Rhonda Thompsonretired this month with more than 19 years of exemplary service to the Emory community. More than 40 students, staff, and family members joined her on April 27 to offer heartfelt tributes celebrating her many contributions over the years. Rhonda, most recently office manager for Civic and Community Engagement, joined Emory as an administrative assistant in Healthcare pediatrics. She served later with the university’s Center for Community Partnerships before a reorganization in 2014 brought her to Campus Life along with most of the center’s initiatives. Known by students and staff as a caring and creative problem solver, Rhonda says the best part of her job was knowing that her work helped to make a difference in the lives of Emory students, other members of the Emory community, and people throughout metro Atlanta. Most important, she added, her years with Emory presented daily opportunities to embrace her personal passion of service to others –, especially, young people.

Rhonda (on left) reluctantly agreed to a farewell celebration of her 19 years with Emory but did not expect to see so many friends and colleagues, including coworkers from years past.

Kyle Griffith, complex director in Residence Life, has accepted a position as director of residential life at Illinois Wesleyan University. Since joining the Res Life team in July 2011, Kyle has facilitated improvements in many areas, including the pre-college program, first-year experience program, interdisciplinary exploration, and scholarship themes, staff selection process, and more. In addition, he has also made a huge impact through his work with the Office of Sustainability and as a Title IX investigator. Kyle’s last day with us is June 8.

Margaret “Molly” Fraher and Bridget Guernsey Riordan were honored for 25 years of service when university employees joined President Sterk for an April 26 luncheon to celebrate their 45-year, 40-year, 35-year, 30-year, and 25-year anniversary milestones. Molly is a nurse practitioner in Student Health Services; Bridget is assistant vice president for Campus Life. View list of award recipients:   http://www.hr.emory.edu/NewsYouCanUse/2018%20SA%20Program%2004182018.pdf

Chelsea Jackson 18C,  is one of 32 recipients nationwide of the 2018 Rhodes Scholarship. The political science and African American studies double major is a student activist engaged with a number of Campus Life initiatives, including serving as an intern with the Commission on Social and Racial Justice. Learn more:   http://news.emory.edu/stories/2017/11/upress_rhodes_scholar_jackson/campus.html

Sara Frank  18C has been recognized with the Leader of the Year Award from the Omicron Delta Kappa (ODK) national leadership honor society, one of only five students nationwide to receive that honor this year. Sara, a former sophomore advisor with Residence Life, is president of the ODK chapter at Emory. Sara was nominated for the leadership award by ODK chapter advisor Sherry Ebrahimi, Campus Life's director of conference services, and Judi Raggi Moore, professor in Italian Studies. ODK recognizes and encourages superior leadership and exemplary character. Learn more:   https://odk.org/

Sara Frank was one of only five students nationwide to receive ODK leadership award.

Lamar Greene, a graduating senior and student intern in Campus Life’s Office of Health Promotion (OHP), is the 2018 Truman Award recipient. Since joining OHP in summer 2016, he has worked on various initiatives, including: expanding access to OHP’s PrEP (Pre-exposure Prophylaxis) clinic for HIV prevention; making the sexual health mini-course more inclusive; and assisting OHP staff and graduate students with promotion and analysis of the National College Health Assessment (NCHA). Learn more:   http://news.emory.edu/stories/2018/04/er_truman_scholar_greene/campus.html

Sherry Ebrahimi, director of Conference Services and Housing Administration, has been elected president of the Association of Collegiate Conference and Events Directors-International ( ACCED-I) for 2018-2019. Ebrahimi formally stepped into her new leadership role at the conclusion of the organization’s annual conference, March 18-21, in Minneapolis. The organization represents more than 1,300 campus professionals who design, market, coordinate and plan conferences and special events on the campuses of colleges and universities around the world. Learn more:   http://news.emory.edu/stories/2018/04/er_tn_ebrahimi_acced_i/campus.html

Tomika DePriest, senior director for ECL’s Office of Communications, delivered a lightning round presentation at the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Senior Summit in April.   Social Shifts: From Reliance on a Dean’s Account to Official Emory Campus Life Channels described the strategy behind the 30 percent increase in overall audience impressions for Campus Life’s social media platform. Learn more:   http://apps.prsa.org/Conferences/CHE/Program/

Office of Sorority and Fraternity Life   (OSFL) is pleased to announce the addition of three new team members, part of evolving the staffing model in sorority and fraternity housing to more closely resemble the Residence Life staffing model. The new coordinators will join the office on July 1, 2018:

• Kenneth Anthony comes from Ball State University, currently serving as a graduate assistant in the Office of Greek Life as the Interfraternity Council Advisor. Kenneth is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated.

• Hector Cuevas joins us from Illinois State University, where he serves as a graduate assistant in the Julia N. Visor Academic Center, as well as a House Director for Alpha Gamma Rho Fraternity. Hector is a member of Beta Theta Pi Fraternity.

• Mishalle  Marszalek currently works as a graduate assistant in the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life at   University of the Pacific, as well as a Greek community assistant for the campus chapter of Alpha Phi.   Mishalle is a member of Alpha Chi Omega Fraternity for women, where she served as a chapter consultant for two years.

Campus Life scholars   earning terminal degrees in the 2017-18 academic year include:

• Arthur E. Doctor Jr., EdD, University of Georgia. Dissertation topic:   “He Ain’t Heavy”: The Impact of Membership in Black Greek-letter Fraternities on the Academic Progress of Undergraduate Members. Arthur is associate director of Sorority and Fraternity Life.

• Chanel Tanner, PhD in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, Emory University. Dissertation topic:   Beyond the Bars: Using U.S. Third World Feminism to Read Constructions of Carcerality in Hip-Hop. Chanel is director of the Center for Women at Emory.