• Winthrop will now present a medallion to the graduate with the highest cumulative grade point average during undergraduate commencement. The 5-ounce medallion, made of bronze with a silver plate and antique finish, is called the Tillman Medallion. Tillman award winners Kimberly Paige Satcher, an early childhood education major from Graniteville, S.C., and Amber Michelle Smith, an elementary education major from Fort Mill, S.C, were the first recipients.
 

• The undergraduate commencement ceremony was a historical milestone for the Barber family of Rock Hill. The four sisters, granddaughters of sharecroppers, now have all earned Winthrop degrees. Their story was profiled in The Herald newspaper on May 5. The latest to graduate is Zelma Barber Kirk ‘07, who earned a social work degree. Her sisters are Pamela Barber-Hutchison ’79, Seberina Barber Myles ‘86, and LaSharra Barber ‘06. Watch video of excerpts from reporter Karen Bair’s interview with Myles.

• Winthrop graduate student Ahmad Alenizi was profiled this month on Voice of America’s Global College Forum. Alenizi is from Riyadh, the capital and largest city of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He came to Winthrop on a full scholarship provided by the Saudi Arabian government and will finish his M.B.A. next year. Listen to Alenizi’s interview.

• Libby Patenaude, dean of the College of Visual and Performing Arts, playwright Jonathan Davidson and actor Chandler Parker were recently on WHRI's Straight Talk program discussing Create Carolina. Listen to the interview. Patenaude and Parker were joined by Create Carolina's artistic director Charles Randolph-Wright in an interview on WFAE's Charlotte Talks program. Listen to the interview.