The Decree
since 1960 “of, by, andfor the Wesleyan community. ”
October 19, 2023
NORTH CAROLINA WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY, ROCKY MOUNT, NORTH CAROLINA 27804
Wesleyan, Faith Carry Stone through
‘the Storms’ of Her Life
In Taylor’s Stone’s office there
are family photos, photos of Stone
with students and colleague. And
there are life-affirming quotations
such as one that decorates the left
wall: “Turn your cants into cans
and your dreams into plans.” On
the facing wall is a whiteboard
with enrollment goals for the se
mester. And above that is a street
sign that says “Taylor Way.”
Ask her mother, sister, her
former professors or her cur
rent colleagues, and they will
all tell you the “Taylor Way”
involves hard work, impeccable
organization and attention to de
tail, as well as an upbeat attitude
punctuated by an extraordinary
number of exclamation points in
her email messages.
A 2013 Wesleyan graduate with
a degree in psychology, Stone now
serves as director of Wesleyan’s
Student Success Center, located
on the first floor of Pearsall
Hall. A former Wesleyan honors
student, Stone-then Taylor
Jackson—earned a scholarship
at Wesleyan after she graduated
as class valedictorian at Nash
Central High School.
In enrolling at her hometown
college, she followed in the foot
steps of her mother, Michelle
Jackson, who graduated with a
degree in elementary education
and now teaches first grade.
In an interview, Stone’s mother
said she was proud that her
daughter had selected Wesleyan,
explaining that Taylor had worked
hard to finish at the top of her high
school class. “She always had a
goal to earn a full scholarship to
Wesleyan,” Jackson said. “And it’s
emotional for me because I had
also graduated from NC Wes
leyan when Taylor was a little girl.
So, she knew all about Wesleyan
and had worn a Wesleyan sweat
shirt from when she was a small
child. Wesleyan was home to us.”
Jackson added that she is not
surprised at Taylor’s success as
a student and now a professional
“She has always had an exem-
The Wesleyan community is
mourning the loss of Gail Fields,
who staffed the reception area
of Braswell for the past 10 years.
She died in early October at the
age of 71 after a brief illness.
Human Resouces Director
Darrell Whitley paid tribute to
"Miss Gail" in a campus email:
"She was always quick to offer a
cheerful greeting, talk about her
family, share her faith or provide
a Bible verse for inspiration
and encouragement." Added
President Evan Duff, "To know
Miss Gail was to know genuine
kindness, joy, love, and a light
that could illuminate the darkest
of rooms. She was the first smile
many of us encountered as we
started our day, and you would
always receive a repeat smile
every time you passed her desk."
Photo courtesy of T. Anderson
plary work ethic,” she said. “ Ever
since she was young, I taught her
to never look to the left or the right,
and to keep her eyes on the goal.”
Stone’s younger sister, Sydney
Davis, is a 2019 Wesleyan graduate,
who earned a degree in commu
nication and now works for a local
bank. She said her older sister has
been a role model for her and always
tried to include her in her life, even
taking young Sydney on outings
with Jordan Stone, her then-fiance.
Davis echoed her mother’s praise.
“Taylor is the true definition of a
leader and not a follower,” she said.
“She leads with excellence in all
that she does. I’m so proud to call
her my sister.”
Like others, Davis called
her sister organized and detail
oriented, noting that she even
“holds her accountable” for
events in her own life.
“She has helped plan my birthday
parties, my wedding, projects for
school, and even helped with ideas
for my own child’s birthday parties,”
Davis said. “To this day, I can always
rely on Taylor to have a snack bag
prepared for any outing.. .whether
it's going to run errands or a family
trip. She’s always prepared.”
Fred Sanborn, one of Stone’s
psychology professors, recalled
her as a driven, curious and con
scientious student. Like her fam
ily members, he singled out her
organization skills and added
that she’s pleasant. “I always
enjoyed seeing Taylor sitting in
my classes,” Dr. Sanborn said.
He considers her an ideal fit for
the Success Center. “She really
cares about people and she’s en
couraging,” he said. “I'm sure that
comes through to students. And I
think she loves Wesleyan, so that's
a nice bonus.”
After Wesleyan, Stone enrolled
at East Carolina for graduate school
before she transferred to Southern
New Hampshire University, earning
a master's in psychology with a
concentration in industrial-organi
zational psychology.
The Decree interviewed
Stone in August and September:
Q. Tell us about your family.
A. My husband is Jordan Stone; he’s
been working at Wesleyan since 2021
as a multimedia coordinator. We have
one little boy named Luke, who is
3. We have a 6-year-old German
Shepherd, Raleigh, who believes
he's a person. My dad (Ron) is retired
from working in insurance (mostly
for Nationwide) and keeps my son
for me during the day. My son loves
his Papa J! My mom, Michelle, is an
amazing first grade teacher in Nash
County. My sister, Sydney, works at
First Carolina Bank as the compliance
specialist. She really enjoys her work.
Q. Your mom graduated from Wes
leyan. Tell us about that journey.
What is a distinct memory you have
from that period in your mom's life?
A. My mom started college at Nash
Community when I was a toddler.
After finishing there, she started at
Wesleyan in elementary education.
I remember coming to campus
with her and even meeting some
of her professors like Dr. Fleming
and Dr. Perry-Sheldon. I remember
walking into the Braswell Building
and asking why there were so many
pictures on the wall.
My mom studied a lot and at
the time I didn’t understand the
value of what she was doing for
our family. Now I'm so grateful
for what she did. The greatest
memory I have was in September
of 1999 when Hurricane Floyd
came through Rocky Mount and
we lost our home and everything
we owned. It was devastating as
my mom was student teaching and
so close to graduating. Wesleyan
rallied around my mom and told
her she WOULD graduate and
they supported her and helped
her finish. The bookstore gave
her notebooks, pencils, binders,
folders, highlighters. I remember
going through the boxes and think
ing how kind it all was. My mom
graduated in December 1999 and
everyone was so excited for her. The
greatest part of Wesleyan has always
been its staff and faculty. My mom
is an incredible educator in Nash
County and she always credits her
foundation to her time at Wesleyan.
Q. Can you elaborate on what
happened after Hurricane Floyd.
A. At the time we lived on Delane
Drive in Rocky Mount, close to
the hospital. We had to live with
my grandparents for a little while
after the flood. Then, we moved to
Nashville and I had to be part of a
new school district and make new
friends. That was pretty tough.
Q. Growing up, what is one thing
your family liked to do together?
A. I had a beautiful childhood with
parents and grandparents who loved
me. My parents prioritized our family
and I love the simple memories the
most. Every couple of weeks on a Fri
day night, my family would pile into
the car and head to Gold Rock to pick
up a hot fudge cake from Shoney’s.
It was two pieces of chocolate cake
with vanilla ice cream, hot fudge,
whip cream, and a cherry. It was my
favorite desert and really difficult
to find these days. The car ride was
fun, the desert was yummy, and it
was a little tradition I’ll never forget.
Q. What is your single best
memory of your childhood?
A. It’s so hard to pick one. I value
consistency and I love normal, every
day life more than “special” events.
Traditions like picking pumpkins,
looking at Christmas lights, going to
the pool in the summer—they’re all
favorite memories.
Q. What is the most adversity
you've faced in your life?
A. I mentioned losing my home in
1999, which was so difficult. My
granddaddy’s sickness and passing
really hurt my heart. Over the past
few years my family has experi
enced a lot of loss including the
unexpected passing of my mother-
in-law. I believe the greatest pain
I’ve ever felt was in early 2018 when
I miscarried our first baby. I was
working here and getting ready for
a first-year experience conference
in Texas and I was just so excited
for the future. After I lost the baby,
Jordan and I were so shocked and
broken and confused, but I share
my story because God was with me.
I can turn and use the comfort I re
ceived from God to comfort others
who are walking through their own
tragedies. God has been faithful all
my life and while I’ll always feel the
pain, I know He’ll never let me feel
it alone. Jesus is my foundation in
the very worst storms of life.
Q. You mentioned your grandfather
was a pastor. Talk about him and
his influence on your family’s life.
A. My granddaddy was
named the Rev. Ronald T.
Hunt. He was my moth
er’s father and he grew up
in Enfield. He pastored
in Elm City for over 30
years. Affiliated with the
Church of God, a Pen
tecostal denomination,
his church was called the
Outreach Center and I
grew up attending there.
When I was about 17,
my granddaddy got very
sick and we learned it
was Alzheimer’s. It was
devastating. He fought
the good fight of faith for
many years and passed
away when I was 28.1 loved him
so much and miss him every day.
His nickname was Luke and my
son is named after him. So much of
what I learned about faith, miracles,
healing, and heaven came from my
granddaddy. I’m so excited to see
him again one day. Since his illness,
my family and I have attended Rise
Church, which is located just across
the street from campus. I even
worked there in the church office
all through college and graduate
school. I’m so thankful my parents
introduced me to Jesus. He is the
foundation of my life and the reason
I have hope. I love sharing that hope
with others.
Q. Describe your high school experience.
A. I went to Nash Central High here
in Rocky Mount. My favorite courses
were drama/acting. I took drama nearly
every semester. High school was very
stressful—much more stressful than
college. I was first in my class and in
order to get a scholarship to Wesleyan
I had to graduate as valedictorian.
This meant eveiy grade had to be
nearly perfect. I studied all the time.
My favorite memory was when the
principal called me to his office
about a week before graduation and
said I would be valedictorian. All the
hard work had paid off and paved the
way for me to come to Wesleyan.
Q. What led you to NCWU as a student?
A. So I mentioned that I’ve always been
familiar with Wesleyan. Growing
up in this area and having a parent
who attended made me very famil
iar with the school. I used to come to
the Dunn Center to watch perfor
mances on field trips, and so Wes
leyan was always in the back of my
mind as a possibility. When I was
in high school and the counselors
started telling me my options, that’s
when I learned that I could receive a
scholarship if I was valedictorian. So
that became my goal. I’ll never forget
when admissions called me and told
me I received the scholarship, and I
could come to Wesleyan. I wept with
relief and joy. I had other options, but
I wanted a small school, and I wanted
to be able to stay at home and still be
in this area. I love Rocky Mount. It
was just the perfect fit for me.
Q. How did you settle on psychology
as a major? And, as an undergrad, what
were you thinking as far as career goals?
What was the inspiration for this goal?
A. I started as an education major.
I didn’t really know that I wanted
to be a teacher, but I knew that’s
what my mom did. During the
drop/add week, I went and saw my
advisor, Dr. Bill (Yankosky), and
told him I knew I was not going to
be an education major any longer.
Being a teacher is such a huge com
mitment and I could tell my heart
Taylor Stone and her mother, Michelle Jackson, both
graduated from NC Wesleyan. Photos courtesy of T. Stone
wasn’t in it. So I switched my major
to psychology, because I enjoyed my
first into to psychology course. The
rest is history. I like thinking about
how people think and I know that was
the best fit for me.
Q. What was your favorite class
as an undergrad?
A. I loved social psychology with
Dr. Sanborn and cryptology with
Dr. Bill. I would retake both those
courses right now.
Q. How did you meet your husband?
A. Jordan and I met at Rise Church.
He started working there a few years
after I did. I didn’t know he was join
ing the team. I just walked in one day
and there he was. He shook my hand
and introduced himself and he was
just perfect. No one makes me laugh
haider. We’ve been together for 10 years
total and married for seven of them.
Q. Online degrees, undergrad or grad,
have their critics. What was your
experience like and why did you
choose Southern New Hampshire
over a bricks-and-mortar program
for your master’s?
A. I first went to ECU to study school
psychology. I was in a small cohort
and it was fine, but I was miserable.
The university was huge. I had to
park at the stadium, get on a bus, and
then still walk 10 minutes to class. As
a Wesleyan girl, that felt outrageous.
So I left the program and chose an
online psychology master’s at SNHU.
My advisor called all the time. The
professors were so responsive. It
was great and their model worked
for me. I would only recommend
online classes and degrees to stu
dents who manage their time well,
feel comfortable with technology,
and can advocate for themselves.
Q. What appealed to you about the
job in the Student Success Center?
A. I finished my master’s degree in
2015 and planned to go into consult
ing or human resources. When I
saw the position open in Student
Success, I applied immediately. I
thought it would be great to be back
on campus and get some experi
ence with advising. I had no idea
how much I would love it. My team
is the best and our students are
special. I know I make a difference
every day and that’s very fulfilling.
Q. Describe your early respon
sibilities and then discuss your
move to the director position.
A. I was hired in 2015 to be an
academic advisor for freshmen
and coordinate Checkmate, a
series of enrichment workshops
for students. Soon after, I became
the first-year experience advisor
and helped develop that program.
Then, I became the assistant di
rector of first-year experience and
after that the director. Then,
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