Technology

from Greater Fayetteville Business Journal - July 15, 2022 Issue

In The News

FSU and ECU

COLLEGES COLLABORATE TO ENCOURAGE STEM EDUCATION

Fayetteville State University has been working alongside East Carolina University over the past two years to create early assurance agreements that make the requirements to guarantee admission of FSU undergraduates into ECU graduate programs clear.

Along with the collaboration comes opportunity for students to learn experientially.

Recently, the schools joined together to promote STEM education.

Throughout the summer, Frankie Boyer, Markis’ Hamilton, Sarina Maybank, and Alexis Nealy – all undergraduates at Fayetteville State University – are taking part in a paid summer research internship. The internship is led by Dr. Danielle Graham, assistant professor of microbiology and interim chair of FSU’s Department of Biological and Forensic Sciences, and the opportunity is made possible through funding that was secured by Danielle and ECU’s Ariane Peralta, Ph.D., associate professor of biology.

“The students are receiving a stipend that is a culmination of several mechanisms, including the McNair Scholars Program, College of Arts and Sciences at ECU, along with individual and joint funding from the National Science Foundation to Dr. Peralta and me,” Danielle said. “This financial support will help alleviate the burden for students to work and give them the ability to focus on gaining experience to advance their careers.”

In June, the students studied soil bacteria at Peralta’s research laboratory at ECU over the course of a three-day visit. While there, they learned lab protocols, how to identify soil bacteria isolated from teh environment, and growth rates of different bacterias.The students also visited the longterm ecology experiment at ECU’s West Research Campus.

The undergraduates all reported that their experiences through the collaboration encouraged them in the career path they hope to pursue.

“Working in ECU’s lab felt natural to me, and my love of science was fueled by the procedures I performed, with the help of ECU students and Dr. Peralta,” said Boyer, a junior biology major interested in researching infectious diseases at the Centers for Disease Control upon receiving his doctorate.

Hamilton, a senior biology major, particularly found value in the ability to have the opportunity for

DREW HAYS/UNSPLASH Hands-on experience made possible through a partnership between Fayetteville State University and East Carolina University is encouraging students to continue on the educational path that will lead to STEM careers.

student research available. “[From] the hands-on experiment, along with the incredible staff, the experience opened up so many doors as an aspiring researcher,” he said.

Maybank, a senior biology major, also found the application of her education at FSU to be particularly interesting. “At first, I thought I would be completely lost and have no idea what I was doing when I sat down at the lab bench,” the Fayetteville native said. “But I realized that a lot of the work was not far off from what I have done in Dr. Graham’s lab in the past. I do believe that learning the ropes in a research lab, different from what I am used to, was a necessary experience, and I even learned a few techniques that I have already started using back in the lab at FSU.”

Alexis Nealy is a senior prehealth major. “I have enhanced my scientific inquiry skills, personal competencies, and teamwork abilities while working in Dr. Graham’s lab,” she said. “I have also enjoyed working in Dr. Peralta’s lab and learning new techniques from the graduate students at ECU. I have become more confident in my abilities as a researcher and will continue to seize new learning opportunities.”

“This research collaboration not only expands our research initiatives, but also exposes FSU undergraduates to a variety of research techniques, builds their network, and allows them to gain necessary skills to be competitive applicants for graduate and professional schools,” Danielle said.

“Graham and Peralta aim to maintain and expand their research collaboration to engage and expose undergraduates to research, thereby strengthening their technical and soft skills while increasing diversity in STEM,” the press release said.

Earlier this year, Danielle and Dr. Justin Graham, assistant professor of biology and director of the FSU Honors Program, facilitated a visit to East Carolina University. Eleven undergraduates in a variety of majors including biology, forensic science, and pre-nursing, attended the tour of ECU’s graduate school and Brody school of Medicine. Additionally, “an immersive laboratory experience, and a session on ECU graduate school admissions” were offered, a press release said.

UNCP honors Locklears

UNIVERSITY NAMES AMERICAN INDIAN HERITAGE CENTER IN HONOR OF ROBESON COUNTY BUSINESSPEOPLE

UNCP’s American Indian Heritage Center will be named in honor of Curt and Catherine Locklear – two well-respected businesspeople committed to supporting the Pembroke community.

The couple’s ties with UNCP dates back to the 1930s. Catherine would deliver fresh milk by bike to faculty and staff members as a child. Curt was on the school’s first football team as a quarterback in the 1940s.

In college, Curt planted the historic oak trees on the campus along Old Main Drive alongside Walter Pinchbeck, the grounds superintendent.

In the Pembroke community, Curt and Catherine were known as the owners of Pembroke True Value Hardware, one of the oldest operations in Robeson County.

As their business grew, Curt and Catherine had nine children who went on to build “successful careers in their own right as educators and in business,” a school press release said, “including the hardware store, Sheff’s Seafood, Southeastern Veterinary and Metcon Construction Company.”

Curt Jr. and his wife, Janice, gave a $50,000 gift to the school in honor of Catherine and Curt Sr. to name the Curt and Catherine Locklear American Indian Heritage Center. Pembroke Hardware matched the gift, making the total $100,000.

“We wanted to do something special in hopes that our parents’ legacy would continue through the work of the American Indian Heritage Center,” Curt Jr. said.

The center, which was established two years ago, is intended to “support efforts to increase the recruitment, retention and graduation rates of American Indian students through cultural, social and academic programs,” a cause near and dear to the family as UNCP was known as the Pembroke State College for Indians when Catherine and Curt sought their educations there.

“You didn’t have a chance back then if you didn't have an education,” said Catherine “Miss Cat” Locklear, the university’s oldest living alumna at 94.

“We’re proud of the work of our American Indian Heritage Center and honored that it will now display the name of a family who has shown continued support for UNCP,” said Chancellor Robin Gary Cummings.

“Their generosity has impacted the lives of so many in this community, and this naming will be a very visible way to recognize the decades of work Curt and Catherine have inspired in this community.”

“This gift (to the university) is an extension of how Daddy treated people at his business,” said his daughter Janice Sheffield. “He helped so many local businesses get started by letting them have credit, contributing to their small business or simply giving them advice on how to be successful.”

Curt Sr. and his wife established an endowed scholarship and gave to UNCP’s athletic programs, Givens Performing Arts Center and Mary Livermore Library.

“Daddy would be pleased with this,” Curt Jr. said. “I want the next generation who visit the (American Indian Heritage) center to know our parents were good people ... giving people who were always thinking of others.”

Catherine Locklear agreed, saying the renaming, “makes it feel like I was put here for a purpose.”

Their generosity has impacted the “ lives of so many in this community, and this naming will be a very visible way to recognize the decades of work Curt and Catherine have inspired in this community.”