General
Friends University will celebrate the inauguration of its 13th president, Dr. T.J. Arant, March 30. The ceremony will take place at 2 p.m. in Garvey Gymnasium in the Garvey Physical Education Center. Following the ceremony, a reception will take place in McKay Gymnasium in the Casado Campus Center.
The excitement of Prom can all too often bring with it the stress of finding funds to purchase expensive formal attire, putting this rite of passage out of reach for many area students.
Gown Town, which will be held from 4-8 p.m. Friday, March 9 and from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, March 10 in the Friends University Casado Campus Center, will alleviate this burden. All area high school students, girls and boys, are invited to select from donated gowns, suits and accessories that will be available free of charge. Seamstresses will also be present to provide free on-site alterations.
As part of Cherry Carnival Week, Friends University welcomes students, staff, faculty, alumni and their families to attend the 14th annual Chili Cook-off from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 16, in the Garvey P.E. Center Multipurpose Room. This free event has become popular in the campus community with more than 900 attendees last year. Participants can sample each booth’s chili and vote on best theme and best chili as well as snack on hot dogs, beverages and ice cream.
Friends University will host the 2012 National History Day District 6 Competition on Feb. 24. Approximately 200 high-school and middle-school students, together with their teachers and parents, will participate in the competition. More than 30 professors, historians, specialists, and teachers serving as judges from other universities, museums, and schools in Wichita, in addition to Friends University professors and students, will participate in this event. This is the third year Friends University has hosted the event, and this year's theme is "Revolution, Reaction, Reform in History."
Hard work, patience and attention to detail have once again proved to be a winning combination.
It took more than a year of hard work from the people of Buckley Roofing and patience on the part of the Friends University community, until the roofing project on the Davis Administration Building was completed. But when all was said and done, the Associated General Contractors of Kansas gave the project a standing ovation, giving the Award of Excellence.
The award, now in its 23rd year, is awarded to state buildings, said Cleo Daugherty of Buckley Roofing.
Friends University is mourning the death of longtime faculty member Dr. David Weber who died Jan. 22.
Dr. Weber served as professor of voice and head of the voice department at the University. He had been a member of the music faculty since 1973, and he won Friends University’s coveted W.A. Young Excellence in Teaching Award in 1993.
Friends University’s David Jones has helped Kansans get the help they need through his volunteer service with the United Way of the Plains, which serves Wichita and south central Kansas.
Jones, director of the accounting program within the College of Adult and Professional Studies, served on the United Way’s Allocation Review Panel, which helps ensure that the United Way’s 2012 donations will be invested for maximum capacity throughout the community.
Most Friends University offices will close Monday, Dec. 12, at 11 a.m. so that approximately 320 staff, faculty and students can help the Salvation Army prepare for its holiday distribution to 4,000 Wichita-area families, including 10,600 children.
This is the 19th consecutive year Friends University has helped with the effort. The volunteers will assemble bikes, sort and bag toys and stocking stuffers, decorate the distribution facility, and much more.
A popular component of Wichita’s skyline – now restored to its full glory – will again be part of the Friends University Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony.
The Friends University Davis Administration Building clock tower will be ablaze with festive lights as part of the annual holiday lighting ceremony at 5:30 p.m. Nov. 30 in the second floor of the Davis Administration.
Friends University alumni, faculty, staff and students will participate in the second Run with Friends activity – the Arthritis Foundation’s Jingle Bell Run/Walk for Arthritis Dec. 3.