Miscellany

Josh Iorio is the coordinator for  the TESL (Teaching English as a Second Language) /Applied Linguistics Grad Student Conference, which will be held on the ECU campus Februray 21.  According to Iorio, "The purpose of this conference is to provide a pressure-free environment where graduate students studying Applied Linguistics/TESOL can have the experience of presenting their work.  Many graduate students want the chance to be initiated into the circle of conference presenters, but don't feel ready to present at the same conference with experienced conference participants. In addition, many of these large conferences do not have sufficient space for graduate-student papers. The TALGS Spring Conference provides graduate students a forum to showcase their research and works-in-progress in a suitable environment. This conference will also provide an opportunity to network and make friends with your future colleagues." Ryan Anderson has helped organize and promote the event. A featured speaker at the event will be Dr. Jack Chambers a professor of Linguistics at the University of Toronto.  His research interests include language variation and Canadian English.  He is the author of Sociolinguistic Theory: Linguistic Variation and Its Social Significance which describes the implications of language variation on different aspects of society.  Dr. Chambers has also been well published in the field of Jazz since 1963.  The title of Dr. Chambers's presentation is "Sociolinguistics and Second-Language Speakers" which will address sociolinguistic issues that impinge upon immigration and ESL competence including the Literacy Gap, ethnolects and the Ethan Experience.

On January 23, Bridgette A. Lacy's article, "Tar River Poetry Marks 25 Years," appeared in the Raleigh News and Observer. Lacy writes, "Peter Makuck takes home envelopes stuffed with poems almost daily. Each envelope normally holds five poems.  By the end of the week, Makuck has received 375 poems.  By the end of the year, Makuck, founding editor of Tar River Poetry, a literary magazine based at East Carolina University in Greenville, has read 150,000 poems.  It's a task he has been performing for 25 years, a triumph of longevity for a magazine strictly devoted to poetry and poets."  For a full text of the article see: http://newsobserver.com/features/story/3263937p-2917400c.html

On Saturday January 31, Mike Hamer was faculty guest coach for the Lady Pirates Basketball Team against Conference USA opponent Marquette. The Lady Pirates battled back but lost 75-61.  Then, on February 2 Bill Hallberg and Pat Bizzaro stepped in to fill the breach, but still the Lady Pirates fell 74-90 to DePaul. (Best stick to English.)  Congratulations to Headcoach Sharon Baldwin-Tenner on the birth of her new baby on February 4.  She, not the faculty, have helped to turn the Pirates around this season with a winning record.

An informal committee, consisting of Christine Bates, Randall Martoccia, Christy Baker, and Dennis Turner, has been formed to plan the first annual Department of English Recruitment Fair to be held March 30.  According to Martoccia, "East Carolina University is currently experiencing record enrollment.  A significant percentage of these students are incoming freshmen with undeclared majors.  With the slowing economy and tightening job market, many students are contemplating careers in such lucrative fields as law, medicine, and accounting, and in so doing, they are choosing to major in Criminal Justice, Biology, and Business.  Fewer students today realize the myriad opportunities that a degree in English offers.  For example, many law schools prefer candidates with undergraduate degrees in English because these students exhibit strong communication and analytical skills.  Unfortunately, this fact is unknown to much of the student body at ECU.  Now is the time to promote the advantages of a degree in English and to begin ardently recruiting English majors."  The committee hopes the faculty will support them in these efforts.

Frank Galati's adaptation of John Steinbeck's Pulitzer Prize winning novel, Grapes of Wrath, depicting the lives of ordinary people striving to preserve their humanity in the face of social and economic desperation, will be performed February 19-24 at McGinnis Theater. Tickets range in price from $7-$12. This play contains brief nudity.

Seodial Deena's work will be featured in the Teaching Resources Center on the second floor of  Joyner Library.  His book, Canonization, Colonization, Decolonization, will be part of a in a display titled "Celebrating our Heritage."  This display will be housed in the Ronnie Barnes African American Resource Center of the TRC.  The display will be opened on February 18 and will remain on exhibit through the month of March.  The goal is to feature ECU faculty, staff, students, and alumni who have published materials that are housed in their department along with newly acquired materials for the department.