The Decree
since 1960 “of, by, andfor the Wesleyan community. ”
October 29, 2021
NORTH CAROLINA WESLEYAN COLLEGE, ROCKY MOUNT, NORTH CAROLINA 27804
Evan Duff Inaugurated as Wesleyan’s Sth
NC Wesleyan President Evan
Duff was inaugurated in cere
monies held at the Dunn Center
on September 17, with members
of the college community and
invited guests on hand.
In a wide-ranging interview
following the ceremony, President
Duff talked about the college’s
current financial status, enrollment
and its response to the Covid-19
delta variant, among other topics.
Q. Congrats on your formal inau
guration. What was going through
your mind during the ceremony?
A. During the ceremony I often
wondered if people were having a
good time and hoping they were
not bored. I was also filled with
excitement and felt gratitude that
my family and friends were pres
ent to share this day with me.
Q. Have you, and your family,
set a goal for the length of time
you would like to serve in the job?
A. My family is continuing to settle
into our new home on campus and in
the community. While I think about
the future, I try to focus on the present
in order to make the most of it.
Q. What is Wesleyan’s current
financial situation? How would
you characterize the college’s
current condition? What is the
projection as far as end-of-year?
A. We're scheduled for a break
even budget for fiscal year 2021.
Freshmen Encouraged to Get
Involved with
By Mary Cat Davis
Senior Staff Writer
Becoming a Battling Bishop
is a different journey for every
student. From clubs to cafeteria
food, one has to adjust to their
new life as a freshman.
The Decree interviewed up
perclassmen from various majors
and student organizations to ask
for their advice on what will make
a student’s first year at Wesleyan
great. Many agree that jumping into
campus life is the best way to go.
Senior Grant Harrell, an elemen
tary education major, gives tire
same tip to all new students. His
advice is to put yourself out there
and make the college experience a
good one. “If freshmen get out and
meet new people and try to make
a difference here on campus, then
college will be some of the best
years of their lives,” he said.
Kristal Dule, a freshman from Italy, was one of two Wesleyan athletes
to excel at the recent Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Southern
Regional. She upset several veterans on the way to a second-place
finish in the tourney. Turn to page 3 for more sports coverage, si photo
President Duff speaks at his inaugural ceremony held at the Dunn Center.
Wesleyan PR photo
We’ve attained that goal or better
since 2019. While it’s optimal for
a non-profit organization to have a
break-even budget, when we per
form better than this, we can reinvest
that money into programs, benefits,
and infrastructure. I think the college
is in a good place considering the
circumstances in the world, but
we always have room to improve.
Q. What was the total student en
rollment in the traditional program
at the beginning of the semester?
A. The original goal was 930
Campus Life
Working as a campus tour
guide, he likes that he can influ
ence a student’s decisions to
come to Wesleyan. He said that
holding a work-study job allows
students to get involved on cam
pus. “I’ve gained another fam
ily,” he said of his time as a tour
guide. “Having a work-study has
made college a lot more fun.”
Senior Bethany Dunham agrees
that getting involved on campus is
essential for building relationships.
“The memories they make now
will influence the rest of their time
here at Wesleyan,” said Dunham,
an elementary education major.
Dunham urges freshmen to
value their inner circle of friends,
who will help to make some of a
student's favorite college memo
ries “You’ll only have a few close
See INVOLVED pg 2
total students (returners, freshmen
and transfers), but we budgeted
for 900 as a worst-case scenario.
After the drop/add period, we
ended at 876. We were able to
cover that loss in revenue this year,
using some of the federal stimulus
funds given to all higher educa
tion institutions. Some funds were
earmarked for budget shortfalls.
Q. In terms of numbers, how is
the APS program doing?
A. Our adult and professional
studies program has also seen
a downward shift over the last
couple years. This correlates with
this trend all over the country.
The Covid recession was not like
typical recessions and there was
not an influx of adult students go
ing back to college. At present we
have 645 adult students as com
pared to 723 last year at this time.
We’re working on additional
marketing and operational initia
tives to improve our enrollment.
Q. Wesleyan elected not to require
a vaccine for all students and staff.
What all factored rnto that decision?
A. The VIRT team and admin
istration weighed a number of
factors. We looked at national, state,
and local trends, reviewed what
our peers were doing, weighed
the benefits of a forced mandate
vs. providing opportunities for stu
dents, faculty, and staff to make an
informed decision for themselves
as well as sought advice from our
strategic partner CREDO.
Q. According to the latest date
(October 12), what percent of
students and faculty and staff
have been vaccinated?
A. The student immunization
rate is 62.4 percent. That includes
students who have been vaccinated.
It also includes students who have
antibodies from previous infection.
As far as faculty and staff,
only half have responded to
our recent survey. Of 105 total
respondents, 96 have been fully
vaccinated (91.43 percent), 2
have been partially vaccinated
(1.9 percent) and 7 have not been
vaccinated (6.67 percent).
Q. Eaily in the semester, there was
a fight between Wesleyan students,
and at the time a student was found
to have brought a gun on campus.
How confident is the college that
there are no guns on campus, either
in dorm rooms or cars?
A. I feel confident that we’re
doing everything to ensure a safe
learning environment for our
students and a safe working envi
ronment for our faculty and staff.
Having a gun for any reason on
a college campus is a felony. We
have an anonymous tip line that
students use, we have cameras in
the lobbies of our dorms and in
other outside areas around cam
pus, and our resident advisers and
area coordinators do a great job
of working with students regard
ing their safety concerns.
Q. At the end of the academic
year, Dr. Wyatt is returning to
her previous position as associate
provost. What qualities would you
like to see in the next provost?
A. In the last two years, Dr.
Wyatt has done an outstanding
job while wearing multiple hats in
academic and student affairs. I’m
excited that she’ll be returning to
a role that she loves and that is
vital for retention and student suc
cess. Regarding the new provost,
I would want someone who can
advocate for faculty and students
NC Wesleyan Community
Pays Tribute to Matthew
Clemmons (2002-2021)
Hundreds gathered at the
Southern Bank Green Septem
ber 3 for a candle-light vigil
to honor the life of Wesleyan
sophomore
Matthew
Clemmons,
who died
unexpectedly
the previous
day, four
days after his
19th birthday.
City
Police said
Clemmons
was found
unresponsive
in his campus
dorm room
at about 8:45
that Thursday
Matt Clemmons siphoto
morning. The state medical ex
aminer later found that he died of
natural causes, due to an underly
ing medical condition, the Rocky
Mount Telegram reported.
Among the speakers at
the vigil were Head Football
Coach Jeff Filkovski, Wesleyan
Chaplain Edwin Ferguson, and
friends and teammates of Clem
mons, a Supply, North Carolina
native, who was a psychology
major and an offensive lineman
for the Bishops.
In an interview, Coach
Filkovski paid tribute to Clem
mons as a true student-athlete,
saying that he embodied all the
qualities that Wesleyan seeks in
a recruit. The coach noted that
Clemmons made the President’s
List for his academic achieve
ments and lauded him as “a
great football player with a ton
potential.” Describing him as
a selfless teammate, Filkovski
said, “Matt was more about you
than he was about himself.”
Dr. Jonathan Sarris taught
Clemmons in History 112 last
spring. Though class meetings
were often restricted to Zoom
sessions, Dr. Sarris said Clem
mons made a vivid impression.
“Even through the computer
President
while understanding the unique
balance of meeting their needs
while maintaining fiscal respon
sibility. Having a charismatic
personality and a passion for pri
vate, faith-based higher education
would also be important factors.
Q. The college brought in a high
number of new faculty this year.
Do you foresee additional hires
during the current academic year?
A. Yes, we’ll be able to fill a
few positions that are essentially
replacements for those retiring this
year or who recently retired. Not
all faculty requests will be met, un
fortunately, this year. Our hope is
we can fill the other positions after
student headcount normalizes.
Q. Please provide a status report
on the Annual Fund and other fund-
raising efforts as of October 15.
The Wesleyan Promise is going
well with over 40 percent of the
faculty and staff contributing so
see DUFF pg 5
screen, his curiosity, intellect
and commitment to learning
showed,” he said, noting that
Clemmons always gave 100
percent on his
assignments.
“He enjoyed
talking about
history, and
about Ameri
ca. I was look
ing forward to
the possibility
that I might
get to teach
another class
with Matthew
in it. I am so
saddened by
his loss.”
Like Dr.
Sarris, Chris
Hatch spoke of Clemmons’ work
ethic. A starter on Wesleyan’s of
fensive line. Hatch recalled past
football practices when his team-
mate, then a freshman, would
stay late and ask Hatch to help
him refine his technique. "Matt
was a perfectionist,” he said.
Hatch praised Clemmons as
a “great brother and friend.” He
said that Clemmons was genuine,
caring and always upbeat. “He al
ways had a smile on his face,” he
said. “And he would cheer you
up just by looking at you.”
Toby Larson expressed simi
lar feelings about his teammate.
He recalled that Clemmons en
couraged him to stick with foot
ball even after injuries and other
setbacks made him want to quit
the team. “He always made
me feel better about myself,”
Larson said. “And no matter
how bad my day was going, he
always made me smile. He was
a kind and loving friend.”
Coach Filkovski said that he
has continued to think about
Clemmons and his contributions
to the football program in the
months since his death. “I read
somewhere that ‘grief is the
price that you pay for love,’” he
said. “I love Matt Clemmons.”