Thursday, July 9, 2009

Hope Teams and Student-Athletes Honored for Academics

A record 12 Hope College athletic teams, including all nine women's teams, have received the 2008-09 GPA Team Award from the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA). The MIAA Team GPA Award is presented to conference teams that achieve a 3.300 or better grade point average for an entire academic year. This program is administered by the Faculty-Athletic Representatives (FARs) of the MIAA member colleges. The FARs at Hope College are Lynne Hendrix, Professor of Accountancy, and Dr. Mark Pearson, Assistant Pprofessor of Mathmetics. Hope teams receiving the award were women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's golf, men's and women's tennis, women's soccer, softball, women's swimming & diving, women's track & field, and volleyball. The women's cross country team, coached by Dr. Mark Northuis, has the distinction of receiving the honor all 11 years since the award program was instituted in 1998-99. The 2008-09 MIAA Academic Honor Roll includes 191 student-athletes from Hope. A student needed to maintain a minimum 3.5 grade point average the entire school year to receive the honors. Hope's honorees include 14 seniors who achieved the Honor Roll distinction four consecutive years.

41st Summer Upward Bound Underway

Upward Bound at Hope College is "Investing Up" this summer! The summer theme of Invest Up is providing students with an opportunity to learn about the environment, the economy and how they can “invest” in their own lives as well in the world around them. Through the academic and elective curriculum, community volunteer projects, and the extra curricular activities students are exploring the theme as it relates to topics and situations affecting current and future generations.

Upward Bound is a pre-college preparatory program that is designed to help develop the motivation and academic skills for students from first generation college and low income families who are interested in pursing an educational program beyond high school. Upward Bound helps youth prepare for higher education. Participants receive instruction in literature, composition, mathematics, and science on college campuses after school, on Saturdays and during the summer. Currently, 774 programs are in operation throughout the United States, including at Hope College. Evidence that Upward Bound is making a difference abounds. Students in the Upward Bound program are four times more likely to earn an undergraduate degree than those students from similar backgrounds who did not participate in similar federally funded TRIO programs; nearly 20 percent of all Black and Hispanic freshmen who entered college since 1981 received assistance through the TRIO Talent Search or EOC programs; students in the TRIO Student Support Services program are more than twice as likely to remain in college than those students from similar backgrounds who did not participate in the program.

Management Professor, Center for Faithful Leadership Host Entrepreneurship Event

Professor of Management Steve VanderVeen and the Center for Faithful Leadership will host Momentum Demo Day on Tuesday, July 28, from 5:30-7:30 P.M. at the Martha Miller Center. Momentum is a venture firm that invests in web-based technology start ups. Its program helps young entrepreneurs turn their ideas into reality. Behind Momentum are a team of entrepreneurial mentors, the Windquest Group, and the economic development organization Lakeshore Advantage.

The event will allow attendees to find out about new technology companies from West Michigan entrepreneurs.

- See 3 demos of new technology
- Meet the entrepreneurs behind the ideas
- Learn about business opportunities
- Give your feedback

Demos from upcoming graduates of the Momentum program:
- Revetto - Manage your true social network from a simple and integrated application. Learn more about Revetto
- Public Collections - If someone owes you money, Public Collections helps you get it. Learn more about Public Collections
- Downstream - Downstream helps you back up, gather, and share the content you keep online. Learn more about Downstream

Those wishing to attend should RSVP to Amanda Chocko (616) 212.7703 amanda@momentum-mi.com

Tennis Coach Karen Page Loses Battle With Cancer

Karen Page, a leader in the advancement of tennis at the high school, college and community levels, died Friday, July 3, at the Hospice House in Holland following a long, courageous battle against cancer. Page, 60, most recently was serving as Director of the DeWitt Tennis Center at Hope College, was the coach of the college's women's tennis team the past 12 years, and taught tennis classes in the Department of Kinesiology. "Karen promoted the game of tennis, but also promoted an enthusiasm and high energy for living," said longtime colleague Dwayne "Tiger" Teusink. "Positive energy and spirit were the hallmarks of Karen Page's life. Every woman she coached, every person she touched was the beneficiary of her strong touchstones of enthusiasm and passion, not just for the game of tennis but for the joy of life," said Eva Dean Folkert, co-director of athletics at Hope. " I honestly can't remember a time when in the space of five minutes -- whether in competition or conversation, I did not see a smile come across KP's face. We will greatly miss such a terrific role model to students and women. We will greatly miss such a treasured coach and friend."

Page guided the Hope Flying Dutch to conference championships in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) in 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2009. The 1998, 2000 and 2009 Flying Dutch earned a berth in the NCAA tournament. A reoccurence of cancer this spring did not allow her to actively coach the team, but it did not deter her from being with her squad at the conference and NCAA tournaments. Page had an extensive background as a teacher and coach of tennis. She previously served as coach of the boy's and girl's varsity teams at Holland West Ottawa High School. She also coached the Holland community's adult women USTA travel teams. She served as president of the Michigan High School Tennis Coaches Association and was a certified tennis teaching professional. She was presented the distinguished service award by the Western Michigan Tennis Association for outstanding leadership and service and named to the Hall of Fame of the Michigan High School Tennis Coaches Association. She was a graduate of Iowa State University.

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