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East The Magazine of East Carolina University summer 2011 Olympic sports have new home viewfinder A brick paver honoring Marine Sgt. David J. Smith ’10 of Frederick, Md., who died in Afghanistan last year, is presented to his mother, Mary Jane McWilliams, during the April 26 dedication of the Freedom Wall and Memorial Walk on Main Campus. With McWilliams is her husband, John Jones. The ceremony included the rededication of the Victory Bell, originally unveiled on campus in 1953 as a memorial to World War II and Korean War veterans. Photo by Jay Clark East The Magazine of East Carolina University summer 2011 36 20 28 F EAT URES 20 OL Y MPIC SPORTS HAV E NEW HOME By J. Eric Eckard The opening of the $24 million sports complex for non-revenue sports shows East Carolina is more than a football and baseball school. 28 Jim Hunt’s Ms. Fix-It By Marion Blackburn Janice Faulkner already had compiled a stellar record as an East Carolina professor when the governor summoned her to clean up state government. 32 SOCIOLOG IS T, SURFER DUDE By Justin Boulmay Jeff Johnson, one of ECU’s most honored professors, can capture a student’s attention— and catch a wave. 36 mind games By Bethany Bradsher The brain is a muscle, so sport psychologists train athletes to work as hard to strengthen it as their abs, delts and pecs. They share some tips for your own mental workout. DE PAR TMEN TS FROM OUR READERS . 3 THE ECU REPORT . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 SUMMER ARTS CALENDAR . 18 FROM THE CLASSROO M . . . . . . . . 32 PIRATE NATION . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 CLASS NOTES . 43 UPON THE PAST . 60 32 2 Olympics sports have new home Whether East Carolina has grown and matured into a major regional university was the question we raised in the winter issue. We concluded that, based on ample evidence, ECU has achieved that recognition. Even those who once doubted East Carolina’s ability to operate a medical school, for example, now sing its praises. I witnessed further evidence of ECU’s maturity this spring in two very different settings. One came during Research and Creativity Activity Week when the scientific inquiry of 270 undergraduate and grad students was showcased on campus. The size and scope of the event drove home the point that ECU is where many groundbreaking discoveries are being made in medicine, biology, computer science, education and other fields. It was on another kind of field where I witnessed a different aspect of East Carolina’s new maturity—a soccer field, to be exact. Our cover story in this issue, which begins on page 20, is about the school’s new Olympic Sports Complex, a $24 million jewel in ECU’s sports crown. It has risen on what used to be dirt tailgate lots for Dowdy-Ficklen, Harrington Field, and woods where the Greeks used to party before football games. By creating this new home for what are called non-revenue sports, East Carolina is showing the world that it’s much more than just a football and baseball school. Research week demonstrated that East Carolina is igniting a spark of genius in its students so they can go out and improve the health and everyday lives of the people of the East. ECU wants every student, regardless of their major, to have the best classrooms and professors. East Carolina also wants every student athlete, whether they play a money-making sport like football or a non-revenue sport like track and field, to have an equal chance to achieve their athletic goals. Whether you’re a quarterback or a quarter-miler, ECU wants student athletes to have coaches who inspire and facilities that showcase their success. The sports complex also creates an attractive new gateway into campus. It’s the new face of ECU that many football fans will see when they arrive for games. When you come back to campus, take a few minutes to drive up Charles Boulevard, just past the football and baseball stadiums, and see for yourself how that corner of campus has been transformed. It may cause you to think, as it did me, that this is how a mature, diverse university operates a first-class sports program. from the editor Volume 9, Number 4 East is published four times a year by East Carolina University Division of University Advancement 2200 South Charles Blvd. Greenville, NC 27858 h EDITOR Steve Tuttle ’09 252-328-2068 / tuttles@ecu.edu ART DIRECTOR/DESIGNER Brent Burch PHOTOGRAPHER Forrest Croce COPY EDITOR Jimmy Rostar ’94 CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Marion Blackburn, Justin Boulmay, Doug Boyd, Bethany Bradsher, J. Eric Eckard, Kara Loftin, Jessica Nottingham ’08, Steve Row, Mary Schulken CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Jay Clark, Cliff Hollis CLASS NOTES EDITOR Joanne Kollar ecuclassnotes@ecu.edu ADMINISTRATION Michelle Sloan h Assistant Vice Chancelor for University Marketing Clint Bailey East Carolina University is a constituent institution of The University of North Carolina. It is a public doctoral/ research intensive university offering baccalaureate, master’s, specialist and doctoral degrees in the liberal arts, sciences and professional fields, including medicine. Dedicated to the achievement of excellence, responsible stewardship of the public trust and academic freedom, ECU values the contributions of a diverse community, supports shared governance and guarantees equality of opportunity. ©2011 by East Carolina University Printed by Progress Printing U.P. 11-284 63,500 copies of this public document were printed at a cost of $37,778 or $.59 per copy. East The Magazine of East Carolina University summer 2011 Amanda Etheridge had no regrets I was so pleased to find the “Upon the Past” column about Amanda Etheridge in the current issue of East. Amanda was a well-respected member of our community and of my husband’s family [John Wilson ’50] here on Roanoke Island, a scholar and a star athlete with a never-yielding passion for social justice in her community. She was devastated by her treatment at the college in 1945, but went to her grave with no regrets. I wish she were still around to see the truthful story of her devotion to doing what was right even though she personally suffered the consequences. — Estelle Jones Wilson ’51, Manteo I really enjoyed your article on Amanda Etheridge because I knew her when I was a student there during the turmoil over Mr. Meadows. The last rehearsal for our senior class play, in which I had a part, had to be canceled because the SGA called one of the mass meetings to look into the issue of Mr. Meadows’ handling of the student money. I also knew the professors who were fired by the trustees for not supporting Mr. Meadows, and I think your article had the wrong name for one of them. As I recall, the three who were fired were E.L. Henderson, Herbert ReBarker and Hubert Haynes. I don’t recall a professor by the name of M.L. Wright. But I’m 88 now so I occasionally have senior moments. —Mrs. Elizabeth Kittrell “Kit” Taylor ’44, Yorktown, Va. Editor��s note: We double-checked the official records and multiple accounts list M.L. Wright among the three professors fired by trustees during the campus turmoil of 1943–44. Wright came to campus in 1925 as a sociology teacher but he isn’t pictured among the faculty in yearbooks after 1940. It’s possible he was performing duties other than teaching when the Meadows scandal erupted, which would explain why Mrs. Kittrell doesn’t remember him. Faculty records indicate Haynes taught education and psychology from 1924 until his retirement in 1959. Is this of historic value? I found this old program going through my mother’s things recently [Martha Rogers Taylor ’37]. Just thought someone there might be able to use it. By the way, you folks put out a wonderful publication. —Emmette Taylor, Kinston Editor’s note: We forwarded this 85-year-old program to University Archives, which reported that it’s now the oldest in its files. Pepsi suported campus radio In the “Coke comes to campus” story in the last issue, another thing the Minges family gave us over multiple years were annual grants for the campus radio station to contract with United Press International for their news wire service. Since the radio station was funded totally by student broadcasters (we “pounded the pavement” to sell commercials!) with no direct institutional or Student Government Association monies, we always sort of held our breath at the start of each academic year until we had that $500 check in hand. The Minges family business was given broadcast recognition by us announcing that all newscasts, weather reports and sports were sponsored by Pepsi. —Bob Blake ’66, Sarasota, Fla. Colege cheaper in ’52? A few weeks after reading “What Does College Really Cost” in the winter issue, my wife, Mary Jo Outland Baugh ’55, and I visited her sister, Anne Outland ’56. Our daughter was digging through her Aunt Anne’s artifacts when she came across her ECC scrapbook. In it she found the enclosed letter from the registrar, dated Feb. 8, 1952, showing the cost per quarter of $87 for tuition and fees, plus $80 a quarter for meals for a total of $167 per quarter, times three for a cost of $501 per year. I would say that’s quite a bargain compared to today’s cost. —Marvin Baugh ’55, Greensboro Editor’s note: The story Mr. Baugh refers to noted that it now costs $16,405 a year to attend ECU, a total which includes tuition, books and fees as well as such non-academic essentials as rent, food, clothes, laptop, car, cell phone, etc. The $501 charged in 1952 didn’t include the non-academic essentials. To compare apples-to-apples costs, let’s assume that living expenses raised the price of a year at ECC in 1952 to $750. At a web site called MeasuringWorth.com, I computed what $750 in 1952 dollars would be worth today. If you go by the consumer price index, $750 would be worth $6,060 today. Purchasing the same bundle of consumer goods would cost $9,010 today. It would be worth $10,700 using the production worker compensation guide, or how much an hourly worker would have to earn now to generate the same purchasing power. Also keep in mind that the $16,405 figure does not include grants or scholarships available to working families. When those are factored in, the current cost of a year at ECU for a child of a family earning less than $48,000 a year is $7,232, or roughly the same as in 1952. from our readers 3 4 ‘Next fiscal year will be the worst yet’ The following is a condensed version of Chancellor Steve Ballard’s State of the University Address delivered at the start of spring semester. Most of you and our community are all too familiar with the basic outline of the budget situation. ECU has lost $106 million over the past three years before anything happens this year; that includes both one-time “reversions” and base budget cuts. Last year, when the UNC system represented 13 percent of the state budget, the 16 universities accounted for 29 percent of the governor’s reversion. Two years ago, when we had our biggest base cuts, 92 percent of ECU’s base budget cut came from administrative positions and administrative function. The point of that is that we did all we could to protect the student experience and academic quality. But facing the fourth year—and there will probably be five years of base budget cuts—we have very little flexibility compared to where we have been. We know that next fiscal next year will be the worst yet. The gap between revenues and past expenditures, which is what everyone is focusing on, is approximately $3.7 billion, or a 20 percent gap in the state budget. For ECU, 20 percent is about $60 million, on top of the $106 million that we have already lost, or given back. You can certainly hear rational arguments for a cut between 8 percent to 20 percent. I ask everyone here today to pray for the 8 percent but as a chancellor I have to prepare for 20 percent. Our philosophy, as we enter this period of possible 20 percent cuts, includes three components: • There is only one East Carolina University. We are all in this together and we all have a stake in the outcome. We know every element of ECU and every constituency will suffer. But our goal is to emerge with our integrity and our mission intact. • Second, we will continue to focus on our five strategic priorities. • And, we will keep our eye on the long term. We will define where we want to be at the end of this recession and stay focused on that. So, given this philosophy we have four primary ways to find $60 million for the next fiscal year. I will discuss them in terms of what we must do first, second, third and fourth. The least desirable choices will almost certainly yield the most funds. First, we will continue to be more efficient in every way possible and more productive in all of our operations, and that includes the ecU Report “We will do everything we can to be innovative, find appropriate partnerships, and do all we can to protect the student experience.” 5 consolidating services, doing more shared services and more partnerships, [and] less administrative expenditures. Productivity improvements will only yield about 3 to 5 percent of a $60 million goal. I’ve asked Faculty Chair [Marianna] Walker to speak with the Educational Policy and Planning Committee of the Faculty Senate to recommend criteria by which we can consolidate services [and] academic programs, and reduce administrative costs associated with overseeing departments and colleges. Second choice, we will look at our emergency fund to help offset these cuts. This is a painful option because it is so difficult to replace emergency funds once they are spent. At most, I estimate that we might be able to find one-fourth of our cut scenario from this option. So, doing this complicated math, options 1 and 2 may provide, at best, $20 million, or about one-third the $60 million needed. The next two options are even more painful but unavoidable. Option No. 3 is called “Unit Reductions,” for every college and every division. I know we’ll have to ask every college and division to meet a fixed reduction. Since we have made so many reductions over the past three years, and sacrificed so many non-academic positions, it is inevitable that the units will now have to cut into the academic core and the size of our faculty. I hope that we can keep the overall size of our faculty close to what it is today. Many schools and colleges will have no choice other than to use faculty openings and academic resources to reach their goal. The availability of classes will be reduced, while class size and teaching loads, on average, will increase. We may have to ask each college and division to reduce their expenditures by 9 to 12 percent. If we take 9 percent of the state funding from each college and division, that would generate about $30 million, or half of our $60 million target. Last, most painful for me, and inevitably, students will have to pay more for their education through increased tuition and fees. We anticipate that students will have to fund at least 20 percent, perhaps more, of the $60 million reduction, and this will follow substantial increases in tuition and fees already approved for the coming year by the Board of Governors and already realized over the last two years. We have always prided ourselves in being an access institution and our first university priority is student success, so making higher education less affordable is a not an attractive option for me. I will end the gloomy part of my speech with this commitment: we will involve and engage the campus community as much as we can during this process. The budget estimates presented today will undoubtedly change and better options could emerge. We will do everything we can to be innovative, find appropriate partnerships, and do all we can to protect the student experience. I look forward to working with every one of you. Our challenges are not small, I think you all realize that, but they are inconsequential compared to our spirit. Lillington gets dental clinic Lillington, the county seat of Harnett County southeast of Raleigh, will be the site of a community care clinic to be operated by the School of Dental Medicine. The university announced that it would build one of the learning centers beside the new First Choice Community Health Center off U.S. 401. There, dental students and residents will train and, together with ECU faculty members, provide care to local residents. “This is going to be a very good site, a good collaboration with First Choice Community Health Center,” said Gregory Chadwick, associate dean for planning and extramural affairs at the dental school. The two facilities “will really have an impact on primary health care in Harnett County.” Lillington is the fourth site to be named for what will eventually be 10 such centers across the state and the first in central North Carolina. The other sites identified so far are Ahoskie and Elizabeth City in eastern North Carolina and Sylva in the western part of the state. The 7,700-square-foot center in Lillington will be a fully functioning general dentistry office with 16 treatment rooms, X-ray equipment, educational space and more. The state will own the land, and construction could begin this year if all goes well, Chadwick said. Full-time dental school faculty members will staff the center, along with dental hygienists and other staff members, and fourth-year dental students and residents will train at the center. Chadwick has described the centers as similar to “moving the fourth floor of the dental school—the clinical training—off campus to rural areas of our state where dental services are needed.” The school will admit its first 50 students, all North Carolina residents, in August, with plans to admit 50 each year. —Doug Boyd Sylva Lillington Ahoskie Elizabeth City Campus master plan advances A preliminary master plan for East Carolina University’s Main Campus drew concerns about safety, architectural consistency and public access from East Carolina trustees seeing it for the first time. The plan looks out 20 years and expands ECU along Reade Street north of Fifth, refashions the 10th Street corridor from Cotanche to College Hill, constructs three parking decks and closes some streets to traffic in the center of campus. Board of Trustees members discussed it and the preliminary master plan for the Health Sciences Campus in April after a presentation by representatives from Smithgroup/JJR, a planning and architecture company consulting on the plan. “I hope you will resolve the safety issue that I see,” said David Redwine, referring to a proposed parking deck the plan includes just north of 10th Street and west of Cotanche Street, across from the Student Recreation Center. The long-term plan would include security on site and for students crossing Cotanche, Smithgroup representatives and university officials said. As Main Campus expands beyond its existing borders, building placement and design should be in keeping with the character of the existing campus, which includes open space and historic architecture, said David Brody, board chairman. “It should honor the core design of the campus and it should not be so dense as to change the environment of the campus,” he said. Planners are currently drawing design guidelines for those future buildings, consultants said, that are tied to the original architecture of the buildings built in 1907. Planners used a number of priorities identified in campus meetings and a survey to draw the preliminary plan. Among those: keeping academics on the core of Main Campus, retaining open spaces, providing ample close-in parking, the ecu report 6 7 21 6 20 8 21 12 1 9 15 11 3 16 22 10 17 19 13 14 4 18 2 5 23 Number Project Name GSF Floors 1 Bio-Sciences Building 270,000 6 2 HHP Research Gym 55,000 3 Academic A Building 275,000 4 4 Visual and Performing Arts Center 200,000 3 5 HHP Addition 60,000 6 Facilities building 1 7 Police 20,000 8 Parking, Environmental Safety, Mail Services 9 Student Center 182,154 5 10 Belk Hall Replacement and Living/Learning Complex 275,500 8 11 Student Recreation Center Expansion 62,276 2 12 Slay (restore to residential: 100 beds) 13 Alumni Center 36,000 2 14 Hotel and Conference Center 15 Visitor Center 16 Library Expansion 22,000 17 Todd Dining Hall Expansion 9,300 1 18 Basketball Practice Building 38,000 1 19 Foundation Building / Offi ce / Swing Space 40,000 20 IT Building / Data Center 21 Millennial Campus Building 22 Transit Hub 23 Press Box LEGEND EXISTING BUILDING IMMEDIATE NEED FUTURE OPPORTUNITY PARKING DECK Main Campus 10th Street Charles Boulevard Fifth Street 7 public safety and easy pedestrian access. The plan closes some small parking lots near academic buildings on the Main Campus but proposes at least three parking decks in central locations. It also closes Founders Drive and Chancellors Way to through traffic. Brody noted that the public needs ample parking near A.J. Fletcher Music Hall, where public performances take place. Trustee Bill Bodenhamer suggested the university use the price of parking for students, staff and faculty to manage spaces, setting the rate for close-in parking at a level that provides incentive to use shuttle services. The presentation to trustees was an information session only. ECU officials and planners stress the plan will likely see tweaks based on feedback from the campus and the community. A final version is expected to be ready by fall for the board of trustees. To learn more about the preliminary master plan, visit www.ecu.edu/cs-admin/ masterplan/alternatives.cfm —Mary Schulken N 3.22.11 East Carolina University 0’ 150’ 300’ Number Project Name GSF Floors 1 Medical Education Building 250,000 6 2 Brody Modernization / Reassignment (Offi ces / Millennial Uses) 3 Research Expansion 30,000 1 4 Student Services Building 64,000 2 5 Integrated Ancillary Services and Clinics Building 280,000 5 6 New Cancer Center 60,000 2 7 Faculty Offi ces 50,000 4 1 4 5 7 7 6 3 2 Heart Blvd. Fifth Street W. Arlington Rd. MacGregor Downs Rd. Family Medicine Cardiovascular Institute School of Dentistry Warren Life Sciences Utility Plant Allied Health SON North Campus Loop Moye Boulevard Existing Bio. Tech. Pitt County Memorial Hospital H Health Sciences Campus West Fifth Street (Highway 43) Brody Building 8 New funding model helps ECU East Carolina’s efforts to improve freshman-to- sophomore retention rates and to operate academic programs more efficiently should begin paying dividends as the UNC system transitions from a per-student funding formula to a sliding scale that’s based on academic performance. Applying the new yardsticks means ECU likely will receive a slightly bigger slice of a smaller budget pie next school year as the General Assembly continues to slash funding for higher education. Under discussion for the last two years, the new performance-based funding model will be used for the fiscal year beginning July 1 to divvy up whatever enrollment growth money—if any—is appropriated to the UNC system by the General Assembly. Given final approved by the UNC Board of Governors in February, the new formula will have noticeable impacts on some campuses: • UNC Greensboro and Western Carolina will be allowed only restricted growth in their freshman enrollments beginning this fall. • Freshman enrollment will be capped at UNC Pembroke. • The most severe restrictions fall on Elizabeth City State, Fayetteville State and N.C. A&T because they did poorly on both yardsticks. They must shrink their freshmen enrollments and focus on retention. ECU achieved acceptable retention and efficiency rates, which would translate into $5.1 million in enrollment growth money for 2011–12, or 11.1 percent of the total $45.8 million the Board of Governors requested for the whole system. In 2012–13, ECU’s enrollment growth money would swell to $5.5 million, or 13.4 percent of the $40.8 million request. Again, it was unknown when this was written what amount the General Assembly would appropriate. The percentage is important because it will apply to whatever the Legislature appropriates for enrollment growth. The $40.8 million would fund classroom space and instruction for 2,337 additional students throughout the 16-campus system. Actual enrollment growth in recent years has been three times that much. N.C. State’s share of the pie over the next two years would fall from $11.1 million to $10.1 million. UNC Chapel Hill’s share would fall from $8.5 million to $5.2 million. UNC Charlotte would see its enrollment growth money cut in half, from $7.3 million to $3.6 million. A major change is that new funding formula stops giving the smaller, liberal arts and non-doctoral campuses a financial break by assuming it costs them more per-student to deliver the same classes as their bigger brothers. UNC Asheville, for example, will see its enrollment growth money fall two-thirds, from $724,000 to $241,000. A third benchmark—six-year graduation rates—will be added to the funding formula in 2013. Before the recession hit, the UNC system usually requested and got about $60 million to account for fairly consistent enrollment growth of around 6,000 new students each year; whatever the Legislature approved was doled out on a per-student basis. To demonstrate the 16 campuses could operate more efficiently and with greater transparency, former President Erskine the ecu report Senior fine arts major Sarah West ’11 traveled to Philadelphia this spring to pick up her 2011 Niche magazine award in the “sculpture to wear” category. Presented annually since 1990, the award recognizes excellence and innovation in American and Canadian fine craft. Artists are recognized in professional and student divisions. West’s work, which has been exhibited at Artspace in Raleigh, won the Best in Show award from Rebel 53, the university’s arts and literary magazine. 9 Bowles pushed the Board of Governors to adopt a new funding model that rewards campuses with low freshman dropout rates and penalizes those with high dropout rates. The fundamental change in philosophy is seen as one of Bowles’ major legacies. Cautioned to submit a smaller budget request for enrollment growth money this third recessionary budget cycle, the Board of Governors voted to seek $45.8 million for the fiscal year beginning July 1 and just $40.8 million for the second year of the biennium. That increase will provide funding for an anticipated 2,337 additional students next school year, far below normal growth patterns. Thus, even if the Legislature gives the General Administration everything it asked for, the rapid growth rate of the UNC system would level off and it would be harder to get accepted as the same or greater numbers of applicants seek fewer new seats. Efforts check rising book costs It looks like the best the UNC system can do to control the rising cost of textbooks is to stop prices from getting much worse. The numbers from a Board of Governors report show that, after a four-year focused effort by the 16 campuses, the average cost for books for an in-state undergraduate is up in a range of 1.6 percent to 2.9 percent, depending on whether the student bought new or used books. That is relatively good news, considering that textbook prices nationally have risen 6 percent annually for the past several years. For several years now the General Administration has pushed campuses to get a handle on textbooks costs, which can easily add $1,000 to the cost of a year of college. In 2006 the campuses started making detailed annual reports tracking what students actually were paying—what they paid at the cash register at the start of the semester and what they got back after finals through bookstore buy-back plans. Innovative ideas were encouraged. UNC Charlotte, UNC Greensboro and UNC Wilmington outsourced their bookstore operations to Barnes & Noble. N.C. Central and Winston-Salem State contracted with Follett. The three biggest campuses—UNC Chapel Hill, N.C. State and ECU—joined forces to essentially merge their bookstores so a student at any of the three could buy or sell a book through any of the three bookstores, which could be done easily online. Four other schools—Appalachian, Elizabeth City State, Fayetteville State and Western Carolina—operate textbook rental programs. Such programs have lower costs but less selection. Throughout the system, bookstores were strongly encouraged to offer “half-back” programs for books required in introductory-level courses, such as freshman English, guaranteeing to buy back the book at the end of the semester at half the original price. According to numbers in the report, the merged-bookstore approach has worked great for ECU, where textbook prices actually have gone down, but not as well at Carolina, where moderately high prices rose less then the system-wide average, and at State, where prices went up by more than the statewide average. Likewise, the results were uneven at the three campuses that threw in with Barnes & Noble. Prices dropped at Wilmington but they shot up at Greensboro and Charlotte by more than 6 percent. N.C. A&T had the biggest drop in textbook costs of any campus, down 13.6 percent, but it took that just to bring its costs to near the system average. At every campus professors were encouraged —some would say leaned on—to adopt textbooks for their classes in a timely manner, meaning they should decide what books to require students to buy in plenty of time for the bookstore to get them on the shelves. The earlier the bookstores are able to make their orders, the less students pay at the checkout counter. New federal legislation that went into effect last summer may help curb textbook price increases. Publishers now are barred from “bundling” a textbook along with supporting materials like workbooks and CDs so that the book can be purchased separately. Also, when publisher’s sales agents pitch to faculty members on adopting their texts, the agent now is required to tell the faculty member how much the book costs at retail. Before, faculty members often had no idea what a book would cost before requiring it in a class. More than 300 Greek-affiliated students who achieved GPAs of 3.5 or higher fall semester— including 80 who achieved a perfect 4.0—were treated to an ice cream social by the Division of Student Affairs and the Office of Greek Life. Provost Marilyn Sheerer and Vice Provost Virginia Hardy were on hand to congratulate the 337 fraternity and sorority members who made the grade, which is roughly a quarter of the ECU Greek community. 10 the ecu report ECU dropping art degree To increase efficiency, ECU is eliminating the bachelor of arts degree in art, a fine arts program that has seen rapidly declining interest by students. Only eight were majoring in the degree at the start of spring semester, down from 12 the prior semester. Those eight will be allowed to complete their degree before the program is completely shut down. The move won’t save much money because faculty teaching those courses also teach in related degree programs, and so must remain on staff. Across the 16 UNC campuses, 60 degrees were targeted for elimination as the campuses respond for legislative demands to do more with less. On the chopping block are 36 baccalaureate, 22 master’s and two doctoral programs. Three campuses account for more than half of the total—N.C. Central with 13, N.C. A&T with 11 and UNC Charlotte with 10. The Board of Governors adopted new efficiency standards that campuses now use to decide if a degree program has outlived its usefulness. Bachelor’s degree programs need to award 19 or more diplomas over two years. Terminal master’s degree programs should award at least 15 degrees over two years to survive, and doctoral programs need to award at least five diplomas over two years to avoid the budget knife. ECU to help Pottery Center East Carolina and the N.C. Pottery Center in Seagrove are discussing a collaboration that would link the university’s highly regarded studio arts program with one of the nation’s most prominent folk arts centers. Officials said the tight budget situation limits what ECU can contribute to the arrangement. The first collaboration came in March when the two co-sponsored a visit by a group of five potters from China. The visitors spent part of a week in Seagrove and the rest of the time conducting workshops and colloquiums on campus. “We’re looking at all aspects of collaboration, on everything from sharing visiting artists to perhaps basing grad students and faculty over there,” said Michael Dorsey, interim dean of the College of Fine Arts and Communication. He said the discussions began in December when he and three other ECU representatives met with the Pottery Center board. One of Seagrove’s most successful potters, Ben Owen III ’93, who is participating in the discussions, said he hopes the collaboration grows. “If there is a way both parties can find a common ground to work on a future endeavor together it would be wonderful. The more people who know about [Seagrove pottery], the better.” A split has developed in the pottery community around Seagrove. A rival group, the Seagrove Area Potters Association, split from the Pottery Center over a range of issues. The new group, on whose board Owen serves, began staging a rival festival in 2008 on the same November weekend as the annual Seagrove Pottery Festival, which has been managed for more than 25 years by the N.C. Museum of Traditional Pottery. However, both festivals have been successful and tempers seem to be easing. News briefs Required summer read: This summer, incoming freshmen will be encouraged to read the true story of an Elon College student who was raped in her apartment in 1984 and the man who was wrongly convicted and spent 11 years in prison for the crime. Picking Cotton is written by the two victims in the case, Jennifer Thompson-Cannino and Ronald Cotton. The two eventually became friends and wrote this book to educate the public about flaws in the criminal-justice system. The first collaboration between ECU and the N.C. Pottery Center came in March when the two co-sponsored a visit by five potters from China. The visitors spent part of a week in Seagrove and the rest of the time conducting workshops and colloquiums on campus. Furnished Furnished Discussion program forms: ECU will open its doors this fall to adults in the Greenville area who are interested in learning new things but who don’t want the hassle of applying for admission. The Lifelong Learning Program, to be launched this fall by the Division of Continuing Studies, is modeled after the Elderhostel programs of the mid-1970s. N.C. State University has operated a similar program, called Encore, for about 20 years. “Seniors are the one who so often say there is nothing for me to do. I’m retired but I still want to learn,” said ECU’s Clayton Sessoms. “They are curious about topics and want to learn new things, but don’t want to invest the time or money in pursuing a degree.” The program will be funded through modest workshop fees. A schedule of courses will be announced May 21. Interested individuals are encouraged to register by calling 252-328-9198 or e-mailing cpe@ecu.edu. Pedalling for health: People who work sitting at a desk all day could pedal their way to better health by using portable exercise machines, according to research by an ECU faculty member published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. These small exercise bikes, modified to fit under a desk, are effective at burning calories and raising the heart rate without disrupting the office work flow, according to the study by Luc Car, an assistant professor in the Department of Exercise and Sports Science. For the study, 18 office workers, who were mostly female, and overweight, pedalled an average of 23 minutes a day and used the machine on an average of 12 out of 20 days. The workers said in a questionnaire that they would use the bikes regularly if their employer offered them one. Nursing grads score well: The percentage of School of Nursing graduates who pass the state licensing exam on the first try rose one point in 2010 to 97 percent. Of the 268 graduates that year, 260 passed the exam to become RNs. In 2009, 248 of the 257 graduates passed the first time, or 96 percent. Alcohol abuse program honored: East Carolina’s efforts to prevent alcohol and drug abuse by fraternity and sorority members have been recognized as among the best in the nation. The school’s Greek Risk Management program was one of four finalists nationwide for the Outside the Classroom Prevention Excellence Award for Greek Life. The award is presented by the Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education and Outside the Classroom, a company that designs online drug and alcohol education programs for colleges and universities. Campus repairs slated: East Carolina is planning $5.2 million in repairs and upgrades to four buildings on Main Campus. The largest project will see $2.4 million spent to complete space in the Science and Technology Building that was left unfinished when it opened in 2003. Parts of the third and fifth floors will be upfitted as wet laboratory space for the biology, chemistry and geology departments. The work will be paid for with facilities and administrative receipts; completion is expected in June 2012. Green and White residence halls will receive exterior masonry and structural repairs costing $1.9 million. Greene also will get a new roof. The project, funded with housing receipts, should be completed by July 2012. Also, the Student Recreation Center, now 15 years old, will receive a new roof and other repairs costing $798,000. The project, to be paid for with student activity fees, should be completed by December. Trustees complete terms Four veteran members of the ECU Board of Trustees who helped lead the university through a turbulent era will complete their terms in June. Current chair David Brody of Kinston, former chair Bob Greczyn ’73 of Durham, current board secretary David Redwine ’72 of Ocean Isle Beach, and William H. Bodenhamer Jr. ’74 of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., each served two four-year terms. The four had just joined the 13-member board in 2003 when former chancellor William V. Muse resigned under a cloud after only two years on the job. That led to the selection of Steve Ballard as chancellor and, with other board decisions, set East Carolina on a firmer footing. Two of the vacancies were filled by the Board of Governors, which appointed Deborah Davis ’79 ’83 of Henrico, Va., chief operating officer of Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, and Raleigh attorney Kieran Shanahan ’79. Gov. Beverly Perdue will fill the two other vacancies. ECU down to one on board East Carolina is down from three alumni to only one—attorney Phil Dixon ’71 of Greenville—serving on the 32-member UNC Board of Governors. Charles Hayes ’72 ’74 of Sanford will leave the board in June after serving for six years; he filled a vacancy for two years and then was elected to a four-year term in 2007. Although he was eligible for another term and was nominated in a House committee, Hayes, executive director of the Research Triangle Regional Partnership, was not on the final list submitted for a floor vote. Hayes said he served during a pivotal era. “I was able to serve with three of the five presidents the UNC system has ever had, including Erskine Bowles’ entire time as president.” ECU briefly had three on the board. It dropped to two when J. Craig Souza ’71 of Raleigh, president of the N.C. Health Care Facilities Association, completed his second term in 2009. 11 Need a vein? Look in the fridge Anyone who has undergone a heart bypass procedure knows you usually have to recover from two surgeries—one on your heart and another on your leg, where doctors remove a section of vein to use to repair your heart. Thanks to pioneering work by an ECU surgeon, someday soon that second surgery won’t be necessary. Research co-authored by Alan Kypson, a professor of surgery at the Brody School of Medicine, and published in the journal Science Translational Medicine demonstrated that scientists can “grow” new veins in the lab and store them in a refrigerator for up to a year. These manmade veins are constructed from smooth-muscle cells taken from a human cadaver that are placed around a tubular structure. The cells grow until they cover the tube. The tube is then treated to remove the cells, leaving a hollow, flexible tube that works like a vein but will not be rejected by the body. Participating in the research with Kypson were scientists from Duke University, Yale University and Humacyte, a biotechnology company based in Durham. Humacyte funded much of the research. The medical advance is important given our aging population. “People are having multiple heart bypasses and vascular surgery now and once a patient is on their third or fourth bypass, they are out of veins to use,” Kypson said. the ecu report Eas t C a r olina tim e line First student graduates Among the 13 students in the first class to graduate in May 1911 is Pattie Simmons Dowell of Williamston, who was the first student to register on Oct. 5, 1909, when ECTTS first opened its doors. Founder and first president of the campus YWCA, she goes on to become the first ECTTS graduate to receive a doctorate. She teaches here in 1923–24, leaves for Southern Miss—where she authors four elementary school textbooks— but returns in 1958 to end her career here. She is the first recipient of the school’s Outstanding Alumni Award. Dowell Way, the short street arching between Fletcher and Garrett residence halls on the east end of Main Campus, is named for her. The case of the purloined frocks The campus is shocked and the spring social season is imperiled in April 1926 when silk gowns purchased or made by eight students disappear from dorm rooms just days before the Poe Society’s big dance. Oddly, all are about the same size. The Greenville police are called and a local woman is charged when the gowns are found at her home. The Tecoan reports a happy ending to the incident in a front-page story headlined “The Easter Frocks Are Returned to Owners.” 100 YEARS AGO 85 YEARS AGO Alan Kypson Dorm cooking is toast Students get heartburn in spring 1986 when the administration, in the aftermath of several minor dorm room fires and grease-clogged pipes, announces that deep fat fryers and electric griddles will be outlawed in residence halls, effective fall semester. Only toasters and small refrigerators can stay. ECU is following the lead of other UNC schools in banning dorm cooking and requiring students to buy meal books. When students complain there aren’t enough places to eat on campus, the relatively new Mendenhall Student Center is remodeled to add a casual restaurant. Images courtesy University Archives “Pumpsie” fans 19 The strong arm of Greensboro’s Larry “Pumpsie” Crayton carries ECC into the 1961 NAIA national baseball tournament in Sioux City, Iowa. Nervous at being so far from home and facing a strong Grambling squad, many ECC players stuff four-leaf clovers in their pockets. But luck isn’t needed as Crayton strikes out 19 batters to set a collegiate record that still stands today. East Carolina sweeps to the title game and beats Sacramento State 9-4 for the championship. Crayton is chosen tournament MVP (photo). In a three-year career on the mound for the Bucs, Crayton compiles a 26-4 record with 330 strikeouts. He foregoes his senior year to sign with the St. Louis Cardinals. 25 YEARS AGO 50 YEARS AGO Bioengineered veins have been found to be resistant to clotting and obstruction when compared to synthetic or prosthetic engineered veins. They also demonstrate lower rates of infection, better blood flow and lower levels of calcium buildup, according to the study. As for the impact for ECU, “this is the first time something like this has been done and it’s very exciting for our university to be a part of this,” said Kypson. “One would like to think that such a paper may spur other companies and universities to consider collaborating with ECU in the future.” —Jessica Nottingham Brody again No. 1 in family docs East Carolina sent more medical graduates into training as family medicine physicians the past 10 years than any other school in the country. ECU is also sending a majority of all its medical graduates into practice in North Carolina. That’s according to the American Academy of Family Physicians, which measured the success of 124 U.S. medical schools in producing family doctors between 1999 and 2009. The results show the Brody School of Medicine sent nearly 19.5 percent of its graduates into family medicine residencies, nearly double the national average. “It is clearly a remarkable achievement but comes as no surprise to the dedicated and loyal faculty who passionately teach, mentor and support our students,” said BSOM dean Paul Cunningham. And the trend is continuing; on national residency match day in March, 19 percent of ECU’s 68 senior medical students were accepted into family medicine residencies. The AAFP also reports that of the nearly 1,300 graduates of the ECU medical school as of 2009, 765, or 59 percent, practice in North Carolina. That’s a higher percentage than any other medical school in the state. —Doug Boyd A business plan prepared by a College of Business team of students for operating a new type of medical clinic won top honors at the annual National Small Business Institute Conference. The team led by MBA student Brian Cooke ’10 of Grimesland worked with Dr. Janice Daughtery of the Brody School of Medicine to develop a working model for a medical clinic that incorporates alternative medicine such as acupuncture with more traditional Western medicine. A second College of Business team earned second place in the competition for its consulting work with a women’s clothing store to develop marketing, inventory control and financial management plans. Since 2005, ECU has earned eight finishes in the top three at the National Small Business Institute Conference, including four first-place winners. This year’s conference was held in Bonita Springs, Fla. Janice Daughtery Brian Cooke 14 the ecu report 15 Daughters donate Coach Stas’ library “There are some things I know that people don’t know about him, like the significance of his faith,” Becky Stasavich says about her late father, East Carolina coaching great Clarence Stasavich. Another thing most people don’t knew about the man who brought big-time college football to Greenville, she says, is that he insisted on being able to walk to work. For many years he and his family lived in a home on Rock Spring Road almost in sight of the new football stadium the college built for him. Stasavich died in 1975 but in one important way he never left that home just off 14th Street a block from College Hill. His papers and effects where there when Becky, the oldest, moved to Greenville in 1980 to be a companion to her mother, who died in 1997. The books and memorabilia were still there when Mary Helen, the middle child, after teaching overseas for more than 30 years, retired there in 2001. Son Walter, the youngest, grew up here and later was Greenville’s director of parks and recreation; he developed River Park North, where the science center is named for him. He died in 1993. Walter’s two daughters, Laura Elizabeth ’92 ’98 of Wilmington and Sarah Catherine ’99 of Greenville, are alumnae. Becky and Mary Helen recently donated Coach Stas’ library of football books, letters home during World War II, memorabilia, correspondence, awards and other personal effects to East Carolina. The material will make up the core of the new Clarence Stasavich Collection housed in University Archives. “Acquiring the records of someone so intimately involved with the growth of East Carolina athletics will serve to allow researchers and fans to more accurately chronicle the history of the Pirates and the venues in which they performed,” said ECU Archivist Arthur Carlson ’07. At the time he retired from the sidelines in 1969 to become athletic director, Stasavich was the third-winningest coach in America. Everyone seemed to know him. Mary Helen recalls passing through an airport far away from home many years ago, and the official inspecting her passport glanced up excitedly and asked if she was related to the Coach Stas who ran the famous single-wing offense. Becky graduated from Catawba College in Salisbury, N.C., the year her father became the East Carolina football coach. She completed her master’s degree at ECU in 1967. Mary Helen graduated from Lenoir-Rhyne while her father was coaching and teaching there. She was a cheerleader at Lenoir-Rhyne the last year her father coached there. Her dad’s L-R squad was playing East Carolina late in the season and a rabid Pirate fan started yelling at Coach Stas. “Some guy came up to the sidelines yelling, ‘we’re going to kill you Stas.’ He kept on and one. So I turned around and said, ‘That’s my dad!’ Later when Dad told us he was coming down here to coach, I said, ‘I don’t think they like you much down there.’” Luckily, she was wrong about that. He became so revered that days after he died, an inspired East Carolina team—urged to win one for Coach Stas—traveled to Chapel Hill and pulled off a stunning 38-17 upset for the school’s first victory over a Carolina team. Coach Stas Highlight Reel Overall record of 170–64–8, including 16 seasons at Lenoir-Rhyne. He was 50–27–1 at East Carolina. Won seven consecutive Carolinas Conference championships at Lenoir-Rhyne NAIA small college national coach of the year, 1959; won the NAIA national championship in 1960. When he left coaching he trailed only Alabama’s Bear Bryant and Mississippi’s John Vaught in total victories. Led East Carolina out of the small-college NAIA and into membership in the Southern Conference of the NCAA. Pirate teams had three consecutive 9–1 seasons and won three consecutive bowl games. As athletics director, presided over fundraising and construction of Minges Coliseum, Scales Field House, Harrington Field and Bunting Field. University Archives 16 the ecu report BB&T commits $1 million for center BB&T, whose $250,000 gift in 1982 founded the BB&T Center for Leadership Development in the College of Business, has reaffirmed its support for the center through a new donation totaling $1 million. The center advocates incorporating leadership development as an important dimension of intellectual activity, with an emphasis on the proposition that every student should be prepared to lead and become an agent of positive change in society. “The university’s continued commitment to leadership development as a priority and focus within its mission has been greatly assisted through BB&T’s support,” said center director James Bearden. “Their latest contribution further extends the catalytic role the [center] has in emphasizing, enhancing and supporting leadership development in courses and classrooms at ECU.” BB&T’s contribution to ECU’s Second Century Campaign is their fifth such gift to the center, and serves as a perfect example of how private corporations can make a difference at ECU. The gift helped push the Second Century Campaign so far to $194 million, or 97 percent of the goal. “We want 2011 to be the year that we surge past the $200 million goal,” said Vice Chancellor for University Advancement Mickey Dowdy. “We remain extremely grateful for BB&T’s dedication to ECU and the Center for Leadership Development and we look forward to even greater things in the future as we continue our efforts in faculty and student leadership development.” Gifts to the campaign may be designated for a specific program, college or school. Every gift, whether large or small, is appreciated and makes a difference. For more information about the BB&T Center for Leadership Development, contact Bearden at beardenj@ecu.edu. For more information about the Second Century Campaign and how you can contribute, contact Dowdy at 252-328-9550 or visit www.ecu.edu/devt. Virtual early college top in state East Carolina’s online early college program for bright high school students was recognized by the N.C. Distance Learning Association as the top program in the state for course content and its unique delivery platform. The Early College Second Life Program (ECSLP), which uses the Second Life 3D virtual technology, is unique in that students can take college classes online without leaving their high school environment. The ECSLP program previously received the International Intraverse Award in Education, presented in Monaco. About 40 students in Pitt and Lenoir counties are enrolled in the program. “It is successful because it captures the students’ attention, challenges them, and allows them to interact with each other for projects,” said Sharon Collins of ECU’s Emerging Academic Initiatives. “It truly is the way students desire to learn these days, by advancing with technology.” Second Life is a virtual 3D world designed for high school students. In that world, students have an “avatar” (a virtual presence) and attend a real-time class. ECU is the only campus using Second Life to offer classes that let students earn college credit and high school credit at the same time. Students can take classes in anthropology, personal finance, child psychology, introduction to computers, English, sociology and web site design and maintenance. —ECU News Services ECU’s Jim Bearden, Danny Daniels of BB&T, Chancellor Steve Ballard, Scott Evans of BB&T and Dennis Alexander of BB&T Furnished After a rigorous national search, former College of Business Dean Rick Niswander was named vice chancellor for administration and finance after serving in that role on an interim basis since December. The Board of Trustees approved Chancellor Steve Ballard’s appointment of Niswander at its April meeting. He replaces Kevin Seitz. Niswander joined the faculty in 1993 and became COB dean in 2004. In his new role Niswander will be responsible for business services, campus operations, financial services, human resources, information technology and university facilities, including construction and renovation of campus buildings. His salary is $270,000 a year. Niswander graduated from Idaho State University with a bachelor’s in accounting. He holds a doctorate in accounting from Texas A&M University. In 1998 he received the Board of Governors Distinguished Professor for Teaching Award. Brody Division of Toxicology chief William Joel Meggs received ECU’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Research and Creative Activity. Meggs has published more than 60 scholarly articles. His main research interests include antidotes to poisonings, poisonous snakebites, toxicity of pharmaceutical overdoses, effects of chronic low level exposures to pesticides, environmental factors in obesity, and the role of inflammation in overall health. ECU presented five-year achievement awards to biology professor Jason Bond and psychology professor T. Chris Riley-Tillman. They received a cash award and conducted seminars on campus during Research and Creative Achievement Week in April. Brody School of Medicine Dean Dr. Paul Cunningham and Chief of Surgery Michael Rotondo were inducted into the prestigious American Surgical Association. Founded in 1880, the ASA is the nation’s oldest and most prestigious surgical organization. School of Communication associate professor John Howard III was chosen by the UNC Board of Governors as East Carolina’s recipient of the annual Awards for Excellence in Teaching. Since 1994 the board has honored one professor at each campus to receive the honor, which comes with a commemorative bronze medallion and a $7,500 cash prize. The 17 recipients, representing an array of academic disciplines, were nominated by special committees on their home campuses and selected by the Board of Governors Committee on Personnel and Tenure, chaired by Fred Mills of Raleigh. The awards will be presented by a Board of Governors member during the spring graduation ceremony on each campus. Howard previously received the Alumni Association’s Outstanding Teaching Award in 2008 and and Board of Trustees’ Distinguished Professor for Teaching Award in 2009. Graduating seniors in his school have voted him “Most Inspiring Faculty Member” four times, most recently in 2009. Howard received an undergraduate degree in political science from SUNY Binghamton, a master’s in policy analysis from the University of Rochester, a master’s in interpersonal communication from Bowling Green State University, and a doctorate in communication studies also from Bowling Green. Christopher Locklear ’97 ’01 ’07 was appointed associate provost for personnel and resource administration. Locklear will be responsible for oversight of all aspects of EPA personnel for the Division of Academic and Student Affairs. He will continue to co-chair the University Policy Committee. Kidney specialist Wafa Badwan ’97 ’05 has joined the faculty as a clinical assistant professor after completing her residency training and a nephrology fellowship here. Born in Raleigh, she is board-certified in internal medicine and nephrology and joins a growing staff of kidney transplant specialists at ECU Physicians. Her clinical and research interests are critical care nephrology and renal transplant. U N I V E R S I T Y L I F E 17 18 Pianist wins Fisher grant Assistant piano professor Benjamin Hochman, one of ECU’s newest music faculty members, has been named a 2011 recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant, which is presented to talented instrumentalists with great potential for solo careers. Hochman will receive a stipend of $25,000 to use for specific needs in furthering his career. Hochman joined the School of Music faculty in fall 2010, succeeding Henry Doskey, who retired. The Israeli-born pianist made his recital debut at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and he has performed with the New York Philharmonic and the American Symphony Orchestra. He also has appeared with symphony orchestras in Chicago, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Seattle and Portland, and he has played with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and the Raanana and Jerusalem symphonies. Hochman is scheduled to participate in the Appalachian Summer Festival in Boone twice in July as part of the Broyhill Chamber Ensemble; he will play with the Boston Chamber Music Society in late August. Summer theatre on hiatus The stage at McGinnis Theatre will be dark this summer, as the popular ECU/Loessin Summer Theatre program has been affected by the state’s budget crunch. Two years ago, the summer program mounted only one production, Big River, and last year, ECU theater students and faculty participated in the Roanoke Island Festival Park summer theatrical season. This year, however, the drama and musical series will take a summer off, says Jeff Woodruff, managing director of the ECU summer theatre program. “There’s been a general, overall pulling back, and we’re basically all tightening our belts around here,” Woodruff says. Last summer’s financial situation prevented staging shows on campus, so the opportunity to relocate at least part of the summer series to Manteo proved to be a good move, he says. But ECU signaled the likelihood of canceling its summer season when it was not represented in late winter casting sessions in New York and other cities. This gave ECU students a chance to go We aren’t suggesting that you travel all the way to a small island in Lake Superior to hear two ECU students perform, but that is where some of the nation’s most talented young chamber musicians will be this summer. Senior Caroline Cox and younger sister Mary Catherine Cox, an incoming freshman, were among only 48 students nationwide accepted into the advanced string quartet program at the Madeline Island Music Camp. The camp is located on an island offshore from the Minneapolis area. Earlier this year, Caroline took top honors in the annual concerto competitions sponsored by both the Raleigh and Durham symphony orchestras and later performed with both groups. She is majoring in violin under Ara Gregorian and piano performance under Keiko Sekino. Mary Catherine, who also has studied under Gregorian and others, received honorable mentions at both the Raleigh and Durham symphony competitions. Caroline and Mary Catherine are the daughters of optometrists Carson and Valerie Cox of Southern Pines. Summer Arts Calendar Furnished 19 elsewhere for summer experience, Woodruff says, and “our students are getting lots of work in lots of other places. They are doing outdoor dramas, and some are doing theater in Charlotte. They are all over the place.” School of Theatre and Dance administrators hope that the current hiatus “is as short as possible,” he says, and the financial situation will not affect the 2011–12 season, which has announced a full slate of theatrical and dance productions, including Threepenny Opera, Oklahoma! and Elephant Man. Drama camp: The School of Theatre and Dance is expanding its summer drama camp program on campus this year, with two one-week sessions instead of a single session. Patricia “Patch” Clark, associate professor and coordinator for both the Theatre for Youth and Theatre Education Programs and founder and director of the ECU Storybook Theatre, again heads the Drama Camp, with sessions July 18–23 and July 25–30. Drama Camp is divided into three age groups: 5–10, 11–13 and 14–18. Instruction is provided in beginning acting and performance techniques for high school students; character development, performance and script writing for middle school students; and integrated arts, puppetry, mask making, creative dramatics and storybook theater for elementary school students. Guitar Workshop: Among the guest artists and instructors at the camp, which takes place July 10–13, will be Mary Akerman and Andrew Zohn, who have both performed in previous festivals. Festival artistic director Elliot Frank, professor of guitar in the School of Music, also will perform. Among others who will play in recitals, teach classes or both will be Adam Kossler ’06, now pursuing a doctorate from Florida State University (July 10); You Wang and Carlos Perez (July 11); and Jan Bartlema (July 13). Chinese guitarist You won the 2010 ECU festival competition and was first-place winner of the 2011 Indiana International Guitar Competition at Indiana University. Perez is a visiting lecturer at Columbus (Ga.) State University. The youth and college level competition finals are scheduled July 13. Band Camp: The popular camp for middle and high school students is June 19–24, with instruction and opportunities in full concert band, small ensemble and solo performance. Special coaching also will be available in jazz performance techniques. Jazz Camp: This year’s camp will run June 26–30 and provides opportunities for students to learn to play in combos, learn jazz theory and participate in improvisation classes. The camp is for rising seventh grade through 12th-grade players. Faculty members will be joined by jazz professionals from around the state. Summer Choral Camp: The camp for rising seventh grade through 12th grade singers will be June 26–July 1 and offer activities to strengthen participants’ vocal skills, music reading and aural perception of music. Suzuki Institute: This year’s camp will be June 30 and July 1–8 for teacher instruction and July 2–3 and July 3–8 for student instruction. The institute has been ongoing for nearly 30 years and provides private lessons in small master classes and group repertory classes for all levels from Book 1 through advanced. Students are placed according to skill level and age. —Steve Row The Greenville Museum of Art has expanded its collection of paintings by Francis Speight, who was artist-in-residence at East Carolina for 15 years and is considered one of North Carolina’s most accomplished artists. “Winter Scene,” a 40-inch by 42-inch oil, was considered one of the most important Speight paintings in private hands. Created in 1941, it was acquired by the Rachel Maxwell Moore Art Foundation and other community donors from Christie’s Auction House in New York and donated to the museum. “Winter Scene,” which was owned by Winston-Salem art collector William Hanes, joins a number of other works by Speight and his artist wife, Sarah Blakeslee, that are on permanent display at the museum. Born in Bertie County, Speight studied and then taught at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art from 1920 to 1961. The Rachel Maxwell Moore foundation now has acquired 130 pieces of art for the museum over the past 50 years. Located at 802 South Evans Street, the museum is open from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, and 1–4 p.m. on weekends. Admission is free. Furnished 20 Kimmy Cummings, forward/midfielder Linn Moore, TA Loving project superintendent Randall Jernigan, TA Loving project manager Christianne Cordero, goalkeeper Rob Donnenwirth, head coach Amanda Malkiewicz, forward 21 Olympic sports have new home A new $24 million complex for softball, soccer and track opens, creating a new gateway to campus and proving East Carolina is more than a football and baseball school 22 By J . E r i c E c k a r d p h o tography by jay clark Attendance tripled at women’s softball games this spring after the team began playing in an impressive new stadium that’s the centerpiece of the school’s new Olympic Sports Complex. Similar gains in fan support and student interest are expected this fall when the rest of the complex opens—a soccer stadium and a state-of-the-art facility for track. The complex, enclosed by a graceful brick wall and understated architectural touches, creates what officials say will be an eye-popping new gateway to campus. Located at the busy corner of Charles and Greenville boulevards adjacent to the football and baseball stadiums, the 16-acre complex will be the first impression of the school for many visitors driving into town. “These facilities will provide generations of students, fans, team members and coaches with a first-class impression of East Carolina University,” says Athletics Director Terry Holland. The development gives ECU some of the best facilities in North Carolina and in Conference USA. “Positive things are happening on ECU’s campus,” says Tracey Kee, the Pirates’ softball coach for the past 15 years. “This is not just a football school or a baseball school.” The $24-million Olympics Sports Complex is the latest piece of the puzzle to improve Pirate sports facilities. Since Holland came here nearly seven years ago, a total of $60 million has been committed to that effort, including the addition of 7,000 seats to Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium last year and the planned construction of a new practice facility for the basketball and volleyball teams. Holland says the Olympic sports facility and the basketball gym will be paid for with $1.5 million in annual revenue from the new football seats and $15 million in private fundraising. In addition, the $1.7 million in student activity fees that had gone toward Minges Coliseum, since paid for, will be transferred to the new complex. In the center will be the new home for non-revenue sports. The Olympics Sports Building will feature home and away locker rooms for softball, soccer and track events as well as equipment and training rooms. The second floor will feature a team meeting room and coaches’ offices. The building includes a fully equipped sports medicine facility. All three playing fields will have restrooms, concession stands and wireless Internet access. The site is being landscaped with dogwood, holly, magnolia, cherry and maple trees. A graceful brick and wrought iron wall extends along Greenville Boulevard. The site is a reminder of ECU’s continuing commitment to what are called non-revenue sports. That commitment was first made two years ago with the opening of the North Recreational Complex (NRC), a sprawling area 10 minutes from campus with eight multipurpose lighted fields, walking trails and a six-acre lake. The last phase of the NRC, a six-acre lake with a sandy beach and boat rentals, will be completed soon. Coaches from the three Olympics Sports Complex teams say the facilities will improve recruiting and the overall cache from the school’s commitment to sports of all types. “The whole place is looking different,” says women’s soccer coach Rob Donnenwirth. “It looks big-time. And it’s setting us up for inclusion in other conferences.” Moving to a Bowl Championship Series conference would benefit the football program because of the opportunity to play in more lucrative postseason bowls. A conference change also would generate more revenue for all ECU sports programs. But it’s not just about building shiny new stadiums or even winning games, although both are important. What Holland has done, according to Donnenwirth, is to instill the mindset that ECU “belongs” in a major conference with other “big-time” schools. “It’s not just the facilities; it’s the culture that he’s changed,” Donnenwirth says. Still, the victories have come. The women’s soccer team posted its best overall record ever in 2008 and went undefeated in conference play. The women’s track team finished sixth at the 2010 C-USA Indoor Championships, its best showing in school history. Kee’s softball team remains the powerhouse it has been for years; it’s the defending C-USA regular season and tournament champions after winning at least 40 games in six of the past seven seasons. Future Pirates are noticing. “ECU finally has a home that matches their level of skill,” says Emma Mendoker, a high school pitcher from Amherst, Mass., who will play for Kee as a freshman this fall. “For me, the most important thing was the level of play, the coaches and the academics. But it’s an added bonus to have such great facilities.” Another incoming freshman athlete, Kyle Hefkin, who threw the javelin for State College (Pa.) High School’s track team, said the complex influenced his decision. “Part of my decision was based on the new facilities—probably about 30 percent of my decision,” says Hef kin, who starts classes this fall. “I’m pretty excited.” Curt Kraft, ECU’s director of men’s and women’s track and field teams, says he believes the new facilities definitely will boost community support and improve attendance for the Olympic sports teams. “I’ve been coaching for 26 years, and in all my days of coaching, I’ve never had the opportunity to coach on a brand-new facility,” Kraft says. “But this is not about me, and it’s not about 2012. This is about the future—2018, 2022. This will be here for generations to come.” 23 SOCCER The new soccer stadium is similar in design and materials as the baseball stadium. The stadium will feature a video scoreboard and a modern press box. The stadium has 1,000 seats, 192 of which are chairbacks. The field is larger than most such facilities, measuring 360 feet from goal line to goal line and 225 feet from sideline to sideline. With its size, the soccer stadium can more readily host regional tournaments, something ECU could not do until now because its existing soccer facility was too small. “Did we lose recruits because of our old facility? Possibly,” Coach Rob Donnenwirth says. “I think when the stadium is [completed], and they’re coming to games, that’s when it will really kick in.” East Carolina suspended its men’s soccer program in 2005. In three previous seasons, the men’s team went 7-37-3 and won just two conference games. Holland said then that the program could not continue without “a significant increase in resources” which weren’t available at the time. Those resources now seem to be coming into focus. SOFTBALL The first of the three Olympic Sports Complex fields to debut, the softball stadium opened Feb. 16. Coach Tracey Kee calls it a “miniature Clark-LeClair Stadium,” complete with lights, three covered batting cages, a state-of-the-art press box and a video scoreboard in right-center field. The stadium has 1,000 seats, of which 200 are chairbacks. The field is 200 feet from home plate to the outfield foul poles. It’s 220 feet to dead center. Although not expected to draw the same numbers as the Pirate baseball team with its near cult-like following at the 6-year-old 3,000-seat Clark-LeClair Stadium, the softball team “has unbelievable fans who are slowly falling in love with the program,” Kee says. Incoming freshman Emma Mendoker, who has followed the progress of the new softball stadium during visits to ECU’s campus, says she was speechless when she saw the near-finished field late last year. “When I first went into the stands and looked out onto the field, it’s hard to describe, but it was just how it was presented,” Mendoker said. “I was ready to skip my senior year.” 24 25 Toni Paisley, pitcher Jordan Lewis, outfielder/infielder Kristi Oshiro, infielder 26 27 TRACK AND FI ELD To save money and conserve space, many university track facilities—including those at N.C. State and Carolina—are simply ovals built around soccer fields. But ECU’s new eight-lane track will surround an area for throwing events—javelin, hammer and discus. A tall gate-like structure rises in the infield to protect spectators and other athletes during throwing events. The last of the three playing fields to open, the track facility is expected to begin hosting matches next spring. ECU has been unable to hold conference events on campus because the school’s facilities, which were unlighted and did not meet NCAA standards and specifications. Coach Curt Kraft says ECU will have the “nicest track and field facility in North Carolina.” Looking at the entire Olympic Sports Complex—and its close proximity to the baseball stadium—he adds, “I think you’d be hard-pressed to find four better facilities in one package within the league. It takes us to another level in Conference USA.” Matthew McConaughey, javelin Curt Kraft, head coach Tynita Butts, sprinter/jumper Maegan Lewis, hammer 28 29 Jim Hunt’s Ms. Fix-It Rocked by scandal and plagued with inefficiencies, the N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles was the epitome of government gone wrong. It took three months just to get a car title transferred. The governor wanted an overhaul so he called on the person he knew could get the job done— with grace. He tapped Janice Faulkner, a veteran college professor and Democratic Party organizer whose second career in politics often outshines an equally outstanding one in academia. 30 When she arrived at ECU, Janice Hardison Faulkner ’53 ’56 came armed with strong rural values and a tough skin from playing baseball with future pitching greats Jim and Gaylord Perry. Hard work came naturally after growing up on a Martin County farm, where sunrise brought countless chores and farm duties. Education, she knew, was her ticket off the farm. The grit and determination she demonstrated then and later as a teacher and politician inspired others to reach higher. “You’ve got to connect to people who are engaged,” she says. “You seek access, you find out more, you pour your energy into inquiry.” Starting with her first job teaching English at East Carolina in 1957, Faulkner distinguished herself by encouraging students with her love for writers like John Steinbeck, Katherine Anne Porter and Eudora Welty. In addition to teaching, she served as head of the Regional Development Institute, which promotes economic growth in the East. She supported the college in other roles, including serving as a charter member of the Board of Visitors. She had spent 36 years in the classroom when she began a phased retirement in 1992. About that time she got a call from Gov. Jim Hunt, whom she had met years earlier during a student government trip. An energetic young lawyer and student organizer, Hunt had sought her help back then with an event featuring Leo Jenkins. A great friendship developed between them. After his election to a third term as governor in 1992, Hunt named her secretary of the N.C. Department of Revenue. She became Hunt’s go-to person when thorny problems arose, such as in 1996 when he turned to her to clean up a political mess in the Secretary of State’s office. She had restored integrity to that office when Hunt called with another assignment, appointing her commissioner of the DMV in 1997. By that time she knew politics coddled no one, but she refused to let uncertainty limit her. “I wasn’t there to pursue any goal for myself,” she says. “I was there to serve a governor I trusted, and that made me a little more confident than I would have been under different circumstances.” In an interview with East, Hunt called her “one of the best people I ever worked with. You can tell how much how much I think of her. I was always very careful about the people I picked out, not only knowledgeable and able, but people who were really passionate about making change. She knows how to reason carefully and persuasively, speak powerfully and convincingly. She was willing to take on any job.” Although she often was the first woman to serve in statewide political positions, she could handle the tough personalities one encounters in the rough and tumble of politics. “There’s a steel fist under that velvet glove,” Hunt said. A governor’s first choice Faulkner says she felt like a visitor when she first joined DMV. Employees lacked direction and supervisors resented her. “There were people who behaved badly on presumed entitlement,” she recalls. “Because they knew people in powerful places, they didn’t believe they were accountable to the commissioner. So I just ignored them. I said to the workers, ‘We’ve got to make this the best agency in state government.’” Within weeks, the DMV was clicking on all cylinders. She appealed to employees to do their best—and they responded to her down-to-earth appeal by moving thousands of backlogged titles. She relied on her mother’s advice—and her father’s temper— to get things done. “You have to be polite, and kind and genteel,” she says her mother told her. “You have to behave yourself until that stops working. When it stops working, you go right on and behave just like your Daddy,” she says. “My Daddy would pound the table and cuss. So I learned to know when he had to kick in.” “There are a certain number of bullies,” she says. “If they are in control of an agenda you’re committed to delivering, you have to confront them at some point. You have to kick them around the ankles.” Her steel fist in a velvet glove worked miracles. Faulkner brought such efficiency to the DMV that the title turnaround time shrank to four days. She left state government in 2001 and has continued to work for the community on campus and off. She currently serves as chair of the Pitt Memorial Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees, as well as a member of the ECU Women’s Roundtable. She was honored with an Outstanding Alumni Award in 1993 and in 2009 received the Jarvis Medal, which recognizes extraordinary service to the university. Earlier this year the Greenville-Pitt County Chamber of Commerce presented her with its Legends Award. Looking behind—and ahead As she reflects on public life, she generously shares stories without dropping names, though she certainly could. She met John and Robert Kennedy in 1960 when, at 28, she was the youngest delegate to the National Democratic Convention. “Bobby was doing a lot of the heavy lifting for Jack’s campaign for the presidency,” she recalls. “He was very visible in the convention that year.” Later she met Ted Kennedy. Among the framed photos in her Greenville home are pictures of Hunt, former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker and JFK’s official White House portrait. Nearby is a touching black-and-white image of Robert Kennedy beneath a painting of Christ. In another photo she’s seen with British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. By Marion Bla ckburn There are fewer volumes in her towering bookshelves these days, because in February she made an exceptional gift to Joyner Library of first-editions and rare books, many of which have been added to the Special Collections and North Carolina Collections. “It’s always especially meaningful to have the support of a long-time faculty member, and of such an important public figure in the state,” says Maury York, assistant director for Special Collections. “The gift of books is important, and to know that someone of her standing and caliber supports the library means a great deal to us.” Among the books she donated is a special first edition of John Steinbeck’s East of Eden in a box, signed by the author. Harry Golden’s biography of Carl Sandburg, signed by both of them, also figured among the collection. Cale, a novel by Sylvia Wilkinson, will go into the Roberts Collection of fiction set in North Carolina. One she held onto is a book about North Carolina’s first ladies autographed by several of them. With her reputation as the iron lady of public service, it’s easy to forget she made her name as a teacher. She always emphasized doing your best. “I wanted students to pay attention while they were in my keep,” she says. One former student, Wanda Yuhas ’75, executive director of the Pitt County Economic Development Commission, remembers her considerable influence. “She was smart, she was funny. She made you want to learn more.” “I was 19 years old and [having Faulkner as a teacher] changed my entire outlook on life,” Yuhas says. “We knew we could call on her for advice or for assistance. She changed who we are and changed who we are as a region and as a state. She raised the bar for all of us.” East JANICE HARDISON FAULKNER ’53 ’56 ECU instructo r and department chair 1957–1992 Director, Regional Development Institute Director of alumni affairs Associate vice chancellor for regional development North Carolina state government 1993 Secretary of Revenue 1996 Secretary of State, the first woman to serve in that role 1997–2001 Commissioner of the Division of Motor Vehicles Other honors and service 1993 Outstanding Alumni Award 1989–1991 President , N.C. World Trade Association 1994 Founding member and first chair of the university’s Board of Visitors 1998 Honorary doctorate from ECU 2003 First chair of the ECU Women’s Roundtable 2007 100 Incredible ECU Women 2009 Jarvis Medal Current Chair, Pitt County Memorial Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees and member of the PCMH Board of Trustees 31 University Archives from the classroom Sociologist, surfer dude 33 Jeff Johnson, one of ECU’s most honored professors, can capture a student’s attention—and catch a wave. By J u s tin Boul may When he was in graduate school, one of sociology professor Jeffrey Johnson’s favorite classes required students to write a paper every other week and then submit their work for review by their classmates. That repeated criticism showed Johnson the strong points and weak points in his arguments. It also taught Johnson that his best work wouldn’t come easily. “The more I suffered, the better it was,” he says. The longer he’s been in the classroom at East Carolina—which will be 30 years soon—the further Johnson has moved away from teaching by the traditional lecture method. He wants his students engaged the same way he was as a college student. He knows they will work harder if they have a personal stake in the outcome. “If you’ve got something that people care about and then you have them take what you’re trying to teach them and put it to bear on what they care about, they’ll learn more and they’re going to be more interested,” Johnson says. 34 For his doctoral students, the incentive is to learn more about the mechanics of research. Throughout the semester, his students write objectives, develop questions and hypotheses, and then submit their work to the class for feedback. This teaching method gives students both a finished project at the end of the semester as well as experience defending their views. That knowledge will come in handy when they defend their dissertations before a faculty committee. Jamie Brinkley, who is pursuing his Ph.D. in coastal resource management and also works for Johnson, said he has even enrolled in courses taught by Johnson that really weren’t related to his major. “He just makes it fun,” he said. “He’s pretty personable.” Johnson himself likes seeing what happens when his students grasp what’s being taught in class. “I enjoy seeing students get something and actually being able to think critically and apply something and see the lights go off,” he says. “It doesn’t always happen, but when it does, it’s a real satisfying thing.” Distinguished professor and scientist Johnson is one of East Carolina’s most decorated professors. He’s served as a distinguished research professor the past four years and was the 2010 Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences Distinguished Professor. In addition to teaching, he also serves as a senior scientist at the Institute for Coastal Science and Policy. He received ECU’s 2007 Lifetime Achievement Award in Research and Creative Activity. He has authored several books and dozens of peer-reviewed articles published in scholarly journals. He’s a favorite mentor for master’s and doctoral students in the Department of Sociology and the coastal resource management Ph.D. program. Winning the distinguished professor award “was a great honor, and the people who’ve gone before me—I knew some of the others—it was an honor to be in their presence, in the membership of that particular club.” Johnson has traveled to Russia, Alaska and the Antarctic for research; he’s journeyed to Panama and El Salvador to pursue another of his passions: surfing. That’s a sport he’s enjoyed since the mid-1960s growing up in California. Johnson had entered the University of California–Irvine with the intention of becoming an engineer. However, he took an anthropology course and was hooked on the subject. When the local economy suffered layoffs in the local aerospace industry in the 1970s, Johnson started to think that if he was going to be unemployed, then he might as well pursue something he enjoyed. He graduated from UC–Irvine in 1975 with a bachelor’s degree in anthropology. He started his doctoral classes as an undergraduate student, which allowed him to earn his Ph.D. in social science in 1981. $2 million in research funding Research is also something Johnson enjoys and, judging by the amount of funding he’s received over the years, is something at which he is talented. He has received more than 50 grants totaling more than $2 million over the last five years alone to support his research. Some of Johnson’s work has focused on coastal issues, such as a study in the early 1990s regarding conflicts between commercial and recreational fisherman, as well as tagging data from news articles from the Sudan Tribune to build a network of concepts that reveals the links between particular topics, such as possible conflicts between two tribes. He’s also published research on ear infections among children in eastern North Carolina. Other projects provided Johnson with the opportunity to understand what makes social groups survive. During research in Alaska, Johnson studied a group of fishermen who were on strike. The group regularly picked on one of its members, but those actions helped to relieve tension among the group, which also rewarded the member it picked on by giving him fish. So Johnson further explored how the importance of these roles by studying different working communities at Antarctic polar-research stations belonging to the United States, Russia, India, China and Poland. Each study of each station yielded the same answer: the more a group has informal roles—such as the informal leader and even the group “clown”—and maintains a face-to-face connection, the stronger the group will be. “And lo and behold, it even holds up across cultures that the more of these informal roles of a certain mix you have, the better the group does,” Johnson said. Understanding human behavior These days, Johnson is helping the U.S. Army better understand other cultures. Surfing in El Salvador Books by Faculty Liza Wieland’s third collection of short fiction is filled with women who find themselves at emotional crossroads: A young girl encounters the elderly Ezra Pound in Venice; Marie Curie’s daughter Eve attends the funeral of her mother’s lover in Paris; a woman survives the 1944 Nazi massacre in Oradour, France; a nun in New York City catches a baby dropped out a window; a U.S. college applicant whose talent is performing sign language at poetry readings. As each deals with the delicious dangers they encounter, they seem to gain a firmer understanding of themselves and their own ambitions—a quickening, if you will, of the spirit. Wieland paints beautiful word portraits of these unusual characters. The winner of two Pushcart Prizes, as well as fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Christopher Isherwood Foundation and the North Carolina Arts Council, Wieland also has written three novels and a book of poems. On the acknowledgements page, she says the book could not have been completed without a grant she received from the Thomas Harriott College of Arts and Sciences, where she teaches in the English department. It’s unfortunate, then, that the “About the Author” blurb says she teaches at Eastern Carolina University. Quickening Southern Methodist University Press 256 pages, $23.95 He has a two-year contract to develop a basic social-science program for the Army Research Office that will help soldiers better understand human behavior and other cultures. This year he is spending about 60 percent of his time working for the military on the project. The Army’s request reflects a shift from the “us versus them” social perspective of the world that was held during the Cold War. “There’s all kinds of players in any kind of conflict or any kind of humanitarian effort,” Johnson says. “The real problem no longer is necessarily having to do with weapons or anything else. The problem is trying to understand people, understand culture, understand those kinds of things.” His work could help the military know how best to interact with people in countries like Afghanistan and Iraq, although the program isn’t specifically geared toward the Middle East. Because the course is rooted in better understanding human behavior, it could help explore why the uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa that occurred this year happened now and not five years ago. Social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter might have helped facilitate those uprisings, but Johnson also suggests underlying causes like rising food prices and the lack of political freedom. Johnson visited Iraq last fall and interviewed FBI agents who told him that Iraqi judges don’t even consider forensic evidence when hearing a case. However, many Iraqis have learned about what constitutes evidence in court by watching reruns of such American TV cop shows as CSI. That’s one piece of a puzzle that also involves overcoming bad history. People have to trust that they’ll be treated fairly when they appear in court, so in a place like Iraq, how do you get a Sunni citizen to trust that a Shia judge will try their case fairly? “Those are all human problems,” Johnson said. Judging by his previous accomplishments, the Army appears to have found the right man for the job. Tom Raedeke Mind Games The brain is a muscle, so sport psychologists train athletes to exercise it same as their abs, delts and pecs. Here are their workout tips on how you can, too. 38 Hoping to boost morale and productivity, companies often bring in a motivational speaker to lead a rah-rah meeting to improve workers’ attitude and motivation. Golfers rush out to buy the latest video promising mental secrets to lower scores. But these quick-fix approaches hardly ever work, according to psychology professor Tom Raedeke, who has worked with athletes and coaches for more than 20 years. Coaches around campus agree with him that just as physical skills can only become consistent through practice and repetition, improving your mental game only comes from learning proper thinking patterns and then committing to practice, practice, practice. “Some athletes are more physically gifted than others, but everybody can improve their physical skills,” Raedeke says. “It takes systematic training, it takes hard work, it takes conscientious effort. The same thing is true with the mental game. Some athletes are naturally more mentally tough, but every single athlete can learn and grow and improve in their mental game.” The mental demands in college athletics vary from sport to sport, but the common thread is this: A breakdown above the neck can nullify untold hours of physical training. It happens when athletes can’t duplicate how they perform in practice when they’re under the pressure of competition. Raedeke has worked with volleyball players, runners and other athletes, but he prefers to train coaches in the fundamentals of sport psychology. If he can help a coach, he reasons, the impact will be much broader than if he works with just one athlete at a time. “In talking to a lot of coaches, they say, ‘I’m really good at the Xs and Os. I know the game. But that mental stuff ? That’s kind of touchy feely. I’m not sure what to do with that.’” Raedeke says. “I think coaches are receptive to it, but some just aren’t very comfortable in that side of it.” For us weekend warriors looking to improve our games, the good news is that this touchy-feely stuff that works for college athletes can work for us, too. The experts say you should start by focusing on your attitude. Think about it like a muscle needing a workout. Take your mental pulse daily If any coach understands the necessity for mental as well as physical workouts, it’s Rick Kobe. As the head coach for 60-plus swimmers and divers, he presides over a sport requiring early-morning workouts in a chlorine-scented facility that is more than 40 years old. College swimmers never see the sun; it’s a grind that tends to wear on some psyches. “In swimming, it’s every single day, every single practice,” says Kobe, ECU’s longest-serving head coach, with 29 years of experience. “Any good swim coach has to be a psychologist or it’s not going to happen.” Kobe relies on his team leaders to continually take the mental pulse of other team members and let a coach know when someone is struggling. He might not do anything if one of his swimmers seems off at one practice, he said, but if he sees the same poor attitude on the second day he will have a one-on-one meeting with the swimmer to help get them back on track. When he works with athletes, Raedeke, who has been at East Carolina since 1998 and has experience in venues like the U.S. Olympic Training Center, tries to identify what has cropped up to block their focus. “What I try to do is figure out what is standing in the way of them reaching their potential or performing up to their physical abilities and then try to improve their mental game,” he says. “What I try to do is give them the skills to perform in a pressure situation.” Golf, it’s often said, is played on a six-inch course between your ears, which is why men’s and women’s golf coaches Press McPhaul and Kevin Williams are completely sold on the benefits of the mental game. They teach kids that if you master the little things, big things usually will follow. “It may be oversimplifying it a little bit, but a good round is built on a lot of good shots, and good shots are built on being confident, and being confident is built on feeling prepared, and feeling prepared comes from having a trusted process that has yielded good results,” McPhaul says. “Most of the time that they are having some swing error or physical error, if you trace that back far enough that root is probably in some mental or lack of trust breakdown. “ Avoid ‘mental blindness’ So, you develop and religiously adhere to a practice regimen, which helps you produce a winning backhand or a great putting stroke. It pays off when you hit that great shot and feel that rush of adrenaline. You feel great until your next shot sails out of bounds. What happened? Williams is constantly preaching a concept he calls ���emotional blindness,” which teaches golfers to avoid letting one emotional experience affect their next decision on the course. “Emotional blindness is, you hit a bad shot, and you let that control your next decision.” Often it helps to stop thinking about your performance altogether. When Williams first took the ECU job in 2007, the team’s lone senior was a Swedish golfer named Emelie Lind. Lind had been averaging 77 strokes per round, scores that Williams felt didn’t reflect her potential. He concluded she was struggling because she was too fixated on her own scorecard. He tried a new approach, telling Lind that as the team’s senior leader she needed to stop thinking about her own score and instead focus on what she could do to direct her teammates. “During her senior year she had her lowest stroke average ever, taking off almost two-and- a-half strokes per round,” Williams says. “I firmly believe that because she stopped worrying about her game and just played golf, she got out of her own way.” By B ethany Brad sher p HOTOGRAPH Y B Y F OREST CROCE 39 Volleyball coach Pati Rolf has integrated a campus ROTC instructor’s experience and insight into her quest to develop leadership on her squad. Lt. Col. Eric Buller, who fought in Somalia and now teaches military science in Army ROTC, has met with the volleyball players weekly to challenge them to dig deeper in athletics, in the classroom and in the community. “The first step was defining a leader,” says Buller, who came to view his sessions with the volleyball team as one of the highlights of his week. “The act of defining leadership is the instrument that has gotten them to open up and talk about things.” Realize it’s a battle out there Jeff Connors is a coach known for his ability to zero in on the mental side of the game. A strength-and-conditioning coach, he’s fond of saying, “Confidence is born of demonstrated ability.” And that ability, he believes, comes from showing determination and focus through intensive strength-and-conditioning regimens. Connors has made a 30-year career out of helping athletes find the internal motivation to push themselves up to and past physical limits in the weight room and on the track. With a bookshelf full of military biographies and tactical books, Connors adheres to the ideals that soldiers carry into battle, and he believes that coaches can inspire athletes to the type of loyalty, hard work and selflessness that defines our military. When he held the same position at ECU in the ’90s under head coaches Bill Lewis and Steve Logan, Connors became known for pulling surprising results from athletes who started out smaller, weaker and less recruited than their opponents at larger programs. With his drill sergeant mentality and plenty of tough love, Connors combined a stream of positive motivation with a brutal conditioning regimen to ensure that no team would be fitter in the fourth quarter than his team. “My favorite book is the Marine Corps warfighting skills manual, because I can go in there and read about character, and I can read about discipline, and I can read about accountability and I can read about leadership, and all these things have parallels to athletics,” Connors says. “What I always tell athletes is I draw these parallels because if it’s good enough for the most successful war fighting machine in the history of the world, it’s probably going to work for us, too.” East Jeff Connors 40 pirate nation From guarding presidents to protecting students Among the first steps taken by the UNC Board of Governors after the Virginia Tech shooting tragedy was to hire an expert to lead a safety improvement effort for all the campuses. The board found that expertise in Brent Herron ’77, a veteran Secret Service agent who had helped guard five presidents. Since being named the UNC system’s associate vice president for safety and emergency operations two years ago, Herron has worked quietly to implement a range of programs to improve student safety. He stepped into the spotlight recently to deliver a status report to the board and the assembled chancellors. Here are some highlights of his presentation: It’s a big problem. If the UNC system were a city, it would be the third largest in North Carolina with a population of more than 265,000—about 220,000 students and 45,000 faculty and staff. Campus police are highly trained. All campus officers are trained and state-certified. Five campus police departments, including ECU’s, have the same accreditation as city police departments. Policing a campus is difficult. Besides traditional duties, campus cops operate highly technical campus security systems and perform tasks city police don’t, like guarding major sporting events, concerts and theater performances. Campus police departments acted on more than 260,000 calls in 2010. At N.C. State, the 911 center answered 80,153 calls last year. Student counseling centers help. Several campuses, including ECU, now operate accredited counseling centers to serve students. Counselors at these centers report that depression and anxiety are common reasons students seek psychological help. Counselors talk with faculty and staff when there is a specific safety concern. Use all available resources. All the campuses now have in place trained threat assessment teams with representatives from the counseling center, campus police, academic affairs, residence life, dean of students’ office and human resources. Each campus has a written protocol for identifying and responding to students who potentially pose a threat. Faculty, staff and students should be trained to recognize signs of violence, suicide and mental illness. Respond instantly. Each campus has emergency notification and communication plans that include loud sirens and warnings broadcast via test messages, voice mail, e-mail, web site and social media. Train for the worst. All UNC campuses conduct safety exercises at least twice a year. These include tabletop exercises and full-scale “active shooter” drills. A consulting company that specializes in emergency response and preparedness facilitates the drills. The top lesson learned from these drills is that communication is the most critical element to achieve the best emergency response. “It’s been a big learning experience for me because I had never worked on a campus,” Herron said the challenges of his job, which includes oversight of the 16 UNC university campuses and the N.C. School for Science and Math. “When I came on board we had 17 campuses moving forward but in 17 directions and my job was to say, ‘Let’s look at this from a system perspective.’ I know for a fact that on the public safety side of the house, everybody now has a better idea of how [proactive safety programs] operate. We have better communication,” he added. All but two of the 16 campuses conducted full-scale “active shooter” drills in the past year in which authorities respond as if it were the real thing. Two campuses that previously trained for a shooting incident switched to train for other disasters—a hurricane and a train derailment. Herron worked for the Secret Service for 21 years until taking the UNC job. In that time he worked protective assignments for presidents Ford, Carter, Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Clinton and George W. Bush. “Reagan was in the last year of his presidency when I started. The assignments with Ford and Carter were as former presidents. Most of my protection time was with presidents Clinton and G.W. Bush,” Herron said. A photo on his office wall of Marine One, which transports presidents to and from the White House, was presented to Herron by the Marine squadron that operates the helicopter. The son of a military man, Herron is originally from Durham but moved around a lot growing up. His is a true Pirate family. “My brother went to ECU, my two sisters, and my brother in law. My niece and our daughter are current students, so ECU definitely runs in our blood.” 41 Alumni welcome at summer outings Freshmen Sendoffs events are a fun way for alumni to reconnect with each other and to meet the newest class of Pirates. Held across the Pirate Nation, these summer outings are open to alumni and friends who want to encourage Pirate spirit and instill Pirate pride in the Class of 2015. Freshmen Sendoffs will occur in the following areas: Arlington, Va. Charlotte, N.C. Clemmons, N.C. Fayetteville, N.C. Morehead City, N.C. New York metro— Cranford, N.J. Norfolk, Va. Philadelphia metro— Cherry Hill, N.J. Powhatan, Va. Raleigh, N.C. (2) Wilmington, N.C. Nominat e someone for an alumni award Each fall the Alumni Association recognizes alumni and friends through our Alumni Awards Program. Alumni are recognized with Outstanding Alumni Awards for those who have demonstrated uncommon achievement in their profession, in civic affairs, and/or in politics. Distinguished Service Awards are given to alumni that have given their time and talents to advance the university through exceptional service. Honorary Alumni Awards are bestowed upon those who did not attend the university, but have adopted it as their own through outstanding service, continuing commitment, and loyalty. Nominations for the 2012 Alumni Awards are now being accepted. Please visit PirateAlumni.com/awardsprocess for nomination materials and directions on submitting a nomination. Please call the Alumni Center at 800-ECU-GRAD with questions. Exceptional Contribution awards Six individuals and one group were honored in April with Black Alumni Exceptional Contribution Awards at the “Reclaiming the Past, Celebrating the Future” Reunion Gala during the Black Alumni Reunion. Honorees were selected based on outstanding contribution to the East Carolina community and/or to their local community. This year’s recipients include: Dr. Sheila G. Bunch ’77 of Greenville, director of ECU’s School of Social Work Mr. Michael Moseley ’80 of Kinston, retired state Health and Human Services administrator Rev. James D. Corbett ’85 of Greenville, founder and pastor of Community Christian Church Ms. Brenda Myrick ’92 of Greenville, administrator of Operative Services at Pitt County Memorial Hospital Vonta Leach ’10, running back for the NFL’s Houston Texans Derval Hamilton of Greenville, exercise physiology major and president of Circle K International at ECU Eta Nu Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Nominations for 2012 Black Alumni Exceptional Contribution Awards are accepted year round. Visit PirateAlumni.com /blackalumnirecognition to download a nomination form. Award recipients and other reunion participants enjoyed a weekend of events with the Michael Jackson theme “Remember the Times.” Activities included “I Want You Back” mixer, “Got to Be There” Gospel Choir Concert, Party with the Pros, “A Brand New Day” conversation, the 4th Annual Pirate Alumni Road Race and Fun Run, and the Annual Purple/Gold Spring Football Game. Reunion, anyon e? Is your affinity group interested in getting together? Contact the Alumni Association to start planning your reunion. Whatever the common interest, athletics, clubs and organizations, societies, the Alumni Association will work with you to plan an engaging and fun schedule of events. Call 800-ECU-GRAD or e-mail alumni@PirateAlumni.com to get started. Sav e the Dat e! July 11—Alumni Tailgate tickets on sale for members September 29—Pirate’s Bounty Scholarship Auction September 30—ECU Alumni Scholarship Classic golf tournament October 28-29—Homecoming In honor of Service Month, members of the Wake County Chapter of the Alumni Association formed a fundraising team to assist the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, a charity that provides funding for research to find cures for childhood cancers. The team surpassed its initial $2,000 goal by raising $2,730. The culminating event had six members of the team shave their heads at Napper Tandy’s during the charity’s annual festival. 42 43 2010 MARY HOWELL exhibited her work at the Uptown Art Gallery in Greenville. Staff Sgt. KATHERINE L. TRIPP, 982nd Combat Camera, completed the U.S. Army Combatives School at Fort Benning, Ga. She is a graduate student at ECU. MARGIE GRAY WORKMAN is an account manager with Confidential Records Management Inc. in Greenville. 2009 ERIKA LYNN CONWAY was promoted to bank center manager at Bank of America and manages the branch on West First Street in Greenville. She was assistant branch manager at Bank of America in Washington, N.C. BRANDON HENDERSON joined Next Level Training Center in Greenville. He played baseball at ECU. CHARLES DAVID PARKS joined the Greensboro office of Brady Services as a staff accountant. JENNIFER RAINES wed LEI “NATHAN” ZHU ’08 at Messiah Lutheran Church in Wilmington on Sept. 25. A second ceremony was held a week later in Wuhan, China. ERIN TART joined the Country Club of North Carolina in Pinehurst as special events and catering manager. She was resort services coordinator for Pinehurst Resort. JAY ROSS, a defensive lineman on the Green Bay Packers’ practice squad, and C. J. WILSON, a Packers’ defensive end, were on the Super Bowl winning team. 2008 ELIZABETH PAIGE BAGGETT ’08 ’10 teaches softball at Next Level Training Center in Greenville. She played four years on the ECU softball team. JAKE DEAN joined Next Level Training Center in Greenville. He played baseball at ECU. LEO JOHNSON II joined Going Bananas in Greenville, which offers a variety of games and activities for children. CHRISTIN NAOMI MATTHEWS wed Jason Moore Harman on July 24 at Fuquay-Varina Baptist Church in Fuquay-Varina. She teaches second grade in the Moore County School System. JIM MCATEE is director of career services at Indiana University–Purdue University Fort Wayne (Indiana). He was in the ECU career services office. ASHLEY MARIE MCDUFFIE wed Dwight David Gane Jr. on Oct. 30 at the New Hanover County Arboretum in Wilmington. She works for Coastal Chiropractic Center. SUSAN STANCILL ’08 ’09 joined Eastern Psychiatric & Behavioral Specialists in Greenville, where she offers behavioral psychotherapy to pediatric and adult patients. KATIE REESE WEINER wed Steven Lewis Burger on Sept. 25 at the Orchard House in Concord. She works for Gaston County Hospice. 2007 ELIZABETH FULTON was selected as treasurer of the executive board for the Student Bar Association for Alumni S p otlight CLASS NOTES Michelle Pearson ’92, founding member and currently one of four artistic directors of Even Exchange Dance Theater in Raleigh, was invited by the U.S. State Department to serve as a cultural envoy to Freetown, Sierra Leone, for two weeks in January. Pearson worked with local groups in creating dance programs and in cross-cultural exercises. In a country where 80 percent of the population is illiterate, dance can be an effective means of communication. “As a choreographer, I often learn about the world by dancing and creating dances,” Pearson says. “I believe an artist’s job is to provide an understanding of common issues in a different, deeper or new way. Making dances about meaningful, difficult, surprising and human issues with a range of people is one way to meet this challenge.” She specializes in working with groups who would not ordinarily get to experience and create through dance. In turn she gathers information and material from those she dances with. This “even exchange” provides the name for her theater company. Garrett McNeill ’08 worked in an orphanage in Ben Hoa, Vietnam, before heading out to Guatemala on his journey to minister to the poor in 11 countries in 11 months. As a volunteer in the Great Race, a nondenominational Christian charitable organization, McNeill travels with other volunteers. “There is so much that needs to be done and that can be done and this year has really opened my eyes to the lives of millions of people around the world and that we have the ability to create a better life for them and for ourselves.” In Guatemala, McNeill’s group is fitting special needs children with wheelchairs. class notes Alumni S p otlight 44 One year ago Rachelle Friedman ’08 was planning her wedding to Chris Chapman ’05 ’08. At her bachelorette celebration in Raleigh, she was playfully shoved into a pool by one of her bridesmaids. She hit her head on the bottom and was paralyzed from the collarbone down. The wedding was postponed, but Friedman and Chapman are adjusting to their new life, living outside of Raleigh in a house they bought together. When news of her accident and their positive response to the tragedy became national news, Friedman was chosen by the NBC television show George to the Rescue, which surprises people who have overcome difficulties of some sort with home renovations. “They saw my story somewhere and realized it wasn’t all peaches and cream and wanted to know how Chris and I have been affected,” said Friedman. “I thought I was having a typical interview when George to the Rescue surprised me by showing up at our door.” The remodeling added an elevator to the home and a lift system to help her get in and out of bed. The master bath and closet were adjusted so Friedman can reach everything from her wheelchair. The halls and doorways were widened to accommodate the wheelchair. The guest bedroom and garage were decorated with an ECU theme. A ramp and sidewalk were added to their deck so Friedman can access the back yard to play with their dogs, PeeDee and [Jolly] Roger. “To be able to shower, pick out my own clothes and put on make-up myself has been amazing. It’s easier to be myself now.” After the accident, Friedman spent two months at Pitt County Memorial Hospital and has made the most of physical-therapy sessions allotted by her insurance company. As a former dance and aerobics instructor, she’s determined to overcome and stay active. A major source of strength for Friedman comes from playing on the Raleigh Sidewinders quadriplegic rugby team. “I get stronger and stronger at each practice. We do everything any other team would do, laps and suicides. I have found camaraderie in the teammates. I can ask them questions and they can give so much support since they know what I’m going through.” Last fall Friedman appeared at ECU’s annual Adapted Recreation and Wellness Day at the Student Rec Center to share her experience with how playing competitive rugby has helped her physically and mentally. As an undergraduate, she volunteered at the event and played tennis and basketball in a wheelchair. Watching Murderball, a movie about a team of paraplegics who play full-contact wheelchair rugby, for a class also gave her some insight into adaptive sports. “This movie has helped me stay positive, because I knew I could be independent and have fun.” A former lifeguard, she said she would “love to get more involved with lifeguards and talk about being alert, safety around the pool, and knowing the signs of injury.” The couple shares a love for ECU and Pirate football. “I have never missed a football game and was a volunteer at the ticket office,” said Friedman. “I had season tickets before the accident, but was able to change them to the handicapped seats. Almost everything in my life has changed, but watching ECU play football hasn’t. I just have better seats now.” —Jessica Nottingham the 2010–2011 academic year at the Charleston (S.C.) School of Law. ALLEN LLOYD LAWRENCE JR. wed Elizabeth Ann Baggett on Nov. 6 at the Duck Woods Country Club, Southern Shores. He is self-employed in construction management. CASI MOORING ’07 ’09 joined Eastern Psychiatric & Behavioral Specialists PLLC in Greenville, where she provides medical management to patients with behavioral and/or emotional issues. KATIE LYNN TYSON wed Phillip Charles Entzminger on Oct. 10 at First Free Will Baptist Church in Greenville. She is pursuing a second degree in clinical laboratory science at ECU. 2006 BRIAN FLYE is a home mortgage consultant in the Greenville office of Wells Fargo Home Mortgage. MICHELE GLINCOSKY GARCIA received her MS in speech language pathology from ECU. She works for the Ft. Worth (Texas) Independent School District. Dr. TANA HALL, specialist in obstetrics and gynecology, joined ECU’s Brody School of Medicine and its group medical practice, ECU Physicians, as an assistant professor. Dr. NICHOLAS JERNIGAN heads a special needs department opened by Wilmington Health to see children and adults with autism, Down syndrome and other genetic diseases and developmental disorders. ROBERT J. LEWIS III was appointed as planning department director for Columbus County. He was the planner/GIS administrator for Elizabethtown. LYNNLY MARTIN was named Pitt County Schools’ Outstanding Secondary Mathematics Teacher for the 2010 school year. ALICIA NAGLE joined Eastern Psychiatric & Behavioral Specialists in Greenville, where she specializes in psychological evaluations to delineate educational, behavioral and emotional needs. ADAM CALHOUN PARKER wed Laura Marie Wing on Oct. 23 at Brownson Memorial Presbyterian Church in Southern Pines. He is an analyst at First Citizens Bank in Raleigh. CYNTHIA TAYLOR, a licensed and registered occupational therapist, is director and owner of Carolina Therapy Connection in Greenville. Dr. JILL SUTTON, specialist in obstetrics and gynecology, joined ECU’s Brody School of Medicine and its group medical practice, ECU Physicians, as a clinical assistant professor. KIMBERLY DAWN WOOD wed Jay Douglas Benfield on July 30 at the First Baptist Church in Winston-Salem. She is a dance instructor at In Motion Dance Center in Winston- Salem. MOLLY MCKEITHAN YOUNG was inducted into ECU’s College of Education’s Educators Hall of Fame. She was the 2010 Pitt County Teacher of the Year and now lives in Charlotte. 2005 LAUREN D. ASBY was promoted to banking officer for Southern Bank in the South Charles Boulevard office in Greenville. She is president-elect of the Greater Greenville Kiwanis Club and a charter member of Greenville’s Junior Women’s Association. JUSTIN 45 Alumni S p otlight Amanda Miller ’06 ’07 of Atlanta, who was in the first class to graduate from ECU with a master’s in communication degree, was invited back by the School of Communication to talk with students about how to make the sometimes painful transition between college and the real world. She gave them something textbooks and professors cannot: a first-hand account of how to be successful in this job market with this specific degree. She shared industry-specific job searching tips, the demands of health communication-related positions and recent trends in the field. “Job searching and getting your career off the ground can be overwhelming and students often don’t know where to start. But, I’ve found you can begin anywhere,” said Miller. “Success for me has been less about finding one area to get plugged into or developing one particular skill, and more strategically taking advantage of a wide variety of opportunities in the classroom, professional organizations and interning or freelancing.” For the past three years, Miller has been contracted full time with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as a health communication specialist. She has served as the communication expert on a number of health initiatives and campaigns for the CDC ranging from the Office of Women’s Health to the Office of Workforce and Career Development. Currently, she is working in the Office for State, Tribal, Local and Territorial Support, which works to ensure the use of evidence-based public-health policy, practice and communication at all these levels. Miller detailed her work on a health campaign called text4baby, a groundbreaking and award-winning mobile technology program to improve maternal and child health via text messaging. Miller served on the recent graduate panel for the regional chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America, an event ECU hosted this year, and spent an evening taking questions from communication master’s students about everything from student organization opportunities, internships and assistantships, comprehensive exams, interviewing, teaching as a graduate student and career advice. “As one of the first graduates of the MA program and one of the founders of many of the student activities, Amanda was able to offer a fresh insight that the students really appreciated,” said SOC assistant professor Kris Kirschbaum. “Thankfully, she also opened the eyes of many students who assumed that finding a job would be easy after graduate school was over.” —Jessica Nottingham 46 COLE is a machining instructor in the engineering and manufacturing technologies department at Nash Community College. 2004 JENNIFER CUDNEY-BURCH was selected as a Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellow. An initiative of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Sea Grant College Program, the highly competitive fellowship places students in legislative and executive branch offices to help solve marine policy issues of national consequence. She is working on her doctorate in coastal resources management at ECU. JAMES DOREY is a senior commercial real estate appraiser with CB Richard Ellis in Washington, D.C. His wife, CORINNE SPENCE DOREY, is a financial planning assistant with Edelman Financial in Bethesda, Md. In the past two years, she received four series licenses. Dr. CANDACE MARIE DRAKE wed Richard R. Locchead on Aug. 7 on Mackinac Island, Mich. She is the PTSD psychologist for Veterans Affairs Gulf Coast VA Health Care System in Pensacola, Fla. At ECU, she was a Alpha Phi sister and former student body vice president. Dr. BRENNA MICHELLE FARMER wed Dr. Jason Chu on Dec. 18 at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden in Brooklyn, N.Y. She is an emergency medicine physician and medical toxicologist at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell hospital. MARIA GIRONDA ’04 ’08 received the Teacher of Excellence Award from the Public Schools of North Carolina at the 60th annual Exceptional Children’s Conference in Greensboro. She is an exceptional-children’s teacher at Chocowinity Primary School where she teaches children with autism. She also earned her National Board Certification. ALYSON WILSON GIROUARD was inducted into the Mu chapter of the Delta Kappa Gamma Society International, an honor society for outstanding educators. She teaches biology and chemistry at Rocky Mount High School. JESSICA CAROL HOBGOOD wed William Alan Moss on Oct. 9 at the beach home of the groom’s aunt on Topsail Island. She teaches first grade at Anderson Creek Primary School in Harnett County. GINGER LEAKE is a nursing instructor at Edgecombe Community College. She was a staff registered
Object Description
Description
Title | East : the magazine of East Carolina University |
Other Title | Magazine of East Carolina University |
Date | 2011 |
Description | Volume 9, no. 4 (summer 2011) |
Digital Characteristics-A | 5 MB; 64 p. |
Digital Format | application/pdf |
Full Text | East The Magazine of East Carolina University summer 2011 Olympic sports have new home viewfinder A brick paver honoring Marine Sgt. David J. Smith ’10 of Frederick, Md., who died in Afghanistan last year, is presented to his mother, Mary Jane McWilliams, during the April 26 dedication of the Freedom Wall and Memorial Walk on Main Campus. With McWilliams is her husband, John Jones. The ceremony included the rededication of the Victory Bell, originally unveiled on campus in 1953 as a memorial to World War II and Korean War veterans. Photo by Jay Clark East The Magazine of East Carolina University summer 2011 36 20 28 F EAT URES 20 OL Y MPIC SPORTS HAV E NEW HOME By J. Eric Eckard The opening of the $24 million sports complex for non-revenue sports shows East Carolina is more than a football and baseball school. 28 Jim Hunt’s Ms. Fix-It By Marion Blackburn Janice Faulkner already had compiled a stellar record as an East Carolina professor when the governor summoned her to clean up state government. 32 SOCIOLOG IS T, SURFER DUDE By Justin Boulmay Jeff Johnson, one of ECU’s most honored professors, can capture a student’s attention— and catch a wave. 36 mind games By Bethany Bradsher The brain is a muscle, so sport psychologists train athletes to work as hard to strengthen it as their abs, delts and pecs. They share some tips for your own mental workout. DE PAR TMEN TS FROM OUR READERS . 3 THE ECU REPORT . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 SUMMER ARTS CALENDAR . 18 FROM THE CLASSROO M . . . . . . . . 32 PIRATE NATION . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 CLASS NOTES . 43 UPON THE PAST . 60 32 2 Olympics sports have new home Whether East Carolina has grown and matured into a major regional university was the question we raised in the winter issue. We concluded that, based on ample evidence, ECU has achieved that recognition. Even those who once doubted East Carolina’s ability to operate a medical school, for example, now sing its praises. I witnessed further evidence of ECU’s maturity this spring in two very different settings. One came during Research and Creativity Activity Week when the scientific inquiry of 270 undergraduate and grad students was showcased on campus. The size and scope of the event drove home the point that ECU is where many groundbreaking discoveries are being made in medicine, biology, computer science, education and other fields. It was on another kind of field where I witnessed a different aspect of East Carolina’s new maturity—a soccer field, to be exact. Our cover story in this issue, which begins on page 20, is about the school’s new Olympic Sports Complex, a $24 million jewel in ECU’s sports crown. It has risen on what used to be dirt tailgate lots for Dowdy-Ficklen, Harrington Field, and woods where the Greeks used to party before football games. By creating this new home for what are called non-revenue sports, East Carolina is showing the world that it’s much more than just a football and baseball school. Research week demonstrated that East Carolina is igniting a spark of genius in its students so they can go out and improve the health and everyday lives of the people of the East. ECU wants every student, regardless of their major, to have the best classrooms and professors. East Carolina also wants every student athlete, whether they play a money-making sport like football or a non-revenue sport like track and field, to have an equal chance to achieve their athletic goals. Whether you’re a quarterback or a quarter-miler, ECU wants student athletes to have coaches who inspire and facilities that showcase their success. The sports complex also creates an attractive new gateway into campus. It’s the new face of ECU that many football fans will see when they arrive for games. When you come back to campus, take a few minutes to drive up Charles Boulevard, just past the football and baseball stadiums, and see for yourself how that corner of campus has been transformed. It may cause you to think, as it did me, that this is how a mature, diverse university operates a first-class sports program. from the editor Volume 9, Number 4 East is published four times a year by East Carolina University Division of University Advancement 2200 South Charles Blvd. Greenville, NC 27858 h EDITOR Steve Tuttle ’09 252-328-2068 / tuttles@ecu.edu ART DIRECTOR/DESIGNER Brent Burch PHOTOGRAPHER Forrest Croce COPY EDITOR Jimmy Rostar ’94 CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Marion Blackburn, Justin Boulmay, Doug Boyd, Bethany Bradsher, J. Eric Eckard, Kara Loftin, Jessica Nottingham ’08, Steve Row, Mary Schulken CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Jay Clark, Cliff Hollis CLASS NOTES EDITOR Joanne Kollar ecuclassnotes@ecu.edu ADMINISTRATION Michelle Sloan h Assistant Vice Chancelor for University Marketing Clint Bailey East Carolina University is a constituent institution of The University of North Carolina. It is a public doctoral/ research intensive university offering baccalaureate, master’s, specialist and doctoral degrees in the liberal arts, sciences and professional fields, including medicine. Dedicated to the achievement of excellence, responsible stewardship of the public trust and academic freedom, ECU values the contributions of a diverse community, supports shared governance and guarantees equality of opportunity. ©2011 by East Carolina University Printed by Progress Printing U.P. 11-284 63,500 copies of this public document were printed at a cost of $37,778 or $.59 per copy. East The Magazine of East Carolina University summer 2011 Amanda Etheridge had no regrets I was so pleased to find the “Upon the Past” column about Amanda Etheridge in the current issue of East. Amanda was a well-respected member of our community and of my husband’s family [John Wilson ’50] here on Roanoke Island, a scholar and a star athlete with a never-yielding passion for social justice in her community. She was devastated by her treatment at the college in 1945, but went to her grave with no regrets. I wish she were still around to see the truthful story of her devotion to doing what was right even though she personally suffered the consequences. — Estelle Jones Wilson ’51, Manteo I really enjoyed your article on Amanda Etheridge because I knew her when I was a student there during the turmoil over Mr. Meadows. The last rehearsal for our senior class play, in which I had a part, had to be canceled because the SGA called one of the mass meetings to look into the issue of Mr. Meadows’ handling of the student money. I also knew the professors who were fired by the trustees for not supporting Mr. Meadows, and I think your article had the wrong name for one of them. As I recall, the three who were fired were E.L. Henderson, Herbert ReBarker and Hubert Haynes. I don’t recall a professor by the name of M.L. Wright. But I’m 88 now so I occasionally have senior moments. —Mrs. Elizabeth Kittrell “Kit” Taylor ’44, Yorktown, Va. Editor��s note: We double-checked the official records and multiple accounts list M.L. Wright among the three professors fired by trustees during the campus turmoil of 1943–44. Wright came to campus in 1925 as a sociology teacher but he isn’t pictured among the faculty in yearbooks after 1940. It’s possible he was performing duties other than teaching when the Meadows scandal erupted, which would explain why Mrs. Kittrell doesn’t remember him. Faculty records indicate Haynes taught education and psychology from 1924 until his retirement in 1959. Is this of historic value? I found this old program going through my mother’s things recently [Martha Rogers Taylor ’37]. Just thought someone there might be able to use it. By the way, you folks put out a wonderful publication. —Emmette Taylor, Kinston Editor’s note: We forwarded this 85-year-old program to University Archives, which reported that it’s now the oldest in its files. Pepsi suported campus radio In the “Coke comes to campus” story in the last issue, another thing the Minges family gave us over multiple years were annual grants for the campus radio station to contract with United Press International for their news wire service. Since the radio station was funded totally by student broadcasters (we “pounded the pavement” to sell commercials!) with no direct institutional or Student Government Association monies, we always sort of held our breath at the start of each academic year until we had that $500 check in hand. The Minges family business was given broadcast recognition by us announcing that all newscasts, weather reports and sports were sponsored by Pepsi. —Bob Blake ’66, Sarasota, Fla. Colege cheaper in ’52? A few weeks after reading “What Does College Really Cost” in the winter issue, my wife, Mary Jo Outland Baugh ’55, and I visited her sister, Anne Outland ’56. Our daughter was digging through her Aunt Anne’s artifacts when she came across her ECC scrapbook. In it she found the enclosed letter from the registrar, dated Feb. 8, 1952, showing the cost per quarter of $87 for tuition and fees, plus $80 a quarter for meals for a total of $167 per quarter, times three for a cost of $501 per year. I would say that’s quite a bargain compared to today’s cost. —Marvin Baugh ’55, Greensboro Editor’s note: The story Mr. Baugh refers to noted that it now costs $16,405 a year to attend ECU, a total which includes tuition, books and fees as well as such non-academic essentials as rent, food, clothes, laptop, car, cell phone, etc. The $501 charged in 1952 didn’t include the non-academic essentials. To compare apples-to-apples costs, let’s assume that living expenses raised the price of a year at ECC in 1952 to $750. At a web site called MeasuringWorth.com, I computed what $750 in 1952 dollars would be worth today. If you go by the consumer price index, $750 would be worth $6,060 today. Purchasing the same bundle of consumer goods would cost $9,010 today. It would be worth $10,700 using the production worker compensation guide, or how much an hourly worker would have to earn now to generate the same purchasing power. Also keep in mind that the $16,405 figure does not include grants or scholarships available to working families. When those are factored in, the current cost of a year at ECU for a child of a family earning less than $48,000 a year is $7,232, or roughly the same as in 1952. from our readers 3 4 ‘Next fiscal year will be the worst yet’ The following is a condensed version of Chancellor Steve Ballard’s State of the University Address delivered at the start of spring semester. Most of you and our community are all too familiar with the basic outline of the budget situation. ECU has lost $106 million over the past three years before anything happens this year; that includes both one-time “reversions” and base budget cuts. Last year, when the UNC system represented 13 percent of the state budget, the 16 universities accounted for 29 percent of the governor’s reversion. Two years ago, when we had our biggest base cuts, 92 percent of ECU’s base budget cut came from administrative positions and administrative function. The point of that is that we did all we could to protect the student experience and academic quality. But facing the fourth year—and there will probably be five years of base budget cuts—we have very little flexibility compared to where we have been. We know that next fiscal next year will be the worst yet. The gap between revenues and past expenditures, which is what everyone is focusing on, is approximately $3.7 billion, or a 20 percent gap in the state budget. For ECU, 20 percent is about $60 million, on top of the $106 million that we have already lost, or given back. You can certainly hear rational arguments for a cut between 8 percent to 20 percent. I ask everyone here today to pray for the 8 percent but as a chancellor I have to prepare for 20 percent. Our philosophy, as we enter this period of possible 20 percent cuts, includes three components: • There is only one East Carolina University. We are all in this together and we all have a stake in the outcome. We know every element of ECU and every constituency will suffer. But our goal is to emerge with our integrity and our mission intact. • Second, we will continue to focus on our five strategic priorities. • And, we will keep our eye on the long term. We will define where we want to be at the end of this recession and stay focused on that. So, given this philosophy we have four primary ways to find $60 million for the next fiscal year. I will discuss them in terms of what we must do first, second, third and fourth. The least desirable choices will almost certainly yield the most funds. First, we will continue to be more efficient in every way possible and more productive in all of our operations, and that includes the ecU Report “We will do everything we can to be innovative, find appropriate partnerships, and do all we can to protect the student experience.” 5 consolidating services, doing more shared services and more partnerships, [and] less administrative expenditures. Productivity improvements will only yield about 3 to 5 percent of a $60 million goal. I’ve asked Faculty Chair [Marianna] Walker to speak with the Educational Policy and Planning Committee of the Faculty Senate to recommend criteria by which we can consolidate services [and] academic programs, and reduce administrative costs associated with overseeing departments and colleges. Second choice, we will look at our emergency fund to help offset these cuts. This is a painful option because it is so difficult to replace emergency funds once they are spent. At most, I estimate that we might be able to find one-fourth of our cut scenario from this option. So, doing this complicated math, options 1 and 2 may provide, at best, $20 million, or about one-third the $60 million needed. The next two options are even more painful but unavoidable. Option No. 3 is called “Unit Reductions,” for every college and every division. I know we’ll have to ask every college and division to meet a fixed reduction. Since we have made so many reductions over the past three years, and sacrificed so many non-academic positions, it is inevitable that the units will now have to cut into the academic core and the size of our faculty. I hope that we can keep the overall size of our faculty close to what it is today. Many schools and colleges will have no choice other than to use faculty openings and academic resources to reach their goal. The availability of classes will be reduced, while class size and teaching loads, on average, will increase. We may have to ask each college and division to reduce their expenditures by 9 to 12 percent. If we take 9 percent of the state funding from each college and division, that would generate about $30 million, or half of our $60 million target. Last, most painful for me, and inevitably, students will have to pay more for their education through increased tuition and fees. We anticipate that students will have to fund at least 20 percent, perhaps more, of the $60 million reduction, and this will follow substantial increases in tuition and fees already approved for the coming year by the Board of Governors and already realized over the last two years. We have always prided ourselves in being an access institution and our first university priority is student success, so making higher education less affordable is a not an attractive option for me. I will end the gloomy part of my speech with this commitment: we will involve and engage the campus community as much as we can during this process. The budget estimates presented today will undoubtedly change and better options could emerge. We will do everything we can to be innovative, find appropriate partnerships, and do all we can to protect the student experience. I look forward to working with every one of you. Our challenges are not small, I think you all realize that, but they are inconsequential compared to our spirit. Lillington gets dental clinic Lillington, the county seat of Harnett County southeast of Raleigh, will be the site of a community care clinic to be operated by the School of Dental Medicine. The university announced that it would build one of the learning centers beside the new First Choice Community Health Center off U.S. 401. There, dental students and residents will train and, together with ECU faculty members, provide care to local residents. “This is going to be a very good site, a good collaboration with First Choice Community Health Center,” said Gregory Chadwick, associate dean for planning and extramural affairs at the dental school. The two facilities “will really have an impact on primary health care in Harnett County.” Lillington is the fourth site to be named for what will eventually be 10 such centers across the state and the first in central North Carolina. The other sites identified so far are Ahoskie and Elizabeth City in eastern North Carolina and Sylva in the western part of the state. The 7,700-square-foot center in Lillington will be a fully functioning general dentistry office with 16 treatment rooms, X-ray equipment, educational space and more. The state will own the land, and construction could begin this year if all goes well, Chadwick said. Full-time dental school faculty members will staff the center, along with dental hygienists and other staff members, and fourth-year dental students and residents will train at the center. Chadwick has described the centers as similar to “moving the fourth floor of the dental school—the clinical training—off campus to rural areas of our state where dental services are needed.” The school will admit its first 50 students, all North Carolina residents, in August, with plans to admit 50 each year. —Doug Boyd Sylva Lillington Ahoskie Elizabeth City Campus master plan advances A preliminary master plan for East Carolina University’s Main Campus drew concerns about safety, architectural consistency and public access from East Carolina trustees seeing it for the first time. The plan looks out 20 years and expands ECU along Reade Street north of Fifth, refashions the 10th Street corridor from Cotanche to College Hill, constructs three parking decks and closes some streets to traffic in the center of campus. Board of Trustees members discussed it and the preliminary master plan for the Health Sciences Campus in April after a presentation by representatives from Smithgroup/JJR, a planning and architecture company consulting on the plan. “I hope you will resolve the safety issue that I see,” said David Redwine, referring to a proposed parking deck the plan includes just north of 10th Street and west of Cotanche Street, across from the Student Recreation Center. The long-term plan would include security on site and for students crossing Cotanche, Smithgroup representatives and university officials said. As Main Campus expands beyond its existing borders, building placement and design should be in keeping with the character of the existing campus, which includes open space and historic architecture, said David Brody, board chairman. “It should honor the core design of the campus and it should not be so dense as to change the environment of the campus,” he said. Planners are currently drawing design guidelines for those future buildings, consultants said, that are tied to the original architecture of the buildings built in 1907. Planners used a number of priorities identified in campus meetings and a survey to draw the preliminary plan. Among those: keeping academics on the core of Main Campus, retaining open spaces, providing ample close-in parking, the ecu report 6 7 21 6 20 8 21 12 1 9 15 11 3 16 22 10 17 19 13 14 4 18 2 5 23 Number Project Name GSF Floors 1 Bio-Sciences Building 270,000 6 2 HHP Research Gym 55,000 3 Academic A Building 275,000 4 4 Visual and Performing Arts Center 200,000 3 5 HHP Addition 60,000 6 Facilities building 1 7 Police 20,000 8 Parking, Environmental Safety, Mail Services 9 Student Center 182,154 5 10 Belk Hall Replacement and Living/Learning Complex 275,500 8 11 Student Recreation Center Expansion 62,276 2 12 Slay (restore to residential: 100 beds) 13 Alumni Center 36,000 2 14 Hotel and Conference Center 15 Visitor Center 16 Library Expansion 22,000 17 Todd Dining Hall Expansion 9,300 1 18 Basketball Practice Building 38,000 1 19 Foundation Building / Offi ce / Swing Space 40,000 20 IT Building / Data Center 21 Millennial Campus Building 22 Transit Hub 23 Press Box LEGEND EXISTING BUILDING IMMEDIATE NEED FUTURE OPPORTUNITY PARKING DECK Main Campus 10th Street Charles Boulevard Fifth Street 7 public safety and easy pedestrian access. The plan closes some small parking lots near academic buildings on the Main Campus but proposes at least three parking decks in central locations. It also closes Founders Drive and Chancellors Way to through traffic. Brody noted that the public needs ample parking near A.J. Fletcher Music Hall, where public performances take place. Trustee Bill Bodenhamer suggested the university use the price of parking for students, staff and faculty to manage spaces, setting the rate for close-in parking at a level that provides incentive to use shuttle services. The presentation to trustees was an information session only. ECU officials and planners stress the plan will likely see tweaks based on feedback from the campus and the community. A final version is expected to be ready by fall for the board of trustees. To learn more about the preliminary master plan, visit www.ecu.edu/cs-admin/ masterplan/alternatives.cfm —Mary Schulken N 3.22.11 East Carolina University 0’ 150’ 300’ Number Project Name GSF Floors 1 Medical Education Building 250,000 6 2 Brody Modernization / Reassignment (Offi ces / Millennial Uses) 3 Research Expansion 30,000 1 4 Student Services Building 64,000 2 5 Integrated Ancillary Services and Clinics Building 280,000 5 6 New Cancer Center 60,000 2 7 Faculty Offi ces 50,000 4 1 4 5 7 7 6 3 2 Heart Blvd. Fifth Street W. Arlington Rd. MacGregor Downs Rd. Family Medicine Cardiovascular Institute School of Dentistry Warren Life Sciences Utility Plant Allied Health SON North Campus Loop Moye Boulevard Existing Bio. Tech. Pitt County Memorial Hospital H Health Sciences Campus West Fifth Street (Highway 43) Brody Building 8 New funding model helps ECU East Carolina’s efforts to improve freshman-to- sophomore retention rates and to operate academic programs more efficiently should begin paying dividends as the UNC system transitions from a per-student funding formula to a sliding scale that’s based on academic performance. Applying the new yardsticks means ECU likely will receive a slightly bigger slice of a smaller budget pie next school year as the General Assembly continues to slash funding for higher education. Under discussion for the last two years, the new performance-based funding model will be used for the fiscal year beginning July 1 to divvy up whatever enrollment growth money—if any—is appropriated to the UNC system by the General Assembly. Given final approved by the UNC Board of Governors in February, the new formula will have noticeable impacts on some campuses: • UNC Greensboro and Western Carolina will be allowed only restricted growth in their freshman enrollments beginning this fall. • Freshman enrollment will be capped at UNC Pembroke. • The most severe restrictions fall on Elizabeth City State, Fayetteville State and N.C. A&T because they did poorly on both yardsticks. They must shrink their freshmen enrollments and focus on retention. ECU achieved acceptable retention and efficiency rates, which would translate into $5.1 million in enrollment growth money for 2011–12, or 11.1 percent of the total $45.8 million the Board of Governors requested for the whole system. In 2012–13, ECU’s enrollment growth money would swell to $5.5 million, or 13.4 percent of the $40.8 million request. Again, it was unknown when this was written what amount the General Assembly would appropriate. The percentage is important because it will apply to whatever the Legislature appropriates for enrollment growth. The $40.8 million would fund classroom space and instruction for 2,337 additional students throughout the 16-campus system. Actual enrollment growth in recent years has been three times that much. N.C. State’s share of the pie over the next two years would fall from $11.1 million to $10.1 million. UNC Chapel Hill’s share would fall from $8.5 million to $5.2 million. UNC Charlotte would see its enrollment growth money cut in half, from $7.3 million to $3.6 million. A major change is that new funding formula stops giving the smaller, liberal arts and non-doctoral campuses a financial break by assuming it costs them more per-student to deliver the same classes as their bigger brothers. UNC Asheville, for example, will see its enrollment growth money fall two-thirds, from $724,000 to $241,000. A third benchmark—six-year graduation rates—will be added to the funding formula in 2013. Before the recession hit, the UNC system usually requested and got about $60 million to account for fairly consistent enrollment growth of around 6,000 new students each year; whatever the Legislature approved was doled out on a per-student basis. To demonstrate the 16 campuses could operate more efficiently and with greater transparency, former President Erskine the ecu report Senior fine arts major Sarah West ’11 traveled to Philadelphia this spring to pick up her 2011 Niche magazine award in the “sculpture to wear” category. Presented annually since 1990, the award recognizes excellence and innovation in American and Canadian fine craft. Artists are recognized in professional and student divisions. West’s work, which has been exhibited at Artspace in Raleigh, won the Best in Show award from Rebel 53, the university’s arts and literary magazine. 9 Bowles pushed the Board of Governors to adopt a new funding model that rewards campuses with low freshman dropout rates and penalizes those with high dropout rates. The fundamental change in philosophy is seen as one of Bowles’ major legacies. Cautioned to submit a smaller budget request for enrollment growth money this third recessionary budget cycle, the Board of Governors voted to seek $45.8 million for the fiscal year beginning July 1 and just $40.8 million for the second year of the biennium. That increase will provide funding for an anticipated 2,337 additional students next school year, far below normal growth patterns. Thus, even if the Legislature gives the General Administration everything it asked for, the rapid growth rate of the UNC system would level off and it would be harder to get accepted as the same or greater numbers of applicants seek fewer new seats. Efforts check rising book costs It looks like the best the UNC system can do to control the rising cost of textbooks is to stop prices from getting much worse. The numbers from a Board of Governors report show that, after a four-year focused effort by the 16 campuses, the average cost for books for an in-state undergraduate is up in a range of 1.6 percent to 2.9 percent, depending on whether the student bought new or used books. That is relatively good news, considering that textbook prices nationally have risen 6 percent annually for the past several years. For several years now the General Administration has pushed campuses to get a handle on textbooks costs, which can easily add $1,000 to the cost of a year of college. In 2006 the campuses started making detailed annual reports tracking what students actually were paying—what they paid at the cash register at the start of the semester and what they got back after finals through bookstore buy-back plans. Innovative ideas were encouraged. UNC Charlotte, UNC Greensboro and UNC Wilmington outsourced their bookstore operations to Barnes & Noble. N.C. Central and Winston-Salem State contracted with Follett. The three biggest campuses—UNC Chapel Hill, N.C. State and ECU—joined forces to essentially merge their bookstores so a student at any of the three could buy or sell a book through any of the three bookstores, which could be done easily online. Four other schools—Appalachian, Elizabeth City State, Fayetteville State and Western Carolina—operate textbook rental programs. Such programs have lower costs but less selection. Throughout the system, bookstores were strongly encouraged to offer “half-back” programs for books required in introductory-level courses, such as freshman English, guaranteeing to buy back the book at the end of the semester at half the original price. According to numbers in the report, the merged-bookstore approach has worked great for ECU, where textbook prices actually have gone down, but not as well at Carolina, where moderately high prices rose less then the system-wide average, and at State, where prices went up by more than the statewide average. Likewise, the results were uneven at the three campuses that threw in with Barnes & Noble. Prices dropped at Wilmington but they shot up at Greensboro and Charlotte by more than 6 percent. N.C. A&T had the biggest drop in textbook costs of any campus, down 13.6 percent, but it took that just to bring its costs to near the system average. At every campus professors were encouraged —some would say leaned on—to adopt textbooks for their classes in a timely manner, meaning they should decide what books to require students to buy in plenty of time for the bookstore to get them on the shelves. The earlier the bookstores are able to make their orders, the less students pay at the checkout counter. New federal legislation that went into effect last summer may help curb textbook price increases. Publishers now are barred from “bundling” a textbook along with supporting materials like workbooks and CDs so that the book can be purchased separately. Also, when publisher’s sales agents pitch to faculty members on adopting their texts, the agent now is required to tell the faculty member how much the book costs at retail. Before, faculty members often had no idea what a book would cost before requiring it in a class. More than 300 Greek-affiliated students who achieved GPAs of 3.5 or higher fall semester— including 80 who achieved a perfect 4.0—were treated to an ice cream social by the Division of Student Affairs and the Office of Greek Life. Provost Marilyn Sheerer and Vice Provost Virginia Hardy were on hand to congratulate the 337 fraternity and sorority members who made the grade, which is roughly a quarter of the ECU Greek community. 10 the ecu report ECU dropping art degree To increase efficiency, ECU is eliminating the bachelor of arts degree in art, a fine arts program that has seen rapidly declining interest by students. Only eight were majoring in the degree at the start of spring semester, down from 12 the prior semester. Those eight will be allowed to complete their degree before the program is completely shut down. The move won’t save much money because faculty teaching those courses also teach in related degree programs, and so must remain on staff. Across the 16 UNC campuses, 60 degrees were targeted for elimination as the campuses respond for legislative demands to do more with less. On the chopping block are 36 baccalaureate, 22 master’s and two doctoral programs. Three campuses account for more than half of the total—N.C. Central with 13, N.C. A&T with 11 and UNC Charlotte with 10. The Board of Governors adopted new efficiency standards that campuses now use to decide if a degree program has outlived its usefulness. Bachelor’s degree programs need to award 19 or more diplomas over two years. Terminal master’s degree programs should award at least 15 degrees over two years to survive, and doctoral programs need to award at least five diplomas over two years to avoid the budget knife. ECU to help Pottery Center East Carolina and the N.C. Pottery Center in Seagrove are discussing a collaboration that would link the university’s highly regarded studio arts program with one of the nation’s most prominent folk arts centers. Officials said the tight budget situation limits what ECU can contribute to the arrangement. The first collaboration came in March when the two co-sponsored a visit by a group of five potters from China. The visitors spent part of a week in Seagrove and the rest of the time conducting workshops and colloquiums on campus. “We’re looking at all aspects of collaboration, on everything from sharing visiting artists to perhaps basing grad students and faculty over there,” said Michael Dorsey, interim dean of the College of Fine Arts and Communication. He said the discussions began in December when he and three other ECU representatives met with the Pottery Center board. One of Seagrove’s most successful potters, Ben Owen III ’93, who is participating in the discussions, said he hopes the collaboration grows. “If there is a way both parties can find a common ground to work on a future endeavor together it would be wonderful. The more people who know about [Seagrove pottery], the better.” A split has developed in the pottery community around Seagrove. A rival group, the Seagrove Area Potters Association, split from the Pottery Center over a range of issues. The new group, on whose board Owen serves, began staging a rival festival in 2008 on the same November weekend as the annual Seagrove Pottery Festival, which has been managed for more than 25 years by the N.C. Museum of Traditional Pottery. However, both festivals have been successful and tempers seem to be easing. News briefs Required summer read: This summer, incoming freshmen will be encouraged to read the true story of an Elon College student who was raped in her apartment in 1984 and the man who was wrongly convicted and spent 11 years in prison for the crime. Picking Cotton is written by the two victims in the case, Jennifer Thompson-Cannino and Ronald Cotton. The two eventually became friends and wrote this book to educate the public about flaws in the criminal-justice system. The first collaboration between ECU and the N.C. Pottery Center came in March when the two co-sponsored a visit by five potters from China. The visitors spent part of a week in Seagrove and the rest of the time conducting workshops and colloquiums on campus. Furnished Furnished Discussion program forms: ECU will open its doors this fall to adults in the Greenville area who are interested in learning new things but who don’t want the hassle of applying for admission. The Lifelong Learning Program, to be launched this fall by the Division of Continuing Studies, is modeled after the Elderhostel programs of the mid-1970s. N.C. State University has operated a similar program, called Encore, for about 20 years. “Seniors are the one who so often say there is nothing for me to do. I’m retired but I still want to learn,” said ECU’s Clayton Sessoms. “They are curious about topics and want to learn new things, but don’t want to invest the time or money in pursuing a degree.” The program will be funded through modest workshop fees. A schedule of courses will be announced May 21. Interested individuals are encouraged to register by calling 252-328-9198 or e-mailing cpe@ecu.edu. Pedalling for health: People who work sitting at a desk all day could pedal their way to better health by using portable exercise machines, according to research by an ECU faculty member published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. These small exercise bikes, modified to fit under a desk, are effective at burning calories and raising the heart rate without disrupting the office work flow, according to the study by Luc Car, an assistant professor in the Department of Exercise and Sports Science. For the study, 18 office workers, who were mostly female, and overweight, pedalled an average of 23 minutes a day and used the machine on an average of 12 out of 20 days. The workers said in a questionnaire that they would use the bikes regularly if their employer offered them one. Nursing grads score well: The percentage of School of Nursing graduates who pass the state licensing exam on the first try rose one point in 2010 to 97 percent. Of the 268 graduates that year, 260 passed the exam to become RNs. In 2009, 248 of the 257 graduates passed the first time, or 96 percent. Alcohol abuse program honored: East Carolina’s efforts to prevent alcohol and drug abuse by fraternity and sorority members have been recognized as among the best in the nation. The school’s Greek Risk Management program was one of four finalists nationwide for the Outside the Classroom Prevention Excellence Award for Greek Life. The award is presented by the Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education and Outside the Classroom, a company that designs online drug and alcohol education programs for colleges and universities. Campus repairs slated: East Carolina is planning $5.2 million in repairs and upgrades to four buildings on Main Campus. The largest project will see $2.4 million spent to complete space in the Science and Technology Building that was left unfinished when it opened in 2003. Parts of the third and fifth floors will be upfitted as wet laboratory space for the biology, chemistry and geology departments. The work will be paid for with facilities and administrative receipts; completion is expected in June 2012. Green and White residence halls will receive exterior masonry and structural repairs costing $1.9 million. Greene also will get a new roof. The project, funded with housing receipts, should be completed by July 2012. Also, the Student Recreation Center, now 15 years old, will receive a new roof and other repairs costing $798,000. The project, to be paid for with student activity fees, should be completed by December. Trustees complete terms Four veteran members of the ECU Board of Trustees who helped lead the university through a turbulent era will complete their terms in June. Current chair David Brody of Kinston, former chair Bob Greczyn ’73 of Durham, current board secretary David Redwine ’72 of Ocean Isle Beach, and William H. Bodenhamer Jr. ’74 of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., each served two four-year terms. The four had just joined the 13-member board in 2003 when former chancellor William V. Muse resigned under a cloud after only two years on the job. That led to the selection of Steve Ballard as chancellor and, with other board decisions, set East Carolina on a firmer footing. Two of the vacancies were filled by the Board of Governors, which appointed Deborah Davis ’79 ’83 of Henrico, Va., chief operating officer of Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, and Raleigh attorney Kieran Shanahan ’79. Gov. Beverly Perdue will fill the two other vacancies. ECU down to one on board East Carolina is down from three alumni to only one—attorney Phil Dixon ’71 of Greenville—serving on the 32-member UNC Board of Governors. Charles Hayes ’72 ’74 of Sanford will leave the board in June after serving for six years; he filled a vacancy for two years and then was elected to a four-year term in 2007. Although he was eligible for another term and was nominated in a House committee, Hayes, executive director of the Research Triangle Regional Partnership, was not on the final list submitted for a floor vote. Hayes said he served during a pivotal era. “I was able to serve with three of the five presidents the UNC system has ever had, including Erskine Bowles’ entire time as president.” ECU briefly had three on the board. It dropped to two when J. Craig Souza ’71 of Raleigh, president of the N.C. Health Care Facilities Association, completed his second term in 2009. 11 Need a vein? Look in the fridge Anyone who has undergone a heart bypass procedure knows you usually have to recover from two surgeries—one on your heart and another on your leg, where doctors remove a section of vein to use to repair your heart. Thanks to pioneering work by an ECU surgeon, someday soon that second surgery won’t be necessary. Research co-authored by Alan Kypson, a professor of surgery at the Brody School of Medicine, and published in the journal Science Translational Medicine demonstrated that scientists can “grow” new veins in the lab and store them in a refrigerator for up to a year. These manmade veins are constructed from smooth-muscle cells taken from a human cadaver that are placed around a tubular structure. The cells grow until they cover the tube. The tube is then treated to remove the cells, leaving a hollow, flexible tube that works like a vein but will not be rejected by the body. Participating in the research with Kypson were scientists from Duke University, Yale University and Humacyte, a biotechnology company based in Durham. Humacyte funded much of the research. The medical advance is important given our aging population. “People are having multiple heart bypasses and vascular surgery now and once a patient is on their third or fourth bypass, they are out of veins to use,” Kypson said. the ecu report Eas t C a r olina tim e line First student graduates Among the 13 students in the first class to graduate in May 1911 is Pattie Simmons Dowell of Williamston, who was the first student to register on Oct. 5, 1909, when ECTTS first opened its doors. Founder and first president of the campus YWCA, she goes on to become the first ECTTS graduate to receive a doctorate. She teaches here in 1923–24, leaves for Southern Miss—where she authors four elementary school textbooks— but returns in 1958 to end her career here. She is the first recipient of the school’s Outstanding Alumni Award. Dowell Way, the short street arching between Fletcher and Garrett residence halls on the east end of Main Campus, is named for her. The case of the purloined frocks The campus is shocked and the spring social season is imperiled in April 1926 when silk gowns purchased or made by eight students disappear from dorm rooms just days before the Poe Society’s big dance. Oddly, all are about the same size. The Greenville police are called and a local woman is charged when the gowns are found at her home. The Tecoan reports a happy ending to the incident in a front-page story headlined “The Easter Frocks Are Returned to Owners.” 100 YEARS AGO 85 YEARS AGO Alan Kypson Dorm cooking is toast Students get heartburn in spring 1986 when the administration, in the aftermath of several minor dorm room fires and grease-clogged pipes, announces that deep fat fryers and electric griddles will be outlawed in residence halls, effective fall semester. Only toasters and small refrigerators can stay. ECU is following the lead of other UNC schools in banning dorm cooking and requiring students to buy meal books. When students complain there aren’t enough places to eat on campus, the relatively new Mendenhall Student Center is remodeled to add a casual restaurant. Images courtesy University Archives “Pumpsie” fans 19 The strong arm of Greensboro’s Larry “Pumpsie” Crayton carries ECC into the 1961 NAIA national baseball tournament in Sioux City, Iowa. Nervous at being so far from home and facing a strong Grambling squad, many ECC players stuff four-leaf clovers in their pockets. But luck isn’t needed as Crayton strikes out 19 batters to set a collegiate record that still stands today. East Carolina sweeps to the title game and beats Sacramento State 9-4 for the championship. Crayton is chosen tournament MVP (photo). In a three-year career on the mound for the Bucs, Crayton compiles a 26-4 record with 330 strikeouts. He foregoes his senior year to sign with the St. Louis Cardinals. 25 YEARS AGO 50 YEARS AGO Bioengineered veins have been found to be resistant to clotting and obstruction when compared to synthetic or prosthetic engineered veins. They also demonstrate lower rates of infection, better blood flow and lower levels of calcium buildup, according to the study. As for the impact for ECU, “this is the first time something like this has been done and it’s very exciting for our university to be a part of this,” said Kypson. “One would like to think that such a paper may spur other companies and universities to consider collaborating with ECU in the future.” —Jessica Nottingham Brody again No. 1 in family docs East Carolina sent more medical graduates into training as family medicine physicians the past 10 years than any other school in the country. ECU is also sending a majority of all its medical graduates into practice in North Carolina. That’s according to the American Academy of Family Physicians, which measured the success of 124 U.S. medical schools in producing family doctors between 1999 and 2009. The results show the Brody School of Medicine sent nearly 19.5 percent of its graduates into family medicine residencies, nearly double the national average. “It is clearly a remarkable achievement but comes as no surprise to the dedicated and loyal faculty who passionately teach, mentor and support our students,” said BSOM dean Paul Cunningham. And the trend is continuing; on national residency match day in March, 19 percent of ECU’s 68 senior medical students were accepted into family medicine residencies. The AAFP also reports that of the nearly 1,300 graduates of the ECU medical school as of 2009, 765, or 59 percent, practice in North Carolina. That’s a higher percentage than any other medical school in the state. —Doug Boyd A business plan prepared by a College of Business team of students for operating a new type of medical clinic won top honors at the annual National Small Business Institute Conference. The team led by MBA student Brian Cooke ’10 of Grimesland worked with Dr. Janice Daughtery of the Brody School of Medicine to develop a working model for a medical clinic that incorporates alternative medicine such as acupuncture with more traditional Western medicine. A second College of Business team earned second place in the competition for its consulting work with a women’s clothing store to develop marketing, inventory control and financial management plans. Since 2005, ECU has earned eight finishes in the top three at the National Small Business Institute Conference, including four first-place winners. This year’s conference was held in Bonita Springs, Fla. Janice Daughtery Brian Cooke 14 the ecu report 15 Daughters donate Coach Stas’ library “There are some things I know that people don’t know about him, like the significance of his faith,” Becky Stasavich says about her late father, East Carolina coaching great Clarence Stasavich. Another thing most people don’t knew about the man who brought big-time college football to Greenville, she says, is that he insisted on being able to walk to work. For many years he and his family lived in a home on Rock Spring Road almost in sight of the new football stadium the college built for him. Stasavich died in 1975 but in one important way he never left that home just off 14th Street a block from College Hill. His papers and effects where there when Becky, the oldest, moved to Greenville in 1980 to be a companion to her mother, who died in 1997. The books and memorabilia were still there when Mary Helen, the middle child, after teaching overseas for more than 30 years, retired there in 2001. Son Walter, the youngest, grew up here and later was Greenville’s director of parks and recreation; he developed River Park North, where the science center is named for him. He died in 1993. Walter’s two daughters, Laura Elizabeth ’92 ’98 of Wilmington and Sarah Catherine ’99 of Greenville, are alumnae. Becky and Mary Helen recently donated Coach Stas’ library of football books, letters home during World War II, memorabilia, correspondence, awards and other personal effects to East Carolina. The material will make up the core of the new Clarence Stasavich Collection housed in University Archives. “Acquiring the records of someone so intimately involved with the growth of East Carolina athletics will serve to allow researchers and fans to more accurately chronicle the history of the Pirates and the venues in which they performed,” said ECU Archivist Arthur Carlson ’07. At the time he retired from the sidelines in 1969 to become athletic director, Stasavich was the third-winningest coach in America. Everyone seemed to know him. Mary Helen recalls passing through an airport far away from home many years ago, and the official inspecting her passport glanced up excitedly and asked if she was related to the Coach Stas who ran the famous single-wing offense. Becky graduated from Catawba College in Salisbury, N.C., the year her father became the East Carolina football coach. She completed her master’s degree at ECU in 1967. Mary Helen graduated from Lenoir-Rhyne while her father was coaching and teaching there. She was a cheerleader at Lenoir-Rhyne the last year her father coached there. Her dad’s L-R squad was playing East Carolina late in the season and a rabid Pirate fan started yelling at Coach Stas. “Some guy came up to the sidelines yelling, ‘we’re going to kill you Stas.’ He kept on and one. So I turned around and said, ‘That’s my dad!’ Later when Dad told us he was coming down here to coach, I said, ‘I don’t think they like you much down there.’” Luckily, she was wrong about that. He became so revered that days after he died, an inspired East Carolina team—urged to win one for Coach Stas—traveled to Chapel Hill and pulled off a stunning 38-17 upset for the school’s first victory over a Carolina team. Coach Stas Highlight Reel Overall record of 170–64–8, including 16 seasons at Lenoir-Rhyne. He was 50–27–1 at East Carolina. Won seven consecutive Carolinas Conference championships at Lenoir-Rhyne NAIA small college national coach of the year, 1959; won the NAIA national championship in 1960. When he left coaching he trailed only Alabama’s Bear Bryant and Mississippi’s John Vaught in total victories. Led East Carolina out of the small-college NAIA and into membership in the Southern Conference of the NCAA. Pirate teams had three consecutive 9–1 seasons and won three consecutive bowl games. As athletics director, presided over fundraising and construction of Minges Coliseum, Scales Field House, Harrington Field and Bunting Field. University Archives 16 the ecu report BB&T commits $1 million for center BB&T, whose $250,000 gift in 1982 founded the BB&T Center for Leadership Development in the College of Business, has reaffirmed its support for the center through a new donation totaling $1 million. The center advocates incorporating leadership development as an important dimension of intellectual activity, with an emphasis on the proposition that every student should be prepared to lead and become an agent of positive change in society. “The university’s continued commitment to leadership development as a priority and focus within its mission has been greatly assisted through BB&T’s support,” said center director James Bearden. “Their latest contribution further extends the catalytic role the [center] has in emphasizing, enhancing and supporting leadership development in courses and classrooms at ECU.” BB&T’s contribution to ECU’s Second Century Campaign is their fifth such gift to the center, and serves as a perfect example of how private corporations can make a difference at ECU. The gift helped push the Second Century Campaign so far to $194 million, or 97 percent of the goal. “We want 2011 to be the year that we surge past the $200 million goal,” said Vice Chancellor for University Advancement Mickey Dowdy. “We remain extremely grateful for BB&T’s dedication to ECU and the Center for Leadership Development and we look forward to even greater things in the future as we continue our efforts in faculty and student leadership development.” Gifts to the campaign may be designated for a specific program, college or school. Every gift, whether large or small, is appreciated and makes a difference. For more information about the BB&T Center for Leadership Development, contact Bearden at beardenj@ecu.edu. For more information about the Second Century Campaign and how you can contribute, contact Dowdy at 252-328-9550 or visit www.ecu.edu/devt. Virtual early college top in state East Carolina’s online early college program for bright high school students was recognized by the N.C. Distance Learning Association as the top program in the state for course content and its unique delivery platform. The Early College Second Life Program (ECSLP), which uses the Second Life 3D virtual technology, is unique in that students can take college classes online without leaving their high school environment. The ECSLP program previously received the International Intraverse Award in Education, presented in Monaco. About 40 students in Pitt and Lenoir counties are enrolled in the program. “It is successful because it captures the students’ attention, challenges them, and allows them to interact with each other for projects,” said Sharon Collins of ECU’s Emerging Academic Initiatives. “It truly is the way students desire to learn these days, by advancing with technology.” Second Life is a virtual 3D world designed for high school students. In that world, students have an “avatar” (a virtual presence) and attend a real-time class. ECU is the only campus using Second Life to offer classes that let students earn college credit and high school credit at the same time. Students can take classes in anthropology, personal finance, child psychology, introduction to computers, English, sociology and web site design and maintenance. —ECU News Services ECU’s Jim Bearden, Danny Daniels of BB&T, Chancellor Steve Ballard, Scott Evans of BB&T and Dennis Alexander of BB&T Furnished After a rigorous national search, former College of Business Dean Rick Niswander was named vice chancellor for administration and finance after serving in that role on an interim basis since December. The Board of Trustees approved Chancellor Steve Ballard’s appointment of Niswander at its April meeting. He replaces Kevin Seitz. Niswander joined the faculty in 1993 and became COB dean in 2004. In his new role Niswander will be responsible for business services, campus operations, financial services, human resources, information technology and university facilities, including construction and renovation of campus buildings. His salary is $270,000 a year. Niswander graduated from Idaho State University with a bachelor’s in accounting. He holds a doctorate in accounting from Texas A&M University. In 1998 he received the Board of Governors Distinguished Professor for Teaching Award. Brody Division of Toxicology chief William Joel Meggs received ECU’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Research and Creative Activity. Meggs has published more than 60 scholarly articles. His main research interests include antidotes to poisonings, poisonous snakebites, toxicity of pharmaceutical overdoses, effects of chronic low level exposures to pesticides, environmental factors in obesity, and the role of inflammation in overall health. ECU presented five-year achievement awards to biology professor Jason Bond and psychology professor T. Chris Riley-Tillman. They received a cash award and conducted seminars on campus during Research and Creative Achievement Week in April. Brody School of Medicine Dean Dr. Paul Cunningham and Chief of Surgery Michael Rotondo were inducted into the prestigious American Surgical Association. Founded in 1880, the ASA is the nation’s oldest and most prestigious surgical organization. School of Communication associate professor John Howard III was chosen by the UNC Board of Governors as East Carolina’s recipient of the annual Awards for Excellence in Teaching. Since 1994 the board has honored one professor at each campus to receive the honor, which comes with a commemorative bronze medallion and a $7,500 cash prize. The 17 recipients, representing an array of academic disciplines, were nominated by special committees on their home campuses and selected by the Board of Governors Committee on Personnel and Tenure, chaired by Fred Mills of Raleigh. The awards will be presented by a Board of Governors member during the spring graduation ceremony on each campus. Howard previously received the Alumni Association’s Outstanding Teaching Award in 2008 and and Board of Trustees’ Distinguished Professor for Teaching Award in 2009. Graduating seniors in his school have voted him “Most Inspiring Faculty Member” four times, most recently in 2009. Howard received an undergraduate degree in political science from SUNY Binghamton, a master’s in policy analysis from the University of Rochester, a master’s in interpersonal communication from Bowling Green State University, and a doctorate in communication studies also from Bowling Green. Christopher Locklear ’97 ’01 ’07 was appointed associate provost for personnel and resource administration. Locklear will be responsible for oversight of all aspects of EPA personnel for the Division of Academic and Student Affairs. He will continue to co-chair the University Policy Committee. Kidney specialist Wafa Badwan ’97 ’05 has joined the faculty as a clinical assistant professor after completing her residency training and a nephrology fellowship here. Born in Raleigh, she is board-certified in internal medicine and nephrology and joins a growing staff of kidney transplant specialists at ECU Physicians. Her clinical and research interests are critical care nephrology and renal transplant. U N I V E R S I T Y L I F E 17 18 Pianist wins Fisher grant Assistant piano professor Benjamin Hochman, one of ECU’s newest music faculty members, has been named a 2011 recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant, which is presented to talented instrumentalists with great potential for solo careers. Hochman will receive a stipend of $25,000 to use for specific needs in furthering his career. Hochman joined the School of Music faculty in fall 2010, succeeding Henry Doskey, who retired. The Israeli-born pianist made his recital debut at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and he has performed with the New York Philharmonic and the American Symphony Orchestra. He also has appeared with symphony orchestras in Chicago, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Seattle and Portland, and he has played with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and the Raanana and Jerusalem symphonies. Hochman is scheduled to participate in the Appalachian Summer Festival in Boone twice in July as part of the Broyhill Chamber Ensemble; he will play with the Boston Chamber Music Society in late August. Summer theatre on hiatus The stage at McGinnis Theatre will be dark this summer, as the popular ECU/Loessin Summer Theatre program has been affected by the state’s budget crunch. Two years ago, the summer program mounted only one production, Big River, and last year, ECU theater students and faculty participated in the Roanoke Island Festival Park summer theatrical season. This year, however, the drama and musical series will take a summer off, says Jeff Woodruff, managing director of the ECU summer theatre program. “There’s been a general, overall pulling back, and we’re basically all tightening our belts around here,” Woodruff says. Last summer’s financial situation prevented staging shows on campus, so the opportunity to relocate at least part of the summer series to Manteo proved to be a good move, he says. But ECU signaled the likelihood of canceling its summer season when it was not represented in late winter casting sessions in New York and other cities. This gave ECU students a chance to go We aren’t suggesting that you travel all the way to a small island in Lake Superior to hear two ECU students perform, but that is where some of the nation’s most talented young chamber musicians will be this summer. Senior Caroline Cox and younger sister Mary Catherine Cox, an incoming freshman, were among only 48 students nationwide accepted into the advanced string quartet program at the Madeline Island Music Camp. The camp is located on an island offshore from the Minneapolis area. Earlier this year, Caroline took top honors in the annual concerto competitions sponsored by both the Raleigh and Durham symphony orchestras and later performed with both groups. She is majoring in violin under Ara Gregorian and piano performance under Keiko Sekino. Mary Catherine, who also has studied under Gregorian and others, received honorable mentions at both the Raleigh and Durham symphony competitions. Caroline and Mary Catherine are the daughters of optometrists Carson and Valerie Cox of Southern Pines. Summer Arts Calendar Furnished 19 elsewhere for summer experience, Woodruff says, and “our students are getting lots of work in lots of other places. They are doing outdoor dramas, and some are doing theater in Charlotte. They are all over the place.” School of Theatre and Dance administrators hope that the current hiatus “is as short as possible,” he says, and the financial situation will not affect the 2011–12 season, which has announced a full slate of theatrical and dance productions, including Threepenny Opera, Oklahoma! and Elephant Man. Drama camp: The School of Theatre and Dance is expanding its summer drama camp program on campus this year, with two one-week sessions instead of a single session. Patricia “Patch” Clark, associate professor and coordinator for both the Theatre for Youth and Theatre Education Programs and founder and director of the ECU Storybook Theatre, again heads the Drama Camp, with sessions July 18–23 and July 25–30. Drama Camp is divided into three age groups: 5–10, 11–13 and 14–18. Instruction is provided in beginning acting and performance techniques for high school students; character development, performance and script writing for middle school students; and integrated arts, puppetry, mask making, creative dramatics and storybook theater for elementary school students. Guitar Workshop: Among the guest artists and instructors at the camp, which takes place July 10–13, will be Mary Akerman and Andrew Zohn, who have both performed in previous festivals. Festival artistic director Elliot Frank, professor of guitar in the School of Music, also will perform. Among others who will play in recitals, teach classes or both will be Adam Kossler ’06, now pursuing a doctorate from Florida State University (July 10); You Wang and Carlos Perez (July 11); and Jan Bartlema (July 13). Chinese guitarist You won the 2010 ECU festival competition and was first-place winner of the 2011 Indiana International Guitar Competition at Indiana University. Perez is a visiting lecturer at Columbus (Ga.) State University. The youth and college level competition finals are scheduled July 13. Band Camp: The popular camp for middle and high school students is June 19–24, with instruction and opportunities in full concert band, small ensemble and solo performance. Special coaching also will be available in jazz performance techniques. Jazz Camp: This year’s camp will run June 26–30 and provides opportunities for students to learn to play in combos, learn jazz theory and participate in improvisation classes. The camp is for rising seventh grade through 12th-grade players. Faculty members will be joined by jazz professionals from around the state. Summer Choral Camp: The camp for rising seventh grade through 12th grade singers will be June 26–July 1 and offer activities to strengthen participants’ vocal skills, music reading and aural perception of music. Suzuki Institute: This year’s camp will be June 30 and July 1–8 for teacher instruction and July 2–3 and July 3–8 for student instruction. The institute has been ongoing for nearly 30 years and provides private lessons in small master classes and group repertory classes for all levels from Book 1 through advanced. Students are placed according to skill level and age. —Steve Row The Greenville Museum of Art has expanded its collection of paintings by Francis Speight, who was artist-in-residence at East Carolina for 15 years and is considered one of North Carolina’s most accomplished artists. “Winter Scene,” a 40-inch by 42-inch oil, was considered one of the most important Speight paintings in private hands. Created in 1941, it was acquired by the Rachel Maxwell Moore Art Foundation and other community donors from Christie’s Auction House in New York and donated to the museum. “Winter Scene,” which was owned by Winston-Salem art collector William Hanes, joins a number of other works by Speight and his artist wife, Sarah Blakeslee, that are on permanent display at the museum. Born in Bertie County, Speight studied and then taught at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art from 1920 to 1961. The Rachel Maxwell Moore foundation now has acquired 130 pieces of art for the museum over the past 50 years. Located at 802 South Evans Street, the museum is open from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, and 1–4 p.m. on weekends. Admission is free. Furnished 20 Kimmy Cummings, forward/midfielder Linn Moore, TA Loving project superintendent Randall Jernigan, TA Loving project manager Christianne Cordero, goalkeeper Rob Donnenwirth, head coach Amanda Malkiewicz, forward 21 Olympic sports have new home A new $24 million complex for softball, soccer and track opens, creating a new gateway to campus and proving East Carolina is more than a football and baseball school 22 By J . E r i c E c k a r d p h o tography by jay clark Attendance tripled at women’s softball games this spring after the team began playing in an impressive new stadium that’s the centerpiece of the school’s new Olympic Sports Complex. Similar gains in fan support and student interest are expected this fall when the rest of the complex opens—a soccer stadium and a state-of-the-art facility for track. The complex, enclosed by a graceful brick wall and understated architectural touches, creates what officials say will be an eye-popping new gateway to campus. Located at the busy corner of Charles and Greenville boulevards adjacent to the football and baseball stadiums, the 16-acre complex will be the first impression of the school for many visitors driving into town. “These facilities will provide generations of students, fans, team members and coaches with a first-class impression of East Carolina University,” says Athletics Director Terry Holland. The development gives ECU some of the best facilities in North Carolina and in Conference USA. “Positive things are happening on ECU’s campus,” says Tracey Kee, the Pirates’ softball coach for the past 15 years. “This is not just a football school or a baseball school.” The $24-million Olympics Sports Complex is the latest piece of the puzzle to improve Pirate sports facilities. Since Holland came here nearly seven years ago, a total of $60 million has been committed to that effort, including the addition of 7,000 seats to Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium last year and the planned construction of a new practice facility for the basketball and volleyball teams. Holland says the Olympic sports facility and the basketball gym will be paid for with $1.5 million in annual revenue from the new football seats and $15 million in private fundraising. In addition, the $1.7 million in student activity fees that had gone toward Minges Coliseum, since paid for, will be transferred to the new complex. In the center will be the new home for non-revenue sports. The Olympics Sports Building will feature home and away locker rooms for softball, soccer and track events as well as equipment and training rooms. The second floor will feature a team meeting room and coaches’ offices. The building includes a fully equipped sports medicine facility. All three playing fields will have restrooms, concession stands and wireless Internet access. The site is being landscaped with dogwood, holly, magnolia, cherry and maple trees. A graceful brick and wrought iron wall extends along Greenville Boulevard. The site is a reminder of ECU’s continuing commitment to what are called non-revenue sports. That commitment was first made two years ago with the opening of the North Recreational Complex (NRC), a sprawling area 10 minutes from campus with eight multipurpose lighted fields, walking trails and a six-acre lake. The last phase of the NRC, a six-acre lake with a sandy beach and boat rentals, will be completed soon. Coaches from the three Olympics Sports Complex teams say the facilities will improve recruiting and the overall cache from the school’s commitment to sports of all types. “The whole place is looking different,” says women’s soccer coach Rob Donnenwirth. “It looks big-time. And it’s setting us up for inclusion in other conferences.” Moving to a Bowl Championship Series conference would benefit the football program because of the opportunity to play in more lucrative postseason bowls. A conference change also would generate more revenue for all ECU sports programs. But it’s not just about building shiny new stadiums or even winning games, although both are important. What Holland has done, according to Donnenwirth, is to instill the mindset that ECU “belongs” in a major conference with other “big-time” schools. “It’s not just the facilities; it’s the culture that he’s changed,” Donnenwirth says. Still, the victories have come. The women’s soccer team posted its best overall record ever in 2008 and went undefeated in conference play. The women’s track team finished sixth at the 2010 C-USA Indoor Championships, its best showing in school history. Kee’s softball team remains the powerhouse it has been for years; it’s the defending C-USA regular season and tournament champions after winning at least 40 games in six of the past seven seasons. Future Pirates are noticing. “ECU finally has a home that matches their level of skill,” says Emma Mendoker, a high school pitcher from Amherst, Mass., who will play for Kee as a freshman this fall. “For me, the most important thing was the level of play, the coaches and the academics. But it’s an added bonus to have such great facilities.” Another incoming freshman athlete, Kyle Hefkin, who threw the javelin for State College (Pa.) High School’s track team, said the complex influenced his decision. “Part of my decision was based on the new facilities—probably about 30 percent of my decision,” says Hef kin, who starts classes this fall. “I’m pretty excited.” Curt Kraft, ECU’s director of men’s and women’s track and field teams, says he believes the new facilities definitely will boost community support and improve attendance for the Olympic sports teams. “I’ve been coaching for 26 years, and in all my days of coaching, I’ve never had the opportunity to coach on a brand-new facility,” Kraft says. “But this is not about me, and it’s not about 2012. This is about the future—2018, 2022. This will be here for generations to come.” 23 SOCCER The new soccer stadium is similar in design and materials as the baseball stadium. The stadium will feature a video scoreboard and a modern press box. The stadium has 1,000 seats, 192 of which are chairbacks. The field is larger than most such facilities, measuring 360 feet from goal line to goal line and 225 feet from sideline to sideline. With its size, the soccer stadium can more readily host regional tournaments, something ECU could not do until now because its existing soccer facility was too small. “Did we lose recruits because of our old facility? Possibly,” Coach Rob Donnenwirth says. “I think when the stadium is [completed], and they’re coming to games, that’s when it will really kick in.” East Carolina suspended its men’s soccer program in 2005. In three previous seasons, the men’s team went 7-37-3 and won just two conference games. Holland said then that the program could not continue without “a significant increase in resources” which weren’t available at the time. Those resources now seem to be coming into focus. SOFTBALL The first of the three Olympic Sports Complex fields to debut, the softball stadium opened Feb. 16. Coach Tracey Kee calls it a “miniature Clark-LeClair Stadium,” complete with lights, three covered batting cages, a state-of-the-art press box and a video scoreboard in right-center field. The stadium has 1,000 seats, of which 200 are chairbacks. The field is 200 feet from home plate to the outfield foul poles. It’s 220 feet to dead center. Although not expected to draw the same numbers as the Pirate baseball team with its near cult-like following at the 6-year-old 3,000-seat Clark-LeClair Stadium, the softball team “has unbelievable fans who are slowly falling in love with the program,” Kee says. Incoming freshman Emma Mendoker, who has followed the progress of the new softball stadium during visits to ECU’s campus, says she was speechless when she saw the near-finished field late last year. “When I first went into the stands and looked out onto the field, it’s hard to describe, but it was just how it was presented,” Mendoker said. “I was ready to skip my senior year.” 24 25 Toni Paisley, pitcher Jordan Lewis, outfielder/infielder Kristi Oshiro, infielder 26 27 TRACK AND FI ELD To save money and conserve space, many university track facilities—including those at N.C. State and Carolina—are simply ovals built around soccer fields. But ECU’s new eight-lane track will surround an area for throwing events—javelin, hammer and discus. A tall gate-like structure rises in the infield to protect spectators and other athletes during throwing events. The last of the three playing fields to open, the track facility is expected to begin hosting matches next spring. ECU has been unable to hold conference events on campus because the school’s facilities, which were unlighted and did not meet NCAA standards and specifications. Coach Curt Kraft says ECU will have the “nicest track and field facility in North Carolina.” Looking at the entire Olympic Sports Complex—and its close proximity to the baseball stadium—he adds, “I think you’d be hard-pressed to find four better facilities in one package within the league. It takes us to another level in Conference USA.” Matthew McConaughey, javelin Curt Kraft, head coach Tynita Butts, sprinter/jumper Maegan Lewis, hammer 28 29 Jim Hunt’s Ms. Fix-It Rocked by scandal and plagued with inefficiencies, the N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles was the epitome of government gone wrong. It took three months just to get a car title transferred. The governor wanted an overhaul so he called on the person he knew could get the job done— with grace. He tapped Janice Faulkner, a veteran college professor and Democratic Party organizer whose second career in politics often outshines an equally outstanding one in academia. 30 When she arrived at ECU, Janice Hardison Faulkner ’53 ’56 came armed with strong rural values and a tough skin from playing baseball with future pitching greats Jim and Gaylord Perry. Hard work came naturally after growing up on a Martin County farm, where sunrise brought countless chores and farm duties. Education, she knew, was her ticket off the farm. The grit and determination she demonstrated then and later as a teacher and politician inspired others to reach higher. “You’ve got to connect to people who are engaged,” she says. “You seek access, you find out more, you pour your energy into inquiry.” Starting with her first job teaching English at East Carolina in 1957, Faulkner distinguished herself by encouraging students with her love for writers like John Steinbeck, Katherine Anne Porter and Eudora Welty. In addition to teaching, she served as head of the Regional Development Institute, which promotes economic growth in the East. She supported the college in other roles, including serving as a charter member of the Board of Visitors. She had spent 36 years in the classroom when she began a phased retirement in 1992. About that time she got a call from Gov. Jim Hunt, whom she had met years earlier during a student government trip. An energetic young lawyer and student organizer, Hunt had sought her help back then with an event featuring Leo Jenkins. A great friendship developed between them. After his election to a third term as governor in 1992, Hunt named her secretary of the N.C. Department of Revenue. She became Hunt’s go-to person when thorny problems arose, such as in 1996 when he turned to her to clean up a political mess in the Secretary of State’s office. She had restored integrity to that office when Hunt called with another assignment, appointing her commissioner of the DMV in 1997. By that time she knew politics coddled no one, but she refused to let uncertainty limit her. “I wasn’t there to pursue any goal for myself,” she says. “I was there to serve a governor I trusted, and that made me a little more confident than I would have been under different circumstances.” In an interview with East, Hunt called her “one of the best people I ever worked with. You can tell how much how much I think of her. I was always very careful about the people I picked out, not only knowledgeable and able, but people who were really passionate about making change. She knows how to reason carefully and persuasively, speak powerfully and convincingly. She was willing to take on any job.” Although she often was the first woman to serve in statewide political positions, she could handle the tough personalities one encounters in the rough and tumble of politics. “There’s a steel fist under that velvet glove,” Hunt said. A governor’s first choice Faulkner says she felt like a visitor when she first joined DMV. Employees lacked direction and supervisors resented her. “There were people who behaved badly on presumed entitlement,” she recalls. “Because they knew people in powerful places, they didn’t believe they were accountable to the commissioner. So I just ignored them. I said to the workers, ‘We’ve got to make this the best agency in state government.’” Within weeks, the DMV was clicking on all cylinders. She appealed to employees to do their best—and they responded to her down-to-earth appeal by moving thousands of backlogged titles. She relied on her mother’s advice—and her father’s temper— to get things done. “You have to be polite, and kind and genteel,” she says her mother told her. “You have to behave yourself until that stops working. When it stops working, you go right on and behave just like your Daddy,” she says. “My Daddy would pound the table and cuss. So I learned to know when he had to kick in.” “There are a certain number of bullies,” she says. “If they are in control of an agenda you’re committed to delivering, you have to confront them at some point. You have to kick them around the ankles.” Her steel fist in a velvet glove worked miracles. Faulkner brought such efficiency to the DMV that the title turnaround time shrank to four days. She left state government in 2001 and has continued to work for the community on campus and off. She currently serves as chair of the Pitt Memorial Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees, as well as a member of the ECU Women’s Roundtable. She was honored with an Outstanding Alumni Award in 1993 and in 2009 received the Jarvis Medal, which recognizes extraordinary service to the university. Earlier this year the Greenville-Pitt County Chamber of Commerce presented her with its Legends Award. Looking behind—and ahead As she reflects on public life, she generously shares stories without dropping names, though she certainly could. She met John and Robert Kennedy in 1960 when, at 28, she was the youngest delegate to the National Democratic Convention. “Bobby was doing a lot of the heavy lifting for Jack’s campaign for the presidency,” she recalls. “He was very visible in the convention that year.” Later she met Ted Kennedy. Among the framed photos in her Greenville home are pictures of Hunt, former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker and JFK’s official White House portrait. Nearby is a touching black-and-white image of Robert Kennedy beneath a painting of Christ. In another photo she’s seen with British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. By Marion Bla ckburn There are fewer volumes in her towering bookshelves these days, because in February she made an exceptional gift to Joyner Library of first-editions and rare books, many of which have been added to the Special Collections and North Carolina Collections. “It’s always especially meaningful to have the support of a long-time faculty member, and of such an important public figure in the state,” says Maury York, assistant director for Special Collections. “The gift of books is important, and to know that someone of her standing and caliber supports the library means a great deal to us.” Among the books she donated is a special first edition of John Steinbeck’s East of Eden in a box, signed by the author. Harry Golden’s biography of Carl Sandburg, signed by both of them, also figured among the collection. Cale, a novel by Sylvia Wilkinson, will go into the Roberts Collection of fiction set in North Carolina. One she held onto is a book about North Carolina’s first ladies autographed by several of them. With her reputation as the iron lady of public service, it’s easy to forget she made her name as a teacher. She always emphasized doing your best. “I wanted students to pay attention while they were in my keep,” she says. One former student, Wanda Yuhas ’75, executive director of the Pitt County Economic Development Commission, remembers her considerable influence. “She was smart, she was funny. She made you want to learn more.” “I was 19 years old and [having Faulkner as a teacher] changed my entire outlook on life,” Yuhas says. “We knew we could call on her for advice or for assistance. She changed who we are and changed who we are as a region and as a state. She raised the bar for all of us.” East JANICE HARDISON FAULKNER ’53 ’56 ECU instructo r and department chair 1957–1992 Director, Regional Development Institute Director of alumni affairs Associate vice chancellor for regional development North Carolina state government 1993 Secretary of Revenue 1996 Secretary of State, the first woman to serve in that role 1997–2001 Commissioner of the Division of Motor Vehicles Other honors and service 1993 Outstanding Alumni Award 1989–1991 President , N.C. World Trade Association 1994 Founding member and first chair of the university’s Board of Visitors 1998 Honorary doctorate from ECU 2003 First chair of the ECU Women’s Roundtable 2007 100 Incredible ECU Women 2009 Jarvis Medal Current Chair, Pitt County Memorial Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees and member of the PCMH Board of Trustees 31 University Archives from the classroom Sociologist, surfer dude 33 Jeff Johnson, one of ECU’s most honored professors, can capture a student’s attention—and catch a wave. By J u s tin Boul may When he was in graduate school, one of sociology professor Jeffrey Johnson’s favorite classes required students to write a paper every other week and then submit their work for review by their classmates. That repeated criticism showed Johnson the strong points and weak points in his arguments. It also taught Johnson that his best work wouldn’t come easily. “The more I suffered, the better it was,” he says. The longer he’s been in the classroom at East Carolina—which will be 30 years soon—the further Johnson has moved away from teaching by the traditional lecture method. He wants his students engaged the same way he was as a college student. He knows they will work harder if they have a personal stake in the outcome. “If you’ve got something that people care about and then you have them take what you’re trying to teach them and put it to bear on what they care about, they’ll learn more and they’re going to be more interested,” Johnson says. 34 For his doctoral students, the incentive is to learn more about the mechanics of research. Throughout the semester, his students write objectives, develop questions and hypotheses, and then submit their work to the class for feedback. This teaching method gives students both a finished project at the end of the semester as well as experience defending their views. That knowledge will come in handy when they defend their dissertations before a faculty committee. Jamie Brinkley, who is pursuing his Ph.D. in coastal resource management and also works for Johnson, said he has even enrolled in courses taught by Johnson that really weren’t related to his major. “He just makes it fun,” he said. “He’s pretty personable.” Johnson himself likes seeing what happens when his students grasp what’s being taught in class. “I enjoy seeing students get something and actually being able to think critically and apply something and see the lights go off,” he says. “It doesn’t always happen, but when it does, it’s a real satisfying thing.” Distinguished professor and scientist Johnson is one of East Carolina’s most decorated professors. He’s served as a distinguished research professor the past four years and was the 2010 Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences Distinguished Professor. In addition to teaching, he also serves as a senior scientist at the Institute for Coastal Science and Policy. He received ECU’s 2007 Lifetime Achievement Award in Research and Creative Activity. He has authored several books and dozens of peer-reviewed articles published in scholarly journals. He’s a favorite mentor for master’s and doctoral students in the Department of Sociology and the coastal resource management Ph.D. program. Winning the distinguished professor award “was a great honor, and the people who’ve gone before me—I knew some of the others—it was an honor to be in their presence, in the membership of that particular club.” Johnson has traveled to Russia, Alaska and the Antarctic for research; he’s journeyed to Panama and El Salvador to pursue another of his passions: surfing. That’s a sport he’s enjoyed since the mid-1960s growing up in California. Johnson had entered the University of California–Irvine with the intention of becoming an engineer. However, he took an anthropology course and was hooked on the subject. When the local economy suffered layoffs in the local aerospace industry in the 1970s, Johnson started to think that if he was going to be unemployed, then he might as well pursue something he enjoyed. He graduated from UC–Irvine in 1975 with a bachelor’s degree in anthropology. He started his doctoral classes as an undergraduate student, which allowed him to earn his Ph.D. in social science in 1981. $2 million in research funding Research is also something Johnson enjoys and, judging by the amount of funding he’s received over the years, is something at which he is talented. He has received more than 50 grants totaling more than $2 million over the last five years alone to support his research. Some of Johnson’s work has focused on coastal issues, such as a study in the early 1990s regarding conflicts between commercial and recreational fisherman, as well as tagging data from news articles from the Sudan Tribune to build a network of concepts that reveals the links between particular topics, such as possible conflicts between two tribes. He’s also published research on ear infections among children in eastern North Carolina. Other projects provided Johnson with the opportunity to understand what makes social groups survive. During research in Alaska, Johnson studied a group of fishermen who were on strike. The group regularly picked on one of its members, but those actions helped to relieve tension among the group, which also rewarded the member it picked on by giving him fish. So Johnson further explored how the importance of these roles by studying different working communities at Antarctic polar-research stations belonging to the United States, Russia, India, China and Poland. Each study of each station yielded the same answer: the more a group has informal roles—such as the informal leader and even the group “clown”—and maintains a face-to-face connection, the stronger the group will be. “And lo and behold, it even holds up across cultures that the more of these informal roles of a certain mix you have, the better the group does,” Johnson said. Understanding human behavior These days, Johnson is helping the U.S. Army better understand other cultures. Surfing in El Salvador Books by Faculty Liza Wieland’s third collection of short fiction is filled with women who find themselves at emotional crossroads: A young girl encounters the elderly Ezra Pound in Venice; Marie Curie’s daughter Eve attends the funeral of her mother’s lover in Paris; a woman survives the 1944 Nazi massacre in Oradour, France; a nun in New York City catches a baby dropped out a window; a U.S. college applicant whose talent is performing sign language at poetry readings. As each deals with the delicious dangers they encounter, they seem to gain a firmer understanding of themselves and their own ambitions—a quickening, if you will, of the spirit. Wieland paints beautiful word portraits of these unusual characters. The winner of two Pushcart Prizes, as well as fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Christopher Isherwood Foundation and the North Carolina Arts Council, Wieland also has written three novels and a book of poems. On the acknowledgements page, she says the book could not have been completed without a grant she received from the Thomas Harriott College of Arts and Sciences, where she teaches in the English department. It’s unfortunate, then, that the “About the Author” blurb says she teaches at Eastern Carolina University. Quickening Southern Methodist University Press 256 pages, $23.95 He has a two-year contract to develop a basic social-science program for the Army Research Office that will help soldiers better understand human behavior and other cultures. This year he is spending about 60 percent of his time working for the military on the project. The Army’s request reflects a shift from the “us versus them” social perspective of the world that was held during the Cold War. “There’s all kinds of players in any kind of conflict or any kind of humanitarian effort,” Johnson says. “The real problem no longer is necessarily having to do with weapons or anything else. The problem is trying to understand people, understand culture, understand those kinds of things.” His work could help the military know how best to interact with people in countries like Afghanistan and Iraq, although the program isn’t specifically geared toward the Middle East. Because the course is rooted in better understanding human behavior, it could help explore why the uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa that occurred this year happened now and not five years ago. Social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter might have helped facilitate those uprisings, but Johnson also suggests underlying causes like rising food prices and the lack of political freedom. Johnson visited Iraq last fall and interviewed FBI agents who told him that Iraqi judges don’t even consider forensic evidence when hearing a case. However, many Iraqis have learned about what constitutes evidence in court by watching reruns of such American TV cop shows as CSI. That’s one piece of a puzzle that also involves overcoming bad history. People have to trust that they’ll be treated fairly when they appear in court, so in a place like Iraq, how do you get a Sunni citizen to trust that a Shia judge will try their case fairly? “Those are all human problems,” Johnson said. Judging by his previous accomplishments, the Army appears to have found the right man for the job. Tom Raedeke Mind Games The brain is a muscle, so sport psychologists train athletes to exercise it same as their abs, delts and pecs. Here are their workout tips on how you can, too. 38 Hoping to boost morale and productivity, companies often bring in a motivational speaker to lead a rah-rah meeting to improve workers’ attitude and motivation. Golfers rush out to buy the latest video promising mental secrets to lower scores. But these quick-fix approaches hardly ever work, according to psychology professor Tom Raedeke, who has worked with athletes and coaches for more than 20 years. Coaches around campus agree with him that just as physical skills can only become consistent through practice and repetition, improving your mental game only comes from learning proper thinking patterns and then committing to practice, practice, practice. “Some athletes are more physically gifted than others, but everybody can improve their physical skills,” Raedeke says. “It takes systematic training, it takes hard work, it takes conscientious effort. The same thing is true with the mental game. Some athletes are naturally more mentally tough, but every single athlete can learn and grow and improve in their mental game.” The mental demands in college athletics vary from sport to sport, but the common thread is this: A breakdown above the neck can nullify untold hours of physical training. It happens when athletes can’t duplicate how they perform in practice when they’re under the pressure of competition. Raedeke has worked with volleyball players, runners and other athletes, but he prefers to train coaches in the fundamentals of sport psychology. If he can help a coach, he reasons, the impact will be much broader than if he works with just one athlete at a time. “In talking to a lot of coaches, they say, ‘I’m really good at the Xs and Os. I know the game. But that mental stuff ? That’s kind of touchy feely. I’m not sure what to do with that.’” Raedeke says. “I think coaches are receptive to it, but some just aren’t very comfortable in that side of it.” For us weekend warriors looking to improve our games, the good news is that this touchy-feely stuff that works for college athletes can work for us, too. The experts say you should start by focusing on your attitude. Think about it like a muscle needing a workout. Take your mental pulse daily If any coach understands the necessity for mental as well as physical workouts, it’s Rick Kobe. As the head coach for 60-plus swimmers and divers, he presides over a sport requiring early-morning workouts in a chlorine-scented facility that is more than 40 years old. College swimmers never see the sun; it’s a grind that tends to wear on some psyches. “In swimming, it’s every single day, every single practice,” says Kobe, ECU’s longest-serving head coach, with 29 years of experience. “Any good swim coach has to be a psychologist or it’s not going to happen.” Kobe relies on his team leaders to continually take the mental pulse of other team members and let a coach know when someone is struggling. He might not do anything if one of his swimmers seems off at one practice, he said, but if he sees the same poor attitude on the second day he will have a one-on-one meeting with the swimmer to help get them back on track. When he works with athletes, Raedeke, who has been at East Carolina since 1998 and has experience in venues like the U.S. Olympic Training Center, tries to identify what has cropped up to block their focus. “What I try to do is figure out what is standing in the way of them reaching their potential or performing up to their physical abilities and then try to improve their mental game,” he says. “What I try to do is give them the skills to perform in a pressure situation.” Golf, it’s often said, is played on a six-inch course between your ears, which is why men’s and women’s golf coaches Press McPhaul and Kevin Williams are completely sold on the benefits of the mental game. They teach kids that if you master the little things, big things usually will follow. “It may be oversimplifying it a little bit, but a good round is built on a lot of good shots, and good shots are built on being confident, and being confident is built on feeling prepared, and feeling prepared comes from having a trusted process that has yielded good results,” McPhaul says. “Most of the time that they are having some swing error or physical error, if you trace that back far enough that root is probably in some mental or lack of trust breakdown. “ Avoid ‘mental blindness’ So, you develop and religiously adhere to a practice regimen, which helps you produce a winning backhand or a great putting stroke. It pays off when you hit that great shot and feel that rush of adrenaline. You feel great until your next shot sails out of bounds. What happened? Williams is constantly preaching a concept he calls ���emotional blindness,” which teaches golfers to avoid letting one emotional experience affect their next decision on the course. “Emotional blindness is, you hit a bad shot, and you let that control your next decision.” Often it helps to stop thinking about your performance altogether. When Williams first took the ECU job in 2007, the team’s lone senior was a Swedish golfer named Emelie Lind. Lind had been averaging 77 strokes per round, scores that Williams felt didn’t reflect her potential. He concluded she was struggling because she was too fixated on her own scorecard. He tried a new approach, telling Lind that as the team’s senior leader she needed to stop thinking about her own score and instead focus on what she could do to direct her teammates. “During her senior year she had her lowest stroke average ever, taking off almost two-and- a-half strokes per round,” Williams says. “I firmly believe that because she stopped worrying about her game and just played golf, she got out of her own way.” By B ethany Brad sher p HOTOGRAPH Y B Y F OREST CROCE 39 Volleyball coach Pati Rolf has integrated a campus ROTC instructor’s experience and insight into her quest to develop leadership on her squad. Lt. Col. Eric Buller, who fought in Somalia and now teaches military science in Army ROTC, has met with the volleyball players weekly to challenge them to dig deeper in athletics, in the classroom and in the community. “The first step was defining a leader,” says Buller, who came to view his sessions with the volleyball team as one of the highlights of his week. “The act of defining leadership is the instrument that has gotten them to open up and talk about things.” Realize it’s a battle out there Jeff Connors is a coach known for his ability to zero in on the mental side of the game. A strength-and-conditioning coach, he’s fond of saying, “Confidence is born of demonstrated ability.” And that ability, he believes, comes from showing determination and focus through intensive strength-and-conditioning regimens. Connors has made a 30-year career out of helping athletes find the internal motivation to push themselves up to and past physical limits in the weight room and on the track. With a bookshelf full of military biographies and tactical books, Connors adheres to the ideals that soldiers carry into battle, and he believes that coaches can inspire athletes to the type of loyalty, hard work and selflessness that defines our military. When he held the same position at ECU in the ’90s under head coaches Bill Lewis and Steve Logan, Connors became known for pulling surprising results from athletes who started out smaller, weaker and less recruited than their opponents at larger programs. With his drill sergeant mentality and plenty of tough love, Connors combined a stream of positive motivation with a brutal conditioning regimen to ensure that no team would be fitter in the fourth quarter than his team. “My favorite book is the Marine Corps warfighting skills manual, because I can go in there and read about character, and I can read about discipline, and I can read about accountability and I can read about leadership, and all these things have parallels to athletics,” Connors says. “What I always tell athletes is I draw these parallels because if it’s good enough for the most successful war fighting machine in the history of the world, it’s probably going to work for us, too.” East Jeff Connors 40 pirate nation From guarding presidents to protecting students Among the first steps taken by the UNC Board of Governors after the Virginia Tech shooting tragedy was to hire an expert to lead a safety improvement effort for all the campuses. The board found that expertise in Brent Herron ’77, a veteran Secret Service agent who had helped guard five presidents. Since being named the UNC system’s associate vice president for safety and emergency operations two years ago, Herron has worked quietly to implement a range of programs to improve student safety. He stepped into the spotlight recently to deliver a status report to the board and the assembled chancellors. Here are some highlights of his presentation: It’s a big problem. If the UNC system were a city, it would be the third largest in North Carolina with a population of more than 265,000—about 220,000 students and 45,000 faculty and staff. Campus police are highly trained. All campus officers are trained and state-certified. Five campus police departments, including ECU’s, have the same accreditation as city police departments. Policing a campus is difficult. Besides traditional duties, campus cops operate highly technical campus security systems and perform tasks city police don’t, like guarding major sporting events, concerts and theater performances. Campus police departments acted on more than 260,000 calls in 2010. At N.C. State, the 911 center answered 80,153 calls last year. Student counseling centers help. Several campuses, including ECU, now operate accredited counseling centers to serve students. Counselors at these centers report that depression and anxiety are common reasons students seek psychological help. Counselors talk with faculty and staff when there is a specific safety concern. Use all available resources. All the campuses now have in place trained threat assessment teams with representatives from the counseling center, campus police, academic affairs, residence life, dean of students’ office and human resources. Each campus has a written protocol for identifying and responding to students who potentially pose a threat. Faculty, staff and students should be trained to recognize signs of violence, suicide and mental illness. Respond instantly. Each campus has emergency notification and communication plans that include loud sirens and warnings broadcast via test messages, voice mail, e-mail, web site and social media. Train for the worst. All UNC campuses conduct safety exercises at least twice a year. These include tabletop exercises and full-scale “active shooter” drills. A consulting company that specializes in emergency response and preparedness facilitates the drills. The top lesson learned from these drills is that communication is the most critical element to achieve the best emergency response. “It’s been a big learning experience for me because I had never worked on a campus,” Herron said the challenges of his job, which includes oversight of the 16 UNC university campuses and the N.C. School for Science and Math. “When I came on board we had 17 campuses moving forward but in 17 directions and my job was to say, ‘Let’s look at this from a system perspective.’ I know for a fact that on the public safety side of the house, everybody now has a better idea of how [proactive safety programs] operate. We have better communication,” he added. All but two of the 16 campuses conducted full-scale “active shooter” drills in the past year in which authorities respond as if it were the real thing. Two campuses that previously trained for a shooting incident switched to train for other disasters—a hurricane and a train derailment. Herron worked for the Secret Service for 21 years until taking the UNC job. In that time he worked protective assignments for presidents Ford, Carter, Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Clinton and George W. Bush. “Reagan was in the last year of his presidency when I started. The assignments with Ford and Carter were as former presidents. Most of my protection time was with presidents Clinton and G.W. Bush,” Herron said. A photo on his office wall of Marine One, which transports presidents to and from the White House, was presented to Herron by the Marine squadron that operates the helicopter. The son of a military man, Herron is originally from Durham but moved around a lot growing up. His is a true Pirate family. “My brother went to ECU, my two sisters, and my brother in law. My niece and our daughter are current students, so ECU definitely runs in our blood.” 41 Alumni welcome at summer outings Freshmen Sendoffs events are a fun way for alumni to reconnect with each other and to meet the newest class of Pirates. Held across the Pirate Nation, these summer outings are open to alumni and friends who want to encourage Pirate spirit and instill Pirate pride in the Class of 2015. Freshmen Sendoffs will occur in the following areas: Arlington, Va. Charlotte, N.C. Clemmons, N.C. Fayetteville, N.C. Morehead City, N.C. New York metro— Cranford, N.J. Norfolk, Va. Philadelphia metro— Cherry Hill, N.J. Powhatan, Va. Raleigh, N.C. (2) Wilmington, N.C. Nominat e someone for an alumni award Each fall the Alumni Association recognizes alumni and friends through our Alumni Awards Program. Alumni are recognized with Outstanding Alumni Awards for those who have demonstrated uncommon achievement in their profession, in civic affairs, and/or in politics. Distinguished Service Awards are given to alumni that have given their time and talents to advance the university through exceptional service. Honorary Alumni Awards are bestowed upon those who did not attend the university, but have adopted it as their own through outstanding service, continuing commitment, and loyalty. Nominations for the 2012 Alumni Awards are now being accepted. Please visit PirateAlumni.com/awardsprocess for nomination materials and directions on submitting a nomination. Please call the Alumni Center at 800-ECU-GRAD with questions. Exceptional Contribution awards Six individuals and one group were honored in April with Black Alumni Exceptional Contribution Awards at the “Reclaiming the Past, Celebrating the Future” Reunion Gala during the Black Alumni Reunion. Honorees were selected based on outstanding contribution to the East Carolina community and/or to their local community. This year’s recipients include: Dr. Sheila G. Bunch ’77 of Greenville, director of ECU’s School of Social Work Mr. Michael Moseley ’80 of Kinston, retired state Health and Human Services administrator Rev. James D. Corbett ’85 of Greenville, founder and pastor of Community Christian Church Ms. Brenda Myrick ’92 of Greenville, administrator of Operative Services at Pitt County Memorial Hospital Vonta Leach ’10, running back for the NFL’s Houston Texans Derval Hamilton of Greenville, exercise physiology major and president of Circle K International at ECU Eta Nu Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Nominations for 2012 Black Alumni Exceptional Contribution Awards are accepted year round. Visit PirateAlumni.com /blackalumnirecognition to download a nomination form. Award recipients and other reunion participants enjoyed a weekend of events with the Michael Jackson theme “Remember the Times.” Activities included “I Want You Back” mixer, “Got to Be There” Gospel Choir Concert, Party with the Pros, “A Brand New Day” conversation, the 4th Annual Pirate Alumni Road Race and Fun Run, and the Annual Purple/Gold Spring Football Game. Reunion, anyon e? Is your affinity group interested in getting together? Contact the Alumni Association to start planning your reunion. Whatever the common interest, athletics, clubs and organizations, societies, the Alumni Association will work with you to plan an engaging and fun schedule of events. Call 800-ECU-GRAD or e-mail alumni@PirateAlumni.com to get started. Sav e the Dat e! July 11—Alumni Tailgate tickets on sale for members September 29—Pirate’s Bounty Scholarship Auction September 30—ECU Alumni Scholarship Classic golf tournament October 28-29—Homecoming In honor of Service Month, members of the Wake County Chapter of the Alumni Association formed a fundraising team to assist the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, a charity that provides funding for research to find cures for childhood cancers. The team surpassed its initial $2,000 goal by raising $2,730. The culminating event had six members of the team shave their heads at Napper Tandy’s during the charity’s annual festival. 42 43 2010 MARY HOWELL exhibited her work at the Uptown Art Gallery in Greenville. Staff Sgt. KATHERINE L. TRIPP, 982nd Combat Camera, completed the U.S. Army Combatives School at Fort Benning, Ga. She is a graduate student at ECU. MARGIE GRAY WORKMAN is an account manager with Confidential Records Management Inc. in Greenville. 2009 ERIKA LYNN CONWAY was promoted to bank center manager at Bank of America and manages the branch on West First Street in Greenville. She was assistant branch manager at Bank of America in Washington, N.C. BRANDON HENDERSON joined Next Level Training Center in Greenville. He played baseball at ECU. CHARLES DAVID PARKS joined the Greensboro office of Brady Services as a staff accountant. JENNIFER RAINES wed LEI “NATHAN” ZHU ’08 at Messiah Lutheran Church in Wilmington on Sept. 25. A second ceremony was held a week later in Wuhan, China. ERIN TART joined the Country Club of North Carolina in Pinehurst as special events and catering manager. She was resort services coordinator for Pinehurst Resort. JAY ROSS, a defensive lineman on the Green Bay Packers’ practice squad, and C. J. WILSON, a Packers’ defensive end, were on the Super Bowl winning team. 2008 ELIZABETH PAIGE BAGGETT ’08 ’10 teaches softball at Next Level Training Center in Greenville. She played four years on the ECU softball team. JAKE DEAN joined Next Level Training Center in Greenville. He played baseball at ECU. LEO JOHNSON II joined Going Bananas in Greenville, which offers a variety of games and activities for children. CHRISTIN NAOMI MATTHEWS wed Jason Moore Harman on July 24 at Fuquay-Varina Baptist Church in Fuquay-Varina. She teaches second grade in the Moore County School System. JIM MCATEE is director of career services at Indiana University–Purdue University Fort Wayne (Indiana). He was in the ECU career services office. ASHLEY MARIE MCDUFFIE wed Dwight David Gane Jr. on Oct. 30 at the New Hanover County Arboretum in Wilmington. She works for Coastal Chiropractic Center. SUSAN STANCILL ’08 ’09 joined Eastern Psychiatric & Behavioral Specialists in Greenville, where she offers behavioral psychotherapy to pediatric and adult patients. KATIE REESE WEINER wed Steven Lewis Burger on Sept. 25 at the Orchard House in Concord. She works for Gaston County Hospice. 2007 ELIZABETH FULTON was selected as treasurer of the executive board for the Student Bar Association for Alumni S p otlight CLASS NOTES Michelle Pearson ’92, founding member and currently one of four artistic directors of Even Exchange Dance Theater in Raleigh, was invited by the U.S. State Department to serve as a cultural envoy to Freetown, Sierra Leone, for two weeks in January. Pearson worked with local groups in creating dance programs and in cross-cultural exercises. In a country where 80 percent of the population is illiterate, dance can be an effective means of communication. “As a choreographer, I often learn about the world by dancing and creating dances,” Pearson says. “I believe an artist’s job is to provide an understanding of common issues in a different, deeper or new way. Making dances about meaningful, difficult, surprising and human issues with a range of people is one way to meet this challenge.” She specializes in working with groups who would not ordinarily get to experience and create through dance. In turn she gathers information and material from those she dances with. This “even exchange” provides the name for her theater company. Garrett McNeill ’08 worked in an orphanage in Ben Hoa, Vietnam, before heading out to Guatemala on his journey to minister to the poor in 11 countries in 11 months. As a volunteer in the Great Race, a nondenominational Christian charitable organization, McNeill travels with other volunteers. “There is so much that needs to be done and that can be done and this year has really opened my eyes to the lives of millions of people around the world and that we have the ability to create a better life for them and for ourselves.” In Guatemala, McNeill’s group is fitting special needs children with wheelchairs. class notes Alumni S p otlight 44 One year ago Rachelle Friedman ’08 was planning her wedding to Chris Chapman ’05 ’08. At her bachelorette celebration in Raleigh, she was playfully shoved into a pool by one of her bridesmaids. She hit her head on the bottom and was paralyzed from the collarbone down. The wedding was postponed, but Friedman and Chapman are adjusting to their new life, living outside of Raleigh in a house they bought together. When news of her accident and their positive response to the tragedy became national news, Friedman was chosen by the NBC television show George to the Rescue, which surprises people who have overcome difficulties of some sort with home renovations. “They saw my story somewhere and realized it wasn’t all peaches and cream and wanted to know how Chris and I have been affected,” said Friedman. “I thought I was having a typical interview when George to the Rescue surprised me by showing up at our door.” The remodeling added an elevator to the home and a lift system to help her get in and out of bed. The master bath and closet were adjusted so Friedman can reach everything from her wheelchair. The halls and doorways were widened to accommodate the wheelchair. The guest bedroom and garage were decorated with an ECU theme. A ramp and sidewalk were added to their deck so Friedman can access the back yard to play with their dogs, PeeDee and [Jolly] Roger. “To be able to shower, pick out my own clothes and put on make-up myself has been amazing. It’s easier to be myself now.” After the accident, Friedman spent two months at Pitt County Memorial Hospital and has made the most of physical-therapy sessions allotted by her insurance company. As a former dance and aerobics instructor, she’s determined to overcome and stay active. A major source of strength for Friedman comes from playing on the Raleigh Sidewinders quadriplegic rugby team. “I get stronger and stronger at each practice. We do everything any other team would do, laps and suicides. I have found camaraderie in the teammates. I can ask them questions and they can give so much support since they know what I’m going through.” Last fall Friedman appeared at ECU’s annual Adapted Recreation and Wellness Day at the Student Rec Center to share her experience with how playing competitive rugby has helped her physically and mentally. As an undergraduate, she volunteered at the event and played tennis and basketball in a wheelchair. Watching Murderball, a movie about a team of paraplegics who play full-contact wheelchair rugby, for a class also gave her some insight into adaptive sports. “This movie has helped me stay positive, because I knew I could be independent and have fun.” A former lifeguard, she said she would “love to get more involved with lifeguards and talk about being alert, safety around the pool, and knowing the signs of injury.” The couple shares a love for ECU and Pirate football. “I have never missed a football game and was a volunteer at the ticket office,” said Friedman. “I had season tickets before the accident, but was able to change them to the handicapped seats. Almost everything in my life has changed, but watching ECU play football hasn’t. I just have better seats now.” —Jessica Nottingham the 2010–2011 academic year at the Charleston (S.C.) School of Law. ALLEN LLOYD LAWRENCE JR. wed Elizabeth Ann Baggett on Nov. 6 at the Duck Woods Country Club, Southern Shores. He is self-employed in construction management. CASI MOORING ’07 ’09 joined Eastern Psychiatric & Behavioral Specialists PLLC in Greenville, where she provides medical management to patients with behavioral and/or emotional issues. KATIE LYNN TYSON wed Phillip Charles Entzminger on Oct. 10 at First Free Will Baptist Church in Greenville. She is pursuing a second degree in clinical laboratory science at ECU. 2006 BRIAN FLYE is a home mortgage consultant in the Greenville office of Wells Fargo Home Mortgage. MICHELE GLINCOSKY GARCIA received her MS in speech language pathology from ECU. She works for the Ft. Worth (Texas) Independent School District. Dr. TANA HALL, specialist in obstetrics and gynecology, joined ECU’s Brody School of Medicine and its group medical practice, ECU Physicians, as an assistant professor. Dr. NICHOLAS JERNIGAN heads a special needs department opened by Wilmington Health to see children and adults with autism, Down syndrome and other genetic diseases and developmental disorders. ROBERT J. LEWIS III was appointed as planning department director for Columbus County. He was the planner/GIS administrator for Elizabethtown. LYNNLY MARTIN was named Pitt County Schools’ Outstanding Secondary Mathematics Teacher for the 2010 school year. ALICIA NAGLE joined Eastern Psychiatric & Behavioral Specialists in Greenville, where she specializes in psychological evaluations to delineate educational, behavioral and emotional needs. ADAM CALHOUN PARKER wed Laura Marie Wing on Oct. 23 at Brownson Memorial Presbyterian Church in Southern Pines. He is an analyst at First Citizens Bank in Raleigh. CYNTHIA TAYLOR, a licensed and registered occupational therapist, is director and owner of Carolina Therapy Connection in Greenville. Dr. JILL SUTTON, specialist in obstetrics and gynecology, joined ECU’s Brody School of Medicine and its group medical practice, ECU Physicians, as a clinical assistant professor. KIMBERLY DAWN WOOD wed Jay Douglas Benfield on July 30 at the First Baptist Church in Winston-Salem. She is a dance instructor at In Motion Dance Center in Winston- Salem. MOLLY MCKEITHAN YOUNG was inducted into ECU’s College of Education’s Educators Hall of Fame. She was the 2010 Pitt County Teacher of the Year and now lives in Charlotte. 2005 LAUREN D. ASBY was promoted to banking officer for Southern Bank in the South Charles Boulevard office in Greenville. She is president-elect of the Greater Greenville Kiwanis Club and a charter member of Greenville’s Junior Women’s Association. JUSTIN 45 Alumni S p otlight Amanda Miller ’06 ’07 of Atlanta, who was in the first class to graduate from ECU with a master’s in communication degree, was invited back by the School of Communication to talk with students about how to make the sometimes painful transition between college and the real world. She gave them something textbooks and professors cannot: a first-hand account of how to be successful in this job market with this specific degree. She shared industry-specific job searching tips, the demands of health communication-related positions and recent trends in the field. “Job searching and getting your career off the ground can be overwhelming and students often don’t know where to start. But, I’ve found you can begin anywhere,” said Miller. “Success for me has been less about finding one area to get plugged into or developing one particular skill, and more strategically taking advantage of a wide variety of opportunities in the classroom, professional organizations and interning or freelancing.” For the past three years, Miller has been contracted full time with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as a health communication specialist. She has served as the communication expert on a number of health initiatives and campaigns for the CDC ranging from the Office of Women’s Health to the Office of Workforce and Career Development. Currently, she is working in the Office for State, Tribal, Local and Territorial Support, which works to ensure the use of evidence-based public-health policy, practice and communication at all these levels. Miller detailed her work on a health campaign called text4baby, a groundbreaking and award-winning mobile technology program to improve maternal and child health via text messaging. Miller served on the recent graduate panel for the regional chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America, an event ECU hosted this year, and spent an evening taking questions from communication master’s students about everything from student organization opportunities, internships and assistantships, comprehensive exams, interviewing, teaching as a graduate student and career advice. “As one of the first graduates of the MA program and one of the founders of many of the student activities, Amanda was able to offer a fresh insight that the students really appreciated,” said SOC assistant professor Kris Kirschbaum. “Thankfully, she also opened the eyes of many students who assumed that finding a job would be easy after graduate school was over.” —Jessica Nottingham 46 COLE is a machining instructor in the engineering and manufacturing technologies department at Nash Community College. 2004 JENNIFER CUDNEY-BURCH was selected as a Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellow. An initiative of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Sea Grant College Program, the highly competitive fellowship places students in legislative and executive branch offices to help solve marine policy issues of national consequence. She is working on her doctorate in coastal resources management at ECU. JAMES DOREY is a senior commercial real estate appraiser with CB Richard Ellis in Washington, D.C. His wife, CORINNE SPENCE DOREY, is a financial planning assistant with Edelman Financial in Bethesda, Md. In the past two years, she received four series licenses. Dr. CANDACE MARIE DRAKE wed Richard R. Locchead on Aug. 7 on Mackinac Island, Mich. She is the PTSD psychologist for Veterans Affairs Gulf Coast VA Health Care System in Pensacola, Fla. At ECU, she was a Alpha Phi sister and former student body vice president. Dr. BRENNA MICHELLE FARMER wed Dr. Jason Chu on Dec. 18 at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden in Brooklyn, N.Y. She is an emergency medicine physician and medical toxicologist at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell hospital. MARIA GIRONDA ’04 ’08 received the Teacher of Excellence Award from the Public Schools of North Carolina at the 60th annual Exceptional Children’s Conference in Greensboro. She is an exceptional-children’s teacher at Chocowinity Primary School where she teaches children with autism. She also earned her National Board Certification. ALYSON WILSON GIROUARD was inducted into the Mu chapter of the Delta Kappa Gamma Society International, an honor society for outstanding educators. She teaches biology and chemistry at Rocky Mount High School. JESSICA CAROL HOBGOOD wed William Alan Moss on Oct. 9 at the beach home of the groom’s aunt on Topsail Island. She teaches first grade at Anderson Creek Primary School in Harnett County. GINGER LEAKE is a nursing instructor at Edgecombe Community College. She was a staff registered |
OCLC number | 51556012 |