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Celebrations, loss and everything in between: The top Maryville College news stories of 2025 run the gamut

Dec. 18, 2025

As the 2025–26 academic year takes shape, life on College Hill shows no signs of slowing down.

If anything, we’re still catching our breath. Over the past year, stories flowing out of the Office of Marketing and Communications traced the full arc of Maryville College life — from the deeply personal to the transformational. Whether it was a moment of quiet wonder in the Maryville College Woods or a milestone like the continued momentum behind the Alexander Institute for Conservation Leadership and the Sciences, the pace of change and storytelling never let up. Your engagement with these stories made every late night, early morning and deadline worth it.

As in years past, the most-read stories published on maryvillecollege.edu — listed below in chronological order — offer a clear reflection of the College itself. They are intimate, personal and often heartwarming, while also capturing moments of bold change and forward-looking vision. As we look ahead to the coming year, we expect more of the same. As a College of and for the region, Maryville College remains committed to honoring individual journeys while pursuing big ideas — all in service of doing good on the largest possible scale.

This year’s most-read stories truly ran the gamut. Celebrations resonated strongly, with coverage of the spring Dean’s List and the annual Celebration of Student Achievement ranking among the most-viewed pieces of the year. Stories of loss and reflection also drew deep engagement, including the retirement of longtime Languages and Literature chair and English professor Dr. Sam Overstreet, as well as the passing of retired biology professor and alumnus Dr. Robert Ramger ’56 — a towering presence in the Division of Natural Sciences for generations of students.

Readers were equally drawn to moments of change and momentum on campus. News of a $12 million state appropriation supporting the Alexander Institute, a $1 million donation from the Wilkinson Family to support the Myrtle Coker Wilkinson Honors Program, the College’s partnership with new dining services provider Fresh Ideas, and the introduction of Slingshot as Maryville College’s campus bookstore operator all generated strong interest from the community. And, as always, our students remained at the center of the story. Features highlighting the ambitious post-graduation plans of spring graduates and the arrival of 18 legacy students beginning their own Maryville College journeys were among the most-read stories of the year — a reminder that, no matter how much changes, the heart of MC remains its people.

The beautiful thing about Maryville College is that there’s always another story to tell, and here in MarCom, as we’re affectionately known around here, we feel honored to do the telling. We can’t wait to see what 2026 brings, but first, here’s a look back at those top stories of 2025 …

Maryville College is a nationally-ranked institution of higher learning and one of America’s oldest colleges. For more than 200 years we’ve educated students to be giving citizens and gifted leaders, to study everything, so that they are prepared for anything — to address any problem, engage with any audience and launch successful careers right away. Located in Maryville, Tennessee, between the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the city of Knoxville, Maryville College offers nearly 1,200  students from around the world both the beauty of a rural setting and the advantages of an urban center, as well as more than 60 majors, seven pre-professional programs and career preparation from their first day on campus to their last. Today, our 10,000 alumni are living life strong of mind and brave of heart and are prepared, in the words of our Presbyterian founder, to “do good on the largest possible scale.”