UNCW ENGAGE: Spring 2023

ENGAGE

IN THIS ISSUE

• Honoring Indigenous Peoples

• Learn to Swim

• ENGAGE UNCW (GivePulse)

EDITORS

Jeanine M. Mingé

Emmanuel Mitcham

DESIGN

Emmanuel Mitcham

PHOTOGRAPHY

Jesse Bradley

Jeff Janowski

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Jack Bailey

Kim Cook

Joel Finsel

Ann Freeman

Alyson Fleming

Venita Jenkins

Cara Marsicano

Krissy Vick

EDITORIAL ADVISORS

Jennifer Glatt

Venita Jenkins

Megan Kauzlaric

Shirl New

Andrea Weaver

Welcome to ENGAGE magazine, celebrating UNCW’s sustained work in and with our community partners. This work manifests in some incredible ways.

Community Engagement and Impact in Academic Affairs is working with our partners in Student Affairs to launch our digital hub for communityengaged research, teaching, learning, and service: GivePulse. It is our digital front door where community partners can access a database to connect to our university, faculty, students, and resources to make connections seamlessly.

ENGAGE UNCW with GivePulse will help in the following ways:

• Service learning and high-impact curricular experiences with community partners: Manage curricular and cocurricular service learning. Students, faculty, and partners collaborate seamlessly within Canvas and the GivePulse platform. This includes workflows for MOUs; assessments; tracking service hours; and more.

• Community Partners: Onboard, organize, and communicate with partners in a database that enables our community to browse, search and categorize organizations by interest, pathways, outcomes, and initiatives.

• Volunteerism: Match, track, schedule, and communicate with students, staff, faculty, and alumni with shifts, calendars, and a database.

We will be piloting this in Academic Affairs with a Community Engagement Community of Practice led by faculty fellows. More to come about our new digital front door.

In other news, we are excited to celebrate the accomplishments of community-engaged scholarship and creative works from across our university—the Indigenous Art Reveal with artist Jessica Clark, the work of the Restorative Justice Collaborative, and the Learn to Swim program in partnership with UNCW’s Swimming and Diving Team. There is incredible work in the College of Health and Human Services with Project Soar and the Intergenerational Design Challenge. The College of Arts and Sciences is celebrating the Drone Observatory for Coastal Mapping and much more.

Please know that we are here to support you in enriching scholarship and research, enhancing the curriculum, and preparing educated and engaged citizens who contribute to the public good through workshops and institutes. We support our community partners by enhancing accessibility and presence. If you are interested in connecting with our unit, please contact my team and me to join this incredible community engagement ecosystem.

Warmly,

Jeanine M. Mingé, Ph.D. Associate Provost for Community Engagement and Impact, Executive Director of the Office of the Arts

Speakers Focus Understory on the

At the onset of the pandemic, when everyone was just beginning to stay home and figure out how to Zoom, the Office of Community Engagement and Applied Learning sponsored a new public series called “A People’s History of Wilmington.” The title is a riff on Howard Zinn’s A People’s History of the United States, a monumental book focused on uplifting the stories and amplifying the voices of the country’s under-represented heroes, not the typical “fundamental nationalist glorification of country,” as Zinn described traditional

textbooks in an interview. He understood that people were “hungry for a different, more honest take.” This series sought to bring Zinn’s concept closer to home.

Visiting professor and internationally renowned writer John Jeremiah Sullivan, who was teaching an Honors Seminar by the same name when the series launched, collaborated with co-directors of the 1898 Legacy and Futures Research Collective, Drs. Lynn Mollenauer and Tiffany Gilbert to dream up the program.

Sullivan hosted the first episode with his longtime collaborator, singer and MacArthur “genius” Rhiannon Giddens, who zoomed in from Ireland. Their conversation focused on Omar Ibn Said, an Islamic scholar from West Africa who was enslaved in 1807 and became well known in Wilmington before his death in 1864. Giddens previewed music from her opera about the enigmatic man, who was also known as Uncle Moreau and Prince Omeroh. Omar debuted nationwide the following year at the Spoleto Festival in Charleston, SC.

For episode two, Sullivan sat down with veteran radio broadcaster Larry Reni Thomas for a conversation on the jazz history of Wilmington. Thomas, a native of Wilmington now living in Chapel Hill, shared images of The Barn, a wellknown jazz and blues club that operated on the south side in the 1940s and ’50s. Thomas described growing up near The Barn on South 11th Street and how his father spoke of the old club with a smile, when explaining to his son how the old building once featured great musical talents, from Duke Ellington to Cab Calloway.

The third round featured Dr. Helena Spencer, from UNCW’s Department of Music, in dialogue with UCLA’s Dr. Richard Yarborough. The ostensible subject was his great aunt, Caterina Jarboro, the first Black female singer ever to perform a leading role in an all-white American opera company. The diva was born Kathryn Yarborough here in Wilmington in July 1898, before her family moved north. Dr. Yarborough shared stories about her visits to his family in Philadelphia in between tours, how she would arrive sometimes with very little notice and often brought fascinating gifts from her travels abroad.

Historian, podcast host, and UNCW alumna Lettie Gore joined the series in March to present her work on Wilmington’s place in The Green Book, a traveler’s guide for Black motorists in the Jim Crow South. The Green Book provided safe options for travelers, as well as information intended to help people avoid running into what its author Victor Hugo Green considered “difficulties” and “embarrassments.” Several sites in Wilmington were highlighted, including a boarding house on 6th Street still in use today.

In April, a large crowd gathered for the first in-person event, held in the Warwick Center Ballroom, to hear many

important voices, foremost among them that of Rev. Naomi Tutu, Missioner for Racial and Economic Equity at the Cathedral of All Souls, in Asheville, NC. Rev. Tutu wove an uplifting call to action around parables handed down by her mother, Nomalizo, and father, Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Her talk electrified the room. A panel of community partners followed, moderated by New Hanover County’s NAACP Branch President, Reddgo Long Jr. The conversation included Zeddrick Applin, head of diversity, equity, inclusion & community involvement at nCino; Joe Conway, chief equity and inclusion officer for the City of Wilmington; Linda Thompson, chief diversity and equity officer for New Hanover County; and Elizabeth Forte, health equity education specialist at Novant Health NHRMC.

For the final event of the season, John Jeremiah Sullivan returned to lead a discussion with descendants of victims of the 1898 Wilmington Massacre and Coup. The talk was titled “Healing Forward: On Trauma and Resilience.” The format returned to Zoom and brought participants together from around the country, including members of the Halsey family: Hesketh “Nate” Brown Jr., Elaine Brown, Gwendolyn Alexis, and Zakee Holmes. Their ancestor, Josh Halsey, was one of only eight known, named victims (out of the scores) murdered in 1898. Also attending the virtual event was Judy Fraser, a direct descendant of Richard Holmes, a Black police officer who was sent into exile in 1898.

A remarkable thing happened. A day before the event, genealogist Tim Pinnick called. Descendants of William Henderson, a prominent Black lawyer who was exiled under threat of violence almost 125 years ago, had gotten in touch with him. They were at that very moment driving to Wilmington from Chapel Hill, where they had attended

an alumni event at the Kenan-Flagler Business School. “They want to learn more about their ancestors’ lives in Wilmington,” Pinnick said. “Would it be okay if they reached out?” We suddenly had more panelists and an even richer conversation.

Join us this fall for more “People’s History.” Send your suggestions to joelfinsel@gmail.com. We’d love to hear from you.

— Joel Finsel, Co-founder, Third Person Project

Caterina Jarboro, American opera singer

The Restorative Justice Collaborative (RJC) at UNCW has been working with the New Hanover County Resiliency Task Force (RTF) to develop and deliver community-wide training on racial trauma and healing. In November 2022, the RTF offered the first full day training on the principles of racial equity from Community Organizing for Racial Equity (CORE) in Durham, NC. With approximately 25 participants from Wilmington, CORE presented the foundational approach to understand and tackle structural and historical racism in the United States. We spent the day learning about how embedded systems of racial hierarchy are in the socialization processes across the country. This is achieved through mass media, education, faith communities and in many other settings. Understanding and observing how socialization informs our understanding of racialization is an essential step in combatting it.

In December 2022, Dr. Kimberly Cook, director of the RJC, continued this series with a full day training to examine how historical racial trauma impacts human behavior across generations. Using restorative practices, particularly circle dialogue process, participants gained

skills and insight into understanding that trauma is both an event and a process. The adage that “hurt people hurt people” is in fact true, and also true is that “healed people heal people.” Healing from trauma is a lifelong journey that requires breaking free from traumagenic conditions, acknowledging honestly the harms of the traumatic event, and then reconnecting with self and others towards possibly transforming the harm into post-traumatic growth. Training participants were exposed to several thoughtful exercises to support digging deeper into the contours of trauma and healing, and identifying generational legacies of resilience, resistance, and repair. The series of trainings continued through the first few weeks of 2023.

Restorative justice applies concept and skills emerging from Indigenous cultures. For example, we gather in community by acknowledging each other as “Ubuntu” and “Sawubona,” which are practices from South Africa. Ubuntu means “I am because we are,” which guides our interactions with each other, as Rev. Naomi Tutu reminded us when she came to UNCW, that we derive our humanity in community with each other. Sawubona means “I see you,” which guides our

capacity to acknowledge our common needs to matter to ourselves, to our families, to our communities, and to our society. Other Indigenous concepts, such as the medicine wheel and the principle of the seventh generation, also inspire how we see and address generational resilience, resistance, and repair. As a restorative justice practitioner, Dr. Cook has been trained by people with direct roots into these cultural practices.

In spring 2023, Dr. Cook is offering a series of Restorative Justice trainings that will include the following modules:

1. Restorative Justice: The Basics

2. Restorative Justice in Education

3. Trauma and Restorative Justice

4. Post-Traumatic Growth and Healing using Restorative Justice

5. Racial Justice and Restorative Justice

For more information please contact Dr. Cook: cookk@uncw.edu.

— Kim Cook, Ph.D., Director, Restorative Justice Collaborative

The RJC offers training and case facilitation to help people move towards repair, reconciliation, and transformation whenever possible. Healing begins by acknowledging the harm, taking active responsibility for the harm, and meeting the (often complex) needs for people to feel whole again. It can occur in community, through deep dialogue in a safe setting, and the RJC aims to provide a platform for positive change and equity through restorative initiatives and training opportunities. For more information contact Dr. Cook at cookk@uncw.edu.

This year, the UNCW Learn to Swim program received a $50,660 grant from the New Hanover County Endowment. This funding will allow the program to reach more children from underserved communities to promote swim inclusion and water safety.

Since 2019, UNCW has offered free two-week long swim lessons to local children, but the demand for lessons each year has exceeded the program’s capacity. With the newly awarded NHCE grant, the swim program hopes to reach more children in 2023 than in all of its previous years combined.

The program resulted from the research of Ann Freeman ’08, ’17MPA, assistant secretary to the UNCW Board of Trustees and long-time UNCW employee, conducted while she was

completing her master’s degree at UNCW. Her 2017 master’s research, “A Swimming Dilemma,” revealed that in Wilmington, approximately 50 percent of all Black residents interviewed in the research were non-swimmers, which increased to 88 percent among lowincome participants. Tragically, the day that Freeman presented her findings, her nephew drowned.

“Throughout my research, adults and children said they didn’t know how to swim and that they wanted to learn,” said Freeman. “Comments like those, coupled with my own personal tragedy, pushed me to continue to look for ways to make these lessons a reality.”

Freeman’s findings align with nationwide statistics from the CDC, which show drowning rates for African Americans and other racial minority adults and children are 1.5 times higher than

Whites. Disparities for Black youth ages 5-9 are 2.6 times higher; and ages 10-14, the rate is 3.6 times higher than White youth. For African American youth in swimming pools, ages 10-14, rates are 7.6 times higher than White youth. In North Carolina, drowning is the thirdleading cause of injury or death to children under age 18.

According to Freeman’s research, racial and economic discrimination restricted access to swimming activities for decades, contributing to cultural attitudes around swimming and preventing intergenerational instruction. The Learn to Swim program is on a mission to overcome the lingering impacts of those barriers and save lives.

“Wilmington is a coastal community; About half of our city’s borders are bodies of water,” Freeman said. “Swimming is much more than recreation. It is a life-saving skill. Swim

lessons and water safety can radically change this equation, reducing a child’s risk of drowning by 88 percent. Yet, gaining access to lessons remains a challenging barrier to much of our local community.”

UNCW’s Learn to Swim program is a campus-wide partnership between the Department of Athletics, Office of Community Engagement and Partnerships, Office of the Chancellor, College of Health and Human Services, and the MarineQuest outreach program. It also has involved D.C. Virgo Preparatory Academy, the laboratory school operated by UNCW in downtown Wilmington. The swim lessons are led by UNCW Swimming and Diving Head Coach Bobby Guntoro. UNCW student-athletes on Guntoro’s team serve as instructors for the program, trained by the Wilmington Swim Academy. Guntoro has made community involvement and service a central component of his coaching program and believes the Learn to Swim

program provides meaningful training for his swimmers.

“It does not matter how much knowledge we have in a certain subject if we don’t know how to connect with our community and deliver the knowledge,” Guntoro said. “This program provides this exact learning experience.”

The program doesn’t stop with swimming. It also includes a campus visit to UNCW which includes a tour, food and various presentations by the Office of Admissions, the Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion, and Watson College of Education. The visit also includes educational activities provided by the College of Health and Human Services and MarineQuest. The goal is to help the students envision themselves attending UNCW or some other institution of higher education and empower them with life skills.

“The benefits of swimming last a lifetime,” said Dr. Alyson Fleming, a UNCW Department of Biology and Marine Biology and Center for Marine Science faculty member who helped write the Learn to Swim program grant and assists with program development. “Swimming can save your life and change your life. It opens doors to explore the natural world and pursue a whole suite of rewarding careers.”

— Alyson Fleming, Ph.D., Research Faculty with contribution from Ann Freeman, Asst. Secretary of Board of Trustees

From left to right: Bobby Guntoro and Ann Freeman Cohort of DC Virgo students that completed the 2nd annual Learn to Swim program

Honoring Indigenous Peoples

OF SOUTHEASTERN NORTH CAROLINA

The University of North Carolina Wilmington was built upon the ancestral territory of the Catawba People. This land, where nearly 18,000 students pursue higher education—and where nearly 2,600 faculty and staff make that pursuit possible—once served as a meeting site for first peoples. The Coharie, Lumbee, Meherrin, Occaneechi Saponi, Haliwa-Saponi, Waccamaw Siouan, Sappony, and the Eastern Band of Cherokee are tribes of southeastern NC, and their resilience has long gone unacknowledged on UNCW’s campus. Artivism for Social Change is a platform that is designed to address such systemic

oversights. As a collaboration between UNCW Community Engagement and Impact, Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion, participating campus departments, and community partners, Artivism fosters creativity, engagement, and empowerment through social justice work.

This year, the Artivism team partnered with members of several NC tribal communities to commission a permanent art installation for Fisher Student Center. The steering committee released a call for artists to submit original, Indigenouscentered artwork that represents

the rich diversity of North Carolina Native peoples, while highlighting the celebratory and restorative aspects of their cultures. Artist Jessica Clark answered that call. Clark is a member of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina. Her work, according to her artist’s bio, is intended to document and preserve Indigenous cultures, while “educating her viewers on Southeastern Native American identity.” Clark’s work has been displayed internationally, and now, UNCW’s Fisher Student Center stands among venues like the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C., the Painting Center in New York,

and the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University—all of which house Clark’s original paintings.

After months of work, Clark produced three stunning pieces. The first, entitled “We Are Advocates”, is a painted collage of protest images. Clark’s subjects stand in defiance of cultural appropriation and the resulting sexualization of Native women, the epidemic of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, and the environmental degradation caused by pipeline expansion. “We are Protectors”, the second painting, celebrates Indigenous peoples’ relationship to and stewardship of the land. “We are the Seeds”, Clark’s final painting, weaves together images to represent the importance of corn in Native culture. In it, Clark’s subjects harvest and process the corn they’ve cultivated. Pamela Young-Jacobs, vice chief of the Waccamaw Siouan, stands in the center with her palms outstretched. She is holding a pile of Sea Island White Flint corn—a variety that has ancestral significance for her people.

Upon completion of these pieces, Clark made the trip from Santa Fe, New Mexico (where she currently teaches at the Santa Fe Indian School), back to her home state of North Carolina. The installation of Clark’s work was preceded by an entire afternoon of celebration.

On November 3, 2022, Smokey River and Warpaint, two Native American drum groups, filled UNCW’s outdoor amphitheater with rhythms. Dancers in brightly colored regalia graced the audience with renditions of the Grass Dance, Jingle Dress Dance, and Fancy Shawl Dance, among many others.

Lumbee Master of Ceremonies, Kaya Littleturtle, guided audience members through the experience with stories, demonstrations, and anecdotes. UNCW graduate and former Miss Lumbee, Alexis Raeana Jones ’19, then gave a performance that ushered in the evening activities.

As the sun began to set, participants gathered in UNCW’s Clock Tower Lounge for refreshments. The space was opened with songs, a blessing, a land acknowledgment, and a keynote address by

Lumbee tribe member, Nancy Strickland Fields, who draws from a deep knowledge base of southeastern Native peoples and the American colonial experience.

In the culminating moment, Clark’s work was revealed to the gathered audience and was met with a very powerful and emotional response.

This project represents a renewed effort to make space for our Indigenous predecessors. It is intended to take a stand against narratives that portray Native American cultures as pieces of a lost past. Alexis Raeana Jones, who’s image defiantly looks out at the viewer in “We are Advocates,” said throughout the evening, “we are still here.” The Indigenous peoples of southeast NC and beyond have endured the worst of humanity. Their resilience deserves to be celebrated, as does their presence within our communities.

— Cara Marsicano, Artist Services and Engagement Coordinator, Office of the Arts

Artist Jesssica Clark unveils the three-portrait public art project dedicated to bringing awareness to Native issues while celebrating Indigenous people.

College of Health and Human Services News

UNCW AND ACCESS WILMINGTON AWARDED VETERANS ADAPTIVE SPORTS GRANT

In 2016, Project SOAR (Sports Outreach and Adaptive Recreation) was developed through a collaboration between UNC Wilmington, ACCESS of Wilmington and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to provide veterans with the opportunity to enjoy adaptive sports not readily available in the area. The program also builds camaraderie between veterans, their peers and instructors, increases their fitness and excursions, promotes active living through building recreation skills, improves physical and mental health, and promotes overall community reintegration. The program serves veterans in southeastern North Carolina living with serviceconnected illness or injury. Project SOAR offers activities such as archery, golf, cycling, kayaking, SCUBA diving, surfing, air rifle, therapeutic horsemanship, sailing, paddleboarding, and yoga. Project SOAR primarily operates through funding provided by a Veterans Affairs Adaptive Sports Grant (ASG), which is given to organizations for the purpose of providing opportunities for veterans to improve their independence, wellbeing, and quality of life through adaptive sports and therapeutic arts programs. This year, UNC Wilmington and its partners were

awarded a $194,260 ASG grant, a significant increase from last year. Grant funds will be used to purchase machinery and equipment specifically engineered to help disabled participants in these kinds of events. The School of Health and Applied Human Sciences’ Recreation Therapy program has been an integral part in the collaboration between the university and ACCESS of Wilmington. Associate Professor Brent Hawkins says of the program, “The mission is health. So to improve the health of veterans, engage them in things they enjoy doing, and reconnect them with other military service members and people in the community through recreation is so important. This builds on the veterans’ strengths, helps them improve their health, and reintegrates them back into the community.”

For many veterans, the difficult transition from military service to civilian life can lead to isolationism. “A large percentage of veterans experience traumatic stress and depression symptoms because of an emotional or psychological injury,” Hawkins explained. “Things can get bad quickly. We encourage more veterans to come out of their homes so they can reconnect with their social health. We’re trying to

give veterans an opportunity to reestablish who they are and what they can do instead of focusing on what they can’t do.”

“Our school is committed to engaging with our community partners to provide service while infusing applied learning opportunities for our students into our degree programs,” said Dr. Steve Elliott, director of the School of Health and Applied Human Sciences. “ACCESS of Wilmington has been one of our signature community partners for over a decade and we are thrilled to continue to expand our relationship with the funding we have received from the Department of Veterans Affairs for Project SOAR. Our Recreation Therapy faculty and students will be able to work with ACCESS staff to provide adapted sports, recreation, and recreation therapy for veterans living with service-connected illness or injury in and around Wilmington, N.C. This partnership really does make a difference in the lives of these veterans who participate in adapted activities.”

— Jack Bailey, Communications Specialist, College of Health and Human Services

Project SOAR participants practice archery at Miracle Field, Wilmington, NC

Drone Observatory for Coastal Mapping

Coming soon to UNCW

UNCW will soon be the first university in the southeast to acquire an unoccupied aerial system (UAS) observatory for coastal mapping, supported by a National Science Foundation Major Research Instrumentation Grant for nearly $851,000. The grant is awarded to faculty member Dr. Narcisa Pricope and colleagues Dr. Philip Bresnahan, Dr. Devon Eulie, Dr. Joanne Halls and Dr. Lynn Leonard.

Dr. Pricope, lead principal investigator, said the grant will equip UNCW with state-ofthe-art instrumentation that will build on the university’s expertise and bring research and collaborations that had previously not been possible.

“This acquisition will enable continuation

and development of new and diverse interdisciplinary applications of UASderived data and provide unparalleled opportunities for student training, professional development and community partnerships,” said Dr. Pricope, professor of geography and director of the UNCW Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT) Certificate Program.

The UAS Coastal Observatory will be housed at UNCW’s Center for Marine Science in the MARBIONC labs. It will consist of three off-the-shelf, commercial drone platforms equipped with four complementary remote sensors and other instrumentation that can study the coastal ecosystem in unprecedented ways from both the air and the ground. The sensors

will collect valuable visual data as well as infrared and thermal data not seen with the naked eye.

“The advanced instrumentation used in this award exemplifies how the connection between basic research and technology can have practical applications for coastal communities,” said Dr. Ken Halanych, executive director of Center for Marine Science. “This type of translational research is what the MARBIONC program is all about.”

For instance, researchers will be able to study water quality by using the observatory’s sensors and drone platforms to map submerged aquatic vegetation and harmful algae blooms, both examples of

applications that have not previously been tested in the coastal Carolina environment.

The UAS Coastal Observatory will advance several focus areas aligned with coastal resilience and sustainability: 1) flooding impacts on the built environment, coastal infrastructure and indicators of coastal resilience; 2) barrier island morphology and evolution; 3) coastal water quality; 4) coastal vegetation dynamics including saltwater intrusion and the emergence of ghost forests; 5) submerged aquatic vegetation dynamics and harmful algal blooms; 6) wildlife habitat models; and 7) archaeological and cultural resource identification. Several departments planning to use the

observatory right away include Earth and ocean sciences, environmental sciences, anthropology, biology and marine biology, and coastal engineering.

“All of our research activities will include and train students, benefit our community and benefit the global science community,” Pricope added. “Empowering students with these high-demand skills will increase their competitiveness in coastal engineering, geography and environmental science job markets and expand representation in the rapidly growing UAS and geospatial employment fields.”

current graduate research assistant in the Socio-Environmental Analysis Lab led by Dr. Pricope in the Dept. of Earth and Ocean Sciences. He sees the new UAS observatory as a “giant benefit” to UNCW students.

“It will create new opportunities for new students, new research and new funding for research,” Dalton said. “The tools and experience that the students will get is extremely applicable to what they will find in a real-world job or for those who want to continue with master’s and doctoral degrees.”

During his undergraduate studies as a double-major in geography and geospatial sciences and environmental science, Dalton took an Introduction to Geographic Information Science class and discovered a passion for the geospatial field. He became FAA-certified to fly drones through UNCW’s GEOINT program, which recently earned a national designation as a member of the Federal Aviation Administration Unmanned Aircraft Systems-Collegiate Training Initiative. Dalton also completed internships with Insight, a local company specializing in GIS mapping, and with DEVELOP, a highly competitive national NASA program. He credits Dr. Pricope’s expertise and guidance for preparing him for his future endeavors.

“To know that it is very likely that when I graduate, I will have a well-paying job in the field is exciting,” Dalton said. The UNCW UAS Coastal Observatory should be fully operational by the first quarter of 2023. Data collected from the observatory will be available to the public via a UNCW-hosted dashboard.

— Krissy Vick, Media Relations Specialist, Office of University Relations

UNCW student Elijah Dalton ’22 is a

We are excited to announce that we have launched ENGAGE UNCW with GivePulse, a community engagement platform that connects students, staff, and faculty with community partners in Wilmington and beyond.

Community partners are able to create a profile page and then post volunteer needs, research opportunities, and longer term projects that UNCW students, faculty, and staff will be able to view. You can also utilize ENGAGE UNCW as a volunteer management platform for tracking impacts and receiving feedback. Contact Reddgo Long, program coordinator for community engagement and impact, at longr@uncw.edu to create a profile for your organization.

Faculty members can utilize ENGAGE UNCW with GivePulse to manage academic community-engaged learning courses, internships, and research. The platform provides useful tools for connecting with community partners, managing student engagement hours,

facilitating student reflections, and tracking course outcomes and impacts. If you would like your course to be tagged so that you can access these features, contact Dr. Jeanine Mingé, associate provost for community engagement and impact, at mingej@uncw.edu.

ENGAGE UNCW with GivePulse allows individual students and student orgs to identify and post co-curricular service opportunities, track their philanthropic giving, and search for community-engaged learning courses. Student organizations will have a page created in ENGAGE UNCW that is integrated with rosters on WaveLink. If you are not connected with a student organization, but would like a page for your department or program, contact Zach Lemons, coordinator for student community engagement, at lemonsz@uncw.edu.

Community Engagement and Impact is hiring a team of faculty fellows to explore, integrate, utilize, and assess the ENGAGE UNCW platform. Faculty

fellows will be trained in the use of GivePulse, work to integrate their courses, and become experts in this software and support mechanisms in this community of practice.

With the support of the faculty fellow team by fall 2023, faculty members can utilize ENGAGE UNCW with GivePulse to manage academic community-engaged learning courses, internships, and research. The platform provides useful tools for connecting with community partners, managing student engagement hours, risk management forms and documents, facilitating student reflections, and tracking course outcomes and impacts. ENGAGE UNCW integrates seamlessly with Banner and Canvas, making this software easy, manageable, and connected.

— Jaime Russell, Ed.D., Director, Student Community Engagement

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT SPOTLIGHT SERIES

FACULTY SPOTLIGHT: KATE NOONER

Dr. Kate Nooner, chair and professor in the UNCW Department of Psychology, has been awarded a $379,503 grant from the National Institutes of Health – National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism to study adolescent binge drinking. The project, “Biomarkers of Binge Drinking in Maltreated Adolescents,” will examine resilience to teenage binge drinking following childhood stress and adversity. The study will highlight how adolescents utilize their strengths and limited resources to navigate problems, such as binge drinking, a common maladaptive coping mechanism in adolescence. This funding will allow Dr. Nooner and the students in her lab to build upon prior successes in her neuroimaging and binge drinking research with a diverse adolescent sample from the community. The study will engage underrepresented teens from the Wilmington area. UNCW students will be active in all aspects of this brain-based binge drinking prevention research. This project is central to promoting access, equity, and inclusion in alcohol use disorder prevention for adolescents in this area and beyond.

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: JANNAH L. GERIC

Jannah L. Geric is a mother of three and also a grandmother. Her oldest son serves in the U.S. Coast Guard. She attended Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, earning her EMT-Paramedic certification, and obtaining her Critical Care and Flight certification soon after. She worked as a critical care paramedic from 2007 until she retired. She earned her Associate of Applied Science degree in Criminal Justice at Cape Fear Community College and is now attending UNCW in her senior year for a criminology and forensic science degree. She is on the board of directors for Community United Efforts for Missing Persons. She also plays roller derby for Wilmington’s local team Cape Fear Roller Derby. A 501c3 non profit that also works with the community.

COMMUNITY PARTNER SPOTLIGHT: FRANKIE ROBERTS, LINC INC.

Frankie Roberts was born and raised in Wilmington, NC. He went to private school in his early years (K-8th grade) and he graduated from John T. Hoggard High School. He owned and operated a community-based barbershop for approximately 18 years where he received his informal education in community organizing, job development, relationship building, and individual/family counseling. Since 2000, Mr. Roberts has been the executive director of Leading Into New Communities (LINC) Inc., a nonprofit agency that provides shelter and services for men and women returning from prison. Roberts co-founded LINC, Inc. with Tracey Ray after he lost his brother to incarceration and addiction. LINC’s mission is to educate and motivate youth to make positive life choices while empowering men and women returning from incarceration to be productive members of our community. LINC has successfully helped reintegrate 1200 men and women who have been released from prison since 2002; 92% of which have remained out of prison.