East Winter 2023

MBA student Paige Assa ’22 of Raleigh plays fetch with her 2-year-old dog, Stanley, on the campus mall. Stanley, she says, “is incredibly smart, friendly and goofy and is absolutely obsessed with playing fetch. If you ever see him around, he will gladly say hello!”

On the Cover: Bim Akintade is the new dean of the ECU College of Nursing. Get to know him beginning on page 30.

Students Ariel Lineberger, Alex Ferro and Grace Jacobson get real-world experience through the work they do with the Center for Sustainable Energy and Environmental Engineering, setting them up for future employment. Read more about the CSE3 beginning on page 20.

ECU’s virtual exchange program reaches across the globe.

After the Fact Scott Avett ’99 ’00 explores mystery in the creative process.

east.ecu.edu

First-year doctoral student Grace Bellamy is turning a tragedy into helping others hear.

East Carolina University is a constituent institution of The University of North Carolina System. 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. ©2022 by East Carolina University

We launched our most recent strategic plan in 2017, and it’s served us well — keeping us focused on student success, public service and regional transformation. We’ve made some great strides in those areas in the last five years.

We’re updating that plan to reflect today’s challenges and opportunities and to align with the University of North Carolina System’s updated plan. Sharon Paynter of Research, Economic Development and Engagement, and Ravi Paul of the College of Business are leading the planning committee.

Our trustees have reaffirmed our mission statement and core commitments.

In addition to those, innovation will be a focus of the updated plan. Surveys and town halls will give our campus community opportunities to participate, and we’ll keep you informed as we near the final product.

We also have some other exciting news. You may have heard of Greenville’s own YouTube star, MrBeast. He’s not only the largest content creator on the platform, but also a community-minded philanthropist. ECU and MrBeast himself, Jimmy Donaldson, are partnering to create a credentialing program that will train a skilled workforce who will be ready right out of the gate to produce valuable YouTube content. MrBeast, welcome to Pirate Nation! We’re ready to get to work.

Go Pirates!

Philip Rogers, Ed.D. Chancellor

We’re looking to the future at East Carolina University.

Senior engineering student Nicole Obando fabricates solar radiation shields for a temperature profiling array at the Coastal Studies Institute in Wanchese. She deployed the arrays for an independent study research course measuring how different surfaces (short grass, long grass, sandy shoreline) influence air temperature near the ground. Her class is part of a larger project sponsored by the Office of Naval Research studying long-range sound propagation in coastal areas. Read more about the study at bit.ly/3A1gdg7.

ECU Report

In This Issue

Provost Robin Coger gets to work ECU recognizes alumni

Isley Innovation Hub opens to spawn ideas

The new Isley Innovation Hub has transformed the former university bookstore in the Wright Building into a multiuse, 15,000-square-foot area for entrepreneurial-minded students, faculty and staff to collaborate and create ideas and products. It opened in August.

“Mark my words: Amazing things will happen in this space in the next five years,” said Mike Harris, interim dean of the College of Business. “At Isley, we’re about action. In here, we want you to be loud. Any student, any faculty, any staff — this space was created for the entire campus. If you have an idea, if you have a problem you want to solve, we want Isley to be your first stop.”

In addition to open space, the hub offers a One Button Studio to record high-quality videos, a technology lab with software for design and testing, the Wornom Makerspace with 3D printers and scanners, an automated cutting machine, power and hand tools, and a sewing machine.

The hub builds on the success of the college’s Miller School of Entrepreneurship, the first named school of entrepreneurship in North Carolina. Eleven new businesses have been created since the Miller School opened, said Van Isley ’85, an ECU trustee who with his wife, Jennifer, provided $2 million for the hub.

“I’m excited to see it open and that students are utilizing it,” said Van Isley. “It’s designed to give ECU students the ability to launch a business and help themselves, the university and eastern North Carolina.”

Some of the first students to use the Isley Hub are RISE29 students, who are using the space as their primary work location. They spend time collaborating with teammates and peers to work on projects and consult with small-business clients throughout eastern North Carolina. Junior Cameron Brown of Raleigh is a community and regional planning major in the Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences. His RISE29 team collaborates in the Isley Hub to help its client — Carolina Chicken & Waffles, the 2022 Pirate Entrepreneurship Challenge winner — develop franchising models.

“It (the Isley Hub) has enabled my group and me to work together to discuss different issues that we are facing in figuring out how to best develop a franchise,” Brown said.

Entrepreneurship major Katie Rowland hopes to meet peers at the Isley Hub who could help get her nonprofit idea off the ground.

Jennifer and Van Isley

Katie Rowland is a junior entrepreneurship major. After she graduates, she hopes to launch a nonprofit company that supports parents and children in the foster care process by providing resources, time and assistance in transitions from home to home and out of the foster care systems. She sees the Isley Hub as a place to collaborate with peers with interests that complement her potential startup.

The Miller School of Entrepreneurship, the Crisp Small Business Resource Center and the Air Force Leadership Center are also housed in the Isley Hub.

– Michael Rudd

ECU to offer only OT doctorate in UNC System

The College of Allied Health Sciences is set to offer a doctoral degree program in occupational therapy — the first at any public university in the state.

“Occupational therapy is a diverse field that enables those with disabilities to engage in the activities of daily living, which improves quality of life in so many ways,” said Robert Orlikoff, dean of the college. “This doctoral program will allow us to not only provide our OT students with a greater depth of knowledge and an expanded skill set, but to prepare the next generation of leaders in this important discipline.”

Occupational therapy uses assessment and intervention to assist people who live with physical, sensory or cognitive challenges, aiming to help them regain independence in all areas of their lives and address barriers that affect their emotional, social and physical needs.

ECU offers a master’s degree in occupational therapy; the entry-level doctoral degree will add another option for students pursuing graduate work in the discipline. Both programs will include intensive hands-on clinical experiences. Students who have entered ECU’s fall 2023 occupational therapy program will be the first to have the opportunity to apply for the OTD program. Applications to the programs were accepted through Oct. 15.

– Spaine Stephens

Heather Panczykowski, assistant professor of occupational therapy, and student Jill Donaldson work with a client at the Pitt County Council on Aging in Bethel.

From left, College of Business students Joshua Harris, Faith Davenport, Greyson Tavolacci, Devonte Grace and Colby Mitchell meet in the Isley Hub.

New provost sees people, teamwork as key

Robin Coger, ECU’s new provost who began in July, said she appreciates the enthusiasm and commitment she has seen from Pirate Nation.

“I learned a long time ago that a university’s people are its most important resource,” she said. “And at ECU, starting with the chancellor, and inclusive even of our incoming new students across every level, we all have an opportunity to apply our diverse talents, our perspectives and our hard work to ensure that tomorrow’s ECU will be even stronger than the ECU of today.”

The role of provost at ECU has grown following a 2022 reorganization. Coger will oversee all academic programs and functions, including health sciences and research. She said the model will create new opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration and coordination.

From her first job as a student intern in a research lab when she was in high school, she has seen the importance of details and teamwork. At the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, she was founding director of the Center for Biomedical Engineering Science, a unit designed to synergize the efforts of biomedical faculty from four colleges, multiple academic departments and two medical establishments.

“When you’re bringing different minds and expertise together to create exciting results, it really is a wonderful place to be,” she said. “The strengths ECU has in health care and health sciences, combined with the excellent academic research that’s going on, I think we’re going to create some wonderful things together as one ECU.”

Coger said she also admires the role ECU plays in the community and in eastern North Carolina and recognizes the importance of the partnerships between the university and business and industry, local government and community organizations.

A longtime advocate for women and underrepresented demographic groups in engineering, Coger also embraces the opportunity to contribute to ECU’s efforts to improve diversity, equity and inclusion.

“Every university can do better in the DEI arena, including ECU. I think it begins by first realizing that all people are human beings — no matter what the surface layer appears to be, or the accent by which I speak,” she said. When a community embraces and welcomes “people of all different hues, and all different cultures and all different religions, you make an environment that is actually better for everyone. That always results in a stronger university.”

Thanks to generous donors, ECU is more than 80% toward the campaign’s $500 million goal — building stronger academics, athletics, discovery, health care services and much more.

More information is at pursuegold.ecu.edu

Coger received her undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering from Cornell University, earned her master’s degree and doctorate in mechanical engineering from the University of California-Berkeley and completed her postdoctoral research as a fellow at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. She is a fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering and serves or has served on numerous boards and committees.

– Jules Norwood

Robin Coger

Pursue Gold: the comprehensive campaign for ECU

Training the next generation of leaders for eastern NC schools

ECU has a pipeline that produces a different kind of commodity — future principals. The PIRATE Leadership Academy at ECU prepares proven teacher leaders to become assistant principals and principals who eventually could lead entire school districts as assistant superintendents or superintendents.

“Being a school administrator is not easy,” said Cassandra White, PIRATE Leadership Academy coordinator and coach. “It’s for those who are truly dedicated and love what they’re doing.”

PIRATE is an acronym for “Principals from eastern N.C., for eastern N.C., who Innovate, Revitalize, Advocate and Transform Education for all students, families and teachers.” It is a specialized master’s program in which students will earn their North Carolina principal’s license. Participants are nominated by their school district leaders.

“When they select these nominees, you’re saying, ‘I recognize what you’re doing and I believe in you and I’m supporting you,’” White said.

“I had a principal who believed in me. She saw the leadership skills that I had. My superintendent at the time saw that I was a leader,” 2022 PLA graduate Jessica Prayer said. “I wanted to be part of that leadership opportunity.”

The grant-funded partnership pays for the students’ tuition, books, materials and conferences and provides leadership coaching for each ECU Principal Fellow during the two-year program. The students are placed into “assistant principal internships” within their school districts on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and are in class Tuesdays and Thursdays.

“We want them to have a balance with family,” said Hal Holloman, director of the PIRATE Leadership Academy. “We feel like this model helps promote that — it really helps sustain that — for our students.”

“One of the things that the principal program at East Carolina has helped me with is making sure that I am communicating clearly,” said Prayer — an assistant principal at Northeastern High School in Elizabeth City. “I think the most important part with the communication is making sure that whatever goals you have are clearly communicated with all so that they know expectations.”

Students come from a 30-county region east of Interstate 95 and work together in a cohort. This model provides support and collaboration.

“We were able to learn from each other and also build family with each other,” Prayer said.

While the academy benefits students, the stakeholders in eastern North Carolina might be the biggest beneficiaries.

“Moms and dads and grandparents who want something good for their students,” White said.

“The principals we’re preparing, they’re going to be good — they’re going to be that resource, that link for those students.”

“At East Carolina, I can clearly say they want us to be successful and they want to make sure we have the skills we need to do just that,” Prayer said.

– Rich Klindworth

The PIRATE Leadership Academy Class of 2022 includes, from left, Patrice Watford, Lynetti Warden, Holly Winslow, Darrick Wood, Sharita Wade, Jessica Prayer, Kristal Brooks and Mara Swindell.

FOR MORE INFO

See more about the PIRATE Leadership Academy at https://bit.ly/3TaEWpu

Students recognized for lifesaving actions

When ECU students Krysta Byrd and Bradly Boaz found a fellow student slumped over in cardiac arrest, they leapt into action and helped save a life.

It was Sept. 22, and freshman Blake Solomonson was out for a run.

“I was running up from the greenway trail and got lightheaded,” he said. “I sat down, and then I fell over.”

The next thing Solomonson remembers is waking up in the hospital.

Byrd, a junior biology major, found Solomonson unresponsive outside the dining hall on College Hill and called 911.

“It was kind of almost instinctual that I needed to do something,” she said. “So calling 911 was really my first train of thought.” She waved down Boaz, who also jumped in to help.

“I happened to go next door to the dining hall from my dorm in College Hill Suites,” said Boaz, a health services management major and a junior in the ECU Honors College. He had started an EMT certification course over the summer, which included CPR training. He administered CPR until first responders arrived.

Their actions made the difference in saving Solomonson’s life, said Lynn Roeder, dean of students.

“Due to their heroic actions and their successful efforts to try to revive Blake during this medical crisis, we are recognizing both Krysta and Bradly with a citizenship award,” she said during an Oct. 27 recognition ceremony. “Citizenship is one of the pillars of the ECU creed, and we are very proud today of these two individuals.”

ECU Police Chief Jon Barnwell also presented Byrd and Boaz with a Lifesaving Award, which he said is the same one the department issues to its officers when they contribute to a lifesaving effort in the line of duty.

Solomonson, who plans to major in nursing, said the experience has only increased his interest in the field. “If they weren’t there to act selflessly in that moment, I wouldn’t be here,” he said. “It’s made me realize how much it means to other people if I can help them because it’s happened to me.”

Solomonson is taking the semester off while he undergoes cardiac rehabilitation but plans to resume online classes in the spring and return to ECU in person in the fall. His parents, Becky and Rich Belthoff, drove with him from Weddington, near Charlotte, for the ceremony.

“Just the sheer fact that they stopped their day, on their way somewhere, and checked on another student that looked like he needed help … it was such a selfless act for both of them to take the time and administer what he needed,” Becky Belthoff said. “And it’s just amazing to me. I know that God put them in his path that day, and it was meant to be that way.”

The ceremony was the first time the students had seen each other since the emergency.

“I’m very happy to see him, and he looks really great,” Byrd said.

– Jules Norwood

Top, Blake Solomonson speaks with Bradly Boaz and Krysta Byrd on Oct. 27. Above, Solomonson’s mom, Becky Belthoff, hugs Byrd.

ECU to explore WWII battle site in Alaska

Coastal resources management doctoral student Dominic Bush is part Native Aleut, so when he learned of a World War II battle between Japanese and American forces on the Alaskan island of Attu, he jumped at the chance to study it.

With the help of a $707,000 grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, he’ll be spending this summer documenting the cold-water marine environment and locating and recording the remains of ships, aircraft and other military vehicles lost during the battle. The research by him and Jason Raupp, assistant professor of maritime studies, may provide a foundation for further work to find missing-in-action personnel.

Bush got interested in the history of Attu during a spring 2020 battlefield archaeology class led by Jennifer McKinnon, assistant professor of history and maritime studies, who encouraged him to apply for the grant.

“My maternal grandmother is the daughter of a full-blooded Chugach woman and a Danish sailor,” Bush said. “I’ve been aware of my Aleutian heritage my entire life but was never told much about it. As the pandemic shut down everything, I decided to completely dedicate myself to this class assignment and learn everything I possibly could about the … Battle of Attu.”

The battle took place May 11-30, 1943. Bush said the three weeks of combat by land, sea and air resulted in the loss of nearly 600 U.S. service members, with an additional 3,000 injured. The entire 2,500-person Japanese garrison, apart from 29 prisoners of war, died during the battle.

In June 1942, in a move coordinated with the Battle of Midway, the Japanese military took over Attu and nearby Kiska, Bush said. Historians speculate it was either a distraction from Midway, an attempt to provide northern flank protection for the Japanese naval fleet approaching Midway or an effort to establish air bases to either attack mainland Alaska and the West Coast or prevent a northern U.S. invasion of Japan.

“The Unangan on Attu were shipped to Japan as prisoners of war, and although they were allowed to return to the U.S. in 1945, they were barred from ever returning to their home island,” Bush said.

Attu is the westernmost part of North America and the largest uninhabited island in the U.S., Raupp said, and it presents a logistical challenge. It’s part of the Aleutian Islands WWII National Monument, it remains relatively unknown to the American public and it is referred to as the “Forgotten Battle.”

According to Bush and Raupp, some of the battle’s remains on the island have been documented, but the underwater battlefield has been ignored. Bush said the waters around Attu likely contain up to 10 U.S. aircraft, nine Japanese aircraft, nine U.S. landing craft, three Japanese ships and numerous smaller barges and other watercraft.

“Together, these sunken vessels represent a yearlong occupation of Attu and the attempts by the U.S. military to remove the foreign force,” he said. “It was the first amphibious invasion completed by the U.S. Army and only the third assault of this kind by the U.S. during WWII. Lessons learned from the Attu campaign were instrumental in forming mission plans for the subsequent island-hopping campaign that eventually led to the Allied victory in the Pacific.”

– Lacey L. Gray

Doctoral student Dominic Bush is studying a World War II battle between Japanese and American forces that took place on the Alaskan island of Attu. The battle was the first amphibious invasion completed by the U.S. Army.

ECU recognizes alumni

The ECU Women’s Roundtable honored 10 award recipients at its Incredible Women Luncheon on Sept. 23.

Mary Sue Cummings Deaton

’81 ’91 of Greenville has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing. She is chief engagement officer of Patient Centered Innovation, a company offering services designed to promote patient, family, caregiver and community-centered care.

Susan M. Durrwachter ’85 of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, is an Emmy-nominated CNN producer.

Mary W. Earp ’58 of Winnabow is a community leader in Brunswick County. She and her husband, Wilbur, settled in 1960 at Funston Farm, where they adopted cutting-edge enterprises to sustain their farm operation that included a grape vineyard, swine and cattle production.

Marybeth Petteway Eason

’00 ‘01 of Greenville is a merchant services marketing and sales enablement manager with Truist.

Karen E. Evans ’80 is a former registered nurse and U.S. Air Force captain and serves as a trial attorney with The Cochran Firm in Washington, D.C.

Valerie Madden ’91 of Los Angeles is an entertainment marketing and advertising creative director at Amazon Studios.

Ariana McAuley ’16 is a senior global strategy and operations consultant for Deloitte Global in New York.

Danielle Moinet ’06 of Nashville, Tennessee, is an actor known for her work in WWE as Summer Rae as well as through her nonprofit work for the DTM Foundation — named after Dean Thomas Moinet — that provides services to families with medically fragile children at Duke University and UNC hospitals.

Windy O’Connor ’90 of Charlotte is an award-winning and globally renowned painter who has developed a lifestyle brand of textiles, wallpaper, clothing and home accessories.

LaNika Wright ’14 of Winterville is associate vice chancellor of health and well-being and the executive director of Student Health Services at ECU.

In addition, the Alumni Association recognized six award recipients Oct. 4 during Homecoming weekend.

Michael McShane ’66 of Keswick, Virginia, received the Virgil Clark ’50 Distinguished Service Award. He is a lecturer at the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics.

Dr. Joshua Sonett ’88 of Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey, received an Outstanding Alumni Award. He is professor and chief of thoracic surgery at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center and the director of the Price Family Center for Comprehensive Chest Care and Esophageal Center.

Jose Garcia ’01 received an Outstanding Alumni Award. He is the Greene County Schools science, technology, engineering and math education director. He leads three STEM Schools of Distinction, facilitates a regional STEM Teacher Leadership Academy, supervises summer STEM camps, and has received numerous awards as a teacher, leader and member of professional organizations.

Jessica Holton ’03 received an Outstanding Alumni Award. She is a licensed clinical social worker who has served in local, state and national leadership roles in the National Association of Social Workers. Holton has worked extensively with individuals who have experienced chronic stressors, adversities and traumas.

Honorary Alumni Award recipient

Chris S. Holder of Beaufort has been a longtime advocate for ECU’s Department of Engineering, serving as chair of the Engineering Advisory Board and a past member of the College of Engineering and Technology Advancement Council. Holder is Fleet Support Team site lead/director of Fleet Readiness Center East, a U.S. Navy aviation and maintenance facility at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, which has provided internship and job opportunities for many ECU graduates.

Gray Williams ’13 of Greenville is the Young Alumni Award recipient. She was the first executive director of the Greenville-Pitt County Sports Commission, founded in 2019 under her leadership. The organization has contributed more than $45 million in economic impact in the last three years.

Finally, Thomas Arthur ’71 and Paul Singleton ’58 ’61 were inducted to the Distinguished Military Service Society in November. They join 73 other society members who have been inducted since the organization was created in 2008.

Arthur of Tampa, Florida, graduated from ECU with an MBA after serving in the Army from 1966-1969. Among his professional accomplishments was leading the Havatampa cigar manufacturing corporation. In 2021, Arthur donated $5 million to the College of Business to strengthen students’ education and to support military personnel attending the college’s graduate school. As a result, the school was renamed the Thomas D. Arthur Graduate School of Business. Arthur also made a $1 million gift in 2010 that established the Thomas D. Arthur Distinguished Professorship in Leadership.

Singleton of Fort Walton Beach, Florida, has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in science education from ECU. Through his gift of $400,000 to ECU in 2021, the Paul Singleton Military Academic Success Fund was established. It supports veterans, reservists and dependents of disabled veterans who do not receive federal funding for textbooks. Singleton served in the Air Force reserves from 1954-1956 and was an active-duty Air Force officer from 1958-1984.

– ECU News Services

Latest Investigations

Diet makes a difference Research on resilience

Research

Parental diet and physical activity levels are critical factors in the prevalence of obesity and metabolic disorders such as diabetes not only among their offspring but also their children’s children and beyond, according to researchers at East Carolina University.

Studies at ECU have shown epigenetic factors — those that are passed down in addition to DNA — such as ancestral diet, can influence offspring feeding behavior along with changes in activity, triglyceride levels and mitochondrial density in the brain. They also found the generational differences are associated with changes in sets of proteins in the brain proteome and microRNA, the bioregulators that can determine how genes function.

Their most recent findings, under review by the journal Scientific Reports, together with the familial clustering of obesity, may indicate children’s food preferences and eating habits could be hard-wired into their brains — that ancestral nutrition could be a critical factor in feeding behavior.

“Something is transmitted from parents to offspring making them more predisposed to obesity or other metabolic disorders,” said Alexander Murashov, a professor of physiology at the Brody School of Medicine. “We don’t know the mechanism. But it may be changes at mitochondrial level.”

“If we find the markers and find the mechanism, then maybe we can correct the problem in the children,” he added.

Murashov is collaborating with Darrell Neufer, professor of physiology and director of the East Carolina Diabetes and Obesity

Institute; Kelsey Fisher-Wellman, assistant professor of physiology at ECU; and Krishna Bhat, professor of molecular medicine at the University of South Florida. Their research has been funded by grants totaling more than $1.5 million from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.

The team is focusing on paternal effects not only of diet but also exercise and is finding offspring are showing metabolic impacts as far as four generations down the line. Now they’re working on finding the genetic markers that could help them identify which parents may have children at risk for becoming overweight.

Metabolism also plays a role. Eons ago, using one’s calories wisely was a good thing. In today’s calorie-rich environment, that’s not necessarily true.

“It goes back to the thrifty gene hypothesis that’s been around a long time, where humans evolved to be as thrifty with their energy reserves as possible,” Neufer said. “So the simple way to put it — humans evolved to be as efficient as possible because one never knew where and when that next meal was coming from. Fast forward to the last 50-100 years, those evolutionary offspring are very energy efficient but are now in an environment where high-calorie food is abundant. As a result, they gain weight faster and develop insulin resistance sooner.”

On top of that, studies showed paternal exercise can induce generational transmission of thrifty gene metabolic traits to offspring. Their studies are published in FASEB in 2016 and 2020, and the latest is in preprint in Research Square.

shows you are what your ancestors ate

Alexander Murashov and Elena Pak, his wife and research partner, study the effects of ancestral diet in his lab in the Brody Medical Sciences Building.

ECU part of $16 million grant to study resiliency of coastal communities

Economics professor Meghan Millea is part of a team that has received a National Science Foundation Coastlines and People grant totaling more than $16 million to study the increased intensity of hurricanes as well as address the equity, economic prosperity and resiliency of affected communities.

Millea, interim director of ECU’s Natural Hazards Research Center, will work with researchers from 11 universities across the country on the grant.

Foundational research for the project has taken place over the past 15 years in eastern North Carolina. While that principal research mainly captured affected homeowners — specifically those with home insurance policies — the new grant will increase the scale of the project and allow it to expand in two directions.

“One will consider the degree to which climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of hurricanes,” Millea said. “The second: We’re going to try to look beyond homeowners to consider the more vulnerable populations, which include renters and potentially even people without homes. We’re trying to expand what we know about the human impacts of storms and recovery in a more inclusive way. To get to that level of detail, we will be working with community partners because this is data that does not exist in these government-collected housing survey instruments.”

Eastern North Carolina, Port Arthur, Texas, and Houston will be the targets of the research. Millea says ECU is perfectly positioned to lead the research project in eastern North Carolina.

“You need the local university to be the conduit to the service area. And, of course, ECU has existing community partnerships which have been fostered by ongoing community engaged projects,” she said. “This is very much what

ECU is about. We’re interested in doing things that impact our region. Hurricanes, eastern North Carolina … that’s us.”

Millea is one of four co-principal investigators and is leading the education component.

“The professional development component will involve students and postdocs learning to work together across disciplines,” Millea said. “The dialogue across disciplines is very different, so they will learn how to work on interdisciplinary teams.”

The team will work with the Bill Anderson Fund and the McNair Scholars Program to recruit students and postdocs from historically underrepresented groups.

“The goal is really to make sure that as we are recruiting students to participate in this work, we are also developing the next generation of natural hazard researchers,” she said.

“This work is critical both for coastal communities and inland areas where strong storms impact the ways people live much more frequently than in the past,” said Sharon Paynter, ECU’s acting chief research and engagement officer.

In total, the project will consist of 19 faculty members including ones in civil engineering, sociology, atmospheric sciences, coastal oceanography, public policy, urban planning and economics. The University of Delaware is the lead institution on the five-year project.

– Kim Tilghman

Professor Meghan Millea is leading an ECU team that’s part of a national group studying ways to make communities better able to withstand and recover from hurricanes.

Michael Behm

College of Engineering and Technology Professor of technology systems

Michael Behm, a professor in East Carolina University’s Department of Technology Systems, isn’t sure how many children dream of becoming occupational safety professionals. But he knows how many are needed.

“It’s a unique profession,” Behm said. “People who get into it may be in the environmental field or human resources field and then are being asked to take on safety and health responsibilities for their organizations. Or maybe they have worked their way up in occupational safety responsibilities, and they want to formalize their degrees.”

Behm helps lead ECU’s Master of Science in occupational safety program, which recently achieved a six-year accreditation from the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology.

“We are extremely proud of this accomplishment,” said Behm, who is in his 19th year at ECU. “Our advisory board, students, alumni and especially my ECU colleague Dylan Hardison have made many valuable contributions to continually improve our program.”

Behm noted that occupational safety professionals are in high demand, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic.

“All of a sudden, organizations looked to their own health and safety professionals to help them manage a pandemic,” he said. “Our program gives students the necessary problemsolving, critical-thinking and research skills that when a wide variety of issues develop, they can help their organizations manage their risks effectively.”

He called ECU’s master’s in occupational safety program unique.

“We’re one of two in the state, and there’s no program like it in Virginia and South Carolina,” he said. “We’re one of only three that offer an ABET-accredited graduate program in occupational safety online in the country.”

For his efforts in helping lead the program, Behm was named the 2022 Safety Professional of the Year by the North Carolina chapter of the American Society of Safety Professionals.

“I’m very thankful and appreciative to win the Carolina chapter SPY award,” said Behm. “It’s nice to be recognized by your peers.”

– Ken Buday

Aleia M. Brown

Dr. Michael Webb, left, is the inaugural recipient of the Jasper L. Lewis, Jr. Distinguished Professorship in Pediatric Dentistry at the School of Dental Medicine. Webb is a clinical associate professor and chair of the school’s Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics. The professorship is the school’s first endowed professorship. It’s named in honor of Dr. Jasper Lewis Jr., a longtime Greenville pediatric dentist.

Anne Spuches, associate professor of chemistry in the Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences, is the 2022-2027 recipient of the Advancement Council Distinguished Professorship in the Natural Sciences and Mathematics. The professorship provides funds for each of five years to support research and other professorship duties.

Tuan Tran has been named director of undergraduate research at ECU. Tran joined ECU in 2005 as an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology. In 2007, he became the director of the multidisciplinary studies program in neuroscience. In 2011, he was promoted to associate professor and associate chair of psychology and began serving as a member of the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. As director of undergraduate research, Tran will work to strengthen and expand the program by helping secure funding and developing new models for ECU’s Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences.

Distinguished Professor in the Humanities in the Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences.

Brown comes to ECU after serving as vice president of programs and chief curator at the National Women’s History Museum.

She will hold the Whichard professorship from 2022-2025 in the Department of History. The professorship was established in the mid-1990s by the generosity of family members of the late Whichard, a 60-year editor and publisher of Greenville’s The Daily Reflector, and his wife, Virginia, a 1917 graduate of East Carolina Teachers Training School.

Dr. Michael Waldrum, dean of the Brody School of Medicine and chief executive officer of ECU Health, has been appointed to the board of directors of the Association of American Medical Colleges. He will chair the AAMC’s Council of Teaching Hospitals and Health Systems. Waldrum joins 18 other medical school and health care leaders from across the nation and Canada on the board. He also served on the board in 2020.

has been named the David Julian and Virginia Suther Whichard

STORY BY KEN BUDAY

ENGINEERING for SUCCESS

As a child, Grace Jacobson could walk outside and see flowers blooming and vegetables growing in a backyard garden. She would camp, hike and sail with her family.

“I got to see what the world was like, and I want to keep it that way and keep it pretty,” she says.

Jacobson, a senior engineering major from Cary, is among a team of student research assistants who work with East Carolina University’s Center for Sustainable Energy and Environmental Engineering, also known as CSE3.

The center’s projects focus on everything from environmental and energy management to pollution prevention, no-waste water desalination and green manufacturing. Workshops and webinars bring in businesses and manufacturers to learn how they can reduce costs and help the environment at the same time.

Through grants from the Environmental Protection Agency, the center is at the forefront of helping companies become leaner and greener through energy audits that examine everything from manufacturing processes to the break-room refrigerator. These audits and the comprehensive reports that include energy-saving recommendations don’t cost the companies a dime.

STUDENTS WITH ECU’S CENTER FOR SUSTAINABLE ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING HELP BUSINESSES BOOST EFFICIENCY AND CUT POLLUTION.

Engineering student Grace Jacobson demonstrates a thermal imaging camera the Center for Sustainable Energy and Environmental Engineering uses to detect energy loss during site visits to businesses.

Students Alex Ferro and Ariel Lineberger work on reports in the Center for Sustainable Energy and Environmental Engineering student office in the Rivers Building.

“It’s very exciting because ECU is leading these efforts,” says Tarek AbdelSalam, the center’s director as well as an engineering professor and associate dean for research in the College of Engineering and Technology. “We have a unique area of pollution prevention.”

For the 42 undergraduate and seven graduate students who work on the center’s projects, they get real-world experience that can help them land jobs in industry or with governmental agencies as environmental engineers.

“A really big thing is the experience we get from this,” says Alex Ferro, a junior engineering major with a concentration in electrical engineering from Mount Olive. “I have been able to really grow my interpersonal skills. I was able to talk to people about things that matter and network with those people. I learned so much about solar power and solar panels and solar energy just from this one job. I don’t even know that I’ll be able to use everything I learned about it, but it’s amazing how much you can learn when you just sit down and focus on it.”

For students conducting energy audits, they’ll spend a day — sometimes two — with a team of ECU professors examining a company’s processes and energy use through such equipment as thermal imagers and infrared cameras.

A thermal imaging camera is tested in the Center for Sustainable Energy and Environmental Engineering office.

They’ll examine everything, from the power needed to operate machinery to air-conditioning and heating systems, and even the type of lightbulbs in the manager’s office.

“I like that part, being able to help people in little ways, but they all add up,” Ferro says.

Once the site visit is complete, the data is analyzed and compiled into graphs, charts and recommendations designed to help the business save energy and cut costs. The entire process takes about a month.

“The assessments themselves, there is so much that goes into them,” Ferro says. “We spend an entire day at the facility because we want to get as much information as we can. We don’t want to go back and tell them we missed something. We want to get everything and anything, no matter the size, and incorporate that into our assessments.”

The companies appreciate the support.

“As a numbers guy, efficiency is definitely something that I want, so I jumped on this opportunity,” says Matt Shortway, who hosted CSE3 students and staff for a site visit at his Shortway Brewing facility in Trenton in 2021.

“Efficiency affects the bottom line. Any time you can save a little bit and have less waste, whether it be energy or to be able to make more product in the same amount of space, that’s good for business and good for the environment.”

It’s very exciting because ECU is leading these efforts. We have a unique area of pollution prevention.

Tarek Abdel-Salam, CSE3 director, engineering professor, associate dean for research in the College of Engineering and Technology

Students and faculty with the Center for Sustainable Energy and Environmental Engineering perform an energy assessment at Shortway Brewing’s facility in Trenton. Owner Matt Shortway, top left, believes the assessment can provide opportunities to improve efficiency at the facility.

Ariel Lineberger, senior engineering major

Ariel Lineberger, a senior engineering major with an environmental concentration, knows the center is helping businesses and the environment. However, she sees an even bigger picture.

“Helping these businesses with their income or revenue areas will help them hire more people and create more jobs that can help make their communities a lot better,” says Lineberger, who grew up in the small western North Carolina town of Nebo. “A lot of companies are struggling, and they need to save money. If they save money, they can stay in business. This is why we’re here. … If you lose a business, that can be detrimental to the whole community. It’s about saving the environment and reducing pollution, but it’s also about helping people in that situation who would be affected a lot longer.”

Lineberger says the center is providing her the education she wanted when she decided to attend ECU.

“I’ve gained a lot of communication skills by opening up and talking to new people, especially a lot of business people and CEOs,” she says. “I joined engineering to have a hands-on experience, and this is a different part of environmental engineering. We’re doing some outside field work, but we’re actually doing consulting work, and it’s

Students Ariel Lineberger, Alex Ferro and Grace Jacobson get real-world experience through the work they do with the Center for Sustainable Energy and Environmental Engineering, setting them up for future employment.

Helping these businesses with their income or revenue areas will help them hire more people and create more jobs that can help make their communities a lot better.

Tarek Abdel-Salam, director of the Center for Sustainable Energy and Environmental Engineering, works with student Ariel Lineberger on an energy assessment report.

given me some insight into what I may actually do in the future. Not only am I getting those communication skills, but also I’m getting the opportunity to be a hands-on learner. I get to see what can actually be helpful.”

With affiliated faculty from engineering, economics, biology, geological studies and coastal studies, the center features an interdisciplinary approach that provides benefits to students and businesses alike.

“They’re all just in it for the students and the environment, and that’s awesome,” Jacobson says of the faculty.

During the last 18 months, the center has conducted 20 energy, lean manufacturing or water assessments, all of which are free to the businesses. It has also put on 14 technical webinars, eight one-day training courses and one workshop, most of which are also free of charge. The center also supports interdisciplinary projects on campus, such as the installation of water sensors on the West Research Campus to support environmental research through the departments of biology, geology and engineering and the ECU Water Resources Center.

“I think it’s a great mission,” Jacobson says. “We’re a small group of students and faculty trying to make North Carolina small businesses better for the environment and better for themselves. It saves money for them while also saving energy and reducing the waste that they produce. We’re trying to educate them as well through all the workshops we invite them to, and we make contact with them regularly. We invite them to trainings. It’s a wholesome goal that we have here.”

Randall Etheridge, top, associate professor in the Department of Engineering, led a team of students from various departments on campus, the Water Resources Center and the Center for Sustainable Energy and Environmental Engineering in the installation of water sensors as part of a research project on the West Research Campus.

STORY BY JULES NORWOOD

Threads of Connection

Virtual exchange program reaches across the globe

Each year almost 500 students at East Carolina University connect, engage and collaborate with students at more than 50 universities around the world, learning about their cultures and collaborating on projects — without ever leaving Greenville.

Long before Zoom, Skype and other video calling platforms were readily available or a pandemic made remote work and learning ubiquitous, Jami Leibowitz, associate director of global affairs, and ECU became pioneers in the field of virtual exchange. ECU established and leads Global Partners in Education, a member organization of institutions that offer at least one GPE course each year, building intercultural communication and collaboration skills through real-time interactions with partner institutions across the globe.

“Many of these students would never have otherwise been able to have these types of amazing, life-changing intercultural experiences, and a considerable number go on to study abroad or engage in other forms of international education after having these experiences in our global understanding and other virtual exchange classes,” says Jon Rezek, assistant vice chancellor for global affairs.

This year, Leibowitz was named a recipient of the Fulbright Global Scholar Award and will visit three countries to establish new virtual exchange partnerships. In the fall, she visited Universitas Airlangga (UNAIR) in Surabaya, Indonesia, helping assess and set up virtual exchange capabilities and collaborating with students back at ECU. In 2023, she’ll do the same at the Namibian University of Science and Technology in Windhoek, Namibia, in the spring and Yessenov University in Aktau, Kazakhstan, in the fall.

Leibowitz sent dispatches home documenting her experience in Indonesia. She said she has had to adapt to last-minute changes. For example, she says, about two days before the class was to begin, she was told almost half of the students would not be attending — but the university was able to find replacement students at the last minute. Most of the class is made up of students majoring in international relations.

“The UNAIR students really see the value of this type of activity and are approaching it as a rare opportunity,” she says. “Indonesia is a nation of over 1,000 islands and a nearly equivalent number of ethnic groups. However, while there is great domestic diversity, the UNAIR students have very limited contact with people from outside of the country.”

Second-year UNAIR student Ghulam Phasa Pambayung said he has not traveled outside Indonesia, and the opportunity to be exposed to a different culture has been “amazing.” Fellow student Fitha Dwi Kartikayuni has likewise not been outside Indonesia and was eager to ask American students about topics such as Greek life and tipping.

“For as long as I can remember, I have always been curious about fraternities and sororities,” she says. “In Indonesia we don’t have that kind of thing, so I can only imagine how (living with your friends) feels.”

ECU freshman Skyler Kinion is a thirdgeneration Pirate majoring in history education with the goal of becoming a high school teacher. She’s in Ewa Silver’s history class on world civilizations, which is collaborating with Leibowitz’s class at UNAIR. Kinion was surprised to learn the Indonesian students were unfamiliar with the idea of a walkable campus.

“At ECU it is very common to have a fiveminute walk to class, and so often I see fellow

Jami Leibowitz has received a Fulbright U.S. Global Scholar Program award to develop avenues for cultural exchange between ECU and universities in Indonesia, Namibia and Kazakhstan.

“Working on this project allows us to see that we all are inevitably facing the same issues, so we can work together, no matter the differences, to make this earth amazing,” she says. “I love talking with my partner Raras about her day-to-day life and the comparison of my own. I am so thankful technology allows us to connect with others.”

That connection has not been without issues, and the 11-hour time difference brings its own challenges, but Leibowitz was pleasantly surprised with the existing infrastructure for virtual exchange at UNAIR.

“Until just this semester, they had been teaching hybrid courses with only 50% of the students in any class allowed on campus at a time. To accommodate that, they have made all of their classrooms videoconference capable,” she says. “And, again somewhat surprisingly, most of the students have reasonable internet from home. If I had come prior to the pandemic, this would not have been the case.”

Leibowitz noted other cultural differences, such as complete reliance on WhatsApp instead of email and the gentle hum that breaks out across the primarily Muslim city five times a day at prayer time.

“This is a city of 4 million people with no continuous sidewalks, no public transportation, and a population that hates to walk anywhere, so everyone gets around on motorbikes,” she says. “For me, though, that means a reliance on taxis. I’ve gotten very proficient with Gojek — the local version of Uber.”

Many of these students would never have otherwise been able to have these types of amazing, life-changing intercultural experiences

Jon Rezek, assistant vice chancellor for global affairs

students walk, but in Indonesia it is extremely less common. When discussing this with my partners they were so shocked to learn about all the walking that many students do at ECU,” she says. “I have also enjoyed learning about the food in their culture.”

For her part, Kinion was excited to tell them about the experience of ECU football and tailgating. “As someone who has grown up going to ECU games, it was so cool to share my love for the university with these students,” she says.

Kinion worked with a partner from UNAIR to create a project based on United Nations goals such as hunger, education, gender inclusion, health care and climate.

Virtual exchange, says Silver, “allows students to make international connections and to learn directly from their peers in different countries. While my students will learn about different civilizations throughout the semester, they will also be able to talk and ask questions directly to students in Indonesia and Mexico about their history, way of life, traditions, religion and more.”

That thread of connection benefits the students on both sides of the exchange.

“I am sure a lot of us (the students in my university, I mean) have some misperceptions about America and its culture,” says Kartikayuni. “With this program, they will finally know how it really is like in America. We can also practice our soft skills, such as speaking in English and communicating clearly.”

Rezek says Leibowitz has established an impactful program at ECU, and recognition through the Fulbright Global Scholar Award is well-deserved.

“I am excited to bring new universities into our Global Partners in Education network and introduce new cultures to our students,” he says.

Leibowitz took this photo from her apartment of Surabaya, Indonesia.

STORY BY ROB SPAHR

Dr. Bim Akintade stood quietly and alone in the front of an auditorium at East Carolina University’s College of Nursing in August as faculty members filled the room for the annual faculty convocation.

The college’s faculty mirror the national statistics for nursing professionals — the overwhelming majority are white females. According to the Journal of Nursing Regulation’s 2020 National Workforce Survey, males accounted for only about 9% of the 4.2 million registered nurses in the United States and only 6.7% of the total registered nurse workforce reported being Black/African American.

For the past 60 years, the college’s leadership followed a similar trend, with

all five of the previous deans being white women, mostly from the South. In fact, the two previous deans, Sylvia Brown and Phyllis Horns — whose combined tenure spanned 32 years — grew up within 60 miles of ECU.

So Akintade’s presence in the room was significant before he even spoke a single word, because a Black male nurse from Maryland — who had not stepped foot in North Carolina for nearly 20 years before coming to ECU — was about to address the faculty for the first time as their dean.

For Akintade, however, the moment was significant for different reasons.

“Throughout my nursing career, I have usually been the only Black guy in the room. This was the case in every class I took in nursing school, and then when I became a program director, and later when I became an associate dean it was a similar story,” he says. “In that moment during convocation, I was focused on the fact that this was my first opportunity to set the tone, to set a new direction and for the faculty to get to know me and see me in my most authentic form – who I am as a person and who I am as a leader.”

The first step he took toward setting a tone was to intentionally delay the start of the convocation. Instead, he let the faculty members continue to talk to each other for several extra minutes. This has been a rare in-person opportunity for the College of Nursing faculty and staff in recent years due to COVID-19.

“We need to rebuild a sense of community and an inclusive community, where faculty gets to regularly interface with other faculty and staff, and more importantly, mentor and role model for our students,” he says. “While I stood

As soon as he started talking about college business, however, it was clear he was no longer an outsider. He was already deeply committed to the college’s mission, was already inspired by its reputation for excellence and was already passionate about building the brand of ECU’s College of Nursing well beyond North Carolina’s borders.

“Dr. Sylvia Brown was here for many years and did a phenomenal job. She increased the number of programs, and she increased enrollment here by nearly 70% as dean; that is huge,” Akintade says. “For me coming in, it’s about building on that legacy while also identifying opportunities that I have either heard the faculty and staff mention or that I recognize as gaps that are relatively easy things to implement.”

As internal and external stakeholders meet him, they’re coming back and saying how wonderful he is and that he has so much energy. I think this is true throughout the faculty, staff and the rest of leadership. Annette Peery, associate dean for academic affairs

there, I was observing people smiling, talking and laughing. It was time for the convocation to start, and I didn’t stop them for several minutes because I wanted to leverage that excitement to help rebuild that sense of community.”

When he started the meeting, Akintade took some time to introduce himself, explain the pronunciation of his last name (ah-kihn-TAHday), show pictures of his wife, two sons and dog, and share some of his personal hobbies. For example, he is an automobile enthusiast.

The ‘unknown’ of change Uncertainty and anxiety are common emotions during times of change, and the College of Nursing was not immune after Brown announced her retirement in September 2021.

This is understandable considering ECU already has a nationally ranked nursing program that graduates more new nurses than any other four-year institution in North Carolina — 79% of whom stay in the state after graduation — and has received four consecutive “Center of Excellence in Nursing Education” designations from the National League for Nursing.

“There is always going to be some caution when there is new leadership, regardless of who that person is or where they are from. People will not be sure of what to expect and wonder how it is going to turn out. And this ‘unknown’ creates anxiety,” says Annette Peery, whose connection with the College of Nursing spans three decades, from her time as a graduate student through her current role as associate dean for academic affairs.

Akintade stands with former deans Sylvia Brown, left, and Phyllis Horns, right.

“But there is also a lot of excitement right now,” Peery added. “Because as internal and external stakeholders meet him, they’re coming back and saying how wonderful he is and that he has so much energy. I think this is true throughout the faculty, staff and the rest of leadership.”

One of the reasons for the excitement is that Akintade brings not only a fresh perspective and different energy to Greenville but also his own national reputation for nursing excellence.

Before coming to ECU, he served as the associate dean of the Master of Science in Nursing program at the University of Maryland Baltimore School of Nursing and was engaged in clinical practice as an acute care nurse practitioner in the post-anesthesia care unit at the University of Maryland Medical Center and the trauma surgical intensive care units at the University of Maryland Capital Region Health Center.

Akintade earned his doctorate in 2011 from the University of Maryland Baltimore as well as a master’s in health care administration/health care organizational leadership the same year from the University of Maryland University College. In 2012, he received an MBA in international health care business from the University of Maryland University College. He received a master’s in 2005 with a focus on the acute care nurse practitioner/clinical nurse specialist role and a bachelor’s in nursing in 2003.

He is a member of several national organizations and chairs an expert working group for the American Association of Colleges of Nursing. In October, he was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing — one of the highest honors nurses can receive from their peers.

Akintade has acknowledged that he had multiple job opportunities before he chose to leave the University of Maryland, but he was

ultimately drawn to ECU because of its mission to improve health care in the state’s rural and underserved communities, its strong simulation programming and the opportunity to foster academic practice partnerships, including forging a closer relationship with ECU Health.

“Fortunately, he saw that there is a lot of potential here, there is a lot of opportunity and we already have an outstanding College of Nursing that doesn’t always get the recognition that we probably deserve,” Peery says. “I think he is a visionary type of leader who is already working on things that will bring the College of Nursing forward, to help us grow and also bring us more recognition.”

TIMELINE of ECU’S NURSING DEANS

A car enthusiast, Akintade leans on his Nissan GT-R at left. Above, he takes part in a celebration for Health for Nigeria, a non-profit organization he founded to expand access to high-quality health care in Nigeria.

Roles and representation

Lilesville native AJ Hill graduated in December with a bachelor’s in nursing.

He chose to pursue a career in nursing after serving for six years as a medic in the U.S. Army.

“During my time as a medic, I realized that I enjoyed spending time with people one-on-one and helping them get better,” Hill says. “I also knew that I did not want to make a career out of the military, so nursing was the closest thing to that for me and so far, it has been amazing.”

During the first week of the fall semester, one of Hill’s professors announced the college’s new dean would be coming to speak with his class.

“I didn’t know anything about the new dean, so I was definitely expecting to see another older, white woman … because there is not much representation in nursing, as far as Black males, specifically,” Hill says. “In my class right now, there is only one other Black male besides myself. So, when I saw that the new dean was a Black male, it gave me this excitement and joy, but also this hope that I really can pursue further to get my master’s degree or a doctorate and maybe run a nursing program myself one day.”

The significance of this kind of reaction is not lost on Akintade.

“I am going to do a good job because that is what I was hired to do and I have this personality that is geared toward excellence — not only because I want to be a role model, but because it’s the right thing to do. I am probably going to work myself to death one day,” he said jokingly. “But I do recognize that there is a community of people rooting for me because I am representative of them and it’s important for them to see someone who looks like them in leadership.

“I don’t dwell on it; I’ll be the first to tell you that. But I do understand the magnitude of the role.”

Growth strategy

While the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects the registered nursing workforce to grow by 6% over the next decade, it also forecasts 203,200 openings for RNs each year through 2031. Akintade hopes to leverage his role as dean and his vision for the college to grow enrollment by up to 50% in the coming years to help meet the growing need for nurses.

“We’ve seen unprecedented growth here at the College of Nursing over the last several years. And while the national average for enrollment decreases this year was about 11%, we were only at about 3%. So we’re still doing great,” he says.

“But there is a pipeline shortage with the number of students graduating from high school decreasing, and the pandemic certainly didn’t help,” Akintade adds. “That is why my vision surrounds social and professional community building, which I believe tends to create a significant return on our efforts. I think it will give us the opportunity to recruit more students, strengthen our academic practice partnerships and perhaps better engage more of our alumni of Pirate nurses to serve as faculty or preceptors.”

Eva W. Warren 1982

Emilie Henning 2009

Sylvia Brown 1969

Evelyn Perry 1990

Phyllis N. Horns 2022

Bimbola Akintade

Akintade has been getting to know students during his first semester as dean.

Scott Avett ’99 ’00 explores mystery in the creative process

On a morning in late summer, Scott Avett had hoped to spend a few hours painting. Soon, though, the details of a busy day came into focus. There were errands to run, conversations to have and plans to finalize ahead of the next touring leg with the Avett Brothers, the band he co-founded with his brother, Seth, more than two decades ago.

When he realized painting would have to wait, he submitted to an essential part of his artistic process: knowing when it’s OK not to create. Instead of trying to force some studio work, he decided to take a walk in the woods.

“I trust that was right,” says Avett, who earned degrees in communication and art at ECU. “I just trust it was.”

Beyond the certain

The mystery of artistic expression is a theme that resonates throughout Scott Avett: After the Fact, an exhibition at the Greenville Museum of Art.

Running through Jan. 21, After the Fact expands on a 2019–2020 exhibition at the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh and accompanies a show hosted this past fall by Southern Comfort (SOCO) Gallery in Charlotte. Both venues collaborated with the Greenville museum to bring the show to town.

Avett, who returned to Greenville in October for the exhibition’s launch and to spend time at ECU’s School of Art and Design, says the meaning of a work transcends the physical act of creating.

“Something else goes way beyond me into some sort of an unknown that I very much aspire to stay close to,” he says. “It’s a contemplative space that becomes like prayer. It’s trying to get beyond what the facts are and closer to what the mystery is.”

From

STORY BY JIMMY ROSTAR

top, Scott Avett talks with a patron at the Greenville Museum of Art and shares stories with ECU School of Art and Design Professor Emeritus Michael Ehlbeck and an audience at the Leo W. Jenkins Fine Arts Center. The campus event raised funds for student scholarships.

Spanning two galleries, the Greenville exhibition includes more than two dozen pieces showcasing Avett’s pursuits as a painter and a printmaker. Some large-scale canvases tower more than 8 feet on the museum’s walls.

“Scott’s work is really diverse both in terms of subject matter and style, which is always appealing when planning an exhibition like this,” says Trista Reis Porter, executive director of the Greenville Museum of Art. “There’s a wide range of types of works. They’re very impactful. You can see his heart in them. It’s an intimate look into his personal life.”

Linda Dougherty, chief curator and curator of contemporary art at the North Carolina Museum of Art, worked closely with Avett in preparing for the Raleigh and Greenville exhibitions.

“He’s equally a great visual artist and a talented musician,” she says. “It’s phenomenal to me to see all of that in one person.

Among the works on display at After the Fact are the recently completed Wheel of Boy (below right) and 2009’s Julianne in Vain (below left), which is featured on the cover of the Avett Brothers’ album I and Love and You

“In both his music and in his art, he talks about things that are extremely personal — his family, his marriage, being a parent — but also things that are really universal: about love, spirituality, seeking and the challenges of life.”

Commitment to craft

When Avett starts a new composition, he often turns to images that present themselves through life at home in North Carolina on a small farm in Cabarrus County. In that environment, he finds fertile ground where he can explore what he calls purpose — whether he’s painting a portrait, writing a song, or spending time with his wife, Sarah ’03 ’07, and their three children.

“I do keep the circle small; I keep the navigation very local,” he says about sources of inspiration, especially in the context of raising two sons and a daughter. “That’s such a fascinating relationship. There’s no word other than ‘life’ to describe the beauty and the messiness of the pain and the joy that come in all of it.”

Avett meets with School of Art and Design students and connects with mentors such as painting and drawing professor Scott Eagle (bottom left) during an October visit to Greenville.

As he did on the morning of his walk in the woods, Avett takes care to let the creative process unfold organically.

“When it’s time to paint, it will come,” he says. “If a melody is calling today, I will commit to it. I won’t overanalyze why, how, what will happen with it. The point is I am committed to it. I’m making it to put it into this world for my self-expression — ultimately, I hope, to make the world brighter and to love the world the best way I can.”

Discovery in community

“It was like staring into the sun for me,” Avett says with a chuckle about the mosh pits, clubs and dear friends composing Greenville’s vibrant music scene in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

He speaks with the same enthusiasm about developing as a visual artist on ECU’s campus.

“I didn’t even digest it as academics as much as I did a vocation,” he recalls of his years as an art student. Guidance offered by School of Art and Design faculty such as Scott Eagle and others still resonates.

“To this day, his voice — just like Michael Ehlbeck and Leland Wallin and Michael Voors — echoes in my studio, even with just the organization of my palette,” Avett says. “To this day, I hear it and I use it.

“It was pragmatic; it was logical; it was nuts and bolts. I couldn’t have gotten that anywhere but Greenville. The school of art understood what I needed, and it gave it to me. It was really a wonderful exchange.”

Eagle remembers Avett as a student with incredible skill as a painter, draftsman and printmaker who also had sights on pursuing a career in music.

“He was confident and passionate about his art and his beliefs,” Eagle says. “He was also part of a large and very talented cohort in the painting and drawing program that spent a lot of time together in the studios and outside of school.

“Somehow, Scott has made the time to keep painting and be a rock star and make time for his family. His paintings today are absolutely beautiful, and he is now asked to speak at some of the top art programs as well as appear with some of the most well-known contemporary painters.”

Avett is grateful for that strong sense of community during his college years.

“There were so many people in and out of my periphery and in my vision I learned from — artistically, visually, musically, life,” he says. “I went from being completely lost and completely terrified to feeling completely cradled and prepared, then, to leave.”

A lot of moving

While the solitary nature of visual art remains a vital creative outlet, so does the more communal expression Avett finds in music.

The Avett Brothers have released recordings steadily since 2000, and the band keeps an active performing schedule. This past year included their own music

festival in Riviera Playa, Mexico; a threenight run at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado; and a string of dates on Willie Nelson’s Outlaw Music Festival tour.

They maintain a close relationship with renowned producer Rick Rubin, whose collaboration with the band dates to the release of the Avett Brothers’ major-label debut, 2009’s I and Love and You

“It’s friends first at this point,” Avett says of Rubin. “He’s such a good compadre, a good partner. He’s very loving and a dear friend. He’s like family, and he’s been very good to us.”

New music is in the works, too.

“We’re excited about it,” Avett says of the body of songs yet to take flight. “It’s going to be very special. We always put everything into it. It’s exciting to release into the world. It’s our life’s work, you know?”

The Greenville Museum of Art, 802 Evans St., hosts Scott Avett: After the Fact through Jan. 21. Visit gmoa.org for details.

STUDENT SNAPSHOT

Grace Bellamy

Grace Bellamy is turning a tragedy into helping others hear.

One of her best friends, Abby Blair, died during her senior year of high school in a house fire. Blair, who was deaf, couldn’t hear the smoke detectors or her mother’s cries. It was too late when Blair realized the house was on fire, and she died of smoke inhalation.

Bellamy and Blair went to the same church, where Bellamy often watched Blair sign with her brother. “It always fascinated me,” said Bellamy, who has been active in mission work in the U.S. and in other countries.

Blair’s death led Bellamy to pursue a clinical doctoral degree in audiology with the goal of opening her own practice named Abby’s Ears. She also is interested in working overseas to provide access to hearing technology in underprivileged communities.

“After Abby’s passing, I took it upon myself to live my life for her as well since she would never have the opportunities that I would have,” Bellamy said.

Bellamy earned her bachelor’s degree in speech and hearing sciences in May at ECU. She’s served as president of the ECU Ambassadors and was a member of Epsilon Sigma Alpha sorority, serving on the honor board.

One of her mentors has been Lynn Roeder, dean of students at ECU. In addition, Bellamy appreciates the support of her family.

“I am grateful to my mom who pushed me to never give up on my dreams despite all the adversity I faced,” she said. “Opportunities are not always going to appear on your doorstep. Oftentimes you have to advocate for yourself and prove that you deserve those opportunities.”

–

Baity

Kristin Wetherington ’05, Lillie Thomas and Jessica Doyle-Mekkes, a teaching instructor in the School of Theatre and Dance, perform during a photo call for the ECU Summer Theatre production of Mamma Mia in June. Summer Theatre staged a successful return after a 10-year hiatus thanks to $30,000 raised in a crowdfunding effort by the school and University Advancement.

It might start with an aura — a scintillating scotoma of zigzag lines, opaque circles, rings of colors. You might turn or blink, but it just gets worse. Then the pounding starts inside your head.

You’re having a migraine, and you reach for whatever remedy you’ve found most effective over the years.

Mandee Schaub ’22 knows the feeling all too well. “I’ve had 24/7 headaches since I was 12 years old,” she said. “Every day, all the time.”

Schaub graduated with a master’s in biomedical science and a concentration in neuroscience, and she plans to help people who suffer from debilitating headaches. She’s now a doctoral student at the University of Texas at Dallas, working in the lab of Greg Dussor — one of the nation’s few migraine research labs.

“I tell everyone I’m very calling-driven,” Schaub said. “Mine is to do migraine research. It’s a premier lab for migraine research in the United States, so it’s an amazing opportunity.”

Schaub is also the first migraine patient to work with Dussor.

“She’s probably one of the most motivated students we’ve had come work here, at least in our lab,” Dussor said.

Schaub, 24, grew up in Brunswick County and graduated from Pfeiffer University in Misenheimer, studying pre-medicine. She then enrolled in graduate school at ECU, deciding research was more for her than becoming a doctor.

“I realized I could have a lot larger scale of helping people with headaches if I was helping develop therapeutics or helping find out what was causing the headaches rather than just treating patients,” she said.

At ECU, her mentor was Stefan Clemens, a professor of physiology at the Brody School of Medicine. She also worked closely with Kori Brewer, a professor of emergency medicine and collaborator with Clemens on pain-management research.

“She’s driven, and she’s really driven by her desire to understand what’s at the bottom of things,” Brewer said.

Schaub also worked in the ECU Office of Licensing and

Commercialization and with Clemens and Brewer on two patents related to pain relief, including one where she is listed as a coinventor on the provisional patent application: “Methods and compositions for preventing and treating fibrosis and improving functional recovery after injury or with aging.”

As she seeks to understand what causes migraines and how she can translate that into therapeutics, Schaub has gotten some relief from a monoclonal antibody therapy the FDA approved in 2018.

“I was living at an eight (pain level) every day at that point,” she said. “I was mostly debilitated with headaches, and I was doing a lot of grinning and bearing it. But now I’m living with like a four or five on my pain scale. It’s been an interesting journey, but I think it’s prepared me for what I’m about to do.”

Once she completes her doctorate, she plans to come back east to work, study or teach.

“Rural North Carolina, that’s where my heart is, so my ultimate goal is to open a nonprofit migraine treatment center somewhere in rural North Carolina,” Schaub said. “But I can definitely see myself coming back to ECU.”

– Doug Boyd

Mandee Schaub ’22 is studying migraines and their causes and potential treatments at the University of Texas at Dallas.

HEADACHE HUNTER

DISTINGUISHED FLYING

Even though the Navy awarded him one of the military’s highest honors, for Maj. Cory Jones ’06, surviving a midair collision and helping lead his crew to a safe emergency landing is reward enough.

“Honestly, being alive is all I needed and wanted,” said Jones, a Marine Corps KC-130J Super Hercules pilot at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point.

Jones received the Distinguished Flying Cross for safely landing his aircraft after it collided with another plane during refueling training Sept. 29, 2020, in California. He was also named the 2022 Military Times Marine of the Year.

A native of Cornelius, Jones came to ECU after attending community college.

“The fitness facility and campus in general won me over when I visited the campus prior to being accepted,” he said. “Cubbie’s burgers were a plus! … Football season was always a fun time. The tailgates and pregame festivities were always a blast and something to look forward to each Saturday.”

He graduated thinking he would become a strength and conditioning coach. An admitted adrenaline junkie, he turned to a career as a Marine Corps pilot.

But in the seconds after the collision, as warning alarms sounded and two of the aircraft’s four engines failed, Jones maintained focus.

“It is one of those things where you just do what you’re trained to do,” Jones said. “I was in shock at first and thought the plane would not be controllable, but as soon as I realized the plane was flyable, (we) went to work to get the plane on the ground. … I can honestly say that I think each person on the crew was meant to be there that day, and everyone played a vital role.”

He belly-landed the plane in a California field, and he and the crew escaped. His reaction?

“Stunned. Absolutely in shock at what had just happened,” he said. “Myself and the other pilot (Capt. Michael Wolff, who also received the Distinguished Flying Cross) looked at each other in disbelief, and once out of the aircraft, we all shook hands and thanked each other for their work in getting the plane down. It was emotional, to say the least.”

Married to wife Lori and with two children, son Eli and daughter Maddie, Jones credits his crew and appreciates his purpose.

“I have often said that things happen for a reason, and while we don’t always understand why, there is a reason,” he said. “I believe that was the case for this event, and I still don’t know why I was put there, but I would like to ensure that whatever the reason, I don’t waste it. I have always been a religious person, and while a lot of people always ask about how my training or my skill made this successful, I always say it wasn’t me. Reading the mishap report and understanding the situation, there are circumstances that can’t be explained by skill or luck, and I thank God each day that I walked away from this.”

– Ken Buday

Marine Corps Maj. Cory Jones ’06 received the Distinguished Flying Cross for safely landing a KC-130J tanker after it collided with an F-35 fighter aircraft in 2020 over southern California.

PIRATE SPIRIT

Lugdy Debaut

Year: Graduate student

Major: Recreation sciences

Hometown: Les Abymes, Guadeloupe

BASKETBALL OPENED UP MANY OPPORTUNITIES.

Slam-dunk student

DEBAUT AIMS TO EXCEL ON AND OFF THE COURT

Entering his final year on the court, Ludgy Debaut is ready to step up his game and help the East Carolina University men’s basketball team and new coach Michael Schwartz reach their goals.

Now a graduate student, Debaut has been playing basketball for ECU since 2019 after spending two seasons at Northwest Florida State College. The 7-foot center averaged 2.4 points and 4.2 rebounds per game last season. He was named the American Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball ScholarAthlete of the Year for 2021-2022.

Growing up in Guadeloupe, Debaut first played soccer but was asked to play basketball when he was 10 years old. “I took it as a challenge,” he said. “Basketball opened up many opportunities.

“I was told by my coaches that playing basketball would give me the chance to go overseas,” he said. “There is so much talent back home, but not always the resources to help.”

Through sports and his education, he wants to pay it back to his family who, even with the distance, have stood by him. “My family has always supported me and helped me,” said Debaut. “I am proud to have my family’s name on my jersey. It is also great to represent the school and the program.”

Debaut said the way he was recruited was why he came to ECU. “It was all about relationships,” Debaut said. “They were checking on me all year long and made sure I had what I needed.” He is grateful for his time in Greenville, has felt welcomed and enjoys the smaller-city feel because it has, as he said, “less distractions, and I can stay focused on what I came here to do.”

That is completing his master’s degree in recreation sciences with a concentration in recreation and park administration. He hopes to play professionally then use his education to give back to those who have helped him, get involved with youth sports leagues and help further support players’ mental health.

“What impresses me most about Ludgy is his ability to integrate complex ideas and apply them to practical situations,” said Clifton Watts, ECU associate professor of recreation sciences.

“It’s been a pleasure to have him in our program and in classes.”

– Hannah Eccleston

5 minutes with MATT EDWARDS ’14

By Michael Rudd

Position: Vice president and business manager, Bank of America, London

Degree: Bachelor of Science, business administration

Hometown: Richmond, Virginia

What led you to climb Mount Kilimanjaro last March?

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro first came on my radar back in 2019. My dad (Brad Edwards ‘83) and I were about a year out from two milestone birthdays — 60 and 30, respectively — and I thought it would make for a worthwhile accomplishment. Unfortunately, COVID-19 happened, and plans were delayed, changed, etc., so the trip ultimately became a solo mission.

What was it like?

Incredible and diverse. There are a few different ways to ascend Mount Kilimanjaro. I opted for the Machame Route because it provides impressive views and a variety of flora and fauna that few other places can offer. Each day you navigate dramatically different climate zones ranging from rainforest through the moorlands and, ultimately, the arctic zone at the summit.

What lessons did you learn at ECU that have benefited you in your career?

On your way to obtaining the goals you set for yourself, whether at work or in climbing a mountain, you have to have a level of discipline to keep your eyes on the prize and remember why you’re doing what you’re doing. Regarding diversity, I met and studied alongside so many people from different backgrounds and walks of life that I quickly learned that everyone has something to bring to the table.

Anything else you’d like to add?

Find a mentor that can give you support and guidance on your path to achieving your personal and career goals. For me at ECU, my mentor was Louis Warren, a professor in the College of Education and the faculty advisor for our fraternity. His mentorship instilled in me a responsibility to always pay it forward when you are in the position to do so.

We want to hear stories from alumni about how their experiences at ECU shaped them today and how they pass those lessons to others. Send us an email at easteditor@ecu.edu

ON CAMPUS ON STAGE

RUDOLPH ALEXANDER PERFORMING ARTS SERIES

Ten Grammy Awards. Ten Dove Awards. Gospel Music Hall of Famers. Take 6 (Claude McKnight, Mark Kibble, Joel Kibble, Dave Thomas, Alvin Chea and Khristian Dentley), heralded by Quincy Jones as the “baddest vocal cats on the planet,” is the quintessential a cappella group and the model for vocal genius. Six virtuosic voices united in crystal clear harmony against a backdrop of syncopated rhythms, innovative arrangements and funky grooves that bubble into an intoxicating brew of gospel, jazz, R&B and pop. Feb. 18

For more than three decades, The Peking Acrobats have redefined audience perceptions of Chinese acrobatics. With the Stars of the Shanghai Circus, they’ll perform daring maneuvers atop a precarious pagoda of chairs and display their technical prowess at such arts as trick-cycling, precision tumbling, juggling, somersaulting and gymnastics. March 11

Bestselling and national award-winning North Carolina author Jason Mott released Hell of a Book in 2021. It discusses the impact and reality of race and identity on the American landscape and won the 2021 National Book Award for Fiction, was a Jenna Bush Hager “Read With Jenna” Book Club pick, a Carnegie Medals For Excellence in Fiction Longlist selection, a 2022 Aspen Words Literary Prize Longlist selection, a Joyce Carol Oates Prize Longlist selection and the 2021 Sir Walter Raleigh Prize for Fiction winner. He will speak and answer questions at ECU March 2 at 7 p.m. in the Main Campus Student Center ballroom. Afterward, Mott will sign copies of Hell of a Book, which will be available to purchase at the event.

Tickets are available at ecu.edu/voyages.

Defying convention and boundaries, Time For Three stands at the intersection of classical music and Americana. Bonded by an uncommon blend of their instruments fused together with their voices, Charles Yang (violin, vocals), Nicolas Kendall (violin, vocals) and Ranaan Meyer (double bass, vocals) have found a unique voice. April 1

PLAYHOUSE

Two-thirds rhythm and one-third soul. That’s how Fats Waller defined the uniquely American form of popular music and dance known as swing. Requiring only joyful enthusiasm and a ready partner, swing exploded out of prewar Harlem’s hotbed of youth culture and swept the world. SWING! celebrates this remarkable diversity to the beat of the most exhilarating songs of the period. This enthralling song-and-dance show reminds us that swing isn’t a time or place but a state of mind. Feb. 22-26.

S.

ECU/LOESSIN

All SRAPAS events are at 7:30 p.m. in Wright Auditorium. Tickets are available at artscomm.ecu.edu/alexander-series.

Spring Dance 2023 celebrates the works of visiting guest artists, our esteemed faculty and our student choreographers as we highlight the musical works of Kurt Weill. Each piece interprets Weill’s evolving musical style, before, during and after the Holocaust. March 22-26.

Pride and Prejudice is the theatrical version of Jane Austen’s classic novel involving manners, courtship and relationships. Finding a husband is hardly Elizabeth Bennet’s most urgent priority. But with four sisters, an overzealous match-making mother and a string of unsuitable suitors, it’s difficult to escape the subject. When she meets the handsome but enigmatic Mr. Darcy, all feelings of attraction are muted by his pride and her prejudice. As their attraction increases, they must overcome their own weaknesses and other obstacles before the most famous courtship in history can begin. April 19-23.

Performances are in McGinnis Theatre. Tickets and showtimes are available at theatredance.ecu.edu or by calling 252-328-6829.

MUSIC

Music and readings in remembrance of the Holocaust featuring ECU faculty artists Emanuel Gruber, cello, and Eric Stellrecht, piano, and School of Theatre and Dance faculty member Tracy Donohue, narrator. Jan. 27 at 7:30 p.m. at A.J. Fletcher Recital Hall. Free and open to the public.

ECU’s Four Seasons Chamber Music Festival presents Behind the Scenes with Haydn & Beethoven Feb. 17 at 7:30 p.m. at A.J. Fletcher Recital Hall and Feb. 19 in Raleigh at Hayes Barton United Methodist Church. On March 24, they perform (An English and) Bohemian Rhapsody at 7:30 p.m. in A.J. Fletcher Recital Hall and 3 p.m. March 26 at Hayes Barton. On April 28, they perform works by Schoenberg and Tchaikovsky at 7:30 p.m. in A.J. Fletcher Recital Hall and April 30 at 3 p.m. at Hayes Barton. Tickets may be purchased online at fsdigitalconcerthall. com or by calling the ECU Central Ticket Office at 252-328-4788.

The ECU Chamber Singers perform Feb. 20 at 7:30 p.m. at A.J. Fletcher Recital Hall. Free and open to the public.

OPERA

FAMILY FARE

Six-year-old C.J. is (reluctantly) staying with his (extremely overthe-top) Nana, in a world considerably different from the one he’s used to (his phone and tablet). The disagreeable (and let’s just admit it, whiny) child is dragged on a bus ride that’s loud, gritty and weird. Guided by his veritable force-of-nature Nana, C.J. sees that things are not always what they seem. ECU Storybook Theatre presents The Last Stop on Market Street, a hip-hop, eclectic, heart-thumpin’, toe-tappin’ joyride March 31 in Wright Auditorium and April 6 at the Paramount Theatre in Goldsboro.

Tickets and show times are at artscomm.ecu.edu/family-fare.

ECU Opera Theater presents a series of scenes and narrations as part of the students’ workshop in lyric theater performing technique. The program will feature many well-known operatic classics. April 21 and 22 at 7:30 p.m. at the historic Turnage Theater in Washington. Tickets are $15 for general admission (with optional $10 add-on for early seating); $5 for students with ID and are available at the door and at artsofthepamlico.org/turnage-theater.

ORCHESTRA

The ECU Symphony Orchestra is in concert Feb. 11 with guest soloist Catherine Gardner and March 18 with guest oboist Robert Burkett. Performances are at 7:30 p.m. in Wright Auditorium and are free and open to the public.

The Billy Taylor Jazz Festival returns April 27 with the ECU Billy Taylor Combo and on April 19 with the ECU Jazz Ensemble “B.” Performances are at 8 p.m. in Fletcher Recital Hall Room B110 and are free. On April 22, the Billy Taylor Jazz Festival Gala featuring ECU Jazz Ensemble “A” with special guests including Carroll Dashiell is at 8 p.m. in Wright Auditorium. Free and open to the public.

The ECU Symphonic Wind Ensemble performs March 2 and April 15 Concerts are at 7:30 p.m. in Wright Auditorium and are free and open to the public.

For more information about musical performances, call 252-328-6851.

PURPLE PASSION

GOLD STANDARD

Meredith Bullard

What does receiving this scholarship mean to you?

I feel honored because there are hundreds of other students who could have been selected as the recipient of my scholarship. I feel successful because this achievement is about more than money. It validates the long hours spent in the library, sacrifices and time put into my extracurricular activities. To know I was selected means all my hard work and efforts have been acknowledged.

What do you like most about your major?

Engineering is all around you. I have learned over the past four years that engineering is a way of thinking. It continues to challenge me and allow me to solve problems that can have more than one answer. It combines creativity, passion, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills to reach an end goal. I chose the biomedical concentration because it brought together my passion for helping people and wanting to learn more about the human body. And to top it all off, the professors are excellent and want to help their students succeed in all aspects of life.

Why should alumni support scholarships?

College can be a lot to take on at times. Finding your community, performing well in school and finding the means to pay for it can be stressful. Supporting scholarships means that you are taking one of those loads off somebody’s shoulders. I hope to one day give back to ECU so another student like me can receive the college experience that I have been so fortunate to have.

Hometown: Greenville, North Carolina

Major: Biomedical engineering

Career goals: To use my knowledge of engineering to make a positive impact on people’s lives

Scholarships: James and Connie Hackney Scholarship, Honors and Access Scholarships

What advice would you give someone thinking about applying to ECU?

One thing that stuck out to me about ECU when I was looking at colleges was the campus. I wanted the size of a larger university with the feel of a small campus. After I toured the campus and did my research on majors that interested me, I knew ECU was going to be a place where I would excel. Additionally, seeing the Pirate community supporting all aspects of the university, from academics to athletics, was a deciding factor for me.

Donor spotlight: James and Connie Hackney

James and Connie Hackney support students and priorities in the College of Engineering and Technology. Although they aren’t alumni, the Hackneys have been loyal supporters of the university for decades.

pursuegold.ecu.edu

Eastern North Carolina, with its high levels of poverty and disadvantaged communities, is riddled with high rates of preventable chronic health conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease and obesity. The COVID-19 pandemic only made things worse, exposing the ongoing need for a strong public health infrastructure.

Thanks to a $1.3 million grant from the North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation, undergraduates representing underserved groups from the state’s minority-serving institutions are in the running for full-ride scholarships for health promotion graduate programs at East Carolina University. The program’s goals are simple: Get health promotion-trained minority graduates into rural and underserved communities to help turn the tide on rural North Carolina’s poor health outcomes.

The first contingent of students will come from Fayetteville State University and the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, with

the program expanding to the UNC System’s historically Black colleges and universities in the coming years.

“It is exciting to see this program supporting diversity and providing opportunities to underserved students centered on public health graduate educational attainment, and the future impact of those educated through our commitment to this program shows promise to impact the health of the eastern N.C. residents for years to come,” said Marilyn Foote-Hudson, executive director of the N.C. GlaxoSmithKline Foundation.

About a dozen prospective applicants will participate in a summer immersion program each year — living on campus, meeting with potential graduate school mentors, building a peerto-peer community of early career scholars and preparing to apply for admission to ECU.

The program will also include research experiences and professional development opportunities such as writing resumes, building

ECU student Kai Davis and Danielle Graham, assistant professor of microbiology at Fayetteville State University, look at samples in ECU’s Life Sciences and Biotechnology Building.

communication and interviewing skills and gaining exposure to career opportunities in research and public health.

Ten students a year for the next four years selected from the summer immersion program will be given full tutition for one of ECU’s health promotion graduate degrees: public health, environmental health, health education, biology and molecular biology, and biotechnology.

FSU Chancellor Darrell Allison said North Carolina’s future is tied to a strong public health infrastructure. “Our partnership with ECU aligns with Fayetteville State’s strategic priorities of academic excellence, sustaining the university into the future and providing a real and lasting impact in the communities that our students come from,” he said.

– Benjamin Abel

Fayetteville State University student Alexis Nealy works in the Life Sciences and Biotechnology Building.

GRANT TO SUPPORT MINORITY PUBLIC HEALTH GRADUATE STUDENTS AT ECU

ALUMNI 1940s

Ella Busick ’49 of Richmond, Ind., on May 6, 2022.

Laura W. Canaday ’43 of Four Oaks, N.C., on April 7, 2022.

Bettie S. Dresser ’45 ’46 of Wilmington, N.C., on May 7, 2022.

Gwen P. Jeffreys ’43 of Greensboro, N.C., on Feb. 13, 2022.

Lee “Mae” Pearce ’43 of Raleigh, N.C., on April 18, 2022.

Miriam J. Rasberry ’45 of Tarboro, N.C., on Aug. 29, 2022.

Ruth Browning Smith ’44 of Raleigh, N.C., on June 13, 2022.

1950s

Creola S. Campbell ’54 of Zebulon, N.C., on March 15, 2022.

Jean A. Carlson ’55 of Kinston, N.C., on March 27, 2022.

Andrew W. Caudill ’58 of Lancaster, S.C., on June 20, 2022.

Emily C. Donnelly ’58 of Raleigh, N.C., on June 20, 2022.

Nancy B. Fisher ’57 of Graham, N.C., on April 22, 2022.

Charlotte S. Flye ’58 ’59 of Mt. Juliet, Tenn., on June 5, 2022.

Mary S. Hammel ’55 of Chesapeake, Va., on April 9, 2022.

William J. Harris ‘54 of Madison, Ala., on May 30, 2022.

Ethel Joiner ’56 ’59 of Conyers, Ga., on July 27, 2022.

Eleanor L. Jones ’57 of Kinston, N.C., on March 29, 2022.

J. Ray Kirby ’55 of Durham, N.C., on Aug. 28, 2022.

Marjorie F. Krueck ’56 of Sophia, N.C., on July 23, 2022.

Harold Langdon ’58 of Smithfield, N.C., on May 20, 2022.

Margaret “Ann” Lapetina ’55 of Norfolk, Va., on April 3, 2022.

Dorothy B. Mabe ’56 of Durham, N.C., on June 15, 2022.

Patricia E. Medlin ’54 of Brunswick, Ga., on July 14, 2022.

Janice C. Mounie ’56 of Virginia Beach, Va., on July 28, 2022.

Edward Earl Parker ’54 of Belgrade, N.C., on Aug. 15, 2022.

Coletta Roach ’54 ’58 of Fayetteville, N.C., on Aug. 1, 2022.

Dallas Rollins ’58 of Monroe, N.C., on July 8, 2022.

Lou Sawyer Royal ’59 of Clinton, N.C., on July 22, 2022.

Richard “Sandy” Siler ’53 of Goldsboro, N.C., on June 27, 2022.

Shirley Slaughter ’52 of Virginia Beach, Va., on April 16, 2022.

William J. Slot ’57 of Berlin, Md., on July 11, 2022.

Janice Thompson ’56 ’62 of Smithfield, N.C., on July 25, 2022.

Hazel G. Tripp ’55 of Farmville, N.C., on July 30, 2022.

1960s

Gene Thomas Aman ’65 of Raleigh, N.C., on March 4, 2022.

Nancy F. Avery ’69 of High Point, N.C., on May 14, 2022.

Sandra P. Babb ’60 of Raleigh, N.C., on Sept. 7, 2022.

Frank Barham ’63 ’66 ’71 of Charlottesville, Va., on Sept. 19, 2022.

John B. Barrett ’65 of Rocky Mount, N.C., on Aug. 20, 2022.

Stephen G. Basnight ’65 ’73 of Manteo, N.C., on April 18, 2022.

Harold T. Beck ’57 ’71 of Danville, Va., on June 15, 2022.

Judeth C. Becton ’68 of Rolesville, N.C., on March 29, 2022.

Hilda R. Boone ’72 of Elm City, N.C., on June 7, 2022.

Daniel S. Bowen ’65 of Tobaccoville, N.C., on June 16, 2022.

George Bright III ’69 of Elizabeth City, N.C., on Sept. 27, 2022.

Andre Brousseau III ’66 of Danville, Ky., on March 8, 2022.

Dee Bryson ’60 ’61 of Julian, N.C., on Aug. 2, 2022.

Friends

Cindi H. Bumgarner ’86 of Wake Forest, N.C., on July 8, 2022.

Wynda C. Chesson ’62 of Hertford, N.C., on July 22, 2022.

Preston H. Cannon Jr. ’61 of Pinetops, N.C., on July 30, 2022.

Faye H. Dean ’63 of North Fort Myers, Fla., on June 21, 2022.

Dorothy H. Ellen ’62 ’69 of Gastonia, N.C., on June 2, 2022.

Isabell Foushee ’63 ’67 of Carolina Beach, N.C., on Aug. 10, 2022.

Paul “Ed” Glass Jr. ’67 of Mystic, Ct., on Sept. 24, 2022.

James Gurley ’69 of Tampa, Fla., on Sept. 4, 2022.

Lennie Hughes ’62 of Elizabeth City, N.C., on Aug. 10, 2022.

Linford Loy Harrell ’65 of West Point, Va., on April 25, 2022.

Jesse Van Jackson ’68 of Wilmington, N.C., on Aug. 5, 2022.

Sallie C. Jenkins ’60, ’61 of Charlotte, N.C., on July 17, 2022.

William N. Manning ’66 of Charlotte, N.C., on April 3, 2022.

Joseph Mannino Jr. ’66 of Asheboro, N.C., on April 20, 2022.

Carol Meszaros ’65 of Raleigh, N.C., on March 24, 2022.

Barbara Miller ’65 ’69 of Williamsburg, Va., on May 4, 2022.

David L. Miller ’69 of Charlotte, N.C., on March 23, 2022.

Grace Ann Peoples ’66 of Greenville, N.C., on July 19, 2022.

Faye D. Pritchard ’68 of Asheboro, N.C., on Sept. 11, 2022.

Jack M. Stancil ’64 of Raleigh, N.C., on July 31, 2022.

Virginia Sumerell ’69 of Raleigh, N.C., on June 21, 2022.

Jessie K. Sumrell ’68 of Oxford, N.C. on June 14, 2022.

Susan H. Talbott ’68 of Chapel Hill, N.C., on May 3, 2022.

Joan F. Wade ’62 of Greenville, N.C., on June 26, 2022.

Richard R. Wolters ’65 of Abingdon, Va., on July 27, 2022.

Connie C. Wood ’66 of Raleigh, N.C., on Aug. 11, 2022.

Pennie J. Wood ’61 of Clinton, N.C., on July 3, 2022.

1970s

Joan F. Blalock ’72 of Greensboro, N.C., on April 18, 2022.

Hilda R. Boone ’72 of Elm City, N.C., on June 7, 2022.

Jackie Colbert ’77 ’82 of Rocky Mount, N.C., on June 12, 2022.

Judy K. Compton ’73 of Mebane, N.C., on July 25, 2022.

Richard J. Donovan ’74 of Zebulon, N.C., on Sept. 23, 2022.

William N. Gravatt ’70 of Tupelo, Miss., on Dec. 12, 2021.

Katherine K. Ellis ’74 of Wilmington, N.C., on June 5, 2022.

Braxton B. Hall Jr. ’73 ’74 of Buxton, N.C., on June 24, 2022.

Milburn “Ray” Hudnell Jr. ’75 of Wilson, N.C., on Sept. 7, 2022.

Deborah Josey ’73 ’74 of Scotland Neck, N.C., on June 5, 2022.

Margaret “Sissy” King ’72 of Louisburg, N.C., on July 29, 2022.

Gwendolyn Lassiter ’75 of Rich Square, N.C., on Aug. 11, 2022.

John Manning ’78 of Huntington, Conn., on April 5, 2022.

Debra B. Mathews ’77 of Indian Beach, N.C., on June 1, 2022.

Frances Kay Messer ’73 of Raleigh, N.C., on March 31, 2022.

John Pitts ’74 of Charlottesville, Va., on Sept. 4, 2022.

Beverly J. Quick ’71 of Rhodesville, Va., on June 3, 2022.

Louis ReDavid Jr. ’70 of Virginia Beach, Va., on April 30, 2022.

Margaret Redwine ’72 of Ocean Isle Beach, N.C., on March 20, 2022.

Thomas Spencer Jr. ’76 of Washington, N.C., on May 10, 2022.

Jerri Daniel Smith ’78 of Clemmons, N.C., on Aug. 13, 2022.

Teresa V. Rose ’75 of Waynesville, N.C., on July 10, 2022.

Virginia Joy Verrier ’74 ’90 of Gaffney, S.C., on April 13, 2022.

Dr. Ledyard E. Ross Jr. ’51, an orthodontist and benefactor of ECU and the School of Dental Medicine, died June 28. He was 96. Ross committed $4 million in 2010, leading to the school’s flagship facility holding the name Ledyard E. Ross Hall. The building not only bears his name but stands as a lasting legacy to dental professionals, from students to career specialists, especially those committed to caring for patients in rural areas.

Lorraine Brody, who with her husband, Morris, and his brothers helped create the Brody Medical Scholars program at ECU, died Aug. 30. The Brody Medical Scholars program today has helped more than 140 doctors graduate from medical school with little to no debt. She and her husband also gave money to establish the Brody Medical Research Grants program, providing key funding to medical school researchers as they worked to secure national research grants.

Michael L. Warren ’79 of Fayetteville, N.C., on Sept. 10, 2022.

Christina R. Weber ’74 of Salisbury, N.C., on March 27, 2022.

Christy Crosswell Williams ’78 of Swansboro, N.C., on Jan. 12, 2022.

1980s

Dr. Robert L. Bradley ’83 of Silver Spring, Md., on April 3, 2022.

Dr. Christy Clayton ’86 of Roxboro, N.C., on Aug. 9, 2022.

Penny Boudreaux ’87 of Beaufort, N.C., on Sept. 27, 2022.

Richard Creech ’85 of Harrisburg, Pa., on Aug. 31, 2022.

William Earl Dail Jr. of Grimesland, N.C., on June 13, 2022.

Patricia C. Deaver ’86 of Farmville, N.C., on April 11, 2022.

Pamela D. Dearstyne ’81 of Sunset Beach, N.C., on June 2, 2022.

Joseph Jay Hathaway ’87 of Eureka, Mo., on June 17, 2022.

Michael Leidel ’81 of Giddings, Texas, on Aug. 4, 2022.

Gay “Gemcy” Martin ’82 of Yukon, Okla., on May 29, 2022.

Timothy Mooring ’86 ’92 of Raleigh, N.C., on May 22, 2022.

William Morgan ’80 of Powder Springs, Ga., on July 17, 2022.

Michael V. Osborne ’83 of Garner, N.C., on July 2, 2022.

Renee Simmons ’82 of Raleigh, N.C., on July 26, 2022.

Ronald K. Taylor ’85 of Wilson, N.C., on April 30, 2022.

1990s

Daniel Brookman ’96 of Newport News, Va., on April 24, 2022.

Kimberly M. Cook ’92 of Charlotte, N.C., on June 28, 2022.

Douglas Eric Griffin ’99 of Greenville, N.C., on May 21, 2022.

Walter Grimes Jr. ’97 ’99 of Washington, N.C., on April 15, 2022.

Kimberly Herring ’99 of Seven Springs, N.C., on Sept. 10, 2022.

Darrell Lee Jones ’96 of Mount Olive, N.C., on July 4, 2022.

Paul Michael Hill ’90 of Pigeon Forge, Tenn., on June 5, 2022.

Dorothy Mobley ’93 of Greenville, N.C., on April 24, 2022.

Susan Moore ’93, ’12 of Rocky Mount, N.C., on Aug. 10, 2022.

Sylvia Morgan ’90 of Webster, N.C., on May 13, 2022.

Susan H. Powell ’97 ’98 of Moncure, N.C., on June 10, 2022.

Amy O. Robinson ’98 of Charleston, S.C., on April 23, 2022.

Kimberly Smith ’91 ’00 ’13 of Goldsboro, N.C., on July 30, 2022.

James D. Swenson ’93 of Concord, N.C., on April 11, 2022.

John S. Tyson ’90 of Atlanta, Ga., on June 27, 2022.

2000s

Jennifer Cole ’03 of Charlotte, N.C., on May 14, 2022.

Mary M. Gillam ’05 of Elizabeth City, N.C., on June 23, 2022.

Gloria M. Hager ’04 of Guilford, Ct., on Aug. 22, 2022.

John Lingle ’07 of Fayetteville, N.C., on May 31, 2022.

2010s

Hunter Everhart ’17 of Raleigh, N.C., on June 29, 2022.

Tracy Lee Johnson ’12 of Waco, Texas, on July 18, 2022.

Jacek Teller ’08 ’12 of Greenville, N.C., on Aug. 11, 2022.

FACULTY/STAFF

David Batie (const. mgmt.) of Winterville, N.C., on June 17, 2022.

J. Douglas Burch (English) of Goldsboro, N.C., on Sept. 19, 2022.

Dr. John Hall (medicine) of The Villages, Fla., on April 27, 2022.

Dr. John Homesley (medicine) of Mooresville, N.C., on April 19, 2022.

Lionel Kendrick (HHP) of Salt Lake City, Utah, on Aug. 22, 2022.

Alfred King (HHP) of Greenville, N.C., on April 24, 2022.

Marie Malherbe Papalas (foreign languages) of Greenville, N.C., on Sept. 1, 2022.

Herbert Rothfeder (history) of Greenville on July 29, 2022.

Carroll Smith (industrial arts) of Raleigh, N.C., on April 29, 2022.

Amy Taylor (const. mgmt.) of Greenville, N.C., on July 14, 2022.

Angelo Volpe (chemistry) of Cookeville, Tenn., on May 8, 2022.

Gina Woody ’96 ’00 (nursing) of Greenville, N.C., on July 3, 2022.

Eugenia Zallen (consumer science) of Opelika, Ala., on April 21, 2022.

Dr. Ledyard E. Ross Jr.

Lorraine Brody

WINTER 2023 VOLUME 21, NUMBER 1 East is produced by East Carolina University

Managing Editor

Doug Boyd ’99

Art Director Mike Litwin ’01

Photographers

Rhett Butler, Cliff Hollis

Contributing Writers

Benjamin Abel, Crystal Baity, Ken Buday, Hannah Eccleston, Lacey L. Gray, Rich Klindworth, Jules Norwood, Michael Rudd, Julie Roman, Jimmy Rostar, Rob Spahr, Spaine Stephens, Nicole Stokes, Kim Tilghman

Contributing Photographers

Ken Buday

Copy Editor

Jimmy Rostar ’94

Chief Communications Officer Jeannine Manning Hutson

Contact Us

• 252-737-1973 • easteditor@ecu.edu • www.ecu.edu/east

Customer Service

To start or stop a subscription or to let us know about a change of address, please contact Advancement Services at advancementservices@ecu.edu or 252-328-GIVE (4483).

Send letters to the editor to: easteditor@ecu.edu or Howard House Mail Stop 107 East Carolina University Greenville, N.C. 27858-4353

32,900 copies of this public document were printed at a cost of $21,385.00 or $.65 per copy.

ecu.edu East

House Mail Stop 107 East Carolina University Greenville, NC 27858-4353

Due East 10.15.22

Keaton Mitchell carries the ball for the Pirates against the Memphis Tigers in the Oct. 15 homecoming game at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. The Pirates won 47-45 in four overtimes. Mitchell finished with 29 carries for 149 yards and three touchdowns plus four catches for 28 yards. The sophomore from McDonough, Georgia, also hauled in a crucial game-tying score in the third overtime.

Howard