3 7 16 At University Day, Folt issues apology, calls for purposeful action moving forward

16 Pages·2017·2.37 MB·English

OCTOBER 24, 2018
VOL. 43, NO. 18
@univgazette
gazette.unc.edu
CAROLINA FACULTY AND STAFF NEWS
Deerfield Management commits At University Day, Folt issues apology,
up to $65M for new drug research calls for purposeful action moving forward
company at Carolina
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JO SC SC Faculty Marshal Terry Rhodes leads the platform party to Memorial Auditorium to celebrate
Carolina’s 225th birthday on University Day.
Terry Magnuson, vice chancellor for research, Dhiren Thakker of the Eshelman School of Phar-
macy and Blossom Damania of the School of Medicine are the inaugural University members of
the joint committee that will direct Pinnacle Hill. At the celebration of Carolina’s 225th and future and be the diverse and just com-
birthday, Chancellor Carol L. Folt acknowl- munity that is fitting for America’s first public
edged the University’s complicated past as the university,” Folt said. “Our apology must lead
Carolina and Deerfield Management have entered into a partnership to create Pinnacle
nation’s first public university and called for to purposeful action and it has to build upon
Hill LLC., a company seeking to discover new medicines to address today’s significant
purposeful action as it moves forward. the great efforts and sacrifices of so many
unmet medical needs. Deerfield has committed $65 million of targeted funding and
In her welcome remarks, Folt apologized
to provide drug development expertise in support of promising new drug research across a wide
for the University’s participation in the prac- See CEREMONY page 8
range of therapeutic areas.
tice of slavery. The University was built and
The partnership will be launched formally at an Oct. 30 event on campus.
sustained by slaves in its earliest days, and
“This is a very exciting new partnership between UNC-Chapel Hill and Deerfield Manage-
ment. In creating a new company, Pinnacle Hill, we are bringing together the best of academia Folt is the first Carolina Chancellor to issue an More University Day
apology.
and industry to accelerate innovative drug research,” said Chancellor Carol L. Folt. “By investing coverage inside
“As chancellor of the University of North
in our faculty’s early stage research, this partnership advances our commitment to improving the
health and well-being of people around the world.” Carolina at Chapel Hill, I offer our Univer- Director of ceremonies
6
sity’s deepest apology for the profound injus- Stacey Warner
Research and development conducted at Pinnacle Hill will be supported by funding, expert
tices of slavery, our full acknowledgment of
drug development guidance, experienced project management oversight and business strategy. Edward Kidder Graham
7
the strength of enslaved peoples in the face of Award winner Bland Simpson
These efforts will serve to improve and accelerate the product development process and allow
their suffering, and our respect and indebted-
founding scientists to concentrate on their research.
8 Photos of the day
ness to them. I reaffirm our University’s com-
Pinnacle Hill will focus on drug research projects that are approved and directed by a joint
mitment to facing squarely and working to
steering committee comprised of members from Carolina and Deerfield leadership teams.
right the wrongs of history, so they are never 9 Distinguished Alumni Awards
Each selected project has the potential to receive funding to support investigational new drug
again inflicted,” Folt said.
enabling studies. The inaugural University members of the joint committee will be:
Folt said that Carolina is the only public 10 Blue Sky Scholars
T erry Magnuson, vice chancellor for research and the Sarah Graham Kenan professor
university that has experienced U.S. history
of genetics,
from the start. 11 Speaker Felicia A. Washington
“Our unique legacy demands that we con-
See DEERFIELD page 15 tinue to reconcile our past with our present
VC Winston Crisp Bland Simpson Visiting lecturer
3 7 16
will always be a wins Edward Kidder Tiber Falzett promotes
Tar Heel. Graham Award. Scottish Gaelic culture.
2 UNIVERSITY GAZETTE
It’s fun to be appreciated
very day, Carolina fac-
ulty members engage
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munity and the state, nation
and the world.
Tune in to Focus Carolina
during morning, noon and
evening drive times and on
the weekends to hear their
stories and find out what
ignites their passion for
their work. You can listen to
WCHL at 97.9 FM or 1360
AM. The interviews will also
When Carolina students go on fall break, it’s time for University faculty and staff to kick up be available anytime online at gazette.unc.edu under the Focus Carolina tab.
their Heels at Employee Appreciation Day. The bright sunlight and moderate temperature
Focus Carolina is an exclusive program on WCHL in Chapel Hill, sponsored by
on Oct.19 brought out thousands of employees to the Pit for a free lunch buffet, live mu-
sic, carnival games, great discounts at the Student Stores and swag. This year’s featured the University.
item from the host, the Division of Workforce Strategy, Equity and Engagement, was a
see-through stadium bag.
ALLISON AIELLO
Airs week of Oct. 22
Dr. Allison Aiello is a professor of epidemiology in
Speak Up Carolina the Gillings School of Global Public Health, where
she studies how diseases like the flu are spread, what
website launched
L social factors might determine who gets a disease,
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HO how often it might recur and how it is spread. She
C
Tlichaet iUonni.v eItrss imtyi sGsiaozne titse tios ab Uuinldiv ear ssietyn speu bo-f PoTlihcye OMfafincea goefm Eethnitc sh Easd ulacuanticohne adn da LINGS S cise uanti ceaxlp inetret rivne inntfilounesn fzoar, filnuv persetvigeanttiinogn .n Soonm-peh oafr mhear-
campus community by communicating new website for the Carolina commu- GIL studies incorporate the use of smart phone apps.
information relevant and vital to faculty nity to share experiences and advice
and staff and to advance the University’s
on difficult issues. Speak Up Carolina
overall goals and messages.
(speakup.unc.edu) is an Onyen-pro- ED MAYDEW
EDITOR tected site that consists of wide range Airs week of Oct. 29
Susan Hudson (919-962-8415)
of scenarios, with suggested responses
[email protected] Ed Maydew is the David E. Hoffman Distin-
and a link for the user to provide other
guished Professor of Accounting and director of the
SENIOR EDITOR
responses or scenarios. Examples
Gary C. Moss (919-962-7125) UNC Tax Center, which brings together tax scholars,
include inappropriate behavior, hate
[email protected] policymakers and practitioners. His research focuses
speech, ageism and profiling. The sce- R
SENIOR CONTENT MANAGER narios are divided by location: Class- GLE on taxation and accounting and the role they play in
Scott Jared (919-962-6770) room, Workplace, Community and FLA economic decisions.
[email protected] N
Campus Spaces. NA
DESIGN AND LAYOUT The site is intended to: KE
UNC Creative (919-962-7123)
support self-awareness,
CHANGE OF ADDRESS acknowledge shared experiences,
KELLY RYOO
Make changes through your department’s
encourage discussion and
HR representative. Airs week of Nov. 5
find strategies and resources.
The editor reserves the right to decide “When hurtful or alienating incidents Kelly Ryoo came to Carolina in 2012 and is focused
what information will be published in the
occur, they affect us all. We may not on creating ways to design and use technology to help
Gazette and to edit submissions for consis-
tency with Gazette style, tone and content. know what to say. We say something English learners with science. She is currently working
and regret it. We may laugh uncomfort- on a five-year program to help eighth-grade science
L
L
ably," reads the website’s introduction. HI teachers in four schools in economically challenged
L
E
“These events can be insidious and iso- AP areas of North Carolina have tools they need to sup-
H
lating; when that happens, they become C port science learning for all students including those
READ THE GAZETTE ONLINE AT C-
part of the environment, and ultimately, UN who speak English as a second language.
gazette.unc.edu
they corrode community.”
OCTOBER 24, 2018 3
Crisp’s years of service to Carolina have been ‘a labor of love’
It was time.
That is the one thing Winston Crisp knows for sure about his
decision to step down as vice chancellor for student affairs.
“I am just in a stage of life thinking about what is next,” he said.
A 1989 graduate of Johnson C. Smith University and a 1992
graduate of Carolina’s School of Law, Crisp became the law
school’s first assistant dean for student affairs. He was in that
position in 1995 when a third-year law student named Wendell
Williamson shot and killed two people and wounded two others
in downtown Chapel Hill.
A CALMING PRESENCE
That incident, Crisp said, “is probably responsible for the
direction of my career in terms of becoming someone who spent
a lot of time in crisis management.”
He has taught crisis management for the past 15 years and found
himself in the midst of it time and again throughout his career.
In summer of 2007, while Crisp was associate dean for stu-
dent services at Carolina, colleagues at Virginia Tech asked him
to serve as a volunteer on loan on their campus after the shoot-
ing tragedy there. Crisp provided that same calm and steadying
presence eight years later as vice chancellor of student affairs
in the aftermath of shooting deaths of three young Muslim stu-
dents in Chapel Hill in February 2015.
“What crisis does is speed us up,” Crisp said. “We get in a tizzy
and we make decisions at a speed and in conditions that we nor-
mally wouldn’t be making. I found out that I am one of those
people, when everybody else is speeding up, I slow down.”
LOOKING AHEAD
The need to slow down—and reduce stress—was a factor in
his decision to retire, along with a desire to devote more time
with his family and to think about how he wants to spend the
final years of his career. Crisp has served as vice chancellor of stu-
dent affairs since 2010.
This place will always be a part of R
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am or what I am doing, I am and N
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will always be a Tar Heel.
Winston Crisp came to Carolina to attend law school when he was 21 and, with the exception of a summer at Virginia Tech, he has
been here ever since. He will retire from the University at the end of October.
WINSTON CRISP
whether talking on stage or sitting across from a student in his “I don’t want anybody to get this wrong: I would change noth-
office, Crisp had the capacity to connect with students to dis- ing about my path, and I have loved being the dean of students
“There is no question that a factor in all of this has been my pense advice both inspirational and instructive. Whatever the and then the vice chancellor of student affairs,” Crisp said. “I have
health,” Crisp said. “I got sick last year, and it took me the bet- next thing turns out to be, Crisp said, he knows it will include poured my heart into it, and I have given it everything that I knew
ter part of this year to get healthy again and I am. I only know more time teaching and mentoring young people. how to give. But I have also been given a tremendous amount by
how to do this job full throttle, and I am finally at a stage in life “I’ve spent the last 15 years essentially being a CEO of a com- being in this position.”
where it is time to do something else that doesn’t tax me quite pany and it’s been great. I loved every minute of it. But now I want Crisp said he feels the way he did when he left his family for
as hard.” to go back to spending most of my time doing what gives me the college to find his own place in the world.
This past year, for instance, he led efforts to form a mental health most joy, which is working with young people more directly and “Carolina has been my home my entire adult life and I am leav-
task force to assess mental health care needs for students. And as trying to teach and mentor.” ing home,” Crisp said.
the students intensified their push for the removal of the Confed- “I will take with me the positive memories of the people whose
UNBREAKABLE BONDS
erate Monument from McCorkle Place, Crisp continued his lead- lives I have touched and whose lives have touched mine. It has just
ership role as co-chair on the Chancellor’s Task Force on UNC- Crisp came to Carolina to attend law school when he was 21 been overwhelming. This place will always be a part of my very
Chapel History to develop a plan to add signs, markers and online and, with the exception of a summer at Virginia Tech, he has soul. No matter where I am or what I am doing, I am and will
content about McCorkle Place to give people a deeper and fuller been here ever since. He leaves, he added, with a deep and abid- always be a Tar Heel.”
understanding of Carolina’s institutional history. ing love for Carolina — and gratitude for the opportunity to
To students, he was affectionally known as “Vice Crispy.” And serve it. – Gary Moss, University Gazette
4 UNIVERSITY GAZETTE
THE
T H O M A S J E F F E R S O N A W A R D S
The Thomas Jefferson Award was established in 1961 by the Robert Earll McConnell Foundation. It is presented annually
to “that member of the academic community who through personal influence and performance of duty in teaching, writing,
and scholarship has best exemplified the ideals and objectives of Thomas Jefferson.”
‘Show up’ is motto for Eble, a true citizen of University
Connie Eble knows why she was chosen for the 2018 Jefferson ‘I SHOW UP’
Award. “I go where I’m invited. If someone asks me to come to a meet-
“Longevity and institutional memory,” Eble said mischievously. ing and I say, ‘yes,’ I go. I’m a team player and I’m dependable. I
Then, she matter-of-factly said, “I show up.” show up,” she said.
A professor in the English and comparative literature depart- Her service includes years as a mainstay of teaching. Her
ment, Eble joined Carolina’s faculty in 1971. She is in her last favorite courses include Old English, which she taught for more
semester of teaching and will retire fully in January 2019. “I’m than 10 years. “In terms of scholarship, it was perhaps the most
thrilled to be named with Sue Estroff and join other award win- demanding. It was a graduate course, pretty obscure and some-
ners like Elizabeth Gibson, Alice Ammerman, Joy Kasson and thing I had written my dissertation on.” For undergraduates,
George Lensing,” Eble said. She added that, because Thomas Jef- she’s enjoyed teaching composition and is finishing her time
ferson’s reputation has suffered, she instead focuses on his con- with two more favorites, history of the English language (“I love
tributions to public education such as founding the University that course!”) and grammar.
of Virginia.
Eble came to Carolina as a graduate student in 1964 and
earned a master’s degree in linguistics. She began work on her
doctorate here then worked as an instructor at University of New
Orleans and University of Kentucky before finishing her disserta-
I go where I’m invited. If
tion in 1970. She returned to Carolina as an assistant professor.
She became the first woman to attain tenure in the English someone asks me to come to
Department and moved into a position as the department’s lin-
a meeting and I say, ‘yes,’ I
guist, specializing in the history, structure and current use of the
English language. go. I’m a team player and I’m
dependable. I show up.
‘TRUE CITIZEN’
But her service to Carolina constitutes exceedingly more.
CONNIE EBLE R
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A nominator described Eble as “a true citizen of the Univer- N
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sity,” who recognizes the achievements of others, encourages AR
Teaching undergraduates led to four decades of collecting and G
participation in faculty governance and public outreach and is N
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collaborative and supportive. analyzing college-student slang. During a class-time exercise, stu- J
dents fill out index cards with a slang word or phrase, a definition
That assessment is fair, Eble said. “I think I am the consum- Connie Eble received the Thomas Jefferson Award at the
and an example of its use. Alphabetized cards from 1974 on fill Oct. 12 Faculty Council meeting.
mate team player. I’m not the leader; I’m a follower. And I’ll
shoeboxes with handwritten labels such as “Sketchy to Stank” or
work with people. I’ve worked with many different committees
“Loserdom to Noob” stacked in her office. The boxes have some Orleans by parents with different gifts. Her mother, who died
over the years, and I’ve enjoyed service so much and getting to
space for the last collection in October 2018. Her 1996 book, young from cancer, was an elementary school teacher with a love
know people from other parts of the University.” Those people
Slang and Sociability: In-Group Language Among College Students, for singing and performing. Her father worked in a steel factory
included faculty, whom Eble called “absolute giants of the Uni-
is the foundational work on college slang. for more than 30 years. “He was a wonderful storyteller, who
versity,” with a willingness to make Carolina an excellent public
As retirement nears, Eble’s to-do list includes reading, learn- somehow or another at dinner could make his job sound like
university accessible to everyone.
ing to play the piano, volunteering and traveling. She will keep the most interesting place in the world,” Eble said. “He always
Her work on almost 40 University and 20 departmental com-
her hand in research, having been dubbed the “Godmother of came home with stories and was always around friends doing
mittees includes the founding of the Arts and Sciences Founda-
New Orleans linguistics” and is helping young scholars in that something.”
tion, the creation of the academic support program for student-
field. She will also remain active in her faith, which she said, as Then, there’s her dependability, which Eble attributes to being
athletes and recommendations on honorary degree recipients.
a practicing Catholic, will sustain her. “I still love grace, and it is the oldest of four siblings and the oldest of 23 grandchildren.
She also served as editor of American Speech for 10 years and as
important that I go to church and pray.” “There’s something true about the oldest taking responsibility or
president of four professional associations.
being dependable.”
In 2016, Eble won the Mary Turner Lane Award, which recog- CURIOUS, SOCIABLE, DEPENDABLE
Maybe that’s why Eble chose to “show up.”
nizes a woman who has made an outstanding contribution to the Curious, sociable and able to work with, educate and entertain
lives of women at Carolina. others, Eble’s traits may stem from her time being reared in New – Scott Jared, University Gazette
OCTOBER 24, 2018 5
Estroff relishes teaching, collaboration and community
Sue Estroff comes across as a walking, talking version of the
Social Medicine Reader, the cross-disciplinary textbook that she
helped create for medical students.
Like a book, each chapter of Estroff’s career reveals her exper-
tise in mental illness and teaching, and a love of how the humani-
ties and arts can help medical students. Add in Estroff’s leader-
ship, collaboration and outspokenness, and you can see why she
recently received a Thomas Jefferson Award in recognition of
her contributions to the University.
School of Medicine faculty who nominated her for the award
wrote that Estroff’s career represents “our highest aspiration
as a faculty.”
The professor of social medicine and adjunct professor with
appointments in anthropology and psychiatry joined Carolina’s
faculty in 1982. Estroff said that she could have remained in her
corner of campus and concentrated on medical and psychiatric
anthropology, community and social psychiatry, disability stud-
ies, stigma and chronic conditions, medical anthropology and
qualitative research.
Instead, she searched for ways to learn about the larger cam- R
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elected to Faculty Council (1995–99) then served on the coun-
Sue Estroff received the Thomas Jefferson Award at the Oct.12 Faculty Council meeting from Chancellor Folt.
cil’s executive committee and was chair of the faculty (2000–03).
CONTEXT OF COMMUNITY Turner Lane Award from the Association of Women Faculty Estroff is concerned that her students are entering a status-quo
and Professionals at UNC (2003) and the Margaret Mead award system in which they will have 15 minutes per patient. “They’re
Estroff considered Jefferson’s writings and said that, as an
(1984). She’s also written or contributed to six books about not 15-minute people. I tell them to be warriors and to resist.”
anthropologist, she concentrates on how “things he talked about
serious mental illness.
are nested in the context of community, so I’ve been thinking a
TENDENCY TO RESIST
lot about Carolina as community and how we create and sustain THE BEST ANTIDEPRESSANT
Her tendency to resist – she uses the word “intractable”—
ourselves throughout various periods.”
Along the way, a constant has been medical students. “They Estroff credits to her parents, Melvin and Elsie. “My father in par-
Her work in faculty governance covered unique periods in
are the best antidepressant that you can’t get at a drugstore. They ticular, who should have been a rabbi, but was in retail. I grew up
Carolina’s history. One was Michael Hooker’s tenure as his
are exceptional young people with tough minds and huge hearts,” in a small town, Lakeland, Florida, where the country club was
administration engaged with faculty, which resulted in a renewed
Estroff said. restricted. My father was the token OK Jewish guy, but we were
focus on intellectual climate and academic planning. After Hook-
always ‘other.’”
er’s death, James Moeser became chancellor. “It was good to
Estroff said her father, despite doing what he did to fit into the
work with James. He was forthright, and he listened. That period
business community, was defiant in ways that she noticed.
was full of good times and things were popping, then there were
“It was a big deal when people of color came to our house.
some bad times.” Both kinds left her with memories of what
Social justice and speaking out were always important. I’ll give
make Carolina special.
them credit,” she said. “When I was a kid, I was a good swim-
It was a big deal when people
QUINTESSENTIAL MOMENTS mer but wasn’t allowed on the country club team. So, when we
of color came to our house.
One of those times was the day after 9/11. As thousands moved to our second house, they built a swimming pool out of
mournfully gathered on Polk Place, Estroff was among the speak- Social justice and speaking sheer defiance.”
ers and read the poem “How to Number Our Days” by Rabbi Acceptance and respect are part of why Estroff has stayed in
out were always important.
Mordecai Menahem Kaplan. “At the end, James [Moeser] asked social medicine, where nobody’s discipline is sacred, where they
that everyone leave in silence. No one said a word. Not one I’ll give them credit. rely on each other’s expertise. “This has been the right place for
sound. I can see it just as vividly now as then — gut-wrenching me to be. It’s been an extraordinary privilege and experience to
and comforting.” SUE ESTROFF work with my colleagues. I’ve seen only their best 99.9 percent
The next summer, Estroff led a discussion with new students of the time.”
on Carolina’s summer reading book Approaching the Qur’an. And from her MacNider Hall office, Estroff revels in the col-
“Here I am a nice Jewish girl from the south teaching the Qur’an Estroff wants her students to think through social justice issues, laborative approach to education, a perfect example of which is
to people who are Baptist and evangelical and who probably end-of-life decisions, difference and disability, gender identity the Social Medicine Reader. The Reader’s editions include essays
don’t know much about my people or the people in this book. and practices such as prenatal screening. “I want them to think on challenging issues for physicians, patients and caregivers,
That’s the quintessence of what a University is about,” she said about the doctor they are constructing now, to think about those along with thought-provoking poetry. She pulls a copy from a
with a chuckle. “It was a real stretch, but that’s what I love about things before they are doing the tasks or worrying about what the shelf, flips to James Dickey’s “Under Buzzards” and reads out
this place. It’s stretched me in so many ways.” attending physician will say, to get that fulcrum, that scaffolding loud. She lets the words sink in and says, “He’s diabetic and can’t
That stretching has led to accolades and accomplishments. to test it. There’s no right answer, but it must be your answer.” stand it, so all he wants to do is drink a cold beer on a hot summer
She won a Distinguished Teaching Award in 2104 for Post–Bac- She shares a bond with students, hinted at in an exchange as day. This is so powerful for the students to read.”
calaureate Teaching, which she said “was a heart-fulfilling award, one passes by Estroff’s office. In answer to the student’s greeting, Satisfied, she closes the book. “Obviously, I love what I do.”
even though I’m not a big awards person.” Other awards include Estroff quips, “Up to no good,” then adds conspiratorially, “and I
selection to the Order of the Golden Fleece (2005), the Mary hope you’re doing the same.” – Scott Jared, University Gazette
6 UNIVERSITY GAZETTE
WHAT’S A TYPICAL DAY LIKE IN YOUR JOB?
Anything can pop up in the life of the University, and my office works to make events around what’s happening.
We put together many different types of events, including dinners, ceremonies and media announcements, and
work with different schools and units when they reach out.
PEOPLE HOW DOES YOUR WORK SUPPORT CAROLINA’S MISSION?
We strive to make Carolina a place that everyone wants to come to and where everyone feels welcome and at
home. I love to provide experiences like University Day and Commencement to make that happen.
WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT YOUR WORK?
I’m very fortunate to get to interact with a wide range of people — students, senior leadership, faculty and
staff — and be truly be involved with each one. I get the opportunity to plan maybe the most special events on
campus for the life of the University, such as University Day and Commencement. It means the world to me that I
get to have a hand in these events because they are so important to this place — and this is a place I love and cherish.
WHAT IS YOUR ROLE WITH UNIVERSITY DAY?
As director of ceremonies, it’s my job to make University Day run as seamlessly as possible. My role extends far
beyond just the ceremony; I coordinate most of the day’s events. We have a University Day Committee, and I keep
them informed on event logistics and run new ideas by them. I’m the keeper of the event schedule and the script,
working with all the key players to pull it all together. I work very closely with the speakers, making sure that they
have everything that they need. My team takes care of everything from steaming the regalia to handing speakers
R their script notebooks when they walk out of the door.
E
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R WHAT IS THE PLANNING PROCESS FOR UNIVERSITY DAY LIKE?
A
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N As soon as one University Day is over, I begin preparing for the next. We start planning in the spring, when we
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select our Distinguished Alumni Award winners. We communicate with them throughout the summer. Since a lot
of University Day is based on tradition, a lot of things stay the same from year to year. But, since this year is Caro-
Stacey Warner
lina’s 225th anniversary, we wanted to do a few extra things to make it special, so there was a little more planning
involved this time, but that makes it fun.
DIRECTOR OF CEREMONIES AND
MEDIA EVENTS Carolina People is a regular feature in each issue of the Gazette that asks one of your fascinating colleagues five questions
about the work they do for the University. Do you know someone with an interesting or unique job at Carolina? Please
16 years working at Carolina
email your suggestions to [email protected] and put Carolina People in the subject line.
Faculty Council supports permanent removal of the Confederate Monument from campus
In its first meeting of the academic year, Fac- anything without action. And while we’ve had me,” said Baumgartner, who is white. But he received numerous threats from neo-Nazis and
ulty Council unanimously approved a resolu- many actions, we still have many actions to related the story of a black woman colleague white supremacists since she protested at the
tion to permanently remove the Confederate come,” she said, referring to the Nov. 15 dead- who said she was traumatized by “that stupid monument.
Monument and its pedestal from campus. line from the UNC Board of Governors for the story about Julian Carr and that black woman.” When a council member requested to hear
The resolution, On Supporting a Statement University to submit a plan for the disposition The story is from a speech given by Carr at the thoughts of black faculty members, two
from UNC Black Faculty on the Permanent and preservation of the Confederate Monu- the 1913 dedication of the Confederate Monu- women responded.
Removal of Silent Sam from Campus, com- ment. Folt then read to the council the text of ment in which he boasted that he had “horse- “I personally would not consider it accept-
bined two similar proposed resolutions about her apology. (See story on page 1.) whipped a Negro wench until her skirts hung in able for [the statue] to remain on this campus in
the controversial statue, which was toppled “So now it’s up to us. We have to make good shreds.” The speech and the fact that the statue any form,” said Dr. Adaora Adimora, professor
from its pedestal by protesters Aug. 20. on it. We have to hold us accountable,” she said. was part of a wave of Confederate monuments of epidemiology. “In my view, it represents not
The Oct.12 meeting began with the presen- The only business on the Faculty Council erected in public spaces at the height of the Jim only white supremacy but also past treasonous
tation of the Thomas Jefferson Awards and the agenda dealt with the Confederate Monument Crow era have been cited many times by those activity against the United States.”
Hettleman Prizes that had been postponed resolutions. in opposition to the monument as proof that Dr. Yolanda Scarlett, assistant professor of
because Hurricane Florence forced the can- Political science professor Frank Baumgart- Silent Sam is as much a tribute to white suprem- medicine, prefaced her remarks by saying that
cellation of the faculty’s September meeting. ner presented a resolution calling for the perma- acy as it is to the Confederate dead. she came from “mixed heritage,” with ancestors
(Read profiles of the two Jefferson Award win- nent removal of the statue, in support of a Sept. In their statement, the black faculty pointed on both sides of the Civil War. “That was a
ners on pages 4 and 5 and of the four Hettleman 6 statement by 54 black faculty (later supported out that “the memorial remains consistent in nasty time in history. It happened. We can’t
Prize recipients on page 11.) by more than 400 other faculty members) on its meaning to what its historical meaning was; change it. We should learn from it and move
In her remarks, Chancellor Carol L. Folt the grounds that Silent Sam creates a “racially it’s the University that’s changed,” Baumgart- forward,” she said. “But I do not think we can
referred to that morning’s University Day cer- hostile work environment.” ner said. “Thank goodness the University move forward with the base or the statue any-
emony, and the apology she issued at it for the “When I walk past that statue, it bothers me has changed.” where on our campus.”
University’s role in slavery. in my brain. It doesn’t bother me in my gut. It Earlier in the meeting, council members
“I understand that the apology doesn’t mean doesn’t bother me in my heart. It doesn’t scare heard from a graduate student who said she has – Susan Hudson, University Gazette
OCTOBER 24, 2018 7
Bland Simpson receives 2018 Edward Kidder Graham Award
When English professor and writer Bland Simpson was just a
little boy, he accompanied his grandfather Julius Andrews Page
Sr. on long strolls across Polk Place on the Carolina campus.
They would walk from building to building where his Grand-
daddy Page would discuss such arcane things as mortar joints in
intricate detail.
He was too young to understand what a university was, Simp-
son said, and his grandfather’s familiarity with all the buildings
they visited led Simpson to believe he owned them. Simpson
later learned that his grandfather knew so much about buildings
because he was the superintendent of construction for the firm
that built many of them.
One of Page's first projects in 1924–25 was to transform
Smith Hall, which was once a ballroom, a library and the building
where in the spring of 1865 Union cavalry stabled its horses, into
Playmakers Theatre. Page went on to build Kenan Stadium, the
Bell Tower, the new Memorial Hall and Wilson Library, which
R
his grandfather considered the heart and soul of the campus E
N
because it exemplifies knowledge and learning. RDI
A
Simpson was a boy when his grandfather showed him the invis- G
N
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ible patch in one of the six Corinthian columns on the east corner J
of Wilson. The patch covers the five-inch chip gouged from the
Vice Provost Ron Strauss congratulates Bland Simpson for winning the 2018 Edward Kidder Graham Award as distinguished alumni
column section as it was rolled into place from a railroad track. honorees Tift Merritt and Peter Henry applaud.
When his grandfather saw that chip, he directed a team of Ital-
ian stone masons to fix it, said Simpson, the Kenan Distinguished storytelling voice springs out of his writings as well as his songs inviting him back one semester, then one year, at a time. During
Professor of English who began teaching creative writing at his — you hear his words on the page more than you read them.” this period, he ran into David Perry, an old college buddy who
alma mater in 1982. Many of his books, from Into the Sound Country, A Carolinian’s happened to be a senior editor at UNC Press, who planted the
All these years later, Simpson said, it is still a magical experi- Coastal Plain (UNC Press, 1997) to Little Rivers & Waterway idea in his head to write about the place he knew and cared about
ence to walk by Wilson Library and other campus buildings that Tales, A Carolinian’s Eastern Streams (UNC Press, 2015), feature the most—eastern North Carolina.
he first visited with his grandfather years ago. And on University the photography of his wife, Ann, who has said of her lifelong Simpson did not act on Perry’s suggestion right away, but
Day, Simpson forged a new connection between his grandfa- collaborator, “He always has a way of telling stories that connect several years later, he began work on what would become The
ther’s work and his own when he received the 2018 Edward Kid- people to things or places or ideas.” Great Dismal. After the success of that first book, Simpson
der Graham Faculty Service Award. told Perry he was eager to write more about the east. Perry hap-
‘LUCKY IN EVERY DIRECTION’
His grandfather also helped build Graham Memorial, which pily obliged.
opened in 1931 to honor Edward Kidder Graham, the progressive Yet, Simpson readily acknowledges, he did not start out with a “I am lucky in every direction,” Simpson said. “I don’t really
young University president who died in the influenza epidemic of plan to write any of those books. “All of it was just a happy acci- know anyone luckier than I am, and I count every one of those
1918. The award recognizes Graham’s call to public service and dent. It was luck,” he said. blessings all the time.”
his vision of the campus being “coterminous” with the borders of He created much of that luck, he will tell you, simply by fol-
‘YOU ARE THE UNIVERSITY’
the state. lowing the advice of people who had better sense than he did
Simpson said it was a great honor to win an award named for about what he should do at critical points of his career. When Simpson returned to Carolina’s English department in
1989, after several years of musical touring, he eventually won
one of his favorite University leaders.
the tenured and endowed position he still holds. Another bit of
“I am very glad that Edward Kidder Graham focused the phrase
good fortune was getting an office next to the late Doris Betts
‘service to the state’ so clearly,” Simpson said, “to remind us even
who, along with office-mate professor Jerry Leath Mills, Simpson
today that is why we are here. It’s always there in your heart.”
said, taught him everything he would ever need to know about
A WRITER’S EYE, A MUSICIAN’S EAR how to go about being a writer and a teacher while making time
I don’t really know anyone
Over the past four decades, Simpson’s influence—as an to give back to his students and the people around the state.
English teacher, a writer, a songwriter and a “honky-tonk piano luckier than I am and I “We all learned from her. ‘You couldn’t do everything,’ she
player” with the Red Clay Ramblers—has spread many times said, ‘but if you could, it was better to say yes than to say no.’”
count every one of those
over throughout the state. But the wellspring of inspiration for Simpson remembers the pep talk Betts gave him when he was
much his work has been and will always be the coastal plains. blessings all the time. feeling nervous about going to speak to a group in a small town
miles from campus. “I am not famous,” Simpson told her. “None
Simpson grew up in Elizabeth City and spent much time as a
boy around Albemarle Sound before his family moved to Chapel BLAND SIMPSON of them will know who I am.”
It didn’t matter, Betts told him.
Hill. Starting with The Great Dismal, A Carolinian’s Swamp Mem-
“When you walk into that room, they will see you as the Uni-
oir (UNC Press, 1990) he began writing what would become a
versity,” Betts told him. “You will have an enormous blue flag
collection of books that together chronicled the history, culture, It began with the Ed Freeman, record producer for Don
behind you. Let that give you confidence wherever you go.”
geography and mysteries of the coastal region with an encyclo- McClean’s American Pie who told him to leave New York City
Ever since, whenever he has gone somewhere to speak, Simp-
pedic depth. and go home to write North Carolina songs for a record.
son understood, whether he said greetings from Chapel Hill or
Historian Jack Temple said of his work, “Simpson has read his “It was some of the best advice I’ve ever gotten in my life,”
not, that was exactly what he was doing.
anthropology, geology, zoology and botany well, and cleverly Simpson said, and he took it, but ended up writing a book about
“That is a great privilege,” Simpson said, “and it is a great
concealed it.” music instead. That book, Heart of the Country: A Novel of
responsibility.”
He also brings to his work a writer’s eye for uncovering a Southern Music, led to a teaching offer from Max Steele, director
good story and a musician’s ear for telling it. Lucinda H. MacK- of the creative writing program in Carolina’s English department.
– Gary Moss, University Gazette
ethan, professor emerita of English at N.C. State, said, “Bland’s It was only a temporary gig, Steele told him, yet Steele kept
8 UNIVERSITY GAZETTE
University Day
CEREMONY from page 1
across the years who fought so hard for much of what we value
about Carolina today.”
Folt presided over the Oct. 12 University Day ceremony at
Memorial Hall, which marks the laying of the cornerstone of
Old East, the nation’s first public university building, in 1793.
Folt, celebrating her fifth year as chancellor, also served as one of
the keynote speakers, along with history professor and alumnus
James Leloudis and alumna Felicia Washington, Carolina’s vice
chancellor for workforce strategy, equity and engagement.
S
W
I offer our University’s deepest E
R
D
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apology for the profound A
Y
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N
injustices of slavery, our full H
O
J
acknowledgment of the strength
Balloons spell out the special year for Carolina as musicians play in the Pit.
of enslaved peoples in the face
and women who built so much of the early University and and adaptation will become commonplace as Carolina redefines
of their suffering, and our respect
sustained it.” how the modern university operates.
and indebtedness to them. R epair and renovation of the Unsung Founders Memorial Carolina’s students will continue to diversify and “we’re going
site that “will create a more respectful, contemplative space to meet them more where they are actively doing things,” Folt
CAROL L. FOLT of the sort that the Class of 2002 imagined when they pre- said. “They will integrate their learning with their off-campus
sented the sculpture as their class gift.” experiences and research. Many of them will study off campus.
Leloudis said once there is a plan for the Confederate Monu- Some may spend their entire career outside of Carolina and we
In his remarks as a co-chair of the Chancellor’s Task Force ment’s location, extensive research already conducted will help are still and always going to be preparing them to be ready to be
on UNC-Chapel Hill’s History, Leloudis detailed the Univer- “inform an exhibit and other educational materials to teach the the ones who adapt and extend their skill set so that they can be
sity’s newest efforts to install signs and educational markers in history of the monument and the era of white supremacy in creating the jobs and the ideas of tomorrow.”
McCorkle Place, the historic heart of campus and the site of Car- which it was erected.” Faculty from all fields at Carolina, Folt said, will be better sup-
olina’s first buildings. Those plans, Leloudis said, include: In her remarks, Washington detailed how Carolina helped her ported “to take their work out into the world however they see
S igns and thresholds markers at the quad entrances that will begin her journey toward accomplishing her dreams of going to that can take place, to take risks and to collaborate in solution-
mark the birthplace of American public higher education law school and then becoming a partner at a law firm, a member oriented teams that will span the globe.”
and acknowledge the indigenous people who “were the first of the Board of Trustees and a vice chancellor. Many jobs of today will phase out, she said, and Carolina will
stewards of this land, and whose descendants work, study “My story is not unique. My story is that of thousands before help the state retrain its workforce to develop the skills needed
and teach here today.” me and thousands yet to come,” Washington said. “This is Caro- for the future.
A marker near the Unsung Founders Memorial that “will lina: the place of continuing, virtually unlimited opportunity for “No matter what the future brings, I am confident that Caro-
express the University’s deep contrition for its role in the students.” lina will both ride and guide those changes,” Folt said.
injustices of slavery and invite visitors to join us in research- Folt followed Washington’s speech with predictions for the
ing and recovering the full humanity of the enslaved men future, noting that the accelerating pace of change, innovation – Susan Hudson, University Gazette
S
W
DINER ANDRE
N GAR HNNY
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Award recipients and speakers at University Day sway to the alma mater at the close of the ceremony. Both Rameses mascots helped the University celebrate its
225th birthday.
OCTOBER 24, 2018 9
University Day
5 receive 2018 Distinguished Alumni Awards
DONALD A. BAER
Donald A. Baer is chairman of the global strategic communications firm Burson Cohn & Wolfe. From
2012 to 2018, he was chair and CEO of its predecessor firm, Burson-Marsteller, where he had served as
vice chair since 2008. Previously, Baer was senior executive vice president for strategy and development at
the global media company Discovery Communications. From 1994 to 1998, he was an assistant to Presi-
R
E
D dent Bill Clinton, serving as White House communications director and, before that, as chief speechwriter
E
O
R and director of speechwriting and research. Currently, Baer serves as chair of the Board of Directors of
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O the Public Broadcasting Service. He is also a board member for the publicly traded Meredith Corp. and
D
A
L the nonprofit Urban Institute. Baer previously served as a member of Carolina’s Board of Visitors and
Donald A. Baer General Alumni Association Board of Trustees. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Carolina, Baer earned
a master’s degree as a Rotary International Scholar from the London School of Economics and
Political Science.
ROBERT L. BRYANT
S
W Robert L. Bryant is the Phillip Griffiths Professor of Mathematics at Duke University. Previously he
E
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D served on the faculties of Rice University and the University of California at Berkeley. He was formerly the
N
Y A director of the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute in Berkeley and is a past president of the Ameri-
N
N can Mathematical Society. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and a mem-
H
O D
J E ber of the National Academy of Sciences. Bryant’s research in differential geometry has had applications
T
U
The University Day audience heard from three speak- RIB in the study of minimal surfaces, the calculus of variations, and, especially, the geometry of spaces with
ers this year: Chancellor Carol L. Folt, professor James NT exceptional holonomy, an area of mathematics that, in recent years, has become important in construct-
Leloudis and Vice Chancellor Felicia A. Washington. CO ing models of theoretical high-energy particle physics. Bryant earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics
Robert L. Bryant from North Carolina State University. While a graduate student at Carolina, he was a founding member
and, later, organizer of Triangle Gay Scientists.
VAUGHN D. BRYSON
Vaughn D. Bryson worked at Eli Lilly and Co. for 32 years, concluding his career as president and CEO
in 1993. He later served as vice chairman of Vector Securities International, a private healthcare-focused
investment banking firm in Chicago. He was also president of Life Science Advisors, a healthcare con-
sulting organization, and president of Clinical Products, a medical foods company. Bryson has served on
ED the boards of directors of more than 20 companies. Bryson’s service to Carolina has included terms on
T
BU the Dean’s Advisory Board of the School of Pharmacy and on the Board of the General Alumni Associa-
RI
NT tion, including one term as chairman. In addition, Bryson served on the Carolina First Campaign Steer-
O
C ing Committee, and he is a recipient of the Board of Trustees’ William Richardson Davie Award and the
Vaughn D. Bryson General Alumni Association Distinguished Service Medal. Bryson is a graduate of the Sloan Program at
the Stanford University Graduate School of Business.
PETER B. HENRY
Peter B. Henry is dean emeritus of New York University’s Stern School of Business, where he holds the
William R. Berkley Professorship of Economics and Finance. Formerly the Konosuke Matsushita Profes-
sor of International Economics at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business, Henry is the author
of Turnaround: Third World Lessons for First World Growth. In 2008, Henry led Barack Obama’s Presi-
H
C dential Transition Team in its review of international lending agencies such as the IMF and World Bank.
RI
E
P A member of the board of the National Bureau of Economic Research and the Economic Club of New
L
A
C York, Henry also serves on the boards of Citigroup and Nike. In 2015, Henry received the Foreign Policy
S
A
P Association Medal, the highest honor bestowed by the organization. A native of Jamaica who became a
Peter B. Henry U.S. citizen in 1986, Henry was honored in 2016 as one of the Carnegie Foundation’s Great Immigrants.
Henry holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Oxford University and a doctorate in economics
from MIT.
CATHERINE "TIFT" MERRITT
Catherine "Tift" Merritt is a Grammy-nominated singer and songwriter who began her career in local
venues such as Cat’s Cradle and The Cave and soon began appearing on top-10 lists in The New Yorker
and Time. Since starting a band while a creative writing student at Carolina, Merritt has released a unique,
critically acclaimed body of work including seven albums of original material and three live records. Mer-
RDINER BUTED Irnit th hera sn ebaerelyn 2c0o-myepaar rceadre teor ,J Moneir rMitti thcahse tlol uarnedd Ethme mwyolroldu aHnda rsrhisa raendd t hhea ss tbageee nw citohv aerrteisdt sb ays vDaorine dH aesn Irleoyn.
A RI
G T & Wine, Nick Lowe and Jason Isbell. She collaborated with classical pianist Simone Dinnerstein on the
JON CON album Night and played harmonic foil and rhythm guitar for Andrew Bird in his old-time band Hands of
History professor James Leloudis details the University’s Catherine "Tift" Merritt Glory. Most recently, Merritt has been a regular contributor to the Oxford American, chronicling her 2017
efforts to install educational markers in McCorkle Place. tours with her young daughter, Jean.
10 UNIVERSITY GAZETTE
Carolina announces scholarship initiative for N.C. middle-income students
Carolina will expand its commitment to access and affordabil- North Carolinians who receive need-based aid at Carolina. For a bachelor’s degree in business administration and went
ity for North Carolina families with a new $20 million scholar- every low-income student eligible for the Carolina Covenant, on to receive a master's in business administration from
ship initiative to provide financial aid for middle-income under- there are two middle-income students supported by other forms Columbia University. A leader in the financial services sec-
graduate students within the state. The Blue Sky Scholars pro- of institutionally funded aid. The average debt for the graduat- tor, Bowles co-founded Carousel Capital, a Charlotte-based
gram will launch with a $5 million gift from alumnus and UNC ing class of 2017 was approximately $22,000, which is 22 percent middle-market private equity firm. He has also served on
System President Emeritus Erskine Bowles. The University aims less than the national average. The University estimates the Blue the boards of various companies, including Morgan Stanley,
to raise an additional $15 million to grow the program. Sky Scholars will graduate with debt of $10,000 or less. Merck, Norfolk Southern and Facebook. In 1991, Bowles
Chancellor Carol L. Folt introduced the Blue Sky Scholars The admissions and student-aid offices will identify students served as administrator of the Small Business Administration
program during the annual University Day ceremony Oct.12, for the new scholarships based on academic and extracurricular under President Bill Clinton, and later as Clinton’s deputy
honoring the 225th anniversary of Carolina’s founding as the achievement and potential, demonstrated work ethic and sense chief of staff and chief of staff. From 2005 to 2011, Bowles
nation’s first public university. The new initiative is designed to of responsibility to family and community. As part of their final- was president of the UNC System. He has also served as
fill an important gap by supporting exceptionally qualified North ized financial aid package, Blue Sky Scholars will receive: a board member of the Golden Leaf Foundation, the Duke
Carolina residents from middle-class backgrounds who qualify a n annual award of $7,500, renewable over four years; Endowment, the Carolinas Medical Center and founded a
for financial aid but do not meet the requirements for the Caro- 2 ,500 per year in work-study employment; private equity company to bring investment capital to rural
lina Covenant. The University launched the groundbreaking a one-time enrichment award of $2,500 to support North Carolina.
Carolina Covenant program in 2003 to guarantee students from internships, study abroad or other opportunities that Bowles’ gift supports The Carolina Edge, a signature initia-
low-income families could graduate debt-free. enhance their Carolina experience; and tive in the University’s $4.25 billion fundraising campaign.
“Today it is my pleasure to announce the Blue Sky Scholars access to academic, personal and career support. For All Kind: the Campaign for Carolina is the most ambi-
program to help middle-class families facing the overwhelm- “Carolina has a rich history of serving the people and state of tious university fundraising campaign in the Southeast and in
ing burden of college debt. This distinctive program expands North Carolina. The Blue Sky Scholars program is designed Carolina history. Nearly one-quarter of the overall campaign
Carolina’s commitment to excellent, affordable higher edu- to serve more North Carolinians,” said Bowles. “We want to goal, $1 billion, will fund undergraduate scholarships and
cation for the hardworking people in our state,” said Folt. recruit more of these promising, middle-income students and graduate fellowships to ensure the University can recruit the
“Thanks to a generous lead gift from Erskine Bowles, we will set them up to succeed while at Carolina and well beyond very best students. The Campaign for Carolina is inspired by
make the promise of a Carolina education possible for even graduation. Not only are we helping prepare tomorrow’s The Blueprint for Next, the University’s overall strategic
more students and their families, regardless of their ability leaders, we’ll help them hit the ground running in a modern framework built on two core strategies: “of the public, for the
to pay.” workforce and without burdensome college debt.” public,” and “innovation made fundamental.” The Campaign
Middle-income students, classified as those whose house- Bowles is a native North Carolinian, born and raised for Carolina secured $2.23 billion through the end of fiscal
hold incomes average $75,000 per year, make up the majority of in Greensboro. He graduated from Carolina in 1967 with year 2018, exceeding half of its goal ahead of schedule.
change in perspective I think that came with of things like that while I was here, and I really
R
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being an administrator was really broadened wish I had. I’d like to reenroll to participate N
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from what I had when I was a trustee. Once I in all of the resources that are available to the AR
G
was a parent, I had an even different perspective students. N
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with which to evaluate exactly what it is we’re J
doing. So I think each of those experiences gives What can Carolina do to ensure
me a unique opportunity to add value. that it’s continuing to improve
the experiences of students,
What was it like for you as a
faculty and staff?
Carolina student in the late
I really think the answer is all in the people.
'80s?
If we have people at all levels of the University
I was living my dream. It was exciting to —management, administration, faculty—who
A view from many lenses meet so many people from all over the state really care about what they’re doing, care to
and beyond. I was here, though, at the time provide a quality experience, care to make sure
that Michael Jordan was here. For some folks, that those that they are serving and that are in
Felicia A. Washington, vice chancellor for
it would be, “Need I say any more?” I did par- their environments feel welcome and they
workforce strategy, equity and engagement,
ticipate in the Black Student Movement gospel belong, care that people are getting the services
has seen the University from just about every
choir, and I was also a member of a sorority. they need, I believe that Carolina will continue
lens. At University Day, she shared those per-
And I was vice chair of honor court. I have vivid to thrive and prosper going forward.
spectives as a featured speaker at the ceremony.
memories of those three organizations.
Here is an excerpt from an interview she did for
How do you try to show that
Carolina’s podcast Well Said before the event.
How do think your experiences
you care in your role as a vice
as a student compare to the
As an alumna, former trustee, chancellor?
administrator and parent, you have ones students are having today?
I take the role very seriously. I try to think in
many unique perspectives. How
I probably spent too much time studying, the work I do how I would like to be treated,
has your appreciation for Carolina Felicia A. Washington, vice chancellor for work-
as I reflect back, and didn’t take advantage of what resources I would like to have if I were the
changed in each of those roles? force strategy, equity and engagement.
all the opportunities there were to participate recipient of what I’m charged to try to provide,
I think that each opportunity being a trustee, in. I see students participating not only in club so it’s humbling. But it gives an opportunity can actually do if we continue working together
serving as an administrator and being a parent sports, for example, but doing a lot of interna- to really show that you care. And when you’re toward the goal.
have each given me a unique lens. And I carry tional [travel] and [study] abroad—whether working with a team like the team that Chancel- To hear the complete interview or read the
all of those lenses, and the lens as an alum, as I it’s a summer intern activity or being abroad lor Folt has assembled, it really makes us under- transcript, visit unc.edu/discover/well-said-felicia-
do what I do every day. The appreciation or the for the whole semester. I didn’t take advantage stand the importance of the work and all that we washington.