Newsletter Volume 11 Issue 14 - March 26, 2025 | | Lunch Colloquium -- Laura Jernigan -- MONDAY-- March 31, 2025 | | |
The Rev. Laura Jernigan
Presbyterian Minister, Educator and Musician
MONDAY, March 31, 2025
11:30am-1:00pm
“The Promise”
The Promise is a new musical by Laura Jernigan that reimagines the ancient story of the family of Abraham, Sarah, Hagar, Ishmael, and Isaac. Drawing from Bible stories found in Genesis and from Jewish, Christian, and Muslim traditions, The Promise explores God’s promises to this particular family tree, including the expanding promise to “bless all the families of the earth.” Weaving together narration and songs, this presentation encourages us to journey toward the promise and seek the blessings of reconciliation for our global family tree.
https://www.thepromisemusical.com/
About Laura Jernigan:
The Rev. Laura H. Jernigan is a Presbyterian minister, educator, and musician. A 1984 music major at Rhodes College and a 1988 graduate of Union Presbyterian Seminary, Laura has served as a pastor in several congregations in the Presbyterian Church, USA, and as a religion teacher and chaplain for seven years at The Lovett School. Currently, Laura is focusing on an arts ministry in music, worship, and drama. Most recently, she completed writing a musical, The Promise (music, lyrics, and book). Laura is married to John Jernigan, an infectious diseases physician with the CDC in Atlanta, who serves as chief of a branch that works to prevent health care associated infections. Laura and John have three adult sons, and have happily welcomed two daughters-in-law to their family.
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John Witte, Jr.
Robert W. Woodruff Professor of Law
McDonald Distinguished Professor of Religion
Emory University School of Law
TUESDAY, April 8, 2025
NOTE VENUE CHANGE:
The Luce Center
825 Houston Mill Road -- Room 130
11:30am-1:00pm
“Mapping the Field of Law and Religion”
This year's Sheth Distinguished Lecture for the Emory University Emeritus College will be given by John Witte Jr., Robert W. Woodruff Professor of Law, McDonald Distinguished Professor of Religion, and faculty director of the Center for the Study of Law and Religion.
In 2024, the editors of a new book of essays published in Professor Witte’s honor commented on his far-reaching impact, especially since his arrival at Emory in 1985: “For several decades, the work of John Witte Jr. as scholar, teacher, public lecturer, and project leader has been among the most influential in the English-speaking world in the field of law and religion in general, and in the study of law and Christianity in particular.”
For the Sheth Distinguished Lecture, Professor Witte will describe his personal evolution as a scholar and the role of law and religion as it has shaped legal systems and religious practices worldwide. He also will offer perspective on Emory’s own growth since the founding of its program in law and religion in 1982, at the time a novel and daring institutional direction not only for Emory but also for US legal education in general.
The Sheth Lecture is made possible by a generous donation from Dr. Jagdish and Mrs. Madhu Sheth.
About John Witte, Jr.:
Professor Witte (Dr. Theol. h.c., Heidelberg; JD, Harvard; BA, Calvin College) is author of more than 350 articles, 19 journal symposia, and 45 books on legal history, human rights, religious freedom, marriage and family law, and law and religion. His writings have appeared in 16 languages, and he has delivered more than 425 public lectures worldwide, including recently the Gifford Lectures. With $27 million raised from the Pew, Ford, Lilly, Luce, and McDonald foundations and other benefactors, he has directed 20 major international projects on democracy, human rights, and religious liberty; on marriage, family, and children; and on law and religion.
He has been selected twelve times by the Emory law students as the Most Outstanding Professor and has won dozens of other awards and prizes for his teaching and research including recent induction into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Royal Academy of Jurisprudence in Spain.
Professor Witte is married to Eliza Ellison, a theologian and mediator. They have two daughters and five grandchildren.
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LAST REMINDER!
2025 Emeritus College Distinguished Faculty and
Service Awards
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Nominations Needed!!! -- EUEC Faculty and Service Awards
Each year, the Emory University Emeritus College (EUEC) offers two categories of awards: the EUEC Faculty Awards of Distinction and the Distinguished Service Award. Please know we are now beginning to accept nominations for 2025.
For the 2025 awards, completed nominations must be submitted by no later than 5:00 p.m., Tuesday, April 1, 2025. Please submit nominations by email to Dianne Becht, EUEC Program Coordinator, whose email address is Dianne.becht@emory.edu.
Please consider nominating one or more of your colleagues. And please know that self-nominations are also permitted and encouraged. Too often, retired faculty are not fully aware of the achievements of their colleagues, and we must rely on self-disclosure.
The ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS are as follows:
EUEC Faculty Award of Distinction (formerly Distinguished Emeritus/Emerita Award):
- All retired Emory faculty who have been members of EUEC for at least two years.
- Significant professional contributions since retirement to Emory University or its affiliated institutions, as well as contributions to local, state, regional, national, or international communities or professional organizations that reflect the “spirit of Emory.”
- A maximum of four awards are given annually.
- This award may be conferred only once.
Distinguished Service Award:
- All members of the EUEC, including those who have received the Distinguished Faculty Award of Distinction.
- Membership in the EUEC for at least two years.
- Significant service to Emory University or its affiliated institutions, as well as to local, state, regional, national, or international communities or other organizations that reflect the “spirit of Emory.” These contributions must have been made since retirement and are beyond those used to support a previous Distinguished Faculty Award.
- No requirement that an award will be given each year.
When you make your nomination, please include the following:
- Name of nominee
- Department or unit with which the nominee is associated.
- Contact information (email, phone number, and mailing address of nominee).
- Name of nominator
- Department or unit with which the nominator is associated.
- Contact information (email, phone number and mailing address of nominator).
- Description of why the nominee should receive this honor, in no more than two pages. Please do not exceed this limit, but be certain to include enough information for the selection committee to make an informed decision. Please include a curriculum vitae if possible.
Please let us know if you have questions about this process. Thank you in advance for your participation.
Sincerely,
Glenn Kellum
Chair, EUEC Honors and Awards Committee
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LAST REMINDER!
The 2025 Bianchi-Bugge Award
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This Award is meant to advance the mission of the Emory University Emeritus College by providing its membership with financial support for ongoing intellectual activities by means of small, strategic grants to cover expenses incurred in pursuit of a broad range of activities, including, among others: research and writing, lecturing, training, development of teaching materials, and participation in academic conferences. The Award is open to members from all academic units of the University and will foster their continuing professional development as part of a vibrant emeritus community at Emory University.
It is expected the Emeritus Excellence Fund will support two Bianchi Awards each year in amounts ranging up to $2000 for a twelve-month term.
The application process is open to all Regular and Associate members of the EUEC.
Applicants should submit the following:
1) a letter of application (limit to two pages) that describes in some detail the project to be undertaken: its purpose, the means of achieving its goal, and its relevance to the applicant’s own personal and professional development;
2) a simple one-page budget that estimates costs and explains how requested funding would be employed; and
3) an up-to-date curriculum vitae abstract (limited to two pages) that specifically highlights experience relevant to the project and activities undertaken since retirement.
The criteria for selection will include:
- The relationship of the proposed project to the applicant’s demonstrated qualifications
- The projected value of the project to the applicant’s field or discipline
- The feasibility of completing the project within the term of the Award
- The pertinence of the project to resources readily available to the applicant
- The potential the project shows for promoting the public good
Award recipients will be asked to agree to the following conditions:
- Submission of a written report to the Awards and Honors Committee after completing the term of the Award the year following the award.
For the 2025 awards, completed nominations must be submitted by no later than 5:00 p.m., Tuesday, April 1, 2025. Please submit nominations by email to Dianne Becht, EUEC Program Coordinator, Dianne.becht@emory.edu.
| | Upcoming MedShare Volunteer Opportunity | | |
If you’d like to join this group, we are doing this the second Thursday afternoon of each month. Upcoming sessions: April 17(Note: this month only, it is on the third Thursday); May 8,
June 12. Registration on the MedShare web site is required.
To register:
Visit the MedShare event registration page at: https://www.cervistech.com/acts/console.php?console_id=0319&console_type=event&ht=1&res_code=EmoryEmeritus
Click the "Sign Up" button for your event and enter your email and first name. If you don't have a MedShare volunteer account, you'll be prompted to create one.
Select the listed event and click “Register."
For registration issues, questions or information about carpooling, please contact Marianne Skeen, marskeen@comcast.net.
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Ron Gould
Goodrich C. White Professor Emeritus
Ron has given two recent talks:
March 5, 2025
"Extending the Chvatal - Erdos Theorem"
56th Southern Conference on Combinatorics, Graph Theory, and Computer
Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, Florida
March 12, 2025 -- Zoom Talk
"Looking for Saturation in All Kinds of Places"
Atlantic Discrete Math Seminar
Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
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New members are the lifeblood of any organization.
Please make a special effort to welcome them to the EUEC!
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Lindreth G. Dubois
Sr. Associate in Ophthalmology
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Women of Wikipedia Edit-a-thon
Friday, March 28, 2025, 3:00-5:00pm EST
Woodruff Library, 3rd floor, Room 312
In honor of Women’s History Month in March, join us on Friday, March 28 to help edit Wikipedia to make sure women are represented. Less than 20% of English Wikipedia biographies profile women, according to the Women in Red Project. The Women of Wikipedia Edit-a-thon strives to write more articles about notable women of all races, nationalities, and ethnicities (including transgender and nonbinary individuals).
This is the 10th year that the Emory Libraries and Teaching and Learning Technologies (TLT) will host a Wikipedia Edit-a-thon to improve the coverage of women in Wikipedia by training new Wikipedia editors. This year’s Edit-a-thon will be hosted in person.
We invite all Emory students, faculty, and staff to participate. Don’t forget to bring your own laptop!
To sign up, please RSVP at emorywikiwomen.com and then join the editing dashboard so that your edits can be counted during the event. Be sure to create a Wikipedia account if you don’t already have one.
This event is made possible with support from Art+Feminism, a global campaign that supports improving articles about women and aims to encourage more women to become Wikipedia editors.
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A Musical Journey to Cyprus: Traditional Songs of Love, Sorrow, and Hope
Saturday, March 29, 2025, 5:00-6:30pm EST
Ackerman Hall, Michael C. Carlos Museum
Throughout history, Cyprus has been variously described as ‘the island of love’, ‘the birthplace of Aphrodite’, ‘the blessed isle’, ‘the land of lemon and olive trees’, among many other things. But in the past half century, Cyprus has also been known as a land of pain and sorrow; an island of division and loss. On this ‘Musical Journey to Cyprus,' Nicoletta Demetriou (voice), Nikitas Tampakis (viola), Roger Mgrdichian (oud), and Panayotis League (laouto and percussion) explore this varied identity, as expressed through the island’s music and song. Join these accomplished musicians on an imaginary journey to Cyprus, as they sing about the joys and intricacies of love, the pain and sorrow of loss, and the hope for better days to come.
This program is free and open to the public.
To register please click here.
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Details and other information, as well as additional campus events, can be found on the Emory Events Calendar.
If you'd like to share an event/program of interest before the next newsletter
please contact Dianne Becht Dianne.becht@emory.edu
| | Walking the Campus with Dianne | |
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The vase under the staircase from our last walk can be found in the fairly new R. Randall Rollins Building at 1516 Clifton Road. The building was constructed during the pandemic and completed in 2022.
Excerpt from an Emory News Center article:
The R. Randall Rollins Building joins sister structures, the Grace Crum Rollins and Claudia Nance Rollins buildings, to compose the substantial physical footprint of the Rollins School of Public Health, which now encompasses 500,000 square feet.
This new facility, like those before it, will serve to foster the unique sense of community and purpose shared by the students, faculty and staff of Rollins as they continue to work toward the school’s shared mission of improving the world’s most pressing public health issues through learning, collaboration and research.
Spanning a whopping 185,000-square-feet, the 10-floor R. Randall Rollins Building is radiant with natural light, thanks to illustrious usage of glass. Constructed by New South Construction and designed by The S/L/A/M Collaborative, the building is LEED Gold Certified. Work spaces are conducive to a variety of working styles, with open-floor office spaces, collaborative meeting rooms and private offices that will be occupied by a variety of the school’s service units and academic departments.
Visitors can access the building through the ground level entrance on either the Michael Street or Clifton Road sides, or through an interior bridge on the first floor of the Grace Crum Rollins Building.
To read the entire article and view a short video, please click here.
Additional information and photos can be found by clicking here.
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Spring is here! The trees and flowers are beautiful with blooms everywhere and this next spot is no exception.....well, at least from the angle in my photograph. And I'll give you a hint: It's not far from the hippos we recently visited.
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Where will you find this on the Emory campus?
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