Hunter Pope Recognized by College of the Arts and Honors College at VSU

Pictured, from left to right, are Blake Pearce, dean of the College of the Arts; Hunter Pope; and Dr. Brian Gerber, interim provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. Pictured, from left to right, are Dr. Mike Savoie, dean of the Honors College; Hunter Pope; and Dr. Brian Gerber, interim provost and vice president for Academic Affairs.

VALDOSTA — Hunter Pope is the recipient of Valdosta State University’s 2016 Outstanding Student in the Arts Award and 2016 Bartram Award for Intellectual Exploration.

“I am incredibly grateful to have been selected for both of these awards, and I am truly blessed to have found a home at VSU and people who support my need to interweave a passion for creative arts with academic and research pursuits,” she said. “The College of the Arts and the Honors College are overflowing with dedicated and talented faculty, staff, and students who make this a wonderful place to learn and grow.”

Pope was recognized during VSU’s annual Academic Honors and Awards Dinner.

Blake Pearce, dean of the College of the Arts, honored her with the Outstanding Student in the Arts Award, which is presented to the College of the Arts student with the highest grade point average and a record of distinguished service.

Dr. Mike Savoie, dean of the Honors College, honored her with the Bartram Award for Intellectual Exploration, which is presented to an Honors College student who has demonstrated the skills of intellectual exploration, adventure, and competence. It was a series of seven paintings portraying the stages of cyclic vomiting syndrome, along with the accompanying research materials and sketches, that helped Pope secure this award.

Pope, 21, is president of Alpha Chi, community service chairwoman and success networking teams coordinator for Sigma Alpha Pi: National Society of Leadership and Success, secretary/treasurer of the Art Guild, a conversation partner at the English Language Institute, and a member of the Honors Student Association, Sigma Alpha Lambda, Golden Key International Honour Society, Psychology Club, Phi Kappa Phi, and the College of the Arts Student Advisory Council. She previously served as secretary and treasurer of Alpha Chi; upperclassmen representative and secretary of the Honors Student Association; director of external affairs for Dance Marathon, which raises funds to support the Children’s Miracle Network’s Shands Children’s Hospital at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida; and a member of the Mass Choir.

A regular on the Dean’s List and a Zell Miller Scholar, Pope is the recipient of the 2016 President’s Choice Scholarship; 2016 Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges Award; 2015 and 2016 Outstanding Bachelor of Arts Art Student Award; 2015-2016 Hugh C. Bailey Family Scholarship; 2015-2016 Bernard Linger Fine Arts Scholarship; 2014-2015 Alumni Association Endowment Fund Scholarship for Legacy Students; 2014-2015 Sallie M. Hutchinson Scholarship; 2015 Service Incorporated in Artifact Award from the Honors College; 2015 Spirit of Honors Scholars Award; 2015 Department of Art Outstanding Student Award; 2014 Honors College Service Learning Award; and 2014 Honors Student Association Freshman of the Year Award. She earned third place honors at he 44^th annual Southern Regional Honors Council Conference’s juried art competition and second place honors in the photography division at the 12^th annual South Georgia College Art Competition, and she was accepted into the 2016 Tallahassee Community College Regional Juried Photo Contest and the 2016 VSU Student Juried Art Competition. She presented original research at the 2016 Undergraduate Research Symposium; the 2014, 2015, and 2016 Georgia Collegiate Honors Council Conference; the 2014 and 2015 Southern Regional Honors Council Conference; and the 13^th annual Art History Forum. She completed a study abroad in Ireland with the Honors College. 

Pope’s artwork is published in the 2014-2015 and 2015-2016 Odradek. She teaches art classes to children attending the Regional Center for Continuing Education’s Camp Discovery and recently completed a collaborative art project with patients and their families at the Pearlman Comprehensive Cancer Center. She hopes to pursue a career as an art therapist in the future and is in the process of establishing an arts-in-medicine type of program at the Department of Social Work’s My Friend’s House, where she worked with senior citizens with dementia and other special needs throughout the spring semester and plans to return to in the fall. She is currently studying how color influences mood.

Pope expects to graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in art, a Bachelor of Arts in psychology, and an Honors College Certificate in December 2017. She is the daughter of Jessica Pope of Remerton. 

On the Web:

http://www.valdosta.edu/colleges/arts/art/welcome.php

http://www.valdosta.edu/colleges/education/psychology-and-counseling/

http://www.valdosta.edu/colleges/honors/

Valdosta State University’s 2013-2019 Strategic Plan represents a renewal of energy and commitment to the foundational principles for comprehensive institutions.

Implementation of the plan’s five goals, along with their accompanying objectives and strategies, supports VSU’s institutional mission and the University System of Georgia’s mission for comprehensive universities. 

The story above demonstrates VSU's commitment to meeting the following goals: 

Goal 1: Recruit, retain, and graduate a quality, diverse student population and prepare students for roles as leaders in a global society.

Goal 4: Foster an environment of creativity and scholarship.

Visit http://www.valdosta.edu/administration/planning/strategic-plan.php to learn more.