Research has shown that first-generation college students can experience an array of challenges from financial setbacks to anxiety about social inclusion to doubting one’s abilities. To provide a network of support and celebrate their successes, the Student Life First-Generation Programming Committee at Rhodes College has been working to create more intentional programming for its first-gen students.

Non-biology majors in the BIOL 105: Everyday Evolution: Genes, Diversity, and Society course recently had the chance to participate in hands-on scientific research involving migratory birds after visiting the Arkansas State Bird Observatory. Alix Matthews is the instructor.

Rhodes College alum Aaron Fitzgerald ’10 has been named to the Grist 50 list, which features leaders and innovators from across the country who are working on solutions to the planet’s most pressing challenges.

The Fulbright Program is the flagship international academic exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government with participation by students, faculty, and young professionals. Sixteen seniors from Rhodes are competing for Fulbright U.S. Student Awards to be used 2024-2025.

The Rhodes Vision includes the goal of graduating students with the ability to translate academic study and personal concern into effective leadership. Kristin Pedrozo ’22 certainly is an example of an individual with that goal in mind, having been accepted into programs for art museum leadership.

Incoming students over the summer were asked to read His Name Is George Floyd, winner of the 2023 Pulitzer Prize in General Nonfiction, by Robert Samuels and Toluse Olorunnipa as part of Rhodes Reads. The authors will speak on campus Oct. 26.

As part of Rhodes College’s 175th anniversary celebration, University of Oxford professor Emma Smith will present “What Is Shakespeare’s First Folio—and Why Should I Care?” on Oct. 19. The lecture is funded by the Pearce Shakespeare Endowment.

Jennifer M. Collins will be formally installed as the 21st president of Rhodes College on Saturday, Oct. 21, 2023. Inaugural weekend events include a campus-wide celebratory lunch on Friday featuring Memphis-inspired dishes, and the Inaugural Talks, which will showcase the richness and variety of faculty scholarship at Rhodes.

History major Sam Frank ’24 serves as the 2023-2024 president of the Honor Council, which interprets and implements the Honor Code. Bringing empathy to his role, Frank says, "Any organization tasked with seeking justice needs to prioritize compassion and education if the goal is to improve the community it serves."

Rhodes College’s Mike Curb Institute for Music has been named to Billboard’s list of the 2023 Top Music Business Schools. This is the third time the college has made the roster since 2020; Billboard did not release a list in 2021.