Every other week, our Highlanders are using their education to do extraordinary things. Here, we鈥檒l highlight some notable mentions from local, regional, national and international news media. Whether our students, alumni, faculty and staff are featured as subject matter experts in high-profile stories or simply helping make the world a better place, we鈥檒l feature their stories.
Voter cycles
By and large, most of Radford鈥檚 current undergraduates were not yet old enough to vote in the last presidential election, in 2020, but a recent event helped them participate in the process this year and aimed to fuel their civic engagement.
It was , a two-day series of panels, conversations and activities that began Nov. 4 and culminated in a block party and a live watch of the election on Nov. 5.
Along the way, participants got non-partisan information about current events and topics 鈥� such as districting and the electoral college 鈥� as well as opportunities to voice their opinions, plus chances to destress through yoga sessions and pet therapy.
Several strategic communications master鈥檚 students took part 鈥� including organizers Kirsten Cecil, Leonora Lynn, Mary Rose Prosinski, MacKenzie Wallace and Andrew Walls 鈥� as well as faculty members Alyssa Archer, Scott Dunn, Chapman Rackaway and Daniel Reed.
The Roanoke Times placed 鈥淗ighlanders Vote鈥� , noting that the event was designed to offer the university鈥檚 wide-ranging student body 鈥渁 sense of community.鈥�
鈥淸We] get to promote these really awesome values of collaboration and unity and consensus on campus,鈥� Prosinski told the newspaper, adding, 鈥淥n top of that, kind of selfishly, we get some really great practical experience.鈥�
鈥淥verall, it was a success,鈥� Wallace told us the following day. 鈥淲e were very happy with the turnout.
鈥淲e wanted to make sure students understood not only how to vote but also the importance of their vote in shaping the future.鈥�
Voice of authority
In addition to the role he played in Highlanders Vote, Chapman Rackaway, a professor and the chair of Radford鈥檚 political science department, was recently called upon to weigh in on the broader spectrum of the race.
On Oct. 30, Rackaway appeared on WSLS-TV with news anchor John Carlin to in the dispute over Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin鈥檚 executive order regarding the state鈥檚 voter rolls.
During the interview, he interpreted the situation for viewers, explaining why the lawsuit came about, what it meant for Virginia residents and how they could check their registration status in advance of election day.
The following week, he was consulted for . Rackaway pointed to widening gaps between the two central political parties in the U.S., the effect of expanding data and social media, and offered viewers advice they can apply to just about any point in time going forward.
鈥淚t鈥檚 up to the individual voters to bust out of their echo chambers, intentionally seeking out people and viewpoints that don鈥檛 necessarily reinforce what they believe, and then trying to understand them,鈥� Rackaway told WSLS.
Later that day, on Nov. 5, he pulled a Channel 10 hat trick when he logged on for , before the final tallies were in, in which he ran through the various factors that could affect the outcome.
And then, just to round it all out, as the dust settled on the morning of Nov. 6, Rackaway to talk about Roanoke鈥檚 city council race and its as-yet-uncalled mayoral election, the reliability of polling and the mechanics of provisional ballots, among other topics.
鈥淎 helping hand鈥�
Earlier this fall, after parts of western North Carolina were devastated by Hurricane Helene, countless heroes pitched in to offer help 鈥� and right among them was an accomplished Highlander.
Holly Rindorf 鈥�17 is a medical laboratory scientist who works at LewisGale Medical Center in Salem, and she was part of a group of employees who, in early October, traveled to Mission Hospital in Asheville, North Carolina, to volunteer relief.
In a recent report for Roanoke鈥檚 WDBJ7, reporter Joe Dashiell , working alongside residents of the area who had been affected by the storm yet were still 鈥渃oming in with a smile on their face and working in the lab to provide care for their patients,鈥� Rindorf said.
鈥淚f something like this were ever to happen to us here, I hope that there would be people who would show up and lend us a helping hand.鈥�