First Monday AN UPDATE FROM THE PROVOST | September 2023

COGER'S CORNER

Provost and Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs

I hope you enjoy our September issue of First Monday, made possible by contributors from across the Academic Affairs Division at East Carolina University. The information, achievements and events captured in this issue’s pages continue to put on display the reality that the people of ECU shape the altitude and breadth of our University’s impact on the region, the state, the nation and the world. Thank you all for your individual and collective contributions to the Pirate Nation.

Am I the only one for whom the Fall 2023 semester is progressing forward rapidly? The month of October is just a couple of weeks away! While outdoor temperatures confirm that it is seasonably still summer, there is a great deal of activity across the University as we navigate the dimensions of the work traditionally associated with this semester, while also managing through the inevitable surprises. I am enjoying the energy associated with our students’ engagement, as well as the collegiality and collaborative spirit I’ve had the honor to observe across many faculty and staff teams.

Your relevant Vice Chancellor, Dean, Library Director, and/or supervisor has likely shared with you that the unit plan phase of ECU’s strategic planning process is underway. If you haven’t looked at the University’s Strategic Plan Refresh “Future Focused. Innovation Driven." of late, please do. The priorities and objectives it lists are also the framework of the unit plans currently being developed. This ensures that all of us are aligned in identifying and achieving the deliverables necessary to sculpt the university’s progressive future. Many of you also provided the input that informed the work led by Jeannine Hutson, ECU’s Chief Communications Officer and the Director of University Communications with the firm Carnegie. Thank you for your engagement. I thought the results shared during the recent campus unveiling were both accurate and exciting for ECU, and I’m looking forward to working with them and you to integrate those 3 personalities -- Proud Advocate, Collaborative Guide, and Transformative Innovator -- into the University’s relevant public relations materials. For now, I offer a hearty congratulations to Jeannine for her leadership of this important work.

As I prepare to close this installment of Coger’s Corner, there are two more things I thought I’d mention. First, thank you for the important role you each play as our University strives to exceed our enrollment goals and performance metrics. Regarding the enrollment goals, recent conversations helped me realize that some may not know that the enrollment-dependent part of ECU’s state allocations are now based on NC undergraduate (UG) resident SCHs earned across the calendar year. This means that it is strategically in ECU’s best interest to maximize the UG resident SCHs earned across the year – i.e. the winter session, spring semester, the summer sessions, and the Fall semester – and within any given semester, the UG resident SCHs of the regular session plus both 8-week block sessions all count. The 2nd thing I wanted to remind you is that Vision 2 of our Strategic Plan Refresh is focused on cultivating “a culture of care, belonging and opportunity for our faculty, staff and learners and all stakeholders.” This is extremely important to our University and the well being and success of who we are today, and also essential to who we hope to be in the future. This means that even as we work together to ensure that we comply with the laws and policies of the state and the nation, it is also important that we – individually and collectively – choose to pay attention to how the students and colleagues with whom we interact are faring. The golden rule is still a healthy principle to guide our actions and as anyone who has ever had a bad day knows, a sincere greeting, kind word, or valuing the contributions of colleagues all make a difference. In times of great change, the citizenry we each demonstrate to the members of the ECU community will be key to ensuring that a culture of care, belonging and opportunity is evident throughout our University.

Enjoy this issue of First Monday.

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BY THE NUMBERS

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AROUND ACADEMIC AFFAIRS

STUDENT ACADEMIC SUCCESS SERVICES

Creating a comprehensive network for student success, the new office for Student Academic Success Services consolidates campus programs and services to coordinate campus academic supports, retention programs, and special populations efforts for undergraduate success. Under the direction of Executive Director Dr. Elizabeth Coghill, programs and services within the Student Academic Success Services office include the Pirate Academic Success Center directed by Amber Arnold, a centralized communications program Connect for Success administered by Dylan Moore, the TrACE transfer success program directed by Dr. Tatum Taylor, the Gear Up NC program coordinated by Elizabeth Coghill, and the STEPP Program directed by Adam Denney. For more information about the Student Academic Success Services office, contact Elizabeth Coghill.

Dylan Moore has joined the Student Academic Success Services team as the Student Success Communications Administrator for the Connect for Success program. Communication systems include the Starfish early alert system, “PeeDee” the Mainstay chatbot and texting platform, student call center, and summer peer enrollment coaching. Research on the role communication systems like Starfish can play in student success is available at Early Alert Warning Systems - Early Alert Warning Systems - Research Guides at East Carolina University Libraries. For more information about the Connect for Success program, contact Dylan Moore.

Pirate Academic Success Center celebrates 15-year milestone

Celebrating 15 years of service, the Pirate Academic Success Center (PASC) is hosting a birthday celebration on Friday, September 15 from 2 - 3pm for campus partners. First started as the Pirate Tutoring Center “PTC” in 2008, the PASC offers tutoring services, study groups, course content Canvas videos, test reviews, academic and study skills coaching, academic recovery programs, study skills workshops and hosts a Freshmen Learning Community. Students can make free service appointments using ecu.accudemia.net. Faculty and staff can refer students through Starfish or by using the “refer a student” form on the PASC website. Faculty and staff are invited to join the September 15 celebration, tour the PASC, and meet student and professional staff. PASC is in the North wing of the Old Cafeteria Complex.

OFFICE OF GLOBAL AFFAIRS

The Office of Global Affairs welcomed 30 new undergraduate students, 18 exchange students, 5 new ECULA students and 36 graduate students from around the world during our two-day fall international student orientation session. Orientation concluded with our second annual Welcome Cookout, which drew a crowd of about 120 students, international and domestic, for grilled food, games and fellowship. Overall, international enrollment for fall 2023 grew 9.8% from last year. You Belong at ECU!

In May, ECU hosted the 16th Annual Global Partners in Education Conference. Global Partners in Education (GPE) is an ECU led organization of higher education institutions that are committed to providing their students opportunities for meaningful and impactful international education experiences through Virtual Exchange. 12 institutions from 9 countries sent representatives for our first in person conference since the pandemic. Participants had the opportunity to engage in workshops and discussions and share their scholarly work surrounding the theme “Intercultural Communication: Preparing Students for an Interconnected World” while also experiencing a bit of ECU culture.

The Global Affairs staff hosted a group of new arrivals on a bus trip to the Outer Banks as part of our ongoing efforts to build a welcoming and inclusive environment for international students at ECU. Forty-five students and staff traveled to Jockey’s Ridge State Park, Duck, NC, and Jeannette’s Pier to experience local culture and attractions.

Upcoming Global Affairs Events and Activities:

• International Tailgate. September 23, 3:30-5:30PM. Immanuel Baptist Church.
• Global Zone Training. October 5, 2-5 PM. MCSC 249.
• Gender and Study Abroad: What to Expect. October 5, 3-4 PM. MCSC 253.
• Study Abroad Fair. October 12, 11 AM -2 PM. MCSC Lawn.

UNIVERSITY SCHOLARSHIPS

The start of a new semester always brings changes to our campus. Some exciting changes we are happy to announce have occurred in the Office of University Scholarships. We would like to introduce you to the new Director - Summer Martinez Edwards.

Summer started in the Office of University Scholarships in late July and has hit the ground running! She is from Greenville and earned her undergraduate degree from the University of NC - Wilmington. She earned her Masters' degree from ECU in 2017. She has been employed with the University for six years, having moved into full-time employment with the university upon completion of her graduate degree.

While in graduate school, Summer served as the first Graduate Assistant in the Scholarship Office. Since graduation, she has worked in both Undergraduate Admissions and the Office of Student Financial Aid prior to assuming the role of Director of University Scholarships. In addition to her masters degree, Summer also holds a Leadership in Organizations Certificate from ECU that she earned in 2022.

Summer is joined in the Office of University Scholarships by Zenaia Ward. Zenaia serves as the Administrative Assistant and started with the university in the spring 2023 semester.

Both Summer and Zenaia are ready to help launch the new scholarship season and stand ready to answer scholarship questions or address any scholarship concerns. The office is located at G210 - Old Cafeteria and they can be reached by calling 252.737.4341 or sending an email to scholarships@ecu.edu.

OFFICE OF RESEARCH, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & ENGAGEMENT

Pirates Set Another Record for Sponsored Activities Funding

The results are in: the University recorded the highest level of sponsored funding in its history! At $85.6 million in sponsored awards, we surpassed last year’s $82.5 million. This is an example of our Pirates' unwavering commitment to innovative and impactful work that serves our region and communities around the globe.

Congratulations to the faculty, staff, students, postdoctoral scholars, and administrators who make the grant process happen at ECU. Your determination and support led us to this victory.

STEM@Starlight: New Start-Up Faculty Meet and Greet, September 25

Join REDE in welcoming our new start-up faculty members at the STEM@Starlight event on Monday, September 25, 5 - 7 p.m. in the Life Sciences and Biotechnology building. There will be time for networking, and we’ll hear three-minute talks by new ECU faculty starting at 5:30 p.m. Register to attend HERE.

STEM@Starlight is a regional intellectual exchange group designed to facilitate interaction and collaboration between East Carolina University and the public. Its mission is to promote the utilization of biotechnology through scientific communication and collaboration in the eastern region of North Carolina. STEM@Starlight events are typically held once a quarter at various locations and are open to the public. The event is sponsored by the North Carolina Biotechnology Center.

Questions? Contact Mary Farwell at farwellm@ecu.edu.

Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (URCA) award applications are now open. URCA awards can provide funding up to $2,000 to support faculty-mentored research and creative projects in the areas of biomedical sciences, social sciences, STEM, as well as arts and humanities. The fall deadline to apply is September 29. Learn more HERE.

The Trendsetter Awards were established in Spring 2023 to shine a light on research and creative activity leaders at ECU. The goal of the program is to recognize and honor exemplary faculty from all career stages. The nine inaugural winners were asked to share their experience and expertise in research and creative activities achievements. The three groups will co-host a professional development workshop series throughout the 2023-2024 academic year.

The 2023 Trendsetter Series will provide participants at all levels of service with the ideas and inspiration for being the next Trendsetter. We hope you will join us for one or more of these sessions:

• Workshop 1 – October 11, 2023, 2:00 - 3:30 p.m., Joyner 2409 - Register here; Facilitators: Mary Farwell, Matt Militello, Lisa Beth Robinson, Stacy Warner
• Workshop 2 – October 17, 2023, 2-3:30 p.m., Joyner 2409 - Register here; Facilitators: Mary Farwell, Ryan Schacht, Alex Vadati, and Siddharth Narayan
• Workshop 3 – February 16, 2024, 2-3:30 p.m., Microsoft Teams - Register here; Facilitators: Mary Farwell, Leigh Atherton, Jacquelyn Mallette, Rukiyah Van Dross

Learn more HERE.

Do you have an idea that could have an impact? Have you ever wondered what next steps to take?

I-Corps@ECU is an interactive virtual program focused on validating the link between your idea, innovation and/or research, and the audience you are trying to reach. Whether the idea is purely a scholarly outcome or has potential for impact outside of academia, I-Corps guides participants through a step-by-step process that will enhance your knowledge base and give you a clear path forward. I-Corps is funded by a grant through the National Science Foundation and is open to faculty, staff, post docs, students & others. Eligible teams that complete the program will have access to $5,000 in funding to support proof of concept studies and/or travel. Fall program dates can be found HERE.

ECU students set out for rewarding and impactful internships across eastern North Carolina this summer as part of the State Employees’ Credit Union (SECU) Public Fellows Internship (PFI) program. PFI places undergraduate students with local governments, nonprofits and other organizations throughout the region for projects that address community-identified priorities. The program provides opportunities for students to develop leadership, analytical, problem solving, communication and project management skills, while allowing them to network in professional settings.

ECU students completed 177 internships with 75 eastern North Carolina organizations since 2014. This year, 20 ECU undergraduates were selected to the program for sites across 12 counties. Internship locations included positions at the Greenville Museum of Art, NC Coastal Federation, and One Place in Jacksonville. Click HERE to read about a few of their experiences and learn from supervisors the importance of the program.

Upcoming opportunities in Continuing and Professional Education:

• Glassblowing classes start September 14. View availability HERE!
• NCCED Data and Analytics, September 20 & 21 - Register HERE.
• Find more HERE.

The Lifelong Learning Program is open to all adult learners, age 18 and up. Fall memberships and classes are available! View the online catalog HERE.

If you would like to offer your expertise as an instructor or propose an experiential trip or event, contact Kelsey Dwyer to see what opportunities are available. You can also submit a proposal online.

STUDENT-ATHLETE ACADEMIC SERVICES

QEP - GO INTERCULTURAL

The 2023 Intercultural Competence Summer Institute took place May 8 - 12. The Institute began with a keynote presentation by Dr. Aletha Stahl. The presentation, titled “Beyond the global clichés: Intercultural learning for equity and inclusion,” can be viewed HERE. Participants in the Summer Institute were: Mark Bowler (Psychology), Michael Daniels (Social Work), Anna Froula (English), Erika Johnson (Communications), Bomna Ko (Kinesiology), Magalí Krosl (Foreign Languages and Literatures), Rose Malone (Office of Global Affairs), Sachiyo Shearman (Communications), Jennifer Sisk (English), and Erin Taylor (Office of Global Affairs). During an intensive week, they worked with QEP Director Purificación Martínez and QEP Associate Director Laura Levi Altstaedter on the development of learning objectives as well as the design of instructional tasks and assessment tasks for their individual projects. They submitted their completed projects on June 30. The Office for Faculty Excellence and QEP Graduate Student Bethany Martin collaborated on the logistics for the Institute.

Faculty and staff interested in learning more about the QEP and participating in the 2024 Summer Institute are encouraged to attend the upcoming sessions of the 2023-2024 Go Intercultural! Series, organized by the QEP Office and the Office for Faculty Excellence. Information about the series, registration and links to sessions can be found HERE.

More than 1,400 students began developing their intercultural competence this Fall. All first year students enrolled in COAD 1000 and all incoming honors students enrolled in HNRS 2000 will have their intercultural competence assessed and will receive an individual plan to develop this competence. As proposed in the QEP plan, students will begin creating their Intercultural Competence Portfolio, which will accompany them during their careers at ECU.

In order to prepare COAD 1000 instructors, during the Summer Sessions Dr. Purificación Martínez worked individually with each instructor to present to them the scope of the QEP and how, after their intercultural competence has been assessed, people can develop this competence through specific and well-designed actions.

FACULTY SENATE

2023 - 2024 Faculty Senate meeting dates are as follows:

• September 12, 2023
• October 3, 2023
• November 7, 2023
• December 5, 2023
• January 30, 2024
• February 27, 2024
• March 26, 2024
• April 23, 2024
• April 30, 2024 (Organizational Meeting for 2024-2025)

For more about ECU Faculty Senate, click HERE.

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COLLEGE UPDATES

ALLIED HEALTH SCIENCES

The Department of Addictions and Rehabilitation Studies (DARS) completed its graduate programs' site visit with 279 of 279 standards met according to the The Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP).

Physician Assistant Studies welcomed the children of faculty, students, and alumni to its annual Pediatric Assessment Lab which provides an opportunity for Pirate PAs to practice examining younger patients.

Abby Croom, Clinical Instructor in Clinical Laboratory Science, completed the advanced certification in her major teaching area, earning recognition as a Specialist in Hematology (SH) by the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) Board of Certification. To hold SH certification by the premier certification agency for medical laboratory personnel, Professor Croom demonstrated advanced skills, experience, and expertise within hematology.

Roxanne Wilder, Clinical Instructor in Nutrition Science, expanded her quantity foods lab this spring to include delivery of weekly themed menus to the Health Sciences Campus. Learning how to manage a production kitchen, senior Nutrition and Dietetics students design a menu, assemble an order for the necessary supplies, and manage the online reservations with Prof. Wilder's instruction. They served more than 900 meals in several weeks of lab.

Lynnz Brewer, Physical Therapy student, and their interprofessional team won this year's Health Sciences Leaders Council (HSLC) Case Competition. In addition to Lynnz, the group included two M1s from the Brody School of Medicine as well as one PhD and one undergraduate student from the College of Nursing. They were tasked with developing solutions for residents of eastern North Carolina counties who experience Type 2 diabetes. "We chose Halifax county and our idea to address the issue was a community park, garden, and kitchen with an app to help track exercise, provide nutrition ideas and resources for them to access about healthy living." -Lynnz Brewer, PT Student and Winning Case Team Member

Twelve Health Services Management students were inducted into Upsilon Phi Delta honor society.

Dr. Patrick Briley, Clinical Researcher in Communication Sciences and Disorders, received second place in the Healthcare Innovation Pitch Program competition. As a result of the partnership between the ECU Office of Licensing and Commercialization (L&C) and Patient Safety Technology Challenge, Dr. Briley was awarded $1,500 for his product, SpeakNow - a virtual reality platform seeking to reduce patient stress in clinical settings.

Dr. Anne Dickerson, Professor in Occupational Therapy, partnered with a colleague in the School of Art and Design to produce a story-based video written with first responders and other professionals in mind. Dr. Dickerson, Director of Research for Older Adult Drivers (ROADI), wanted to inform police officers, EMS professionals, doctors, and others of North Carolina's medical evaluation resources for driver safety.

Audiology students as well as faculty and staff in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders partnered with MrBeast on one of the YouTuber's projects to help 1,000 individuals hear again.

Drs. Lauren Turbeville, Assistant Professor in Occupational Therapy, and Amy Wedge in Physical Therapy received a $16,000 grant from the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation to help host their Pirates "POWER" Over Parkinson's: A PWR!Moves Exercise Class. With plans to welcome fall and spring cohorts, the program includes 60-minute sessions over more than eight weeks as well as pre- and post-assessments with an OT and PT clinician.

Dr. Heather Harris Wright, Associate Dean of Research for the College of Allied Health Sciences and College of Nursing, joined the 6th cohort of the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities (APLU) Council on Research (COR) Research Leader Fellowship. This 12-month program will connect Dr. Harris Wright with other senior research officers across the nation as its members develop new knowledge and skills.

Dr. Erzsebet Szatmari, Assistant Professor and Director of the Szatmari Lab in Physical Therapy, attended the 2nd Annual Symposium for Learning about Alzheimer's disease-related Medical Research at Duke and UNC (SLAM-DUNC) alongside three of her students. The team networked with researchers from Duke University, North Carolina Central University, UNC Chapel Hill, UNC Pembroke, and Wake Forest University. Dr. Szatmari also toured the microscopy facility at UNC Pembroke to see the new super resolution microscope.

Dr. Leigh Atherton, Associate Professor in Addictions and Rehabilitation Studies, received a $380,000 interdisciplinary grant from the University of North Carolina Collaboratory Opioid Abatement and Recovery Research Program. Through partnerships with community organizations, Dr. Atherton and his College of Nursing colleague will study peer-delivered treatment strategies in comparison to how professionals approach those in addiction recovery.

ARTS & SCIENCES

Dr. Meghan Millea, professor of Economics, hosted five visiting undergraduate students and two visiting graduate students to eastern North Carolina during the month of July. Funded by the National Science Foundation, as part of Millea's 5-year, $16 million Coastal Hazards, Equity, Economic prosperity, and Resilience (CHEER) grant, these students crisscrossed eastern NC, meeting with community members and leaders to understand how people in eastern North Carolina prepare for and recover from hurricanes and flooding. The students learned how community and household wealth impact their abilities to recover, how different levels of government interact through recovery programs, and how nonprofit organizations support long-term recovery. Their findings will be incorporated into Millea's larger CHEER research.

Misun Hur (Geography, Planning and Environment) led nine students on a summer study abroad program in South Korea. Students spent two intensive weeks in South Korea, visiting the sites with planners, landscape architects, citizen leaders, and Korean students seeking solutions for sustainable urbanism. This year’s student cohort included five students majoring in the department’s Community and Regional Planning Program (four undergraduate and one graduate) and four additional students with interests in architecture, art, ecology, and K-culture. Two of the students provided reflections on their experience. Read Bella Sardina’s story HERE and Lauren Russell’s story HERE.

Harriot College has named Dr. Charles Ewen, professor of anthropology, to the college’s prestigious rank of distinguished professor. The announcement was made at the 60th annual college convocation on Aug. 18. Read more HERE.

Additional Accolades

• Dr. Susan McRae, teaching professor of biology, has been elected to the 2023 Class of American Ornithology Society Elective Members. Elective members are those who are viewed as making significant contributions to the study or ornithology (study of birds) and/or service to the American Ornithological Society.
• Dr. Meghan Millea, professor of economics, has been elected to serve on the North American Alliance of Hazards and Disaster Research Institutes Board.
• Dr. Jennifer McKinnon, professor of history, has been awarded $161,000 to conduct a Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) project in Queensland Australia, a partnership with Flinders University.

BRODY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE

Morgan Milton, biochemistry researcher at the Brody School of Medicine, and Joshua McLaurin, junior forensic science student from Fayetteville State University, used the summer to unlock the secrets of bacterial biofilms, defenses that have given rise to antibacterial drug resistant bacterial colonies that impact human health. McLaurin is participating in the STEM Summer Immersion Program funded by the NC GlaxoSmithKline Foundation. The program is designed to build connections between ECU and students from the state’s minority-serving institutions with a goal of establishing pathways to public health graduate education.

Brody Researchers have discovered that a muscle in the foot appears fundamentally different from other muscles because of how it behaves without oxygen. Their inquiry is just beginning to try and figure out why. Skeletal muscles are used for breathing, movement, temperature regulation — the activities of life that blow through oxygen because of its necessity for maintaining energetic potential, said Espen Spangenburg, professor of physiology and chair of Brody’s Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology. The flexor digitorum brevis, FDB for short, is a skeletal muscle located in the feet of mammals. Because the FDB is the muscle furthest from the heart, it should be the first to show signs of damage from blood flow restriction during experiments — but it didn’t. Spangenburg and his team are working to find out why.

The 90 members of Brody’s Class of 2027 — all North Carolina residents — were helped into their white coats during a traditional celebration in July at the Health Sciences Student Center and regaled with messages and well wishes from Brody faculty and leadership. Kristel McLawhorn, transplant nephrologist and 2005 Brody alumna, gave the keynote address, urging the Class of 2027 to stop, listen and absorb the knowledge and experiences they gain in the coming years. “You have earned this opportunity,” McLawhorn said. “My charge to you is this: Be prepared for anything: to be challenged, to be afraid, to be humbled, to serve and to change. Know where your support is and know what is mission-critical in the big picture. Have the grace and wisdom to know when you don’t know, and the drive to do something about it.”

The Wooten Family Initiative for Brain Health Research is a seed/bridge grant program to assist faculty in generating data for research proposals to extramural funding agencies. Funded projects should advance our understanding of brain health and the pathophysiology underlying Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias.

The 2023 recipients include Dr. Morgan Milton and Dr. Hollis Ellis, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, with the project “Exploring the Putative Calbindin-D28k and Capase-3 Interaction;” Dr. Ruth Schwalbe, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, with the project “Relating N-Glycans to Neural Development and Neurological Problems;” and Dr. Alessandro Didonna, Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, with the project “Exploring the Role of Centaurin Alpha-1 in Multiple Sclerosis.”

Six pediatric primary care sites have been selected to provide mental health services for children and adolescents in North Carolina as part of the expansion of the North Carolina Statewide Telepsychiatry Program (NC-STeP). NC-STeP-Peds is funded by a $3.2 million investment from the United Health Foundation. It continues the foundation’s commitment to working with East Carolina University to address mental health challenges in North Carolina and provide mental health care services to underserved children and adolescents in rural and underserved parts of the state. Dr. Sy Saeed, director of the ECU Center for Telepsychiatry and founding executive director of NC-STeP, said the program will offer expert consultation support for pediatricians and other clinicians through telemedicine and aid in removing the stigma often associated with mental health care.

Dr. Russ Price (Biochemistry and Molecular Biology) serves as President of the International Society of Renal Nutrition (ISRNM). He recently attended the 2023 Korean Society of Nephrology Meeting in Seoul, South Korea, where a new ISRNM-KSN collaboration was celebrated. The event was commemorated with a public MOU signing and a joint scientific session entitled “Sarcopenia and Nutritional Management of Kidney Disease.” Price also recently chaired a scientific session entitled “Senescence: A Translational Perspective for Sarcopenia and Muscle Atrophy” at the 2023 American Physiological Society Summit meeting in Long Beach, California.

Schweitzer Fellows named to 2023 class

Six Brody students will spend the next year working on projects that address social factors that impact health and health care. They are part of a class of 29 North Carolina graduate students representing medicine, dentistry, physical therapy, occupational therapy, public health and law as N.C. Schweitzer Fellows. The Fellows develop and implement service projects that address the root causes of health disparities in under-resourced communities, while also fulfilling their academic responsibilities.

Miranda Freeman and Michael Burt are developing an end-of-life companions volunteer program to provide compassionate end-of-life companionship to palliative care patients who do not have anyone able to visit them. Volunteers will receive basic inpatient and outpatient hospice training, participate in narrative medicine workshops and will become knowledgeable advocates for the role of palliative services in modern patient care.

Phoebe Jollay-Castelblanco and Francisco Reyes are building a new student-led Narcan training program for Pitt, Craven and Jones counties. They are designing an educational initiative to train community members across the region in prevention, identification and treatment of overdose using Narcan administration. They are also working closely with ekiM for Change to tailor the trainings to best meet the needs of the highest risk populations while serving regularly in the organization’s harm reduction clinics.

Vaishnavi Siripurapu and Ella Whitfield are launching a cardiovascular health intervention for patients at the ECU Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Unit focused on individualized goal setting, nutrition education, behavioral health and community support.

Brody Faculty and Student Research Honors

• Dr. Chris Geyer (Anatomy and Cell Biology), Dr. Darrell Neufer (Physiology), and Dr. Cameron Schmidt (Biology) were recently awarded a new R01 from the NIH.
• Dr. Rachel Roper (Microbiology & Immunology) recently published a manuscript entitled “Monkey pox (mpox) Requires Continued Surveillance, Vaccines, Therapeutics and Mitigating Strategies.” 2023, Vaccine 41, 3171 3177. Roper also presented her research on “Improved Monkeypox/Smallpox Vaccinia Virus Vaccines; Deletion of the O1L Gene” with Marina Boatman & Ming Fan at the American Society for Microbiology Microbe’s Annual Conference in Houston. She was a featured symposium speaker on “A Roadmap to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; Reappointment, Promotion and Tenure Guidelines” and serves on the ASM Inclusive Diversity with Equity, Access, and Accountability (IDEAA) Committee of the Board.
• Biochemistry student Gita Gajjar (Dr. Keiper’s lab) gave an invited talk titled “Germ Cell mRNA Regulated by Granule localized mRNP complex of VASA/GLH-1 and eIF4E” at the Translation Machinery in Health and Disease Gordon Research Conference in Galveston, Texas.
• Biochemistry student Emma Gilbert (Dr. Geyer’s lab) tied for 1st place poster presentation for “Defining the essential role of the RNA binding protein RBM46 in preparing male germ cells for meiosis” at the Triangle Consortium of Reproductive Biology.
• Physiology student Soumya Kamath (Dr. Hannan’s lab) was recognized as an ISSWSH Scholars in Women’s Sexual Health Research Grant Awardee.
• Microbiology and Immunology student Melissa Lempicki (Dr. Meher’s lab) received an AHA Meeting Travel Grant for Early Career Investigators to present their abstract, “BAFF Neutralization Impairs the Regression of Insulin Resistance in Diabetic Mice By Modulating The Innate Immune Response” during the “Vascular Discovery: From Genes to Medicine” 2023 Scientific Sessions in Boston.
• Pharmacology student Drew Theobald (Dr. Sriramula’s lab) received the American Physiological Society’s “Central Nervous System Research Recognition Award.”
• Graduate student awards: Taylor Johnson received the William R. Valentine Jr. Award for best overall achievement during an academic year; Ryan Garrigues was awarded the Berbecker Fellowship Award for exceptional accomplishments, initiative and scholastic performance; and J. Tyler Hagen and Mary Katherine Donovan won the Carol Volkman Awards for most meritorious oral presentation and most meritorious poster presentation, respectively, during the annual Doctoral (Graduate) Student Research Day.

BUSINESS

Twelve students at East Carolina University’s College of Business (COB) will become the first cohort of the newly launched immersive master of business administration (IMBA) pathway. Operated out of the COB’s Thomas D. Arthur Graduate School of Business, the IMBA pathway takes place over one year. The pathway will provide students with meaningful internship experiences by matching them with local companies looking to fill leadership training and management-track positions. The students will take their classes together with select faculty. The curriculum is the same core courses required of all ECU MBA students, which is flexible to allow students to fit their MBA pursuit into their current work schedule or lifestyle. For more information, click HERE.

2. Seven College of Business (COB) students have been named to the third cohort of the Copeland Diversity and Inclusion Fellowship. The 2023 Copeland Fellows include:

• Aleshondra Halam, Arthur School, Master of Business Administration (MBA)
• Laith Marjan, BSBA Management
• Delcina Loyd Eaton, Arthur School MBA
• Katie Council, BSBA Finance
• Kooper Ashmore, BSBA Finance, Risk Management & Insurance
• Alyssa Rambert, BSBA Management and African American studies minor
• Raquan Stanley, BS, Entrepreneurship, and BSBA Finance, Risk Management & Insurance

For the Copeland Fellowship, the students will participate in a comprehensive program that celebrates and encourages a culture of caring, opportunities and belonging. They will immerse themselves in an extensive range of programming that includes experiences outside the classrooms and a celebration of the myriad experiences in the COB body of students. For more information, click HERE.

School of Hospitality Leadership’s Drs. Cynthia Deale (left) and Jenna Lee (right) were recognized at the recent International CHRIE conference in Phoenix, Arizona. The paper, Students’ Perceptions of Group Projects in the Hospitality and Tourism Discipline, received BEST PAPER designation.

DENTAL MEDICINE

The Class of 2027 began classes in August and includes 53 students — from veterans and collegiate athletes to a variety of promising North Carolinians from across the state. During their first weeks on campus, the Class of 2027 has hit the ground running, learning in classrooms and sim labs while engaging with peers, alumni and professionals, spending time with their D2 mentors and completing service projects across the community.

Through a $60,000 gift from the Leon Levine Foundation, the School of Dental Medicine is able to provide low-cost dental procedures and preventive care to more patients in rural and underserved areas of North Carolina. The gift supports the school’s Patient Care Funds program, at the school’s community service learning centers and clinics across the state.

“We believe that equitable access to quality healthcare – including dental care – enriches the wellbeing of individuals and their families. In light of this, the Leon Levine Foundation is honored to support the patient care funds program through ECU’s School of Dental Medicine,” said Dr. Michael Richardson, senior program officer of healthcare for the Leon Levin Foundation. “These resources directly help underserved and uninsured patients, resulting in healthier communities.”

Leaders from ECU and the University of North Carolina at Pembroke signed an early assurance agreement on Aug. 11 that guarantees admission of UNCP students into the ECU dental school’s Doctor of Dental Medicine (DMD) program upon meeting certain criteria and requirements. Beginning in fall 2024, one of the 52 seats in the dental school’s incoming class will be reserved, three years in advance, for outstanding students entering UNCP as first-year students. The program is the dental school’s first such early assurance initiative with another institution.

Students who apply for the program must be North Carolina residents from Bladen, Columbus, Cumberland, Halifax, Hoke, Robeson, Sampson, Scotland or Warren counties. Students who accept a position for early assurance into the dental school must maintain certain academic standards and participate in various activities during their undergraduate studies to remain eligible for their seats in the dental school’s entering class.

“It’s about the success of our students — students who will have an expanded opportunity to pursue their dreams,” said UNCP Chancellor Dr. Robin Cummings. “This agreement has the potential for real change for real people in rural North Carolina.”

The ECU School of Dental Medicine’s chapter of the Special Care in Dentistry Association (SCDA) is making strides to ensure a special population of patients has the resources and access to care they need.

The school’s chapter is one of only 11 chapters recognized nationally through SCDA, which is made up of oral health professionals and students who are dedicated to promoting oral health and well-being for people with special needs. The organization includes representatives from the American Association of Hospital Dentists, the Academy of Dentistry for Persons with Disabilities, and the American Society for Geriatric Dentistry.

“The special care community is such an important yet underrepresented part of the dental profession,” said D3 Lydia Hartung, president of ECU’s SCDA chapter and vice-student liaison for the national organization. “Education and early exposure are integral in ensuring that we, as part of the next generation of dental professions, are prepared and comfortable to treat special care patients who may present in our practice. That starts here, in Ross Hall.”

Four students in the Class of 2027 were named Summer Research Scholars in June. Abdullah Amer, Liam Hopfensperger, DaQuan Mebane and Joshua Williams conducted research projects and will present their research at the dental school’s Celebration of Research and Scholarship in February 2024.

Amer worked on a project titled “Oral Health Literacy of Pregnant Women in a Rural Area in Eastern North Carolina” with mentors Drs. Vanessa Pardi and Mark Moss. Hopfensperger was mentored by Drs. Xiaoxi Cui and Wenjian Zhang on a clinical project titled “CBCT Analysis of Nasal Cavity and Nasopalatine Canal Anatomy in Relation to Maxillary Incisors, using cone beam computed tomography analysis of over 150 ECU patients to determine the anatomical relationship between the maxillary central incisors and the nasal cavity."

Mebane’s project, under the mentorship of Drs. Azeez Aileru and Berwin Singh Swami Vethra, was titled, “Angiotensin II-Stimulated Oxidative Stress in H9C2 Cells and the Influence of Angiotensin 1-7 on the Expression of Angiotensin II receptor 1.” Williams was mentored by Drs. Saulo Geraldeli, Gabriel Abuna and Ramiro Murata on a project titled “2-Aminomidazole Incorporated into Acrylamide-Based Adhesive – Biofilm Inhibition and Biostability.”

Kala Gause (above, left) and Ijeoma “I.J.” Okons (above, right) both of the Class of 2025, were named Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina Schweitzer Fellows this past spring. Their project is educating pregnant women on the importance of oral health care under the direction of academic mentor Dr. Taneet Ghuman and site mentor Dr. Linda May. Schweitzer Fellows develop and implement service projects that address the root causes of health disparities in under-resourced communities, while also fulfilling their academic responsibilities. Each project is implemented in collaboration with a community-based organization.

“Schweitzer Fellows are not given a project or told to address a specific health need,” said Barbara Heffner, executive director of the N.C. Albert Schweitzer Fellowship. “They follow their passion and the needs of the community to develop innovative approaches which fill gaps in our health care system.”

EDUCATION

The College of Education is excited to announce Dr. André Green joined ECU as our new dean. Green previously held leadership roles at The University of South Alabama with a focus on literacy programs. Learn more about Dr. Green HERE.

ECU’s undergraduate educator preparation program has earned an A+ rating in literacy education from the National Council on Teacher Quality. Learn more about the ranking HERE.

ECU’s AP Summer Institute gives teachers new strategies and ideas for teaching their AP courses. ECU alumnus Aaron Steele was able to try a new method — fire — during the art & design APSI course. Learn more about this summer’s APSI HERE.

Students who participated in Summer Ventures this year were able to get their hands dirty with field work and research. Faculty at ECU taught courses in DNA fingerprinting, neuroscience, physics, archaeological field methods and global environmental monitoring. Learn more about some of the courses HERE.

After three years of delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ECU faculty returned to Saipan to host two week-long residential history and culture programs for K-12 educators. Read more about this year’s Saipan program HERE.

Cassidy Goff was selected as ECU’s Student Teacher of the Year. Cassidy graduated this spring with her degree in birth through kindergarten education.

This summer, Dr. Dionna Manning and Lexi Lozner were both featured as Pirate Profiles. Manning creates a sense of community for all of the education community of scholars and education living-learning students. Lozner is pursuing her special education degree and wants to ensure that her future students are seen and heard.

Our partnership with UNC Wilmington and UNC Pembroke introduced high schoolers to the world of teacher education through the Future Teachers of North Carolina program. Students visited ECU’s campus for a two-day experience to learn more about what college and being an education major was all about. Learn more HERE.

Science education faculty Drs. Len Annetta and Mark Newton are researching ways to use extended reality to bring the natural world to life. Students were able to explore barrier islands and the effects of climate change using augmented and virtual reality. Learn more HERE.

Discoveries in Earth Science students received free copies of Dr. Rhea Miles’ book “Adventured of the STEM Brothers” on their last day of the summer program.

ECU’s region of the NC New Teacher Support Program has a record of success in Lenoir County. From inspiring future teachers and building classroom cultures to helping new teachers win awards and growing opportunities for students, beginning teachers county-wide have benefited from the program. Learn more HERE.

This summer the COE and Department of Educational Leadership hosted an equity summit for educational leadership for local districts. The summit was part of professional development held throughout the school year that also included on-site school leadership coaching. Learn more about the summit HERE.

MAEd students in reading and literacy Kelli Madkins and Morgan DeHart won the COE’s Diverse Books contest. They explained what having diverse books in the classroom means to them and why it’s important and received a selection of books for their future classrooms.

ECU faculty Drs. Charity Cayton, Maureen Grady and Heather Vance-Chalcraft have been awarded a $1.4 million grant to address the shortage of secondary math and science teachers, especially in rural, high-need school districts, and investigate the use of microcredentials in teacher education. Learn more about the Noyce grant HERE.

Dr. Scott Glass, acting associate dean, was awarded the Eminent Career Award for the Association of Specialists in Group Work (ASGW). ASGW is a division of the American Counseling Association that specializes in group counseling.

Dr. Loni Crumb contributed to Counseling Today’s May 2023 cover story on the mental health provider shortage. She discussed the importance of cultivating partnerships to combat the shortage. Read the article HERE.

The Rural Education Institute hosted a summer learning exchange for members of the edPIRATE grant and the CARE Corps team. Highlights of the event included a keynote address from Dr. Dudley E. Flood and a performance from the top step team in North Carolina, the HYPE Crew.

ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY

The Information and Computer Technology program in the Department of Technology Systems has a new name that more accurately reflects the importance and relevance of cybersecurity in its concentrations. The new name, Information and Cybersecurity Technology (ICT), is designed to draw more attention and employment opportunities for students in cybersecurity, a field with projected job growth seven times the national average over the next decade. Read more HERE.

Dr. Teresa Ryan, associate professor and director of engineering research in the ECU Department of Engineering, led an effort to install new air temperature profile monitoring systems on two sites at the Coastal Studies Institute at ECU’s Outer Banks campus in Wanchese. The system will support research funded by the Office of Naval Research that seeks to better understand how near-surface meteorological conditions affect how sound travels over long distances near shore. Read more HERE.

The opportunity to visit the Netherlands and learn about how other nations are building with sustainability drew three East Carolina University construction management students to HAN University’s International Week. Stavros Boardman, Jalene Camey and Carson Haithcox, along with Dr. Daniel Perrucci, assistant professor in the Department of Construction Management, toured the campus in Arnhem, attended sessions and classes, and explored parts of the country during their visit. Read more HERE.

The Department of Computer Science Research Experience for Undergraduates program celebrated its 10th anniversary, drawing nine students from across the country to explore everything from better ways to detect breast cancer to how to properly identify dinosaur fossils. Read more HERE.

FINE ARTS & COMMUNICATION

On view at the School of Art and Design, Selections from the Celeste and Reginald Hodges Collection: African art, from traditional to modern, is an exhibition that explores the evolution of African art, including wood and stone carvings, textiles, ceremonial headpieces, ivory, and household items. The display includes a wide range of items from a gold-inlayed leather portfolio from Morocco, in North Africa, to a beaded Zulu fertility doll from South Africa, two cultures separated by 7,500 miles. Most of the artworks displayed are from rural West Africa, where Celeste and Reggie Hodges met and lived for two decades from the 1960s to the 1980s. Read more HERE.

Adam Atkinson (MFA ‘19 Metal Design) was selected for the 2023 Emerging Artists Cohort by the American Craft Council. This Emerging Artists Cohort engages eleven early-career artists who are expanding the boundaries of craft in a three-month virtual intensive to advance their professional creative practice. Cohort participants will connect with established leaders from across the industry, including curators, designers, and gallerists. They will learn from exhibiting, marketplace, and social-practice artists to gain a deeper understanding of their field and cultivate opportunities to thrive in their careers. Projects designed and developed during the intensive will be supported by a $10K business accelerator grant awarded upon completion of the program.

Dr. Keith Richard published work in recent publications that included an alum from the SOC MA program (Katherine Hyatt Hawkins Shaw). The first publication includes another SoC faculty member (Mike Catalano).

• Catalano, H.P., Richards, K., Hyatt Hawkins, K.E., & Catalano, M.D. (2023). Applying the Theory of Planned Behavior to Predict COVID-19 Booster Vaccination Intentions of College Students. Journal of American College Health. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2023.2228425
• Richards, K., Hyatt Hawkins Shaw, K.E., & Catalano, H.P. (2023). Exploring Differences in HPV Knowledge, Perceptions, and HPV Vaccination Rates among Male and Female College Students. Kentucky Journal of Communication. 41 (1), 4-24.

Please see the latest issue of Countenance, a long-form feature magazine that has been produced by students in the ECU School of Communication since 2017. It is published by the Daily Reflector in Greenville.

Director of Choral Activities, James Franklin, finished editing his second album with the ECU Chamber Singers and Grammy-winning producer, Blanton Alspaugh. The album will be released on the Gothic Label and at our fall concert Friday, October 27, at St. Paul's Episcopal Church. It will also be available on various streaming platforms.

The ECU Chamber Singers, the flagship ensemble at ECU, were jury-selected to appear at two national conferences for choral music. In November, the ensemble will perform at the conference of the National Collegiate Choral Organization (NCCO) on the campus of Morehouse College, Atlanta, GA. In February, the ensemble will perform at the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) southern division conference in the Kentucky Center for the Arts, Louisville, KY. These are the two most prestigious domestic invitations a university ensemble can receive this coming academic year.

Graduating Senior Jesse Reece (BM ‘23) is one of six young guitarists chosen to participate in the Ex-Aequo Artists Emerging Artist Initiative, which takes place in Austin, Texas from August 17-21. These artists were chosen from guitarists both from the US and abroad. As part of this initiative, Jesse will be performing a sextet, “Six by Six” written for the artists by Brazilian composer Sergio Assad, which will include solo works for each artist interwoven with music for the group. The group will also receive career development mentorship, perform recitals for the Austin Classical Guitar Society, and record pieces from their repertoire for a collaborative video recorded and produced by recording engineer, guitarist and producer Drew Henderson.

Jessica Doyle-Mekkes's debut book, I'm Speaking: Every Woman's Guide to Finding Your Voice & Using It Fearlessly, comes out Oct. 15. This book was recently named one of publisher Rowman & Littlefield's, 'most anticipated titles of 2023 with women at the forefront.' To learn more about the book, click HERE.

Trent Blanton was Guest Faculty in Musical Theatre for The Academy of Arts and Culture at Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek in Osijek, Croatia. Jayme Host and Trent helped to develop an exchange agreement between ECU and the University.

Emily Booker (MFA ‘24 Metal Design), Tamla Boon (MFA ‘25 Ceramics), and Chase Shotton (MFA ’25 Metal Design) were some of the many students who participated in the 2023 CFAC Summer Study Abroad Programs. You can read about their experiences in Korea here:

• Emily’s story
• Tamla’s story
• Chase’s story

HEALTH & HUMAN PERFORMANCE

Air Force ROTC’s 75th anniversary ball is scheduled for Sept. 22 at the Greenville Convention Center, beginning with a 5 p.m. social hour. More information about the ball and how to register is available HERE.

Dr. Christine Habeeb with the Department of Kinesiology had a special opportunity to jump with the Golden Knights during her attendance with Army ROTC Lt. Col. Josh Aeschliman to cadet summer training. Check out more photos and video from Habeeb’s jump at U.S. Army cadet command’s centers of influence cadet summer training in Fort Knox, Kentucky.

New recreational therapy faculty member Lindsey Oakes received funding by the National Intramural and Recreational Sports Association research grant program and Special Olympics Unified Sports. This is for a cross-sectional, non-experimental study that aims to examine feelings, beliefs and intentions of campus recreation staff in regard to individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities and inclusive service delivery. Also, to examine the presence or absence of best practices for inclusive service delivery that shape the overall cultural context of campus recreation departments in regard to disability inclusion.

University required courses HLTH 1000 and KINE 1000 received the Quality Matters Certification Mark following a course review process. This process was led by teaching instructors Brian Cavanaugh in the Department of Health Education and Promotion and Amber McEachern with the Department of Kinesiology. Learn more HERE about the process and success, which is focused on examining critical course components related to the learner experience and ultimately learning success.

Eight students assisted Drs. Eric Soule (Department of Health Education and Promotion), Sinan Sousan (Brody’s Department of Public Health) and Jack Pender (Department of Chemistry) and were heavily involved in research on the use of e-cigarettes in vehicles. Their studies led to published articles in Tobacco Control and Drug and Alcohol Dependence.

HHP offered six study abroad summer programs this year. A total of 143 students participated in these programs designed to enhance their preparation for work in the global economy, including fashion forecasting in Portugal and Italy, and volunteering at the Special Olympics World Games in Berlin.

Nancy W. Darden Child Development Center staff and Karson Hallow with the Chancellor's office welcomed William Moore, representing U.S. Rep. Greg Murphy, and Trey Lewis, representing U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis, for a recent visit to the five-star Nancy W. Darden Child Development Center. There were opportunities to discuss the impact and influence of the center, which is part of the Department of Human Development and Family Science, on campus and to the region and state. Lewis and Moore also asked questions to ECU’s representatives as part of an informal Q&A session.

HONORS

The Honors College officially has a new dean and associate dean. Dr. Todd Fraley was officially appointed by the Board of Trustees as the dean in late April. He was also named the Bill and Emily Furr Honors College Distinguished Professor. Learn more about Fraley HERE. This month, Dr. Katherine Ford formally began her tenure as associate dean of the Honors College and director of the Brinkley-Lane Scholars program. Learn more about Ford HERE.

Thanks to a historic commitment, the program formerly known as EC Scholars is now the Brinkley-Lane Scholars Program. A combined $30 million commitment ensures that every Brinkley-Lane Scholar has a fully covered education at ECU, whether they are an in-state or out-of-state resident. Learn more about this gift HERE.

Current Honors student Javier Limon and Honors alumnus Matt Blount are serving as this year’s president and vice president of the Student Government Association. They are focusing on mental health, transparency, campus safety and inclusion during their tenure. Learn more about them HERE.

The first cohort of Brinkley-Lane Scholars was announced this May. The 20 students are from 13 North Carolina counties as well as Wisconsin and Maryland, and plan to study majors ranging from art and engineering to chemistry and political science. Learn more about the scholars HERE.

Current Brinkley-Lane Scholar Christine Chan received the Hollings Scholarship, a national award allowing students to increase their knowledge and skills in oceanic and atmospheric sciences as well as hands-on experience through a full-time, paid summer internship. Learn more Christine HERE.

Nine Honors students participated in the Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium at ECU. Ellisa Fisher, Cameron Grey, Maggie Leland, Hasitha Tatineni, Kristy Lau, Logan Harrison, Malak Hindi, Rudy Sengelmann and Jalen Walker shared their research with their peers and ECU faculty and staff.

Nine Honors alumni — Ono Abhulimen, Fabiola Cabanas Hernandez, Ross Judd, Sarah March, Vedika Modi, Naimi Pothiwala, Stephiya Sabu, Myna Tirupattur and Abigail Ulffers — received their white coats at Brody and started their first year at medical school.

The Honors College has officially gone green! In late April, the ECU Sustainability Program certified Honors as a green office.

Honors students Alex Fisher, Bekah Arensman, Toby Bryson and Ben Juhl led a basic CPR and AED training for first year Honors students.

Honors alumnus Zach Chichester attended Science Talk ’23 in Portland where he presented the research he conducted as part of his Signature Honors Project. While there, he met members of the NASA team that worked on the James Webb telescope and a Marvel Studios correspondent. Learn more about his research HERE.

This summer, 87 Honors College students studied abroad in countries ranging from Belize and Italy and Malaysia to Australia and Belize.

ECU Honors students had the chance to visit DC during the spring semester as part of the “Politics and STEM” seminar class. They met Representative Don Davis, learned the history of Mount Vernon and met the founder of Ben’s Chili Bowl while also learning about current initiatives at the EPA.

Brinkley-Lane Scholar alumnus Dr. Jon Kornegay discussed his experience caring for patients in underserved and rural areas during a webinar this summer. Kornegay is the ECU Health Duplin hospitalist director, ECU Health Duplin vice chief of staff and Duplin County EMS medical director. Learn more about his experiences HERE.

INTEGRATED COASTAL PROGRAMS

The Coastal Studies Institute hosted another successful season of camps. Over the course of the summer, 93 individuals participated in at least one week of programs, though many participated in multiple weeks. This summer’s themes included marine and coastal biology and ecology, sustainable living and engineering, maritime archeology, and art and science. Those interested in future CSI camps can receive updates by signing up for the CSI newsletter and/or by following CSI on social media. Registration for the 2024 camp season will begin on March 1, 2024.

The Coastal Studies Institute welcomed a new series of family programs this summer entitled Evening in the Estuary. Families are invited to visit the ECU Outer Banks Campus to learn about the estuarine environment of the Croatan Sound. The program, which has hosted families twice and has upcoming dates planned for September 14, October 12, and November 1, engages school-aged children and their chaperones in exploring local habitats, discussing food webs and adaptations, and seining for critters. So far, 43 individuals have attended the event. While most are Outer Banks locals, participants have come from across Eastern North Carolina including Wilmington, Greenville, and Columbia with others hailing from farther, including Maryland and Texas. Learn more about Evening in the Estuary and register HERE.

Science on the Sound returns! This monthly, in-person lecture series held on the ECU Outer Banks Campus brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in northeastern North Carolina. This month, Kathie Dello, State Climatologist and Director of the NC State Climate Office at NC State University will present "It's Hot Y'all: Data-Driven Decision Support from North Carolina's State Climate Office" on September 21, 2023, at 6:00PM. The program is free, and the public is encouraged to attend. The program will also be live-streamed and archived for later viewing.

The Coastal Studies Institute welcomed 12 new undergraduates from UNC Chapel Hill to the ECU Outer Banks Campus this fall. CSI is the host for the UNC Institute for the Environment’s Outer Banks Field Site. Throughout the semester, the students will take classes, intern with a local organization, and complete a Capstone project.

The Ecology & Biogeochemistry in Marine & Coastal Systems Lab led by Dr. Lindsay Dubbs at the Coastal Studies Institute had an exciting and busy summer. UNC- Chapel Hill graduate student Claire Johnson (above) and her research on microbial communities living amongst Sargassum in the Gulf Stream was featured in Endeavors. Johnson, along with Dubbs and Dr. Michael Peihler (UNC- Chapel Hill), also published a paper in PLOS One related to the same topic. Finally, lab interns Olivia Holbrook, Abigail Alford (ECU undergraduate), Jackson Donahue, and Ryan Rigatti worked to build a PlanktoScope for future lab use.

ICS Ph.D. student Jacquelyn Moore has been accepted into the Coastal Community Environmental Data Scholars (CCEDS) National Research Traineeship (NRT) program offered by ECU's Water Resources Center through an NSF grant. This esteemed, nationally recognized program is designed to enhance the utilization of data science among postgraduate scholars, enabling them to effectively tackle real-world environmental challenges faced by communities. The program's advantages encompass the attainment of a graduate certificate in Applied Data Science, establishment of collaborative partnerships with community outreach initiatives, participation in distinctive training modules including courses on science communication and team dynamics, and a comprehensive 18-month financial support package. “I intend to fully capitalize on this remarkable opportunity by engaging the general public in my research endeavors centered around wave energy exploration and implementation in the Outer Banks,” Moore shared.

Postdoctoral researcher, Dr. Lela Schlenker (Department of Biology, Coastal Studies Institute), published a new paper in the journal PLOS ONE. This research article analyzed the influence of climate and other environmental factors on the annual abundance of commercially valuable shrimp in Pamlico Sound, NC. In this system, shrimp were shown to be strongly influenced by climate change. Nadine Heck (Asst. Professor, Dept. of Coastal Studies) and Jim Morley (Asst. Professor, Dept. of Biology; Asst. Scientist, CSI) are also authors on the paper.

Over the summer, Daystar Babanawo (above), a PhD Integrated Coastal Sciences student, participated in a workshop in Ghana that trained local partners to use a co-designed ESRI ArcGIS SDG15 mapping tool (used to map the impacts of illegal gold mining on ecosystems in Ghana) under a NASA Project (Designing Applications to Foster the Health of Terrestrial and Wetland Ecosystems in the Coastal Zone of West Africa). With the project team, she also actively participated in ground truthing field work to validate the mapping tool. The collaborators on this project include folks from The Space Enabled Research Group at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), East Carolina University (ECU), Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) and Ghana Space Science and Technology Institute (GSSTI).

Shalimar Moreno, a PhD student in the Integrated Coastal Sciences program was selected to attend the Integrated Marine Biosphere Research (IMBeR) Climate and Ecosystems 8 (ClimEco8) summer school, an endorsed United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development activity. Additionally, she received travel sponsorship from the Ocean Carbon & Biogeochemistry (OCB) program to attend the school hosted at the Mediterranean Institute for Environmental Studies in Koper, Slovenia. The school participants included graduate students, postdocs and early career scientists to develop a strong theoretical and applied understanding of different disciplines for sustainable development of the ocean from experts in the marine natural and social sciences field. For more information about the course click HERE.

Kinsey Blumenthal (ICS student) gave an oral presentation on mangroves and human health at the 6th Mangroves, Microbes and Macrobenthos Conference (MMM6). The presentation highlighted the need for more human health related research in mangrove science with emphasis on mosquito-borne disease and traditional medicine. MMM6 is an international conference that was held in Cartagena, Colombia in July. For more information about the conference click HERE.

This past summer, Dr. David Lagomasino (ICP), was an invited speaker at the first Blue Carbon Law Symposium held at the University of Georgia through a partnership with SC Sea Grant. The goal of the symposium was to bring legal scholars, environmental investors, carbon registry specialists, coastal and marine decision makers, and scientists to identify opportunities and challenges for coastal blue carbon investments. Dr. Lagomasino presented on the novel use of remote sensing and satellite data that can augment the monitoring, reporting, and verification of blue carbon projects. Dr. Sean Charles and ICS PhD Student Maria Gomez were also in attendance from ECU and engaged in discussions regarding blue carbon science and economics. For more information about the symposium click HERE.

The annual Ocean Carbon and Biogeochemistry Summer Workshop, supported by the multi-agency US Carbon Cycle Science Program, was held this summer in Woods Hole, MA from June 12-14. Dr. David Lagomasino (ICP) was invited to give a plenary presentation in the session “Role of deltaic sediments in regulating biogeochemical cycles”. This session explored the physical processes and biogeochemical cycling across different deltaic systems around the world; the latest measurement and modeling approaches being used to study these systems; and their impact on global biogeochemical cycles. Dr. Lagomasino presented on how mangrove forests help to regulate the movement of nutrients and sediments in delta region around the world. For more about the OCB Summer Workshops click HERE.

In July, Dr. David Lagomasino (ICP), attended the 5th Mangrove, Macrobenthos, and Management Meeting held in Cartagena, Colombia. He presented on behalf of a team of scientists from NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and East Carolina University who are working to map the historical changes in mangrove forests around the world for the past three decades using satellite imagery. In his presentation he showed that humans have cause the majority of mangrove loss around the world, but that extreme weather events and shoreline erosion are becoming increasingly more important with regard to habitat loss. While in Cartagena, Dr. Lagomasino was also about to visit several potential field sites for future research efforts.

Dr. David Lagomasino (ICS) co-authored three scientific articles in Environmental Research Letters, Sensors, and Estuaries and Coasts. From measuring the dead trees after a hurricane, to measuring carbon emissions, to carbon storage capacity in mangrove and marshes, each paper address similar but unique aspects of coastal habitat structure and function in south Florida.

Estimating Structural Damage to Mangrove Forests Using Airborne Lidar Imagery: Case Study of Damage Induced by the 2017 Hurricane Irma to Mangroves in the Florida Everglades, USA - In September 2017, Hurricane Irma made landfall in South Florida, causing damage to mangrove forests along the southwest coast. Evaluating changes in mangrove forest structure an important indicator of the ecosystems services that they provide. In this study, we used lidar remote sensing technology and field data to assess damage to the South Florida mangrove forests from Hurricane Irma. Lidar data provided an opportunity to investigate changes in mangrove forests using 3D high-resolution data to assess hurricane-induced changes at different tree structure levels. Using lidar data in conjunction with field observations, we were able to model aboveground necromass, or dead biomass, on a regional scale across Everglades National Park to better inform how forest structure changes after a hurricane.

Multi-scale observations of mangrove blue carbon ecosystem fluxes: The NASA Carbon Monitoring System BlueFlux field campaign - The BlueFlux field campaign, supported by NASA's Carbon Monitoring System, will develop prototype blue carbon products to inform coastal carbon management. While blue carbon has been suggested as a nature-based climate solution (NBS) to remove carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere, these ecosystems also release additional greenhouse gases (GHGs) such as methane (CH4) and are sensitive to disturbances including hurricanes and sea-level rise. To understand blue carbon as an NBS, BlueFlux is conducting multi-scale measurements of CO2 and CH4 fluxes across coastal landscapes, combined with long-term carbon burial, in Southern Florida using chambers, flux towers, and aircraft combined with remote-sensing observations for regional upscaling. Dr. Sean Charles (ICP) was also a co-author on this study.

A Spatial Model Comparing Above- and Belowground Blue Carbon Stocks in Southwest Florida Mangroves and Salt Marshes - Blue carbon ecosystems such as mangroves and salt marshes store large amounts of carbon (C) in the form of plant biomass and soils that are often rich in organic matter. These C stocks have a high degree of spatial variability within and among coastal wetland ecosystem types, but quantifying location-specific C stocks is both labor intensive and time-consuming. Above- and belowground C stock data were compiled from field efforts in Southwest Florida and from published georeferenced C data. These data were used in conjunction with ecosystem maps, remote-sensing parameters, and existing vegetation models to create 30-m resolution spatial models quantifying aboveground C stocks and belowground C stocks up to 1-m depth in mangroves and salt marshes along 360 km of coast in Southwest Florida (Tampa Bay to the Everglades)

JOYNER LIBRARY

Current exhibitions in the main campus library include “No Quarter: The History of East Carolina Football and Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium” and “75 Years of Detachment 600: East Carolina’s Air Force ROTC.” ECU’s football team toured the football exhibit in August, and a game week reception was held Sept. 7. The Air Force ROTC exhibit panel discussion is Sept. 22 at 1 p.m. Students, staff and faculty are encouraged to attend. Refreshments will be provided.

Congratulations to federal documents and social sciences librarian David Durant for authoring a monograph that was published by ECU Academic Library Services and UNC Press. Learn more about the book, “Congress and Countersubversion in the Twentieth Century: Aspects and Legacies,” HERE.

The UNC System Open Education Group is inviting interest from faculty instructors in the Open Pedagogy Incubator. The Incubator program supports faculty in adopting open principles to create more student-centered courses through a series of workshops, facilitated discussions and curated readings. Participants will complete the program with a clear process for implementing open pedagogy in their courses. Expressions of interest accepted until Sept. 18, 2023. Questions about the program can be emailed HERE.

There have been plenty of exciting changes and additions recently to study spaces within the library. One recent opening was a family study room, located on the second floor near the stairwell next to the elevator. The family room is for parents or caregivers who have children with them to use this space for them and their child to enrich their academic and studying experience.

Alston Cobourn, head of university history and records, represented ECU in winning the 2023 Fellow’ Ernst Posner Award. The award recognizes an outstanding essay dealing with some facet of archival administration, history, theory and/or methodology that was published during the preceding year in SAA’s journal, American Archivist.

The Association of Southeastern Research Libraries is onboarding volunteers to help provide leadership to committees and interest groups for the next two years. ECU representatives include Laura Bright (collection strategy interest group), Mark Sanders (associate deans/AUL networking group) and Amy Cooley (scholarly communications committee).

Thanks to end-of-year funding from ECU, Academic Library Services has purchased access to a wide range of electronic resources. Most of these resources are primary source databases across many different subject areas, including history, African and African American studies, gender studies, literature and religious studies. Additions to journal backfiles and e-books support a wide range of subject areas, especially physics, engineering, math and computer science. These are available to our users via the database list and the E-journal/E-book Portal. For a list of these recent purchases, click HERE. Questions? Contact Joseph Thomas or your liaison librarian.

LAUPUS HEALTH SCIENCES LIBRARY

Diversity in Practice Exhibit: This digital project complements a physical exhibit at Laupus Health Sciences Library by the same title. The exhibit features historical photographs from ECU Digital Collections that depict diversity in both the practice of and the practitioners of medicine in North Carolina. Funding for the exhibit generously provided by the Friends of Laupus Library. Learn more HERE.

Laupus Library planted a medicinal herb garden with the College of Nursing’s Holistic Health Organization (H2O) this summer, with help from Campus Grounds. The garden is located between Laupus Library and the Health Sciences Student Center. Faculty advisor Susan Lally, Laupus librarian Kerry Sewell and members of H2O planted the beds with a variety of perennial and annual plants in April. “The garden is designed to provide educational and research opportunities related to plants that have been used for medicinal purposes by both indigenous and non-indigenous populations that have arrived in North America with their medicinal herbs,” Sewell wrote in an article about the garden. The plants all have a history of use in traditional food and medicine and also provide food for pollinators on the Health Sciences Campus.

Congratulations to Dr. Amanda Haberstroh, liaison to the College of Nursing, who received the MLA systematic review specialization, which recognizes her competencies to act as a co-investigator with advanced literature searching skills and her understanding of the systematic review process.

Congratulations to Megan Inman and Marlena Rose for publication of their book: Inman, M. B., & Rose, M. R. (Eds.; June 2023). Building Health Sciences Library Collections: A Handbook. Rowman and Littlefield.

The Country Doctor Museum, at 7089 Peele Road in Bailey, is again open on Saturdays.

NURSING

Dr. Cheryl Kovar has become the first faculty member in the College of Nursing to receive a certification in public health (CPH). She recently took the online exam, administered through the National Board of Public Health Examiners, and passed.

The Certified in Public Health is the only credential of its kind for public health that demonstrates a health care professional’s knowledge of key public health sciences, and also commitment to the field through continuing education focused on emerging and established public health issues.

The NBPHE said that as the field of public health grows and its mission becomes more defined, it is crucial for public health professions to stay current in this rapidly evolving field.

“I am proud to represent the College in this field and hope to recruit others to consider taking this exam in the future,” Kovar said.

In 2019, Kovar was among 100 recipients selected by a review committee of Public Health Nursing (PHN) peers from across North Carolina to receive the 100 Distinguished Public Health Nurses in NC award, and is one of only seven public health nursing educators selected.

College of Nursing faculty members Drs. Laura Gantt and Mark Hand made a trip to Gdańsk, Poland recently to explore how East Carolina University and the Medical University of Gdańsk could work together to allow Pirate Nursing student an opportunity to learn how medicine works in Poland.

During their visit, Gantt and Hand were able to work out the logistics for ECU student learners at the Medical University of Gdańsk. The summer of 2024 will likely be the first opportunity for Pirate nursing students interested in a study abroad opportunity in Gdańsk. Gantt said they are looking to model the curriculum after a three-week program of study that Dr. Kim Larson has pioneered for her students in Guatemala.

Gantt and Hand are also very open to the possibility of having Polish nursing students spend time at ECU, but the first steps of ECU nursing students in Poland need to be taken before expanding the partnership.

The first ECU students to participate in the exchange program would probably travel in the summer of 2024 and would pave the way for what Gantt and Hand see as the makings of a strong international partnership.

Each year Great 100 Nurses of North Carolina organization identifies 100 nurses in North Carolina who demonstrate a commitment to excellence and promote a positive image of the nursing profession.

Pirate Nurses figure prominently in the list of 100 Great Nurses each year and this year’s contingent is no different. Working nurses, ECU College of Nursing Faculty and current students round out the names of those who are affiliated with the CON.

This year’s Great 100 Gala will honor awardees in-person Oct. 7 at the Raleigh Convention Center.

Dr. Shannon Powell has been invited to join the Editorial Panel of the Journal of School Nursing for 2023-25.

The Journal of School Nursing (JOSN) is a bimonthly peer-reviewed forum for improving the health of school children and the health of the school community. The JOSN seeks to engage a broad range of clinicians, scholars, and community leaders in an ongoing exchange of information through scholarly articles, including original research, brief research reports, literature reviews, evidenced-based innovations and quality improvement in clinical practice or policy, and letters to the editor.

The journal has a potentially 12-member Editorial Panel composed of scholars and experts in one or more of the issues facing school children, school communities and school nurses.

“Receiving an invitation to serve on the Editorial Board of the National Association of School Nurses is a huge honor,” Powell said.

The East Carolina University College of Nursing is the largest school or college of nursing in North Carolina. Though bigger is not always better, our programs boast the best outcomes per capita for schools our size across the nation. Our average first time NCLEX pass rates for the last 10 years is approximately 97% (national average for 2022 was 79.9%).

I am proud to announce that for the May 2023 graduate cohort, for the first time in school history, we have a 100% NCLEX pass rate and a 98.3% pass rate for 321 students for the academic year. We have a rigorous program that graduates practice ready nurses to care for residents of NC and beyond.

Congratulations to our students who did an awesome job, the Baccalaureate Education Department faculty and staff (led by Susan Kidd), simulation and lab faculty and staff (led by Laura Gantt), Student Services Department (led by Dr. Erin Beaman), counselors (led by Gwendolyn Tyson), the NCLEX review team led by Francis Eason, leadership of the College, our community partners, and everyone who contributed to the success of our students - it takes a village.

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