Two Lipscomb graduates to attend Princeton grad school in fall

This fall two Lipscomb graduates are headed to Princeton University to pursue a Master’s of Divinity degree. Lauren Calvin and John Paul Cooke both graduated valedictorian from Lipscomb in May of 2014. Because of the influence of Lipscomb professors, both Calvin and Cooke decided that attending a graduate school was in their futures. During her undergraduate career, Calvin discovered her many gifts in ministry. “My psychology professor, Dr. Chris Gonzalez, was the first person who made me believe I was capable of doing well in grad school,” said Calvin. Not only was Calvin’s calling affirmed by Dr. Gonzalez, but also Dean Barham. “My Intro to Ministry professor, Dean Barham, had enough faith in me to ask me to speak at Woodmont Hills Church of Christ in the spring of 2013,” said Calvin, “He believed I was ‘called to preach.’” Because of the strong encouragement from her professors, Calvin decided on the possibility of an independent career in ministry as a writer and public speaker. After speaking at Woodmont Hills and carving a path for her future, Calvin began seriously looking at graduate schools. Meanwhile, Cooke also affirmed his graduate school potential at an apprenticeship with Otter Creek Church of Christ. “Dr. Walter Surdacki placed me in a youth ministry apprenticeship my second year that lasted until I graduated,” said Cooke, “This was a great opportunity for me to learn and practice skills that I learned in the classroom.” In December, Calvin and Cooke began the application process, applying to Duke, Princeton, Emory and Yale. “Princeton’s application process was probably the most thorough, requiring a personal statement, resume, academic writing...
Krzyzewski inspires crowd at Third Annual Don Meyer Evening of Excellence

Krzyzewski inspires crowd at Third Annual Don Meyer Evening of Excellence

“What is a winner? Someone who wins everyone contest, but there is not anyone like that. A winner is someone that never lets a failure or a loss be his or her final destination.” Those were some of the encouraging and inspiring words spoken by Mike Krzyzewski at the Third Annual Don Meyer Evening of Excellence held on Saturday night. Better known as Coach K, Krzyzewski has won four NCAA Championships as the head basketball coach at Duke. Elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2001, Coach K boasts the most wins in NCAA Tournament history with 78. Saturday, though, he was not coaching the Blue Devils to victory in Cameron Indoor. He was instead being introduced by fellow Hall of Famer Don Meyer to speak in Allen Arena. University president Randy Lowry started off the evening welcoming the sold out crowd to Allen Arena. Lowry also highlighted the several accomplishments that Lipscomb’s athletic program had achieved over the calendar year. Following a short video, athletic director Philip Hutcheson took the stage and talked about the impact that Don Meyer left on him and the campus. On the stage next was former Lipscomb basketball coach Don Meyer. Coaching at Lipscomb from 1975-1999, Meyer led Lipscomb to victory 665 times. The Evening of Excellence is not only named after Meyer, but it embodies his character as well. Better known as Coach, he boiled the game of basketball down to the ‘little things.’ “Everyone makes notes, everyone says yes ma’am and no ma’am, and everyone picks up trash,” Meyer said. Unable to attend last year’s event because of scheduling conflicts,...