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ECU Reads—ECU’s Inaugural Summer Reading Program for Freshmen Dr. Steve Ballard, Chancellor, Dr. Marilyn Sheerer, Interim Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs, and Dr. Mark Taggart, Chair of the Faculty Senate are pleased to announce the establishment of ECU Reads—a common summer reading experience for freshmen students at East Carolina University. The program invites freshmen entering ECU in the fall of 2008 to read My Freshman Year: What a Professor Learned by Becoming a Student by Rebekah Nathan. The shared experience will be a way to build community among incoming freshmen as well as signal the importance of reading as a component of academic success. Small group discussions about the book will be led by faculty and student affairs professionals on Saturday, August 23 from 4:00-5:00 p.m. Students may register to participate in small group discussions during Summer Orientation (June 18, 23, 30 and July 2, 7, 9, 16, 21) from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Student Involvement Fair in the Student Recreation Center. Free copies of the book will be distributed to students attending Summer Orientation. Students unable to register during Orientation may register and receive a free copy of the book at Joyner Library from July 22-August 20. The book will also be integrated into the curriculum of selected English classes and Freshman Seminar Classes (COAD 1000). Committee Chair, Dr. Michael Bassman, Director of the ECU Honors Program and Dr. Linda Wolfe, Chair of the Department of Anthology, were instrumental in selecting the book that will inaugurate ECU Reads. “Among the many reasons the book was selected was that it is accessible, contemporary, and relevant to students,” indicated Bassman. Wolfe added, “The book helps preview some of the experiences they will have as freshmen and gives students an opportunity to consider how their experience compares or contrasts to the one described by the author.” The book has been used successfully in university reading programs across the country and was recently piloted on the ECU campus by English instructor Debra O’Neal who reported that her freshman class recommended using the book for incoming freshmen. Baffled by changes she had observed in students over the past fifteen years, Dr. Cathy Small, a faculty member in the Department of Anthropology at Northern Arizona University, took a leave of absence and enrolled as a freshman at NAU to better understand the pressures and realities facing today’s student. Posing as a student, she assumed a new name, lived in a dorm, ate in the dining hall, took a full course load, and fully participated in campus life. She chronicles her experiences and observations in My Freshman Year: What a Professor Learned by Becoming a Student under the pseudonym of Rebekah Nathan, the name she used during her year as a freshman student. Students now are (generally) more career-minded, and less political. Professors now are (generally) more lenient in the classroom, and more focused on their own research. What’s most surprising, though, is how similar it is. There are the same personal and parental pressures to do well, and the same peer pressures to act as if you’re not taking school too seriously. Most students I met privately say they came to college to learn. But what students say they learn is 65% outside of the classroom and 35% inside. Small met with ECU discussion leaders via video teleconference on April 21, 2008 to answer questions about her experience and about her book. ECU students, faculty, and staff will have the opportunity to meet the author at Hendrix Theater on Sunday, August 24 at 2:00 p.m. when Dr. Small presents a lecture on her experiences. A book-signing and reception will follow her presentation. The program is a collaborative venture sponsored by the First Year Center, ECU Honors, Office of Co-Curricular Programs and Cultural Outreach, Department of English, Academic Advising and Enrichment Center, and Joyner Library. Dr. Corey King, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Experiences, reports “This is a model collaboration where Student Affairs and Academic Affairs have come together in a very real way to provide ECU students with an important educational opportunity.” For additional information about ECU Reads, please contact Dr. Michael Bassman, Assistant Vice Chancellor & Director, The University Honors Program, EC Scholars, & Undergraduate Research at 252-328-6373 or bassmanm@ecu.edu. ECU Reads Objectives -
Stimulate critical thinking -
Provide an opportunity for students to interact with faculty, authors, and scholars -
Emphasize the importance of reading -
Signal entrance into an academic community -
Develop a sense of community
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