Alumni Magazine

Hiram Magazine

The Grassland Program

Read about The Grasslands Project at the James H. Barrow Biological Field Station, our Donor Sponsored Project, and Our First Lady Lucretia Rudolph! Reflect with us as we discuss Hiram’s longstanding history of diversity and inclusivity and celebrate a few of our alumni that have taken their Hiram education out into the world and established companies and made goals to make a genuine impact in their communities. Enjoy!

The Urgent Complexities of Diversity and Inclusion

Dear Hiram Friends,

Welcome to the first Hiram Magazine of the “new normal” world. We are still vigilant about protecting our health, but the campus is once again alive with athletic and cultural events, in-person classes, and face-to-face meetings. Study abroad and study away trips are happening again, and Lisa and I are on the road to alumni and donor events around the country. International partnerships are back on the table, including our longstanding relationship with John Cabot University in Rome, Italy, where I will have the honor of delivering their 50th anniversary commencement address in May.

I am now in the third year of my presidency, and one constant theme from the past two years, in addition to the pandemic, has been the urgent complexities of diversity and inclusion. The installation of a tribute to Black lives, freedom, equality, and diversity earlier this fall on the wall of Colton-Turner Hall, is the culmination of two years worth of student-led discussion of these essential issues. And as this magazine shows, these events share an important strand of Hiram’s history going back to its founding in 1850 by the Disciples of Christ as a non-sectarian institution open to women and people of color, when most other colleges and universities served only white men.

You will notice that Hiram’s website and this magazine have a new look, the result of a branding exercise that took a hard look at how we present ourselves to the outside world, and especially to prospective students.

There are more than just design changes, though; you will also notice a focus on the stories of our students— current students as well as alumni. What Hiram offers to students can’t be fully captured in statements about the College; the Hiram experience is much more accurately reflected in the stories told by students themselves: stories of their successes, interests, and how they engage themselves with this great college. Our alumni featured in this issue show beyond a doubt how a Hiram education can lead to personal and professional success.

We continue to expand opportunities for our students to engage with the world outside of Hiram, for instance the innovative partnership with Nestlé featured in this issue. The idea of a liberal arts education as occurring within an “ivory tower” is a thing of the past. Partnerships with businesses, other four-year colleges, community colleges, and high schools continue to expand Hiram’s role as a connector between student learning and the worlds in which they live. As a community we are doing our best to contribute to the revitalization of Northeast Ohio. Starting their journey at one of the best regional colleges in the Midwest, Hiram students really can go anywhere and do anything.

Happy Reading,

President David P. Haney, Ph.D.