2
North Carolina Wesleyan University, Rocky Mount, North Carolina 27804
May 19, 2023
STUDENT LIFE
Local Student Finds Home after Tumultuous ECU Term
By Gracie Wade
(Editor's Note: The following story was
submitted early in spring semester).
It was the 17th of August 2022.
It was a warm, windy morning
when I woke up with the exhilarat
ing feeling of finally moving out
of my parents’ house. At the young
age of 18,1 had graduated from
high school and at the same time
earned my associate’s degree from
Nash Community College.
I had always dreamed of attending
East Carolina University, so that’s where
I was headed. I had long wanted to
go to ECU because that's the college
attended by many of my family
members, including my older brother,
Jacob. And ECU has been a common
theme throughout my life.
That morning I was hit with
the realization of loans, bills, and
other life responsibilities that were
soon to come my way. Although
I had so much fear in the back of
my head, 1 was still excited to start
growing up and depending on
myself without my parents right
there beside me. I remember the
green of the trees in my yard and
the sight of my dog (a German
Shepherd named Sarah) running
around with her favorite red Fris
bee and sniffing around the many
bags and boxes in the driveway.
The time came for us to pack
my belongings into our cars and
take the hour-long journey to my
new school. When we arrived at
ECU, I felt so welcomed and I
couldn't imagine myself anywhere
else. There were hundreds of staff
members on hand, helping the
new students; they were all super
nice. We went to the large brick
gymnasium, where I was given my
student ID and dorm key. I got a
lot of free items as well-an ECU
can koozie, pens, bags, etc.
After check-in, we drove to the
dorm where I would be living for
the next year of my life. I took a
moment for myself in the park
ing lot because, even though I
was keen to move away, I knew I
would be saying bye to my parents
and that that would be the hardest
part. I remember that my parents
and my younger sister, Anna
Beth, helped me organize my
entire dorm room and they were
purposely going slow because they
knew they would be leaving soon.
When we finished, we walked out
to the parking lot, and my mom
The
D ECREE
since 1960
“of, by, and/or the Wesleyan community. ”
Staff
Senior Staff Writers
Mary Alice Butler
Staff Writers
Hunter Hopkins
Layali Kasem
Jean LaGreca
Jordyn Matlock
Gracie Wade
Special
Contributors
Carl Lewis
Andrew Stern
Grace Wallace
Faculty Advisor
Dr. William Grattan
179 Braswell • Phone: 985-5336
Email: WJGrattan@ncwc.edu
hugged me and cried. My dad
didn't show he was upset, but no
father is happy about leaving his
daughter at college (In the weeks
ahead, I could always tell they
missed me when I would come to
visit on the weekends.).
There are three dorm neigh
borhoods at ECU: West End,
Central, and College Hill. West
end is typically for honors college
students. Central is for gender
specific-dorms, and College Hill
is for the kids who like to party.
This is because the tailgate lot for
football games is located in the
College Hill neighborhood, with
the stadium right behind it. Most
students choose this place because
it's convenient for game days and
parties. Ballard, my dorm, is the
newest building in College Hill.
The older dorms have smaller
rooms, with ugly pipes all over
the ceilings and individual AC
units in the windows. In Ballard
it felt like a room at home; there
were high ceilings and plenty of
space. My walls were painted an
olive-green and the air condition
ing was modern and central.
Fast forward to the first day of
classes. Right away I recognized
that I was in a much different
learning environment. I remem
ber walking into my chemistry
class for the first time and seeing
250 college students in a lecture
hall set up with retractable chairs.
I knew it would be a big challenge
for me because I was so used to
sitting in classrooms with fewer
than 20 people. I was also used to
enjoying one-on-one relationships
with my teachers (at Faith Chris
tian School) and professors (Nash
Early College).This intimidated
me at first, and throughout the
semester it made me more aware
of my learning style.
Despite the challenges, I
convinced myself that I could suc
ceed. Then there came a point that
I needed extra study time for my
biology class due to an upcom
ing exam in genetics. There were
about 150 in my class and only
one tutoring session available. A
friend and I helped each other
with studying, but I still struggled
with the material and decided to
attend the tutoring session, which
was held in the purple-walled
Pirate Academic Success Center.
When I arrived that day, I found
I was one of 75 students looking
for help. The professor, a short,
thin woman in her 40s, tried to do
her best, but there were so many
students, and many were unable
to get assistance during the two-
hour session. The professor was
overwhelmed; it was a disaster.
Needless to say, many students did
not do well on the test.
The situation was even worse in
my chemistry class. Once again
struggling with the material, I
went to my professor’s office
hours to get extra help and ask
some questions. The professor
was a man in his 30s with a dark
stubble beard and big brown
eyes. As I walked into his office,
I hoped he would care enough to
help me. After realizing he didn’t
recognize my face (out of class of
250), I felt overlooked, but I wasn't
too upset about it. I just wanted
him to be understanding. I asked
him for help with the homework,
and his response was, “We
learned this in class and the notes
are posted on Canvas; you should
know how to do it on your own.”
Then he asked me to leave.
About three months later, I felt
doubtful about passing my classes
and I had a lot of personal issues
going on back at home that af
fected me as well. My boyfriend,
Brian, and I struggled a bit with
the long-distance relationship at
first (We soon agreed to trade
weekends, with me coming home
and him coming to Greenville).
My grandad was in and out of
the hospital for a few months and
First-year student Gracie Wade at her
graduation last year from Nash Early
College. G. Wade photo.
that took a toll. My parents didn't
agree with some of my decisions,
and that was the hardest part. I
tend to seek their approval, so
when they get upset with me,
it will affect me in significant
ways. (At one point my mom
wouldn't speak a word to me for
almost three weeks). Add in some
financial strains and my inability
to find a job in Greenville (My
boyfriend had to pay for my gas
Superstitions and Rituals Abound
On Wesleyan’s Baseball Team
By Hunter Hopkins
Decree Staff Writer
Baseball players have always
been known as a superstitious
bunch. The North Carolina Wes
leyan baseball team is no different,
as many Bishops follow a particu
lar ritual because they feel it helps
them to be successful on the field.
One such player is Bishops first-
baseman Jackson Hobbs, who has
just been named Player of the Year
in the USA South Conference.
Last year, his teammates gave
him the walk-up song "I Need a
Dollar" by Aloe Blacc after they
discovered he always kept a dollar
bill in a hat that his father gave
him in high school. Hobbs consid
ers it his "lucky dollar," as he is
from Florida and feels like his
father is right there with his dollar
bill tucked inside his ball cap.
Similar to Hobbs, pitcher Clay
ton Gilmore is well known on the
team for keeping his "lucky penny"
in his left cleat every time he toes
the rubber. He stalled his supersti
tion during his sophomore year of
high school, when, like Hobbs, his
father gave him a lucky penny to
keep on him as he prayed for good
luck. Gilmore said he has forgot
ten the penny twice since stalling
the tradition, and each time it has
resulted in a bad outing for him. To
Gilmore, the penny gives him extra
fuel to succeed on the mound.
Next on this list is infielder
Javier Quintana, who received a
golden necklace from his grand
mother on his Sth birthday. This
necklace has a gold baseball pen
dant on it, and he has worn it ever
all the time; my friends would be
upset because I couldn't go out
with them) and that just raised the
stress even more.
I also concluded that I didn't fit
into the ECU culture. Walking
around campus, a friend and I
would constantly get weird stares.
It happened mostly in the dining
hall or in the library. College
students tend to be very judgy
because many think that they're
better than everyone else based on
appearance or the clothes they’re
wearing. This made me really un
comfortable. I admit I usually was
a lazy dresser. Most days I’d wear
my Hey Dude shoes, Nike sweat
pants and a hoodie (It seemed that
most days it was very cold and
windy, and my dorm was a mile
walk from all my classes as well
as the library). My philosophy
is that I have no one to impress
and I would rather be comfort
able anyway. Girls were definitely
the judgmental ones there. They
would wear Lululemon shorts/
leggings with tops that made their
upper chest hang out. This is a
typical Greenville female outfit,
and I’m sure you can imagine
why they dress that way.
During that semester, perhaps
the most serious issue—a recur
ring one—involved the boys that
lived on my floor in the dorm.
Nearly every night, there was a
group who would bang on our
door to get me and my roommate
to come out and talk to them.
After a couple of months of per
sistently telling them no, to leave
us alone, they crossed the line. I
lived on the fourth floor, and one
night I took the elevator to my
room after coming back from
dinner. Two tall, skinny guys
since he received it. The necklace
is superstitious to Quintana, as
he feels as if his grandmother is
always there to support him.
During his senior year of high
school, the necklace broke as
Quintana dove head-first into
second base in attempting to steal.
After his necklace broke, Quintana
had "the worst slump since his high
school career started." After getting
his necklace fixed, Quintana ex
ploded in the playoffs, batting.380
throughout his team’s playoff run.
Among Wesleyan players,
a well-known ritual is pitcher
Hunter Hill's pregame breakfast
every time he is slated to start.
Since Hill arrived at Wesleyan,
his routine has always been to
hit Red’s restaurant for breakfast,
always getting the same meal:
Biscuits and gravy with two eggs
and bacon.
Last year Hill received the USA
South Rookie Pitcher of the Year
award and he’s been well known
on his team for going to Red’s be
fore games, a fact that earned him
the nickname "Big Red." Despite
eating the same meal every time,
he claims he will never change
that superstition since he received
the prestigious award last year and
the food is always “excellent.”
Like Big Red, Damon Hardy
also eats the same meal before
every game. Unlike Hill, though,
Hardy started this superstition
when he was just a little boy play
ing recreation ball at the Harrison
Family YMCA in Rocky Mount.
see RITUALS pg 5
walked up to me and cornered me
against the wall next to my door,
bombarding me with questions.
They repeatedly asked, “Where
is your boyfriend?” or ‘Are you
gonna be alone in your room
tonight?” Luckily, I had a friend
who lived a few doors down; she
came in time to get them away
from me. The next day I filed a
harassment report to the cops and
the school took action. My room-
mate and I had a no-contact order
against the boys, and that took
care of the situation.
See HOME pg 6
WINNER
Q: Will you continue to be active
in volleyball after graduation?
A: I do plan to continue to play
through adult leagues and tourna
ments either in Raleigh or Green
ville. I’ve played since I was 9 years
old and it’s not something I could
give up without feeling empty.
Q: What’s one aspect of Wes
leyan that you would change?
A: I would try to build a tighter-
knit community in the Villas (16
housing units, located across the
road from the athletic fields, that
Wesleyan leases and then rents to
students). The community leaders
(similar to RAs in the dorms) occa
sionally hold events, such as a block
party, but considering most staff
and residents are athletes it can be
difficult to come together. I would
add a fire pit to build community;
I’d also invite student groups (e.g.,
Fellowship of Christian Athletes)
to hold events in the grassy areas.
Asked the same question, I’m sure
most students would respond that
they would change from a dry
campus, but since, realistically, that
will never change, we need to find
other ways to have fun.
Q: Talk about your internship
as well as your immediate post
graduate plans.
A: I'm finishing the hiring pro
cess to be a probation/parole officer
for Nash County. I'll be supervising
offenders within the community
and monitoring their rehabilita
tive processes as well as ensuring
the safety of neighboring citizens.
While at Wesleyan, I completed
an internship that indirectly led
me to this job. I was a behavioral
specialist intern for a non-profit,
the Mephibosheth Project, in
Goldsboro. I helped facilitate group
therapy for juveniles on probation
or released from youth detention
centers. I enjoyed my time with the
non-profit and felt I could apply the
same skills I learned there to the
adult population. With the help of
Dr. (Gail) Marsal, I submitted an
application to the state and was later
offered an interview for the position.
Q: What are your long-term goals?
What do you want your life to be
like at 40?
A: I want to grow in my career,
whether this means staying a parole
officer or moving into a different
position. If I choose to change posi
tions, I will likely apply to the FBI
and would love to work at the BAU
(Behavioral Analysis Unit) in Quan
tico, Virginia. Having grown up on
a farm, I would like to own horses
again and would like to help support
a feral cat colony in my community.
Q: Who will be at graduation with you?
A: Both my parents; my boyfriend,
Sean; and my sister, Sara. We don’t
have set plans for celebrating. I just want
to enjoy the time with my family before
they go back home, and I want to hang
out with friends before they leave.