Golden anniversary planning under way
Fran Gilbert, Coastal's associate vice president for development, and Chancellor emeritus Edward M. Singleton have been appointed to head a newly established committee charged with planning the university's 50th anniversary, which Coastal will celebrate in 2004.

Fran Gilbert and Edward M. (Dick) Singlenton

The anniversary commemoration is now in the pre-planning stages, according to Gilbert, who graduated from Coastal in 1978. Steering committees will be formed during the next six months to plan various aspects of the celebration, including the theme, logo and the scope of the festivities. Focus groups involving several Coastal constituencies, including students, faculty and alumni, have been conducted for the purpose of gathering ideas.

"As envisioned by the board of trustees, this 50th anniversary event is an opportunity to celebrate our shared history and reflect on how far we've come, but also to set the stage for greater achievements in the future," says Gilbert.

The celebration will kick off in the fall of 2004, since Coastal's official founding date was Sept. 21, 1954, and continue into the spring of 2005.

"This is a great milestone in the life of a great university, and we're going to do it right," said Singleton, Coastal's longest serving chancellor (1963-1983).

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Barr named Coastal Carolina University provost
Peter B. Barr returned to Coastal in the position of provost on Aug. 1. A familiar figure to most of the campus community, Barr was dean of Coastal's E. Craig Wall Sr. College of Business Administration from July 1992 to October 2000, when he resigned to accept a new position with Burroughs & Chapin Company, Inc., as chief planning and human resources officer.

Peter B. Barr

Barr says that the time he spent recently working in the private sector has allowed him to return to Coastal with a finer perspective on higher education as it relates to the world at large. "It gives you the opportunity to test what you've been teaching, as well as to bring new knowledge and information back into the curriculum," says Barr. "I think I have a much keener sense of how critical the information is that we are imparting to our students, not only in terms of content but also in terms of application."

The provost is the chief academic officer of the university. University officials who report to the provost include the deans of Coastal's academic colleges, divisions and the library, as well as the directors of the international and honors programs at Coastal.

Barr says that one of his personal goals as provost is to encourage faculty to find more ways to integrate meaningful public engagement into their teaching and research. "Coastal was founded as part of a community effort to establish a regional college, so it is inherent in our mission to maintain close relationships with the surrounding area in an effort to serve its needs. But even beyond this, we should enjoy the whole concept of public engagement because it truly is a mutually beneficial process. Our faculty and students gain vivid insights into the inner workings of our society at many different levels. And the businesses and organizations that make up our community get the opportunity to plug into the resources of a full-scale university."

Barr joined the Coastal faculty in 1987. During his tenure as dean, the Wall College of Business earned national accreditation and developed many innovative programs, including the Resort Tourism Management program, the PGA-sanctioned Professional Golf Management program, and the Wall Fellows program, an intensive leadership training initiative for top business students.

Barr also has a considerable record of volunteer community service throughout the Horry County-Grand Strand area. He is chair of the Myrtle Beach Downtown Redevelopment Corporation and is a past president of the Conway Chamber of Commerce. He has served as a member of the Carolina Bays Parkway Task Force, the Myrtle Beach Air Force Base Redevelopment Task Force and the United Way of Horry County.

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A commencement to rembember
When the May 2002 Commencement ceremony finally got under way, an hour and a half after originally scheduled, President Ingle told the graduates, "Most people don't remember much about their commencement: you will remember yours!"

President Ronald R. Ingle and speaker Judy Woodruff

Members of the graduating class and their families set out for the event on Saturday, May 11 in an unseasonably severe early morning rainstorm, and it didn't let up. Student representatives and university officials made the joint decision to go ahead with the event at Coastal Federal Field in Myrtle Beach, the originally designated location, rather than move it to an indoor facility too small to accommodate all the family members and friends who had traveled long distances to be present for the occasion.

Following a 90-minute delay, after consulting with weatherman Ed Piotrowski and watching the sky for a break in the clouds, Ingle led an abbreviated ceremony. Commencement speaker Judy Woodruff, the distinguished CNN news anchor, cut her speech to just a few comments.

"...I was warned I might be drowned out today, I thought they meant by the sound of Harleys, not by rain!", she said before summarizing her address with a few well-chosen and broadly applicable bits of advice: "Go to work early, stay late," she said. "Value excellence...Seize opportunities aggressively...Value diversity...And always keep the ability to laugh, particularly at yourself." A printed copy of Woodruff's complete remarks was mailed to the graduates, along with their diplomas, a few weeks after the ceremony.

The only part of the event that was not cut short was the conferring of degrees. Each graduate heard their name called out loud and clear by faculty announcer Preston McKever-Floyd as they walked across the wet tarp to shake hands with Ingle and their respective deans.

After shaking hands, a couple of the excited new graduates couldn't resist the slippery surface stretching out before them. They cut loose from the line, ran and slid as far as they could, barefooted, with everybody in the arena rooting for them. When it was finally time to turn the tassels, the sun came peeping through the clouds like an epiphany.

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Triple partnership boosts opportunities in criminal justice
Coastal has entered into a unique educational partnership with Charleston Southern University (CSU) and Horry-Georgetown Technical College (HGTC) making a bachelor's degree in criminal justice available for the first time in the Grand Strand area.

In August 2002, CSU began offering courses in the Criminal Justice Center on the Grand Strand campus of Horry-Georgetown Technical College leading to a bachelor of science or bachelor of technology degree in criminal justice. CSU will provide 33 hours in criminal justice studies plus three hours in religion; Coastal Carolina will provide 18 to 20 hours of course work transferable to CSU to satisfy the requirement for a minor in business administration with other minors under consideration; and students can earn up to 68 lower division hours at HGTC that are also transferable to CSU.

Graduates of the Myrtle Beach area program will meet the same curriculum requirements as those who graduate from CSU's main campus in Charleston.

"This partnership between a public and a private university and a technical college creates a novel and innovative synergy that serves the particular needs of a specialized student market," says Coastal President Ronald R. Ingle.

More and more, police departments are looking for employees who have bachelor's degrees, officials say. A four-year degree is increasingly required for personnel who wish to pursue careers in the federal law enforcement arena.

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In remembrance To commemorate the first anniversary of the September 11 tragedy, Coastal students placed 3,010 American flags, one for the life of each victim lost that day, on the Prince Lawn. The flag display was organized by the Office of Student Activities and the student Diversity Club. A memorial observance, held in Wheelwright Auditorium and led by religion instructor Preston McKever-Floyd, was attended by more than 800 Coastal students, faculty and staff.

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Speakers address Iraq crisis
During the fall 2002 semester, Coastal hosted several events which served as public forums to discuss American foreign policy regarding the national debate on Iraq.

Richard Oliver Collin, 2002 Distinguished Teacher Lecturer (left), with Scott Ritter, 2002 Kimbel Distinguished Lecturer

Scott Ritter, the controversial former chief weapons inspector in Iraq, spoke in Wheelwright Auditorium as part of the Kimbel Distinguished Lecturer Series in October. In his talk, Ritter recounted his experiences as a weapons inspector in the 1990s and defended his position (an unpopular one among his fellow Republicans) that the Bush Administration has not established sufficient reason to warrant waging a war against Iraq. Ritter also visited a political science class at Coastal and, after fielding questions from students, remarked that they seemed more politically astute than students at an Ivy League college where he had recently lectured.

Richard Oliver Collin, Palmetto Professor of politics at Coastal the 2002 Distinguished Teacher Lecturer, gave a lecture on the faltering relationship between the United States and the global community with specific reference to the Sept. 11 terrorist attack and the proposed American war with Iraq. Collin drew on his wide experience both as a scholar and as a former intelligence officer for the U.S. Defense Department to present a detailed examination of America's hegemonic position as the world's sole superpower in the post-Cold War world.

Collin also was a principal participant in a couple of on-campus "Teach-In" sessions on the Iraqi situation organized by Coastal politics professor Jim Henderson in October.

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Coastal to pioneer Beach Music study
Beach Music, a popular art closely associated with the history and culture of the Grand Strand, will be going to college soon as a result of an agreement signed recently by Coastal Carolina University and the Beach Music Association International (BMAI).

Coastal President Ronald R. Ingle, BMAI President Harry Turner and BMAI board chairman Billy Scott recently established a formal partnership, which will integrate Beach Music into Coastal's curriculum.

The study, which will focus on the cultural, sociological and musical aspects of the genre, will be positioned within Coastal's Waccamaw Center for the Cultural and Historical Studies. Center director Charles Joyner is an expert on Southern musical styles and his upcoming book on Southern music includes a chapter on Beach Music. Joyner has plans for the center to host an academic conference related to Beach Music in 2003.

Coastal Carolina already has ties to the Beach Music industry. Bill Pinkney of the Original Drifters received an honorary degree in 2001 from the university. Pinkney is scheduled to perform the national anthem at Coastal Carolina's first football game on Sept. 6, 2003. Steve Nagle, professor of English at Coastal, wrote the entry for Beach Music in the Encyclopedia of Southern Culture.

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Professors attend Master Teacher Workshop
Approximately 52 professors and instructors from Coastal participated in a Master Teacher Workshop over the 2002 holiday break in an effort to enhance their teaching skills.

"The Master Teaching Workshop provided new insights on different learning styles, new presentation models and new approaches," said Coastal Provost Peter Barr.

Yezdi Bhada, a professor emeritus of accounting at Georgia State University, conducted the workshop. He is co-director of the Master Teacher Program and is a consultant to the Office of the Provost at Georgia State. Bhada's professional experience includes a two-year visiting professorship in business administration at IMD in Switzerland and numerous presentations and seminars throughout North America and in Europe, Africa, the Middle East and South and Central America.

"I think the workshop helped to revitalize our energies, focus our efforts on what we do best, and demonstrate the critically important role of faculty," Barr said.

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Thompson, Stevens named honorary founders of Coastal

John C. Thompson

John C. Thompson and the late James P. Stevens Sr. were honored at Coastal Carolina University's 16th annual Founders' Day Convocation on Sept. 23.

Thompson, a retired Conway attorney, served on the Coastal Educational Foundation from 1973 to 1981. He also served as the foundation's legal counsel for approximately 20 years, from the 1960s through the 1980s.

Thompson earned a bachelor's degree from Davidson College in 1951 and a juris doctor degree from the University of South Carolina Law School in 1956. He served in the S.C. House of Representatives for one term in 1961-62. Thompson served as chairman of the South Carolina Public Service Authority from 1974 to 1976.

James P. Stevens Sr.

Stevens served as senator from Horry County in the South Carolina General Assembly from 1955 to 1976. A native of Loris, S.C., Stevens played an influential role in the growth and development of the county during those years. In the early 1970s he initiated the bill that would change Coastal from a two-year junior college to a four-year institution. He was also instrumental in the founding of Horry-Georgetown Technical College.

After service in World War II, Stevens earned a juris doctor degree from the University of South Carolina in 1952. He died on April 14, 2002.

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Coastal establishes new master's degree program in coastal marine and wetland studies
Coastal Carolina University has been approved by the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education to establish a new master's degree program in coastal marine and wetland studies beginning in the fall of 2003.

In the field: In addition to hands-on research, students in the master's degree program will be required to write a thesis as part of the curriculum. Another goal of the program is to develop various cooperative educational programs with the University of South Carolina, the College of Charleston and Clemson University.

According to Val Dunham, special assistant to Coastal President Ronald R. Ingle, the program was developed in response to the impressive growth in enrollment and academic achievement of undergraduate science students in recent years. The new program is set up to be interdisciplinary, drawing from across the existing undergraduate science degree programs to allow a broad base of faculty involvement and research opportunities. The program also aims to increase Coastal's community outreach by focusing on research relating to the local environment.

The new program will establish a curriculum that is unique to environmental studies in the region, attracting graduate students from across the nation who are interested in the climate, geography and landscape of the Grand Strand area. The program's core courses, including ecology, coastal processes and coastal management, differentiate it from similar programs offered in South Carolina. In addition, Coastal's facilities on Waites Island, a 1,062-acre natural laboratory on the Atlantic coast near Little River, will be expanded to create further research opportunities.

The new program will be the first master's degree offered by Coastal outside the College of Education.

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German students visit, study at Coastal
For the second consecutive summer, the Wall College of Business has hosted a contingent of German students as part of a series of exchange programs Coastal has established with universities in Germany. Twelve students and one of their professors, Brigette Grass of the University of Applied Sciences Bonn-Rhein-Sieg (near Bonn), were here for three weeks in late August and early September to study and interact with American students.

German Students studying at Coastal for three weeks pose with President Ingle and Professor Darla Domke-Damonte in the Wall Building.

For many of the students, it was their first time in the United States, although they had met several Coastal students back in May and June when a group of our students and professors visited their institutions. While at Coastal, the German students lived in the residence halls with Coastal students, attended Chanticleer Days activities and visited Coastal classes. Each German student attended a German language class so that Coastal students studying German could interact with a native speaker.

"The visit of the German students was arranged to coincide with the beginning of Coastal's fall semester in order to honor the German students' request that they be given the opportunity to interact with American students and experience the flavor of an American university," said Coastal marketing professor Darla Domke-Damonte, director of International Programs for the Wall College of Business. "The timing also allowed the maximum number of Coastal students to interact with the group. Through this summer program, 664 Coastal students were exposed to the opportunity to learn about Germany."

The German and Coastal students worked together on two projects. The first, initiated in Germany and concluded when the students reunited at Coastal, was a study of change management (or how companies manage the process of change as they respond to new technologies, shifts in the marketplace, etc.).

The students chose four German companies and four U.S. companies from four business categories: telecommunications, finance, manufacturing and tourism. They interviewed representatives of all eight companies in person. Local companies that participated in the study were HTC, Burroughs & Chapin, Carolina Trust Federal Credit Union and Beneteau, the sailboat manufacturer in Marion. German companies included Deutsche Telekom AG, Raiffeisenbank, G.A.S. and Maritin Hotels. The study was designed to discover, in qualitative and quantitative terms, differences in German and American approaches to change management.

The second project examined different approaches to problem-solving in cross-cultural versus monocultural groups as part of an experiment designed by Domke-Damonte, Grass and Joan Piroch, chair of Coastal's Department of Psychology and Sociology.

The findings of both studies were reported by the students in a formal presentation on Sept. 6, shortly before the German students left Coastal to return home to their studies. The academic year in Germany traditionally begins in late September and ends in June.

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Associate deans named in Edwards College of Humanities
Coastal Carolina University faculty members John Beard and John Navin have been named associate deans of the Thomas W. and Robin W. Edwards College of Humanities and Fine Arts.

A professor of English, Beard joined the Coastal faculty in 1988. His responsibilities as associate dean include student academic matters, scheduling, curriculum, and budget coordination. Prior to coming to Coastal, Beard was an instructor at Calhoun Community College in Alabama and a graduate teaching assistant at Florida State University and Middle Tennessee State University. Beard earned bachelor's and master's degrees from Middle Tennessee State University and a Ph.D. from Florida State University.

Navin joined the Coastal faculty in 1999 as an assistant professor of history and served last year as director of special projects for the college. His new responsibilities as associate dean involve working with the student advisory council, marketing and publicity, fundraising and other external matters, including serving as liaison with the college's Board of Visitors. Navin earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Massachusetts at Boston, a master's degree from Boston College and a Ph.D. from Brandeis University.

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NCAA certification process under way
Coastal has completed a self-study report as part of the university's NCAA Division I certification.

"The purpose of the certification process is to ensure the integrity of the university's athletics operations," said Judy Vogt, associate vice president for enrollment services and chair of the certification steering committee. "The Department of Athletics also benefits from the input of the campus-wide self-study process. It helps the department to assess its strengths and weaknesses and to develop plans for future growth."

The self-study process, directed by associate professor of biology Colleen Lohr, was organized by subcommittees responsible for various aspects of the report. Joan Piroch, professor of psychology, chaired the academic integrity committee; Alan Case, associate professor of recreation, chaired the equity, welfare and sportsmanship issues committee; Greg Krippel, associate professor of accounting, headed the committee on fiscal integrity; and Maragaret Fain of Kimbel Library organized a report on the university's commitment to the rules and governance of the athletic program.

The self-study report was submitted to the NCAA national office and an external team of reviewers examined it before visiting the campus in November. This team, comprising of peers from other Division I institutions, reported its findings to the NCAA's Committee on Athletic Certifications, which ultimately determines certification status.

The three levels of certification status are: (1) certified, (2) certified with conditions, and (3) not certified. Institutions have the opportunity to correct deficiencies, but those that fail to take corrective action can be ruled ineligible for NCAA championships.

Until recently, all NCAA institutions were required to be certified every five years. Following new rules, certification will hereafter be required every 10 years.

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New residence facility planned on Highway 544
The Residency Group, LLC, a private South Carolina-based development company, will develop a student residence facility near Coastal's Conway campus. The first phase of the 987-bed facility, to be located on a 27-acre site on S.C. Highway 544 approximately one-half mile from campus, is expected to be ready for occupancy by the 2003 fall semester.

A newly created student housing foundation will issue bonds to finance the construction. The Residence Group, LLC, will build the facility, and ownership of the property will revert to the university in 30 years.

"This facility will provide much-needed housing for our students within walking distance of campus," said Stan Godshall, Coastal's assistant vice president for budget and facilities. "It will allow us to use more of our undeveloped property for academic facilities."

The project will include 21 buildings with 47 beds each. The one, two and four private bedroom apartments will offer private baths, furnished bedrooms, living and dining rooms and kitchens.

"Initiatives between foundations and private developers have proved beneficial to many institutions of higher education across the country," said Dan Moore, chairman of the newly created student housing foundation and a member of Coastal's Board of Trustees. "This is the first time Coastal has benefited from such an undertaking and it is the second such arrangement for a South Carolina university."

Approximately 1,200 students live in Coastal's on-campus residence halls, which were filled to capacity at the beginning of the fall semester.

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Fall enrollment exceeds 5,900
Coastal's enrollment exceeded 5,900 for the fall 2002 semester, making it the largest enrollment in the history of the institution.

The approximate overall enrollment for degree-seeking and non-degree seeking undergraduates and graduate students is 5,900, representing a nearly 7 percent increase over fall 2001, according to Coastal's Office of Institutional Research. The enrollment for the fall 2002 freshman class is approximately 1,025, also a record. The mean high school grade point average of the incoming freshman class is 3.30, making it the "smartest" freshman class in Coastal's history.

"The increases in enrollment are the direct result of a campus-wide effort and attitude," said Coastal President Ronald R. Ingle. With the addition of new academic buildings, improved student services and unique academic programs, Coastal is continuing to raise the quality of student-life on campus."

Also for the first time, the ratio of men to women freshman students was just about equal. Traditionally, freshman women outnumber men in Coastal classrooms by approximately 5 percentage points. The change this year is largely attributed to the start-up of Coastal's football program.

This year's freshman class represents a 27 percent increase in in-state students compared to last year. Other top states for new student enrollment include Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, New York, Ohio, North Carolina, Connecticut and West Virginia.

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Coastal faculty recreate history at Brookgreen
To say that a dramatic production brings the past to life" would normally constitute a cliché, but the phrase is deeply, doubly appropriate to a short play presented by three Coastal faculty members during the summer of 2002 at Brookgreen Gardens.

Preston McKever-Floyd and Veronica Gerald

Plans are under way to videotape the performance for Brookgreen's archives. When I Can Just Remember was written by Katherine Kellam, vice president of educational programs at Brookgreen Gardens.

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Hare receives Women of Achievement award
Sally Z. Hare, Singleton Endowed Professor of Education and director of the Center of Education and Community at Coastal Carolina University, has been recognized as one of the eight recipients of the 2002 South Carolina Women of Achievement award. She was one of the 49 nominees for the award, which is sponsored each year by the Governor's Commission on Women.

According to the commission, Hare was chosen for the award for her achievements as an educator. Throughout her 32-year career she has been committed to erasing the barriers of racism and other prejudices, and helping young people reach their full potential.

Hare, who joined the Coastal faculty in 1974, founded Coastal's Center for Education and Community in 1993 and has served as its only director. She previously served as dean of Graduate and Continuing Education at Coastal for 10 years. During her career at Coastal, Hare has been a Kellogg National Fellow and a Fetzer Teaching Fellow. Under her guidance, Coastal's Center for Education and Community has sponsored a number of innovative programs linking the university and the community, including Calling All Colors, Jump for the Sun and America Reads.

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Coastal awards grants for two studies on aging
The recently established Center for the Study of Aging and Active Retirement at Coastal has awarded its first research grants as part of a new annual faculty research program. Two projects were chosen from several proposals submitted by faculty members interested in researching issues related to gerontology. Coastal undergraduate students will help collect and assimilate data for both projects.

Coastal psychology professors Linda Palm and Joan Piroch will undertake "A Needs Assessment of Area Agencies for Senior Citizens." The investigators will gather general demographic information from area agencies that serve seniors, including nursing homes, assisted care centers and senior centers. Data will be collected pertaining to the function of different agencies, the number of employees and clients, sources of funding and other descriptive information. One purpose of the study, according to Piroch, is to learn from area health care leaders what programs and services they would like to obtain from Coastal's new center to help advance health care services for the area's elderly.

Sara Brallier, an assistant professor of sociology at Coastal, will lead a research project titled "Modern Maturity: An Exploratory Study of Older Gays and Lesbians in the Myrtle Beach Area." The purpose of this study is to examine the extent to which local social service and health care systems are responsive to homosexuals. Brallier hopes the study will raise the level of awareness on the part of agencies that serve older adults regarding special legal and social issues of the area's homosexual population. This is a relatively under-researched area in sociology, according to Brallier.

The Center for the Study of Aging and Active Retirement was established in February 2002. Operated jointly by Coastal's College of Natural and Applied Sciences and Coastal's School of Continuing Studies, the center is a research and teaching resource for the study of gerontology.

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