June 1, 2018 Edition

Summer is the time for the 3 R’s in Student Affairs
From the Desk of Vice Chancellor Virginia Hardy

“Summers off” are rarely enjoyed by those of us working in Student Affairs.  However, I do hope that you will be able to find some time for a well-deserved break and the three “R’s” this summer…rest, relaxation and rejuvenation.  It is important for you to recharge those batteries before the campus returns to full swing with the fall semester.  So, here are a few suggestions to get you started:  

1. Read that book.  A 2009 study at the University of Sussex found that reading can reduce stress up to 68%. It works better and faster than other relaxation methods, such as listening to music or drinking a hot cup of tea.
2. Get physical.  Being active increases the brain’s feel-good neurotransmitters, you know, that “runner’s high,” but any physical activity can contribute the same feeling.
3. Create some family memories.  This does not require you to break the bank.  Simply slow down for meal times together, a walk in the park or a day at the beach.

You have impacted the lives of many students throughout the academic year.  So make sure you spend time this summer taking care of yourselves. The three “R’s” are necessary for our physical and emotional well-being. Come on in, the water’s fine—summer is a fun time to focus on you!  

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2017-2018 Year in Review

During the 2018 End of Year Celebration, Student Affairs reflected on the 2017-2018 academic year by recognizing some wonderful successes in our divisional areas.  Click the image to view a video recap of the entire year in review. 

We also presented awards to SA educators that embody the divisional values of Excellence, Student Centered, Integrity, Service, Respect and Inclusion, as well as a few Emerging Professionals. Below are the 2018 award recipients:

Excellence	Student Centered	Integrity	Service	Respect	Inclusion	Emerging Professionals
Karen Hawley	Alyssa Arnold	Leila Faranesh	Jeremy Jordan	Beth Bengala	Aaron Lucier	Jessie Ashton
Emily McLamb	Darrius Barrow	Valerie Kisler-Van Reede	Dennis McCunney	Beth Martin	Hannah Roberts	Jennifer Harrell
Lauren Thorn	Moses Hollis	John Mountz	Kathryn White	Mandy Messerli	Audra Thomas	Nick Parker
LaNika Wright	Sarah Lage			Tamika Wordlow		Stephen Wright

And we presented a new award this year — The Service-Learning Teaching Excellence Award. Congratulations to this year’s recipient Dr. Wanda Wright, assistant professor and division director of public health at ECU’s School of Dental Medicine.

 

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ECU Transitions to Handshake, a New Career Management System
Written by Patrick Roberts, Career Services Associate Director

Handshake will be the new career database system replacing ECU CareerNET this Summer.  Handshake is a combination of some of the best tools on the web today, taken from services like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. It’s designed to help Career Services precisely target career information, internship, employment opportunities, and career related events to student’s specific majors, degree types, and interests. Career Services is confident that this new system will enhance the reach of employment opportunities to ECU students and alumni by offering customizable experiences within a user friendly virtual environment.

The transition to Handshake represents a significant milestone in the continuing evolution of Career Services and the way in which we deliver services to our current students, alumni, employers, faculty and staff. ECU will be joining over 400 universities and colleges nationally and provide access to 200,000 employers within the Handshake network.  The new system will immediately increase the percentage of job postings accessible to ECU students and alumni to over 450%. 

To kick-off the partnership, ECU Career Services will be hosting an event entitled Handshake Launch Party on August 28-30 from 11 am – 2 pm in front of Dowdy Student Store. At this event free t-shirts will be provided to any students who stop by and sign up for a demonstration of the new database.

For more information on this transition click here.

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Gender Academic Success Data Collection
Written by Melissa Allay, Assistant Director for Assessment and Research

As part of ECU’s male student success action plan, Student Affairs is providing leadership in the study of gender differences in academic success.  The action plan seeks to close the gender gap in both annual retention and graduation rates at ECU.  Over the last decade, female students both at ECU and nationally have been retained and graduated at higher rates than their male counterparts.  In terms of the first year retention rate for the 2014 full-time, first-time (FTFT) cohort at ECU, 83.3% of female students returned for their second year compared to 75.8% of male students, resulting in a gender gap of 7.5 percentage points.  With respect to the 2010 FTFT cohort, female ECU students’ four-year graduation rate was 14 percentage-points higher than their male counterparts (F=39.8%; M=25.8%).  Similarly, female ECU students’ five-year graduation rate was 13.3 percentage points higher than their male counterparts (F=61.9%; M=48.6%), while their six-year graduation rate was 12.1 percentage points higher (F=65.5%; M=53.4%).  These gaps within the four-year and six-year graduate rates are very similar to both the national and UNC system undergraduate data.  Nationally, the four-year graduation gap between males and females is a 14.6 percentage point difference and the six-year gap is six percentage points.  Within the UNC System, the four-year graduation gap between the genders is a 12.5 percentage point difference and six-year gap is 6.6 percentage points.   

To assist in closing the graduation gap at ECU, both male and female undergraduate students have been included in the gender success study and information will be collected via a survey and focus groups.  In total, 5,500 undergraduate students were invited to participate in the survey and 1,100 expressed a willingness to participate in the focus groups.  In addition to these assessment methods, institutional data such as student characteristics, student engagement, academic performance, and financial aid, will be collected to provide a more holistic analysis in determining best practices.  Results will be used to create briefings to inform Student Affairs and Academic Affairs faculty and staff of factors that help males and females succeed.  Student Affairs staff can anticipate a divisional presentation to discuss findings and how Student Affairs can shape their practice to support the recommendations gleaned from the data in Spring 2019. 

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Student Affairs Making Headlines

Club Sport Highlights

ECU Club Disc Golf A Team placed 10th overall in the nation which is the highest finish since the start of that program.  ECU Club Disc Golf B Team finished 8th in the First Flight Division and deemed Most Competitive in School History. 

ECU’s Club Baseball team defended its National Club Baseball Association World Series title in Holly Springs, NC by making their sixth World Series appearance since 2011. The ECU club team won the title in 2011 and 2017.  

SIL Activity Challenge
This past January Student Involvement and Leadership started a fun and slightly competitive activity challenge.  We formed groups comprised of 3 people, and started recording our steps weekly.  People keep track of their steps through various devices, fit bits, pedometers, phones and we have all encouraged each other to get up get moving and increase our steps!  Each Friday we tally our group’s step count.

Along the way, we have had fun weekly challenges:
Biggest weekly Step Count per group –  200,000+
Biggest Daily Step Count per individual – 26,000+ steps in ONE DAY
Coolest Selfie with bonus points for walking with a friend –  Someone’s friend was an alligator!

A blog was created where everyone could view the weekly total count and see the progress.

Initially, when they discussed this amongst the Community Committee, they thought they might log 5,000 miles.  In their final week of the challenge (end of April), SIL had recorded 10,556 miles!  33 Staff members directly participated in the challenge and even those who did not send in their steps weekly enjoyed the fun and awareness of how much we move and….how much we don’t.  

The winning team was announced at the SIL Retreat May 29th and it was a nail biter to the end as 2 teams were within 50,000 steps of each other! CONGRATULATIONS to “Thug Life” (Fred Slade, James Holloway & Fred Tyson) who had 2,928,469 steps = 1,464 miles.
Greek Life Publication

Jessie Ashton, Greek Life Assistant Director, recently published a Crisis Management issue for the AFA Essentials e-publication in May.  Essentials is a monthly educational e-publication provided to AFA members to explore selected topics. Jessie serves on the editorial board for the publication where the editions seek to start conversation around the way they approach their work and to illuminate innovative ways of pushing the fraternal movement forward.

PICA Award

Student Activities Board has once again been recognized by the Print Industry of the Carolinas.  The 2017 Barefoot on the Mall marketing for the “Cirque De Barefoot” themed event received a Special Judges Award for the poster design.  The designer of the work was Brad Ritchie for ECU Creative Services.

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ECU Fraternity Members Help with Community Cleanup

East Carolina University Greek Life students collaborated with the Greenville City Council to host a Grid Cleanup in the neighborhoods bordering ECU’s campus on April 29.  

 The Grid is the residential area located between ECU’s main campus and the Tar River including First Street, Brownlea Drive, Riverwalk and Fifth Street. 

Numerous Interfraternity Council (IFC) organizations participated in this beautification project for the city. IFC chapters met just before noon and dispersed throughout the area. Each IFC organization and its members were assigned a specific street on the Grid to clean up. 

“IFC is ready to take a bigger role in the community and produce a positive effect throughout the East Carolina student body,” said Colin Quaste, vice president of IFC Service & Philanthropy.

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Student Media Hosts Showcase, Interactive Open House at PirateFest
Written by John Harvey, ECU Director of Student Media

For the second year in a row, East Carolina University’s Student Media came to PirateFest to show off its media with two days of activities, including a showcase, interactive open house and dance party.

Friday, April 13, Student Media partnered with Coastal Fog to host its first “Celebrating Student Media Showcase.” The showcase consisted of art created by student staff members, as well as performances and music from contributors to ECU’s minority publication Expressions.

In addition to expressions, ECU Student Media is made up of The East Carolinian student newspaper and affiliated website the eastcarolinian.com, WZMB 91.3 FM college radio, the Buccaneer yearbook, The Hook magazine, Rebel arts and literary journal and their Advertising & Marketing Agency.

“I am extremely proud of our students and how they came together to show the community what tremendous talent they have,” said Student Media Director John Harvey. “This was a terrific event, and I hope it becomes a tradition for us. It’s a great way to end the year.” 

Mollie Pittman, a junior art major and designer for The East Carolinian, has been painting since she was 5. She said she was excited to get the chance to show off her work at the showcase along with the other works produced by members of Student Media.

Pittman said that while many of her friends and family members came out to support her, the showcase was also a great way to meet new art lovers within the Greenville community.

“I was able to interact with amazing people and share my passion with them,” Pittman said. “Having the live performances at such as great location really wrapped it all together and made my night perfect.”

Saturday, April 14, Student Media hosted an interactive open house in the newsroom of The East Carolinian, Self Help Building, Suite 100F, in downtown Greenville. During the open house, participants got to see their own stories come to life and were given a personalized front page at the end of the tour. 

“We love getting the chance to show people what we do at The East Carolinian,” said Annah Schwartz, editor-in-chief of the paper. “A lot of people don’t know exactly how putting together a newspaper is done, so this gave them the unique opportunity to be a part of that process. It’s also awesome to get the chance to work so closely with all of Student Media’s divisions to make that happen.”

Outside of the office, WZMB 91.3 FM held a free dance party for PirateFest goers, complete with limbo and free Student Media giveaways.

WZMB 91.3 FM Station Manager Kayla Schmidt said the dance party was a “perfect way to attract people to the Student Media section of the festival.”

“Exposing Greenville to new music and artists while having an area for them to enjoy, that was definitely a success,” Schmidt said.

Victoria Schule, general manager of the Magazine Division, agreed.

“It was really great to see everyone come on out and attend the event and see people perform. I love these sort of events because there is so much passion behind people’s art, and having an event like this really gives artists and creatives a platform to show who they are.”

Student Media’s Marketing Coordinator Abbey Leach said working with all of the divisions to plan out PirateFest events was a great opportunity to show the community what Student Media is capable of.

“We wanted to give the community a way to interact with ECU and Student Media,” Leach said. “It was nice being able to take creative ideas from each division and have each division show what they can do and learn from the others. After all, we are one.”

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Student Veteran Services Office Move

Effective May 10, 2018, ECU’s Student Veteran Services offices have moved from Brewster D-107 to the Mendenhall Student Center.  The move includes all SVS staff as well as the Student Lounge to the second floor of MSC near the Great Rooms.

New Locations:

• Nicole Jablonski, Assistant Director – MSC 233
• Kim Treece, Vet Success Counselor – MSC 234
• Lisa Brown, SVS Coordinator – MSC 254A
• The Student Veteran Services Lounge – MSC 254

If you have questions, please email vets@ecu.edu or Nicole at jablonskin15@ecu.edu.

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Trainings Announced

Run-Hide-Fight Training

We are happy to once again offer this training opportunity to our Division.  More than 240 SA staff participated in the Run-Hide-Fight training during 2017.  During the past year, we have had many new faces join our division.  At the same time, we have some of our current staff that either weren’t able to attend last year or would simply like a refresher.  This training is for anyone interested.  

The Run-Hide-Fight training will be held June 4, 2018 at 1:30pm in the MSC Great Rooms.  ECU Police Officer Travis Kornegay will conduct the training.  

REQUIRED:  If you plan to attend, you must watch this short video in advance of the June 4th training session.  Click here to access the video and then click on the “Faculty/Staff Version” of “Shots Fired on Campus: When Lightning Strikes.”

Safe Zone Trainings

The LGBT Resource Office announces the following Safe Zone trainings:

Thursday, June 14 from 1:30 to 4:30 pm in the East Carolina Heart Institute Auditorium

Friday, June 15 from 9:00 am to Noon in Mendenhall Student Center, Room 244
Wednesday, July 18 from 9:00 am to Noon in Mendenhall Student Center, Room 244
Tuesday, August 7 from Noon to 3:00 pm in Mendenhall Student Center, Room 244
Wednesday, August 8 from 1:00 to 4:00 pm in Laupus Library, Room 1504

Safe Zone training is an opportunity for people to talk, learn, and ask questions about sexuality and gender in a non-judgmental, safe, educational environment.  The purpose of Safe Zone is to create a network of allies who are willing to talk to students about sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression. Trainings are offered throughout the year on Main Campus and the Health Sciences Campus. Each session is three hours in length and includes a panel of students who share their experiences as members of the LGBT community on campus.

Registration for ECU faculty and staff is open through Cornerstone.

For more information, please contact Mark Rasdorf, Associate Director for the LGBT Resource Office, at (252) 737-4451 or via email at rasdorfm@ecu.edu.

New lapel pins are available.  If you would like one please contact Mark Rasdorf or feel free to stop by the office to pick one up.

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Just the Facts – 42 New Student Organizations

Student Activities and Organizations is excited to announce that we registered 42 new student organizations in 2017-2018 and there is now over 460 registered on campus! With all of our touch points across campus if you meet a student excited about starting a new organization the process is an easy one.

The three primary requirements are that it is student led, that they have four officer positions, and at least 10 student members to begin registration. However, not all groups can meet the minimum membership right away so if they have at least 5 students there is a probationary period for a semester while we help them with tabling across campus to meet the minimum. In September, November, February, and April over three sessions they are trained on OrgSync 101, risk management, event planning, marketing, and more to give these student leaders a running start on campus. We also check in with each organization many times a year, attend some of their meetings, and work to ensure they have a strong foundation to be on campus for many years. Overall, we try to make it as easy as possible for organizations to register on campus and also ensuring they are set up to last.

For any questions please don’t hesitate to ask Krista Wilhelm, Assistant Director for Organization Development, at wilhelmk@ecu.edu or to send interested students our way. 

Click on the image to view in a larger format.

Just the Facts is a regular communication from the Division of Student Affairs Office of the Vice Chancellor highlighting some of the amazing things happening in our area in a quick, simple, and easy-to-read manner. What we do as SA educators and staff members demonstrates our commitment to student success, public service and regional transformation.

Has something exciting happened in your area within the past few weeks? Send the fact to VCSA@ecu.edu, subject line: Just the Facts and we will include in the next edition.

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Save the Date for Pirate Palooza 2018

A friendly reminder to save the date for Pirate Palooza 2018 on Sunday, August 19th! Time is currently scheduled for 5:30-7:30, with a soft open at 5 pm.

We will be putting out the official call for staff volunteers later in the summer, and as always, we appreciate the time and energy Student Affairs educators give to make this annual event a success.

Thanks again, and be on the lookout for a sign up email in about a month or so!  For questions, contact Lauren Thorn at thornla@ecu.edu.

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New Hires / Departures in Student Affairs

The Department of Intercultural Affairs is pleased to announce the arrival of two new members of their team: Ashley Cleland and Shaun Simon!

Ashley Cleland will serve as the Associate Director of the newly-created Women and Gender Office. Prior to ECU, Ashley was at Milliken University in Decatur, Illinois where she served as Residential Communities Coordinator in the Office of Reidential Life. Ashley is a graduate of Berry College in Mount Berry, Georgia, with a Bachelor of Science in Business Management and Theatre; her Master of Education degree is from the University of South Carolina where she studied Higher Education and Student Affairs.  Previous work experiences have included planning bi-annual retreats for Millikin Resident Assistants on leadership, diversity, inclusion, communication, conflict management, and programming. While at South Carolina she served as a mentor in the Women’s Mentor Network and oversaw an all female-identified Carolina Women’s Community Living-Learning Community. Her first day of work will be June 18th and until the move to the new main campus student center, her office will be located in Mendenhall 123.

Shaun Simon will serve as the Associate Director of the Ledonia Wright Cultural Center. Prior to ECU Shaun was a Community Director at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, where she has responsibility for the day-to-day operations of a residence hall, supervises student staff, and works with colleagues to respond to campus crises. Shaun has a Bachelor of Arts in Public Relations and Advertising from Grand Valley State University and Master of Education in Educational Leadership and Policy from the University of Utah. During her career, she has had experiences with planning programs around topics related to gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, ethnicity, bystander intervention, intimate partner violence, and mentorship. Her first day of work will be June 18th and will be located in the 2nd floor of the LWCC.

Hires

• Taryn Cochran – Administrative Support – Campus Living – May 9

Departures

• Janelle Keller – Coordinator – Campus Living – May 11

• Richard Bingham – Student Services Specialist – Campus Living – May 15

• LaVance Walker – Coordinator – Campus Living- May 31

• Moses Hollis – Coordinator – Campus Living – May 31

• DJ Baskerville – Coordinator – Campus Living – May 31

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Upcoming Family Opportunities

Family Fun Day

Campus Recreation & Wellness will be hosting Family Fun Day on Sunday, June 3rd from 2:00pm – 4:00pm at the North Recreational Complex on HWY 264 East to celebrate our members and families. We invite the ECU campus community for an afternoon of inflatable water slides, kid friendly games, a dance party on the beach, and a fitness walk!  You will be able to paddle in a kayak, a canoe or a stand-up paddle board across the lake. CRW 2018 summer campers get a chance to meet the new counselors for this upcoming season! 

Light refreshments will be served. Water activities available so please come prepared to get wet. 

You must register for this event at prior to June 1st at crwregistration.ecu.edu.  Please log in with your ECU PirateID and add any dependents to your account that wish to attend. Then you will choose the icon for Special Events. 

North Rec Complex address:

Campus Recreation & Wellness
3764 US 264 East
Greenville, NC 27843 

Summer Journalism Academy

ECU Student Media will hold a High School News Academy Aug. 6-10, 2018, in the newsroom of The East Carolinian student newspaper, 301 Evans St., Suite 100-F, in uptown Greenville.

The Academy is for rising ninth through 12th graders.  The schedule runs from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Aug. 6-9 and from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 10.

ECU Student Media staff, ECU School of Communication faculty and area media professionals will teach the fundamentals of journalism, including news gathering and writing, feature writing, editing, photography and design. There will be field trips and hands-on experiences.

The cost is $125 and includes academy tuition, lunch and snacks, transportation to field trips, T-shirt and accidental insurance.

The deadline to register is Friday, July 6, 2018. For an application, the Code of Conduct/Release and Indemnity Agreement & Consent for Medical Treatment form and payment information, contact Cherie Speller, academy facilitator, at 252-328-9238 or spellerch16@ecu.edu.