David C. Stinebeck, Interim President

Driving along North 13th Street, the crumbling wall of Shirk Stadium was one of the first things you’d see. Not surprising when you realize that the stadium is almost 100 years old, but certainly not good for impressing prospective students and visitors. Our new stadium will be impressive.

Shirk Stadium’s condition didn’t do a very good job of telling the story of everything that goes on inside our sports center -- 22 great athletics teams and a buzz of activity focused on athletics, fitness and wellness for students and the community. The new facility will allow us to expand and enhance programs, to be sure, and will make life a lot easier for athletes and coaches and visitors, but it is important to remember that a new stadium is not an end in itself. It is being rebuilt as part of our longstanding commitment to educating the whole person.

Colleges are always caught in a balancing act between what people see outside and what is going on inside. Seeing to the heart of things requires vision. We were most fortunate that alumnus John Scholl ’69 saw both the old stadium and what the new stadium could be, but his real vision was that of all students, not just athletes, having the best opportunities to develop bodies and minds in ways other than in the classroom.

There are other areas on campus that will become more visible by virtue of new public spaces. The Multi-Faith Center has served students wonderfully out of the Chaplain’s Office and is now ready to move to its own space in a house on Linden Street. The science departments tucked away in the warrens of old Science Hall will, we hope, move in the next few years to new quarters in a very visible Science Center. And while they badly need new homes in order to serve our students better, their new spaces, like the stadium, will only enhance what they have been doing all along – expanding students’ knowledge, minds and spirits.

Albright cares for what you can see and what you cannot see – for the physical signs of education and the emotional development of the students who live and learn in those physical spaces. New stadium, new Multi-Faith Center – our visible signs of commitment to the whole person.

Bill Bors ’65, Frankie Francks ’77 and Jenis Frederick were inducted into the Albright College Athletic Hall of Fame during Homecoming Weekend in October. The induction of the three brings the total number of Hall of Fame members to 63.

Bors was a four-year letterman in track and field and a three-year letterman in football. As a senior, he capped a productive football career with an outstanding season. He was named First-Team All-MAC Northern Division, First-Team ECAC, and Honorable Mention All-State as a running back. Bors led the Lions in rushing and scoring that season, and was also the recipient of the Anthony Lanshe Award as Albright’s Outstanding Running Back.

In track and field, he competed in the javelin, discus, and shot put events, earning a bronze medal in the javelin at the MAC Championship Meet in 1965. Bors was named Albright's Outstanding Senior Male Athlete in the spring of 1965. He went on to earn an MBA from Farleigh Dickinson University, and is retired from a successful career that included a stint as the vice president of the New York Stock Exchange.

Francks earned four varsity letters in football during his career. He led the Lions and the MAC in rushing in 1975 and 1976, earning First-Team All-MAC Northern Division running back honors each of those seasons. He was named the MAC Northern Division MVP in 1976. Francks also garnered ECAC honors for his junior and senior years.

As a junior in 1975 he was named Second-Team All-ECAC, and as a senior in 1976 he was tabbed First-Team All-ECAC. Francks was also a feared return man, finishing his senior year fifth in the nation in return yardage. He was named Albright’s Outstanding Senior Male Athlete for the 1976-77 academic year.

As Albright's first swim coach, Frederick took the program from club status to MAC powerhouse during her 13-year career. She compiled a record of 201-88-1 while guiding both the men's and women’s teams until her retirement in 2003. Frederick led the Lady Lions to four consecutive MAC championships, from 1999 through 2003, and during that time oversaw a 58-meet winning streak, the longest for any sport at Albright. Her men’s teams won MAC Championships in 1999-2000 and 2002-2003.

Frederick was named the MAC Women’s Swim Coach of the Year in 2000 and 2003, and the MAC Men's Coach of the Year in 2003. She also started and directed the Albright Aquatics program from its inception in 1994. Frederick is also a member of the Pottstown Chapter of the Pennsylvania Hall of Fame.