Fire in Columns
An early-morning fire was contained
in the old swimmming pool area of the
Columns Building, the administrative
center of Chowan College.
Phil Royce, community relations
director for the institution, said, “We
were fortunate two ways: the fire was
in some old mattresses stored in the
pool so that helped contain it. And the
other thing is, there is a false ceiling
over the pool and that protected the
floor of the stage area.”
The auditorium of the building was
constructed in the 1920s, behind the
original building which was built in
1851.
Fire chief Gene Byrd has called in the
State Bureau of Investigation arson
unit from Greenville, stating, “It look
ed suspicious to me. They are on the
way up here so I can’t say what the
cause is, right now.”
Byrd and Royce agreed there was
heavy smoke and water damage in the
three-story structure. “We saw a lot of
heat damage in the ceiling after we got
the smoke out. There is heat stress in
the stage floor,” Byrd reported.
There were 250-300 mattresses in the
pool and all around the walls the chief
advised, adding that such material
smolders quite a while before it flares
up.
The smoke was detected by Dean
Franklin B. Lowe about 6:15 a.m. as he
arrived to open the building. He in
vestigating the origin of the fire before
calling in the alarm about 6:30. As the
fire department reached the campus,
Ahoskie and Winton departments were
asked to stand by until the extent of the
fire could be determined.
Portable exhaust fans were located at
several openings in the building and
smoke poured out both sides as firemen
donned air packs and crawled inside in
an attempt to pinpoint where the smoke
was centered. Because of the size of the
structure, the Murfreesboro fire chief
requested additional fans from the
Ahoskie department. These were
transported to the scene by an Ahoskie
police officer to help clear smoke more
quickly.
The long ladder truck was brought to
the campus and firefighters went to the
top story, formerly used as a dor
mitory, to open windows and doors to
further ventilate the building. Rescue
squad units stood by but no injuries
were reported during the incident,
although firemen reported intense heat.
The Chowan cafeteria supplied fire
personnel with coffee, hot chocolate,
cold drinks and doughnuts as they con
tinued working to contain the fire,
which was brought under control within
about 30 minutes, according to the
chief.
Royce indicated a clock in his office
showed electricity went off at 6:25 a.m.
and there were no lights in the building
at 9 a.m., although the telephones were
working. He anticipated chapel ser
vices would be canceled today but add
ed all personnel were working.
Byrd said he would not have addi
tional information on the fire until in
vestigations were complete.
-THE AHOSKIE NEWS HERALD
Most students at UNC
flunk geography test
More than 90 percent of 1,875 University of North Carolina
students flunked a geography test, some estimating the state
population anywhere from 25,000 to 250 million.
Less than half the students recognized Alaska and Texas as
the largest states.
The exam was given “not expressly to embarrass North
Carolinians or to indicate our educational system, but to link
our state with the nationwide deficiency in geographic train
ing,” said UNC-Chapel Hill geography chairman Richard
Kopec.
N.C. Agricultural
Enrollment Steady
While enrollment at some
agricultural schools in the Midwest has
been declining. North Carolina has
been able to hold enrollment in
agricultural diciplines steady, officials
say.
Enrollment at four-year agriculture
colleges across the nation has dropped
21 percent since 1977, according to the
National Association of State Univer
sities and I^and Grant Colleges in
Washington.
But agriculture colleges on the East
and West coasts have fared better than
those in the Midwest, where the current
farm crisis is having its most
devastating effect, said E.W. Glazener,
associate dean for academic affairs at
N.C. State University.
Glazener estimated that enrollment
in NCSU’s School of Agriculture and
Life Sciences has fallen about 3 percent
or 100 students to a total of 3,600 this
fall. Overall enrollment at N.C. State is
estimated to be up nearly 2 percent.
“There were significant increases (in
agriculture ichool enrollment)in the
1970s, “Glazener said. “We’ve been fair
ly stable for the last five years. We are
like everybody else. We are feeling the
effect of a national trend. (But) so far
we’ve remained fairly stable.”
Enrollment figures on agriculture
students this fall weren’t available
from North Carolina A&T State Univer
sity in Greensboro. But Burley Webb,
dean of the School of Agriculture, said
he expected enrollment to remain
steady despite decreases in the past few
years. Last fall 455 students were
enrolled.
“In the last five years, the overall
decline has amounted to 12 percent to 15
percent,” Webb said. “It’s kind of hard
to say why. I think the state of the
economy associated with farming
somehow gets translated to a negative
image about all of the opportunities in
agriculture.”
Glazener said enrollment had been
constant or increasing in programs in
the animal sciences but decreasing in
the plant sciences. Like many other
agriculture schools, the one at N.C.
State is planning to boost its efforts
slightly, with an emphasis on out-of-
state students, he said.
Draft Rule Dropped
The Department of Education has
quietly dropped its controversial rule
requiring colleges to verify that male
students receiving federal financial aid
have registered for the draft.
The rule has been set to go into effect
this fall.
A department spokesman said the
rate of compliance among young men is
so high that it isn’t necessary to have
college aid administrators police the re
quirement.
“It’s been going about 98 percent
perfect, so there’s no need to verify,”
said Duncan Helmrich.
“There’s just no reason to hold the
schools up” on awarding aid, he said.
"Things are going so well that we’re not
going to bother to have the schools seek
proof.”
Congress in 1982 passed an amend
ment sponsored by Rep. Gerald
Solomon, R-N.Y., requiring student aid
recipients to sign forms certifying that
they had registered for the draft.
The Education Department then pro
posed a rule holding colleges accoun
table for verifying that the students ac-
S STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF CHOWAN COLLEGE
■ f.
Chowan Trustees Meet and Adopt New Budget
tually had registered before awarding
them any federal grants, loans or other
financial help.
Some students and civil liberties
groups challenged the Solomon amend
ment, but the Supreme Court upheld the
law, 6-2, on July 5, 1984. Chief Justice
Warren E. Burger said it was “plainly a
rational means to improve compliance
with the registration requirement.”
Although the military is not now con
scripting anyone, draft registration
was reinstituted in 1980 under a law
signed by then-President Carter. All
male citizens and resident aliens born
after Jan. 1, 1963, must register within
30 days of their 18th birthday.
After the Solomon amendment took
effect in October 1983, more than
300,000 students registered who had
previously failed to do so.
The retraction was not widely
publicized by the Education Depart
ment. It first came to light in a
government-wide list of planned
regulatory actions compiled by the Of
fice of Management and Budget.
Chowan College trustees adopted a
budget of $7,450,000 for 1985-86 during
their semi-annual meeting Monday in-
the office of President Bruce E.
Whitaker. They also heard a report of
the increase in the fall enrollment over
last year.
The trustees, headed by chairman
Felix Arnold of Enfield, met jointly
with the board of Advisors, chaired by
Dr. Melvin Kunkle of Portsmouth, Va.
Dr. Whitaker reported that Chowan
concluded the past academic year
operating in the black for the 27th
straight year. He said many groups and
individuals made this possible through
their contributions to the college, to in
clude the Annual Giving Fund.
He commented, “This acheivement
over the years could not have been done
without the increasing support of North
Carolina Baptists through the
Cooperative Program.”
Dean of Students Clayton Lewis
reported that Chowan’s enrollment for
the current fall semester is 954 full time
students, an increase of 55 over 1984-85.
Whitaker thanked Lewis, the admis
sions staff and the faculty and staff
members for their efforts in the recruit
ment of students. He said the enroll
ment was an indication of the continu
ing need for a two-year college such as
Chowan “where students receive in
dividual attention in a liberal arts at
mosphere.”
Reports were presented by chairmen
of standing committee of the Board of
Trustees which met Sunday. They in
cluded: academic. The Rev. Bennie
Pledger of New Bern; student affairs,
Mrs. Frances Farthing of Durham;
development and finance, Robert
Spivey, Windsor; and religious life
denominational relations, Dr. Hargus
Taylor, Chowan’s chaplain.
Chaplain Taylor reported that
Chowan will be featured on Nov. 12 in
Charlotte during the annual meeting of
the Baptist State Convention. Taylor
said the college will present a 30-minute
program utilizing color slides and both
taped and live narration.
Mrs. Farthing reported tnat behind
the “fine enrollment picture” was the
dedicated work of the admissions staff
which included some 1,200 visits to
private and public high schools located
in eastern United States.
Pledger praised Chowan’s academic
chairmen and faculty for their “team
spirit” as demonstrated by the way
they relate to the students, each other
and general support they give Chowan.
Business Manager Ben Sutton
reported that the total endowment of
the college exceeds $3,351,000. He said
Chowan received $201,722 in 1984-85, the
largest single-year income ever from
endowment.
Sutton also reported that the
remodeling of existing buildings is con
tinuing. He said Simons Hall was
remodeled this summer to include in
stallation of air conditioning in the
men’s residence hall.
Following are part by Dean of the
College B. Franklin Lowe Jr., the
trustees authorized the college to enter
into an institutional self-study leading
to the reaffirmation of accreditation
from the Southern Association of Col
leges and Schools in Decemt)er, 1988.
Lowe noted that the reaffirmation of
an accreditation is required every ten
years. He said the self-study is "com
prehensive and involves every aspect of
the college and all members of the col
lege community.
"Trustees adopted resolutions of ap
preciation to the memory of Elwood
Whittier Parker, Arelia Ruth Adams,
and Frances Elizabeth White Coleman.
Parker died on Feb. 15, 1985, at the
age of 92. He served as a member of-
Trustees from 1947-49, Board of Ad
visors from 1972-85, and Endowment-
Committee from 1959-62.
Parker was praised for his efforts to
resume operations of Chowan following
suspension of the college in 1943 and for
his "record of generous personal
benefactions towards Chowan Col
lege”
Adams served for 18 years from
1952-70 as the college’s bursar. She was
sited for her "dedication to all tasks
assigned; devotion to sound fiscal
policies and procedures;" and her
"diligence” in carrying out her total
responsibilities.
Coleman taught for 15 years from
1953-68 in the English and Religion
departments. She also served as Bap
tist Student Union advisor. Her service
was characterized by a "genuine con
cern for the well-being of her students,
academically, socially, and spiritually;
and for the welfare of the larger cam
pus community in which she served and
of which she was a part,” according to
the resolutions.
Spouses of trustees and advisors
toured remodeled and expanded Green
Hall and observed a demonstration of
the potter's wheel by Art Professor
Doug Eubank. Following the meeting
and luncheon in the President’s Dining
Room, trustees, advisors and their
spouses toured remodeled Simons Hall.
Professor emeritus Anna Belle Crouch
(English I guided the tour.
Non-Credit Courses
Beginning in October, Chowan Col
lege will offer two non-credit evening
enrichment classes in Basic
Photography and Cardiopulmonary
Resuscitation.
Basic Photography will be taught by
Chowan photographer, Doug Gleason.
The course will meet from 7:30-10 p.m.
each Tuesday from Oct. 1- Nov. 5 in the
Horner Graphic Communications
Center, Room 111. The cost is $30,
payable to Chowan College at the first
class session.
The CPR instructor is Jerry
Hawkins, assistant football coach and
baseball coach. The sessions will be
held in Room 204 of the Helms Center
from 7-9:30 p.m. each Wednesday
beginning Oct 2. The final session is
Oct. 23 The cost is $20, payable to
Chowan College at the first class ses
sion.
The minimum enrollment for each
class is 10. Those wishing more in
formation may contact Gleason or
Hawkins. Chowan’s phone number is
(919) 398-4101. Registration will be held
at the first class session.
Gleason received his B.A. with
honors from the University of South
Florida in Tampa and M.A. from the
University of Florida. He also is a
graduate and former photography in
structor at Randolph Technical In
stitute, Asheboro.
Before coming to Chowan, Gleason
was an advertising photographer with
one of the nation’s largest commercial
photography and printing companies.
Hawkins has served at Chowan since
1957 after receiving B.S. and M.A.
degrees from Western Carolina Univer
sity. He served as president of the Mur
freesboro Rescue Squad which he
helped organize. He is certified by the
American Red Cross as a CPR instruc
tor.
Mulder Speaks to
Women’s Club
"With faith in your heart, climb and
reach new accomplishments,” urged
Bob Mulder when speaking to Mur
freesboro Woman’s Club Tuesday at
College Inn Restuarant.
"I never cease to be amazed at the
potentiality of people,” continued the
English professor from Chowan Col
lege. "We are created next to the
angels; we are builders of eternity.”
He noted many great people who ac
complished much in spite of their han
dicaps.
A 93-year-old woman who lived on a
mountain near Ashville inspired
Mulder so much, he reported, that he
wrote her recipe for a good life:
“Keep excited; keep 'building my
spirit daily by Bible reading; nothing is
too great for me and God to accomplish
together if it’s within His will."
Mrs. Shirley Pike gave an inspirational
talk on "Grandmothers” before lunch.
Mrs. l^essie Deanes, president, led a
business session during which she an
nounced that the club gave $2,000 to
Mrs. Helen Burleson for Hospice.
The woman's club will have a table at
Bonnie Gray’s annual Craft Show and
Sale Nov. 2. The conunittee for this ac
tivity is Mrs. l^vinia Vann, Mrs
Ixjrene Hill, Mrs. Juliette Liverman
and Mrs. Etta Griffith.
Hostesses for the meeting were Mrs.
Betty Batchelor, Mrs. Mildred Hill and
Mrs. Liverman.