Thursday, July 26, 2012

Busy Little Beavers

There has been only five posts to the university blog since May Day, and one was a guest post. I’ve been such a slacker this summer. And here we are just four weeks away from new students moving on campus.

Not like there hasn’t been anything else going on.

Two weeks ago, which would have been one year since the groundbreaking for what is now known as the Sommer Center, I had planned to write a post celebrating the progress made in just one short year. Didn’t happen. Obviously.

But mark your calendar for Oct. 13 for a dedication ceremony during Homecoming. While the new health and fitness education center will probably not be open to the public by then, it is currently on pace to be open for the 2012-13 basketball season.

The Extending Our Reach capital campaign came to a successful conclusion on June 30. Plans are being made to properly celebrate during the President’s Society dinner on Oct. 13.

By early August, the new admissions “interactive viewbook” will be online, and the supporting, coordinated print pieces delivered by late August. This has been an intense collaboration with PR, admissions and Creosote Affects, an East Coast higher education marketing firm. Be watching for your opportunity to check it out.

By early fall, the admissions web ‘zone’ will have a new look, feel and be MOBILE FRIENDLY! Eventually all bluffton.edu pages will be built with responsive design, meaning regardless of what device you view our web site on, it will adjust its width and design for your viewing pleasure. We’re doing this in phases. Admissions first. The general web second. Sports third. Stay tuned!

As if that weren’t enough, there are five new academic programs being introduced this fall - graphic design major (building on the existing graphic design minor); public relations major (building on the current PR concentration); strength & conditioning and sport & recreation leadership in the health, fitness and sport science department; and lastly, a health care management degree completion program set to begin in January 2013.

RAs and fall athletes will be back on campus within three weeks. Think things will slow down once the students return?