Bulletin - University Information

Founded in 1835, Oglethorpe University is Atlanta’s only co-educational small private liberal arts college, home to nearly 1,500 diverse and engaged students from more than 30 states and 20 countries.

A place that puts students first, Oglethorpe’s academically rigorous programs emphasize intellectual curiosity, individual attention, close collaboration among faculty and students, and hands-on active learning that connects theory and practice. Students prepare for life and career through internships, study abroad, civic engagement, and undergraduate research.

Oglethorpe is deeply committed to student success and inclusive excellence. Oglethorpe’s student body is remarkably diverse: more than half identify as persons of color; more than a third are the first generation in their families to attend college; and more than a third are Pell eligible. Since 2018 Oglethorpe has offered its signature Flagship 50 program, a groundbreaking merit tuition scholarship that matches all 50 states’ flagship tuition for qualified students. Approximately 99% of Oglethorpe students receive some financial need-based aid and since 2017, the Fiske Guide to Colleges has named Oglethorpe to its Top 20 “Best Buy Schools” in the nation — the only Georgia college on the list.

In 2019, Oglethorpe opened the I.W. “Ike” Cousins Center for Science and Innovation, with state-of-the-art lab and classroom space, as well as the Q. William Hammack, Jr. School of Business, which boasts a near 100% career and graduate school placement rate for alumni six months after graduation. The university is also home to the Conant Performing Arts Center, which regularly welcomes student and professional theatre and music to its stage, and the Oglethorpe University Museum of Art, a teaching museum. The Oglethorpe Stormy Petrels compete in the NCAA Division III Southern Athletic Association. The Oglethorpe campus is located in historic Brookhaven, one of the Atlanta metro area’s safest and fastest growing communities.

Oglethorpe University is incorporated under the State of Georgia’s Nonprofit Corporation Code. The charter, dated May 8, 1913 says in Article II:

The purpose of the corporation shall be exclusively educational. The corporation shall own, manage, maintain, operate and conduct an institution of higher learning for the purpose of promoting and carrying on college, undergraduate and graduate education. The institution shall be independent, non-denominational, and non-sectarian and shall have the power to grant diplomas and confer such degrees as are usually conferred by institutions of higher learning in such manner and under such circumstances as the Board of Trustees may determine.

Through the years the Charter has been amended and restated several times, both before and after the Georgia School Law of 1937, the most recent restatement being certified by the Secretary of State on May 30, 2002, as the Articles of Incorporation of Oglethorpe University, Inc., in which the purpose is described as “exclusively for charitable, educational, or scientific purposes within the meaning of Section 501(c) (3) of the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986…”

Atlanta’s Oglethorpe University is committed to teaching excellence in an inclusive learning environment. We prepare students for success in professional endeavors as responsible and productive contributors to a global society.

2.3.1 Oglethorpe University Vision

Oglethorpe University will be internationally recognized for academic excellence and known for setting the standard as a diverse, inclusive, and collaborative community. Guided by our immersive curricula, we will prepare students to become ethical, critical thinkers that embrace innovation to create positive transformation in our society.

2.3.2 Oglethorpe University Core Values

Excellence
Oglethorpe students are creative, empathetic critical thinkers who are supported and encouraged by a faculty committed to teaching, learning, and shaping tomorrow’s leaders. Building on the foundation of our CORE curriculum and liberal arts tradition, students are challenged to write clearly, speak persuasively, and weigh evidence inside and outside the classroom. Oglethorpe faculty, staff, alumni, and students pursue ambitious goals and are committed to lifelong learning.

Engagement
Whether on campus, in Atlanta, or around the world, Oglethorpe students, faculty, staff, and alumni experience, serve, and improve our communities. Situated near the nation’s capital of civil rights, dozens of corporate headquarters, and world class arts and theater, our students tap into all that our international city offers. From internships, study abroad, civic engagement, and immersions in multicultural communities, students develop global perspectives and skills.

Belonging
We believe in listening to all voices, recognizing the inherent dignity of each community member, and celebrating the richness of our diverse campus. We are committed to helping all students find their places and voices in the Oglethorpe community so that they become citizens who respect and appreciate differences and understand the influences that shape the world in which they live.

Thriving
College life extends beyond the classroom and includes care for the whole student: body, mind, and spirit. Our tight-knit campus focuses on physical, social, intellectual, spiritual, emotional, and occupational aspects of wellness. We commit to helping each community member have the tools and resources they need to not only graduate but thrive.

Persistence
Our motto – Nescit Cedere – translates to “One who does not know how to give up” and captures the pride and tenacity of our community. We believe in possibilities. We empower students to take ownership and create the future that’s right for them. We may not know what tomorrow will bring, but we work together to solve challenges and in doing so will make a difference in the world.

The curriculum, co-curriculum and extracurricular life are designed to develop the following:

1. The ability to read critically – to evaluate arguments and the evidence and to draw appropriate conclusions.
2. The ability to convey ideas in writing and in speech – accurately, grammatically and persuasively.
3. Skill in reasoning logically and thinking analytically and objectively about important matters.
4. An understanding of the most thoughtful reflections on right and wrong and an allegiance to principles of right conduct, as reflected by Oglethorpe’s honor code.
5. The willingness and ability to assume the responsibilities of leadership in public and private life, including skill in organizing the efforts of other persons on behalf of worthy causes.
6. An inclination to continue one’s learning after graduation from college and skill in the use of books, information technology and other intellectual tools for that purpose.
7. A considered commitment to a set of career and life goals.
8. An awareness of the increasingly international character of contemporary life and skill in interacting with persons of diverse cultural backgrounds.

Oglethorpe University is a candidate for accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award baccalaureate and master’s degrees. Oglethorpe University also may offer credentials such as certificates and diplomas at approved degree levels. Questions about the status of Oglethorpe University may be directed in writing to the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, GA 30033- 4097, by calling (404) 679-4500, or by using information available on SACSCOC’s website.

The following organizational structure is based on a series of successive indentions as one moves down the organizational hierarchy. This listing is not an exhaustive roster of personnel. Rather, this structure is meant to provide current and prospective students, their parents, current, retired and prospective employees, alumni, community members, media representatives and other interested parties with points of contact for various questions, requests, comments, complaints, and so forth. The list is organized by job title, followed by the name of the person currently holding that position. After the name appears the individual’s Oglethorpe e-mail “alias” and contact telephone number. To convert the e-mail alias into a functioning e-mail address, the phrase @oglethorpe.edu must be appended. Also, every telephone number must be preceded by the area code, which is 404.

• President: Dr. Kathryn McClymond, kmcclymond, 364-8356
  • General Counsel and Chief of Staff:  Ms. Regina Mincberg, rmincberg, 504-1225
  •  Executive Assistant to the President: Ms. Pam Dixson, pdixson, 364-8356
  •  Chief Inclusive Excellence Officer: Dr. Rhana Wheeler, rwheeler

• Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs: Dr. Gabriel Barreneche, gbarreneche, 364-8318
  • Associate Provost: Dr. Kendra King Momon, kkingmomon, 364-8317
  • Dean of the Q. William Hammack, Jr. School of Business: Dr. Stephen Craft, scraft, 504-1330
    • Director of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center: Dr. Leroy Carson, lcarson
  • Assistant Provost & Registrar: Mr. Ed Rosser, erosser, 364-8870
    • Associate Registrar: Ms. Jo Dotson-Hearn, jhearn, 364-8316
    • Assistant Registrar: Ms. Naomi Norris, nnorris, 364-8366
  • Senior Director of Student Success: Dr. Vivian Medrano, vmedrano, 364-8360
    • Assistant Director of Student Success: Ms. Lauren Richardson, lrichardson2
  • Director of the Writing Center: Dr. Courtney Mullis, cmullis, 364-8541
  • Assistant Dean & Director of Global Education: Dr. Marisa Atencio, matencio, 364-8862
  • Chair of Division I (Philosophy, Fine Arts, and Communication Studies):
  • Chair of Division II (History, Politics and International Studies): Dr. Glenn Sharfman, gsharfman, 504-1505
  • Chair of Division III (Natural Sciences): Dr. Mariel Meier, mmeier, 364-8339
  • Chair of Division IV (Behavioral Sciences): Dr. Lisa Hayes, lhayes, 364-8391
  • Division V (Hammack School of Business): Dr. Stephen Craft, scraft, 504-1330
  • Chair of Division VII (English and Comparative Literature): Dr. Sarah Terry, sterry, 364-8393
  • Chair of Division VIII (World Languages Literatures, and Cultures): Dr. Mario Chandler, mchandler, 364-8382
  • Chair of Division IX (Mathematics and Computer Science): Dr. Brian Patterson, bpatterson, 504-1322
  • Director of the Core Program: Dr. Judith Levy, jlevy
  • Director of the Honors Program: Dr. Lea Alford, lalford, 364-8403
  • Director of the Oglethorpe University Museum of Art: Ms. Elizabeth Peterson Jennings, epetersonjennings,
    364-8559
  • Director of the Philip Weltner Library: Mr. Eli Arnold, earnold, 364-8885
  • Director of the Rich Foundation Urban Leadership Program (RFULP): Dr. Rhana Gittens Wheeler, rwheeler
  • Director of the Environmental Studies Program: Dr. Roarke Donnelly, rdonnelly, 364-8401

• Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operations Officer: Mr. Pete Stobie, pstobie, 364-8322
  • Controller: Ms. Freedom Bannerholt, fbannerholt, 364-8303
  • Director of Human Resources: Ms. Sandy Butler, sbutler1, 364-8325
    • Manager, Professional Development and Wellness: Ms. Colleen Donaldson, cdonaldson
    • Human Resources Coordinator:  Ms. Angela Hughes, ahughes1
  • Director of IT Services and Chief Information Officer: Ms. Tanya Thompson, tthompson1, 364-8535
    • Systems Analyst: Ms. Julia Rodriguez, jrodriguez, 364-8465
      • IT Systems Support Administrator: Mr. James Gregg, jgregg, 364-8874
    • Software Administrator: Ms. Sheila Gonzalez, sgonzalez1, 504-3474
  • Director of University Events: Ms. Tierra Copeland, tcopeland, 364-8440
  • Director of the On-Campus Store:  Ms. Kathleen Guy, kguy1, 364-8361

• Vice President for Student Affairs: Dr. Meredith Raimondo, mraimondo
  • • Associate Dean of Students & Director of Residence Life: Mr. Blake Petty, bpetty, 364-8895
      • Associate Director of Residence Life and Student Conduct: (vacant)
  • Athletics Director (AD): Mr. Todd Brooks, tbrooks7, 364-8469
    • Assistant Director of Athletics for Operations/Senior Woman Administrator: Ms. Cindy Vaios, cvaios, 364-8479
    • Sports Information Director: Mr. Daniel Manget, dmanget, 364-8329
    • Head Baseball Coach: Kellen Greer, kgreer, 364-8487
    • Head Basketball Coach, Men’s: Mr. Phil Ponder, pponder, 364-8422
    • Head Basketball Coach, Women’s: Mr. Jasen Jonus, jjonus, 364-8421
    • Head Cross Country/Track and Field Coach: Kari Elliott, kelliott2
    • Head Golf Coach: Mr. Jim Owen, jowen, 364-8420
    • Head Lacrosse Coach, Men’s: Mr. Christian Hall, chall2, 364-8415
    • Head Lacrosse Coach, Women’s: Ms. Taylor Martin, mmartin2, 364-8463
    • Head Soccer Coach, Men’s: Mr. Jon Akin, jakin, 364-8416
    • Head Soccer Coach, Women’s: Mr. Rob King, rking1, 364-8896
    • Head Tennis Coach, Men’s and Women’s: Mr. Paul Danielson, pdanielson, 364-8347
    • Head Volleyball Coach: Ms. Olivia Tidmore, otidmore
  • Director of Campus Safety: Mr. Dylan Whitney, dwhitney, 504-1188
  • Director of Career Development: Dr. Lisa Conley, lconley
  • Director of the Counseling Center: Dr. Michelle Lyn, counselingcenter,
  • Director of Dining Services:  dining, 504-1411

• Vice President for Advancement: Ms. Sarah Emerson, semerson, 364-8330
  • Director of Development: Mr. Bob Preston, bpreston, 364-8328
  • Senior Director of Advancement Strategy and Operations: Ms. Holly Joseph, hjoseph
    •  Manager of Advancement Operations: Mr. Saurav Bhandary, sbhandary, 364-8334
  • Senior Director of Engagement: Ms. Kate Bobb, kbobb, 504-1020
  • Senior Director of Alumni Engagement and Giving: Ms. Kathryn Henderson, khenderson1, 364-8439
  • Museum Curator and Development Associate: Mr. John Daniel Tilford, jtilford, 364-8552

• Interim Vice President for Enrollment Management:  Ms. Whitney Lewis, wlewis
  • Associate Director of Admission: (vacant)
  • Director of Enrollment Operations: Mr. Ethan Hawkland, ehawkland
  • Assistant Director of Enrollment Operations: Jenna Wetzel, jwetzel
  • Senior Director of Institutional Effectiveness: Ms. Caitlin Douglas, cdouglas, 364-8311
  • Director of Financial Aid: Mr. Chris Summers, csummers, 364-8355
    • Assistant Director, Financial Aid Compliance: Ms. Belinda Jones, bjones2, 364-8358
    • Assistant Director, Financial Aid Communications: Mr. Shane Desmond-Williams, sdesmond, 364-8357

• Vice President of Marketing and Communications: Mr. Lance Wallace, lwallace, 504-1530
  • Senior Director, Marketing and Communications: Ms. Michelle Geiger, mgeiger, 364-8348
    • Assistant Director, Communications: Mr. Grant Utter, gvutter, 504-1065
    • Web Specialist: Heather Neal, hneal1, 504-1535