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October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
Advising Day, Oct. 27, opens registration for spring semester
Advising Day on Tuesday, Oct. 27, will provide Western Carolina University students the opportunity to plan their next classes with representatives of the
academic departments. It is the beginning of the official advising and registration period for the spring 2016 semester.
No classes will be held that day.
“Some departments have students schedule individual appointments with their faculty adviser throughout the day,” said Travis Bulluck, director of
academic advising. “Some hold group advising sessions and others host informal social gatherings.
“Students can meet with their primary adviser at any point during the advising and registration period to plan for next semester’s classes and to get
their alt PIN that’s required for registration,” Bulluck said. “However, they are strongly encouraged to attend the activities their academic department
may have scheduled on Advising Day.”
Departmental events and instructions are posted on the Advising Day webpage (http://www.wcu.edu/academics/campus-academic-resources/
advising-center/advising-day.asp).
By Keith Brenton
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October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
Association of retired WCU faculty, staff to meet Oct. 13
The Western Carolina University Association of Retired Faculty and Staff will meet on campus in the Ramsey Regional Activity Center on Tuesday, Oct. 13.
Speakers for the event will be Russ Townsend and Tyler Howe of the Cherokee Ambassadors. Townsend and Howe will discuss the history of Cullowhee
Valley when it was part of the Cherokee Nation.
Event registration begins on the concourse of the Ramsey Center at 10 a.m. and will be followed by a social at 10:30 a.m., a business meeting at 11:20 a.m.,
a Dutch treat luncheon at 11:30 a.m., and presentations from the speakers at noon.
The association formed in 2013 when more than 125 retired WCU faculty and sta members and their spouses, partners and friends traveled from North
Carolina, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia to participate in the rst meeting. Subsequent meetings have attracted about 100 attendees,
and the October meeting will mark the group’s sixth gathering.
“We want to encourage outreach to all WCU retired faculty and sta,” said Fred Hinson, past-president of the association and former senior associate
vice chancellor for academic aairs. “Our goal is to serve the retired faculty and sta of the university, wherever they may be, and to build a sense of
community.”
Curtis Wood, current president and emeritus professor of history, said the association “has an important role in maintaining connections.”
Membership is open to retired WCU faculty and staff and their spouses and partners. Annual association dues are $10 per person or couple.
Registration for the October meeting is requested by Wednesday, Oct. 7, and the cost for the luncheon, gratuities and reception is $18 per person.
For more information, contact Curtis Wood at 828-293-5377; Fred Hinson at 828-293-5620; or Gordon Mercer at 828-369-2693.
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October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
Base Camp Cullowhee receives grant for Tuckaseigee River Cleanup
Base Camp Cullowhee has received a $1,250 grant to assist with its annual efforts to clean up the Tuckaseigee River.
BCC, Western Carolina University’s outdoor programming organization, was one of two recipients of the 2015 Clif Bar Flowing Rivers
Campaign, which is awarded by American Whitewater. The grant will provide support to increase the volunteer base for BCC’s 32nd
annual Tuck River Cleanup. The Tuck River Cleanup is the nation’s largest one-day river cleanup with about 1,000 volunteers removing 3-
5 tons of garbage from 27 miles of the Tuckaseigee River.
Participation in the event has doubled in the last six years and continues to increase as interest in the river has grown thanks to the
addition of many river access improvements due to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission relicensing agreement with Duke Energy.
The cleanup with be April 16. For more information, call BCC at 828-227-8813 or email basecamp@wcu.edu.
By Marlon W. Morgan
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October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
Kristin Calvert
Andrea Moshier
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Calvert, Moshier selected for new Women’s Leadership in Action Program
Two Western Carolina University women – Kristin Calvert, head of content organization and management at Hunter Library, and Andrea Moshier,
director of sponsored research in the Oce of Research Administration – are the rst individuals selected to participate in WCU’s new Women’s
Leadership in Action Program.
The program is an intensive, year-long experience in which Calvert and Moshier will develop and
implement a personal leadership plan, work with a mentor to rene leadership skills, and attend an
immersive professional development conference.
The program is a joint eort between the university’s chief of sta, Melissa Canady Wargo, and
provost, Alison Morrison-Shetlar, to encourage and prepare women faculty and sta to step
into leadership roles. One faculty member and one sta member will be chosen to participate in the
program annually.
Calvert and Moshier were chosen for the program “from a highly competitive pool of well-qualied
applicants,” Wargo said. Their activities during the coming year also will include developing a strong
professional network through relationship building, making a presentation to campus on an aspect
of women in leadership, and serving as program alumna in helping develop future programming or
activities.
Calvert earned her bachelor’s degree in political science at the University of California-Berkeley and
her master’s degree in library and information science at the University of Rhode Island. She has
been a librarian and member of the WCU faculty since March 2011.
Calvert became head of her department at the library earlier this year. She said participation in the
Women’s Leadership in Action Program will be an opportunity to challenge herself at a higher level. “My participation will push me to overcome some
gaps in my skill set, to become more assertive and to build my self-condence as a mentor and a manager to future leaders,” she said. “Everything I gain
from this program will allow me to reinvest the time and effort with my colleagues and the university community.”
Moshier joined the WCU sta as a research compliance ocer in 2012 and has been in her current position on an interim or permanent basis since April
2013. She earned her bachelor’s degree in international relations at Syracuse University and her master’s degree in public administration at the University
of North Carolina at Charlotte.
“My participation in the program will provide an opportunity for a more purposeful approach to leading my team to ensure that they are supported and
professionally satised, and to the oce to ensure that the strategic direction aligns with institutional priorities,” Moshier said. “I am enthused by the
opportunity for mentorship and to engage more intentionally with the strong women leaders on our campus. I feel that the relationships developed
across campus in this program will provide a depth to my development unattainable elsewhere.”
The Women’s Leadership in Action Program is one component of a new leadership development initiative designed for women at WCU. The second
component, a general program of events, will be open to all women on campus, including students, faculty and sta. The schedule of events will be
announced in the near future.
More information about the initiative is available by contacting Wargo or Morrison-Shetlar.
By Randall Holcombe
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October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
Chancellor David O. Belcher
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
Campus conversations series resumes in November
A series of campus conversations centered on four topics identied by Western Carolina University Chancellor David O. Belcher as areas of
emphasis for the 2015-16 academic year will continue in November, including a session next week at the Biltmore Park instructional site.
Belcher, in his Opening Assembly address to kick o the school year, described the
quartet of issues – increasing diversity on campus, preparing for a comprehensive
fundraising campaign to boost scholarship dollars, enhancing the total student experience,
and supporting faculty and staff – as central to WCU’s future success.
The series of discussions is designed to provide campus leaders with input, ideas and
possible solutions from members of the university community on issues of diversity,
scholarships, overall student experience and employee satisfaction.
While the university has made substantial progress on many elements of its “2020 Vision”
strategic plan over the past three years, a handful of issues have proven more challenging
and have risen to the forefront as WCU attempts to manage changing enrollment and
demographic trends, increasing costs in higher education, and growing competition for top
students, said Melissa Wargo, chief of staff.
Conversations are being held in three four-day sessions scattered throughout the academic
year, with each of the four topics to be the subject of an afternoon discussion during each
session. Each on-campus discussion is scheduled to run from 4-5:30 p.m. The rst sessions
were held Sept. 21-24.
Up next is a session from 3 until 5 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3, at Biltmore Park. That discussion
that will cover all four topics.
The second round of on-campus discussions will be held in the middle of November: Monday, Nov. 16, “Improve the Total Experience,” Blue Ridge
Conference Room D; Tuesday, Nov. 17, “Invest in Our People,” Blue Ridge Conference Room A; Wednesday, Nov. 18, “Enhance Campus Diversity,” Blue
Ridge Conference Room A; and Thursday, Nov. 19, “Support Scholarships,” Blue Ridge Conference Room A.
The third session is set for late February and early March: Monday, Feb. 29, “Invest in Our People,” Blue Ridge Conference Room A; Tuesday, March 1,
“Improve the Total Experience,” Blue Ridge Conference Rooms B and C; Wednesday, March 2, “Support Scholarships,” Blue Ridge Conference Room A;
and Thursday, March 3, “Enhance Campus Diversity,” Blue Ridge Conference Room A.
The campus conversations are open to all WCU faculty and sta. The total number of participants is limited to 40 at each session. Registrations are
accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. Organizers will add another block of sessions in the spring semester if needed.
To register or for more information, visit the website collaborate.wcu.edu.
By Bill Studenc
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October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
Colin Jost
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
Comedy show to feature SNL ‘anchor’ tonight
Comedian Jose Barrientos will host a comedy show as part of the Homecoming activities at Western Carolina University at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday,
Oct. 21, at the John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center.
Headlining the event will be Colin Jost, the new “anchor” for the “Weekend Update” segment of
television’s weekly “Saturday Night Live.” Jost succeeds a host of famous comedic journalists narrating
the headline-skewering routine, including former head writers Tina Fey and Seth Meyers.
Chloe Hilliard, a journalist-turned-comedian, and songwriter-satirist Kevin Yee ll out the bill of
performers for the event.
Staten Island-born Jost was hired as an SNL writer at age 22 in 2005 and became co-anchor of “Weekend
Update” in 2013, replacing Meyers in March of this year. As a stand-up comedian, he has appeared on
“Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” and on programs aired by TBS and HBO. Jost claims inspiration from
former sequence anchor Norm McDonald, whom he watched in the role while in high school.
Brooklyn’s Hilliard grew up in a large Hasidic Jewish neighborhood and spent much of her early career
writing about culture and entertainment for periodicals such as “The Village Voice,” “Essence” and
“Vibe” – the last for which she also served as managing editor and social media manager. She made her
national TV debut on NBC’s “Last Comic Standing” and has appeared on AXSTV’s “Gotham Comedy
Live.”
Yee describes himself as a “recovering Broadway chorus boy” with performing credits in “Mary
Poppins,” a Toronto production of “Mama Mia,” Quincy Jones’ boy band Youth Asylum, and short lms
like “Foreign Exchange” and “The Legend of the Black Dragon.” A native of Vancouver, the choreographer/songwriter has brought his satirical verses
to the stage at a number of comedy festivals and productions, including Second City.
Some comedic moments may not be appropriate for children.
WCU students with ID will be admitted free, and general admission tickets for others are $10 and are available through the box oce link at
bardoartscenter.wcu.edu.
By Keith Brenton
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October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
Jim Costa
ACHIEVEMENTS
Costa named GSU scholar, delivers lecture
James Costa, biology professor and director of the Highlands Biological Station, delivered a lecture Monday, Sept. 28, at Georgia Southern
University as part of the honor of being named GSU’s 25th Joseph LeConte Scholar.
“Indefatigable Naturalists: Wallace and Darwin on the Evolutionary Trail” shared insights from
Costa’s research specialty, the pursuit of evolution theory investigators Charles Darwin and the less
known Alfred Russel Wallace.
The LeConte Scholars Program is the oldest endowed visiting scholars program at Georgia Southern
and is named for Joseph LeConte, a naturalist and scholar who was born and raised near where the
University is now located.
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October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
Kristen Crosson
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
Crosson named assistant vice chancellor for budgets, financial planning,
analysis
Kristen Crosson, formerly director of budgets and nancial planning at Western Carolina University, is now serving as assistant vice chancellor for
budgets, financial planning and analysis.
The change is part of a restructuring of the university’s Division of Administration and
Finance announced by its vice chancellor, Mike Byers.
The restructuring includes the elimination of an associate vice chancellor position earlier this year,
and represents the rst step in the redistribution of duties to existing personnel within the
division, Byers said.
“Kristen has made a huge dierence at WCU, leveraging her experience at the North Carolina
Oce of State Budget and Management and at the University of North Carolina General
Administration,” he said. “As WCU continues to navigate the changing environment in higher
education, Kristen’s expertise now will be used in greater ways in the area of analysis and nancial
modeling.”
Crosson joined the university sta in the spring of 2013 as no stranger to WCU. She had worked
with WCU personnel for a decade through her service as assistant vice president of nance for
UNC General Administration and through her work as a budget and capital analyst with the Office of
State Budget and Management.
“Since my arrival at WCU, I have been grateful to have the support of my chief nancial ocers, the
phenomenal budget oce sta, the Division of Administration and Finance, and all of campus to
assist us in achieving goals of the ‘2020 Vision’ Strategic Plan and mission of service,” Crosson said. “I greatly appreciate the formal and informal
professional development opportunities that have enabled me to expand my professional and personal knowledge on many aspects of higher education
administration.”
She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s degree in public administration, both from North Carolina State University. She has lived
in North Carolina since 1994 and is originally from Bechtelsville, Pennsylvania, in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains.
By Bill Studenc
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October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
Cycling documentary ‘Rising from Ashes’ to be screened
The documentary lm “Rising from Ashes,” the true story of the Rwandan National Cycling Team’s journey to compete in the London Olympic
Games after national genocide, will be presented Wednesday, Nov. 4, at Western Carolina University.
The screening will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Multipurpose Room of A.K. Hinds
University Center. Admission is free, but donations of $5 per person are
recommended. Proceeds will go to World Bicycle Relief, which provides bicycles
throughout Africa.
The event is sponsored by WCU’s Cycling Club and Criminal Justice Club in
conjunction with the university’s interdisciplinary learning theme for 2015-17,
“Africa! More Than a Continent.”
For more information, contact Ophir Seha, assistant professor in WCU’s
Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology, and faculty adviser for the
cycling club, at 828-227-2176.
By Randall Holcombe
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October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
ACHIEVEMENTS
Energy efficiency article by WCU team to be published
Several faculty members in the WCU Department of Engineering and Technology have co-written an article to be published in the January
edition of the Encyclopedia of Energy Engineering and Technology by Taylor and Francis Group.
Bora Karayaka, assistant professor; Martin Tanaka, assistant professor and graduate program
director; and Aaron Ball, professor, teamed up with a recent Master of Science in Technology graduate
from WCU, Lee T. Holland, to author “Power Systems: Thermal Load Characterization and Regulation.”
The article details experiments designed to compare the performance of a traditional on-off thermostat
controller with a device providing smoother temperature control in order to improve both comfort in
enclosed spaces and the use of electrical energy from the utility.
By Keith Brenton
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October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
‘English on the Ides’ discussion series continues Sunday
The “English on the Ides” discussion series sponsored by Western Carolina University’s Department of English and City Lights Bookstore in Sylva will
continue Sunday, Oct. 11, with a talk presented by Laura Wright, associate professor and head of the department.
Wright is the author of a new book, “The Vegan Studies Project.” She said her presentation, titled “Veganism and the Rhetoric of Terror: How 9/11
Shaped the Way We Eat,” will include a discussion about how the book came about. “I will focus in particular on the way that, as I wrote the book, I
realized that the only reason I could conceive of something called ‘vegan studies’ was, sadly, because of 9/11,” she said.
All events in the “English on the Ides” series are held at 1 p.m. Sundays at the bookstore.
The series will conclude Oct. 25 with English professor Annette Debo presenting “Poets are Lyric Historians: The Necessary Past for African-American
Poets.”
For more information about the series, contact Paul Worley at pmworley@wcu.edu or the bookstore at more@citylightsnc.com.
By Randall Holcombe
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October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
Entrepreneurship video series now available online
A series of videos featuring presentations given by outstanding regional entrepreneurs at the ongoing Successful Entrepreneurship
colloquium can be viewed online.
The free 11-week program, designed to educate and inspire local entrepreneurs, is offered through a partnership between Western
Carolina University’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation and Serrus Capital Partners of Greenville, South Carolina. Class
attendance was limited to 75 when the series began Saturday, Aug. 25, but the video recordings make the presentations available
conveniently to a wider audience.
Speakers whose presentations have been made available include Dale Freudenberger, Sharon Day, Leighton Cubbage, Tom Finger, Justin
Belleme, Laura Bratton, Oscar Wong, Phil Drake, Steve Mudge, Sutton Bacon, Ken Hughes and Curtis Harper.
More videos will be added to the playlist after the Nov. 3, 10 and 17 classes.
By Keith Brenton
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October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
ACHIEVEMENTS
Forensic science researchers share findings at conference
Several faculty members and colleagues in WCU’s College of Arts and Sciences made research presentations at the International Symposium on
Human Identification, held Oct. 12-15.
Kelly Grisedale presented “Use of Massively Parallel Sequencing (MPS) to Assist with Deconvolution of STR Mixture Proles.” Jessica Barnes,
Brittania Bintz and Mark Wilson assisted with the research.
Maureen Hickman also presented “Amplication of Whole Mitochondrial Genome from Challenging Samples via Multiplex PCR Assay.” Erin Burnside,
Bintz, Grisedale and Wilson, along with a representative from Petraco Consulting and three others from the University of Central Florida, contributed to
the research.
Bintz presented “Assessment of Low-Level Error in Massively Parallel Sequencing (MPS) Data Sets Generated Using the Illumina Miseq Platform and
Synthesized Human Mitochondrial DNA Oligonucleotides.” Wilson and Timothy Driscoll of West Virginia University assisted with the research.
Barnes is a graduate student in WCU’s biology program; Bintz is a research scientist and academic adviser in the Forensic Science Program;
Burnside is the research protections ocer in the Oce of Research Administration; Grisedale is an assistant professor in the Forensic Science
Program; Hickman is a forensic research scientist in the Forensic Science Program; and Wilson was recently an associate professor and director of the
Forensic Science Program.
Tags: Brittania Bintz, College of Arts and Sciences, Erin Burnside, Kelly Grisedale, Maureen Hickman
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October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
Global Spotlight Series features ‘A Changing Cuba’ Wednesday, Oct. 28
Western Carolina University’s International Studies Program will continue its Global Spotlight Series on Wednesday, Oct. 28, when it presents “A
Changing Cuba.”
The event will be held from 4:30 to 6 p.m. in the multipurpose room of the A.K. Hinds University Center. The Global Spotlight Series is a group of
interdisciplinary panel discussions that cover a wide variety of major international events.
Alexander Macaulay, associate professor of history, will speak on “Rebels in Cuba: American Reactions to Cuban Revolutions.” Panelists include Lori
Oxford, associate professor of Spanish; WCU Cuban culture course student Laura Powell; and special guest Juan Nicolas Padron, a renowned poet and
essayist and professor of literature and history. Padron is known for his work at Casa de las Americas, widely considered to be one of the most important
cultural institutions in Latin America.
For more information, call Garrett Fisher at 929-227-3906.
By Marlon W. Morgan
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October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
Vicki Szabo
TOP STORIES
History department’s Szabo to deliver ‘Last Lecture’ on Thursday
Vicki Szabo, Western Carolina University associate professor of history, will speak on the topic “Scholars, Warriors, Cowards and Fools: Fear and
Learning from Rome to Raleigh” as she presents the university’s annual “Last Lecture” on Thursday, Oct. 22.
Szabo’s presentation will begin at 4 p.m. in the theater of A.K. Hinds University Center. The event,
part of Homecoming activities, honors a WCU faculty member who has been recognized by students
for teaching with great passion and enthusiasm. The annual “Last Lecture” allows faculty members
to share words they would present if it was the final lecture they had a chance to give.
Szabo said her talk will focus on the importance of ancient history and the humanities in today’s
North Carolina. “Using several examples of stories from my ancient and medieval history classes, I’ll
address how and why an education based in liberal studies is essential to any career, but also
essential to the success and livelihood of our state,” she said.
“In a time when a university education is seen as a commodity, and a path to a job, we can’t forget
that the humanities are the core of education and the core of citizenship, and ancient history stands
at the heart of the humanities. My lecture, I hope, will entertain, but also underscore the important
job our students have in using their educations, and the lessons of history, to make North Carolina
better.”
Szabo earned her doctoral degree in medieval studies at Cornell University. She has been a member
of the WCU faculty since 2001.
The “Last Lecture” series is sponsored by Coulter Faculty Commons and is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Laura Cruz,
director of Coulter Faculty Commons, at lcruz@wcu.edu or 828-227-7196.
By Randall Holcombe
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October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
(Image courtesy of National Novel
Writing Month)
TOP STORIES
Hunter Library joins forces with county library to help celebrate National
Novel Writing Month
Western Carolina University’s Hunter Library and the Jackson County Public Library are partnering to celebrate November’s National Novel Writing
Month.
National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo as it is called, is an international event that began in 1999
to help inspire people to use their imaginations and create a novel. Sarah Steiner, head of research and
instruction services at Hunter Library, has been looking to partner with the Jackson County Public
Library since coming to WCU in 2014.
“I’ve been trying to nd a good way,” she said. “My husband said, ‘I’m going to do NaNoWriMo,’ and I
said, ‘That’s the best idea. We should get with the public library.’ They were really excited about it.”
On Tuesday, Oct. 27, a Kicko Plotting Party will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. at Jackson County Public
Library’s community room for writers to plot out their novel, share ideas and learn. Snacks and drinks
will be provided.
Each library will host three write-ins for writers to come together. The Hunter Library write-ins will be
4 to 9 p.m. on three Tuesdays – Nov. 3, Nov. 10 and Nov. 17 – in the area just outside of Java City. Snacks
and drinks will be available for purchase. Jackson County Public Library will hold its write-ins from 4 to 8
p.m. on three Wednesdays – Nov. 5, Nov. 12 and Nov. 19 – in the conference room. Coee and snacks
will be provided.
“People can write on their own if they want to, but also people like to get together and bounce ideas o
each other, or chat,” Steiner said. “We wanted to provide spaces and Wi-Fi for them to do that, and
snacks.”
In 2014, 325,142 writers participated in NaNoWriMo. Of those, 58,917 completed the goal of a 50,000-word draft of a novel in November.
For information on participating in this year’s event, contact Steiner at 828-227-3417. For more information on NaNoWriMo, visit nanowrimo.org.
By Marlon W. Morgan
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October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
ACHIEVEMENTS
Kossick shares three lectures at Kentucky conference
Mark A. Kossick, WCU professor of nursing and graduate anesthesia simulation education coordinator, presented three lectures on Saturday, Sept. 26,
at the 2015 Kentucky Association of Nurse Anesthetists Fall Meeting, held in Lexington. His lectures were titled “Diagnostic Criteria for Atrial Fibrillation
and Current Treatment Strategies,” “Diagnostic Criteria and Clinical Implications for Conduction Defects” and “Practice 12 Lead EKGs and EKG Rhythm
Strips.”
Tags: Mark Kossick
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October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
ACHIEVEMENTS
Lunnen, Comer complete management course
Karen Lunnen, department head and associate professor of physical therapy, and Linda Comer, executive associate director of the School of
Nursing, recently completed the 2015 Chairs and Academic Administrators Management Program.
The leadership and management course is designed specically for department chairs and academic administrators within colleges and schools of the
health professions, said Becky Zhang, media coordinator for CAAMP,
“Since its inception in 2009, nearly 350 administrators from programs in medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, nursing, allied health and other professions in and
out of health care have participated in CAAMP,” Zhang said.
The Academy for Academic Leadership hosts CAAMP each July and August in Atlanta, Georgia. To learn more about the program, visit
http://www.aalgroup.org/CAAMP.
Tags: Karen Lunnen, Linda Comer
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October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
Current members of the bluegrass-gospel band Mountain Faith are (from left)
Sam McMahan, Brayden McMahan, Summer McMahan, Cory Piatt and Luke
Dotson.
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
Mountain Faith band to appear at WCU on Nov. 5
Jackson County-based bluegrass-gospel band Mountain Faith will perform at Western Carolina University’s John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts
Center on Thursday, Nov. 5.
The concert, presented by WCU’s Last Minute Productions,
will begin at 7:30 p.m. General admission tickets are $2 for
students and $5 for the general public, or free with non-perishable
food donations (two food items per ticket for
students, five food items per ticket for the general public.)
Tickets can be purchased beginning at noon Wednesday, Oct. 28,
at the A.K. Hinds University Center’s guest services desk located
on the second oor. The show is limited to 900 people, and any
remaining tickets will be available at the door beginning at 5 p.m.
on Nov. 5.
Donated food will be delivered to the Community Table or
Jackson County United Christian Ministries to benet local
residents in need.
Mountain Faith, whose current album “That Which Matters”
debuted at No. 1 on Billboard Magazine’s bluegrass chart,
recently reached the seminals of NBC’s “America’s Got
Talent,” in which they performed live at Radio City Music Hall.
The band features family patriarch Sam McMahan on bass, his
daughter Summer McMahan on ddle and singing lead and
harmony vocals, and his son Brayden McMahan on banjo and
providing harmony vocals, along with Luke Dotson on guitar and
lead and harmony vocals, and Cory Piatt on mandolin.
The band’s debut album, 2011’s “Save Me,” won the Southern
Gospel Music Association’s New Artists of the Year Award. Last
month, Mountain Faith was named the 2015 group recipient of
WCU’s Mountain Heritage Award.
For more information, call A.K. Hinds University Center at
828-227-7206.
By Marlon W. Morgan
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October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
WCU anthropology professor Ted Coyle encourages students to immerse themselves in
regional culture.
TOP STORIES
Mountain Heritage Center, WCU faculty honored by North Carolina
Folklore Society
Western Carolina University faculty members and the Mountain Heritage Center received prestigious awards from the North Carolina
Folklore Society, while local residents with ties to WCU also garnered recognition.
The Folklore Society held its 102nd annual conference Friday, Oct. 9, and Saturday, Oct. 10, at WCU and the N.C. Center for the
Advancement of Teaching.
“We were really delighted to be at Western this year, and so impressed with the hospitality, the beautiful facilities and level of work being
done to preserve the traditional culture and folk life of the region,” said Elijah Gaddis, president of the Folklore Society. “There were 75 or
so people attending an absolutely great event.”
The Mountain Heritage Center received a Community Traditions Award for community engagement and commitment to research,
education and cultural celebration, especially its Mountain Heritage Day festival. The awards honor organizations and groups that
support folk life and traditional culture in North Carolina.
Since 1975, the Mountain Heritage Center has curated a collection of 10,000 artifacts of history, natural history and regional culture. The
center continues to produce and digitize audio and video recordings that document local culture.
WCU anthropology professor Ted Coyle and
Cherokee language program coordinator
Tom Belt received Brown-Hudson Folklore
Awards Coyle for oral history interviews
and ethnographic work and Belt for his
dedication to revitalizing the Cherokee
language through advocacy, teaching and
grassroots organization. The Folklore Society
has presented the Brown-Hudson Awards
for 45 years to individuals who contribute to
the appreciation, continuation or study of
North Carolina folk traditions.
Coyle was cited for fieldwork involving the
Blue Ridge Parkway and Great Smoky
Mountains National Park, and for
encouraging his students to immerse
themselves in regional culture and to
contribute to ethnographic and folkloric
efforts in the state.
Belt was cited for teaching the Cherokee language across the age spectrum and working to expand the vocabulary to include modern
words, such as “computer.” There are fewer than 300 speakers living who grew up with Cherokee as their first language. He meets
regularly with elders to learn nuances of the native tongue, believing that language is integral to group identity and carries essential
cultural perspective.
Belt also was the conference keynote
speaker, presenting “Language as a
Window into Culture” on the value of
maintaining and preserving historic
languages in a modern age, and how it
can strengthen identity and sense of
community.
In addition to Coyle and Belt, a Brown-
Hudson Award was presented to Bill
Crawford, co-founder of the Jackson
County Genealogical Society, for his work
as a folklore researcher and genealogist,
and for his documentation of cemetery
decoration traditions in Southern
Appalachia. Crawford said he believes
cemetery traditions celebrate the
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WCU Cherokee language program coordinator Tom Belt at Judaculla Rock, an ancient
petroglyph in Jackson County.
character and contributions of local
people. He served as the primary
consultant for “Decoration Day in the
Mountains,” a book published by UNC
Press in 2010 on regional practices.
Madison County fiddler Roger Howell
also received a Brown-Hudson Award for
his work preserving regional music
traditions, including a compilation of 532
fiddle tunes, folk stories and tributes to
master musicians, now housed at Mars
Hill University’s Southern Appalachian
Archives. A former Mountain Heritage
Day performer, he has played in
numerous bands, including the Carroll
Best String Band. He was a founding
member of the Carolina Old-Timers
String Band and recently performed with
the Bailey Mountain Ramblers.
Also receiving a Community Traditions
Award were a Qualla couple, George “Butch” Goings and Louise Taylor Goings, for their dedication to traditional Cherokee crafts. Both
have demonstrated their individual skills at the Mountain Heritage Day festival and are members of the Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual
artisan guild.
Louise Goings is part of a prestigious family of basket makers and regularly demonstrates basket-making at WCU. She is the daughter of
Emma Taylor and grew up making baskets. She also has demonstrated basket-making at the Festival of American Folklife at the
Smithsonian Institute and the Natural History Museum of the Smithsonian. Butch Goings has appeared at the North Carolina State Fair
and on the PBS series “The Woodwright’s Shop.”
More information on the Folklore Society, its membership and awards programs can be found at www.ncfolkloresociety.org.
By Geoff Cantrell
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Travis Bulluck, new director of the Advising Center, talks with freshmen Gabrielle McKoy
and Kwandera Sutton about the services available to students during the Re-calibrate
event in the Central Plaza.
TOP STORIES
New director of advising Bulluck finds friendly faces on campus
Having been on Western Carolina University’s campus less than two months, new director of advising Travis Bulluck is still getting
accustomed to being at a new school with new policies and new faces.
Bulluck’s biggest adjustment to Cullowhee, however, has been getting used to the informal relationships.
“Where I came from it was, ‘Dr. so-and-so,’
or ‘professor so-and-so,’ ” Bulluck said.
“Between the faculty and staff (at WCU),
everyone is just on a first-name basis.
Referring to the provost and chancellor by
first name is going to take a little bit of
getting used to for me. But it’s really nice
that everyone here is so friendly and it has
that small, hometown feel to it.”
Bulluck began his new position on Sept. 2,
after spending the last 12 years at East
Carolina University, where he most recently
served as the associate director of advising
for ECU’s College of Business. It was his
progression through the ranks at East
Carolina that helped groom him for the
move to WCU.
After graduating from the University of
North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a
bachelor’s degree in sociology, Bulluck knew
he wanted a career in education, with the
intention of becoming a middle school
counselor. But while studying for his master’s degree in counselor and adult education at East Carolina, Bullock worked with an academic
transition program that helped students who were on a conditional admission to East Carolina, which planted a seed. “That was my first
real taste of advising,” Bulluck said.
After graduating from East Carolina, Bulluck landed a counseling position at Tucker Creek Middle School in Havelock in 2003. But after a
year on the job, he quickly realized where his passion was. “It was a good position to experience because it also then made me miss
advising at the higher ed level,” Bulluck said.
It was at that time that East Carolina started the Academic Advising Collaborative, which was comprised of professional and faculty
advisers whose mission is to guide and help students by partnering with academic departments and support services, promoting diverse
educational experiences, and fostering professional success and responsible citizenship.
“It was a calling and it was drawing me back to (advising),” said Bulluck, who began as an academic adviser for the College of Business.
As he advanced to assistant director and then associate director, Bulluck was on the orientation committee and worked with students in
their first-year experience. He worked closely with the registrar’s office, as well as with community colleges and students who were
looking to transfer to East Carolina in helping them to make a seamless transition.
Those are all skills Bulluck now utilizes at WCU. In his short time on campus, he said he has been impressed with the advising center’s
level of communication. He hasn’t noticed any major areas in need of improvement, but he would like to implement a survey for students
to express what they feel the center does well and what they would like to see improved.
Despite being centrally located in the Killian Annex, Bulluck said he wants the advising center to have a bigger presence on campus.
“Advisers aren’t just a resource for attaining a PIN for registration,” he said. “We’re really there for connecting students with services on
campus, and working with the career center, and things like that. I just want to make sure we have a presence on campus and that faculty
and students come to us if they have questions or concerns.”
Bulluck said he is looking forward to attending his first WCU Homecoming game Saturday when the Catamounts host Samford at 3:30
p.m.
By Marlon W. Morgan
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October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
Kham Ward
TOP STORIES
New director Ward sees ICA as a place for all to gather
Growing up in a single-parent household in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Kham Ward was what many would consider a good kid. He was taught to always be
respectful and he excelled in school with a GPA a shade under 4.0.
As far as Ward was concerned, he lived in a perfect world. That was until an encounter he had one day while dropping a friend o in a very wealthy
neighborhood opened his eyes to the real world.
“That’s when I realized I was the color of my skin,” said Ward, who is African-American. “I was pulled over by the police and I had a rough interaction with
them. That made me realize who I was. Before
that, I never really had any encounters. I was a
great kid.”
It was that unfortunate experience that let Ward know he wanted a career in which he could help other African-Americans. And it was one that set him
on the path to becoming Western Carolina
University’s director of intercultural affairs
in June.
While attending the University of Florida, where he graduated in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in family, youth and community science, Ward and some
friends started a nonprot after-school program
called the Goonies Project for students in
Gainesville who struggled making passing grades.
“It allowed students to have some homework time, and then have a leadership opportunity through playing sports,” Ward said. “We wanted to teach
them how to be leaders without teaching them.
We did that for two years, fully unfunded.”
It was when he earned his master’s degree in minority and urban education at the University of Maryland in 2011 that Ward realized a passion for helping
all students who were underserved at universities.
“I got lit up and really passionate about underserved students,” he said. “That’s when I said, ‘Why can’t I make a career out of it?’ I had a graduate
assistantship in the multi-ethnic office and I fell in
love with it, and it became my true passion.”
After serving as an assistant director of campus life at Florida Atlantic University, Ward made the move to Cullowhee. His hire coincided with ICA’s move
to a new location in the A.K. Hinds University Center, a space that includes a display gallery that changes to coincide with each heritage that is currently
being celebrated. The gallery is created by
students.
The space also features televisions and an area just to hang out. Ward is spreading the word that the ICA oce is for all students, not just minority
students.
“Currently, we’re doing programs and supporting all groups that are cultural groups who want our support,” Ward said. “My mission and my vision for the
oce is to prepare students to thrive in a diverse
world.”
The oce also hosts various lunch-and-learn
sessions. At a recent one, MTV’s, “White People,”
was shown. It is a ground-breaking documentary that aims to answer the question, “What does it mean to be white?” from the viewpoint of young white
people.
“It’s about having direct conversations around topics that may cause students to be uncomfortable,” Ward said. “I totally believe in topics that make
people uncomfortable because when you’re uncomfortable is when you grow. We want to let students voice how they feel, and also provide them with
context to support their feeling.”
It took just a few short months for Ward to realize WCU is where he needs to be.
“I think the timing was perfect,” he said. “I think the way and the vision we’re going is perfect. It’s a perfect match.”
By Marlon W. Morgan
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October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
Katya Stanislavskaya
TOP STORIES
Niggli Series to kick off with readings of Stanislavskaya’s ‘Resident
Alien’
Western Carolina University’s School of Stage and Screen will launch its new Josefina Niggli New Works Reading Series with staged
readings of “Resident Alien” at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 31, and 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 1.
Both productions will be held in WCU’s Niggli Theatre. As staged readings,
the events will include actors reading and singing with scripts and scores in
hand, but without costumes or sets and with much of the dramatization left
to the audience’s imaginations.
“Resident Alien” is a new musical written by Katya Stanislavskaya, assistant
professor and director of WCU’s Musical Theatre Program. It is the fictional
story of a family of three who are part of the third wave of Soviet and post-
Soviet immigration to the U.S. in the 1990s.
The family – a professor stuck in the past, a musician willing to adapt and a
teenager whose culture shock coincides with her coming-of-age – represents
the full spectrum of the successes and failures of the immigrant experience,
said Jayme McGhan, director of the School of Stage and Screen. “ ‘Resident
Alien’ is about the personal choices every ‘alien’ faces in a new world – which
parts of himself or herself to retain, and which to jettison in order to
succeed,” McGhan said.
The readings of “Resident Alien” will be directed by Terrence Mann, a star of Broadway and WCU’s Phillips Distinguished Professor of
Musical Theatre. The performances will feature both student and faculty actors, including WCU first lady Susan Belcher.
Earlier this year, Stanislavskaya found out that “Resident Alien” had won the New Musical Award from the Weston Playhouse Theatre
Company in Weston, Vermont. She said she is thrilled to have an opportunity to hear her latest draft of her work performed on stage.
In most cases, it takes several years for a playwright to finish a musical, and part of the purpose of the staged reading is to identify needed
revisions, Stanislavskaya said. “Storytelling issues that may not be obvious on the page become obvious once the piece is seen and heard
in a workshop, and so the author gets an invaluable experience to propel the show forward,” she said.
Stanislavskaya will be wearing two hats for the readings – as author and musical director. She is teaching the music to the cast and will be
providing piano accompaniment at the productions while also working with her student participants to help them grow as musicians and
actors.
“I am especially excited to be working with my students and fellow faculty who are providing not only artistic support but emotional
support as well,” she said. “And we are incredibly lucky to have Broadway veteran Terrence Mann at the helm. With his vast experience
workshopping new musicals on the highest level, Terrence has been an invaluable part of this process.”
Both the Josefina Niggli Series and the theater in which they will be presented are named in honor of an accomplished playwright and
screenwriter who taught English, drama and poetry at WCU from 1956 to 1975. The series is designed to develop and showcase new plays
and musicals and will feature works by WCU faculty members and regional and national playwrights, McGhan said.
Admission to the Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 readings is free, but $5 donations are suggested that will go toward student scholarships.
For more information, contact the School of Stage and Screen at 828-227-7491.
By Randall Holcombe
Tags: Josefina Niggli
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October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
Nominations sought for Board of Governors Award
Nominations for the University of North Carolina Board of Governors Award for Excellence in Teaching are being accepted through 5
p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 20.
The award, presented annually to one faculty member on each UNC campus, was created in 1994 to encourage and recognize excellence
in teaching. Recipients must have been employed at WCU for at least seven years; must be tenured and teaching in the academic year
selected; cannot be a previous winner of the Board of Governors Award; and cannot be a winner of WCU’s Chancellor’s Distinguished
Teaching Award in the same year.
The electronic nomination form is available online.
For more information or to receive a copy of the complete award information, contact Laura Cruz, director of Coulter Faculty
Commons, at lcruz@wcu.edu or 828-227-2092.
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October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
Mark Stoan displays a digital le of a familiar WCU landmark,
the Alumni Tower, on a desktop at the 3DU in the Technology
Commons.
Plastic lament (made from eco-friendly
corn starch) feeds into the 3-D
printer from the top as the printer
nears completion on a model of the
Alumni Tower.
TOP STORIES
Open house set for 3DU ‘makerspace’ facility in Technology Commons
The Technology Commons at Western Carolina University’s Hunter Library is planning an open house to allow members of the campus community to
check out the 3-D printing capability and other current technology located in the recently opened digital “makerspace” facility known as 3DU: Discover,
Design, Develop.
The open house is set for 2 to 4 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 5, in the Technology
Commons, located on the ground floor of the library.
3-D printing, the process of making three-dimensional objects from a digital le,
already takes place in specialized classes such as engineering courses taught in
WCU’s Kimmel School of Construction Management and Technology. The opening
of the 3DU will allow 3-D printing to be oered to WCU students across all
colleges and departments, said Mark Stoan, head of digital, access and
technology services at the library.
In addition to 3-D printing, the 3DU also oers software for creating and editing
audio and video les and scanning stations for transferring physical content to
digital formats.
The primary goal of the 3DU project
is to enhance students’ digital
literacy and critical thinking skills, Stoan said. The library collaborated with WCU’s Division of Information
Technology to create the new lab in the Technology Commons space. “The partnership enhances stang
for the facility and allows students to draw upon the combined strengths of the library and the Technology
Commons. We anticipate that many faculty members will employ this new technology in their courses,” he
said.
The State Library of North Carolina awarded Hunter Library a Literacy and Lifelong Learning Grant of
$48,524 to create the lab. Funding was made available through the Library Services Technology Act and was
administered through the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the North Carolina Department of
Cultural Resources.
In conjunction with the opening of the 3DU, workshops will be oered in the near future by library and IT
staff on digital literacy and digital humanities topics.
Demonstrations of the new technology will be given during the Nov. 5 open house and light refreshments
will be served.
More information about the 3DU is available by visiting http://3DU.wcu.edu or by contacting Mark
Stoffan at mstoffan@wcu.edu or Sara Smith at sdsmith@wcu.edu.
— Contributed information
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Sara Smith shows off a model of the Alumni Tower printed earlier with green filament.
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October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
ACHIEVEMENTS
Play co-written by McGhan to premiere Nov. 23
“In the Soundless Awe,” a play co-written by WCU’s Jayme McGhan, associate professor and director of the School of Stage and Screen,
will open Monday, Nov. 23, at Access Theater, an off-Broadway venue in New York City.
The play portrays the struggles of real-life naval Capt. Charles B. McVay 22 years after the loss of his ship, the USS Indianapolis, and most
of his crew after a Japanese torpedo attack in World War II. McVay was the only Navy commander to be court-martialed after such a loss.
His life ended in suicide in 1968.
Though the events have been dramatized before, McGhan said he and co-writer Andy Pederson were compelled to take a different
approach. Pederson is an associate professor of English at Concordia University Chicago.
“Captain Charles McVay suffered from night terrors for decades after the sinking of the USS Indianapolis and his subsequent court-martial,”
he said. “As playwrights, we were drawn to what those particular nightmares would have looked like; specifically, the final
nightmare before he committed suicide. The ethereal nature of dreams naturally lends itself to theatricality on stage. We started
considering what floating aimlessly in the ocean for five days, hallucinations, dehydration, severe injury and ceaseless shark attacks would
do to the psyche, and how that survivor’s guilt might play out in dream form. ‘In the Soundless Awe’ ultimately came from a place of
historical curiosity and sympathy, and I think that’s evident in the play.”
McGhan and Pederson are currently collaborating on a fictional account of a meeting between W.B. Yeats and Oscar Wilde called “Yeats
Gonne Wilde.”
McGhan was named director of Stage and Screen in February.
Tags: Jayme McGhan
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October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
David Butcher
ACHIEVEMENTS
Professor presents pine tree research
David Butcher, analytical chemistry professor in WCU’s Department of Chemistry and Physics, presented research at SciX 2015 in Providence, Rhode
Island, on Tuesday, Sept. 29.
SciX, short for “the great scientic exchange,” is a national conference sponsored by the Federation of Analytical
Chemistry and Spectroscopy Societies.
The presented research, completed with May graduate in forensic science Alyssa Bailey, was titled
“Determination of Calcium, Magnesium, and Aluminum in Pine from the Southern
Appalachians.” It is part of a larger, continuing study of conifers in the region.
The presentation reported the determination of calcium, magnesium, and aluminum in pine foliage and
surrounding soil from Jackson County.
“Conifers have been aected by acidic deposition at various locations throughout the world,” the abstract for the
research explained. “Their proposed mechanism for conifer decline by acidic deposition involves decreased
availability of the essential minerals calcium and magnesium, accompanied by increased exposure to aluminum, a
toxic mineral.”
Butcher and Bailey also presented their research, “Incorporation of the Synthesis of Benzil into the
General Chemisty Curriculum” at SciX in 2014.
— Contributed information
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A sample of the proverbs that will be
featured.
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
Reporter to feature weekly proverb from Africa
In support of Western Carolina’s interdisciplinary learning theme for 2015-16 and 2016-17, “Africa! More Than a Continent,” The Reporter will publish
a graphic each week featuring a proverb with its beginnings in that continent’s cultures.
Contributed by Kofi Lomotey, Bardo Distinguished Professor in Educational Leadership, the proverbs
typify the wisdom and wit of many nations in Africa and each will be credited when possible to the
nation of its origin.
“In Africa, proverbs are pearls of wisdom interspersed in speech,” said Lomotey, a frequent visitor to
Africa. “They are used so regularly that they are often used unconsciously. They are considered critical
in making a winning argument; they encapsulate a point being made. In Africa, proverbs make arguments
more smooth, palatable and convincing. They reect the long experience of Africans – personied by
sages who composed them as a reection of their peoples’ wisdom – and are, accordingly, quite
persuasive. They represent a gift from the African ancestors reecting ancient and contemporary
wisdom.”
The proverb graphic is in the lower part of the right-hand column on the Reporter web pages. Clicking
on the graphic will take the viewer to a page on the WCU website describing the theme, part of the
ongoing Intentional Learning Plan created with the 2007 iteration of the Quality Enhancement Plan.
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October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
ACHIEVEMENTS
Riggs receives award from Cherokee National Historical Society
Brett H. Riggs, WCU’s Sequoyah Distinguished Professor of Cherokee Studies, traveled to Tulsa, Oklahoma, recently to receive an award from the
Cherokee National Historical Society.
Riggs was honored with the society’s Stalwart Award as a member of a three-person research team whose work resulted in the creation of Diligwa, a
living history exhibit at the Cherokee Heritage Center in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, that depicts Cherokee life in the early 1700s.
Riggs began his duties as WCU’s Sequoyah Professor in August after working as a research archaeologist based at the University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill for 14 years. He has collaborated with the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians on various projects since the early 1990s and was formerly
deputy tribal historical preservation officer for the Eastern Band.
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October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
Service Learning sponsors activities to benefit Samaritan’s Feet,
South Carolina flood victims
WCU’s Center for Service Learning organized two activities recently to benefit humanitarian causes.
The WHEE Walk walk-a-thon was held Oct. 19 to raise awareness about the international organization Samaritan’s Feet and the nearly 1.5
billion individuals around the world who lack safe footwear (top photo.)
During the week of Oct. 8-16, WCU students, faculty and staff joined with Cullowhee Valley Elementary School to collect nearly 200 cases
of water for flood victims in South Carolina. The water was delivered to the Columbia (S.C.) police, who were overseeing distribution
(bottom photo.)
Tags: WCU Service Learning
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Poster for ‘Shield and Spear’
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
‘Shield and Spear’ documentary about South African art to screen
Oct. 26
ddWestern Carolina University’s Arts and Cultural Events Series will host a screening of the documentary “Shield and Spear” at 7 p.m.
Monday, Oct. 26, in the theater of A.K. Hinds University Center.
Following the screening, a reception with filmmaker Petter Ringbom will give audience
members as opportunity to discuss the topic and ask questions about the movie.
Admission is free, though some language and situations may not be appropriate for children.
“Shield and Spear” explores stories about identity, art, race and freedom of expression in
South Africa, 20 years into democracy. One of the conflicts depicted is the aftermath of an
artist painting a caricature of South African president Jacob Zuma, which provoked a lawsuit,
death threats and a massive street protest.
The film showing is part of the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers. An
initiative created by South Arts, the tour showcases independent films across the South and
engages audiences in post-screening discussions. Learn more about the film at
www.shieldspear.com.
For more information about the screening, visit ace.wcu.edu or contact Francis Ann Ortiz-
Pineda at 828-227-2612.
By Keith Brenton
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Poster for ‘Alone in the Dark’
ACHIEVEMENTS
Sholder’s ‘Alone in the Dark’ to screen at NYC film series
Jack Sholder’s 1987 horror lm “Alone in the Dark” will be featured as a one-night-only selection in both “The Deuce” and “Halloween at
Nitehawk” film series at the Nitehawk Cinema in New York City.
“They tell me the show is sold out,” Sholder said. “I’ll be doing a Q&A after the screening via GoToMeeting.”
Sholder, professor and director of motion picture and television production at WCU, directed “Alone
in the Dark” when he was in his mid-20s. It featured Jack Palance, Donald Pleasance, Martin Landau
and Dwight Schultz.
Tags: Jack Sholder
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Zachary
Throckmorton
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
Speaker to share information on new proto-human discovery
Zachary Throckmorton, assistant professor of anatomy at Lincoln Memorial University, will share a presentation titled “Hello, Homo Naledi!” Wednesday,
Oct. 21, at 7 p.m. in a gathering room at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva.
The presentation about the extinct primate species Homo naledi, discovered in 2013, is sponsored by the Department of
Biology and the Department of Anthropology and Sociology at Western Carolina University.
Throckmorton, who is also Rising Star Associate at the University of Witwatersrand’s Evolutionary Studies Institute in South
Africa, is a researcher in homonin foot and ankle evolution with an interest in anatomical variation and evolution.
He spoke earlier on campus on the topic “Homo Naledi Strides Again: Deliberate Disposal of a Dated Dichotomy.”
For more information about the presentations, contact Peter Nieckarz at 227-3837 or Nicholas Passalacqua at 227-
2306.
By Keith Brenton
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From left, Joyce Carpenter, Tammy Allman and Dana Boyer have been keeping track while
the SECC thermometer inches upward. Carpenter is an administrative associate in the
Office of Development and Alumni Affairs, which oversees the campaign, while Allman is
campaign chair and Boyer is vice-chair.
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
State Employees Combined Campaign officials say ‘Thanks a
hundred million!’
The State Employees Combined Campaign recently topped $100 million in donations from all state employees since its inception in
1986. The campaign, which started at WCU on Wednesday, Sept. 23, is the only off-campus workplace campaign authorized for state
employees, enabling all state employees to support any of approximately 1,000 eligible charitable causes to offer help to those in need.
WCU community members can give to
their favorite charities through the annual
SECC through Friday, Nov. 6.
“The SECC brings together the giving
power of all state employees, and
together we can make a huge difference,”
said Tammy Allman, business officer for
the College of Arts and Sciences and
WCU’s 2015 SECC chair. “At a charity fair,
one particular nonprofit mentioned that
for each dollar they receive, they are able
to turn it into $17 worth of service. So, no
matter the amount, your donation will
help. If you have not yet returned your
pledge form or responded to the ePledge
email, please consider doing so. Every
donation – every dollar – will make a
difference for someone, or a pet, or the
environment – or wherever your passion
lies.”
The WCU community has donated over
$11,000 as of October 12 toward the
university’s goal of $35,000. Team
captains are encouraging faculty and staff
who have not yet returned pledge forms
to do so. Contributions by permanent
employees can be made by payroll
deduction, and all employees, retirees and students may contribute by check or cash. All contributions are tax deductible.
Employees who have not received SECC giving guides and pledge forms are encouraged to contact their Team captain.
“Thank you in advance for your consideration to the 2015 State Employees Combined Campaign. Your help is critical and greatly
appreciated,” Allman said.
For more information, WCU employees should visit ncsecc.org or contact their team captain or Allman at trallman@wcu.edu or 828-
227-3874.
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October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
The Steep Canyon Rangers will be coming to WCU on Monday, Oct. 19, to present a membership
drive concert for the university’s Friends of the Arts organization.
TOP STORIES
Steep Canyon Rangers bringing songs from top-selling album ‘Radio’ to campus
Western North Carolina’s own Steep Canyon Rangers will be performing songs from their new top-selling album “Radio” when they come to Western
Carolina University on Monday, Oct. 19, to present a membership drive concert for WCU’s Friends of the Arts.
The show will begin at 7:30 p.m. at the John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center.
The progressive bluegrass group’s most recent
collection was recorded in Asheville and released
Aug. 28. “Radio” debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s
chart of the nation’s top-selling bluegrass albums,
and was still in the top position in early October.
Also, the title track from the album hit No. 1 on
Bluegrass Today’s list of bluegrass songs getting
the most airplay across the nation.
With 12 all-original bluegrass/Americana
compositions, the new album “travels the dial
from top to bottom,” said the group’s banjo player,
Graham Sharp. “The album tunes into the rock
channel for a little while, then the blues, then
country, pop and, of course, bluegrass.”
Based in Asheville and Brevard, the Rangers
recently have been touring nationwide in support
of the new album. In addition to Sharp, band
members are Woody Platt, guitar; Charles
Humphrey, bass; Mike Guggino, mandolin; Nicky
Sanders, fiddle; and Mike Ashworth, percussion.
The Rangers started as a group of friends playing music for fun at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, but after a dozen years together their
performance credits include many national TV and radio programs. Two years ago, their album “Nobody Knows You” won the Grammy Award in the Best
Bluegrass Album category.
The Rangers’ rst album collaboration with banjo-picking actor/comedian Steve Martin, 2011’s “Rare Bird Alert,” won them Entertainers of the Year
recognition from the International Bluegrass Music Association and a nomination for a Grammy Award.
For the concert at WCU, new and renewing members of the WCU Friends of the Arts at the minimum $75 level and above will receive two or more free
tickets to the concert, depending on the level of membership. Remaining single tickets, if any, will go on sale for $35 at the Bardo Arts Center box oce
Monday, Oct. 12, at 9 a.m. To become a member and receive free tickets, contact the Friends of the Arts at 828-227-7028 or visit foa.wcu.edu.
The Friends of the Arts organization supports scholarships for students in WCU’s College of Fine and Performing Arts and arts programming that
serves the region through the university.
The concert is sponsored by Dale’s Pale Ale, SevenBar Aviation, Harris Regional Hospital and Swain Community Hospital, and celebrates the fth
anniversary of the Friends of the Arts.
By Randall Holcombe
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ACHIEVEMENTS
Student-teacher collaborations published in new math journal
Two research articles co-authored by Western Carolina University graduates and their instructors have been published in the inaugural issue of the
North Carolina Journal of Mathematics and Statistics.
“Constructing r-Uniform Hypergraphs with Restricted Clique Numbers” is co-authored by Mark Budden, associate professor and associate
department head in the Mathematics and Computer Science Department and Aaron Rapp, who graduated last spring with a master’s degree in applied
math.
“Statistical Analysis of Yeast Nutrient in Hard Cider Brewing” is co-authored by Jamie Leigh Rowell, who graduated last spring with a master’s
degree in applied math, and John Wagaman, associate professor in the Mathematics and Computer Science Department.
The journal is published by the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
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October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
WCU announces development, alumni relations leadership change
Jim Miller, associate vice chancellor for development and alumni relations at Western Carolina University, will be stepping down as director of the
university’s fund- and friend-raising unit effective Dec. 31.
Miller, who initially came to WCU to lead the university’s development oce in 2003, informed his sta on Monday, Oct. 5, that he would be resigning
from his position at the end of the calendar year in order to move closer to family members in the Raleigh area.
Miller said he has come to the conclusion that an upcoming comprehensive fundraising campaign currently in the early stages would require an additional
obligation of time that does not mesh with his and wife Tara’s personal plans to return to family.
“While the emerging comprehensive fundraising campaign represents a signicant professional and personal opportunity to help strengthen the future
of Western Carolina University, it also would require a six-plus year commitment to see it through,” he said. “That is a timeline Tara and I simply cannot
accommodate in light of our desire to assist Tara’s aging parents and be part of our grandchildren’s lives.”
A national search for the next leader of development and alumni relations will get underway as soon as possible. During the transition, WCU Chancellor
David O. Belcher has assigned temporary administrative oversight of the Office of Development and Alumni Affairs to Provost Alison Morrison-Shetlar.
“Jim Miller played a signicant role in the successful completion of one campaign at WCU and he will be leaving the university well-positioned for
success in the upcoming campaign, one that will focus on increasing the number of endowed scholarship holdings to help ensure access to higher
education for all capable students,” Belcher said.
Over the last two scal years, the university has increased its fundraising totals through the WCU Foundation by 29 percent and 25 percent, respectively,
and alumni participation rates have increased.
The university has added 126 endowed scholarships since Belcher’s installation address of March 2012, when he identied raising money for student
scholarships as WCU’s top philanthropic priority.
Miller came to WCU as associate vice chancellor for development in the spring of 2003. His career in professional fundraising began with United Way of
Wake County and United Way of North Carolina, followed by 13 years in institutional advancement positions at Duke University and the University of
North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
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TOP STORIES
WCU community encouraged to participate in Leadership Week activities Nov.
2-6
Registration is ongoing for WCU Leadership Week, a new campuswide initiative scheduled for Monday, Nov. 2, through Friday, Nov. 6.
With a theme “WCU in the World,” the ve days will be lled with a variety of activities designed to foster campus, regional, and global leadership
through professional development. WCU students, faculty, staff and administrators will have opportunities to:
Expand leadership vision through presentations by WCU faculty and staff.
Explore opportunities for collaborative leadership on campus and in the community.
Find ways to integrate a global perspective into teaching, practice or service leadership.
Discover more about personal leadership styles, strengths and potential through expert-guided workshops.
Gain insight from internationally recognized keynote speaker Hilary Corna, a former senior executive of Toyota Asia and author of “One White Face.”
Get inspired with a first-of-its-kind WCU Leadership Talks video series.
“The professional development opportunities, activities and events associated with WCU Leadership Week are intended to contribute to the ourishing
of a broad campus community, one that is grounded in a sense of place, but looking outward toward the region, the state and the world,” said Laura
Cruz, director of Coulter Faculty Commons.
More information is available at the event website, leadershipweek.wcu.edu. Attendance at some sessions will be limited and space is oered on a rst-come,
first-served basis. Participants are encouraged to register early for the most availability.
After registering, participants can begin the WCU Leadership Week by checking in at the Raleigh Room on the second oor of A.K. Hinds University
Center, where they will receive a “passport” and agenda for the week’s activities.
“We hope everyone will be encouraged to participate by their classroom instructors or supervisors. The passports are designed so that they can be used
to mark attendance,” Cruz said. Faculty and sta who participate may be eligible to include their time as part of WCU’s new professional development
certicate program, WCU Works, which will debut this spring. More information on the program will be announced soon by the Oce of Human
Resources and Payroll.
WCU Leadership Week is an extension and expansion of the highly successful WCU Leadership Day, held in May for the past four years. With WCU’s
increasing emphasis on professional development, the shift is timely, Cruz said.
Professional development is one of the ways that WCU communicates to its employees the importance that each person plays on the campus, said
Rusty Marts, director of employee relations, training and development. “This importance is reected in our strategic plan where it says to ‘Ensure
professional development opportunities for all employees,’ ” Marts said. “Leadership Week is, indeed, for all employees, regardless of whether you are a
formal leader or not. We are all leaders in some fashion or another.”
The theme “WCU in the World” also is a reection of the university’s strategic priorities, said Jennifer Schi, assistant professor in the Department of
Political Science and Public Aairs, and faculty fellow for global learning. “It’s so important for our students, faculty and sta to be exposed to a diversity
of global perspectives,” she said. “International events aect our experiences every day, whether we realize it or not. Leadership decisions made by
people across the globe aect the security and economic outlook of every American, and cultural practices from other places inform our own, so it’s
important to be aware of those processes and actively participate in them. By helping to bring the world to WCU, we can learn ways to enhance WCU’s
impact on the world, and that’s a very exciting possibility.”
WCU Leadership Week is sponsored by the Office of Human Resources and Payroll, Office of Campus Activities and Coulter Faculty
Commons.
– Contributed information
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The WCU cheerleaders lead the team onto the eld at E.J. Whitmire Stadium during the 2014
Homecoming football game.
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
WCU community to celebrate Homecoming 2015 with activities Oct. 21-25
“Purple on the Prowl!” will be the theme as the Western Carolina University community comes together to celebrate Homecoming 2015, with
major public events planned over a five-day period – Wednesday, Oct. 21, through Sunday, Oct. 25.
Events include comedy and country music shows featuring nationally known performers, a golf tournament, the traditional parade down Main Street
in Sylva, a performance by WCU’s Inspirational Choir, and a football game pitting the Catamounts against the Samford Bulldogs.
Scheduled for Oct. 21 is a Homecoming Comedy Show featuring Colin Jost, one of the stars of NBC’s iconic “Saturday Night Live.” Jost, who is
currently SNL’s “Weekend Update” host, will be joined by comedians Jose Barrientos, Chloe Hilliard and Kevin Yee. The show begins at 7:30 p.m. in
the John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center. Student tickets, free with a valid Cat Card, are available at the information desk of A.K. Hinds
University Center. General admission tickets are $10 and can be purchased at bardoartscenter.wcu.edu or 828-227-2479.
Activities set for Thursday, Oct. 22, include the “Last Lecture” delivered by Vicki Szabo, WCU associate professor of history, at 4 p.m. in the theater
of the University Center. The annual event honors a WCU faculty member who has been recognized by students for teaching with great passion and
enthusiasm. Szabo will address the topic “Scholars, Warriors, Cowards and Fools: Fear and Learning from Rome to Raleigh.”
A Homecoming concert featuring rising country
star Hunter Hayes will begin at 8 p.m. Oct. 22 at
Ramsey Regional Activity Center. Hayes is a
four-time Grammy nominee and was named
New Artist of the Year in 2012 by the Country
Music Association. Advance tickets are $20 for
WCU students and $25 for all others, and all
tickets are $25 on the day of the show. Tickets
are available at ramsey.wcu.edu or by calling 828-
227-7722.
Events on Friday, Oct. 23, begin with the annual
Alumni Scholarship Homecoming Golf
Tournament at 11 a.m. at Maggie Valley Golf
Club. The cost of $100 per person includes golf,
one mulligan and two rae tickets. RSVPs are
required by Friday, Oct. 16, to WCU’s Oce of
Alumni Aairs at 877-440-9990 or 828-227-7335,
or by emailing bbusby@wcu.edu.
Also on Oct. 23, WCU’s Homecoming Parade will
begin at 6:15 p.m. in downtown Sylva. University
alumni, students, faculty, sta and friends are invited to cheer as community and student oats, Catamount cheerleaders, the Homecoming Court
and the Pride of the Mountains Marching Band march and roll down Main Street.
Activities on Saturday, Oct. 24, will begin with the Chancellor’s Brunch and Alumni Awards Ceremony at 10 a.m. in the Grandroom of A.K. Hinds
University Center. Honorees are Teresa Williams, former chair of the WCU Board of Trustees, Distinguished Service Award; Keith Ramsey,
professor of medicine at East Carolina University’s Brody School of Medicine, Academic Achievement Award; Michell Hicks, former principal chief of
the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, Professional Achievement Award; and Brandon Robinson, an attorney in Durham, Young Alumnus Award. The
cost is $15 per person and business attire is requested. RSVP by Oct. 16 by calling the Office of Alumni Affairs or by emailing magill@wcu.edu.
Football tailgating will begin at noon Oct. 24, and Catamount fans will gather at E.J. Whitmire Stadium at 3:30 p.m. for the Homecoming game versus
Samford. Halftime activities will include recognition of the Homecoming award winners and court, plus an announcement of this year’s Homecoming
king and queen. Tickets to the game are available from the WCU athletics ticket office at 800-344-6928.
Postgame activities will include the African-American Alumni Reception at 6:30 p.m. in the Peele, Westmoreland Suhre, Hartshorn Hospitality Room
at the Ramsey Center. RSVP by Oct. 16 by calling the Office of Alumni Affairs or emailing magill@wcu.edu.
Homecoming 2015 activities will conclude Oct. 25 with the WCU women’s soccer team’s match versus Samford at 2 p.m. at the Catamount Athletic
Complex and a concert by WCU’s Inspirational Choir in the University Center Grandroom at 3 p.m.
For more information and a complete schedule of Homecoming events, check out the website homecoming.wcu.edu or contact WCU’s Alumni
Affairs office.
By Randall Holcombe
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October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
WCU mathematics professor Sloan Despeaux leads a session for attendees at a gathering of the
Smoky Mountain Math Teachers’ Circle last summer.
TOP STORIES
WCU Foundation receives North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation grant
to support math teachers across region, state
The Western Carolina University Foundation is the recipient of a $200,000 grant from the North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation that will be used
to support the Smoky Mountain Math Teachers’ Circle, a professional development organization for math teachers in Western North Carolina, and to
create a network of the organizations statewide.
Two faculty members from WCU’s Department of
Mathematics and Computer Science organized
the Smoky Mountain Math Teachers’ Circle in the
summer of 2014, inviting middle school math
teachers from Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood,
Jackson, Macon and Swain counties to join with
WCU professors for an ongoing dialogue about
math with colleagues and professional
mathematicians.
“It’s great to see these counties in the western
area of the state working with this important
math education program,” said North Carolina
GlaxoSmithKline Foundation board member Ran
Coble.
The grant will provide funding to sustain the
Smoky Mountain group for the next ve years and
to take the concept across North Carolina.
“The Smoky Mountain Math Teachers’ Circle has
proven a benecial resource for the region, with an impact beyond education and teacher-student interactions,” said Sloan Despeaux, the WCU
professor of mathematics who co-created and is leading the initiative along with her colleague, Nathan Borchelt, associate professor of mathematics.
Despeaux and Borchelt created the Smoky Mountain Math Teachers’ Circle using a model from the American Institute of Mathematics. In addition to
uniting the regional math education community in dialogue, the group engages middle and secondary teachers in problem-solving and provides support
enabling them to promote open-ended problem-solving as a way of learning, thinking about, and practicing math in their classrooms. Participants meet six
to seven times each school year, and also gather for a three-day summer immersion workshop.
In the fall of 2013, nearly 80 mathematics teachers, post-secondary educators and business leaders from the region attended the Western North Carolina
P-16 Education Consortium Conference in Cullowhee. “One of the outcomes of this conference was a strong desire to increase opportunities for
sustained partnerships between post-secondary faculty and in-service teachers within our region,” Borchelt said. “This is something that can certainly be
achieved through Math Teachers’ Circles.”
The North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation is an independent self-funding 501(c)3 nonprot organization supporting activities that help meet the
educational and health needs of today’s society and future generations. Since its creation in 1986, the foundation has granted $67.4 million to support
North Carolina projects and programs that emphasize the understanding and application of science, health and education at all academic and professional
levels. More information is available at NCGSKFoundation.org.
For more information about the Math Teachers’ Circle initiative at WCU, contact Despeaux at despeaux@wcu.edu or Borchelt at
naborchelt@wcu.edu. More information about the Math Teachers’ Circle concept is online at mathteacherscircle.org.
By Geoff Cantrell
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Steve Heatherly (left), CEO of for Harris Regional and Swain Community hospitals, and
David Belcher, chancellor of Western Carolina University, announce the expansion and
formalization of a partnership focused on ensuring access to quality health care in North
Carolina’s westernmost counties, an initiative called The Ascent Partnership.
TOP STORIES
WCU, Harris and Swain hospitals announce Ascent Partnership
Leaders of Western Carolina University and Harris Regional Hospital and Swain Community Hospital on Tuesday, Oct. 20, announced the
expansion and formalization of a partnership focused on ensuring access to quality health care in North Carolina’s westernmost counties.
Through the initiative, titled The Ascent Partnership, the organizations will work together to train the next generation of health care
workers, support athletics and the arts in communities in the region, create opportunities for community engagement on wellness, and
expand local availability of needed health care services.
As a pivotal part of the initiative, Harris Regional and Swain Community hospitals will cover the total educational costs for three students
to enroll in WCU’s family nurse practitioner program who have committed to working for one of the hospitals. One student will be
chosen to receive the award and begin the two-year program over each of the next three years.
“This award program will enable the students to graduate debt-free and will provide guaranteed employment upon degree completion,
which certainly will be important factors for the students,” said WCU Chancellor David Belcher. “But the real value of this program is the
impact it will have on our community. It will help meet a critical need for additional primary health care providers.”
Rural Western North Carolina faces a shortage of physicians, and family nurse practitioners are qualified, cost-effective primary care
providers who can help meet the increasing demand for high-quality health care in the region, Belcher said.
Steve Heatherly, chief executive officer for Harris Regional and Swain Community hospitals, both of which are part of Duke LifePoint
Healthcare, called The Ascent Partnership a formalization of the hospitals’ commitment to the community through a decades-long
collaboration with WCU to provide training to future health care professionals.
“The training and placement of highly skilled primary care providers is a critical element of enhancing the quality of life in our region.
However, full tuition support for nurse practitioner students is but one facet of The Ascent Partnership,” Heatherly said. “The partnership
also is focused on improving the health and well-being of the communities we collectively serve through collaboration and innovation.”
The hospitals and university created a sports medicine program about 15 years ago that serves WCU’s student-athletes, provides training
for physical therapists and sports medicine clinicians, and has placed athletic trainers in 10 high schools in the region to provide access to
a coordinated system of care for nearly 1,500 student-athletes and their families annually, he said.
Last fall saw the opening of a primary care clinic called Harris Family Care – Cullowhee inside the WCU Health and Human Sciences
Building. “The practice is available to serve our entire community, increasing access to high-quality care, and also serves as a site for
nurse practitioner students to train,” Heatherly said.
The Ascent Partnership also features a community education component with a regular speakers series highlighting experts from the
university and the local hospitals, and it will be the foundation for the hospitals’ ongoing support of the university’s Valley of the Lilies
Half Marathon and 5K, the Catamount athletics programs, and arts functions occurring on campus through WCU’s Friends of the Arts
organization.
Announcement of The Ascent
Partnership came during opening
remarks at LEAD:WNC, a one-day
summit that brought together
approximately 200 leaders from across
the region to design solutions to the
unique challenges faced by communities
in the westernmost part of the state.
Following the announcement, Heatherly
joined leaders from Duke LifePoint
Healthcare – Jeff Seraphine, president of
LifePoint Health’s Eastern Group, and Dr.
Harry Phillips, professor of medicine and
chief medical officer, network services,
for Duke University Health System – for
the morning keynote presentation on
“The State of Health Care and Its Effect
on the Quality of Life.”
David B. Fountain, Duke Energy’s state president for North Carolina, delivered the luncheon address, “Energizing Western North
Carolina’s Quality of Life.” The summit included a series of panel discussions on a variety of topics: creative arts; education, the
environment, health care, innovation and technology, and tourism.
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“We launched LEAD:WNC last year in the hope that it would lead to formal and informal partnerships that would help move the region
forward,” Belcher said. “The formalization of our partnership with Harris and Swain hospitals around community health is exactly the
kind of collaboration we had hoped to see come to life.”
By Bill Studenc
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TOP STORIES
Homecoming activities continue through Sunday
“Purple on the Prowl!” is the theme as the Western Carolina University community celebrates Homecoming 2015 with a full slate of activities through
Sunday, Oct. 25.
Events include comedy and country music shows featuring nationally known performers, a golf tournament, a performance by WCU’s Inspirational Choir,
and a football game pitting the Catamounts against the Samford Bulldogs.
Activities on Friday, Oct. 23, include the Homecoming Parade that will begin at 6:30 p.m. in downtown Sylva. University alumni, students, faculty, sta and
friends are invited to cheer as community and student oats, Catamount cheerleaders, the Homecoming Court and the Pride of the Mountains Marching
Band march and roll down Main Street.
For more information and a complete schedule of Homecoming events, check out the website homecoming.wcu.edu.
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October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
Regina Davis van der Eijk
NOTEWORTHY NEWS
WCU hosts Asheville Lyric Opera performance of opera ‘The Barber of Seville’
Western Carolina University will present “The Barber of Seville,” produced by the Asheville Lyric Opera, at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30, at the John W. Bardo
Fine and Performing Arts Center.
Sponsored by the WCU College of Fine
and Performing Arts, the two-act comic
opera will have a local connection on stage, by
way of the Netherlands. The lead soprano is
Regina Davis van der Eijk of Waddinxveen,
South Holland. A Jackson County native and
daughter of WCU alumni, she will be returning
“home” for the performance, singing as young
Rosina in the operatic masterpiece.
In addition to previous performances with the
Asheville Lyric Opera, she has performed in
“The Magic Flute” with Opera Theatre of the
Rockies, a solo appearance with the Wiericker
Opera in Holland, and performances with the
OpernWerkstatt in Switzerland.
From trickery and disguises to serenading in
the moonlight, “The Barber of Seville” is
known for its liveliness and comedy, as the
aections of Rosina are sought by her
guardian, Dr. Bartolo, and a Spanish nobleman, Count Almaviva. First performed in 1816, the operatic favorite was composed by Gioachino Rossini and
written by Cesare Sterbini.
Jon Truitt, artistic adviser of the Asheville Lyric Opera, will serve as the guest director, and Dan Allcott, maestro of the Bryan Symphony Orchestra, will be
conductor.
Tickets are on sale at $21 for adults, $7 student or child, and $16 WCU faculty and sta. More information is available at bardoartscenter.wcu.edu or
call the box office at 828-227-2479.
By Geoff Cantrell
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October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
James Scifers, in white shirt, runs with students and
faculty members from WCU’s athletic training program
on the Blue Ridge Parkway during a previous Mountain
Jug Run for Research.
TOP STORIES
Runners ready for Mountain Jug Run for Research this weekend
The eighth annual Mountain Jug Run for Research will go on this weekend as planned, while the future for this Western Carolina
University to Appalachian State University relay is pending.
A WCU group will run 175 miles of roads from Cullowhee to Boone 152 miles on the Blue Ridge Parkway on Saturday, Oct. 10, and
Sunday, Oct. 11, to raise money for research and student scholarships in sports medicine.
Taking part will be James Scifers, WCU athletic training program professor
and director, who originated the run in 2008 and is the principal organizer.
He is leaving WCU at the end of the semester to become director of the
School of Rehabilitation Sciences at Moravian College in Bethlehem,
Pennsylvania.
“I hope the event will continue as a legacy to the WCU athletic training
program’s commitment to the future of the profession,” Scifers said. “In the
past, other faculty have participated in the event. I am hopeful that one of
the current faculty or my replacement faculty member will carry on the
tradition of this outstanding event.”
The relay raises funds for the National Athletic Trainers’ Association’s
Research and Education Foundation, which awards research grants and
academic scholarships in the field of sports medicine. The course is run as a
continuous relay, with each of the runners completing five legs in 5-mile
increments, and with two or three runners on the road at any given time.
The relay already has outlasted the WCU-ASU football rivalry for which it
was named, known as “the Battle for the Old Mountain Jug.” The football
rivalry ended when ASU left the Southern Conference in 2013. The relay
always ended at whichever stadium was hosting the gridiron competition.
WCU students participating this weekend are graduate assistant Sarah
McNamara; juniors Michael Rabey, Greylin Cleary, Luke Miller, Danny Rivas,
Floyd Graber, Dalton Greer, Jason Shull and Jackson Roper; sophomores
April Duke, Erin Grimsley, Brennen Dorsch and Jack “Bryson” Bradley; and
freshman Adam Lytle.
In addition to providing a service-learning opportunity for athletic training
students about injury prevention, proper nutrition and hydration, as well as
environmental conditions in athletics, the relay demonstrates the value of philanthropy, Scifers said. Their goal this year is to raise more
than $3,000. The total for past fundraising is some $25,000.
Over the years, 120 individuals total have participated in the relay. Training includes gathering in the predawn for 10 weeks, with a long
run up to 13 miles on Sunday mornings.
“The record time for the relay is 27 hours, 8 minutes and 18 seconds,” Scifers said. “This year’s group of 16 is very fast and preliminary
times should place the group finishing the event in about 25.5 hours.”
A member of the WCU faculty since 2003, Scifers has frequently volunteered time and athletic training skills at sporting events on campus,
at local schools and in the community. In 2011, he helped write state legislation that established a mandatory concussion awareness
education program for public schools to protect young athletes from head injuries. He was recognized as the North Carolina Athletic
Trainers’ Association Educator of the Year for 2014.
Runners have been seeking pledges prior to the relay. Donations are encouraged, with checks made payable to NATA-REF and sent to Jill
Manners, WCU Health and Human Sciences Building, Office 362, 4121 Little Savannah Road, Cullowhee, N.C. 28723. All donations to the
foundation are tax-deductible.
By Geoff Cantrell
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October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share |
WCU junior Josh Vance leaves a footprint
commitment for Samaritan’s Feet outside
A.K. Hinds University Center.
TOP STORIES
Center for Service Learning to hold barefoot walk-a-thon
Western Carolina University will hold a walk-a-thon unlike most others on Monday, Oct. 19, beginning at 7:30 p.m. at the Catamount Athletic Complex
participants will go barefoot.
The event is to raise awareness for a campus collaboration with Samaritan’s Feet, a humanitarian
group dedicated to distributing shoes to impoverished communities around the world.
“There’s an old proverb that says to truly know someone, walk a mile in their shoes,” said Lane
Perry, director of the WCU Center for Service Learning and an event organizer. “But 1.5 billion
people around the world walk without decent shoes. This walk-a-thon will help us understand their
plight, as we raise awareness and support for our work with Samaritan’s Feet.”
The “Catamount Walkabout: Whee Will Walk You!” walk-a-thon starts immediately following the
Homecoming 2015 kick-o. The public is invited to join WCU students, faculty and sta in the
walk-a-thon, Perry said. A DJ will provide music, hot chocolate will be served, and learning stations
about Africa, the focus of WCU’s two-year interdisciplinary academic learning theme, will be set up
along the track.
“I enjoy the idea of mission work and community service,” said Josh Vance, a WCU junior from
Denver who plans to participate. “I have visited Africa, so I understand the inspiration for
Samaritan’s Feet and fell in love with the purpose of it.”
Other community eorts have continued the barefoot theme, in eorts to draw attention to and
raise money for Samaritan’s Feet to purchase and provide shoes. This week, student volunteers
manned a booth outside A.K. Hinds University Center, where each donors’ barefoot sole was painted
purple and imprinted on paper, with the imprint signed by the donor, as a demonstration of
commitment to the cause. Donors’ feet were then washed to remove the paint.
The partnership with Samaritan’s Feet is a campus project, with many opportunities for grassroots involvement of students, sta, faculty and the
greater community. To learn more, contact Perry at laneperry@wcu.edu or 828-227-2643.
By Geoff Cantrell
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Kham Ward (center, seated) and students make plans to attend an anniversary event
celebrating the Million Man March.
TOP STORIES
Students to rally for social justice at 20th anniversary of Million Man
March
When O’Shay Massey, a Western Carolina University senior from Milwaukee, learned of the opportunity to attend the 20th anniversary of
the Million Man March in Washington, D.C., she didn’t hesitate reserving a spot on the bus. It was an opportunity she couldn’t pass up.
“For me, in my four years here, Western has
never really done anything like this that I
know of, so I wanted to take the opportunity
to go out and actually participate in
something bigger than just Western,” said
Massey, a communication major with a
concentration in broadcasting.
Massey will be one of 50 WCU students who
will load a passenger bus headed for the
nation’s capital at 6 a.m. Friday, Oct. 9, and
return Sunday, Oct. 11. The trip is being
sponsored by the Department of
Intercultural Affairs.
Organizing the trip was one of the first
responsibilities Kham Ward was charged
with when he took over as director of
intercultural affairs in June. One of the things
Ward set out to do was get the students to
see beyond their current scope and their
current vision of what social justice is.
The original Million Man March in 1995 was a call by Nation of Islam honorable minister Louis Farrakhan for one million African-
American males to flood the National Mall in Washington to focus on the theme of “Atonement, Reconciliation and Responsibility.” This
time, Farrakhan is calling for a more diverse group featuring men and women of all races to rally around the theme of “Justice or Else.”
“We do a lot of talking about how we want to see change and justice,” said Kani Totten, a junior from Greensboro majoring in political
science. “Being a part of it and putting it in action really got me interested.”
After securing the bus and hotels, Ward’s next task was to fill up the bus.
“There’s over 10,000 students on this campus,” Ward said. “If I couldn’t get 50 students to care about social justice, then I needed to take a
real hard look at our impact on this campus.”
The cost of the trip for each student is $150. Right off the bat, some 15 to 20 students signed up, Ward said. But he knew there would be
some students who wanted to go but couldn’t afford it. So he turned to social media, offering three free spots for students if they followed
ICA on social media and explained why they should go for free and what experience they would bring back to WCU.
An unintended by-product was that campus departments and faculty and staff contacted Ward and told him to add an extra person, and
that they would pay for it. Ward ended up handing out six free spots. In just over three weeks, all 50 seats were secured.
“One department even started sponsoring different aspects of the trip,” Ward said. “I think that really shows your true Catamount spirit.
Not only are you saying this is a great idea, but you’re putting your own resources behind it to support students that couldn’t afford it
otherwise. I’m thankful for the departments and I’m very thankful to the individuals, faculty and staff who decided to pool their own
resources and help students go. I think that’s an awesome thing for us on this campus to show.”
WCU will be represented by a diverse group of men and women from various races and ethnic backgrounds. There will be representatives
from the Student Government Association, fraternity and sorority leaders, and various student club leaders. And it is a group eager to
play a role in doing its part to help bring justice to all.
“I think it’s a great time for (the rally) to help start the national conversation of solutions,” said junior SGA president Hank Henderson of
Marietta, Georgia. “Not just protesting and rallying, but finding solutions that help everyone across all diversities. I think it’s the perfect
time for it.”
Ward said his goal is to maximize the students’ experience. In addition to being a part of the masses at the National Mall, Ward plans to
allow students time to experience the culture and interact with their peers, as well as see the monuments and the White House.
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Ward also is hoping to connect with other North Carolina schools making the trip. Assisting him on the trip will be Kevin Koett, associate
vice chancellor for student affairs and dean of students; Adriel Hilton, Higher Education Student Affairs Program director; and Michelle
Cooper, clinical director with Counseling and Psychological Services.
“From what I understand, a lot of these students haven’t been to D.C., nor have they been outside of North Carolina,” Ward said. “This is
an awesome experience for them to open their eyes, get them new lenses and a new vision, a new way to look at life. I want this trip to be
like a launching pad, or start a fire within all of them, that they want to be on leadership teams and plan events.”
The fire is already lit under sophomore Adam Hampton, an accounting and business law major from Raleigh. Hampton said he is looking
forward to sharing his passion for current events and social justice topics not only with his WCU peers, but with others from across the
country.
“Obviously, going while we’re in college, we’re still really in the formative years in figuring out what our professional lives are going to be,”
Hampton said. “No matter what you’re going to go into, no matter what organization you become a part of, you’re going to have to
navigate diversity, whether it be differences in appearance or differing views of thought.”
Just as the originally Million Man March is being remembered and celebrated 20 years later, Massey is looking forward to taking her place
in history, which will allow her to share her experience.
“All the events that have happened lately, I feel like that’s going to go down in history like the Civil Rights Movement,” Massey said. “It’s
so major right now, and I want to be able to tell my grandchildren, ‘Yeah, I did the Million Man March at a time when police brutality and
racism were at a peak, and we had a black president, and this is how it was. That’s what I’m looking forward to getting out of it.”
By Marlon W. Morgan
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Zombie Run 5-K scheduled for Oct. 31 at WCU
The Western Carolina University Student Physical Therapy Association will host the second annual Zombie Run 5-K Chase Race at 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 31.
The event will begin at a site near the WCU softball stadium.
Each runner will receive ags to wear during the race that zombies along the course will try to steal. Runners who make it to the nish line with at least
one flag will be considered “Zombie Apocalypse Survivors.”
Registration is $20 before the race and $25 on race day. Those who register by Thursday, Oct. 15, are guaranteed a race T-shirt. Proceeds will be used to
support physical therapy services for the community and research in that field.
Packet pickup and race day registration will be held from 2 to 3:30 p.m. on Oct. 31.
Registration is available online by visiting active.com and searching for “Zombie Run 5K Chase Race.”
By Randall Holcombe
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| Title | The Reporter, October 2015 |
| Creator |
Western Carolina University |
| Medium of Original |
newsletters |
| Date of Original | 2015-10 |
| Dimensions | 11" x 8.5"; 55 pages |
| Description | The Reporter is a weekly publication produced by Western Carolina University featuring news, events, and campus community updates for faculty and staff. |
| Transcription | SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | NOTEWORTHY NEWS Advising Day, Oct. 27, opens registration for spring semester Advising Day on Tuesday, Oct. 27, will provide Western Carolina University students the opportunity to plan their next classes with representatives of the academic departments. It is the beginning of the official advising and registration period for the spring 2016 semester. No classes will be held that day. “Some departments have students schedule individual appointments with their faculty adviser throughout the day,” said Travis Bulluck, director of academic advising. “Some hold group advising sessions and others host informal social gatherings. “Students can meet with their primary adviser at any point during the advising and registration period to plan for next semester’s classes and to get their alt PIN that’s required for registration,” Bulluck said. “However, they are strongly encouraged to attend the activities their academic department may have scheduled on Advising Day.” Departmental events and instructions are posted on the Advising Day webpage (http://www.wcu.edu/academics/campus-academic-resources/ advising-center/advising-day.asp). By Keith Brenton CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | NOTEWORTHY NEWS Association of retired WCU faculty, staff to meet Oct. 13 The Western Carolina University Association of Retired Faculty and Staff will meet on campus in the Ramsey Regional Activity Center on Tuesday, Oct. 13. Speakers for the event will be Russ Townsend and Tyler Howe of the Cherokee Ambassadors. Townsend and Howe will discuss the history of Cullowhee Valley when it was part of the Cherokee Nation. Event registration begins on the concourse of the Ramsey Center at 10 a.m. and will be followed by a social at 10:30 a.m., a business meeting at 11:20 a.m., a Dutch treat luncheon at 11:30 a.m., and presentations from the speakers at noon. The association formed in 2013 when more than 125 retired WCU faculty and sta members and their spouses, partners and friends traveled from North Carolina, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia to participate in the rst meeting. Subsequent meetings have attracted about 100 attendees, and the October meeting will mark the group’s sixth gathering. “We want to encourage outreach to all WCU retired faculty and sta,” said Fred Hinson, past-president of the association and former senior associate vice chancellor for academic aairs. “Our goal is to serve the retired faculty and sta of the university, wherever they may be, and to build a sense of community.” Curtis Wood, current president and emeritus professor of history, said the association “has an important role in maintaining connections.” Membership is open to retired WCU faculty and staff and their spouses and partners. Annual association dues are $10 per person or couple. Registration for the October meeting is requested by Wednesday, Oct. 7, and the cost for the luncheon, gratuities and reception is $18 per person. For more information, contact Curtis Wood at 828-293-5377; Fred Hinson at 828-293-5620; or Gordon Mercer at 828-369-2693. CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | NOTEWORTHY NEWS Base Camp Cullowhee receives grant for Tuckaseigee River Cleanup Base Camp Cullowhee has received a $1,250 grant to assist with its annual efforts to clean up the Tuckaseigee River. BCC, Western Carolina University’s outdoor programming organization, was one of two recipients of the 2015 Clif Bar Flowing Rivers Campaign, which is awarded by American Whitewater. The grant will provide support to increase the volunteer base for BCC’s 32nd annual Tuck River Cleanup. The Tuck River Cleanup is the nation’s largest one-day river cleanup with about 1,000 volunteers removing 3- 5 tons of garbage from 27 miles of the Tuckaseigee River. Participation in the event has doubled in the last six years and continues to increase as interest in the river has grown thanks to the addition of many river access improvements due to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission relicensing agreement with Duke Energy. The cleanup with be April 16. For more information, call BCC at 828-227-8813 or email basecamp@wcu.edu. By Marlon W. Morgan Tags: Base Camp Cullowhee CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Kristin Calvert Andrea Moshier TOP STORIES Calvert, Moshier selected for new Women’s Leadership in Action Program Two Western Carolina University women – Kristin Calvert, head of content organization and management at Hunter Library, and Andrea Moshier, director of sponsored research in the Oce of Research Administration – are the rst individuals selected to participate in WCU’s new Women’s Leadership in Action Program. The program is an intensive, year-long experience in which Calvert and Moshier will develop and implement a personal leadership plan, work with a mentor to rene leadership skills, and attend an immersive professional development conference. The program is a joint eort between the university’s chief of sta, Melissa Canady Wargo, and provost, Alison Morrison-Shetlar, to encourage and prepare women faculty and sta to step into leadership roles. One faculty member and one sta member will be chosen to participate in the program annually. Calvert and Moshier were chosen for the program “from a highly competitive pool of well-qualied applicants,” Wargo said. Their activities during the coming year also will include developing a strong professional network through relationship building, making a presentation to campus on an aspect of women in leadership, and serving as program alumna in helping develop future programming or activities. Calvert earned her bachelor’s degree in political science at the University of California-Berkeley and her master’s degree in library and information science at the University of Rhode Island. She has been a librarian and member of the WCU faculty since March 2011. Calvert became head of her department at the library earlier this year. She said participation in the Women’s Leadership in Action Program will be an opportunity to challenge herself at a higher level. “My participation will push me to overcome some gaps in my skill set, to become more assertive and to build my self-condence as a mentor and a manager to future leaders,” she said. “Everything I gain from this program will allow me to reinvest the time and effort with my colleagues and the university community.” Moshier joined the WCU sta as a research compliance ocer in 2012 and has been in her current position on an interim or permanent basis since April 2013. She earned her bachelor’s degree in international relations at Syracuse University and her master’s degree in public administration at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. “My participation in the program will provide an opportunity for a more purposeful approach to leading my team to ensure that they are supported and professionally satised, and to the oce to ensure that the strategic direction aligns with institutional priorities,” Moshier said. “I am enthused by the opportunity for mentorship and to engage more intentionally with the strong women leaders on our campus. I feel that the relationships developed across campus in this program will provide a depth to my development unattainable elsewhere.” The Women’s Leadership in Action Program is one component of a new leadership development initiative designed for women at WCU. The second component, a general program of events, will be open to all women on campus, including students, faculty and sta. The schedule of events will be announced in the near future. More information about the initiative is available by contacting Wargo or Morrison-Shetlar. By Randall Holcombe CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Chancellor David O. Belcher NOTEWORTHY NEWS Campus conversations series resumes in November A series of campus conversations centered on four topics identied by Western Carolina University Chancellor David O. Belcher as areas of emphasis for the 2015-16 academic year will continue in November, including a session next week at the Biltmore Park instructional site. Belcher, in his Opening Assembly address to kick o the school year, described the quartet of issues – increasing diversity on campus, preparing for a comprehensive fundraising campaign to boost scholarship dollars, enhancing the total student experience, and supporting faculty and staff – as central to WCU’s future success. The series of discussions is designed to provide campus leaders with input, ideas and possible solutions from members of the university community on issues of diversity, scholarships, overall student experience and employee satisfaction. While the university has made substantial progress on many elements of its “2020 Vision” strategic plan over the past three years, a handful of issues have proven more challenging and have risen to the forefront as WCU attempts to manage changing enrollment and demographic trends, increasing costs in higher education, and growing competition for top students, said Melissa Wargo, chief of staff. Conversations are being held in three four-day sessions scattered throughout the academic year, with each of the four topics to be the subject of an afternoon discussion during each session. Each on-campus discussion is scheduled to run from 4-5:30 p.m. The rst sessions were held Sept. 21-24. Up next is a session from 3 until 5 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3, at Biltmore Park. That discussion that will cover all four topics. The second round of on-campus discussions will be held in the middle of November: Monday, Nov. 16, “Improve the Total Experience,” Blue Ridge Conference Room D; Tuesday, Nov. 17, “Invest in Our People,” Blue Ridge Conference Room A; Wednesday, Nov. 18, “Enhance Campus Diversity,” Blue Ridge Conference Room A; and Thursday, Nov. 19, “Support Scholarships,” Blue Ridge Conference Room A. The third session is set for late February and early March: Monday, Feb. 29, “Invest in Our People,” Blue Ridge Conference Room A; Tuesday, March 1, “Improve the Total Experience,” Blue Ridge Conference Rooms B and C; Wednesday, March 2, “Support Scholarships,” Blue Ridge Conference Room A; and Thursday, March 3, “Enhance Campus Diversity,” Blue Ridge Conference Room A. The campus conversations are open to all WCU faculty and sta. The total number of participants is limited to 40 at each session. Registrations are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. Organizers will add another block of sessions in the spring semester if needed. To register or for more information, visit the website collaborate.wcu.edu. By Bill Studenc CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Colin Jost NOTEWORTHY NEWS Comedy show to feature SNL ‘anchor’ tonight Comedian Jose Barrientos will host a comedy show as part of the Homecoming activities at Western Carolina University at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 21, at the John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center. Headlining the event will be Colin Jost, the new “anchor” for the “Weekend Update” segment of television’s weekly “Saturday Night Live.” Jost succeeds a host of famous comedic journalists narrating the headline-skewering routine, including former head writers Tina Fey and Seth Meyers. Chloe Hilliard, a journalist-turned-comedian, and songwriter-satirist Kevin Yee ll out the bill of performers for the event. Staten Island-born Jost was hired as an SNL writer at age 22 in 2005 and became co-anchor of “Weekend Update” in 2013, replacing Meyers in March of this year. As a stand-up comedian, he has appeared on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” and on programs aired by TBS and HBO. Jost claims inspiration from former sequence anchor Norm McDonald, whom he watched in the role while in high school. Brooklyn’s Hilliard grew up in a large Hasidic Jewish neighborhood and spent much of her early career writing about culture and entertainment for periodicals such as “The Village Voice,” “Essence” and “Vibe” – the last for which she also served as managing editor and social media manager. She made her national TV debut on NBC’s “Last Comic Standing” and has appeared on AXSTV’s “Gotham Comedy Live.” Yee describes himself as a “recovering Broadway chorus boy” with performing credits in “Mary Poppins,” a Toronto production of “Mama Mia,” Quincy Jones’ boy band Youth Asylum, and short lms like “Foreign Exchange” and “The Legend of the Black Dragon.” A native of Vancouver, the choreographer/songwriter has brought his satirical verses to the stage at a number of comedy festivals and productions, including Second City. Some comedic moments may not be appropriate for children. WCU students with ID will be admitted free, and general admission tickets for others are $10 and are available through the box oce link at bardoartscenter.wcu.edu. By Keith Brenton CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Jim Costa ACHIEVEMENTS Costa named GSU scholar, delivers lecture James Costa, biology professor and director of the Highlands Biological Station, delivered a lecture Monday, Sept. 28, at Georgia Southern University as part of the honor of being named GSU’s 25th Joseph LeConte Scholar. “Indefatigable Naturalists: Wallace and Darwin on the Evolutionary Trail” shared insights from Costa’s research specialty, the pursuit of evolution theory investigators Charles Darwin and the less known Alfred Russel Wallace. The LeConte Scholars Program is the oldest endowed visiting scholars program at Georgia Southern and is named for Joseph LeConte, a naturalist and scholar who was born and raised near where the University is now located. CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Kristen Crosson NOTEWORTHY NEWS Crosson named assistant vice chancellor for budgets, financial planning, analysis Kristen Crosson, formerly director of budgets and nancial planning at Western Carolina University, is now serving as assistant vice chancellor for budgets, financial planning and analysis. The change is part of a restructuring of the university’s Division of Administration and Finance announced by its vice chancellor, Mike Byers. The restructuring includes the elimination of an associate vice chancellor position earlier this year, and represents the rst step in the redistribution of duties to existing personnel within the division, Byers said. “Kristen has made a huge dierence at WCU, leveraging her experience at the North Carolina Oce of State Budget and Management and at the University of North Carolina General Administration,” he said. “As WCU continues to navigate the changing environment in higher education, Kristen’s expertise now will be used in greater ways in the area of analysis and nancial modeling.” Crosson joined the university sta in the spring of 2013 as no stranger to WCU. She had worked with WCU personnel for a decade through her service as assistant vice president of nance for UNC General Administration and through her work as a budget and capital analyst with the Office of State Budget and Management. “Since my arrival at WCU, I have been grateful to have the support of my chief nancial ocers, the phenomenal budget oce sta, the Division of Administration and Finance, and all of campus to assist us in achieving goals of the ‘2020 Vision’ Strategic Plan and mission of service,” Crosson said. “I greatly appreciate the formal and informal professional development opportunities that have enabled me to expand my professional and personal knowledge on many aspects of higher education administration.” She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s degree in public administration, both from North Carolina State University. She has lived in North Carolina since 1994 and is originally from Bechtelsville, Pennsylvania, in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. By Bill Studenc Tags: Kristen Crossen CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | NOTEWORTHY NEWS Cycling documentary ‘Rising from Ashes’ to be screened The documentary lm “Rising from Ashes,” the true story of the Rwandan National Cycling Team’s journey to compete in the London Olympic Games after national genocide, will be presented Wednesday, Nov. 4, at Western Carolina University. The screening will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Multipurpose Room of A.K. Hinds University Center. Admission is free, but donations of $5 per person are recommended. Proceeds will go to World Bicycle Relief, which provides bicycles throughout Africa. The event is sponsored by WCU’s Cycling Club and Criminal Justice Club in conjunction with the university’s interdisciplinary learning theme for 2015-17, “Africa! More Than a Continent.” For more information, contact Ophir Seha, assistant professor in WCU’s Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology, and faculty adviser for the cycling club, at 828-227-2176. By Randall Holcombe CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | ACHIEVEMENTS Energy efficiency article by WCU team to be published Several faculty members in the WCU Department of Engineering and Technology have co-written an article to be published in the January edition of the Encyclopedia of Energy Engineering and Technology by Taylor and Francis Group. Bora Karayaka, assistant professor; Martin Tanaka, assistant professor and graduate program director; and Aaron Ball, professor, teamed up with a recent Master of Science in Technology graduate from WCU, Lee T. Holland, to author “Power Systems: Thermal Load Characterization and Regulation.” The article details experiments designed to compare the performance of a traditional on-off thermostat controller with a device providing smoother temperature control in order to improve both comfort in enclosed spaces and the use of electrical energy from the utility. By Keith Brenton CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | NOTEWORTHY NEWS ‘English on the Ides’ discussion series continues Sunday The “English on the Ides” discussion series sponsored by Western Carolina University’s Department of English and City Lights Bookstore in Sylva will continue Sunday, Oct. 11, with a talk presented by Laura Wright, associate professor and head of the department. Wright is the author of a new book, “The Vegan Studies Project.” She said her presentation, titled “Veganism and the Rhetoric of Terror: How 9/11 Shaped the Way We Eat,” will include a discussion about how the book came about. “I will focus in particular on the way that, as I wrote the book, I realized that the only reason I could conceive of something called ‘vegan studies’ was, sadly, because of 9/11,” she said. All events in the “English on the Ides” series are held at 1 p.m. Sundays at the bookstore. The series will conclude Oct. 25 with English professor Annette Debo presenting “Poets are Lyric Historians: The Necessary Past for African-American Poets.” For more information about the series, contact Paul Worley at pmworley@wcu.edu or the bookstore at more@citylightsnc.com. By Randall Holcombe CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | NOTEWORTHY NEWS Entrepreneurship video series now available online A series of videos featuring presentations given by outstanding regional entrepreneurs at the ongoing Successful Entrepreneurship colloquium can be viewed online. The free 11-week program, designed to educate and inspire local entrepreneurs, is offered through a partnership between Western Carolina University’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation and Serrus Capital Partners of Greenville, South Carolina. Class attendance was limited to 75 when the series began Saturday, Aug. 25, but the video recordings make the presentations available conveniently to a wider audience. Speakers whose presentations have been made available include Dale Freudenberger, Sharon Day, Leighton Cubbage, Tom Finger, Justin Belleme, Laura Bratton, Oscar Wong, Phil Drake, Steve Mudge, Sutton Bacon, Ken Hughes and Curtis Harper. More videos will be added to the playlist after the Nov. 3, 10 and 17 classes. By Keith Brenton CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | ACHIEVEMENTS Forensic science researchers share findings at conference Several faculty members and colleagues in WCU’s College of Arts and Sciences made research presentations at the International Symposium on Human Identification, held Oct. 12-15. Kelly Grisedale presented “Use of Massively Parallel Sequencing (MPS) to Assist with Deconvolution of STR Mixture Proles.” Jessica Barnes, Brittania Bintz and Mark Wilson assisted with the research. Maureen Hickman also presented “Amplication of Whole Mitochondrial Genome from Challenging Samples via Multiplex PCR Assay.” Erin Burnside, Bintz, Grisedale and Wilson, along with a representative from Petraco Consulting and three others from the University of Central Florida, contributed to the research. Bintz presented “Assessment of Low-Level Error in Massively Parallel Sequencing (MPS) Data Sets Generated Using the Illumina Miseq Platform and Synthesized Human Mitochondrial DNA Oligonucleotides.” Wilson and Timothy Driscoll of West Virginia University assisted with the research. Barnes is a graduate student in WCU’s biology program; Bintz is a research scientist and academic adviser in the Forensic Science Program; Burnside is the research protections ocer in the Oce of Research Administration; Grisedale is an assistant professor in the Forensic Science Program; Hickman is a forensic research scientist in the Forensic Science Program; and Wilson was recently an associate professor and director of the Forensic Science Program. Tags: Brittania Bintz, College of Arts and Sciences, Erin Burnside, Kelly Grisedale, Maureen Hickman CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | NOTEWORTHY NEWS Global Spotlight Series features ‘A Changing Cuba’ Wednesday, Oct. 28 Western Carolina University’s International Studies Program will continue its Global Spotlight Series on Wednesday, Oct. 28, when it presents “A Changing Cuba.” The event will be held from 4:30 to 6 p.m. in the multipurpose room of the A.K. Hinds University Center. The Global Spotlight Series is a group of interdisciplinary panel discussions that cover a wide variety of major international events. Alexander Macaulay, associate professor of history, will speak on “Rebels in Cuba: American Reactions to Cuban Revolutions.” Panelists include Lori Oxford, associate professor of Spanish; WCU Cuban culture course student Laura Powell; and special guest Juan Nicolas Padron, a renowned poet and essayist and professor of literature and history. Padron is known for his work at Casa de las Americas, widely considered to be one of the most important cultural institutions in Latin America. For more information, call Garrett Fisher at 929-227-3906. By Marlon W. Morgan CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Vicki Szabo TOP STORIES History department’s Szabo to deliver ‘Last Lecture’ on Thursday Vicki Szabo, Western Carolina University associate professor of history, will speak on the topic “Scholars, Warriors, Cowards and Fools: Fear and Learning from Rome to Raleigh” as she presents the university’s annual “Last Lecture” on Thursday, Oct. 22. Szabo’s presentation will begin at 4 p.m. in the theater of A.K. Hinds University Center. The event, part of Homecoming activities, honors a WCU faculty member who has been recognized by students for teaching with great passion and enthusiasm. The annual “Last Lecture” allows faculty members to share words they would present if it was the final lecture they had a chance to give. Szabo said her talk will focus on the importance of ancient history and the humanities in today’s North Carolina. “Using several examples of stories from my ancient and medieval history classes, I’ll address how and why an education based in liberal studies is essential to any career, but also essential to the success and livelihood of our state,” she said. “In a time when a university education is seen as a commodity, and a path to a job, we can’t forget that the humanities are the core of education and the core of citizenship, and ancient history stands at the heart of the humanities. My lecture, I hope, will entertain, but also underscore the important job our students have in using their educations, and the lessons of history, to make North Carolina better.” Szabo earned her doctoral degree in medieval studies at Cornell University. She has been a member of the WCU faculty since 2001. The “Last Lecture” series is sponsored by Coulter Faculty Commons and is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Laura Cruz, director of Coulter Faculty Commons, at lcruz@wcu.edu or 828-227-7196. By Randall Holcombe CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | (Image courtesy of National Novel Writing Month) TOP STORIES Hunter Library joins forces with county library to help celebrate National Novel Writing Month Western Carolina University’s Hunter Library and the Jackson County Public Library are partnering to celebrate November’s National Novel Writing Month. National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo as it is called, is an international event that began in 1999 to help inspire people to use their imaginations and create a novel. Sarah Steiner, head of research and instruction services at Hunter Library, has been looking to partner with the Jackson County Public Library since coming to WCU in 2014. “I’ve been trying to nd a good way,” she said. “My husband said, ‘I’m going to do NaNoWriMo,’ and I said, ‘That’s the best idea. We should get with the public library.’ They were really excited about it.” On Tuesday, Oct. 27, a Kicko Plotting Party will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. at Jackson County Public Library’s community room for writers to plot out their novel, share ideas and learn. Snacks and drinks will be provided. Each library will host three write-ins for writers to come together. The Hunter Library write-ins will be 4 to 9 p.m. on three Tuesdays – Nov. 3, Nov. 10 and Nov. 17 – in the area just outside of Java City. Snacks and drinks will be available for purchase. Jackson County Public Library will hold its write-ins from 4 to 8 p.m. on three Wednesdays – Nov. 5, Nov. 12 and Nov. 19 – in the conference room. Coee and snacks will be provided. “People can write on their own if they want to, but also people like to get together and bounce ideas o each other, or chat,” Steiner said. “We wanted to provide spaces and Wi-Fi for them to do that, and snacks.” In 2014, 325,142 writers participated in NaNoWriMo. Of those, 58,917 completed the goal of a 50,000-word draft of a novel in November. For information on participating in this year’s event, contact Steiner at 828-227-3417. For more information on NaNoWriMo, visit nanowrimo.org. By Marlon W. Morgan CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | ACHIEVEMENTS Kossick shares three lectures at Kentucky conference Mark A. Kossick, WCU professor of nursing and graduate anesthesia simulation education coordinator, presented three lectures on Saturday, Sept. 26, at the 2015 Kentucky Association of Nurse Anesthetists Fall Meeting, held in Lexington. His lectures were titled “Diagnostic Criteria for Atrial Fibrillation and Current Treatment Strategies,” “Diagnostic Criteria and Clinical Implications for Conduction Defects” and “Practice 12 Lead EKGs and EKG Rhythm Strips.” Tags: Mark Kossick CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | ACHIEVEMENTS Lunnen, Comer complete management course Karen Lunnen, department head and associate professor of physical therapy, and Linda Comer, executive associate director of the School of Nursing, recently completed the 2015 Chairs and Academic Administrators Management Program. The leadership and management course is designed specically for department chairs and academic administrators within colleges and schools of the health professions, said Becky Zhang, media coordinator for CAAMP, “Since its inception in 2009, nearly 350 administrators from programs in medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, nursing, allied health and other professions in and out of health care have participated in CAAMP,” Zhang said. The Academy for Academic Leadership hosts CAAMP each July and August in Atlanta, Georgia. To learn more about the program, visit http://www.aalgroup.org/CAAMP. Tags: Karen Lunnen, Linda Comer CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Current members of the bluegrass-gospel band Mountain Faith are (from left) Sam McMahan, Brayden McMahan, Summer McMahan, Cory Piatt and Luke Dotson. NOTEWORTHY NEWS Mountain Faith band to appear at WCU on Nov. 5 Jackson County-based bluegrass-gospel band Mountain Faith will perform at Western Carolina University’s John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center on Thursday, Nov. 5. The concert, presented by WCU’s Last Minute Productions, will begin at 7:30 p.m. General admission tickets are $2 for students and $5 for the general public, or free with non-perishable food donations (two food items per ticket for students, five food items per ticket for the general public.) Tickets can be purchased beginning at noon Wednesday, Oct. 28, at the A.K. Hinds University Center’s guest services desk located on the second oor. The show is limited to 900 people, and any remaining tickets will be available at the door beginning at 5 p.m. on Nov. 5. Donated food will be delivered to the Community Table or Jackson County United Christian Ministries to benet local residents in need. Mountain Faith, whose current album “That Which Matters” debuted at No. 1 on Billboard Magazine’s bluegrass chart, recently reached the seminals of NBC’s “America’s Got Talent,” in which they performed live at Radio City Music Hall. The band features family patriarch Sam McMahan on bass, his daughter Summer McMahan on ddle and singing lead and harmony vocals, and his son Brayden McMahan on banjo and providing harmony vocals, along with Luke Dotson on guitar and lead and harmony vocals, and Cory Piatt on mandolin. The band’s debut album, 2011’s “Save Me,” won the Southern Gospel Music Association’s New Artists of the Year Award. Last month, Mountain Faith was named the 2015 group recipient of WCU’s Mountain Heritage Award. For more information, call A.K. Hinds University Center at 828-227-7206. By Marlon W. Morgan CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | WCU anthropology professor Ted Coyle encourages students to immerse themselves in regional culture. TOP STORIES Mountain Heritage Center, WCU faculty honored by North Carolina Folklore Society Western Carolina University faculty members and the Mountain Heritage Center received prestigious awards from the North Carolina Folklore Society, while local residents with ties to WCU also garnered recognition. The Folklore Society held its 102nd annual conference Friday, Oct. 9, and Saturday, Oct. 10, at WCU and the N.C. Center for the Advancement of Teaching. “We were really delighted to be at Western this year, and so impressed with the hospitality, the beautiful facilities and level of work being done to preserve the traditional culture and folk life of the region,” said Elijah Gaddis, president of the Folklore Society. “There were 75 or so people attending an absolutely great event.” The Mountain Heritage Center received a Community Traditions Award for community engagement and commitment to research, education and cultural celebration, especially its Mountain Heritage Day festival. The awards honor organizations and groups that support folk life and traditional culture in North Carolina. Since 1975, the Mountain Heritage Center has curated a collection of 10,000 artifacts of history, natural history and regional culture. The center continues to produce and digitize audio and video recordings that document local culture. WCU anthropology professor Ted Coyle and Cherokee language program coordinator Tom Belt received Brown-Hudson Folklore Awards Coyle for oral history interviews and ethnographic work and Belt for his dedication to revitalizing the Cherokee language through advocacy, teaching and grassroots organization. The Folklore Society has presented the Brown-Hudson Awards for 45 years to individuals who contribute to the appreciation, continuation or study of North Carolina folk traditions. Coyle was cited for fieldwork involving the Blue Ridge Parkway and Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and for encouraging his students to immerse themselves in regional culture and to contribute to ethnographic and folkloric efforts in the state. Belt was cited for teaching the Cherokee language across the age spectrum and working to expand the vocabulary to include modern words, such as “computer.” There are fewer than 300 speakers living who grew up with Cherokee as their first language. He meets regularly with elders to learn nuances of the native tongue, believing that language is integral to group identity and carries essential cultural perspective. Belt also was the conference keynote speaker, presenting “Language as a Window into Culture” on the value of maintaining and preserving historic languages in a modern age, and how it can strengthen identity and sense of community. In addition to Coyle and Belt, a Brown- Hudson Award was presented to Bill Crawford, co-founder of the Jackson County Genealogical Society, for his work as a folklore researcher and genealogist, and for his documentation of cemetery decoration traditions in Southern Appalachia. Crawford said he believes cemetery traditions celebrate the CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT WCU Cherokee language program coordinator Tom Belt at Judaculla Rock, an ancient petroglyph in Jackson County. character and contributions of local people. He served as the primary consultant for “Decoration Day in the Mountains,” a book published by UNC Press in 2010 on regional practices. Madison County fiddler Roger Howell also received a Brown-Hudson Award for his work preserving regional music traditions, including a compilation of 532 fiddle tunes, folk stories and tributes to master musicians, now housed at Mars Hill University’s Southern Appalachian Archives. A former Mountain Heritage Day performer, he has played in numerous bands, including the Carroll Best String Band. He was a founding member of the Carolina Old-Timers String Band and recently performed with the Bailey Mountain Ramblers. Also receiving a Community Traditions Award were a Qualla couple, George “Butch” Goings and Louise Taylor Goings, for their dedication to traditional Cherokee crafts. Both have demonstrated their individual skills at the Mountain Heritage Day festival and are members of the Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual artisan guild. Louise Goings is part of a prestigious family of basket makers and regularly demonstrates basket-making at WCU. She is the daughter of Emma Taylor and grew up making baskets. She also has demonstrated basket-making at the Festival of American Folklife at the Smithsonian Institute and the Natural History Museum of the Smithsonian. Butch Goings has appeared at the North Carolina State Fair and on the PBS series “The Woodwright’s Shop.” More information on the Folklore Society, its membership and awards programs can be found at www.ncfolkloresociety.org. By Geoff Cantrell © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Travis Bulluck, new director of the Advising Center, talks with freshmen Gabrielle McKoy and Kwandera Sutton about the services available to students during the Re-calibrate event in the Central Plaza. TOP STORIES New director of advising Bulluck finds friendly faces on campus Having been on Western Carolina University’s campus less than two months, new director of advising Travis Bulluck is still getting accustomed to being at a new school with new policies and new faces. Bulluck’s biggest adjustment to Cullowhee, however, has been getting used to the informal relationships. “Where I came from it was, ‘Dr. so-and-so,’ or ‘professor so-and-so,’ ” Bulluck said. “Between the faculty and staff (at WCU), everyone is just on a first-name basis. Referring to the provost and chancellor by first name is going to take a little bit of getting used to for me. But it’s really nice that everyone here is so friendly and it has that small, hometown feel to it.” Bulluck began his new position on Sept. 2, after spending the last 12 years at East Carolina University, where he most recently served as the associate director of advising for ECU’s College of Business. It was his progression through the ranks at East Carolina that helped groom him for the move to WCU. After graduating from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a bachelor’s degree in sociology, Bulluck knew he wanted a career in education, with the intention of becoming a middle school counselor. But while studying for his master’s degree in counselor and adult education at East Carolina, Bullock worked with an academic transition program that helped students who were on a conditional admission to East Carolina, which planted a seed. “That was my first real taste of advising,” Bulluck said. After graduating from East Carolina, Bulluck landed a counseling position at Tucker Creek Middle School in Havelock in 2003. But after a year on the job, he quickly realized where his passion was. “It was a good position to experience because it also then made me miss advising at the higher ed level,” Bulluck said. It was at that time that East Carolina started the Academic Advising Collaborative, which was comprised of professional and faculty advisers whose mission is to guide and help students by partnering with academic departments and support services, promoting diverse educational experiences, and fostering professional success and responsible citizenship. “It was a calling and it was drawing me back to (advising),” said Bulluck, who began as an academic adviser for the College of Business. As he advanced to assistant director and then associate director, Bulluck was on the orientation committee and worked with students in their first-year experience. He worked closely with the registrar’s office, as well as with community colleges and students who were looking to transfer to East Carolina in helping them to make a seamless transition. Those are all skills Bulluck now utilizes at WCU. In his short time on campus, he said he has been impressed with the advising center’s level of communication. He hasn’t noticed any major areas in need of improvement, but he would like to implement a survey for students to express what they feel the center does well and what they would like to see improved. Despite being centrally located in the Killian Annex, Bulluck said he wants the advising center to have a bigger presence on campus. “Advisers aren’t just a resource for attaining a PIN for registration,” he said. “We’re really there for connecting students with services on campus, and working with the career center, and things like that. I just want to make sure we have a presence on campus and that faculty and students come to us if they have questions or concerns.” Bulluck said he is looking forward to attending his first WCU Homecoming game Saturday when the Catamounts host Samford at 3:30 p.m. By Marlon W. Morgan CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Kham Ward TOP STORIES New director Ward sees ICA as a place for all to gather Growing up in a single-parent household in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Kham Ward was what many would consider a good kid. He was taught to always be respectful and he excelled in school with a GPA a shade under 4.0. As far as Ward was concerned, he lived in a perfect world. That was until an encounter he had one day while dropping a friend o in a very wealthy neighborhood opened his eyes to the real world. “That’s when I realized I was the color of my skin,” said Ward, who is African-American. “I was pulled over by the police and I had a rough interaction with them. That made me realize who I was. Before that, I never really had any encounters. I was a great kid.” It was that unfortunate experience that let Ward know he wanted a career in which he could help other African-Americans. And it was one that set him on the path to becoming Western Carolina University’s director of intercultural affairs in June. While attending the University of Florida, where he graduated in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in family, youth and community science, Ward and some friends started a nonprot after-school program called the Goonies Project for students in Gainesville who struggled making passing grades. “It allowed students to have some homework time, and then have a leadership opportunity through playing sports,” Ward said. “We wanted to teach them how to be leaders without teaching them. We did that for two years, fully unfunded.” It was when he earned his master’s degree in minority and urban education at the University of Maryland in 2011 that Ward realized a passion for helping all students who were underserved at universities. “I got lit up and really passionate about underserved students,” he said. “That’s when I said, ‘Why can’t I make a career out of it?’ I had a graduate assistantship in the multi-ethnic office and I fell in love with it, and it became my true passion.” After serving as an assistant director of campus life at Florida Atlantic University, Ward made the move to Cullowhee. His hire coincided with ICA’s move to a new location in the A.K. Hinds University Center, a space that includes a display gallery that changes to coincide with each heritage that is currently being celebrated. The gallery is created by students. The space also features televisions and an area just to hang out. Ward is spreading the word that the ICA oce is for all students, not just minority students. “Currently, we’re doing programs and supporting all groups that are cultural groups who want our support,” Ward said. “My mission and my vision for the oce is to prepare students to thrive in a diverse world.” The oce also hosts various lunch-and-learn sessions. At a recent one, MTV’s, “White People,” was shown. It is a ground-breaking documentary that aims to answer the question, “What does it mean to be white?” from the viewpoint of young white people. “It’s about having direct conversations around topics that may cause students to be uncomfortable,” Ward said. “I totally believe in topics that make people uncomfortable because when you’re uncomfortable is when you grow. We want to let students voice how they feel, and also provide them with context to support their feeling.” It took just a few short months for Ward to realize WCU is where he needs to be. “I think the timing was perfect,” he said. “I think the way and the vision we’re going is perfect. It’s a perfect match.” By Marlon W. Morgan CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Katya Stanislavskaya TOP STORIES Niggli Series to kick off with readings of Stanislavskaya’s ‘Resident Alien’ Western Carolina University’s School of Stage and Screen will launch its new Josefina Niggli New Works Reading Series with staged readings of “Resident Alien” at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 31, and 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 1. Both productions will be held in WCU’s Niggli Theatre. As staged readings, the events will include actors reading and singing with scripts and scores in hand, but without costumes or sets and with much of the dramatization left to the audience’s imaginations. “Resident Alien” is a new musical written by Katya Stanislavskaya, assistant professor and director of WCU’s Musical Theatre Program. It is the fictional story of a family of three who are part of the third wave of Soviet and post- Soviet immigration to the U.S. in the 1990s. The family – a professor stuck in the past, a musician willing to adapt and a teenager whose culture shock coincides with her coming-of-age – represents the full spectrum of the successes and failures of the immigrant experience, said Jayme McGhan, director of the School of Stage and Screen. “ ‘Resident Alien’ is about the personal choices every ‘alien’ faces in a new world – which parts of himself or herself to retain, and which to jettison in order to succeed,” McGhan said. The readings of “Resident Alien” will be directed by Terrence Mann, a star of Broadway and WCU’s Phillips Distinguished Professor of Musical Theatre. The performances will feature both student and faculty actors, including WCU first lady Susan Belcher. Earlier this year, Stanislavskaya found out that “Resident Alien” had won the New Musical Award from the Weston Playhouse Theatre Company in Weston, Vermont. She said she is thrilled to have an opportunity to hear her latest draft of her work performed on stage. In most cases, it takes several years for a playwright to finish a musical, and part of the purpose of the staged reading is to identify needed revisions, Stanislavskaya said. “Storytelling issues that may not be obvious on the page become obvious once the piece is seen and heard in a workshop, and so the author gets an invaluable experience to propel the show forward,” she said. Stanislavskaya will be wearing two hats for the readings – as author and musical director. She is teaching the music to the cast and will be providing piano accompaniment at the productions while also working with her student participants to help them grow as musicians and actors. “I am especially excited to be working with my students and fellow faculty who are providing not only artistic support but emotional support as well,” she said. “And we are incredibly lucky to have Broadway veteran Terrence Mann at the helm. With his vast experience workshopping new musicals on the highest level, Terrence has been an invaluable part of this process.” Both the Josefina Niggli Series and the theater in which they will be presented are named in honor of an accomplished playwright and screenwriter who taught English, drama and poetry at WCU from 1956 to 1975. The series is designed to develop and showcase new plays and musicals and will feature works by WCU faculty members and regional and national playwrights, McGhan said. Admission to the Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 readings is free, but $5 donations are suggested that will go toward student scholarships. For more information, contact the School of Stage and Screen at 828-227-7491. By Randall Holcombe Tags: Josefina Niggli CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | NOTEWORTHY NEWS Nominations sought for Board of Governors Award Nominations for the University of North Carolina Board of Governors Award for Excellence in Teaching are being accepted through 5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 20. The award, presented annually to one faculty member on each UNC campus, was created in 1994 to encourage and recognize excellence in teaching. Recipients must have been employed at WCU for at least seven years; must be tenured and teaching in the academic year selected; cannot be a previous winner of the Board of Governors Award; and cannot be a winner of WCU’s Chancellor’s Distinguished Teaching Award in the same year. The electronic nomination form is available online. For more information or to receive a copy of the complete award information, contact Laura Cruz, director of Coulter Faculty Commons, at lcruz@wcu.edu or 828-227-2092. CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Mark Stoan displays a digital le of a familiar WCU landmark, the Alumni Tower, on a desktop at the 3DU in the Technology Commons. Plastic lament (made from eco-friendly corn starch) feeds into the 3-D printer from the top as the printer nears completion on a model of the Alumni Tower. TOP STORIES Open house set for 3DU ‘makerspace’ facility in Technology Commons The Technology Commons at Western Carolina University’s Hunter Library is planning an open house to allow members of the campus community to check out the 3-D printing capability and other current technology located in the recently opened digital “makerspace” facility known as 3DU: Discover, Design, Develop. The open house is set for 2 to 4 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 5, in the Technology Commons, located on the ground floor of the library. 3-D printing, the process of making three-dimensional objects from a digital le, already takes place in specialized classes such as engineering courses taught in WCU’s Kimmel School of Construction Management and Technology. The opening of the 3DU will allow 3-D printing to be oered to WCU students across all colleges and departments, said Mark Stoan, head of digital, access and technology services at the library. In addition to 3-D printing, the 3DU also oers software for creating and editing audio and video les and scanning stations for transferring physical content to digital formats. The primary goal of the 3DU project is to enhance students’ digital literacy and critical thinking skills, Stoan said. The library collaborated with WCU’s Division of Information Technology to create the new lab in the Technology Commons space. “The partnership enhances stang for the facility and allows students to draw upon the combined strengths of the library and the Technology Commons. We anticipate that many faculty members will employ this new technology in their courses,” he said. The State Library of North Carolina awarded Hunter Library a Literacy and Lifelong Learning Grant of $48,524 to create the lab. Funding was made available through the Library Services Technology Act and was administered through the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources. In conjunction with the opening of the 3DU, workshops will be oered in the near future by library and IT staff on digital literacy and digital humanities topics. Demonstrations of the new technology will be given during the Nov. 5 open house and light refreshments will be served. More information about the 3DU is available by visiting http://3DU.wcu.edu or by contacting Mark Stoffan at mstoffan@wcu.edu or Sara Smith at sdsmith@wcu.edu. — Contributed information CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT Sara Smith shows off a model of the Alumni Tower printed earlier with green filament. © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | ACHIEVEMENTS Play co-written by McGhan to premiere Nov. 23 “In the Soundless Awe,” a play co-written by WCU’s Jayme McGhan, associate professor and director of the School of Stage and Screen, will open Monday, Nov. 23, at Access Theater, an off-Broadway venue in New York City. The play portrays the struggles of real-life naval Capt. Charles B. McVay 22 years after the loss of his ship, the USS Indianapolis, and most of his crew after a Japanese torpedo attack in World War II. McVay was the only Navy commander to be court-martialed after such a loss. His life ended in suicide in 1968. Though the events have been dramatized before, McGhan said he and co-writer Andy Pederson were compelled to take a different approach. Pederson is an associate professor of English at Concordia University Chicago. “Captain Charles McVay suffered from night terrors for decades after the sinking of the USS Indianapolis and his subsequent court-martial,” he said. “As playwrights, we were drawn to what those particular nightmares would have looked like; specifically, the final nightmare before he committed suicide. The ethereal nature of dreams naturally lends itself to theatricality on stage. We started considering what floating aimlessly in the ocean for five days, hallucinations, dehydration, severe injury and ceaseless shark attacks would do to the psyche, and how that survivor’s guilt might play out in dream form. ‘In the Soundless Awe’ ultimately came from a place of historical curiosity and sympathy, and I think that’s evident in the play.” McGhan and Pederson are currently collaborating on a fictional account of a meeting between W.B. Yeats and Oscar Wilde called “Yeats Gonne Wilde.” McGhan was named director of Stage and Screen in February. Tags: Jayme McGhan CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | David Butcher ACHIEVEMENTS Professor presents pine tree research David Butcher, analytical chemistry professor in WCU’s Department of Chemistry and Physics, presented research at SciX 2015 in Providence, Rhode Island, on Tuesday, Sept. 29. SciX, short for “the great scientic exchange,” is a national conference sponsored by the Federation of Analytical Chemistry and Spectroscopy Societies. The presented research, completed with May graduate in forensic science Alyssa Bailey, was titled “Determination of Calcium, Magnesium, and Aluminum in Pine from the Southern Appalachians.” It is part of a larger, continuing study of conifers in the region. The presentation reported the determination of calcium, magnesium, and aluminum in pine foliage and surrounding soil from Jackson County. “Conifers have been aected by acidic deposition at various locations throughout the world,” the abstract for the research explained. “Their proposed mechanism for conifer decline by acidic deposition involves decreased availability of the essential minerals calcium and magnesium, accompanied by increased exposure to aluminum, a toxic mineral.” Butcher and Bailey also presented their research, “Incorporation of the Synthesis of Benzil into the General Chemisty Curriculum” at SciX in 2014. — Contributed information Tags: David Butcher CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | A sample of the proverbs that will be featured. NOTEWORTHY NEWS Reporter to feature weekly proverb from Africa In support of Western Carolina’s interdisciplinary learning theme for 2015-16 and 2016-17, “Africa! More Than a Continent,” The Reporter will publish a graphic each week featuring a proverb with its beginnings in that continent’s cultures. Contributed by Kofi Lomotey, Bardo Distinguished Professor in Educational Leadership, the proverbs typify the wisdom and wit of many nations in Africa and each will be credited when possible to the nation of its origin. “In Africa, proverbs are pearls of wisdom interspersed in speech,” said Lomotey, a frequent visitor to Africa. “They are used so regularly that they are often used unconsciously. They are considered critical in making a winning argument; they encapsulate a point being made. In Africa, proverbs make arguments more smooth, palatable and convincing. They reect the long experience of Africans – personied by sages who composed them as a reection of their peoples’ wisdom – and are, accordingly, quite persuasive. They represent a gift from the African ancestors reecting ancient and contemporary wisdom.” The proverb graphic is in the lower part of the right-hand column on the Reporter web pages. Clicking on the graphic will take the viewer to a page on the WCU website describing the theme, part of the ongoing Intentional Learning Plan created with the 2007 iteration of the Quality Enhancement Plan. CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | ACHIEVEMENTS Riggs receives award from Cherokee National Historical Society Brett H. Riggs, WCU’s Sequoyah Distinguished Professor of Cherokee Studies, traveled to Tulsa, Oklahoma, recently to receive an award from the Cherokee National Historical Society. Riggs was honored with the society’s Stalwart Award as a member of a three-person research team whose work resulted in the creation of Diligwa, a living history exhibit at the Cherokee Heritage Center in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, that depicts Cherokee life in the early 1700s. Riggs began his duties as WCU’s Sequoyah Professor in August after working as a research archaeologist based at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for 14 years. He has collaborated with the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians on various projects since the early 1990s and was formerly deputy tribal historical preservation officer for the Eastern Band. CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | NOTEWORTHY NEWS Service Learning sponsors activities to benefit Samaritan’s Feet, South Carolina flood victims WCU’s Center for Service Learning organized two activities recently to benefit humanitarian causes. The WHEE Walk walk-a-thon was held Oct. 19 to raise awareness about the international organization Samaritan’s Feet and the nearly 1.5 billion individuals around the world who lack safe footwear (top photo.) During the week of Oct. 8-16, WCU students, faculty and staff joined with Cullowhee Valley Elementary School to collect nearly 200 cases of water for flood victims in South Carolina. The water was delivered to the Columbia (S.C.) police, who were overseeing distribution (bottom photo.) Tags: WCU Service Learning CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Poster for ‘Shield and Spear’ NOTEWORTHY NEWS ‘Shield and Spear’ documentary about South African art to screen Oct. 26 ddWestern Carolina University’s Arts and Cultural Events Series will host a screening of the documentary “Shield and Spear” at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 26, in the theater of A.K. Hinds University Center. Following the screening, a reception with filmmaker Petter Ringbom will give audience members as opportunity to discuss the topic and ask questions about the movie. Admission is free, though some language and situations may not be appropriate for children. “Shield and Spear” explores stories about identity, art, race and freedom of expression in South Africa, 20 years into democracy. One of the conflicts depicted is the aftermath of an artist painting a caricature of South African president Jacob Zuma, which provoked a lawsuit, death threats and a massive street protest. The film showing is part of the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers. An initiative created by South Arts, the tour showcases independent films across the South and engages audiences in post-screening discussions. Learn more about the film at www.shieldspear.com. For more information about the screening, visit ace.wcu.edu or contact Francis Ann Ortiz- Pineda at 828-227-2612. By Keith Brenton CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Poster for ‘Alone in the Dark’ ACHIEVEMENTS Sholder’s ‘Alone in the Dark’ to screen at NYC film series Jack Sholder’s 1987 horror lm “Alone in the Dark” will be featured as a one-night-only selection in both “The Deuce” and “Halloween at Nitehawk” film series at the Nitehawk Cinema in New York City. “They tell me the show is sold out,” Sholder said. “I’ll be doing a Q&A after the screening via GoToMeeting.” Sholder, professor and director of motion picture and television production at WCU, directed “Alone in the Dark” when he was in his mid-20s. It featured Jack Palance, Donald Pleasance, Martin Landau and Dwight Schultz. Tags: Jack Sholder CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Zachary Throckmorton NOTEWORTHY NEWS Speaker to share information on new proto-human discovery Zachary Throckmorton, assistant professor of anatomy at Lincoln Memorial University, will share a presentation titled “Hello, Homo Naledi!” Wednesday, Oct. 21, at 7 p.m. in a gathering room at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva. The presentation about the extinct primate species Homo naledi, discovered in 2013, is sponsored by the Department of Biology and the Department of Anthropology and Sociology at Western Carolina University. Throckmorton, who is also Rising Star Associate at the University of Witwatersrand’s Evolutionary Studies Institute in South Africa, is a researcher in homonin foot and ankle evolution with an interest in anatomical variation and evolution. He spoke earlier on campus on the topic “Homo Naledi Strides Again: Deliberate Disposal of a Dated Dichotomy.” For more information about the presentations, contact Peter Nieckarz at 227-3837 or Nicholas Passalacqua at 227- 2306. By Keith Brenton CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | From left, Joyce Carpenter, Tammy Allman and Dana Boyer have been keeping track while the SECC thermometer inches upward. Carpenter is an administrative associate in the Office of Development and Alumni Affairs, which oversees the campaign, while Allman is campaign chair and Boyer is vice-chair. NOTEWORTHY NEWS State Employees Combined Campaign officials say ‘Thanks a hundred million!’ The State Employees Combined Campaign recently topped $100 million in donations from all state employees since its inception in 1986. The campaign, which started at WCU on Wednesday, Sept. 23, is the only off-campus workplace campaign authorized for state employees, enabling all state employees to support any of approximately 1,000 eligible charitable causes to offer help to those in need. WCU community members can give to their favorite charities through the annual SECC through Friday, Nov. 6. “The SECC brings together the giving power of all state employees, and together we can make a huge difference,” said Tammy Allman, business officer for the College of Arts and Sciences and WCU’s 2015 SECC chair. “At a charity fair, one particular nonprofit mentioned that for each dollar they receive, they are able to turn it into $17 worth of service. So, no matter the amount, your donation will help. If you have not yet returned your pledge form or responded to the ePledge email, please consider doing so. Every donation – every dollar – will make a difference for someone, or a pet, or the environment – or wherever your passion lies.” The WCU community has donated over $11,000 as of October 12 toward the university’s goal of $35,000. Team captains are encouraging faculty and staff who have not yet returned pledge forms to do so. Contributions by permanent employees can be made by payroll deduction, and all employees, retirees and students may contribute by check or cash. All contributions are tax deductible. Employees who have not received SECC giving guides and pledge forms are encouraged to contact their Team captain. “Thank you in advance for your consideration to the 2015 State Employees Combined Campaign. Your help is critical and greatly appreciated,” Allman said. For more information, WCU employees should visit ncsecc.org or contact their team captain or Allman at trallman@wcu.edu or 828- 227-3874. CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | The Steep Canyon Rangers will be coming to WCU on Monday, Oct. 19, to present a membership drive concert for the university’s Friends of the Arts organization. TOP STORIES Steep Canyon Rangers bringing songs from top-selling album ‘Radio’ to campus Western North Carolina’s own Steep Canyon Rangers will be performing songs from their new top-selling album “Radio” when they come to Western Carolina University on Monday, Oct. 19, to present a membership drive concert for WCU’s Friends of the Arts. The show will begin at 7:30 p.m. at the John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center. The progressive bluegrass group’s most recent collection was recorded in Asheville and released Aug. 28. “Radio” debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s chart of the nation’s top-selling bluegrass albums, and was still in the top position in early October. Also, the title track from the album hit No. 1 on Bluegrass Today’s list of bluegrass songs getting the most airplay across the nation. With 12 all-original bluegrass/Americana compositions, the new album “travels the dial from top to bottom,” said the group’s banjo player, Graham Sharp. “The album tunes into the rock channel for a little while, then the blues, then country, pop and, of course, bluegrass.” Based in Asheville and Brevard, the Rangers recently have been touring nationwide in support of the new album. In addition to Sharp, band members are Woody Platt, guitar; Charles Humphrey, bass; Mike Guggino, mandolin; Nicky Sanders, fiddle; and Mike Ashworth, percussion. The Rangers started as a group of friends playing music for fun at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, but after a dozen years together their performance credits include many national TV and radio programs. Two years ago, their album “Nobody Knows You” won the Grammy Award in the Best Bluegrass Album category. The Rangers’ rst album collaboration with banjo-picking actor/comedian Steve Martin, 2011’s “Rare Bird Alert,” won them Entertainers of the Year recognition from the International Bluegrass Music Association and a nomination for a Grammy Award. For the concert at WCU, new and renewing members of the WCU Friends of the Arts at the minimum $75 level and above will receive two or more free tickets to the concert, depending on the level of membership. Remaining single tickets, if any, will go on sale for $35 at the Bardo Arts Center box oce Monday, Oct. 12, at 9 a.m. To become a member and receive free tickets, contact the Friends of the Arts at 828-227-7028 or visit foa.wcu.edu. The Friends of the Arts organization supports scholarships for students in WCU’s College of Fine and Performing Arts and arts programming that serves the region through the university. The concert is sponsored by Dale’s Pale Ale, SevenBar Aviation, Harris Regional Hospital and Swain Community Hospital, and celebrates the fth anniversary of the Friends of the Arts. By Randall Holcombe CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | ACHIEVEMENTS Student-teacher collaborations published in new math journal Two research articles co-authored by Western Carolina University graduates and their instructors have been published in the inaugural issue of the North Carolina Journal of Mathematics and Statistics. “Constructing r-Uniform Hypergraphs with Restricted Clique Numbers” is co-authored by Mark Budden, associate professor and associate department head in the Mathematics and Computer Science Department and Aaron Rapp, who graduated last spring with a master’s degree in applied math. “Statistical Analysis of Yeast Nutrient in Hard Cider Brewing” is co-authored by Jamie Leigh Rowell, who graduated last spring with a master’s degree in applied math, and John Wagaman, associate professor in the Mathematics and Computer Science Department. The journal is published by the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | NOTEWORTHY NEWS WCU announces development, alumni relations leadership change Jim Miller, associate vice chancellor for development and alumni relations at Western Carolina University, will be stepping down as director of the university’s fund- and friend-raising unit effective Dec. 31. Miller, who initially came to WCU to lead the university’s development oce in 2003, informed his sta on Monday, Oct. 5, that he would be resigning from his position at the end of the calendar year in order to move closer to family members in the Raleigh area. Miller said he has come to the conclusion that an upcoming comprehensive fundraising campaign currently in the early stages would require an additional obligation of time that does not mesh with his and wife Tara’s personal plans to return to family. “While the emerging comprehensive fundraising campaign represents a signicant professional and personal opportunity to help strengthen the future of Western Carolina University, it also would require a six-plus year commitment to see it through,” he said. “That is a timeline Tara and I simply cannot accommodate in light of our desire to assist Tara’s aging parents and be part of our grandchildren’s lives.” A national search for the next leader of development and alumni relations will get underway as soon as possible. During the transition, WCU Chancellor David O. Belcher has assigned temporary administrative oversight of the Office of Development and Alumni Affairs to Provost Alison Morrison-Shetlar. “Jim Miller played a signicant role in the successful completion of one campaign at WCU and he will be leaving the university well-positioned for success in the upcoming campaign, one that will focus on increasing the number of endowed scholarship holdings to help ensure access to higher education for all capable students,” Belcher said. Over the last two scal years, the university has increased its fundraising totals through the WCU Foundation by 29 percent and 25 percent, respectively, and alumni participation rates have increased. The university has added 126 endowed scholarships since Belcher’s installation address of March 2012, when he identied raising money for student scholarships as WCU’s top philanthropic priority. Miller came to WCU as associate vice chancellor for development in the spring of 2003. His career in professional fundraising began with United Way of Wake County and United Way of North Carolina, followed by 13 years in institutional advancement positions at Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | TOP STORIES WCU community encouraged to participate in Leadership Week activities Nov. 2-6 Registration is ongoing for WCU Leadership Week, a new campuswide initiative scheduled for Monday, Nov. 2, through Friday, Nov. 6. With a theme “WCU in the World,” the ve days will be lled with a variety of activities designed to foster campus, regional, and global leadership through professional development. WCU students, faculty, staff and administrators will have opportunities to: Expand leadership vision through presentations by WCU faculty and staff. Explore opportunities for collaborative leadership on campus and in the community. Find ways to integrate a global perspective into teaching, practice or service leadership. Discover more about personal leadership styles, strengths and potential through expert-guided workshops. Gain insight from internationally recognized keynote speaker Hilary Corna, a former senior executive of Toyota Asia and author of “One White Face.” Get inspired with a first-of-its-kind WCU Leadership Talks video series. “The professional development opportunities, activities and events associated with WCU Leadership Week are intended to contribute to the ourishing of a broad campus community, one that is grounded in a sense of place, but looking outward toward the region, the state and the world,” said Laura Cruz, director of Coulter Faculty Commons. More information is available at the event website, leadershipweek.wcu.edu. Attendance at some sessions will be limited and space is oered on a rst-come, first-served basis. Participants are encouraged to register early for the most availability. After registering, participants can begin the WCU Leadership Week by checking in at the Raleigh Room on the second oor of A.K. Hinds University Center, where they will receive a “passport” and agenda for the week’s activities. “We hope everyone will be encouraged to participate by their classroom instructors or supervisors. The passports are designed so that they can be used to mark attendance,” Cruz said. Faculty and sta who participate may be eligible to include their time as part of WCU’s new professional development certicate program, WCU Works, which will debut this spring. More information on the program will be announced soon by the Oce of Human Resources and Payroll. WCU Leadership Week is an extension and expansion of the highly successful WCU Leadership Day, held in May for the past four years. With WCU’s increasing emphasis on professional development, the shift is timely, Cruz said. Professional development is one of the ways that WCU communicates to its employees the importance that each person plays on the campus, said Rusty Marts, director of employee relations, training and development. “This importance is reected in our strategic plan where it says to ‘Ensure professional development opportunities for all employees,’ ” Marts said. “Leadership Week is, indeed, for all employees, regardless of whether you are a formal leader or not. We are all leaders in some fashion or another.” The theme “WCU in the World” also is a reection of the university’s strategic priorities, said Jennifer Schi, assistant professor in the Department of Political Science and Public Aairs, and faculty fellow for global learning. “It’s so important for our students, faculty and sta to be exposed to a diversity of global perspectives,” she said. “International events aect our experiences every day, whether we realize it or not. Leadership decisions made by people across the globe aect the security and economic outlook of every American, and cultural practices from other places inform our own, so it’s important to be aware of those processes and actively participate in them. By helping to bring the world to WCU, we can learn ways to enhance WCU’s impact on the world, and that’s a very exciting possibility.” WCU Leadership Week is sponsored by the Office of Human Resources and Payroll, Office of Campus Activities and Coulter Faculty Commons. – Contributed information CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | The WCU cheerleaders lead the team onto the eld at E.J. Whitmire Stadium during the 2014 Homecoming football game. NOTEWORTHY NEWS WCU community to celebrate Homecoming 2015 with activities Oct. 21-25 “Purple on the Prowl!” will be the theme as the Western Carolina University community comes together to celebrate Homecoming 2015, with major public events planned over a five-day period – Wednesday, Oct. 21, through Sunday, Oct. 25. Events include comedy and country music shows featuring nationally known performers, a golf tournament, the traditional parade down Main Street in Sylva, a performance by WCU’s Inspirational Choir, and a football game pitting the Catamounts against the Samford Bulldogs. Scheduled for Oct. 21 is a Homecoming Comedy Show featuring Colin Jost, one of the stars of NBC’s iconic “Saturday Night Live.” Jost, who is currently SNL’s “Weekend Update” host, will be joined by comedians Jose Barrientos, Chloe Hilliard and Kevin Yee. The show begins at 7:30 p.m. in the John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center. Student tickets, free with a valid Cat Card, are available at the information desk of A.K. Hinds University Center. General admission tickets are $10 and can be purchased at bardoartscenter.wcu.edu or 828-227-2479. Activities set for Thursday, Oct. 22, include the “Last Lecture” delivered by Vicki Szabo, WCU associate professor of history, at 4 p.m. in the theater of the University Center. The annual event honors a WCU faculty member who has been recognized by students for teaching with great passion and enthusiasm. Szabo will address the topic “Scholars, Warriors, Cowards and Fools: Fear and Learning from Rome to Raleigh.” A Homecoming concert featuring rising country star Hunter Hayes will begin at 8 p.m. Oct. 22 at Ramsey Regional Activity Center. Hayes is a four-time Grammy nominee and was named New Artist of the Year in 2012 by the Country Music Association. Advance tickets are $20 for WCU students and $25 for all others, and all tickets are $25 on the day of the show. Tickets are available at ramsey.wcu.edu or by calling 828- 227-7722. Events on Friday, Oct. 23, begin with the annual Alumni Scholarship Homecoming Golf Tournament at 11 a.m. at Maggie Valley Golf Club. The cost of $100 per person includes golf, one mulligan and two rae tickets. RSVPs are required by Friday, Oct. 16, to WCU’s Oce of Alumni Aairs at 877-440-9990 or 828-227-7335, or by emailing bbusby@wcu.edu. Also on Oct. 23, WCU’s Homecoming Parade will begin at 6:15 p.m. in downtown Sylva. University alumni, students, faculty, sta and friends are invited to cheer as community and student oats, Catamount cheerleaders, the Homecoming Court and the Pride of the Mountains Marching Band march and roll down Main Street. Activities on Saturday, Oct. 24, will begin with the Chancellor’s Brunch and Alumni Awards Ceremony at 10 a.m. in the Grandroom of A.K. Hinds University Center. Honorees are Teresa Williams, former chair of the WCU Board of Trustees, Distinguished Service Award; Keith Ramsey, professor of medicine at East Carolina University’s Brody School of Medicine, Academic Achievement Award; Michell Hicks, former principal chief of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, Professional Achievement Award; and Brandon Robinson, an attorney in Durham, Young Alumnus Award. The cost is $15 per person and business attire is requested. RSVP by Oct. 16 by calling the Office of Alumni Affairs or by emailing magill@wcu.edu. Football tailgating will begin at noon Oct. 24, and Catamount fans will gather at E.J. Whitmire Stadium at 3:30 p.m. for the Homecoming game versus Samford. Halftime activities will include recognition of the Homecoming award winners and court, plus an announcement of this year’s Homecoming king and queen. Tickets to the game are available from the WCU athletics ticket office at 800-344-6928. Postgame activities will include the African-American Alumni Reception at 6:30 p.m. in the Peele, Westmoreland Suhre, Hartshorn Hospitality Room at the Ramsey Center. RSVP by Oct. 16 by calling the Office of Alumni Affairs or emailing magill@wcu.edu. Homecoming 2015 activities will conclude Oct. 25 with the WCU women’s soccer team’s match versus Samford at 2 p.m. at the Catamount Athletic Complex and a concert by WCU’s Inspirational Choir in the University Center Grandroom at 3 p.m. For more information and a complete schedule of Homecoming events, check out the website homecoming.wcu.edu or contact WCU’s Alumni Affairs office. By Randall Holcombe CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | WCU mathematics professor Sloan Despeaux leads a session for attendees at a gathering of the Smoky Mountain Math Teachers’ Circle last summer. TOP STORIES WCU Foundation receives North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation grant to support math teachers across region, state The Western Carolina University Foundation is the recipient of a $200,000 grant from the North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation that will be used to support the Smoky Mountain Math Teachers’ Circle, a professional development organization for math teachers in Western North Carolina, and to create a network of the organizations statewide. Two faculty members from WCU’s Department of Mathematics and Computer Science organized the Smoky Mountain Math Teachers’ Circle in the summer of 2014, inviting middle school math teachers from Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Jackson, Macon and Swain counties to join with WCU professors for an ongoing dialogue about math with colleagues and professional mathematicians. “It’s great to see these counties in the western area of the state working with this important math education program,” said North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation board member Ran Coble. The grant will provide funding to sustain the Smoky Mountain group for the next ve years and to take the concept across North Carolina. “The Smoky Mountain Math Teachers’ Circle has proven a benecial resource for the region, with an impact beyond education and teacher-student interactions,” said Sloan Despeaux, the WCU professor of mathematics who co-created and is leading the initiative along with her colleague, Nathan Borchelt, associate professor of mathematics. Despeaux and Borchelt created the Smoky Mountain Math Teachers’ Circle using a model from the American Institute of Mathematics. In addition to uniting the regional math education community in dialogue, the group engages middle and secondary teachers in problem-solving and provides support enabling them to promote open-ended problem-solving as a way of learning, thinking about, and practicing math in their classrooms. Participants meet six to seven times each school year, and also gather for a three-day summer immersion workshop. In the fall of 2013, nearly 80 mathematics teachers, post-secondary educators and business leaders from the region attended the Western North Carolina P-16 Education Consortium Conference in Cullowhee. “One of the outcomes of this conference was a strong desire to increase opportunities for sustained partnerships between post-secondary faculty and in-service teachers within our region,” Borchelt said. “This is something that can certainly be achieved through Math Teachers’ Circles.” The North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation is an independent self-funding 501(c)3 nonprot organization supporting activities that help meet the educational and health needs of today’s society and future generations. Since its creation in 1986, the foundation has granted $67.4 million to support North Carolina projects and programs that emphasize the understanding and application of science, health and education at all academic and professional levels. More information is available at NCGSKFoundation.org. For more information about the Math Teachers’ Circle initiative at WCU, contact Despeaux at despeaux@wcu.edu or Borchelt at naborchelt@wcu.edu. More information about the Math Teachers’ Circle concept is online at mathteacherscircle.org. By Geoff Cantrell CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Steve Heatherly (left), CEO of for Harris Regional and Swain Community hospitals, and David Belcher, chancellor of Western Carolina University, announce the expansion and formalization of a partnership focused on ensuring access to quality health care in North Carolina’s westernmost counties, an initiative called The Ascent Partnership. TOP STORIES WCU, Harris and Swain hospitals announce Ascent Partnership Leaders of Western Carolina University and Harris Regional Hospital and Swain Community Hospital on Tuesday, Oct. 20, announced the expansion and formalization of a partnership focused on ensuring access to quality health care in North Carolina’s westernmost counties. Through the initiative, titled The Ascent Partnership, the organizations will work together to train the next generation of health care workers, support athletics and the arts in communities in the region, create opportunities for community engagement on wellness, and expand local availability of needed health care services. As a pivotal part of the initiative, Harris Regional and Swain Community hospitals will cover the total educational costs for three students to enroll in WCU’s family nurse practitioner program who have committed to working for one of the hospitals. One student will be chosen to receive the award and begin the two-year program over each of the next three years. “This award program will enable the students to graduate debt-free and will provide guaranteed employment upon degree completion, which certainly will be important factors for the students,” said WCU Chancellor David Belcher. “But the real value of this program is the impact it will have on our community. It will help meet a critical need for additional primary health care providers.” Rural Western North Carolina faces a shortage of physicians, and family nurse practitioners are qualified, cost-effective primary care providers who can help meet the increasing demand for high-quality health care in the region, Belcher said. Steve Heatherly, chief executive officer for Harris Regional and Swain Community hospitals, both of which are part of Duke LifePoint Healthcare, called The Ascent Partnership a formalization of the hospitals’ commitment to the community through a decades-long collaboration with WCU to provide training to future health care professionals. “The training and placement of highly skilled primary care providers is a critical element of enhancing the quality of life in our region. However, full tuition support for nurse practitioner students is but one facet of The Ascent Partnership,” Heatherly said. “The partnership also is focused on improving the health and well-being of the communities we collectively serve through collaboration and innovation.” The hospitals and university created a sports medicine program about 15 years ago that serves WCU’s student-athletes, provides training for physical therapists and sports medicine clinicians, and has placed athletic trainers in 10 high schools in the region to provide access to a coordinated system of care for nearly 1,500 student-athletes and their families annually, he said. Last fall saw the opening of a primary care clinic called Harris Family Care – Cullowhee inside the WCU Health and Human Sciences Building. “The practice is available to serve our entire community, increasing access to high-quality care, and also serves as a site for nurse practitioner students to train,” Heatherly said. The Ascent Partnership also features a community education component with a regular speakers series highlighting experts from the university and the local hospitals, and it will be the foundation for the hospitals’ ongoing support of the university’s Valley of the Lilies Half Marathon and 5K, the Catamount athletics programs, and arts functions occurring on campus through WCU’s Friends of the Arts organization. Announcement of The Ascent Partnership came during opening remarks at LEAD:WNC, a one-day summit that brought together approximately 200 leaders from across the region to design solutions to the unique challenges faced by communities in the westernmost part of the state. Following the announcement, Heatherly joined leaders from Duke LifePoint Healthcare – Jeff Seraphine, president of LifePoint Health’s Eastern Group, and Dr. Harry Phillips, professor of medicine and chief medical officer, network services, for Duke University Health System – for the morning keynote presentation on “The State of Health Care and Its Effect on the Quality of Life.” David B. Fountain, Duke Energy’s state president for North Carolina, delivered the luncheon address, “Energizing Western North Carolina’s Quality of Life.” The summit included a series of panel discussions on a variety of topics: creative arts; education, the environment, health care, innovation and technology, and tourism. CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT “We launched LEAD:WNC last year in the hope that it would lead to formal and informal partnerships that would help move the region forward,” Belcher said. “The formalization of our partnership with Harris and Swain hospitals around community health is exactly the kind of collaboration we had hoped to see come to life.” By Bill Studenc © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 21, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | TOP STORIES Homecoming activities continue through Sunday “Purple on the Prowl!” is the theme as the Western Carolina University community celebrates Homecoming 2015 with a full slate of activities through Sunday, Oct. 25. Events include comedy and country music shows featuring nationally known performers, a golf tournament, a performance by WCU’s Inspirational Choir, and a football game pitting the Catamounts against the Samford Bulldogs. Activities on Friday, Oct. 23, include the Homecoming Parade that will begin at 6:30 p.m. in downtown Sylva. University alumni, students, faculty, sta and friends are invited to cheer as community and student oats, Catamount cheerleaders, the Homecoming Court and the Pride of the Mountains Marching Band march and roll down Main Street. For more information and a complete schedule of Homecoming events, check out the website homecoming.wcu.edu. CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 28, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Regina Davis van der Eijk NOTEWORTHY NEWS WCU hosts Asheville Lyric Opera performance of opera ‘The Barber of Seville’ Western Carolina University will present “The Barber of Seville,” produced by the Asheville Lyric Opera, at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30, at the John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center. Sponsored by the WCU College of Fine and Performing Arts, the two-act comic opera will have a local connection on stage, by way of the Netherlands. The lead soprano is Regina Davis van der Eijk of Waddinxveen, South Holland. A Jackson County native and daughter of WCU alumni, she will be returning “home” for the performance, singing as young Rosina in the operatic masterpiece. In addition to previous performances with the Asheville Lyric Opera, she has performed in “The Magic Flute” with Opera Theatre of the Rockies, a solo appearance with the Wiericker Opera in Holland, and performances with the OpernWerkstatt in Switzerland. From trickery and disguises to serenading in the moonlight, “The Barber of Seville” is known for its liveliness and comedy, as the aections of Rosina are sought by her guardian, Dr. Bartolo, and a Spanish nobleman, Count Almaviva. First performed in 1816, the operatic favorite was composed by Gioachino Rossini and written by Cesare Sterbini. Jon Truitt, artistic adviser of the Asheville Lyric Opera, will serve as the guest director, and Dan Allcott, maestro of the Bryan Symphony Orchestra, will be conductor. Tickets are on sale at $21 for adults, $7 student or child, and $16 WCU faculty and sta. More information is available at bardoartscenter.wcu.edu or call the box office at 828-227-2479. By Geoff Cantrell CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | James Scifers, in white shirt, runs with students and faculty members from WCU’s athletic training program on the Blue Ridge Parkway during a previous Mountain Jug Run for Research. TOP STORIES Runners ready for Mountain Jug Run for Research this weekend The eighth annual Mountain Jug Run for Research will go on this weekend as planned, while the future for this Western Carolina University to Appalachian State University relay is pending. A WCU group will run 175 miles of roads from Cullowhee to Boone 152 miles on the Blue Ridge Parkway on Saturday, Oct. 10, and Sunday, Oct. 11, to raise money for research and student scholarships in sports medicine. Taking part will be James Scifers, WCU athletic training program professor and director, who originated the run in 2008 and is the principal organizer. He is leaving WCU at the end of the semester to become director of the School of Rehabilitation Sciences at Moravian College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. “I hope the event will continue as a legacy to the WCU athletic training program’s commitment to the future of the profession,” Scifers said. “In the past, other faculty have participated in the event. I am hopeful that one of the current faculty or my replacement faculty member will carry on the tradition of this outstanding event.” The relay raises funds for the National Athletic Trainers’ Association’s Research and Education Foundation, which awards research grants and academic scholarships in the field of sports medicine. The course is run as a continuous relay, with each of the runners completing five legs in 5-mile increments, and with two or three runners on the road at any given time. The relay already has outlasted the WCU-ASU football rivalry for which it was named, known as “the Battle for the Old Mountain Jug.” The football rivalry ended when ASU left the Southern Conference in 2013. The relay always ended at whichever stadium was hosting the gridiron competition. WCU students participating this weekend are graduate assistant Sarah McNamara; juniors Michael Rabey, Greylin Cleary, Luke Miller, Danny Rivas, Floyd Graber, Dalton Greer, Jason Shull and Jackson Roper; sophomores April Duke, Erin Grimsley, Brennen Dorsch and Jack “Bryson” Bradley; and freshman Adam Lytle. In addition to providing a service-learning opportunity for athletic training students about injury prevention, proper nutrition and hydration, as well as environmental conditions in athletics, the relay demonstrates the value of philanthropy, Scifers said. Their goal this year is to raise more than $3,000. The total for past fundraising is some $25,000. Over the years, 120 individuals total have participated in the relay. Training includes gathering in the predawn for 10 weeks, with a long run up to 13 miles on Sunday mornings. “The record time for the relay is 27 hours, 8 minutes and 18 seconds,” Scifers said. “This year’s group of 16 is very fast and preliminary times should place the group finishing the event in about 25.5 hours.” A member of the WCU faculty since 2003, Scifers has frequently volunteered time and athletic training skills at sporting events on campus, at local schools and in the community. In 2011, he helped write state legislation that established a mandatory concussion awareness education program for public schools to protect young athletes from head injuries. He was recognized as the North Carolina Athletic Trainers’ Association Educator of the Year for 2014. Runners have been seeking pledges prior to the relay. Donations are encouraged, with checks made payable to NATA-REF and sent to Jill Manners, WCU Health and Human Sciences Building, Office 362, 4121 Little Savannah Road, Cullowhee, N.C. 28723. All donations to the foundation are tax-deductible. By Geoff Cantrell CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | WCU junior Josh Vance leaves a footprint commitment for Samaritan’s Feet outside A.K. Hinds University Center. TOP STORIES Center for Service Learning to hold barefoot walk-a-thon Western Carolina University will hold a walk-a-thon unlike most others on Monday, Oct. 19, beginning at 7:30 p.m. at the Catamount Athletic Complex participants will go barefoot. The event is to raise awareness for a campus collaboration with Samaritan’s Feet, a humanitarian group dedicated to distributing shoes to impoverished communities around the world. “There’s an old proverb that says to truly know someone, walk a mile in their shoes,” said Lane Perry, director of the WCU Center for Service Learning and an event organizer. “But 1.5 billion people around the world walk without decent shoes. This walk-a-thon will help us understand their plight, as we raise awareness and support for our work with Samaritan’s Feet.” The “Catamount Walkabout: Whee Will Walk You!” walk-a-thon starts immediately following the Homecoming 2015 kick-o. The public is invited to join WCU students, faculty and sta in the walk-a-thon, Perry said. A DJ will provide music, hot chocolate will be served, and learning stations about Africa, the focus of WCU’s two-year interdisciplinary academic learning theme, will be set up along the track. “I enjoy the idea of mission work and community service,” said Josh Vance, a WCU junior from Denver who plans to participate. “I have visited Africa, so I understand the inspiration for Samaritan’s Feet and fell in love with the purpose of it.” Other community eorts have continued the barefoot theme, in eorts to draw attention to and raise money for Samaritan’s Feet to purchase and provide shoes. This week, student volunteers manned a booth outside A.K. Hinds University Center, where each donors’ barefoot sole was painted purple and imprinted on paper, with the imprint signed by the donor, as a demonstration of commitment to the cause. Donors’ feet were then washed to remove the paint. The partnership with Samaritan’s Feet is a campus project, with many opportunities for grassroots involvement of students, sta, faculty and the greater community. To learn more, contact Perry at laneperry@wcu.edu or 828-227-2643. By Geoff Cantrell CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | Kham Ward (center, seated) and students make plans to attend an anniversary event celebrating the Million Man March. TOP STORIES Students to rally for social justice at 20th anniversary of Million Man March When O’Shay Massey, a Western Carolina University senior from Milwaukee, learned of the opportunity to attend the 20th anniversary of the Million Man March in Washington, D.C., she didn’t hesitate reserving a spot on the bus. It was an opportunity she couldn’t pass up. “For me, in my four years here, Western has never really done anything like this that I know of, so I wanted to take the opportunity to go out and actually participate in something bigger than just Western,” said Massey, a communication major with a concentration in broadcasting. Massey will be one of 50 WCU students who will load a passenger bus headed for the nation’s capital at 6 a.m. Friday, Oct. 9, and return Sunday, Oct. 11. The trip is being sponsored by the Department of Intercultural Affairs. Organizing the trip was one of the first responsibilities Kham Ward was charged with when he took over as director of intercultural affairs in June. One of the things Ward set out to do was get the students to see beyond their current scope and their current vision of what social justice is. The original Million Man March in 1995 was a call by Nation of Islam honorable minister Louis Farrakhan for one million African- American males to flood the National Mall in Washington to focus on the theme of “Atonement, Reconciliation and Responsibility.” This time, Farrakhan is calling for a more diverse group featuring men and women of all races to rally around the theme of “Justice or Else.” “We do a lot of talking about how we want to see change and justice,” said Kani Totten, a junior from Greensboro majoring in political science. “Being a part of it and putting it in action really got me interested.” After securing the bus and hotels, Ward’s next task was to fill up the bus. “There’s over 10,000 students on this campus,” Ward said. “If I couldn’t get 50 students to care about social justice, then I needed to take a real hard look at our impact on this campus.” The cost of the trip for each student is $150. Right off the bat, some 15 to 20 students signed up, Ward said. But he knew there would be some students who wanted to go but couldn’t afford it. So he turned to social media, offering three free spots for students if they followed ICA on social media and explained why they should go for free and what experience they would bring back to WCU. An unintended by-product was that campus departments and faculty and staff contacted Ward and told him to add an extra person, and that they would pay for it. Ward ended up handing out six free spots. In just over three weeks, all 50 seats were secured. “One department even started sponsoring different aspects of the trip,” Ward said. “I think that really shows your true Catamount spirit. Not only are you saying this is a great idea, but you’re putting your own resources behind it to support students that couldn’t afford it otherwise. I’m thankful for the departments and I’m very thankful to the individuals, faculty and staff who decided to pool their own resources and help students go. I think that’s an awesome thing for us on this campus to show.” WCU will be represented by a diverse group of men and women from various races and ethnic backgrounds. There will be representatives from the Student Government Association, fraternity and sorority leaders, and various student club leaders. And it is a group eager to play a role in doing its part to help bring justice to all. “I think it’s a great time for (the rally) to help start the national conversation of solutions,” said junior SGA president Hank Henderson of Marietta, Georgia. “Not just protesting and rallying, but finding solutions that help everyone across all diversities. I think it’s the perfect time for it.” Ward said his goal is to maximize the students’ experience. In addition to being a part of the masses at the National Mall, Ward plans to allow students time to experience the culture and interact with their peers, as well as see the monuments and the White House. CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT Ward also is hoping to connect with other North Carolina schools making the trip. Assisting him on the trip will be Kevin Koett, associate vice chancellor for student affairs and dean of students; Adriel Hilton, Higher Education Student Affairs Program director; and Michelle Cooper, clinical director with Counseling and Psychological Services. “From what I understand, a lot of these students haven’t been to D.C., nor have they been outside of North Carolina,” Ward said. “This is an awesome experience for them to open their eyes, get them new lenses and a new vision, a new way to look at life. I want this trip to be like a launching pad, or start a fire within all of them, that they want to be on leadership teams and plan events.” The fire is already lit under sophomore Adam Hampton, an accounting and business law major from Raleigh. Hampton said he is looking forward to sharing his passion for current events and social justice topics not only with his WCU peers, but with others from across the country. “Obviously, going while we’re in college, we’re still really in the formative years in figuring out what our professional lives are going to be,” Hampton said. “No matter what you’re going to go into, no matter what organization you become a part of, you’re going to have to navigate diversity, whether it be differences in appearance or differing views of thought.” Just as the originally Million Man March is being remembered and celebrated 20 years later, Massey is looking forward to taking her place in history, which will allow her to share her experience. “All the events that have happened lately, I feel like that’s going to go down in history like the Civil Rights Movement,” Massey said. “It’s so major right now, and I want to be able to tell my grandchildren, ‘Yeah, I did the Million Man March at a time when police brutality and racism were at a peak, and we had a black president, and this is how it was. That’s what I’m looking forward to getting out of it.” By Marlon W. Morgan © 2015 Western Carolina University. SEARCH Search Home About Archives Subscribe Contact WCU Home October 7, 2015 Email This Post Print This Post Share | NOTEWORTHY NEWS Zombie Run 5-K scheduled for Oct. 31 at WCU The Western Carolina University Student Physical Therapy Association will host the second annual Zombie Run 5-K Chase Race at 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 31. The event will begin at a site near the WCU softball stadium. Each runner will receive ags to wear during the race that zombies along the course will try to steal. Runners who make it to the nish line with at least one flag will be considered “Zombie Apocalypse Survivors.” Registration is $20 before the race and $25 on race day. Those who register by Thursday, Oct. 15, are guaranteed a race T-shirt. Proceeds will be used to support physical therapy services for the community and research in that field. Packet pickup and race day registration will be held from 2 to 3:30 p.m. on Oct. 31. Registration is available online by visiting active.com and searching for “Zombie Run 5K Chase Race.” By Randall Holcombe CATEGORIES | THE REPORTER TOP STORIES NOTEWORTHY NEWS ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS PHOTOS | WCU NEWS SERVICES CALENDAR 5/29/2017 Ancient Forms, Modern Minds 5/29/2017 Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix 5/29/2017 Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler 6/9/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' 6/10/2017 Musical Variety Show 'Livin' the Dream' LINKS Calendar Higher Education NewsWatch WCU Hub AFRICA! MORE THAN A CONTINENT © 2015 Western Carolina University. |
| Subject |
Western Carolina University -- Periodicals |
| Time Period | 2010s; |
| Location |
Jackson County (N.C.) |
| Source Institution |
Western Carolina University Hunter Library |
| Collection |
The Reporter, Western Carolina University |
| Inventory Number | HL_Reporter_2015-10 |
| Copyright Information |
All rights reserved. For permissions, contact Hunter Library Special Collections, Western Carolina U, Cullowhee, NC 28723 |
| Digital Publisher |
Hunter Library Digital Collections, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC 28723 |
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