Vanderbilt Magazine

Inspired by Beethoven when he first began to play piano at age five, Derek Hartman‘s music career took a huge step forward last week as he was awarded first prize at the prestigious 17th International Beethoven Piano Competition in Vienna, Austria. Read More

The Vanderbilt Alumni Association will welcome new and returning alumni leaders to its board for three-year terms that start July 1, 2025. The Alumni Association’s mission is to engage Vanderbilt alumni in the life of the university, encourage lifelong connections and support the university’s goals. Read More

The Vanderbilt Alumni Association Board has announced the 2025 recipients of its annual alumni awards. The honorees will be celebrated during Reunion and Homecoming Weekend Nov. 6–9. Read More

Shirley Marie Watts of Nashville, a musician and a longtime librarian for the Blair School’s Anne Potter Wilson Music Library, died Oct. 21, 2024. She was 89. Read More

David Boaz, a foundational figure of modern libertarian thought who brought libertarian ideas into the mainstream, died June 7, 2024, at his home in Arlington, Virginia. He was 70. Read More

Excellence, the first principle set forth in the updated Code of Bylaws approved by Vanderbilt’s Board of Trust, along with our other two guiding principles—academic freedom and free expression, and growth and development—drives our core purpose: to provide transformative education and pathbreaking research. It is our foremost commitment and our steadfast promise in all that we do. Read More

Alumni remember K.C. Potter, emeritus dean of residential and judicial affairs, in their own words Read More

Vanderbilt's social media community tells us their favorite places on campus to snap pictures. Read More

After a car accident in 2022 forever altered Robby Barbieri's life, he refused to let anyone take his future. In fact, he worked to change countless lives for the better in his adopted home state by advocating for legislation that allows thousands of Tennesseans with disabilities to maintain careers and care for families. Read More

Five questions with Jacob Mchangama, one of the world’s leading authorities on the fundamental freedom of free speech Read More

Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Professor of English Major Jackson sees poetry as an art best appreciated in communion with others and approached through the senses as much as the intellect. He believes deeply in the power of poetry to break down barriers and foster understanding. Read More

Myria Carpenter, BS'97, president of the Association of Vanderbilt Black Alumni, takes a broad community approach to engagement. Read More

Vanderbilt's Dare to Grow Campaign has surpassed its initial fundraising goal, underscoring the incredible generosity of Vanderbilt’s donors and the widespread enthusiasm for the university’s vision. This early achievement has established a launching pad for bolder, more far-reaching impact throughout the remainder of the campaign. Read More

The cast of a plesiosaur, a large marine reptile that lived during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, that was once a centerpiece of Vanderbilt’s natural history museum from the 1870s has been unearthed in the basement of Branscomb Quad. Read More

As founder and CEO of UpSmith, Wyatt Smith, BS'10, uses technology to help builders and technicians be more productive, master new skills to stay in the workforce longer and help solve the skilled workforce shortage. Read More

Jim Emison is dedicated to seeking justice for Elbert Williams, the first known NAACP member to be racially terrorized and slain. Read More

Through the transfer portal, which is part of what the NCAA calls the notification-of-transfer model, student-athletes have gained more autonomy to find a place that fits. While the name conjures sci-fi images, the portal itself is a transparent central database of student-athletes who are exploring transfers, accessible to coaches and administrators. It’s one more way for the best and brightest—a little older and perhaps a little wiser—to find Vanderbilt, which is a place that for 150 years has been about preparing you for where you’re going. Read More

Joanna Winston Foley, BA’65, brings the lack of racial representation in public art to light through advocacy and her website Representation Matters. Read More

Ann Marie, BA’64, and Martin McNamara III, BA’58, and their family recognized their many ties with Vanderbilt by creating the Martin F. McNamara Jr. Scholarship in honor of Martin’s father, a student-athlete who graduated in 1932. The scholarship benefits College of Arts and Science undergraduates. Read More

Sarah Catherine “SC” Perot, BS'13, has many roles, but they all work to expand and enhance alumni engagement, which benefits the entire Commodore community. Read More