expect success! - North Carolina A&T State University

T R U S T E E S A N D A D M I N I S T R A T I O N
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IN SEPTEMBER 2000, after leading the Board of Trustees for three
terms, Howard Chubbs, senior pastor of Providence Baptist Church in
Greensboro, passed the chairmanship of the Board to Alexander W. Spears
III, CEO of Lorillard Tobacco Company. Ralph K. Shelton, CEO and president
of Southeast Fuels, Inc., was reelected vice chairman, and Gerald
Truesdale, M.D., was reelected secretary. Following Spears’ death in January,
Shelton became chairman.
Carl Ashby III, R. Steve Bowden, Carole Bruce, Henry H. Isaacson,
Charles McQueary, Velma Speight, Michael Suggs and John Wooten
retained membership on the Board. Nikkita Mitchell, a senior economics
major and president of the Student Government Association, served
ex officio.
Four administrative appointments were made at the Executive Cabinet
level. Dr. Carolyn W. Meyers, vice chancellor for academic affairs, was
named the first provost in the University’s 110-year history. Another new
position was created when Rodney E. Harrigan, chief information officer,
was named vice chancellor for information technology.
The interim status of Dr. Colleen P. Grotsky and Lesley Renwrick changed
when they were named executive assistant to the chancellor and special assistant to the chancellor for legal counsel, respectively. Dr. Roselle L.
Wilson was named interim vice chancellor for student affairs following the retirement of Dr. Sullivan Welborne.
Six new deans were appointed: Dr. Alton Thompson, School of Agriculture and Environmental and Allied Sciences; Dr. Phillip Carey, College
of Arts and Sciences; Dr. Lelia L. Vickers, School of Education; Dr. Joseph Monroe, College of Engineering; Dr. Kenneth H. Murray, School of
Graduate Studies (interim); and Dr. Patricia Price-Lea, School of Nursing (interim).
Board of Trustees Chairman, Ralph K. Shelton
TRUSTEES AND
In
Memoriam
■ Dr. Alexander W.
“Alex” Spears III,
chairman of the
North Carolina
Agricultural and
Technical State
University Board of
Trustees, died ■ Dr. Alexander W. Spears III
January 29, 2001,
at age 68.
Elected chairman in September 2000 and a board
member since 1990, Spears once served as secretary
and vice chairman. He also participated in other
activities on campus including the N.C. A&T
University Foundation Inc. Board of Directors. He was
well known in Greensboro for his community service
and commitment to social justice. In 1999, Spears
and his wife Shirley were recipients of one of
Greensboro’s top civic honors, the NCCJ Brotherhood
Citation Award.
Spears worked his way up the ranks at Lorillard
Tobacco Co. from research assistant to chairman and
CEO. He retired as CEO in 1999 after 40 years with
the Fortune 500 company. In 2000, he retired as
chairman.
A family man, Spears also enjoyed golfing and
snow skiing. He is survived by his wife, Shirley Pierce
Spears, a son, a stepdaughter, a stepson, four grandchildren,
a sister and a brother.
ADMINISTR ATION
Provost
■ Dr. Carolyn W. Meyers, vice chancellor for academic
affairs, was named the first provost in the university’s
110-year history.
According to Chancellor James C. Renick, Dr.
Meyers received the
appointment in
recognition of the
centrality of academics,
the high quality
of her work and
because of the confidence
he has in
her ability.
Meyers was
appointed vice
chancellor for academic
affairs in ■ Carolyn W. Meyers, Ph.D.
September 2000
after serving as
interim vice chancellor for eight months. She has
been a mechanical engineering pioneer for several
decades, receiving commendations never before
awarded to black women by the National Science
Foundation, the Society of Automotive Engineers
and the Foundry Educational Foundation.
Meyers received her B.S.M.E. degree from
Howard University, and her M.S.M.E. and Ph.D.
from the Georgia Institute of Technology. Prior to
her most recent appointments at A&T, she was a
program officer for the National Science
Foundation, dean of A&T’s College of Engineering
and a professor of mechanical engineering.
At Georgia Institute of Technology, Meyers was
an associate professor of mechanical engineering
and director of the SUCCEED Coalition Center for
Professional Success. Meyers has been an engineering
instructor at Atlanta University Center
Corporation, a systems faculty research fellow in
the Air Force Materials Laboratory at Wright-
Patterson AFB, and an analyst with General Electric
Company. She also has done engineering consulting
with the U.S. Army Materials Laboratory,
Georgia Dome, New Jersey Institute of Technology
and Neodyne Corporation.
The provost has an impressive list of awards,
honors, presentations, technical journals and publications
to her credit. Her papers have been presented
in over half the United States as well as
Canada, England and Sweden. She has been instrumental
in securing millions of dollars in research
grants from the National Science Foundation, TRW
Corporation, General Motors, General Electric
Foundation, United Technologies, and EXXON
Corporation.
FUTURES
At a campus-wide meeting
held January 11, 2001,
Chancellor James C. Renick
announced FUTURES, the university’s
new planning initiative,
and how it will be implemented.
Over the next three to five
years, students, faculty, staff,
administrators, alumni and the
external community would play
an integral and active role in
planning the future of North
Carolina Agricultural and
Technical State University.
“The future belongs to those
institutions that have foresight, energy, creativity, wisdom and the
courage to understand that destiny is not a matter of chance, but a
matter of choice and the will to achieve,” Renick said. “… Now is the
time to capture the opportunities to build on our rich tradition and
current momentum.”
By the end of January, the first phase of the initiative was completed
with the organization of a FUTURES Planning and Resource Council,
which would advise the Chancellor and provide institution-wide thinking
that will drive the strategic visioning process. Teams then were
appointed to assist in considering future challenges and opportunities
through the development of three scenarios for the “new” university.
Town hall meetings held in March and April served to test and refine
those scenarios, and the results were presented at a two-day retreat.
More than 200 participants from the campus and community made
final revisions, identified possible barriers to achievement and designed
specific operational goals with timelines, rationales and actions needed
to minimize or eliminate barriers to success.
The group chose an interdisciplinary-centered university. The next
phase of the process is to develop a vision with North Carolina
Agricultural and Technical State University as a learner-centered community
that develops and preserves intellectual capital through interdisciplinary
learning, discovery, engagement, and operational excellence.
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