Chelsea Goins '19
Development Coordinator
As a member of the advancement staff, Chelsea fosters relationships with university donors and researches new donor opportunities to support the Concord University Foundation. “Our alumni and donors are so important to the university,” Chelsea says. “They provide funding for scholarships and campus projects that keep Concord the special place it is.” Chelsea also helps coordinate special events like Alumni After Hours, Foundation dinners, and Homecoming festivities. She says these events “allow Concord alumni, donors, students, and community members to gather and stay connected to the university and each other.” A graduate of Concord herself, Chelsea understands the importance of staying connected to CU and supporting all the university does for its students. “Concord has become a second home to me. I truly love this place.”
Staff
Karen Vuranch
Instructor of Theater and Communication Arts
Karen Vuranch brings decades of theater experience and extensive knowledge to Concord University. Vuranch has performed shows in every county in West Virginia, in 35 states and three foreign countries. She completed five performance tours of England and Wales, and toured China with 35 other storytellers. In 1982, she moved from Ohio to West Virginia to work for the Youth Museum of Southern West Virginia as a storyteller. Here, she met her husband and together, the couple eventually founded their own theater company, WV Enterprises. Vuranch has written many performance pieces, including Coal Camp Memories, a play she wrote based on oral histories she collected. She also has 12 living history characters – remarkable women in history – that she researched and performs. “Teaching is a culmination of my years of work,” Vuranch says. “I have had years of being on stage and accolades. Now, I am ready to share what I know and to see my students flourish.”
Faculty
Jade Gravely '18
Beckley, WV
When it came to choosing a college, Jade knew exactly what she wanted. She sought after a school that had a strong academic reputation, was financially reasonable, and she wanted a school where she wouldn't just be a name and face to professors, but a person they truly cared about. Jade found all of that and more at Concord University. From being a voice for her peers on the Student Government Association to her involvement in Greek life, Jade found herself very involved in extracurricular activities at Concord. She credits the academic and extracurricular opportunities she was offered at Concord, that allowed her to come to realize her passion for the legal field. Four years later Jade graduated without any student debt, left Concord with a lifetime of memories, and now continues her journey in law school. It Starts With You.
“I will forever be thankful for what Concord University brought me- a 4 year degree without any student debt, acceptance into a great graduate school, and a lifetime of memories.”
Alumni