President's Message

Dear LVC Community,

I write having just participated in my second live Commencement since becoming president almost two years ago. It was a joyous day and a beautiful reminder of why we work so tirelessly to help our students achieve success. It also was a reminder of the importance of everything you do as alumni and friends of the College, from mentoring students and offering internships and clinicals to donating to scholarships and employing our graduates. Thank you! We were also delighted to recognize the achievements of Dr. Si Pham ’79 and Giovanni Ferrero with honorary degrees.

As you’ll note in the following pages, there is much good news occurring at The Valley. We broke ground on our new Nursing and Interdisciplinary Health Education Facility on May 6 and will enroll our first class of nursing majors this fall. We’ve also completed several updates and enhancements to the Louis A. Sorrentino ’54 Gymnasium and our very own Stacey Hollinger, LVC’s all-time winningest softball coach and current associate director of athletics and senior women’s administrator, received the Middle Atlantic Conference’s (MAC) Lou Sorrentino Award.

Elsewhere in athletics, nine of our 10 spring sports teams qualified for the MAC playoffs, with baseball, softball, and men’s and women’s tennis winning or sharing regular season Commonwealth titles. Three students were named MAC Senior Scholar-Athletes: Lauren Wick (women’s cross country), Owen Buhr (men’s indoor track and field), and Olivia Cindrich (women’s ice hockey). On the academic side, three more students were named Fulbright Finalists: Lexi Kerstetter ’21 (biology, Taiwan), Robbie Moul ’22 (ACS chemistry and neuroscience, Hungary), and Julia Resele ’21 (early childhood, special education, and Spanish, Spain). Twenty-four LVC students have received Fulbright awards, including 14 since 2016 when Dr. Philip Benesch, chair of social sciences, director of prelaw, and associate professor of political science, added the role of director of external scholarships and fellowships. Well done, Philip!

Finally, I also had the honor of attending LVC’s first Thomas Rhys Vickroy Society dinner in three years this spring. It was a delightful celebration. Gina and I were so happy to meet many of our most loyal and generous donors, as well as celebrate the 15 families welcomed into the prestigious Lifetime Vickroy Associates Society, two new Laureate Society inductees, and the 406 families in the Thomas Rhys Vickroy Society.

Please enjoy your summer. I look forward to seeing you back on campus in the fall!

Best regards,

James and Gina MacLaren