News@Mercer Cover

Basketball Excitement Soars as Men Shock No. 18 Southern Cal, Women Start 2-0

The men’s and women’s basketball seasons are under way with great success. The Mercer men traveled to Los Angeles on Saturday and recorded one of the University’s biggest wins ever. The Bears shocked No. 18 Southern Cal, 96-81, in the Galen Center and spoiled the debut of the Trojans’ O.J. Mayo, the top freshman player in the country. [more]

Piedmont Healthcare Funds Nursing Chair at Mercer University

Piedmont Healthcare President and CEO R. Timothy Stack and Mercer President William D. Underwood announced on Nov. 8 the establishment of the Piedmont Healthcare Chair in Nursing that will benefit Georgia Baptist College of Nursing of Mercer. Funded by Piedmont Healthcare by a $2.85 million grant to the Center for Health and Learning, a partnership of Piedmont Healthcare and Mercer University, the Chair will support the establishment of a Ph.D. program in nursing education at Mercer. [more]

Science and Engineering Building Set for Dedication

Mercer will dedicate the new Science and Engineering Building and celebrate the School of Engineering’s 22-year partnership with the Warner Robins Air Logistics Center at 11 a.m. on Monday, Nov. 26. United States Senator Saxby Chambliss, Congressman Jim Marshall and Logistics Center Commander Maj. Gen. Tom Owen will speak at the event. [more]

School of Engineering Among Tops for Female Grads, Professors

The Mercer School of Engineering recently received national attention in two publications for its female-friendly atmosphere. The School is third in the nation for percentage of female students earning bachelor of science degrees in PRISM, the American Society for Engineering Education’s magazine. The School also ranked No. 18 in the country among engineering schools for percentage of women faculty tenured or on tenure-track by Connections, an ASSE electronic newsletter. [more]

Dalton Announces Retirement as Dean of Medicine

Martin L. Dalton Jr., M.D., FACS, announced on Oct. 26 that he will retire as dean of the School of Medicine, effective June 30, 2008, completing a distinguished 18-year career at the University. Dalton joined the Mercer School of Medicine faculty in 1990 as Chair of the Surgery Department and director of the surgery residency at the Medical Center of Central Georgia. He was appointed dean of the School of Medicine in September 2005. [more]

Mercer University Press Holds 18th Annual Authors Luncheon Featuring Mercerians Steve Berry and Ferrol Sams

Just in time for holiday shopping, the Mercer University Press will hold its 18th annual Authors Luncheon on Saturday, Dec. 1. Fourteen national and regional authors, including best-selling and award-winning Southern writers Terry Kay, Hank Klibanoff, Steve Berry, Law ’80, and Ferrol Sams, CLA ’42, will be featured. Held at the Intercontinental Buckhead Atlanta hotel, the event begins at 10:30 a.m. with a reception and book signing, followed by lunch and speakers at noon. [more]

Mercer’s New Physician Assistant Program Receives Provisional Accreditation

The College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences will launch its Physician Assistant in January 2008 following the announcement of its provisional accreditation by the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant Inc. In a recent letter, the program received word on its provisional accreditation from the ARC-PA. The provisional accreditation will allow the College to begin the program, which will be the fourth in Georgia and the only second in the Atlanta area. [more]

Mercer on Mission Announces Locations for Summer 2008

Building on the success of the last year’s program, the Mercer on Mission experience has expanded from three countries to five. The Mercer on Mission program blends service-learning with a studying abroad experience. Students spend two weeks in the classroom on the Macon campus and three weeks performing service projects in their designated country. “Mercer On Mission experienced an incredibly successful first year and the expectations for the second year are even higher,” said Dr. Craig McMahan, university minister and dean of the chapel, who coordinates Mercer on Mission. “The program is expanding to include a much greater diversity of sites,... [more]

Lilly Conferences at Mercer a ‘Stunning Success'

Christina Bieber Lake gave the opening presentation of the 17th Annual National Conference of the Lilly Fellows in the Humanities and the Arts national conference on Oct. 19.

More than 150 faculty and administrators came to Mercer as part of the 2007 Lilly Fellows for the Humanities and the Arts conferences in October, earning raves for the University and the city. On Oct. 18 and 19, Mercer hosted the Eighth Annual Workshop for Senior Administrators, entitled “Mentoring Faculty for Mission,” with more than 40 administrators in attendance. The University hosted the 17th Annual National Conference of the Lilly Fellows in Humanities and the Arts, Oct. 19-21. More than 118 faculty members attended the program, entitled “Three Mirrors: Reflections of Faithful Living.” “The thoughtfulness with which Professor Richard Wilson selected the... [more]

’Tis the Season for Holiday Entertainment

The holidays are quickly approaching, and Mercer’s Townsend School of Music and The Grand Opera House have a full lineup of festive performances in Central Georgia to keep every calendar merry and bright. [more]

Carville and Matalin Deliver Political Analysis to Packed Forum

Judge Tilman E. “Tripp” Self III, left, a member of the Executive Forum Steering Committee, and his wife, Carlen, right, pause for a photo with speakers James Carville and Mary Matalin following their presentation in Macon on Nov. 7.

Married political consultants James Carville and Mary Matalin spoke before more than 530 business leaders at The Executive Forum presented by BB&T on Nov. 7. Some 200 people attended the lunch presentation in Atlanta at The InterContinental Buckhead Atlanta and more than 320 people were at the dinner program in the University Center in Macon. The couple are co-authors of the national best seller, "All’s Fair: Love, War, and Running for President." Carville is one of America’s best-known Democratic consultants, while Matalin is formerly assistant to President George W. Bush and counselor to Vice President Dick Cheney, the first White House official to hold that double title. Carville,... [more]

Australian Sensation The Ten Tenors Return to Central Georgia

In February 2006, the platinum-selling, internationally acclaimed phenomenon, The Ten Tenors sold out two shows at The Grand Opera House, a performing arts center of Mercer University, as part of The Grand’s 2005-2006 Broadway Series. On Thursday, Nov. 15, this musical tour de force returns to Central Georgia for a special encore performance, beginning at 7:30 p.m. at The Grand Opera House. Tickets are $36 and can be purchased through Mercer Ticket Sales at (478) 301-5470 or online at thegrand.mercer.edu. [more]

Dunaway Receives Two National Awards in Two Months

Dr. John Dunaway, professor of French and interdisciplinary studies, has been honored with two national awards. Dunaway, who is also director of Mercer Commons, received the 2007 Jacques Maritain Award and was one of two recipients of the 2007 Erik B. Nilson Achievement Award and Grant. [more]