News and information about the Rhodes campus experience.

The Rhodes Board of Trustees announced today that internationally renowned Blues artist, Blues Hall of Fame inductee, and Grammy Award winner, Bobby Rush, whose career spans eight decades, will be this year’s recipient of the Honorary Doctorate of Humanities.

With the support of the Mike Curb Institute for Music at Rhodes, Emma Jane Hopper ’22 and Elijah Matlock ’21 have been making quite a splash with Beyond Beale. The student-run podcast focuses on illuminating the underrepresented narratives of the Memphis music scene. In their first season, Matlock and Hopper took a deep dive into the integrated Memphis Country Blues Festival held at Overton Park Shell in the late 1960s; they also produced a mini-episode about the festival that garnered an honorable mention in NPR’s 2021 Student Podcast Challenge: College Edition.

Founded in 1776, Phi Beta Kappa is America’s oldest collegiate honor society. Its campus chapters invite for induction the most outstanding liberal arts students at America’s leading colleges and universities. Fewer than one percent of U.S. college graduates are eligible.

Rhodes College ranks 16th on The Princeton Review’s 2021 list of “Top 20 Best Private Schools for Internships.” The education services company has published its annual guide ranking the nation’s “Best Value Colleges,” Rhodes ranks among the top 50 private colleges, coming in at 47th.  Princeton Review’s Best Value Colleges, 2021 Edition, evaluates factors including stellar academics, financial aid, and strong career prospects for graduates.

Rhodes Student Employee of the Year is Nathaniel Scott ’21, Supervisor of the Year is Lydia Spencer, and Rhodes Student Associates of the Year are Madelyn Saye ’21 and Dalia Roth ’21.

National enrollment and admission leader Lee Ann Backlund has been appointed interim vice president for enrollment and dean of admission. Backlund will serve through the 2021-2022 school year as the college searches for a permanent enrollment leader.

Rhodes College’s McCoy Theatre will present “A Celebration of Jeanine Tesori” April 16, featuring Rhodes students and community members performing songs by award-winning composer Jeanine Tesori. The virtual showcase, premiering at 7:30 p.m. CST, is directed by Joy Brooke Fairfield, assistant professor of theatre at Rhodes. Local musician and theatre artist Eileen Kuo serves as music director.

Rhodes College Director of Athletics Matt Dean will step down from his current role to serve in a new role as Associate Director for Athletics. A national search for the next Rhodes College Director of Athletics will begin immediately.

From the courtroom to creative writing to politics and chemistry, Rhodes College offers a variety of summer programs aimed at preparing high school students for their college careers. New this year is the Rhodes to Success course designed to assist students with their personal, professional, and academic transition to college life. English literature major Ethan Morris ’23 participated in Rhodes’ Summer Writing Institute in 2017 and says, “It’s one of the biggest reasons I’m here at Rhodes.”