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Posts that appear on this blog are written – by me – in a third-person, disembodied style or voice. Not this one. Allow me to get a little personal – even if it seems to be focused more on the professional.

Last night I was helping, in my role as undergraduate director for the department, to resolve a rather obscure advising situation. The details are unimportant. What is important is that I realized that for the past few years, if I did not know the answer to a question like this, I’d go right to Nancy, who would drop whatever she was doing to help me.

The point here is simple: Beyond the personal aspects of her passing, which of course are tragic and sad, she’s leaving a huge hole in our department. Not only did she willingly and cheerfully take on the most difficult of advising cases, but she was a veritable treasure trove of institutional memory. How have we dealt with this (whatever this was) in the past? Ask Nancy…

And now that’s no longer possible. I don’t mean to ignore the personal aspects of this. But of course we’ll muddle through situations like the one I dealt with tonight, but I imagine I’ll be thinking of her every time one comes up. And that certainly speaks to what a terrific colleague and valued member of the department she was.

It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing, on Sept. 21, 2022, of Dr. Nancy Spalding due to complications from a recent surgery. Nancy, who came to ECU in 1987, was beloved by all, but most especially by her students, to whom she gave selflessly. Generous, compassionate, caring, Nancy was always quick with a smile. For most of us in the Dept. of Political Science, she was an institution – always there.

She is survived by her daughter and three grandchildren.

We will miss you, Nancy.

Undergrad students: Are you considering withdrawing from a course but worried that you will drop below a full-time load of 12 hours?

We are here to help you!

Stay Afloat by adding a second block course during the Fall 2022 semester.

There are about a dozen courses being offered which count towards General Education requirements (see below). They are all online courses with no set meeting times so they are guaranteed to fit with the rest of your current schedule.

Set up an appointment with your advisor to learn more.

On Friday, Sept. 16, the Dept. of Political Science, in partnership with the Center for Leadership and Civic Engagement, hosted ECU’s 2nd annual Constitution Bee. 10th grade Students from John Paul II high school, along with a team from ECU and 2 teams from ECU’s Innovations Early College participated in the event.

See Dr. Baumgartner in the Dept. of PS, or Alex Dennis in CLCE for information about how to get involved next year.

The Higher Education to NC Government (Ed2NC) mission is to create a pipeline of qualified candidates by connecting NC college students and recent graduates with opportunities in state government. In support of that effort, Ed2NC is hosting 13 virtual state agency meet and greets in October to engage with potential applicants, support state agency’s recruitment needs and build relationships with campus administrators.

This series’ target audience is NC college students and recent graduates; however, all are welcome to join any session in October. Please help us expand our outreach by sharing this flyer through your network.

Questions? Contact: Andrea N. Bennett
Desk: 984-236-0887
andrea.bennett@nc.gov

The North Carolina Office of State Human Resources is hosting the third annual State of NC Virtual Career Expo on Thursday, Sept. 29 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. This is a free event and registration is now open.

The event allows attendees to connect with recruiters from more than two dozen state agencies and the UNC System from their own home. The career expo will also feature live, 20-minute informational sessions on “How to Complete a State Application” as well as presentations by the Department of Transportation, Department of Public Safety, Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

See: https://oshr.nc.gov/2022-state-north-carolina-virtual-career-expo

 

The Constitutional Convention lasted from May 25, 1787 through September 17, 1787.

George Washington served as president of the Constitutional Convention, but did not speak during any of the proceedings until the Convention’s final day.

On September 17, 1787, only 39 of the 55 delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed the document.

The original Constitution signed on September 17th and ratified June 21, 1788 is only five pages long.

Three Latin phrases appear in the Constitution: pro tempore, ex post facto, and habeas corpus.

Benjamin Franklin, at age 81, was the oldest delegate, and had to be helped to sign his name.

Rhode Island was the only state that refused to send delegates to the Constitutional Convention and was the last state to ratify the Constitution (May 29, 1790).

The U.S. Constitution is the oldest governing document of any nation today. Norway’s comes in second and was codified in 1814.

“Queen Elizabeth II, the longest reigning monarch in British history, died Thursday at age 96 surrounded by her children and grandchildren at Balmoral Castle in Scotland… The Queen, whose reign of 70 years and seven months was the second longest for a sovereign monarch in world history after Louis XIV (whose rule stretched from the mid-17th century to the early years of the 18th century), not only appointed 15 prime ministers (the first, Winston Churchill, having been born 101 years before the last, Liz Truss), but also saw 13 American Presidents, seven UN Secretary-Generals, seven popes, and the global population almost triple since ascending to the throne.

“As the news of the Queen’s death broke, ordinary Brits converged at both Windsor Castle and Buckingham Palace and, in a scene too fantastical for The Crown, a double rainbow appeared outside the palace as the crowd sang “God Save the Queen.””

Text from https://www.commonsense.news/p/tgif-god-blessed-the-queen?utm_source=email

The 2nd Annual ECU Political Science Department Constitution Bee will be held next Friday, Sept. 16, at the Black Box Theater (in the student center), from 9-Noon. The event is co-sponsored by the Center for Leadership and Civic Engagement and Pirates Vote.

You can come watch and learn, or participate by registering at http://tinyurl.com/constitutionbee.

Dennis McCunney, Intercultural Affairs, and Guiseppe Getto, Dept. of English, will serve as guest editors for an upcoming issue of Metropolitan Universities journal. The theme for the issue is “Global Outreach and Engagement: Navigating the Tension Between Local Impacts and Global Responsibilities.” Founded in 1990, Metropolitan Universities journal disseminates scholarship on cutting-edge topics pertinent to urban and metropolitan colleges and universities. The Journal is a peer-reviewed, open access publication—which means that it employs traditional methods of evaluating manuscripts while ensuring that those accepted for publication are freely available to anyone interested in the issues and themes covered. Manuscripts are due by December 2, 2022. The issue is scheduled for publication in summer 2023.

You can more about this upcoming issue here: https://www.cumuonline.org/metropolitan-universities-journal/calls-for-papers/