It’s Not All Sequins and Fun
Genetically, it made sense early on that Cole Spivia would choose a nexus of costume design and theater as her chosen form of self-expression and career path. Her mother is a painter and sculptor who always kept a trove of interesting old clothes, shoes and purses around the house. Her father arguably was singularly responsible […]
What’s the Big Idea?
On a fall day a couple of years ago, a group of Brenau students found themselves on a long car ride to North Carolina with one of the university deans, Bill Lightfoot. En route to participating in the social entrepreneurship session with representatives from other colleges and universities in the Appalachian region, they brainstormed things they […]
The Brenau Scholar Pattern
As part of a gemstone program of institutional aid, paid from annual giving to the university, four 2013 Brenau University Women’s College freshmen recently joined the ranks of a select group of students who excel – not only academically but also as contributing members of their communities. The full scholarship, valued at about $22,000 per […]
Exceedingly Rare: Brenau at 135
Brenau celebrates its 135th anniversary during the 2013-14 academic year. In addition to the planned special activities that you can read about elsewhere in this magazine – and other yet-to-be-announced events to be publicized on the www.brenau.edu Web site – you will encounter articles throughout this anniversary issue that highlight different parts of the Brenau journey. When an […]
The Ghostess With the Mostest
If Agnes does not exist, we probably would have invented her. Brenau’s legendary campus ghost makes too attractive of a scapegoat for the creaks and groans in the eaves of Brenau’s old, atmospheric buildings, and among the many exceptional women who have disturbed the peace here, she inspires the most curiosity. For decades students have […]
The Second President Pearce
Lucile Townsend Pearce was not the typical Southern belle of the early 1900s. More at home on her horse than at a ball, she was demonstrably uncomfortable with the role society had created for women. Although she never held the top title as the university’s chief executive, she definitely shaped its evolution in the first […]
Mama Makes Up Her Mind
Mama was stubborn. “Set in her ways,” is what country folks call it and boy, was she. When she made up her mind, nothing stopped her, especially when she set her jaw and punctuated her declaration with a firm nod of her head. If she also threw that crooked forefinger in your direction, you knew […]
Twinkle in the Eyes
In 1936 the Gainesville Rotary Club asked local artist and Mark Trail comic strip illustrator Ed Dodd to do some pen and ink drawings of its members. Dodd complied, adding limericks. On the caricature of Hugh Hosch (pronounced like “shush”), owner of a textile mill that made denim clothing, he wrote: “Hugh Hosch had plenty […]
The New Normal
This October marks the 31st anniversary of a significant milestone in the Brenau University demographic history. That is when institution officials reported that the enrollment in Brenau Women’s College was 824 students. However, the enrollment in what was then known as the “evening and weekend” program was 920 – the first time the latter number exceeded […]
Walking Boss
Throughout his career Brenau Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President David Barnett has addressed needs of nontraditional students. He now oversees the biggest expansion project the university has seen in decades: the $6.7 million development of the Downtown Center. But what often keeps him awake nights is a leaky roof. At his home in […]
