The University of Lynchburg held its annual New Student Convocation on Wednesday morning, Aug. 19, on the Dell in front of Hopwood Hall.
Over the past week, more than 500 new students have arrived on campus. Of these, 419 are first-year students and 82 are transfers. The new students hail from 16 countries and 29 U.S. states.
In her first Convocation as Lynchburg’s president, Dr. Sally Selden welcomed the newest Hornets. “You arrive at an extraordinary time,” she said, “a time when the world is changing rapidly, when technology is reshaping how we learn and how we live, and when integrity, curiosity, and character matter more than ever.
“Life is not artificial. Here at Lynchburg, we embrace innovation, including the responsible use of artificial intelligence, but we never lose sight of the human heart of education: critical thinking, creative thinking, compassion, resilience, and purpose.”
She added that the next four years might not be easy, but they wouldn’t be making the journey alone.
“You will also encounter mentors, classmates, and experiences that will shape your future in unexpected ways,” she said. “Lean into all of it. Ask questions. Seek help when you need it. Take advantage of the remarkable faculty, staff, coaches, and resources available to you. They want to go the extra mile for you, but you need to ask for it.
“You have only one undergraduate experience. Make it count. Make it yours. And know that you are not walking on this path alone. You are joining a community that believes in you, invests in you, and celebrates your many successes.”
The keynote address was given by Dr. Mike Robinson, chair of the communication studies department and recipient of the 2026 Shirley E. Rosser Award for Excellence in Teaching — one of the highest honors for faculty at Lynchburg.
As Robinson puts it, he’s also a “professional nerd,” with a PhD in American cultural studies to prove it.
“What it means is that I found a way to watch television, read comic books, see movies, and occasionally play video games for a living,” he said, adding, “I love popular culture, especially superheroes and science fiction, and I’m lucky enough to get to talk about these things all the time — for a job. Don’t tell anybody, but I’d do this for free.”
Robinson, known to students as “Dr. Mike,” is especially fanatical about the Marvel Cinematic Universe. So naturally, on the day he was privileged to pass on his wealth of knowledge to the University’s newest students, Robinson decided to dive straight into the MCU and “the greatest supervillain Marvel ever created”: Victor Don Doom, AKA “Dr. Doom.”
“What does Dr. Doom have to do with you?” Robinson said. “Doom’s origin story stands out from many others because his story actually involves his freshman year. I kid you not. Doom’s entire path to supervillainy starts in his first semester at college. Basically, Doom has one bad day.”
Robinson skipped over much of the backstory, landing at the point where Doom miraculously gets a double-sized, single dorm room, and once installed, converts it into a laboratory and “gets busy working on his sorcery and science.”
Everything is going well for Doom until another student, Reed Richards — later known as Doom’s archfoe Mister Fantastic — drops by his dorm room/lab and criticizes his research. Richards tells Doom, “You’d better double-check some of these equations! You’re off a few decimals in some places.”
Instead of taking Richards’ advice, an angry Doom doubles down, pulls a giant switch and blows up his dorm room. “He’s horribly injured, particularly his face,” Robinson said. “And he’s expelled. So, Reed was right: Always double-check your math. …
“So, Victor Von Doom has one seriously bad day. Now, the relevance of the story: You’re going to have some bad days, too.”
Robinson acknowledged that some of those present might not find the origin story of supervillain Dr. Doom to be “an uplifting message before the start of classes,” and he gets that.
“But college is hard,” he said. “Academic life has many challenges and its pace and rhythms get very brutal, especially around November and April. Doom’s lesson is a lesson in what not to do when that day comes.
“In just the short telling of his origins, notice his challenges. He is intelligent but also arrogant. He is charismatic but also isolated. Doom simply does not have the capacity to look beyond himself, and when called out on that in a friendly way, he gets angry and rushes into some serious mistakes.”
Instead, Robinson encouraged the new students to use the things that separate them from the fictitious Doom. “One, you happen to be real people,” he said, “and that’s always an advantage. Second, you selected a place to learn that has built itself around the idea of helping students.
“We strive to go above and beyond, to help you become the lifelong learners that will thrive in and guide a changing world. Your bad day might come from inside college or outside, but your faculty and your staff and your administration care. Take advice when you get it. Learn the value of the insight of others.”
Third, Robinson told the students that they have each other.
“And here’s the really cool thing,” he said. “You’re going to have some bad days, but never Doom-level days — I resisted the ‘Doomsday’ pun there — and you’re going to have way more great ones.
“Somewhere in this crowd, I guarantee … is your new best friend. Probably several best friends. In fact, I promise that you will find your Fantastic Four, your Avengers, your X-Men — a team that will look out for you and champion you and inspire you, not just for the next few years but for the rest of your life.
“Now, this is getting dangerously close to sounding like I’m going to ask you all to stand up and hug each other or something. Yuck. Don’t worry, I would never do that. I’ll stop, but before I go, let me just say, ‘You got this.’ Not just ‘you’ singular, but ‘you’ plural.
“Work hard. Look out for your team, and always double-check your work before you pull that big switch.”
Following the ceremony, students were invited to attend the Time Capsule Burial Celebration at the Garren Victory Bell. The capsule, which was filled the night before at the annual Candlelight Ceremony, contained the Class of 2030 T-shirt, a University magazine, and notes from the first-years about their goals and aspirations for the next four years.
