, Tenebrae Rouner '28 and Fiona Sullivan '27. Participating faculty include Dr. Coulson and Adjunct Instructor of Theatre Kit Wilder.

Shenandoah University is proud to announce the 30 students chosen for its Hornet Ambassadors program for 2025-26. Students are selected to represent the Shenandoah spirit through their commitment to leadership, community engagement, and school pride. As Hornet Ambassadors, they serve as representatives of SU to incoming students, families, community members, and beyond.

Shenandoah University set another school record during the 2024-25 academic year with 358 student-athletes garnering Old Dominion Athletic Conference All-Academic Team honors. This year marked the second straight that Shenandoah has had over 300 honorees, and the most recent total is 29 more than SU had in 2023-24. The Hornets trailed only Washington and Lee (539) in total ODAC All-Academic honorees, and was one of three schools to eclipse the 300 mark (Lynchburg had 341). In all, the ODAC had 3,364 honorees and topped 3,000 for the second straight year. Eligibility for the ODAC All-Academic Team is open to any student-athlete who competes in a conference-sponsored sport, regardless of academic class. Prospective honorees must achieve at least a 3.25 grade point average for the academic year to be considered for ODAC All-Academic Team recognition.

Shenandoah University is pleased to announce that 1,369 graduates earned degrees and/or certificates during the 2024-25 academic year. This total includes 239 August 2024 graduates, 366 December 2024 graduates, and 764 May 2025 graduates. Shenandoah's 2025 University Commencement took place on May 24.

Shenandoah University had 1,053 students earn a spot on the Dean's List for the Spring 2025 semester. To qualify for the Dean's List, students must be enrolled full-time in baccalaureate degree programs and earn a semester GPA of 3.50 or higher. Dean's List students who achieve a semester GPA of 3.90 or higher also qualify for the university's President's List.

Shenandoah University presented the 2025 Algernon Sydney Sullivan Awards to recent graduates Liberty Tennyson '25 and Logan Williams '24, '28 at its Baccalaureate service on May 23. Each year, the Algernon Sydney Sullivan and Mary Mildred Sullivan awards are presented to deserving individuals at over 70 colleges and universities in the U.S. First awarded in 1890, the Sullivan Awards recognize individuals of noble character who act as humble servants and place service to others above self-interest. According to the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Foundation, the Sullivan Awards are the only national collegiate service awards in the U.S.

Shenandoah University senior Mairead McKibbin has been named the 2025 recipient of the Marjorie Berkley Award, marking the third time in four years a Shenandoah student-athlete has earned the Old Dominion Athletic Conference's highest academic and athletic honor. McKibbin, a standout on the field hockey team, joins Olivia Weinel (2022) and teammate Elise Velasquez (2023) as Shenandoah's three Berkley Award recipients. The honor recognizes the ODAC's top female senior scholar-athlete across all sports.

Shenandoah University had 469 students earn a spot on the President's List for the Spring 2025 semester. To qualify for this prestigious academic recognition, students must be enrolled full-time in baccalaureate degree programs and attain a semester GPA of 3.90 or higher. All President's List honorees are also recognized on the university's Dean's List, which includes students who earn a semester GPA of 3.50 or higher.

Shenandoah University's Alpha Omega Sigma chapter of the Sigma Tau Delta English Honor Society welcomed nine new members during an induction ceremony on May 18 in Hazel-Pruitt Armory. The nine new members included: Shawnise Campbell (graduated May 2025), Kelly Hartman, Katelyn Lehmbeck, Alison Pippin, Virginia Truitt (graduated May 2025), Morgan Vandergrift, Jessica Velasquez, Katherine Weinhold (graduated May 2025), and Caitie Werlang. The organization also installed the following officers for 2025-26: president, Lily Kilduff; vice president, Aurora Padilla-Jimenez; treasurer, Jace Gibson; secretary, Katelyn Garback; social media manager, Katelyn Lehmbeck.

The Shenandoah University School of Business hosted its fifth Legacy Golf Tournament on April 24 at the Winchester Country Club, raising more than $92,500 for the Legacy Scholarship, which supports high-achieving, first-generation regional business students at Shenandoah. The recipients of the 2025 Legacy Scholarship included Kara Mondrone, Andrea Suchite-Melendrez, Jacquelyn (Jacky) Sanchez, Katherine Weinhold and Wesley Pendzich.

This semester, Shenandoah sent a group of students to the NCAA men's basketball tournament Final Four in San Antonio, Texas, to gain hands-on experience in the field of sport management. The trip, performed in collaboration with On Location, an NCAA partner dedicated to enhancing the premier fan experience for sporting events, allowed students to lend a hand in performing duties related to game-day operations, and provided opportunities to tour several facilities and meet industry professionals.

On April 24, the Student Government Association held its inauguration ceremony for the 2025-26 Executive Council in the Pruitt Health & Life Sciences Building, Halpin Rotunda. The Executive Council consists of undergraduate and graduate students dedicated to leading other members of the SGA and serving as liaisons with faculty. Although most positions are chosen through an application process, Shenandoah University students elect the president and vice presidents each spring. The 2025-26 Executive Council is as follows: President: Carter Sand Vice President of Undergraduate Affairs: Masha Balakersky Vice President of Graduate Affairs: Carlie Cross Director of Communications: Amy Oleksy Director of IDE: Jessica Velasquez Director of Finance: Emma Thompson Speaker of the House: Elisabeth Myers Chief of Staff: Jaxson Hall

Shenandoah University third-year Pharm.D. student Sheridan Herron '26 won the American Pharmacists Association-Academy of Student Pharmacists (APhA-ASP) National Patient Counseling Competition during the APhA Annual Meeting that took place March 21-24, in Nashville, Tennessee. Herron, who was recognized during the APhA-ASP Student Awards Celebration on March 22, is the third Shenandoah University student in the Bernard J. Dunn School of Pharmacy to win the APhA-ASP National Patient Counseling Competition, joining Joanna Lyon (2014) and Danielle Przychodzin (2003). Shenandoah, which admitted its first class of doctoral pharmacy students in 1996, began participating in the National Patient Counseling Competition in 2000. Shenandoah University's three national winners are the most of any pharmacy school over the last 25 years, and Shenandoah is tied with the University of California, San Francisco for the most in the history of the National Patient Counseling Competition, which debuted in 1985.

Three Shenandoah University athletic training students secured SU's third straight Virginia Athletic Trainers' Association (VATA) Student Quiz Bowl title during the organization's annual meeting on Jan. 3 at the Hampton Roads Convention Center in Hampton, Virginia. This year's Shenandoah team included Megan Bone '29, Luke Finkbeiner '29, and Trilby Kite '30 as well as alternates Cori Babcock '29 and Aesia Garban '30. The VATA Student Quiz Bowl is a "Jeopardy"-style competition held during the annual conference that features college athletic training programs from across Virginia.

Eva Gary '25 (Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre) will join "Pretty Woman: The Musical," for the last leg of its U.S. national tour in 2025. Gary will play the lead role of Vivian Ward in the production based on the 1990 film of the same name.

Shenandoah University's Esports program recently announced the recipients of the 2024 Shenandoah Esports Awards. A total of seven individuals received one of six awards during a ceremony on May 7.

Over 131 undergraduate and graduate students presented a display of 73 projects at the 2024 Shenandoah University Research Expo. Nearly all schools at SU were represented in the expo, which featured an array of creative/portfolio, empirical and proposal/review projects across a variety of disciplines. Thirty-six faculty mentors supported these projects with an eye toward fostering scientific and creative inquiry among their students. Individual and group winners were announced in 11 categories in 2024.

Several Shenandoah students have served as vaccinators at the university's mass-vaccination clinic held in the Wilkins Athletics & Events Center. They have helped vaccinate thousands of individuals in the community and the state. From the pharmacy school, they are Elizabeth Beremendi, James Noll, Phillip "Austin" Taylor, Ashley Myers and Ashley Boothe.

Shenandoah University's Department of Intercollegiate Athletics announced that 349 student-athletes earned a spot on the Athletic Director's List for the Spring 2023 semester. To qualify for this honor, student-athletes must have a semester GPA of 3.0 or higher.