Shepherd

Shaw Hall, a student residence, opened on the west side of W.Va. 480 about 40 years ago to mark the beginning of Shepherd University's West Campus. More than four decades of separation between the East and West campuses ended Monday afternoon with the dedication of a new pedestrian underpass that marries both campuses into one seamless university. “The East and West campuses are gone,” University President Suzanne Shipley said at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the $5.65 million underpass.

A key point of a proposed, 10-year master plan for Shepherd University is an effort to recruit more students to live on campus. One goal would increase the number of students living on campus to half of the school's student population. Currently, about 30 percent live in dormitories. John M. Sherwood, chairman of the 19-member master facility planning committee, said the committee needs to figure how the campus might look in the years ahead. The committee consists of faculty, students and members of the community.

A CD by Adam Booth, adjunct faculty member at Shepherd University and professional storyteller, has been juried into Tamarack in Beckley. "Mingo Black" is a collection of four original stories by Booth that reflect his Appalachian heritage and upbringing. Three are his creation, and the fourth is a family story that has been passed down seven generations. "It's pretty incredible for me because I have been working a long time to get to this point," Booth said.  "I've been telling stories in this capacity for 10 or 11 years.

Shirley Mae Hutson used to roast venison from a deer that she or her husband, Donald,  shot for Christmas dinner. Then Donald, a carpenter, stopped hunting after he fell 9 feet onto concrete during a job, said Donald Hutson, 75, who lives in the Huyetts Crossroads area. So turkey became the new Christmas Day entree. But for the past three or four Christmases, the Hutsons have gotten their Christmas dinner from the Shepherd's Table at Rehoboth United Methodist Church on East Salisbury Street in Williamsport.

Two Shepherd University professors were awarded WV Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, or EPSCoR, grants totaling nearly $40,000 for equipment to use in their classes and for research. Jordan Mader, assistant professor of chemistry, will receive $20,000 for a thermal gravimetric analyzer used for stability determinations. She said the analyzer measures weight loss in relation to temperature of the material being tested. Ralph Wojtowicz, associate professor of mathematics, will receive $19,069 for a Hadoop cluster for teaching and researching phenomena associated with the analysis of massive data sets.

Martinsburg's north end will be the location of Shepherd University's new Martinsburg Center. Shepherd plans to offer a full range of classes at the Martinsburg Center beginning the fall semester 2013, with the possibility of a limited number of classes being offered this summer, according to a news release from the university. Shepherd's new center, which is designed to serve adult learners, will be in the new Berkeley Commons building at 261 Aikens Center off Edwin Miller Boulevard.   Taking into consideration the needs of working adult students who are juggling career and family, Shepherd's Martinsburg Center will offer courses in education and the popular credit-for-experience degree, the Regents bachelor of arts.

Michelle McDonald, who has attended Easter Seals Adult Day Services of Hagerstown for three years, attended the program's Christmas meal Wednesday with people she said were like her family. “You're with people that you love and care about here,” said McDonald, 46, of Hagerstown. “I'm very happy and grateful. Easter Seals has been very helpful to me in being with people and making friends.” Easter Seals local adult daycare program, which serves adults with disabilities, provided a Christmas lunch for its participants along with The Good Shepherd Ministries on Wednesday at the church on Longmeadow Road.

The detour through the Bavarian Inn was closed and traffic was resumed Wednesday from Shepherd Grade Road to the stop sign on W.Va. 480 (North Duke Street) for the first time since last spring when construction began on an underpass linking Shepherd University's East and West campuses. Students will begin using the underpass when they return to classes after the Christmas break in January, Dan Yanna, the university's director of facilities management, said Wednesday. Workers are finishing the concrete walkway and steps leading out of the tunnel onto the west campus.

Shepherd University's Department of Music will hold a piano sale from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 8, in the Frank Center McCoy Rehearsal Hall. The sale is open to the public. The selection includes baby grands, uprights, consoles, Yamaha Clavinovas (digital pianos), and Yamaha Disklaviers (interactive player pianos). The instruments are less than a year old and come with full manufacturer warranties. For more information, call 1-866-742-6673.

Shepherd University will host "The Relationship Tour," a forum for students to explore how to build and sustain healthy relationships, from 5:30 to 6:45 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 5,  at the Frank Center Theater. The tour's creator and moderator, Jason Ottley, also a counselor for Shepherd's TRIO student support services, said this is a discussion for students that is needed and long overdue. The event will feature a panel discussion with faculty and students, and Student Government Association president Elizabeth Greer will serve as mistress of ceremonies.