NORTH CAROLINA
ESLEYAN
COLLEGE
Rocky Mount, N.C.
THE
ECREE
VOL. 14, NO. 2
Wesleyctn 5 Student Voice Since 1984^^
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25,1998
Convocation opens ‘year of reflection
North Carolina Wesleyan Col
lege held its Opening Convoca
tion ceremony Sept. 14 in the
Dunn Center, using the annual
occasion to reflect upon the Insti
tutional Goals for NCWC and to
address some of the questions that
they raise.
Open to the entire Wesleyan
community, the program was
highlighted by four short presen
tations from members of the
Wesleyan community — Rev.
Edward F. Hill II, Dr. Tyrone
Bledsoe, Dr. Mary Lou Steed, and
J. Michael Hoppe.
Dr. John B. White, president
of Wesleyan, provided the Invo
cation and the Closing Remarks,
while Rev. Kirk B. Oldham in
troduced both the program and
the speakers. There were also
opening remarks by both Dr. Rob
ert S. Trullinger, vice president
and dean of academic affairs, and
Justin Renville, president of the
SGA. A musical number was also
in the program, performed by
Erma Hedgepeth with accompa
niment by Katrina Lewis.
The Opening Convocation
marked the beginning of what
Oldham called a “year of reflec
tion."
We are launching a year-long
discussion of our motto...and of
our relationship to the United
Methodist Church,” he said,
pointing out that this was brought
about because “invariably.
changes in both higher education
and the Church will force us to
re-examine our identity as a
church related college.”
He went on to draw attention
to “the important questions we
must ask of ourselves and of the
church” and to challenge the com
munity to find answers for these
questions:
• Take away the financial sup
port and who are we as a college
of the church?
• What distinguishes us as a
church-related college as opposed
to other institutions of higher edu
cation?
• What does it mean to “mani
fest our motto, ‘Wisdom and
courage through Christian educa
tion”’?
• Should our church relation
ship affect the character and qual
ity of our communal life?
• The strategic plan of the col
lege states that “The college’s his
toric connection as a church-re-
lated college...will help define the
college’s commitment to values,
to the essential worth of persons
in community, to the re^ity of
human transformation, and to an
appreciation of the transcendent.”
What does that mean and how
will it affect our daily lives?
• Will changes of direction in
the United Methodist Church al
ways be in our best interest as a
college?
During his presentation, Hill
i
REV. EDWARD HILL SAID COLLEGE AND CHURCH MUST LEARN HOW TO RELATE TO EACH OTHER.
added a different perspective. Key
among the several points he made
was that it is important for the
United Methodist Church to iden
tify “what it means (for them) to
be a college-related church.” He
indicated that this was essential
in order to help facilitate
Wesleyan work on “what it means
to be a church-related college.”
In his closing remarks. White
took the opportunity to reempha
size points brought forth by the
four main speakers. He stressed
how important it will be for the
college community, as a whole,
to address these questions in the
coming months.
To that end, the president an
nounced that Bishop Marion
Edwards of the Raleigh Area of
the United Methodist Church will
be the speaker at the college’s
Founders’ Day on Oct. 22. He
added that planning is underway
for other discussion, panels, and
outside guests to highlight the
year’s emphasis.
The event concluded with the
singing of NCWC’s Alma Mater.
^Day for Wesleyan ^
draws area support
Proclaiming success Tuesday night were (from left) SGA Vice President Richard
• on, Day for Wesleyan co-chairs Robert Beaman and Celeste Pittman, College President Dr. John
* e» and SGA President Justin Renville.
Community volunteers spent
all day Tuesday promoting
Wesleyan throughout the area, by
nightfall raising S356,161 for the
17th annual “Day for Wesleyan.”
Support for the collcge has in
creased each year, with this year’s
total about $2,000 higher than last
year. The funds raised go into the
college’s operating fund.
Co-chairs for this year’s event
were Robert Beaman and Celeste
Pittman, both of Rocky Mount,
who planned the efforts by vol
unteers to ask local businesses and
individuals to contribute.
“From a business perspective,
Wesleyan is an integral part of
this community’s economy,” said
Beaman, president of Stallings Oil
Company and past chairman of
the Rocky Mount Area Chamber
of Commerce.
“With an operating budget this
year of $14,307,428, the college’s
impact on the area is around $40
million,” he said. “Supporting
North Carolina Wesleyan is sup-
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