When Nate McGhee ’24, MBA ’26, arrived at 91΄σΙρ in the fall of 2020, it wasn’t his first time giving college the old college try. The marketing and business administration major, a key contributor to the Royals men’s volleyball team during his four seasons on the squad, had enrolled at Randolph-Macon College a couple years prior. But a string of personal hardships, combined with a lack of preparation and a limited support system, led him to flunk out after his first year.

He said the private liberal arts school, which competes with 91΄σΙρ in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC), might have been a good fit had he applied himself more. But he hadn’t yet developed strong study habits and, as he struggled with self-doubt, he didn’t know how or where to ask for help.

β€œI was keeping it all to myself, which was probably the worst thing to do,” he said.

When he returned home to Newport News after being dismissed from the school, he felt lost.

β€œI was stuck,” McGhee said. β€œI was like, β€˜OK, everything you worked for isn’t coming to fruition, so what are you going to do?’”

He took his first full-time job, bussing tables and working the raw bar at a seafood and oyster restaurant near his home, while attending night classes at Thomas Nelson Community College (now known as Virginia Peninsula Community College). Though he continued playing recreational volleyball to stay sharp, the former high school standout had all but given up on competing at the collegiate level.

During a trip to Richmond to cheer on his friends and former coaches at a volleyball tournament in early 2020, opportunity came knocking. Less than 10 minutes after arriving, McGhee felt a tap on his shoulder. When he turned around, he saw Danielle Lickey, 91΄σΙρ’s head men’s volleyball coach at the time.

After hearing how his volleyball career had stalled, Lickey invited him to visit campus. β€œWe could use someone like you,” he recalled her saying.

McGhee toured campus over spring break and quickly fell in love with its picturesque mountain setting and close-knit feel. β€œThis is my second chance,” he remembered thinking. β€œI have to take it.”

That fall, he transferred to 91΄σΙρ as a sophomore. Over his (2021-24), he ranks 11th all-time in career kills and earned Third-Team All-CVC honors in 2023. In the summer of 2023, he represented the United States on a team in Italy.

β€œI thought volleyball was over for me, but that’s how I got back into it,” he said. β€œIf she hadn’t tapped me on the shoulder that one day, I probably wouldn’t be here [at 91΄σΙρ] right now.”

Nate McGhee ranks 11th all-time in career kills over his four seasons with the 91΄σΙρ men’s volleyball team (2021-24). He earned Third-Team All-CVC honors in 2023 and represented the United States on a team in Italy that summer.

Learning to lead

Off the volleyball court, McGhee found a firm footing in 91΄σΙρ’s classrooms and campus community. He earned a spot on the Dean’s List, an honor given to students with a semester GPA of at least 3.75. He grew more comfortable opening up to others on campus and seeking help when needed. He credited his advisor, Dr. Jim Leaman, associate professor of business, with helping keep him on track.

β€œI probably wouldn’t have graduated without him,” McGhee said. β€œHe became a mentor to me and was with me every step of the way.”

He said his parents’ love and support also helped him persevere when times were tough. 

β€œFor a while, I felt like I was letting them down and failing at life,” he said. β€œBut they told me it’s what you do after failing that makes it a failure. If you stay down and give up, then you’ve failed. But if you get up and learn from your mistakes, then the mistake is history.”

After graduating with a degree in business administration and marketing in spring 2024, McGhee stayed at 91΄σΙρ as a graduate assistant coach for head men’s volleyball coach Omar Hoyos Aliff while pursuing his MBA, which he completed this past spring.

McGhee plans to use his degrees to build a career in sports marketing. He’s applied for positions with professional athletic organizations such as League One Volleyball.

β€œThat’s really what I have a passion for,” he said. β€œEventually, maybe five years down the line, I would love to open my own business sponsoring athletes and getting them more exposure.”

While coaching was never a career path he considered as a player, his experience as a graduate assistant has shown him that he has a knack for it and genuinely enjoys it. β€œI like seeing player growth,” he said. β€œI look at volleyball as an art. You can always build on it and learn something new.”

McGhee said that multitasking, time management, and resilience are all skills he learned while at 91΄σΙρ. β€œI’ve definitely developed a lot of confidence in my craft,” he said. β€œI didn’t have a lot of confidence before I came here in anything I did, and at 91΄σΙρ I’ve learned how to lead with confidence.”

When the Royals men’s volleyball team traveled to Ashland in April for the 2026 ODAC Championship match against Randolph-Macon, it was a full-circle moment for McGhee. The Yellow Jackets ultimately prevailed in the , but the match reminded him of the many times he had faced his former team, including a conference quarterfinal at Randolph-Macon during his senior year when the Royals swept the Yellow Jackets.

β€œThat was unreal,” McGhee said. β€œWhenever I played games there, I always did poorly because I felt there was something hanging over me. But that game, and this last game we played, really showed me how much I’ve grown.”

Watch Nate talk about the close-knit community and support he found at 91΄σΙρ.

This story appears in the summer 2026 issue of Crossroads magazine.

91΄σΙρ’s newly designed website was named a winner in two categories in the , announced Feb. 18-19. District III is comprised of nine states and more than 4,000 members.

91΄σΙρ’s website received an “Award of Excellence” in overall website design and implementation while the home page received a “Special Merit Award,” in World Wide Web home page design and implementation.

“Over the years, 91΄σΙρ’s website had evolved, as is often the case, into something of an organizational chart,” says , director of at 91΄σΙρ. β€œThis redesign was a total overhaul from the standpoint of the end user. Undergraduate recruitment is particularly driven by the web these days, and this design speaks to our target audience in fresh ways.”

The website redesign represents collaborative work of , web content manager and strategist; , media specialist and graphic designer; , web designer and social media coordinator; and 91΄σΙρ . , a local brand and marketing consultant, advised the process.

Other schools to receive awards in overall website design include Virginia Commonwealth University and Duke, while Virginia Alumni Association, Virginia Tech and the University of Richmond received accolades in home page design.

Awards are presented on an annual basis, recognizing advancements that contribute to growth and understanding in education.

CASE is the top international organization for communications professionals working in education.

Zucconi succeeds Jim Bishop, who served as public information officer at 91΄σΙρ since 1971 and is retiring June 30.

In this role, Zucconi joins the nine-member marketing and communications department. He will generate content to tell the 91΄σΙρ story through traditional and social media, cultivating relationships with public and church press contacts in the region and around the world.

“Mike’s passion for Mennonite higher education, understanding of 91΄σΙρ, writing and media relations experience as well as recent studies in mass communications make him a good fit for this new role,” said Andrea Schrock Wenger, director of marketing and communications. “We welcome him back to 91΄σΙρ.”

Zucconi graduated from 91΄σΙρ in 2005 with a BS degree in communications and history. He worked as sports information director at 91΄σΙρ from 2006 to 2009 and was named Old Dominion Athletic Conference “Sports Information Director of the Year” for 2007-08.

He completed an MEd degree in sports management at Wichita State University this spring and served as a graduate assistant in media relations for the WSU department of athletics.

Zucconi is married to Stephanie Roth, also a 2005 91΄σΙρ graduate. She worked in the admissions office at Hesston College, a two-year Mennonite school in Hesston, Kan.

2010 91΄σΙρ graduate Lindsey Grosh (Photo by Jim Bishop)

Lindsey J. Grosh, who graduated cum laude with a bachelor of arts degree in photography with minors in TESL and Spanish, is a regional winner in a nationwide contest, “Art for the Long Haul,” sponsored by Celadon Trucking Services.

She received a $500 prize for a design she submitted for the company’s 25th anniversary celebration.

Grosh got the pleasant news upon returning to her York, Pa., home following 91΄σΙρ graduation ceremonies on May 2.

, headquartered in Indianapolis, Ind., ranks as one of North America’s largest truckload carriers with some 4,000 employees and operating roughly 3,300 tractors and 10,000 trailers.

Grosh’s winning entry, intended for display on the side of the company’s tractor trailers, was several photos of piglets from a black-and-white photography project on her family’s farm. She merged the photos into a panoramic design.

A portion of Lindsey Grosh’s winning design in the Celadon Trucking Services student art contest.

“I submitted my design in February, and hadn’t heard anything before school ended,” Grosh said. “I came home and opened a letter naming me as winner of the Northeast region of the U.S. I was quite surprised and pleased.

“I was really delighted with the photographs and got a lot of positive feedback [in class],” Grosh said.

“I think it’s neat that Celadon held this contest just for the sake of supporting the arts,” Grosh added. “The money came at a great time, as I am currently looking for work back home in Pennsylvania. I am hoping to use my photography skills, perhaps working in a studio or for a small company as their media/communication person.”

Internship provided real-world experience

Grosh interned in 91΄σΙρ’s marketing and communications department throughout her senior year.

She’s credited with a number of photos used in marketing materials and on the university website’s many photo galleries of life on campus.

As a senior she was also one of three student video bloggers on the university website.

More info

• Visual and Communication Arts program
• Marketing and communications internships

]]> /now/news/2008/good-at-business-the-spring-2008-issue-of-crossroads/ Tue, 01 Apr 2008 04:00:00 +0000 http://www.emu.edu/blog/news/?p=1642 91΄σΙρ alumni are key players in retail businesses, banks, insurance and accounting firms, hotels, restaurants, publishing houses, law offices, land development, and construction-related industries. See what alumni have accomplished!

91΄σΙρ’s Crossroads magazine won a major award this year from the southeast district of the .

Competing against dozens of magazines produced by larger institutions, Crossroads received a “special merit award” in the category of “magazine publishing improvement.”

The other winners in this category were magazines produced in 2007 by Furman University in South Carolina, Vanderbilt University in Tennessee, the University of Alabama, the University of Miami, Brenau University in Georgia and Barry University in Florida.

The southeast CASE district consists of 565 universities, secondary schools and other institutions involved in higher education from Washington D.C. to Florida. The magazine awards ceremony will be held at the CASE annual regional conference in Atlanta, Ga., on Feb. 19.

Crossroads is published quarterly and distributed to 16,000 alumni, students, parents and friends of the university.

The award confirms informal feedback sent by alumni, such as this Jan. 20 2008 e-mail to the editor from Daniel Lehman, a 1972 graduate who is now professor of English at Ashland University in Ohio: “I have really enjoyed Crossroads in the past year. You are doing an outstanding job (as one journalist to another), and I love the way that 91΄σΙρ is highlighting its distinctive mission as well as the peace and justice programs.”

Betsy Robertson, magazine editor at Auburn University in Alabama and one of the CASE contest organizers, said Crossroads emerged as a winner because “the judges were impressed with the change in editorial direction to focus on current issues and provocative topics rather than the usual mundane assortment of event snapshots, fundraising updates and ‘successful alumni’ profiles.”

Robertson added that the results were especially notable “for a small staff.”

In last year

Read more…

Sojourners is a faith-based organization in Washington, D.C., with a mission to “articulate the biblical call to social justice, inspiring hope and building a movement to transform individuals, communities, the church, and the world.”

The Emerging Leaders Track, for participants age 30 and under, seeks to train and empower young faith-inspired leaders to help lead the movement to overcome poverty. The event, to be held at the National City Christian Church in Washington, D.C., is expected to draw nearly 1,000 registrants.

A Monday evening forum on “Faith, Values and Poverty” will feature leading Democratic presidential contenders Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards at George Washington University.

CNN will provide live coverage of the event.

Making Connections

As sponsor of the Emerging Leaders Track, 91΄σΙρ will have the opportunity to connect personally and through written materials with hundreds of people under age 30.

“Participants at this conference will be people who share 91΄σΙρ’ s core values of following Christ’s call to ‘witness faithfully, serve compassionately and walk boldly in the way of nonviolence and peace,'”said Andrea Wenger, 91΄σΙρ director of marketing and communications, quoting from the university’ s mission statement.

91΄σΙρ leadership, including President Loren Swartzendruber, and staff will be present throughout the conference and anticipate participating in a reception for the candidates’ spouses.

91΄σΙρ representatives also will be part of the program at a Tuesday evening Emerging Leaders Dinner, where Shane Claiborne of The Simple Way will be guest speaker. The Simple Way is a community of faith located in Philadelphia, Pa., committed “To love God, to love people and to follow Jesus,” according to their web site.

More information is available at www.sojourners.com

James Madison University is like the Costco of local colleges.

JMU touts more students, teachers, property, majors, programs and campus activities than 91΄σΙρ, Bridgewater College and Blue Ridge Community College

The book, by the publishers of “Choosing the Right College,” is scheduled to hit the shelves of major bookstores across the United States this month.

“We did not initiate this,” said Andrea Schrock Wenger, director of at 91΄σΙρ. “91΄σΙρ

An 91΄σΙρ graduating senior has received a prestigious recognition from the Kennedy Center/American College Theater Festival.

The annual festival was held Feb. 7-12 in northern Florida.

Davi R. Soesilo, a , and major from Malang, Indonesia, won the Kennedy Center Award in “sound design excellence” for Region IV, the first time an 91΄σΙρ student has received the honor.

Region IV of the KC/ACTF incorporates 10 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

“Fellow theater students who attended Davi’s defenses in scenic design and sound design felt he acquitted himself admirably, particularly in his impressive and comprehensive presentation of his winning sound design for ‘Fuddy Meers,'” said Patrick Reynolds, acting theater chair. The offbeat, contemporary comedy by David Lindsay-Abaire, was 91΄σΙρ Theater’s fall mainstage production.

“Alhough he chose not to compete even though nominated in lighting design, it should be noted that over one fifth of the nation lies in our region and that Davi was the only designer nominated in three separate categories,” Reynolds said. “The responding judge – also the national design chair – cited Davi’s growth in the period following his second-place finish last year.

“Davi’s award reflects professor Jerry Holsopple’s classroom training and evocative compositions in addition to Phil Grayson’s mentoring and technical expertise as well,” Reynolds added.

Soesilo’s winning entry is automatically eligible for the national competition with the other ACTF regional winners to be held in April at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

“It seems a bit like a dream to receive the award,” Soesilo said. “Two years earlier I was encouraged to enter this competition and it felt rather far-fetched at the time, especially considering that 91΄σΙρ is not known for its student theater design.”

Soesilo was among 10 recipients of the annual “Cords of Distinction” award presented last spring. The 91΄σΙρ students were cited for their “significant and verifiable impact” on the the university and on student life, for their contributions to developing the institution’s positive image, for substantial contributions to the Harrisonburg/Rockingham County area and beyond, for their high academic and social standing and their embodiment of 91΄σΙρ’s shared values of Christian discipleship, community, service and peacebuilding.

As soon as he completes his final class at 91΄σΙρ, Soesilo plans to return to his present home in Australia and work in theater for a year, then “see what graduate program in theater or communications is best for me.”

By Tom Mitchell, Daily News-Record

Loren Swartzendruber quickly points out that schools like once reflected an academic norm.

“Most colleges started out as Christian colleges,” Swartzendruber told his audience at Wednesday’s Downtown Prayer Luncheon at First Presbyterian Church.

New times and attitudes made higher education’s 91΄σΙρs an exception, said Swartzendruber, 91΄σΙρ’s president, and a considerably larger secular academic world poses obstacles to spiritually-based colleges.

91΄σΙρ’s comparatively lower paid faculty, Swartzendruber says, swap higher salaries for a chance to teach in a more religiously free school.

“We are blessed with people committed to the values of 91΄σΙρ,” said Swartzendruber.

Such values include a campus ban on alcohol and drugs and a healthy nudge toward church attendance, though 91΄σΙρ does not enforce the latter practice, Swartzendruber said. Besides Sunday service, 91΄σΙρ offers chapel worship twice a week

91΄σΙρ, while hardly shedding its old denominational roots, has added new branches. With a charter governed by , 91΄σΙρ’s enrollment of nearly 1,300 students shows more women than men – 61-39 percent respectively – a ratio of Mennonites and non-Mennonites that is virtually 50-50.

A more unbalanced quota, Swartzendruber says, is 91΄σΙρ’s fiscal disadvantage in matching other schools’ operating budget. “We aren’t heavily endowed,” he said, citing 91΄σΙρ’s endowment of $17 million from former graduates and other supporters.

Setting stricter behavior standards for students and staff allows schools like 91΄σΙρ to be more selective. Both parties sign contracts binding them to 91΄σΙρ’s standards of demeanor.

“We can discriminate in hiring,” Swartzendruber said, referring to his school’s employing of persons deemed compatible with 91΄σΙρ’s personal standards. Such philosophies aren’t meant to demean other colleges’ hiring and admission policies, he said. “We’re just different from schools like JMU.”

91΄σΙρ’s mantra of “nurture and discipline” meets mischief halfway.

“We don’t necessarily expel a student for something that another school might,” Swartzendruber said. “I accept the community’s high standards and expectations, but we’re human.”

Right Fit

91΄σΙρ students Joel C. Lehman and Erica Kraybill, co-presidents in the university’s , took different paths to the Harrisonburg college, but found at 91΄σΙρ an ingredient both felt they might have missed at other institutions: compatibility.

Lehman, a senior from Lancaster, Pa., who is studying , found 91΄σΙρ to be something close to a second home.

“Two things drew me to 91΄σΙρ,” Lehman said. “First, the fact that it is a small liberal arts college that’s religious. Secondly, I grew up in a church family and wanted to attend school where I could talk about my faith. ”

Lehman said that 91΄σΙρ’s conservative climate and comparatively low profile don’t faze him. “I knew if I chose to come to 91΄σΙρ, I wouldn’t be challenged as much by other religions. 91΄σΙρ doesn’t have as large a reputation as schools like UVa or places like that, but people are very intrigued and impressed by it. Even though it doesn’t carry the same prestige, it doesn’t mean that the education is not at the same level.”

91΄σΙρ caught Kraybill, 23, on the rebound. Kraybill, a major from Columbus, Ohio, transferred in last year after two years at Guilford (N.C.) College. Guilford, Kraybill said, “wasn’t the right fit,” for her.

“I took a year off after I left Guilford and visited 91΄σΙρ but I didn’t expect to end up here,” said Kraybill, whose parents graduated from 91΄σΙρ. “What attracted me to 91΄σΙρ was its really strong academic program. What kept me here, in addition to the academics, was its Christian focus.”

Another draw for Kraybill was 91΄σΙρ’s campus chemistry.

“I really felt people at 91΄σΙρ were connected with each other and had strong sense of common mission in terms of their goals in life, that people here know who they are and what they stand for.”

91΄σΙρ’s Mennonite foundation welcomes diversity, said Kraybill, who eyed Ohio State but balked at a vision of life at a larger school. “91΄σΙρ is very spiritually minded and very Christian centered, but it’s not exclusive and its focus is on reaching out to the community and wider world of people in need.”

When they graduate next spring, Lehman and Kraybill may perform public service abroad. Kraybill attributes her interest in such global work to attending college on a campus that encourages such callings.

Said Kraybill: “91΄σΙρ’s focus on mission comes through.”

Pleasant Valley

Carissa Sweigart, 25, a senior from Hesston, Kan., transferred to 91΄σΙρ last year from Hesston (Kans.) College, a small 2-year liberal arts school, to study . While knowing Swartzendruber, who served as Hesston’s president before coming to 91΄σΙρ two years ago, eased Sweigart’s transition, 91΄σΙρ’s place in the Shenandoah Valley’s cultural and geographical mix drew her to the Harrisonburg school.

“”I looked into a lot of different public [colleges], including some in my own state,” said Sweigart,. “I like the diversity and the idea of knowing the professors and most of the other students. The area here attracted me, too.” Sweigart added that coming to 91΄σΙρ “gave me a place where I could be part of a community.”

Contact Tom Mitchell at 574-6275 or mitchell@dnronline.com

The 91΄σΙρ department will present an award-winning contemporary comedy, "Fuddy Meers," in the mainstage theater of the University Commons.

The two-act play, by David Lindsay-Abaire, will run Nov. 10-12 and Nov. 16-18. Curtain time is 7:30 p.m.

Claire (Rachel Swartzendruber) has a rare form of amnesia that erases her memory whenever she goes to sleep. This morning, like all mornings, she wakes up a blank slate. Today, however, she finds herself confronted with a strange assortment of new faces: a limping, lisping, half-blind, half-deaf man in a ski mask; an upbeat husband who goes into the shower and never returns; a dimwitted thug with a beloved hand puppet; and a claustrophobic lady-cop.

Every twist and turn in this funhouse plot bring Claire closer to revealing her past life and everything she thought she’d forgotten. It’s one harrowing and hilarious turn after another on this roller-coaster ride through one woman’s attempt to regain her memory while surrounded by a curio-cabinet of alarmingly bizarre characters.

, visiting assistant professor of theater, is directing the seven-member cast. The play features original music by Jerry Holsopple, professor of , and lighting, scenic and sound designs by award-winning student designer Davi Soesilo. Some language and subject matter are intended for mature audiences.

Tickets are available in advance by calling the 91΄σΙρ box office, 540-432-4582, and will also be on sale at the door.