ECU Report

Michael Schwartz to lead men’s hoops Building businesses

Burney Warren ’70

Eight-figure pledge to support EC Scholars program

Burney Warren ’70 grew up in the shadow of East Carolina University’s football stadium . The east end zone was two doors down from his house in Greenville . It was easy to predict he would become passionate about ECU .

Warren graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business and went on to become an executive vice president of BB&T, now Truist . He’s a past chairman of the ECU Foundation board and continues to serve on the executive committee during retirement . He and his wife, Judy ’69, still live in Greenville . Their son James graduated from ECU in 1996 . Their son Scott attended ECU before graduating from Appalachian State University . And their granddaughter Tess is an ECU student .

“We have had a very successful and enjoyable life in Greenville and with ECU . And now we are pleased to share that success with ECU and help it grow,” Warren said .

A $1 million planned gift for the Burney and Judy Warren EC Scholars Endowment, in addition to an eight-figure, long-term estate gift, will support the EC Scholars program .

“We feel like the best way to propel the university is to have very highquality students . They lift everyone else with them . We think that program is particularly important,” Warren said .

EC Scholars is the most prestigious undergraduate award program at ECU . It includes a scholarship valued at nearly $64,000 and high-impact learning experiences for a select group of undergraduates . EC Scholars are part of the Honors College .

“These are students who, in a very positive way, change the reputation of the university,” said Todd Fraley, interim dean of the Honors College . “They’re winning prestigious awards, they’re getting grants, they’re doing amazing research, they’re going to respected graduate programs . These students touch every single aspect of the university . They come here, they have goals, and they take advantage of everything ECU has to offer . ”

In the past, the Warrens have funded the Burney and Judy Warren Scholarship in Special Education, in honor of Judy’s background in the field, and the Burney and Judy Warren Access Scholarship .

“Burney and Judy Warren’s planned gifts are crucial to ECU’s future success,” said ECU Chancellor Philip Rogers . “They are loyal Pirates and truly embrace the spirit of service that is so important to our culture and mission . The EC Scholars program brings exceptional students to this university and prepares them to make a mark on the world, which wouldn’t be possible without the sustained support from generous donors .” – Erin Ward

ECU graduate programs recognized

The Brody School of Medicine at ECU has again ranked as North Carolina’s most diverse medical school in a listing of the 2023 Best Graduate Schools released in March by U.S. News & World Report.

Brody also was 26th out of 124 U.S. schools ranked in primary care.

In addition, ECU’s graduate program in education was 89th out of 274 schools ranked, placing it in the top 35% nationwide. Those rankings are based on peer and educational professional assessment, research activity, student selectivity and faculty resources.

U.S. News has also ranked ECU’s online graduate programs in business, criminal justice, education and nursing among the best in the nation.

Online master’s programs in the College of Nursing were ranked in the top 15%, or 29th out of 194 schools listed in the 2022 U.S. News Best Online Programs.

ECU nursing also was ranked fifth out of 25 U.S. schools offering the best online master’s programs for veterans. Schools on this list had to be regionally accredited, certified for the GI Bill and enroll a critical mass of students with military backgrounds.

ECU’s online graduate program in criminal justice is the only school in North Carolina on the list, ranking 21st out of 85 and in the top 25% of schools recognized.

Online master’s programs in the College of Education were ranked 60th of 338 schools, in the top 20% on the list. Eight Master of Education online programs were reported in the U.S. News survey including adult education, curriculum and instruction, elementary education, instructional technology, science education, reading and literacy studies, special education and middle grades education.

The online MBA program in the College of Business is in the top 35% of programs recognized, ranking 121st of 356 schools.

More information is at usnews.com.

– Crystal Baity

Rashieda Pugh reacts after learning she will be completing a family medicine residency at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill during the Brody School of Medicine’s National Residency Match Day celebration on March 18. Of the 82 students who matched, 61% are going into primary care residencies and 35% matched to programs in North Carolina. Nine will be staying in Greenville to complete residencies at ECU Health Medical Center. Five will go into the military. See full match results at bit.ly/3DBxihs.

ECU Report

Michael Schwartz has been named men’s basketball coach at ECU. Athletics Director Jon Gilbert announced the hire March 16. Schwartz comes to ECU after seven seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Tennessee. He has also coached at the University of Tulsa, Fresno State, the University of Miami (Florida) and the University of Texas at San Antonio. He served on the staffs at the University of Texas and Long Beach State. A native of Los Angeles, Schwartz is a graduate of the University of Texas, where he was a member of the Longhorns’ basketball team. He and his wife, Stephanie, have two daughters, Sydney and Samantha.

A student veteran couldn’t afford textbooks. A donor stepped in to help.

Marine Corps officer Lara Gorham left the military to pursue her dream of becoming a doctor. When she was accepted into the premed program at ECU for fall 2021, it looked like her dream was within reach. Then her veteran benefits ran out.

“I was becoming desperate. I had $11 in my bank account at the beginning of the semester, and I wasn’t sure how I was going to afford gas for the week, let alone my books,” Gorham said. She also had a young daughter at home and a long commute to campus.

But thanks to the Paul Singleton Military Academic Success Fund, Gorham was able to purchase the textbooks and supplies she needed for the semester.

“He made impossible circumstances attainable,” she said. “I cannot thank him enough for his generosity.”

Even with federal funding and scholarships, student veterans can still struggle to pay college tuition and fees. Many student veterans have full-time jobs and families with mortgages, child care and car payments that cut into funds available for college. And if they change their major or take on a minor, their GI benefits could run out before graduation.

Singleton ’58 ’61 said he hopes his gift helps veterans and their families make the best of their studies and adapt more easily to campus life. It’s one of the largest gifts ever for student veterans at ECU.

“When I went to school, they didn’t have Pell Grants or government loans,” he said. “Very few people were on scholarships. When I went back to school (after serving in the Air Force), I had a family, and even on the GI Bill, it covered tuition but not all the other expenses. I didn’t want students to put up with what I had to put up with.”

Singleton left the Air Force in 1984 and now lives in a militaryaffiliated retirement community in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. His late wife, Anne, was an ECU alumna, and his two brothers also went to ECU on the GI Bill.

The Paul Singleton Military Academic Success Fund is unique in that it provides support not only for veterans, but also for reservists and dependents of disabled veterans, who do not get some federal funding for textbooks, said Nicole Messina, associate director of student veteran services at ECU.

“Very few universities offer extra support to these students, so Mr. Singleton has provided ECU with a great opportunity to help military-affiliated students,” she said.

– Erin Ward

Programs, experts at ECU help new businesses get started and existing businesses get stronger

April Kelly has taken some guidance from programs and experts at ECU and turned it into the building blocks of a company she hopes will give parents a vegan alternative to baby formula .

Kelly started with the Small Business and Technology Development Center and from there went to I-Corps@ECU and Accelerate Rural NC to build her business plan for Sure! That helped her garner a $10,000 NC IDEA Micro Grant in October — one of only 22 businesses selected and the only from Greenville .

“I’m currently in the process of manufacturing my first batch of product to launch out in the market,” Kelly said . “I’m 100% positive that the ECU I-Corps program really made the difference (in attaining the grant) . Through our participation we were able to (narrow) down our target audience and clearly distinguish our customer profile through customer discovery . ”

Sure! is based in Greenville with production in Raleigh . “It is our goal to plant roots here in Greenville and manufacture our product in-house within the next three to five years,” Kelly said . “Part of our mission is to provide jobs throughout our community . ”

Entrepreneurs such as Kelly are why ECU is bullish on programs that help new and growing businesses .

“ECU supports new and small business growth across the state through several programs and resources dedicated to entrepreneurs,” said Rachel Bridgers, a business counselor with the Small Business and Technology Development Center at ECU . “Through this business ecosystem, ECU is well positioned to drive transformation in our rural communities through our services, resources and community partners . ”

Accelerate Rural NC focuses on helping small businesses in rural regions gain access to global markets with innovative products . The rural business accelerator hosts 10-week networking and learning sessions for cohorts of 20 business owners . The program has funding through July .

Since it began in September 2020, the program has helped 125 companies from Asheville to the coast . More than 300 have applied to participate .

Cameron Higley ‘20 is one . He started Tailgate Classics in his dorm room and since then has grown the vintage clothing business into a $300,000-a-year operation . He recently opened a storefront at 304 Evans St . in Greenville . Dennis Tracz, director of ARNC at ECU, approached him about participating in the program .

“Accelerate Rural was an awesome connection builder and provided us with lots of valuable insight for my business,” Higley said .

Cameron Higley, owner of Tailgate Classics, holds a sampling of his merchandise at his store in Greenville.

– Doug Boyd

April Kelly is building her vegan baby formula business with help from experts at ECU.

ECU Report

Angela Lamson, a Nancy W. Darden Distinguished Professor in the ECU Department of Human Development and Family Science, received the 2022 ECU Research and Creative Activity Lifetime Achievement Award. She’s pictured with Chancellor Philip Rogers at the March 16 event that recognized research and creative activity among faculty members across campus. Read more about Lamson at bit.ly/3LzOtm4.

ECU Health brand launches across region

As part of the collaborative effort ECU and Vidant Health announced last year, the new ECU Health brand has begun appearing at health care sites in the region.

Chancellor Philip Rogers; Dr. Mike Waldrum, CEO of ECU Health and dean of the Brody School of Medicine; and Dr. Jason Higginson, executive dean of the medical school, unveiled the new ECU Health logo in April.

Vidant Medical Center is now ECU Health Medical Center, and other Vidant facilities will be renamed in a similar manner: ECU Health Bertie Hospital, ECU Health Chowan Hospital, ECU Health Maynard Children’s Hospital and so on. The Outer Banks Hospital will retain its name. – ECU News Services

Longtime ECU leaders announce retirements

Sylvia Brown ’75 ’78, dean of the College of Nursing; Virginia Hardy, vice chancellor for student affairs; Michael Van Scott, interim vice chancellor for research, economic development and engagement; David White, dean of the Honors College; Paul Gemperline, dean of the graduate school; and Ron Mitchelson, interim vice chancellor for health sciences, are retiring .

Brown joined the nursing faculty in 1976 and served as acting dean from 2006 until 2009, when she was named permanent dean . She helped establish pathways to earning a BSN degree for nontraditional nursing students . She also led the creation of nurse leadership, nurse anesthesia, psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner, doctor of nursing practice and DNP-to-Ph .D . programs .

Gemperline joined the ECU chemistry department in 1982 and has served as dean of the graduate school since 2008 . In 2003 he received the Eastern Analytical Symposium’s Award in Chemometrics, the highest international award in the field .

Hardy joined ECU in 1993 . Before becoming vice chancellor in 2010, she served as senior associate dean for academic affairs at the Brody School of Medicine . She also served as interim chief diversity officer . Hardy and her staff have gained national attention for their work in developing Cupola Conversations as a method for healthy civil discourse on campus .

Mitchelson came to ECU in 1999 as a professor and chair of the Department of Geography and served as provost from 2015 until being named acting and then interim chancellor in 2019, a role he filled until 2021 . He has also served as interim chair of the English department and interim vice chancellor for research and graduate studies .

Van Scott joined ECU in 1990 as a faculty member and researcher at the Brody School of Medicine, focusing on the pathophysiology and treatment of asthma . In 2013, he joined the Division of Research and Graduate Studies, serving twice as the interim chief research officer . During his time at REDE, grants and contracts at ECU grew to more than $75 million annually .

White began his career at ECU in 1981 in the Department of Health Education . He served as interim chair of the Department of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Safety in 1990 . From 2008 to 2017, he served as dean of the College of Technology and Computer Science, during which the college added the Department of Engineering . He’s been dean of the Honors College since 2016 .

Because of the divisional reorganization that will become effective July 1, ECU will not replace the vice chancellors of health sciences or REDE . – ECU News Services

Sylvia Brown Virginia Hardy Michael Van Scott

David White Paul Gemperline Ron Mitchelson

ECU Report

ECU celebrates chancellor installation

Philip Rogers was officially installed March 24 as ECU’s 12th chancellor . Members of the university community, higher education leaders from across the state, faculty, staff and students braved the rainy weather to celebrate the academic tradition .

The installation ceremony was part of ECU’s Founders Week and celebrated the university’s past while looking to the future .

“It’s an honor to be here today, because I believe this truly does mark a new era for East Carolina University and a reawakening of this institution’s core mission of service to North Carolina and beyond,” said UNC System President Peter Hans .

Rogers returned to ECU as chancellor in March 2021 after previously serving as the university’s policy analyst in 2007 and then chief of staff from 2008 to 2013 . The years in between were spent as the senior vice president of the American Council on Education, a nonprofit organization that acts as a coordinating body for its membership of approximately 1,700 colleges and universities across the nation .

Originally from Greenville, Rogers is the greatgrandson of an early student of the East Carolina Teachers Training School, and his wife, Rebekah Rogers, is a two-time ECU alumna .

“It surprised none of us when Philip was lured away to Washington (D .C .) … sharpening his skills and insights so that one day he might render yet greater service to North Carolina . I am thrilled that day has arrived . We are not just celebrating an installation today, but a homecoming,” Hans said .

Rogers took time to thank those who helped pave the way for him while growing up in Greenville . From teachers to coaches, family and neighbors, the homecoming for Rogers brought a large audience of family and friends to celebrate this moment with him in ECU’s Wright Auditorium .

“Every day, I am surrounded by reminders that my success in this world, the fact that I’m standing in front of you today, comes from the investment this community made in me,” Rogers said .

Before administering the oath of office, Hans spoke about how vital ECU is to eastern North Carolina and the importance of the work done by students, faculty and staff each day .

“East Carolina is a bright star in the constellation, ‘afire with enthusiasm,’ in the words of your first president, Robert Wright, and our state is a better and richer place because of what happens right here in Greenville,” he said .

Rogers was joined by his wife and sons, Grayson and Dean, for the oath . Rogers placed his hand on the Wright Bible, the same one used by ECU’s first president in weekly chapel meetings during the first years of the school .

Clockwise from facing page, Scott Shook, chair of the ECU board of trustees, puts the Chancellor’s Medallion on Chancellor Philip Rogers; Ella Schaffner, a junior in the ECU School of Theatre and Dance, performs during the installation ceremony; Rogers takes the oath of office using the Wright Bible as sons Grayson and Dean and wife Rebekah look on; Rogers speaks with former Chancellor Steve Ballard, whom he worked with as chief of staff.

Following the oath, Ted Mitchell, president of ACE, introduced Rogers after a video showcasing ECU’s history and optimistic future played for the audience .

“East Carolina is a beacon of hope and promise for all institutions, and Philip Rogers is an example for all the presidents and chancellors of those institutions of what it means to be a leader in these tumultuous times,” said Mitchell .

According to Mitchell, a lack of trust in higher education is the biggest problem facing institutions today . He said it’s the job of those institutions to rebuild that trust .

“Here’s the good news for you . Building trust is Philip Rogers’ superpower . … Building trust for this institution is what you can hope for and expect in Philip,” he said .

In his remarks to guests, Rogers weaved ECU’s history of meeting the needs of eastern North Carolina with its future . He referred to a “reawakening and renewed appreciation for ECU’s core strengths . ”

“At every waypoint over the last 115 years, when our state has needed more from us, we found a way to deliver,” he said .

While at ACE, Rogers worked with universities and colleges across the country, giving him a unique perspective on the work and mission of ECU .

“I am convinced that the most challenging, most urgent and without a question the most fulfilling work in American education is happening right here at home, right here at East Carolina University . We make it possible for students from all walks of life to build successful careers, become confident citizens and strong contributors to our society,” he said . “We make sure they can earn a living and give back to their communities . That foundational mission has always been at the core of ECU’s identity, and it’s the first thing I think about when I wake up in the morning . ”

He said everyone at the university can be proud they work at an institution that meets the needs in their communities and prides itself on who it accepts, not who it turns away .

“At a time when all of higher education is concerned about student success, eager to figure out what it takes to welcome a diverse group of students and build a supportive community, we have decades of hard-earned experience right here in eastern North Carolina,” said Rogers .

In closing, he said ECU is building a national model for student success, regional transformation and public service .

“I think the rest of the country has much to learn from what’s happening at East Carolina,” Rogers said .

– Jamie Smith