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Table of Contents

  • 1: President's Message
  • 2: Art Focus
  • 4: Campus Briefs
  • 10: Exceptional Students
  • 12: Unique Alumni
  • 16: Distinguished President's Trust
  • 18: Advancement
  • 21: A Student's Appreciation
  • 22: Alumni Events
  • 24: Athletics
  • 28: Class Notes
  • 30: Obituaries

ETSU President

Brian Noland

Executive Editor

Richard A. Manahan

Managing Editors

Robert M. Plummer; Karen Crigger; Grace McCord

Contributing Writers

Anthony Aiken; Jeff Anderson; Jennifer Barber; Pat Barcel; Laure Craddock; Lee Ann Davis; Pat Elledge; Carol Fox; Colby Hall; Tisha Harrison; Leisa Harvey; Donald Harvill; Jeanette Henry; Jennifer Hill; Pat Holland; Brad Lifford; Lurelle Maxey; Peggy McCurry; Jo Anne Paty; Cyndi Ramsey; Shea Renfro; Jeremy Ross; Fred Sauceman; Carol Sloan; Joe E. Smith; Karen Sullivan; Caleb Tull; Mike White

Photography/Art

Ron Campbell; Jim Sledge; Larry Smith; Caleb Tull; Charles Warden

Publication Date

Spring 2013

President's Message

Greetings from ETSU! On behalf of our more than 2,200 faculty and staff and 15,500 students, I would like to thank all of the members of the ETSU Foundation, the ETSU family and the achievements and contributions of individuals. Thank you for all that you do as contributors and supporters to expand the bounds of the possible and open doors of opportunity for students across our institution. In January, I closed my freshman year at ETSU and began my second year of service to the institution. Over the past few weeks many people asked me, “Dr. Noland, what was the most memorable event of your first year on campus?” While there are many highlights and embarrassing moments, ranging from the Easter Egg hunt at Shelbridge attended by more than 600 members of the ETSU family, to the day that I kissed a pig for diabetes research, to the evening that I dressed as Bucky at a basketball game and nearly passed out due to heat exhaustion…. the truth is that there are three days that stand out as truly special. The first is the day that my family joined me at Shelbridge. The other two are joined in purpose – May 5th and December 15th – our spring and fall commencements. In 2012, ETSU conferred just over 3,000 degrees. That’s 3,000 dreams that we – and by “we” I refer to all of us – helped to make possible. During our December commencement exercise, I paused at the close of the ceremony and asked that every student who was the first in their family to graduate from college rise and be recognized for their accomplishments. The scene of a full third of the graduate class rising in unison is an image that I will never forget and provides a constant reminder of our ability at ETSU to transform lives. I would like to take a few moments to reflect upon some of the other highlights from the past year: • Enrollment again topped 15,000, and we set a record for the largest graduate school enrollment in our history as 2,269 graduate students pursued an advanced degree in the fall of 2012. • Last spring, we earned the official designation as an Olympic training site for weightlifting, and we have already awarded scholarships to seven elite athletes who are now attending ETSU and are training daily. These student-athletes come from as far away as Minnesota and Kansas, and as close to home as Johnson City and Elizabethton. Those seven students are pursuing their dream to one day be part of the Olympic games. • Ground has been broken for a new student parking garage that will open later this fall, a facility which will also serve as the new home for our new campus welcome center. Additionally, we have begun work on the campus core, with the goal of creating an inviting green space that returns that heart of campus between Brooks and Gilbreath halls to our students. • In the spring semester we offered classes in Downtown Kingsport, and in June will open a permanent center in the Food City shopping complex. • In February, thanks to the generosity and vision of Gerald and Sandy Thomas we opened Thomas Stadium and a three-game home stand against Penn State. • In March we opened the “ETSU at The Sevier Center” serving Sevier County. • On April 2, we announced our commitment to establish Intercollegiate Football with the help of Coach Phil Fulmer. A year ago, I stood here and asked everyone in this room to close their eyes and dream – to dream about the future of East Tennessee State University and specifically ask ourselves where we want this institution to be in the next five, 10, and 25 years. That was the same question I presented to every student, faculty and staff member at ETSU as we launched the work of the Committee for 125 during the fall semester. Under the leadership of Louie Gump, the Committee for 125 has challenged each of us to ask the “what if ” questions. The Committee for 125 has challenged us to dream, and reminded us that no dream is too big. Six task forces were formed, and recommendations from those groups were made to the Committee for 125 last December. The committee is in the process of reviewing those recommendations and engaging the campus and community for feedback. One of the recurring topics that emerged throughout the 125 process was the need for a fine and performing arts center. You may know of Mr. Martin’s generous lead gift, you learned that this dream of having an arts center – a dream that dates back to more than a quarter-century ago – is finally moving closer to becoming reality. In fact, the arts initiative, under the leadership of President Emeritus Stanton, is our number one priority. Governor Haslam has recommended approval for ETSU to use $1.5 million of planning money for what is projected to be a $38 million arts facility. We have begun the process of raising $9.5 million to meet the matching fund requirement set forth by the state, with hopes that the remaining funds will be available in the state’s 2014-15 budget. While this fundraising goal is an immediate priority, our arts initiative goes further into looking at what ETSU’s presence in the arts will be like during the next 25 years. This initiative includes plans to increase scholarship and graduate assistantship support, expand current arts programs, such as dance, and to renovate our current facilities. The arts initiative is about our students. Everything we do on our campus is for our students. Our students are the reason every one of us at ETSU gets out of bed in the morning and goes to work each day. Through the tireless dedication of our faculty and staff, we are preparing these students to become our region’s next generation of doctors, teachers, artists, and entrepreneurs. In these pages and throughout the university it is students like Shae Keane and Matt Pencarinha, whose work is found on pages 36 & 21. They provide a constant reminder of how we transform lives. Go Bucs! - Brian Noland, University President

ETSU Today - Spring 2013

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