Dr. Kathryn McClymond Inaugurated as 18th President: A Week of Celebration

On Sept. 20, Dr. Kathryn McClymond was inaugurated as the 18th President of Oglethorpe University in a formal ceremony. Events in the days leading up to the investiture invited alumni, students, faculty, and staff to come together as a community and celebrate the historic milestone.

“Excellence that is nurtured one student at a time, excellence that is true to one’s self, and excellence that has impact: that is the promise of Oglethorpe, and the world has never needed that promise more than at this point in history." Dr. Kathryn McClymond, Inaugural Address

Commencing at 10 a.m. in the Conant Performing Arts Center, the ceremony began with a procession of 33 alumni, whose graduation years spanned from 1958 to 2024, followed by other notable community members. Dr. McClymond entered last, smiling and greeting attendees in the front rows as she passed.

McClymond’s induction as the first-ever female president in the university’s 189 years of history proved impactful for the Oglethorpe community. In fact, the longest applause of the ceremony occurred following Board of Trustees chair, Tammy Pearson's, recognition of this turning point in her introductory remarks. “She is who we need at this moment,” Pearson subsequently said.

Pictured (Left to Right): Dr. McClymond, the Conant stage layout for the ceremony

In an interview conducted Tuesday, McClymond acknowledged the many women already in positions of power at Oglethorpe, including Pearson, and articulated her surprise at the lack of a prior female president. “Unfortunately, it’s not unusual in higher education,” McClymond said, “[but,] I see this as the natural next step for Oglethorpe. We're working hard to diversify our faculty and staff.”

Before her appointment in November 2023, McClymond served as Interim President after former President, Nick Ladany (2020-2023) announced his resignation in May of that same year. Previously, she served as Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs, according to the university’s website. McClymond was unanimously approved as president by the Board of Trustees. 

Pearson said in an interview Wednesday, “The decision was totally based on the fact that she is an amazing leader. She's got strategic vision. She's got execution. She has the intellect to lead a university, but all of that is wrapped in caring and kindness.” 

Pictured (Left to Right): Oglethorpe faculty, Tammy Pearson

Complementing these qualities, McClymond believed that her time in higher education and her three years at Oglethorpe helped prepare her for the role of president. She identified feeling “hungry for community” after spending 22 of her 25 years of leadership experience at a larger public institution—a hunger that she believed Oglethorpe could satiate. 

“While I value that institution and its mission, it is a very different experience for students [there],” McClymond expressed. Oglethorpe’s dedication to small class sizes and personalized learning was a significant aspect of her decision to take the next step in her career at OU. “In-person relationships [are] so important between a student and a faculty member or a staff [member], and being able to surround someone, not just with an excellent academic education, but an excellent co-curricular experience, really makes a difference.” Moreover, McClymond described her tendency to immerse herself in the community, whether through sitting in on classes, watching performances, or attending games – a habit that allowed her to witness these unique differences first-hand. 

When asked what she wished to say to the Oglethorpe community, McClymond's top priority was conveying the importance of liberal arts. She noted a lack of national acknowledgment of these programs and emphasized her belief that a liberal arts education best prepares students “to go make the life they want to make, professionally, but also personally and in their civic engagement.”

Pictured (Left to Right): Dr. McClymond, Dr. McClymond raising the ceremonial mace

Spreading awareness of McClymond’s conviction, a faculty lecture held on Sept. 19 at 11:30 a.m. discussed and celebrated the future of liberal arts at Oglethorpe and beyond, with faculty panelists like Dr. Judith Levy, the chair of the Core program. When McClymond recognized the importance of the Core program in her inaugural address—namely Core 101: Narratives of the Self, the first general education course incoming freshmen experience—Levy later said it made her emotional. “I think that [McClymond’s] leadership is reflected in the faculty, and she makes her leadership reflect the faculty values, and that’s all driven towards building a curriculum that will help students succeed,” Levy said.

Continuing in her efforts to support Oglethorpe as a unit, McClymond led a community project on Sept. 19 to restore the riparian zone of the creek near the Turner Lynch Campus Center bridge. She worked with approximately 100 student and faculty volunteers—and Petey the Petrel—to remove invasive plant species, install new greenery and flowers, as well as paint bird and bat houses. McClymond said, “We all are blessed with an incredibly beautiful campus and a historic campus, and it’s such a privilege to work alongside everyone to take care of it for our students and for the next generation.”

The university will celebrate its 200th anniversary in 2035. McClymond, reflecting on her hopes for the future, emphasized her desire for “Oglethorpe to be rightfully recognized as Atlanta’s premier undergraduate learning experience” by that year. “We have a huge part in making Atlanta what Atlanta is today, and I don't think most people know that,” she said, also highlighting the influence of university alumni on Atlanta in her inaugural speech. 

McClymond planned to forge more paths in amplifying Oglethorpe’s narrative while also enhancing support for the faculty, staff, and students. “The job of the president is to be the chief storyteller and cheerleader for the university,” she described. “The story is how we create an opportunity for students to transform their lives… my job is to just tell that over and over again and help people see themselves as part of that story.”

Closing out the investiture ceremony, McClymond posed a question during her inaugural address: “Can you imagine anything more meaningful than dedicating your life to the next generation?” She continued: “Oglethorpe invites all of us to participate in this audacious act of generosity that is higher education – the offering of opportunity to complete strangers. I am honored today to join the generations of Oglethorpe faculty, staff, alumni, and presidents who have chosen to lead a legacy of generosity.”

All photos by Fynn Grindle ('25)

*Note from the Editor: Quotes that were taken from the investiture ceremony and inaugural speech are denoted as such. All other quotes are from the sources' interviews with The Stormy Petrel.

'Petey's Madness' Aims to Foster Spirit and Connectivity

When juniors Jaron Willem and Neal Nankani attended their first basketball games freshman year, they found themselves surprised by the small and quiet presence in the stands. Inspired, the two then set to creating a solution, leading them to forming Oglethorpe 6th Man. 

Nankani, the president of the club, and Willem, the vice president, described 6th Man as a place “where we bring students, athletes, and people at Oglethorpe – and in general anyone – to these home games and unite the community.” By incentivizing attendance with themes, food, and gameday highlights on social media, 6th Man worked to bring the turnout basketball, volleyball, and soccer games exhibited to other sports and campus events. 

As a part of the organization’s initiatives for the ‘24-’25 academic year, Nankani and Willem pieced together a new, bigger event: a pep rally. 

“Most people were familiar in high school with a pep rally,” Willem said. “[Petey’s Madness is] good for not only new, first year students, but people that don’t know about athletics at Oglethorpe. Part of the incentive is to meet people and see what it has to offer.”

‘Petey’s Fair,’ involving activities like yard games, music, giveaways, and club tabling outside the Dorough Fieldhouse, would occur two hours prior to the actual pep rally, ‘Petey’s Madness.’ The rally, starting at 7 p.m., Sept. 5 in the Dorough Fieldhouse, would include a dunk tank, a three-point contest, and team introductions. Through this, 6th Man hoped to appeal to a wide range of students, not just athletes, and expressed the vitality of connection on campus and team support. 

“We don't have a football team, we don't have game days, we aren't on TV, so we have to find ways internally to build up that hype at Oglethorpe,” Nankani said. “Athletics and sports are something that brings everyone together. It’s a time where you can come for a couple of hours a day and put away events that are going on in the world, or your political views, or anything going on in your life that is stressful for you and unite and get behind something.”

Ultimately, 6th Man hoped students looked forward to ‘Petey’s Madness’ and that the rally eventually became a tradition on campus.

“I think the beautiful thing about Oglethorpe is that you are given a platform to not only express your own thoughts but do your own thing,” Nankani said. 

“Part of it is going out of your comfort zone,” Willem added. “Meeting people and [getting involved] allow you to become who you are. And I think uniting people has to do with becoming who you really are.”

Kathryn McClymond Named Oglethorpe University's 18th President

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The Oglethorpe University Board of Trustees (BOT) named Dr. Kathryn McClymond the university’s first female president following a Nov. 9-10 fall meeting, officially removing “interim” from her title. 

When asked to share her feelings regarding becoming Oglethorpe’s first female president, McClymond stated, “Obviously, it’s an honor, but we have a lot of strong women leadership across this campus. So, it feels sort of in the natural order of things for the university, at the same time that I think it is an important milestone.”

McClymond is Oglethorpe’s 18th president and was unanimously chosen by the BOT after deciding a national search of candidates was not needed, according to an article published in The Source, the university’s community newsletter. 

The Source’s article notes this decision follows McClymond’s role as interim president, which began in June 2023, and her role as provost and vice president for academic affairs, which began in July 2021. 

She was “very honored” to fill the role, as in her time as provost and interim president, she has “really come to love this institution” and feels “we do really important work here, not just in the classroom, but in all the other work that we do with all of these students.”

In describing her role to readers, McClymond said that while “the university president reports to the Board of Trustees and is responsible for everything that happens at the university,” she likes to think of herself as the university’s “Chief Storyteller.”

“Oglethorpe’s got a great story to tell,” said McClymond. She explained that a lot of what she does is sharing the story of “what we’re doing, where we’re going and how other people can partner with us” with potential donors and foundations, while also communicating this vision to and from the BOT to faculty and staff.

“I view it as a real privilege to be, sort of, the face of Oglethorpe wherever I go,” said McClymond. 

She went on to state that her position hinges on relationship-building, specifically, trying to match the people outside the Oglethorpe community with the work being done inside of it. “That’s really gratifying when you feel like you’ve matched someone who has a desire to change the world with an opportunity to do it here,” said McClymond. 

She added that her job is essentially to “keep my head up” and ensure “we stay true to our mission and that we’re moving forward.” 

“When I think of President McClymond, I think ‘committed,’” said Rebecca Sandidge, vice president for enrollment management at Oglethorpe. 

“President McClymond came into the interim role very clear with her message of ‘steady, focused, forward,’ and I think that was so timely and resonant because we were going through so much change,” said Sandidge. 

According to McClymond, her impact on the community lies in securing the resources to tell OU’s story, which, for her, “is all about equipping the faculty and staff.”

She continued, “If I’m doing my job right, the faculty and staff feel like they are equipped to do the work that they want to do,” said McClymond. 

Echoing this, Meredith Raimondo, vice president for student affairs at Oglethorpe, stated that what she really appreciates about McClymond as a boss is that “I have every confidence that she trusts me to do my job and do it well.” 

“That sense of someone believing in you, I think, makes a huge difference to one’s personal success,” said Raimondo. 

McClymond stated that what she loves most about the role is “getting to know people across our community more.” She explained that she also views herself as the university’s “Chief Cheerleader” and loves attending student events, games and theater productions. “It’s one of the ways that I feel like I get a little bit of time with all of you (students),” said McClymond. 

“I see students light up when they see her,” said Sandidge. “It’s very infectious, and in a community where we value DEI and belonging, for students to feel like they belong and refer to her as ‘my president,’ there’s some pride and some swag there.” 

Speaking on her approach to DEI initiatives, Raimondo stated, “President McClymond is really deeply committed to OU's mission and to making sure that OU is a place where diverse students can really thrive and succeed.”

President McClymond has stayed true to the university’s promise of diversity, equity and inclusion by reminding students “that she’s as important in creating that community as anybody else,” said Sandidge. 

To preserve this sense of belonging, McClymond expressed that she wants students to stop and talk with her about their experiences, “Donors want to know the stories about all of you, and so the more I hear about what you all are experiencing here, both the bad as well as the good, the better I can be at my job.”

Raimondo encouraged students to take advantage of opportunities to engage with President McClymond, like her monthly lunches, to share these experiences and “help shape her vision.”

Additionally, Raimondo noted students should talk with McClymond because she is a very careful listener and asks great questions, “She wants to hear people’s perspectives and really think them through before she makes a decision.”

“She is extremely, extremely intelligent, so she will ask really poignant questions to get to an answer and an understanding,” said Sandidge. “I like the fact that she leans into her uniqueness, she’s a quilter, she loves tradition, she asks questions, and I just think there’s a genuineness to her that is infectious.”

According to an article from The Source introducing her as interim president, McClymond is a historian of religions, trained in Hinduism and Judaism, with a research emphasis on comparative religious ritual.

She received her Ph.D. and M.A. in religious studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a B.A. in history and literature from Harvard University, as stated by the "Biography" page of the "Office of the President" tab of Oglethorpe's website.

During the five months of McClymond’s interim presidency, Oglethorpe reached its highest total enrollment in its history with 1,529 students, maintained stable finances with a fiscally responsible approach to spending and reconstituted a student success office designed to increase retention and improve student outcomes, as per The Source.

When asked about her future goals for the university, McClymond stated she wants “to continue our tradition of academic excellence and resource our faculty and our staff, in particular, to take it to the next level.”

“I talk a lot with faculty and staff about ‘building the Oglethorpe of 2035,’ which is our bi-centennial,” said McClymond. “There’s this marriage of our almost-200-year traditions, our commitments to the liberal arts, our commitments to academic excellence, and to the liberal arts small-school experience that I want to protect.”

Speaking on her legacy, she stated that she “would love people to say of her, ‘Dr. McClymond made it possible for me to be the best at what I contribute to this university.’”

McClymond emphasized her excitement, reminding students not to hesitate to use her as a resource, “I’m so excited to be here. I’m really honored, and again, I want students to feel like they can come talk to me: it’s your university.”

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*This article was written as an assignment for COM-240-001: Intro to Newswriting (Fall 2023)