SEAHAWK SNIPPETS

The Class of 2020 always will hold a special place in UNCW history. These resilient Seahawks persevered through hurricanes and a global pandemic to achieve excellence. Hats Off to the 2020 Grads

The Class of 2020 always will hold a special place in UNCW history. These resilient Seahawks persevered through hurricanes and a global pandemic to achieve excellence. While members of the Class of 2020 were unable to walk across the Trask Coliseum stage in May for the official UNCW commencement ceremonies due to the pandemic, the campus and community celebrated the newest Seahawk alumni in a host of other ways.

The Class of 2020 includes national scholarship and fellowship recipients; academic, campus leadership and athletic award winners; and dedicated community volunteers. Although we couldn’t list all of their achievements, we could highlight all of their names in a “flippable” online commencement program (complete with gold and teal confetti) that was added to the university’s homepage to honor the Class of 2020.

Graduates were also given personal attention from the university with every graduating senior receiving both a call from a faculty member within their academic department and a personal note. The notes (more than 2,600 of them) were part of UNCW’s firstever “Dear Seahawks” campaign. Each note was handwritten by one of over 150 employee volunteers.

In another first, UNCW utilized a “Kudoboard” to provide families, employees and the community a chance to congratulate graduates publicly on a message wall-like platform. The university also promoted the graduates with several fun multimedia projects. A special edition of We Are UNCW, a photo mosaic and congratulations video all featured Class of 2020 graduates.

– Christina Schechtman

Popular MarineQuest Summer Program Turns the Big 4-0

For 40 years, MarineQuest, the official marine science outreach program for UNCW,the Watson College of Education and the Center for Marine Science has been an anchor of education and a boatload of summer fun for children and teens. Providing a sea of knowledge to more than 200,000 youth, it has proven to be “more than just another day at the beach.”

After 40 years of hands-on learning, the summer 2020 MarineQuest programs transitioned to a hybrid style, sending STEM kits to campers with activities to do at home and together online. Summer Ventures was also converted to an online platform with several courses focused on COVID-19.

– C.C.

More than Words

For 27 years, the UNCW English Language Center has helped hundreds of students from across the world improve their English skills, better preparing them linguistically and culturally to study, live and work in the United States.

The ELC, part of the Office of International Programs, was granted a ten-year accreditation by the Commission on English Language Program Accreditation. This is the highest degree of accreditation awarded by the nation’s leading accrediting body for intensive English programs. UNCW is one of 348 sites globally and seven in the state of North Carolina to be accredited by the CEA. UNCW’s center was awarded the initial CEA accreditation in 2016.

– C.C.

Learn more about MarineQuest’s role in connecting children to the coast at uncw.edu/MQ40.

The Mystery of Christie

Creative writing faculty member and alumna Nina de Gramont ’06 MFA sold her newest novel The Mystery Writer in a seven-figure deal to St. Martin’s Press (film rights being represented by Rich Green at Gotham Group). The book explores the disappearance of best-selling novelist Agatha Christie, who went missing for 11 days in 1926.

“My agent went out with the novel on a Monday evening and by the following Wednesday, we had accepted the offer,” said de Gramont. “My feelings were a combination of joy and disbelief, with a little bit of imposter syndrome.”

Other published works by de Gramont include Gossip of the Starlings; Of Cats and Men; Every Little Thing in the World and The Last September.

– C.C.

Rising to the Challenge

UNCW leaders and the Doctoral Transition Task Force are developing policies and infrastructure to support the university’s expanding research mission while maintaining the university’s long-standing commitment to teaching excellence.

In 2018, UNCW joined the ranks of “Doctoral Universities: High Research Activity (R2)” in the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Learning. The transition also includes building on the four existing doctoral programs in marine biology, educational leadership, psychology and nursing practice as well as developing new doctoral degrees, including Ph.D. programs in applied coastal and ocean sciences as well as pharmaceutical sciences, the latter of which was recently supported by a generous philanthropic contribution from Linda ’78, ’85M and Yousry Sayed.

“We can support doctoral education and increased research activity while remaining fully engaged with excellent undergraduate education,” said Stuart Borrett, associate provost for research and innovation. “As a university, we have an opportunity to hold onto our values and build on our strengths as we make the transition to the UNCW of tomorrow.”

– T.V.

Lifelines, One Letter at a Time

Students enrolled in three sections of “Introduction to Gerontology” completed their service learning requirements in an innovative way this spring, swapping out their traditional in-person meetings with letter writing as a way to connect with older adults in the local community.

“Due to COVID-19 concerns, students could no longer safely interact in person with older adults this semester, but it was still important for them to gain the experience,” said Ph.D. lecturer Elizabeth Fugate-Whitlock ’00, ’03M. “To do this safely, and in an effort to reduce social isolation for older adults, the ‘pen pal’ program was born.”

More than 100 students participated in the program by contacting at least one older adult weekly from mid-March through late April. According to Fugate-Whitlock, service learning is one of the most impactful experiences a student can have, but this semester, the value to the older participants was more meaningful than ever.

“As the social distancing regulations became stricter for older adults residing in facilities, maintaining social connections was even more important for their health and overall well-being,” she said. “Researchers have found that being socially isolated can be as damaging to one’s health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. So, staying connected is a big deal!”

Many students have already expressed an interest in meeting their “pen pals” in person once it is safe to do so, and plan on maintaining regular correspondence until then.

– C.S.

On the Docket

UNCW sociology and criminology professors Kristen DeVall and Christina Lanier received $1.6M in grant funding from the U.S. Department of Justice to transition the National Drug Court Resource Center to North Carolina. The NDCRC is the country’s primary resource hub for problem-solving courts, which focus on a specific type of offense, like drugs. An interdisciplinary team, led by a judge, implements a treatment program that addresses offenders’ underlying issues in the hopes of reducing recidivism.

“NDCRC’s work influences the development, expansion and enhancement of problemsolving court programs across the country,” said DeVall. “Overseeing the NDCRC will allow us the opportunity to expand our focus to include examining trends at national, regional, state and local levels.”

Housing the NDCRC at UNCW will increase the university’s visibility within the field of problem-solving courts, and graduate students from two disciplines will have the opportunity to collaborate with faculty to produce research-driven information and resources. Several other faculty members played a part in obtaining this grant for UNCW including Ron Vetter, computer science; Sally MacKain, psychology; and Jeanne Persuit, communication studies.

– C.S.

VIPs (Virtual International Programs)

With universities across the world reducing operations and limiting the number of students, faculty, and staff on campus, many programs have temporarily switched to an online/virtual format. UNCW students are now able to gain international experience without leaving their homes through a Remote Global Internship initiative.

Modeled after a program at NC State, it allows participants to work with a company, nonprofit or government organization from countries across Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Pacific. Areas of study range from advertising to analytics and participating faculty provide weekly virtual supervision.

The virtual scenario eliminates the challenges of visa, housing and transportation issues. In addition to earning academic credits, participants develop their global and digital professional competencies through learning to navigate in an international context.

Associate Vice Chancellor of International Programs Michael Wilhelm sees it as a good way to pair strong researchers with globally resonant programs.

“If it works out well, we can consider expanding it in the future with possibly hundreds of students coming to engage in research at a small consortium of research universities in the area,” he said.

– C.C.