Rhodes College scored 4.5 out of five stars on the Campus Pride Index, which rates colleges and universities nationally based on institutional commitment to LGBTQ-inclusive policies, programs, and practices.

The 15 participants of Rhodes’ Summer Service Fellowship program fanned across Memphis this summer, each completing 35 hours per week of community engagement. Now in its 20th year, the program gave Rhodes students the opportunity to work with a Memphis nonprofit organization of their choosing.

Dr. Shadrack W. Nasong'o, professor of international studies at Rhodes, is co-editor of African Immigrants and the American Experience: Race, Anti-Black Violence, and the Quest for the American Dream. Born and raised in Western Kenya, he has been widely recognized for his prolific research and scholarship on Africa.

The Rhodes Theatre Guild won eight awards at the Ostrander Awards which celebrates excellence in collegiate, community, and professional theater in the greater Memphis area. The Wire in the Garden ensemble brought home seven of the eight awards, and Maggie Emmendorfer won leading actress for Once Upon a Mattress.

Angela Webb has been named associate vice president for campus safety. She will assume the role Sept. 11. In this new position, Webb will serve as the chief security director and emergency management leader for the college.

Rhodes College is celebrating its 175th anniversary, and although there have been changes throughout the years, one thing that never changes is the excitement of welcoming a new class.

The college is relaunching a number of entrepreneurship initiatives, including the Rhodes College Student Entrepreneurship Club and the annual Rhodes College Business Plan Competition. Eric Mathews, a member of the Rhodes Class of 2002 and CEO of Start Co., will serve as the new entrepreneur-in-residence.

Dr. Stephen Haynes, professor of religious studies at Rhodes, was presented the 2023 Jameson M. Jones Award for Outstanding Faculty Service on Aug. 18 at the college’s Opening Convocation. This is an annual ceremony to mark a new academic session and welcome the new Rhodes class.

Rhodes College is featured in the 2024 edition of the college guide The Best 389 Colleges, published by The Princeton Review. Rhodes ranked in the top 25 in three categories—campus beauty, Greek life, and students studying the most.

Dr. Shana Stoddard, associate professor of chemistry at Rhodes College, has been selected to receive the 2024 Ruth Kirschstein Diversity in Science Award from the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB). This is her second award this year from a national organization, having been awarded the Council on Undergraduate Research’s Silvia Ronco Innovative Mentor Award in May.