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North Carolina Wesleyan College, Rocky Mount, North Carolina 27804
CAMPUS LIFE
February 8, 2008
Wesleyan Graduate Is NC Teacher of the Year
Ru nianno nsiiinhartv ^ ' fnr hp rpaH Hp haH the pivinp him what it takes to succcecl ill when I was writing for a newspaper and half way. You have to give it your all.
By Dianne Daugherty
Decree Staff Writer
Current North Carolina Teacher
of the Year and Wesleyan graduate
James Bell shares credit for his success
with students and professors. An
English major and journalism minor.
Bell graduated from North Carolina
Wesleyan College in 1998.
State Superintendent of Public
Instruction June Atkinson presented
the award. Of Bell’s teaching, Atkinson
said, “James has demonstrated
excellence in the classroom and strong
dedication to the success of his
students. He is a true representative of
the many outstanding teachers from
across the state who have the power and
ability to deliver strong instruction but
also to inspire others to be their best,”
Bell has been teaching for nine years.
He taught three years in Halifax County
and six in Chowan County where he
now teaches at Chowan Middle School
in Edenton. He has taught high school
public speaking, middle school English,
and social studies. He also coaches
football. He said most of his career has
been spent “looping.” which involves
teaching the same group of students
for two years. He starts out with the
students in the 6th grade and moves
with them into the 7th.
Dr Terry Smith, emeritus professor
of English, recalls hearing about a
Wesleyan graduate being named teacher
of the year and wondering who it could
be. When he heard it was Bell, he said
“of course.” Smith added, “James was
so good at communicating his own
excitement for what he read. He had the
ability to let people know that he was
enthusiastic.” Smith believes Bell must
have carried this over into his teaching.
Bell shared credit for the award
giving him what it takes to succeed in
education. “Dr Steve Ferebee was the
single most influential professor,” he
said. “He taught me to really look at the
text, to think about it. And he taught me
James Bell is NC State Teacher of the Year
Public Relations Photo
with his students and athletes. “It’s
the hundreds of students that I teach,
coach, or just talk to every single day
at Chowan Middle School,” Bell said.
“They are the real reason that I have
been successful as an educator” In
reference to representing the state.
Bell added, “we hold ourselves to the
highest standards as we strive to lift
our students to achieve well beyond
anyone’s expectations.”
Bell credited Smith and Dr Steve
Ferebee, professor of English, with
more about writing in a few years than
I had learned in all the years up to that
point.” Of Dr Smith, he said, “He was
just awesome. I loved his American Lit
and Beat Writers classes.”
Dr Ferebee remembers Bell as
“charming and fiin to have in class.
We’re very proud of James. He’s a good
example of how hard work pays off.”
Teaching was not always Bell’s
goal. In fact, Bell said, “I never wanted
to teach.” He wanted to be a sports
journalist. “My mind was changed
Do Networking Sites Encourage ‘Loose’ Behavior?
By Joyce Collins
Decree Campus Life Editor
Students are now using social sites,
especially Facebook and Myspace, to
showcase loose behavior If you browse
one of these sites, do not be suq>rised to see
photos of students passed out from drinking,
or dancing seductively in a club. You could
even read, in someone’s headline status, a
comment on a picture or a post on a wall of
them talking about how much they enjoyed
engaging in the behavior So what is loose
ness? And is there more looseness now than
before? And are they using Facebook and
Myspace as a tool to display their looseness?
Senior Michael Femandez, a resident
assistant for Petteway Hall, said alcohol
does not have to be a key factor in “loose”
behavior “Looseness is the behavior that you
present when you are having a good time. It
does not have to be when you are sober; it
does not have to be when you are dmnk. It is
a wild behavior being performed.”
Freshman Eddie Arrington said he
believes social sites are primarily used for
networking. “I use Facebook and Myspace to
keep in touch with my old friends from high
school, nothing more, and nothing less.”
Junior Keosha Home agrees with
Arrington, saying that social sites are a
great way to meet new people who share
a common interest. “I have Facebook and
Myspace accounts,” she said. “I’ve met a
lot of interesting individuals on there. I have
never seen any wild behavior on there.”
But other students noted an increasing
amount of “loosene.ss” being chronicled on
the networking sites. Sophomore Takayla
Bell said students are more open about their
personal lives than ever before. “In the
past, you did not see so much wildness on
Facebook and Myspace,” she said. “I’m not
saying that people were not being promiscu
ous and doing things that they couldn’t tell
their mothers about; it’s just that they were
more private with it. Now you see people
posting any and everything up there. It has
gotten so out of control that I deleted my
account with Facebook and Myspace.”
Junior Alyssia Maitinez pointed the finger
at the new features and applications that are be
ing added to the site, especially the status and
honesty box messages. The status application
allows a person to say what they are doing. For
example, Jane Doe is: (your activity here). The
honesty box allows people to anonymously put
comments in about the user.
“Most people tend to be loose with the
honesty box because it is anonymous,”
Martinez said, noting that there has been
more looseness now than in her past two
years at Wesleyan.
Junior Bryant McNeal also blamed the
new applications and features for increasing
looseness on Facebook. “It is much easier
to post provocative photos and raunchy
comments now,” he said. “Applications like
“Gifts,” “Funwall,” “Make a Baby” and
“Hot or Not?” are all responsible for this
inappropriate behavior that’s occurring. No
way should someone be able to give a person
underwear as a gift and in a message say:
‘You left these in my room.’ That’s crazy.”
If students are using Facebook and
Myspace to display inappropriate behavior
then what is the cause of it? Are students
so bored on campus that they are driven to
entertain each other in this manner?
Martinez said that looseness can be
attributed to the lack of activities on campus.
“There is definitely not enough to do on this
campus,” she said. “There are no sororities
and no fraternities.”
Freshman Deandre Smith echoed Mar
tinez, saying that wild behavior is from the
campus being so boring. “The school makes
us pay activity fees in our tuition, and I have
one question: Where are the activities?”
she said. “That’s why students are so loose,
because they don’t have anything better to
do. I hear a lot of upperclassmen, especially
seniors, saying that Wesleyan used to be
better when it came to programs. I wish the
quantity and quality of campus activities
would improve.”
A senior female said that students now
going to Wesleyan are more immanire than
in previous years, and they are to blame for
so little activities being on campus. “Some
programs require a mature audience,” she said.
‘Take the last Visions of Beauty show, for
instance. Students in the audience were acting
childish and disrespectful. Who wants to put
on a show for an audience that’s going to
discourage them instead of supporting them?”
Sophomore Tamika Washington believes
there is no excuse for students to be acting
inappropriately. “Just because you are
bored does not give you a reason to drink,
smoke, club, or sex your education away,”
she said. “If you’re that bored then get a
job, volunteer or do something productive
instead of posting Facebook pictures of
yourself half naked grinding on a boy.”
Spring Intramural Calendar
Sport/Activity Registration Dates Activity Dates
Volleyball 1/9 - I/I8 1/22 - 2/28 (2/28 - Championship Night)
Billiards (Doubles) 1/9-1/18 1/23-2/28
(2/27 or 2/28 Championship Night - TBA)
2/21 - 2/22
3/29 (Tournament)
3/11-4/23
3/11-4/23
March Madness
4/8-4/10
Weightlifting Challenge 2/11 - 2/21
Beach Volleyball 3/10 - 3/26
Basketball (5 v 5) 2/12 - 2/22
Flag Football (4 v 4) 2/12 - 2/22
NCAA Pick‘Em 3/17 - 3/20 (Noon)
Texas Hold Em Tourney Day of Event
**AII are open to all NCWC students, faculty, and staff**
Other Spring Activities
Group Aerobics are on Mondays and Thursdays from 5:30 pm -
This .schedule will be in effect up until spring break.
Sea Kayak Day Trips - Sat. April 12 and Sun. April 13
6:30 pm.
when I was writing for a newspaper;
didn’t feel fulfilled.” A friend offered
Bell a teaching job, which he turned
down. When she offered him a position
that included coaching football, he
decided to give teaching a try.
Bell described his teaching style as “out of
the box.” He said you have to “do whatever
it takes, make it fun, try new things.”
Not surprisingly. Bell said his favor
ite part of teaching is his relationships
with the kids. “I love ’em,” he said.
According to Bell, the most rewarding
part of being a teacher is “having a kid
wrap his arms around you and tell you
that he loves you and is grateful for
what you’ve done.”
Bell believes that great teachers need
“the ability to understand a kid.” He
said, “you have to know your stuff, your
curriculum, but you also have to know
your kids. You have to let them into
your heart and really love them.”
For those considering teaching as
a profession Bell offered this advice:
“Teaching is not a job you can do
You have to celebrate with the kids
when they succeed and cry when they
struggle. You have to give everything
you have. It will be exhausting, but so
rewarding in the end.”
As Teacher of the Year, Bell’s
responsibilities officially began in
July. He serves as an ambassador for
the teaching profession and travels
throughout North Carolina. He will also
serve as an advisor to the State Board of
Education for two years.
In recognition of his achievements.
Bell received a new automobile from the
N.C. Automobile Dealers Association,
a one-time $7,500 stipend, a technology
package from SMARTer Kids Founda
tion, a trip to the International Space
Camp, an international trip through the
NC Center for International Understand
ing, and a trip to the National Teacher of
the Year Conference.
As for his future career plans. Bell
said, “I have no idea. I just want to
continue to impact children.”
Critic Picks ‘Zodiac’ and
‘Fay Grim’ Top 2007 Films
Susan Fecho's Travel Notations
continues at the Mims Gallery in
the Dunn Center
Valentine Messages
To: Fonso Frazier
Thanks for always being there for me through
everything. I love you. Happy Valentine’s Day
with more to come!
—Carmera Thomas
To: Madonna Ware
My heart
—Jon West
To: Heather Harrison
I love you so much, babe, I can’t wait for you to
be my wife!
—Adam Cooper
To: Isaac Quamaine Carr
I just wanted to let you know that I love you & I’m
happy to be yours! Happy Valentine’s Day, babe...
—Jasmine l6iotts
To: Randy L. Beale
This is a little token of my love. You are the love
of my life and I will do anything for you. Happy
Valentine’s Day Baby!
—Shannon P. Pugh
To: Ms. Baby Phat
Happy Valentine’s Day to the beautiful RA of the
third floor, Nash Hall!
—Maurice Antwain Glaspie Jr.
(Compiled by Joyce Collins)
By Matthew Esterline
Decree Contributor
Welcome back! 2007 was a good year
for movies. Even run-of-the-mill crap
like “Grindhouse”, “300” and “Death
Sentence” packed enough goodness in their
creamy centers to be entertaining. Here is
my top ten list for 2007. Enjoy!
10. “1408” -1 was surprised by this movie.
I thought I’d be just a crappy, mn-of-the-mill
ghost movie, but it turned out to be the John
Cusack one-man show. Cusack got to act
out every conceivable emotion in less than
90 minutes, and I was glued to the screen.
The best part of the movie is that there were
actually a few scary moments, despite being
PG-13. Overall, this was a good movie that
allowed a good actor to act instead of just
stand there and earn a paycheck.
9. “Michael Clayton” - Lawyer Movie...
If you’re still with me, you should rent this
puppy. A lawyer goes insane and decides
to stop an evil corporation he represents.
The company and their team of marauding
soulless lawyers decide to eliminate the
problem. George Clooney is stuck in the
middle and must decide where he will stand.
It takes a while to get there, but the ending
is so amazing that it’s worth the wait.
8. “Exiled” - This Chinese holdover
from 2006 is the best foreign movie
released in the U.S. this year. Two groups
of killers chase a hitman. One group wants
to kill him, the other wants to save him. It’s
a simple movie that plays out like a great
Western. If you get the chance, rent this
bad boy, or wait two years and watch the
poorly made American remake (Just like
“The Departed”).
7. “Seraphim Falls” - 85% of this movie
is perfect. The ending sucks, but the rest is
perfect in this tale of a Confederate soldier
tracking down the Union soldier who killed
his family. The first third of the movie is,
essentially, a silent chase scene through the
wildemess. This movie had some of the
most creative kills I’ve ever seen on film
and had a great cast. It’s worth renting.
6. “Sweeney Todd”: The Demon Barber
of Fleet Street - Throat-Slitting musical
numbers make for great entertainment.
I imagine that this movie will likely
be the one to beat, come awards time,
which is a good thing considering that the
movie is pretty damn entertaining. Murder
Revenge. Meat Pies. If you can stand the
singing, you will see a pretty great film.
Plus, Borat is nicely dispatched of...it’s like
a bonus treat.
5. “Live Free or Die Hard” - Even with
the PG-13 rating holding it down, this
sequel dehvered better action, better lines,
and better characters than most films this
year. “Die Hard” was always an entertain
ing series, but even I groaned at the notion
of the fourth film with the Mac guy. The
negative buzz was incorrect; this movie is
fantastic. The crowd I was with loved it,
and the film kept the action up till the end.
This is the kind of sequel we deserve.
4. “EUzabetii: The Golden Age”
- Sequels were pretty good this year. This
sequel to “Elizabeth” was not as great as
I’d hoped, but it’s a solid movie that is
helped ti^mendously by the addition of
Clive Owen to the cast In this film, the
Spanish Armada takes center stage and
history goes out the window, but Cate
Blanchett was so award worthy that you
can get over it.
3. “No Country for Old Men” - If you
were lucky enough to see this movie in a
tiieater, you really experienced something.
The sold out crowd I was with felt a
constant sense of dread that persisted
throughout this tale of one killer’s search
for two million dollars in stolen drug
money. The crowd was shocked by the
violence and usually stayed quiet, only
speaking to say, “My God”, as a reaction
to flie horror they saw on the screen. Any
movie that can do that deserves to be in the
top ten. Watch it.
2. “Fay Grim” - The only good indepen
dent movie that came out this year was this
quirky littie sequel starring Parker Posey as
the title character. If you’ve ever seen “The
Third Man”, this movie is basically the
same story. The movie has many twists and
tums and has the best ending of any movie
that came out this year. If you’re interested
in seeing a good spy story, see this movie.
1. “Zodiac” - This movie may be the best
movie of the decade. Easily the only great
movie of 2007, “Zodiac” comes close to
being a documentary about the investigation
into tiie Zodiac murders. The film is simple
and direct, and gets perfect performances
out of Brokeback Donnie Darko, Cokehead
Chaplin Downey Jr, and that guy from
“Collateral” (No...the other one). Any movie
that can make these crappy actors look good
is a trae sight to behold. David Fincher
made this movie so flawless that his other
great movies (“Fight Club”& “Seven”) look
like crap. Watch this movie.
...And now the “Little Miss Sunshine
Award” for the worst, most pretentious film
of 2007...
“The Brave One” - This is the kind of
mind-numbing schlock that cracker movie
studios feed to the public as a prestige film. A
woman survives a beating in New York and
goes looking for revenge. That’s it. That’s the
story. It’s “Death Wish”, but it’s a “serious”
film that deals with “serious” issues.
While going on this “serious” route,
“The Brave One” succeeds in being the
most offensive film of 2007, the only
runners-up being “Good Luck Chuck”
(Hates Women), “Knocked Up” (Hates
People with a Brain) and “Why Did 1 Get
Married?” (Hates Everyone). Who beats
Jodie Foster? Minorities. Where does she
buy an illegal firearm for revenge? Minori
ties. Who does she kill? Minorities, save tiie
one white “mob” character in a suit (White
+ Suit = Evil...I might agree with that).
Who helps her in the end? Why, the
typically magical helpful minority, of
course! Any revenge movie that came out
this year was better “Descent” with Rosario
Dawson had almost die same damn story
as “The Brave One” and was great “Death
Sentence” with Kevin Bacon was good; it
at least had decent camera work. Even the
“Halloween” remake was a better revenge
movie. “The Brave One” sucks from begin
ning to end, from the first line to the last,
from the dialogue to die post-revenge Sarah
McLachlan song. I suppose this film had a
message. Unfortunately, that message appar-
emly was that the film makers and everyone
involved with the film hates minorities.