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Winter 2025 Board Updates

Board of Trustees See 'Imagine Roanoke' Come to Life 

At its annual winter meeting held Feb. 6-8, the Roanoke College Board of Trustees saw forward progress in all six areas of the college’s new strategic plan, “Imagine Roanoke,” and met faculty members who have emerged as leaders in support of the college’s new vision.  

Roanoke College’s new strategic plan includes six imperatives that call for making Roanoke the region’s most sought-after educational partner, developing a stellar residential experience, elevating the exploration of purpose and character in developing leaders, orienting all aspects of the institution to make it a learner-centric college, fostering an environment of professional growth and empowerment, and creating a culture of philanthropy and responsible financial stewardship. As trustees received updates on initiatives from campus leaders, it was easy to draw a line between the strategic plan imperatives and the work taking place throughout the Maroon community and beyond.  

A plenary session opened the day on Thursday, with representatives from EAB, an educational consulting firm, presenting on “The Modern Anchor Institution: Driving Undeniable Economic Impact and Reclaiming the Public Good Mantle.” The session underscored higher education’s critical role in economic mobility and regional growth, aligning with the strategic plan’s first imperative, “to become the Roanoke Valley’s most sought-after educational partner by industry, entrepreneurs and community leaders.”  

Roanoke’s new initiative, Roanoke College-Roanoke Valley (RC-RV), is a direct outgrowth of that imperative. RC-RV aims to be a bridge between Roanoke College and the region’s workforce, offering workforce development, continuing education and flexible learning opportunities. Lisa Stoneman, executive director of RC-RV, spoke to the board about established connections and further development of the program. The board voted to approve a resolution for governance of RC-RV and celebrated a $1 million gift from Peter Treiber ’79 and his wife, Irene, that will support a Center for Curricular Innovation within RC-RV. 

The board also heard from each of the four educators who were selected as inaugural deans of Roanoke’s four new interdisciplinary schools. They are: 

  • Marit Berntson, School of Education, Government, and Society  
  • Alice Kassens, School of Business, Economics, and Analytics  
  • Wendy Larson-Harris, School of Communication, Culture, and the Arts 
  • Karin Saoub, School of Health, Science, and Sustainability 

A key piece of the strategic plan’s second imperative to become an exemplar of a 21st-century learning laboratory, this new academic structure reorganizes Roanoke’s 100+ areas of study in 16 departments into four schools, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration, broadening student learning, and strengthening partnerships beyond campus. 

Relatedly, Trustees voted to approve tenure and promotion for six faculty members. Faculty earning promotion to associate professor are Alison Clifton (modern languages), Teresa Milbrodt (English and communication studies) and Adewale Sekoni (math/computer science/physics). Those earning promotion to full professor are Kelly Anderson (chemistry), Jesse Bucher (history) and Leslie Anne Warden (art history).  

David Mowen, vice president of finance and administration, provided an update on construction of the Shaun McConnon Discovery Center (Science Center), reporting that Massengill Auditorium is now under demolition and construction will soon move to the next phase, erection of the new science building. The project remains on time, on budget and on track for completion by the fall 2026 target date. The new building is projected to be Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver Certified, which would mean it exceeds basic LEED requirements and is more sustainable than standard buildings. A mosaic of the college seal could not be removed in one piece from Massengill’s facade, but pieces of it were saved.  

Roanoke’s second strategic imperative is to create an on-campus residential experience that serves as a model 21st-century learning laboratory. The upcoming renovation of Crawford Hall is just one example of the progress underway toward that vision. The college has engaged a local architect for the project, which will focus on upgrades to windows, bathrooms, the kitchen, outdoor spaces and accessibility features. It will also include installation of a modern HVAC system for indoor air quality. The project is anticipated to begin just after Commencement 2025 for completion by August 2026.  

To accommodate students during the Crawford renovations, the college plans to create a new residence hall community on the north side of campus that will house about 150 students, a project approved by the board at its October 2024 meeting. The residence halls and a community meeting/gathering space will be constructed from single-use shipping containers – a modern, durable, sustainable housing option. This residential option has been very popular among students on other college campuses, and the buildings are extremely comfortable and energy efficient. Creating this flex space will also allow the college to conduct future renovations of other residence halls. 

The board also received updates about plans to renovate Alumni Gym to create a new Athletic Performance Center (APC) that will accommodate the more than 600 athletes who play in 27 varsity sports at Roanoke. The college recently hired a full-time strength and conditioning coach, Scott Bennett, along with an assistant strength and conditioning coach, Isabelle O’Connell. The coaches are currently training student-athletes in Alumni Gym, an outdated space with aging equipment that is also limited in scope. The new APC would include performance flooring and turf, more and newer weight racks, updated graphics and signage, new HVAC, wireless internet access and new technology to keep track of workouts. The college’s Advancement team is currently raising money for this worthy project, which will lift all athletes at Roanoke.  

Two particularly bright spots of data were shared with trustees during the College Life and Advancement committee meetings. The college’s fall-to-spring retention is at 94.5% for spring 2025, up from 89% last year. This is the highest fall-to-spring retention level in a decade, said Jay Ellison, Vice President for Student Success and the Roanoke Experience. Nate Stewart, Vice President for Advancement, shared that Roanoke’s cash fundraising total this year is up $6.7 million over the same period last year. 

President Frank Shushok Jr. thanked the board for its support and expressed appreciation for the many stakeholders involved in moving the college forward on implementation of the strategic plan. 

“All this forward motion is possible only through the collective efforts, talents, and leadership of our faculty, staff, alumni, and donors, pulling together to make ‘Imagine Roanoke’ our reality,” Shushok said. 

In other news, the board’s Trusteeship Committee voted unanimously to extend the terms of additional faculty representatives to the board, which was originally a two-year pilot effort launched alongside the Shared Governance Task Force, upon which work also continues. Trustees expressed appreciation for the perspectives and contributions of faculty representatives and their shared commitment to the college’s future.  

During Friday’s session, the board also welcomed a new Student Government Association president, Max Cardwell ’26. Cardwell, a history major from Salem, Va., said he aims to better unify the student body, perhaps with the introduction of a Maroons hand signal/gesture and cheer that could make athletic events more spirited. He also would like to improve student awareness of opportunities and create more avenues for students to share concerns with the administration. 

The winter meeting was preceded on Wednesday night by a social hour in the Cregger Center for faculty, staff and trustees, sponsored by the President’s Office, Teaching Collaborative, Athletics Department and the Health and Human Performance Department. Immediately following the social, the group proceeded to the gymnasium to watch the Maroon Madness basketball double-header, in which the women defeated Ferrum 63-57 and the men defeated Guilford 78-53. On Thursday evening, board members were invited by faculty to attend an expert panel discussion in Wortmann Ballroom on “How to Die a Good Death.” The panel included experts from the fields of end-of-life care, spiritual support and medical ethics, with each sharing their thought on the complexities of death and dying.  

Following the panel, the board attended a dinner event in Fintel Library that featured a scavenger hunt designed to teach them more about the library and its range of learner support services,  which include the Goode-Pasfield Center for Learning and Teaching, Subject Tutoring, a TV studio, print shop and flexible collaboration and study spaces.    

In final business, the board voted to bring on three new trustees, including Dr. Jared Herr ’04, David Robertson ’89, and Peter Treiber ’79.  

Jared Herr ’04 is an advanced heart failure and transplant cardiologist at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco. He also serves as director of medical education at the Palo Alto Foundation Medical Group and is active in clinical research. Herr graduated magna cum laude from Roanoke College with a B.S. in biology and biochemistry before earning his medical degree with honors from The University of Texas Medical Branch. At Roanoke, he was a member of Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity and Omicron Delta Kappa, Beta Beta Beta, and Alpha Chi honor societies. Herr has served on the President’s Advisory Board and the Science Center campaign committee. In 2023, he received Roanoke’s Emerging Alumni Award.   

David Robertson ’89 is vice president and co-owner of Robertson Marketing Group in Salem, Va. He earned his Ph.D. in career and technical education from Virginia Tech and has served as a faculty member at Roanoke College. As the founding director of the Center for Leadership and Entrepreneurial Innovation (C.L.E.I.), he helped launch the first Entrepreneurship-in-Residence position, a business leadership concentration, a student entrepreneurship club, a business competition called “The Pitch,” and a leadership speaker series that draws more than 400 attendees annually. Robertson has provided internships and jobs to many Maroons and has served as chair of the advisory board for Roanoke’s Business Department and as a member of the steering committee for the College’s Management Institute. Robertson and his wife, Kathryn, have established two endowed scholarships honoring his parents and brother, among other philanthropic support.  

Peter Treiber ’79 is the owner of Treiber Farms, a 60-acre family farm on Long Island, which he founded in 2014 after retiring from the insurance industry. A third-generation leader in his family’s firm, he helped grow Treiber Insurance Group into one of the 50 largest independent agencies in the U.S. before its sale in 2008. At Roanoke, Treiber was a business administration major and a member of the 1978 National Championship lacrosse team. He has served on the President’s Advisory Board and as past chair of the New York Alumni Association. A proponent of lifelong learning, Treiber and his wife, Irene, recently committed $1 million to Roanoke College to create the Treiber Center for Curricular Innovation, which will be an integral part of the college’s new partner endeavor, RC-RV.   

The board will convene again for its annual spring meeting April 2-4, which has been planned to coincide with Alumni Weekend (April 4-6) and the unveiling of “Authors and Architects,” Roanoke’s memorial to enslaved laborers, on April 4.