The Marlin Chronicle THURSDAY 11.19.20 || MARLINCHRONICLE.VWU.EDU
VIRGINIA WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY
Prof resigns following viral post BY BRIANNA SANDY bnsandy@vwu.edu
Dr. Paul Ewell resigned from his position as Professor of Management, Business, and Economics on Nov. 16 in the wake of widespread criticism over a Facebook post in which he accused supporters of Joe Biden of being “ignorant, anti-American, and anti-Christian.” The post, which originally went up late Nov. 5 and was taken down the next day, garnered national attention Nov. 15 as President Donald Trump retweeted an NBC12 article about the post, commenting “Progress!” This post would amass 33 thousand retweets and 174 thousand likes as well as send Ewell’s name as high as the number 16 spot on the platform’s ‘Trending’ list. The Nov. 5 post, Ewell told the Chronicle, had been an angry lapse in judgement in the aftermath of a fight with two Democratic friends in private messages.
With tensions around the election running high, Ewell said that one of the friends impugned his faith in their political argument. Ewell responded by writing the controversial Facebook post that questioned the patriotism and faith of those who voted for Biden in the election, and further accused them of corrupting the election, the youth and the country. He instructed anyone who voted for Biden to unfriend him on social media. By midnight on Nov. 6, just hours after it went up, the post had begun to rocket between campus group chats and appear on students’ social media. Students and alumni began calling for Ewell’s firing or resignation. Alumnus Thomas Mills wrote in an email to the Chronicle that “The issue is not that [Ewell] supports Trump or votes Republican. He is entitled to a political opinion just like everyone else in this country. The issue is how worrisome, disturbing
Daily Mail|Courtesy Left: Dr. Paul Ewell is at the center of controversy, sparking difficult conversations on campus and across the nation. Right: The now-deleted Facebook post from Ewell highlights political divisiveness. almost, it is to see a professor and dean from Virginia Wesleyan so blatantly spew false and divisive rhetoric.” Others expressed shock, including some of Ewell’s own students. “I have complete, one hundred percent confidence that
if… I had posted something political that would have been controversial, he would have been the first to say, ‘Hey man, it’s just not a good look, that doesn’t represent what you’re a leader of,’” said Justin Robins, a student of Ewell’s who had worked closely
with him in the Marlins Prestige Business Conference. Ewell regretted the post almost immediately, he told the Chronicle in an interview on Nov. 9. “I spoke out of anger, which I
See EWELL Page 2
Marlins find 2020 finish line After the trials and tribulations of an adjusted, abbreviated fall semester, the VWU community overcomes COVID-19 obstacles, reaching the Nov. 20 goal date.
BY CONNOR MERK ccmerk@vwu.edu
vwusoftball|Instagram (From left to right) Perennial stars Goldyn, Hull and Glaubke return for a fifth year of eligibility to compete for the Marlins.
Softball ‘Big 3’ is back BY NICHOLAS MUNDY namundy@vwu.edu
Three seniors of the Virginia Wesleyan softball team opted in for their extra year of eligibility due to the shortened 2020 season. COVID-19 forced a premature ending to every spring season. Jessica Goldyn, Hanna Hull, and Madison Glaubke accepted the opportunity to get back on the diamond with their teammates. Now all three are looking to spring where they hope to pursue another national championship for the Marlins. Hull and Glaubke look to capture their third national championship in their fifth year at Virginia Wesleyan. They won back-to-back championships in 2017 and 2018. After failing to reach the championship in 2019 and their 2020 season cut short, both look to join the select few college athletes who have three
national championship rings. Each spring athlete was presented with the opportunity to extend their collegiate career due to COVID-19. Division I and II athletes have an easier decision on whether to come back for an extra year. Division III does not offer athletic scholarships. The decision to come back for an extra year of college isn’t one to be taken lightly. Could an athlete afford to pay for an extra year of college just for a possible spring season. Every spring athlete that chose to come back had to weigh the options of returning during the pandemic. Hull expressed the importance of continuing her education on her decision to come back: “I
The VWU administration announced Nov. 18 one case of COVID-19, bringing the cumulative case number to 24 so far this semester. The Emergency Response Team also reminded students in an email that after Nov. 20, the university will be switching to remote instruction. They also stated their appreciation for the campus community’s commitment to having a safe and responsible semester. In an interview with the Marlin Chronicle, President Miller stated that he is especially proud of VWU. “According to the last report that we received, we had the second lowest number of positive cases, among private institutions of those reporting, we were
See SOFTBALL Page 7
the second lowest in Virginia and in the report that we received only Eastern Mennonite was better than us,” Miller said. “Now, we’re proud of it, but it has meant that you’ve had a rather restrictive, living and learning environment for the whole semester.” He has also been pleased with the cooperation and relationships between the Commonwealth of Virginia and higher educational institutions in Virginia regarding COVID-19. “We as a group, meaning the private institutions had these discussions on how we were going to address things, but they [public health officials] said to us, that ‘we would strongly recommend to you that somewhere around the 20th of November, you stopped in-person instruction, because we see that there’s going
Connor Merk|Marlin Chronicle
their financial status,” Cooper said. “With changes Tuition freeze announced matter in demographics and a new operational model, the University has maintained the same tuition three years in a row for 2021-2022 and will continue for a fourth year in 2021-2022.” BY CONNOR MERK ccmerk@vwu.edu
President Scott D. Miller announced in his Nota Bene on Oct. 29 that The Board of Trustees approved his recommendation of freezing the tuition for the fourth year in a row. Also, 97 percent of traditional full-time students receive financial aid and full-time tuition costs for traditional students will remain $36,010. Room and board will increase slightly to cover increases in food costs. Vice President for Finance and Administration Jim Cooper attributes this to Miller and how he has strived to create greater affordability for students since his arrival. According to Cooper, VWU is an attractive private college because of the various funding opportunities students have and that we are able to provide a better education with similar net tuition as public institutions. “New need-based scholarships were initiated in 2016 and a privately funded student work program was added in 2017. The endowed Batten Honors College was founded in 2017 to provide 40 scholarships per year to talented students no
During this unprecedented and challenging time as a result of COVID-19, VWU has had to make difficult financial decisions. In the spring, Cooper and Miller analyzed the expenses of VWU to find ways to save money. “With students and staff interacting remotely, we were able to identify costs that were non-essential and reduce and balance the budget given the new realities of lower revenues and additional costs incurred due to COVID-19,” Cooper said. Examples of budget reductions are the elimination of professional travel since all professional meetings and conferences have been conducted virtually. Additionally, Cooper mentioned that part-time positions have been reduced, non-essential employees were furloughed and that food service was closed when students and staff were sent home in the spring. Freshman Nya Washington appreciates the tuition freeze because it provides substantial relief to students and lowincome families but is concerned about additional fees. “Some of these little hidden fees are what gets students in a bind. If schools are actually upfront about it, it would
to be a surge in cases somewhere around that time period and we think that by doing the masks, the social distancing, the limiting the number of people in classes, all the safeguards, that if you go to that remote format, and stay out of in-person from Nov. 20, until whenever your institution starts second semester, that you’ll play a major role in in reducing the spread in the state.’ And all the information that we’ve received so far, has worked the way they forecasted and so science does work,” Miller said. Miller also mentioned that he has been a president in four different states and has been impressed by the advisories and the role that the Commonwealth has played in advising the university and bringing together institutions in Virginia. He also made not of the unity given how the institutions across Virginia normally compete with one another for students, athletes, and resources. “It has been wonderful to see 91 higher educational institutions all working together for the good of our students,” Miller said. Associate Vice President For Campus Life and Operational Management Jason Seward was also pleased by the numbers at VWU, but encourages the
See COVID-19 Page 3
actually prepare us more on how much money we have to save to pay for college,” Washington said. “Also, I feel like it’s unnecessary adding extra little fees when some of the things we are provided are lacking in quality, such as technology and Wi-Fi.”
Kathleen Vanden Berg|Marlin Chronicle
Sit-down with Sarah Guzzo Campus work: a reflection Holidays in Hampton Roads COMMUNITY Page 5
OPINIONS Page 6
STAY CONNECTED! 1Front_11_17_2020.indd 1
WEEKENDER Page 10
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