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Alum’s capital idea provides seed money for new Furman program.
When Michelle Camp graduated from Furman in 2006 with a degree in business administration, she knew she wanted to pursue a job in the investment field in her home state of Texas.
Acting on a tip from a Furman friend, she called Bridgeway Capital Management in Houston—and was quickly impressed by the company’s commitment to donating half its profits to charity through its corporate foundation. As its mission statement says, “Bridgeway Corporate Foundation is a catalyst for hope and reconciliation throughout the world, working towards the prevention of oppression, genocide, and human rights violations.”
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“This is the kind of company I would like to work for,” Camp thought. Once she landed an interview, she was even more impressed by the quality of the people at Bridgeway and their interest in giving back to their community. Bridgeway was equally impressed with Camp and hired her as an equity trader.
When she arrived, she learned that all partners at Bridgeway serve on committees that help determine how foundation funds are to be distributed. Her committee’s focus: higher education.
Camp took special interest in a program that Bridgeway had helped fund at Washington & Lee University. According to the school’s Web site, the Shepherd Program “endeavors to inform students about poverty and what can be done to foster human capabilities for communities and individuals who have been left behind in domestic and international development.”
The W&L program gave Camp an idea: Why not something similar at Furman? She contacted Thomas Kazee, Furman’s provost and executive vice president, to tell him about Bridgeway’s philanthropic mindset – and her idea.
Kazee forwarded her note to religion professor John Shelley and to psychology professor Elaine Nocks, director of Furman’s Lilly Center for Theological Exploration of Vocation. Both had expressed a desire to establish an academic concentration in poverty studies. Camp’s inquiry helped bring the idea to fruition.
In October of 2007, Camp visited Furman with Dick Cancelmo, a Bridgeway colleague, and Harlan Beckley, director of the Shepherd Program at Washington & Lee. Says Shelley, “Their interest, advice and excitement were crucial in nudging us forward.”
The result: Furman is the beneficiary of a $150,000 grant from the Bridgeway Corporate Foundation. The grant provides seed money to establish the concentration, support faculty development and fund 10 summer internships in the field. The introductory poverty course is being taught for the first time this spring by Shelley and philosophy professor David Gandolfo.
The concentration will build on current courses and programs to help Furman expand its commitment to social justice and civic responsibility. In addition to the introductory course, students will complete an internship addressing a specific area of poverty and take at least five other courses from a range of offerings by the departments of economics, education, history, languages, philosophy, political science, religion and sociology.
Says Camp, “I hope the Furman program will truly raise awareness of community poverty. Students should have the opportunity to realize that a little bit can go a long way.
“Furman students graduate and become successful and even powerful citizens in their respective communities. I want them to know that they can use their individual passions to give back. Take it from an equity trader. You don’t have to be a social worker to make a difference.”
‐Clint Hill
2003 Graduate
Development officer at Furman.
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Matt Klinker, Class of 2007
CONGRATULATIONS to Matt Klinker class of 2007!
Mom’s soup, Red’s call, pep up Paladins' Matt Klinker
By Ann Green
Staff Writer, Greenville News
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He’s a pro: Former Furman pitcher Matt Klinker is ready to begin his professional career in the Cincinnati Reds farm system.
Furman pitcher Matt Klinker boarded a plane Wednesday to begin the first road trip of his professional career after signing with the Cincinnati Reds.
Selected in the 15th round of the 2007 Major League Draft, the right-hander said he has been assigned to an advanced rookie league in Billings, Mont., and is hoping to put the lingering effects of a senior-season bout of mononucleosis behind him.
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A resident of West Chester, Ohio, Klinker thought he’d go higher in the draft, at least by the 12th round, he said.
Watching on TV, he was more than a little anxious as last Thursday blended into Friday, and with the 12th round past and his name uncalled.
He spent a lot of time on the Internet on Friday at home, then decided to take a lunch break (his mom had prepared him some comfort food).
“I’d pitched the last couple of weeks of the season with mono and found out I had it right before finals,” Klinker said. “So she has been cooking me chicken noodle soup, trying to get me better.”
After lunch, he went back to his computer to catch up on the draft. He saw that the Reds had the next pick and learned he’d been selected by what’s essentially his adopted hometown team.
He finally knew that he’d have his shot at playing in the same ballpark where he’d pitched in an Ohio All-Star game in high school, the Reds’ Great American Ballpark.
Klinker grew up in Kentucky, then moved to West Chester, a suburb of Cincinnati, when he was a sophomore in high school. He signed with the Reds on Monday and got a kick out of seeing the team’s “war room,” with the Reds’ draft strategies still on the board.
He was the 15th pick of the 15th round and the 469th overall pick in the draft.
Klinker graduated from Furman on June 2 with a B.A. degree in Business Administration. He wasn’t able to pick up his diploma with his classmates, however, because he was at the Cincinnati ballpark working out with other prospects.
“It was a good experience to be on the field with a lot of good quality players hoping to get drafted as well,” he said.
Klinker, the fifth Paladin drafted since 2002, had a 5-6 record and 4.57 ERA this past season, his with a 16-15 record and a 4.53 ERA. His 223 career strikeouts are the fifth-most in school history.
“He’s a guy who came in and got better every year for us,” said Furman coach Ron Smith, himself a former minor leaguer. “He deserved to have an opportunity to play at the next level, and he’s got the physical tools to make it happen. He needs to develop a second pitch.”
He has gotten stronger of late thanks to some home cooking, so he’s ready to show what he can do.
“I think I’ve put mono behind me. I’ve talked to the trainer and manager. They said they’ll see where I’m at strength wise,”he said. “I think its going to be great.”
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Dara Broadus, Class of 2001
Competing on the Green
Women's Golf
(Taken from the 1998 Bonhomie)
The Lady Paladin Golf team entered the season with a strong group of lady players. The Lady Paladin team returned senior Jen Hanna, Furman stroke leader a year ago and 35th-place finisher at the National Championships in Columbus, Ohio. Hanna combines natural talent with good course management and can always be counted on for a solid score. Hanna was joined by transfer Christian Tolerton, a senior who saw her first action as a Lady Paladin this fall, after spending her first three years at the University of Arizona and senior Heather Taylor. Stacey Burnett and Lindsay Smith comprised the Lady Paladin junior class. The squad was completed by sophomore Jennifer Carter and freshman Dara Broadus. Although Broadus is only a freshman, Coach Mic Potter had no qualms about allowing her to earn a place in the starting five. With seven team members gunning for the five-person squad list, competition was fierce. However, Potter hoped the competition would serve as a motivating force for his young team.
Jennifer Hanna, Heather Taylor, Christina Tolerton,
Stacey Burnett, Lindsay Smith, Jennifer Carter,
Dara Broadus (back row – fourth from left)
Program Fits Her Goals to a Tee:
Broadus uses golf to teach, enrich children
By Stan Awtrey
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 07/24/07
Dara Broadus is a paradox to most people she meets.
With neatly braided hair, a fresh face and optimistic outlook, she seems far younger than her 28 years.
But examination of her accomplishments, plans and goals reveals a young woman who shows the maturity of those twice her age.Broadus is a graduate of Atlanta's Westminster Schools and earned a scholarship to play golf at Furman University. Since she understands how golf has helped enrich her life, Broadus is eager to give back and help others who may have limited opportunities.
Broadus has created the "Impact Youth Development Initiative," a non-profit program designed to use golf as the conduit to expose children to life experiences. Similar to the nationally known "First Tee" program, Impact places its focus on nutrition, physical fitness, financial management, reading and volunteerism, with golf as the means.
"We try to expose them to what they need in life to be successful," Broadus said. "Things like developing correct thinking skills are essential."
Broadus has almost her whole family involved in the program. Battiste, her brother known as B.J., is a PGA professional in Jacksonville and helps run the Impact program there. Her brother Patrick, a graduate of Florida State, is the sports medicine and nutrition expert. Her mom, Linda Lett, offers advice and inspiration.
Lett encouraged Broadus to begin playing golf. She began by attending a summer camp, then climbed the junior golf ladder from Atlanta Junior to American Junior. After high school, she earned the Betsy King Golf Scholarship at Furman and contributed to four consecutive Southern Conference championships (1998-2001). She graduated with a degree in business.
After graduation, she received financial assistance from entertainers Will Smith and Jada Pinkett and played on the Futures Tour, the minor leagues of women's professional golf. While she still competes —- she has limited status on the Futures Tour and will play in the upcoming Tennessee Women's Open —- her goals have shifted to instruction; she gives clinics at Pro Golf at Camp Creek, the Impact clinics on Saturday morning at College Park Municipal, occasional lessons at Browns Mill and does big clinics at Durham Lakes.
"I don't get a chance to play as much, but I love it and love being around the golfers," Broadus said. "Now I get to enjoy so many different facets of the game besides just playing."
Lamar Richardson, 15, and Robert Payne, 12, are enrolled in the Impact program. After a recent short-game group session, they were escorted to the driving range to begin hitting balls. Both were eager to learn the game when they signed up.
"I had seen golf on TV and wanted to try it," said Richardson, a Carver High student who made solid contact consistently. "When I first started, I couldn't hit the ball very far.
"Payne, who enjoys playing so much that he'll occasionally kiss his club, said, "It makes me happy." He has developed a smooth swing and generally hit the ball straight.
That brought a smile to the face of onlooker Les Johnson, a board member of the Donald L. Hollowell Foundation, which helps support Impact. He stopped by to observe and was pleased with what he saw.
Broadus, who worked throughout the morning with all the attendees as a group and as individuals, has her heart immersed in the Impact program. She organized and produced a fund-raiser last month at St. Marlo in Duluth, which drew 150 to a pairing party, 50 players and made a little money.
Now Broadus is working with Hands On Atlanta to develop a Web site and strategic plan. Her idea is to grow the program, which works with groups of 10-15 young people, ages 7-17. In addition to the life skill courses, Impact students will be volunteers at local golf tournaments and receive quality instruction that's hard to obtain.
"This gives us an opportunity to have a positive impact on some young kids' lives," she said. "We're still in the early stages now. I'm excited for the kids; they're young and they don't understand what kind of opportunity they have. One day they'll be able to give back."