Student Profiles

Ann Marie Beall

    As I remember my undergraduate years at Georgetown University there are many things I miss.  However, I most often long for the exciting, enthusiastic discussions that took place in my classes.  I miss the give and take of ideas that forced me to think quickly on my feet, intelligently articulate my opinions, and reconsider my position on issues.  It was an intellectually stimulating atmosphere.  I believe that the new Master of Arts in Liberal Studies Program at UNC-Wilmington, with its cross-curricular foundation and emphasis on cultural issues of past, present and future, will allow me to rediscover this aspect of my undergraduate education.
    Additionally, I have discovered that it is increasingly easy to settle into the routine of work and home life and neglect the intellectual life.  The term that most clearly applies to this phenomenon is to "become set in your ways."  While this is a very comfortable place to be, it is also confining and can lead to stagnation.  I want the opportunity to explore new ideas and move beyond the boundaries of my routine.  
    While the intellectual challenges of graduate study are most appealing and have a benefit all their own, there is also the more prosaic, but equally important, benefit of professional enhancement.  As today's work force becomes increasingly technological and better educated, it is becoming increasingly important to pursue your education beyond the undergraduate level.  This is particularly true when your career is in higher education.  No one knows better the value of or places more emphasis on education than those of us working in the field.  Because I have chosen to make my career in higher education and would like to explore job opportunities beyond my current position, I believe it is important to have a Master's degree.
    There are other areas I could have chosen for graduate study and I have considered and discarded many of these including history, psychology, English, and business.  A major stumbling block to my choosing an area of study was that each one possessed a certain appeal.  Before discovering the liberal studies program I often wondered if there might be a way to choose one to focus on but still incorporate the others as well.   Thus, this new master's degree seems perfectly suited to my varied interests.
    In conclusion, the Master of Arts in Liberal Studies at UNCW would fulfill both my professional and personal goals.  Professionally, it would enable me to advance beyond my current position.  Personally, it would provide me with the opportunity to open my mind to new ideas, grow intellectually, and explore areas beyond my everyday routine.  Some people may view the former as more important, others the latter.  I see them as equally important and am very happy to have found a graduate program that will, in my view, allow me to balance the two.

Hilda J. Gregory

    I was born in Portland, Oregon, in 1913, but at the age of seven moved with my family to a farm in eastern Washington.  The depression arrived early for farmers--the foreclosure notice arrived in early 1928.  As conditions worsened we moved across the mountains to the Puyallup Valley, a few miles west of Tacoma, where my father stretched his dwindling finances to start up a small dairy.  Mother and I helped out by working in the local cannery, 7:00 to 6:00, six days a week, for 27 cents an hour.  Upon graduation from high school I began work in an insurance office in Tacoma, and in 1935, after taking a civil service examination, I was offered employment in the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture in Washington, D.C., sharing an apartment at 2115 Pennsylvania Ave. with my best friend from high school.  Life was now a bowl of cherries.  So far as my situation was concerned, the depression was over.  I also took a few night classes at American University, but found it interfered too much with my social life.
    In 1941, much to the surprise of my friends, family, and myself, I married the pastor of a downtown Washington church and found myself embarked on the career of a preacher's wife.  But just six months after our marriage my husband was in uniform, serving as chaplain on the coast of England, and I was back in Tacoma in charge of the Message Center at Mt. Rainier Ordnance Depot.  When my husband returned three years later, he continued in the ministry and in 1950 we came with our three daughters to First Baptist Church, Wilmington, NC.  It was an active and interesting life in the course of which we also traveled extensively, at home and abroad.  For twenty of those years I worked one week a month for the federal government, but at age 70 decided to continue my education, so I enrolled at UNCW for a bachelor's degree in philosophy.
    Two years ago my attention was caught by a notice in the newspaper announcing plans for a new graduate program in liberal arts.  It materialized in the fall of 1999 and I am now once again hitting the books.  It's such a great program, offering the sorts of programs I most enjoy, and I intend to give it my best for as long as my faculties permit.

Cathy Howell

    This year I turned fifty.  A year ago I saw a house for sale in Wilmington, bought it, and moved here.  Two years ago I left community organizing and took a job in the labor movement in North Carolina.  That job change meant a return from Oregon where I had gone two years before, after spending thirteen years in the Carolinas.  In Oregon I directed a leadership program for young organizers.  I try to help people learn to agitate for change which results in social and economic justice for more people.  A new century is here and a new millennium is less than a year away.  There is a lot of change in my life and there is a lot of change-oriented discussion connected to the new century.  This seems like a good time for me to think and reflect on my life and work, and to begin to figure out what my mission will be for the coming decade.
    The MALS program seems to be one way of challenging me to read, think, and analyze ideas, as well as interact with students and faculty who have varied values and political views.   The course descriptions include many unfamiliar topics as well as some that reflect my current interests.  The MALS program is designed for folks like me who can't take full-time academic programs.  I don't need another degree to do my current work.  I don't anticipate changing careers in the near future.  I do want to challenge myself intellectually.  I want to learn to write clearly and effectively.   I want to get feedback on my thinking and writing.
    I have not been a particularly good student in formal school settings.   Truthfully, I spent more time involving myself in politics and counter-culture activity than I did in class during my undergraduate years.  I do read a lot of fiction, history, sociology and, more recently, material with a spiritual or theological basis.  I love documentary film and use it in my work.  I interact with smart, thoughtful people.  I do work that takes brains and creativity.  I think I have intellectual capacity.  But, my college grades were barely there and I am a graduate school drop-out.  I probably do not fit the standard profile.  My main challenge will be to divert energy from my already very full life and put it in the direction of school work.  I feel more capable of doing that now than I have in the past.  I am more settled, have greater financial resources, and work fewer hours than I did as a community organizer.  I heard about the program from an acquaintance, sat in on a class, read the materials about the MALS program at UNCW, and decided that the program can offer me a structured space for new learning.

Douglas Kesling

    Over the past few years, I have become more aware of the dynamics of the global world and how we as a society can influence it.  I realize how events from around the world can impact my life, affect my family and shape the future of our existence.   Throughout my twenty-three year career as a professional educator, I have attempted to impart knowledge to individuals to educate them about this unique relationship.  I have tried to impress upon each one how they might make a difference in the world around them.  I have an underlying desire to inspire people and help them understand the interrelatedness of their life, the environment and their impact on future society.   I want them to become pro-active, to effect change and help improve conditions to secure a better tomorrow for themselves and for future generations.
    To become more effective in this leadership role, it has become apparent that I will need additional education to enhance my professional teaching background.  As an experienced educator and leader, I have had past successes in teaching and disseminating information.  But to enable me to advance in my professional career and teach graduate level courses at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and other institutions, I will need to obtain a Masters Degree.
    I have chosen to apply to the Graduate School at UNCW and hope to start a course of study, which will lead to a Master of Arts Degree in Liberal Studies.  After careful evaluation of the graduate school options available at UNCW, the MALS option provides me the flexibility to personalize and individually design a degree program that will expand my horizons and help prepare me for my teaching and leadership challenges ahead.  The interdisciplinary approach to the MALS program will allow me to customize my program and provide me the opportunity to raise questions, explore issues and broaden my perspective on the world and people within it.

Linda MacRae

    Enrollment in the Master of Arts in Liberal Studies program will allow me to achieve an educational goal of obtaining a master's degree.  Also, this degree can be achieved while exploring a variety of social and cultural concerns, something I do naturally.
    As a student committed to the life-long development of my intellect, I understand the value of a liberal studies education.  This understanding came about when I earned my B.A. in anthropology from UNCW where I was introduced to a variety of ideas.  I began to see the power of ideas and their capacity to broaden minds or narrow them.  This awakening was most significant for me.
    Since I was born in Wilmington in 1947 during Jim Crowism, I knew segregation.  I knew fear of the KKK.   I knew "my place."  The ideas of white supremacy and black inferiority were embedded in my mind very early.  White supremacy was overwhelming and black inferiority was paralyzing.  These two ideas were entrenched in the minds of those around me and appeared to be inescapable.  Through liberal studies, I began to understand how the notion of white supremacy was developed and perpetuated; how blacks were socialized into their "inferiority"; and how deeply these ideas ran in the social fabric of our society.  My undergraduate education in a liberal arts major started to liberate me from the harmful effects of these ideas.  I haven't been entirely liberated, but I have begun my journey.
    As you can see, a liberal studies program is valuable to me.  It has promoted my growth in many ways with far-reaching benefits.  Relief from the ego-destroying idea of black inferiority has resulted in liberation for me and a zeal to help lead others towards their own liberation.  Continuation of my quest for intellectual growth via the master's program in liberal studies is a natural pursuit for me.  It can make me a more thoughtful person, assist me in satisfying my curiosity, and make me a more effective leader.

Ralph C. McCoy

    Born in Atlanta, Georgia, I grew up there, attended Emory University where I received an undergraduate degree in psychology, married, and graduated from medical school.   After an internship in Atlanta's massive urban hospital, Grady Memorial, I entered the military for a two-year tour in Southeast Asia.  We then settled in North Carolina where I completed residency in s fellowship in pathology and remained on the faculty at Duke for several years.  In 1976, our family, which by then numbered five, moved to Wilmington and I began private practice in pathology.  In 1978, I joined the adjunct faculty at UNC-Wilmington and have since taught immunology in the Department of Biology.
    After thirty years of devoting most of my available time and thought to science, pathology, and the microscope I realized that I would like to spend more time looking at life through a different set of lenses.  I wanted other perspectives.  There were interests that I had not taken the time to pursue.  Understanding life better and on a more holistic level was one of my primary passions; not that anyone ever really understands life.  Special areas of interest for me include religion, health and education.  What better way to pursue these than in a liberal studies program, which would help me see life more globally and less from the somewhat constricted viewpoint of my primarily scientific background.  Fortunately the Masters of Arts in Liberal Studies was beginning at UNC-Wilmington and as I looked at the list of courses in the curriculum I saw numerous subjects, issues and concepts which I wanted to focus on more deeply and understand better.  There are so many things in life that most of us would love to do, learn or study.  We just never get around to them unless there is some external stimulus.  The MALS is providing that for me.

Sandra P. Sue

    In 1981 I took enough classes at a community college to earn 16 hours of credit.   However, family and work made it impossible to continue.  Seeing a four year degree as an impossibility, I attended Miller-Motte Business College in Wilmington, N.C. in the mid 80s and received a general office diploma which helped me obtain a better job.   Four years later I was hired in the Admissions Office here at UNCW.  I immediately began pursuing my bachelor's degree.  Between a full time job, family, and many other responsibilities, the completion of my degree took ten years.
    Without a second thought, I applied to the Master of Arts in Liberal Studies Program.   I knew I wanted to continue my education and pursue my masters and friends of mine who were in the program had only great things to say about the program and about the director, Dr. Mike Wentworth. The program gives me lots of options and classes to choose from and each semester more are being added.  I can study what I'm interested in, not what a group of administrators think I should study.  I like the freedom to design my own course of study.
    Everyone in the program has a desire to learn and to expand their horizons.   Discussion abounds and the professors are interested in your thoughts and opinions.   Each week I can't wait for class to meet again.  For me, education is synonymous with fulfillment and that's exactly what I have found in this program.

Susan Auten

    I am enrolling in the Master of Arts in liberal studies program to further my education and met a personal goal of obtaining a Master's degree.  I became interested in this particular program when I reviewed a list of courses and saw GLS 531 (Science and Pseudoscience) being offered as part of the program.  Equally intriguing was the idea of a "cultural tradition of scholarships, which liberally educates the whole person".  I have always been drawn to a holistic approach in my nursing practice; therefore, it seems appropriate that I apply the same concept in furthering my education.  An inherent desire to investigate and research mind/body/spirit/ influences on the healing processes of the individual is another goal of mine.
    The MALS degree program will assist me in meeting my personal goals by providing an opportunity to design a personalized curriculum that will help me explore a variety of courses that can provide a basis for my investigative study.  In my twenty-eight years of nursing practice and my own personal life challenges, I have come to recognize factors that influence and individual's health (i.e..: culture, religion, personal beliefs and spirituality).  This program will allow me to explore some of these areas in depth.  I would like to write about my own personal healing process and the holistic/complimentary approach I utilized in dealing with divorce, difficulties with my children, death of my father, cancer and other life challenges.  There could be an opportunity to begin in the format of my memoirs as my final project.  I feel this program offers me multiple opportunities for personal growth at many levels, which is my basis for my seeking enrollment. 

Christine Abrons

    I have worked in the nursing profession most of my life.  At the present time , I am employed by the American Red Cross as a Health and Safety Instructor.  I am married and the mother of two daughters.  This has been a transition year for me.  I turned 50 and sent my daughters to college.  Some individuals find this time of their lives very disturbing. I find it full of expectations and opportunities.
    I would describe myself as a life long learner.  Several times  I have returned to the classroom to continue my education.  I began this process in a vocational school for Practical Nurses.  After several years of working as an LPN, I entered a career ladder program designed to transition nurses form LPN to RN level.  I soon faced the demands of raising a young family, but longed for the opportunity to continue my education.  I was able to enroll in a distance learning program at St. Joseph's College in Maine that led to my obtaining a BS degree in Health Care Administration.  The completion of this program took many years because of family and work responsibilities.  To this point, my education has been in the medical field. I am interested in enrolling in the MALS program to satisfy my passion n life long learning and to expand my knowledge in areas other than nursing.
    I have always had an interest in cultural diversity, and would like the opportunity to study the global community.  I think the MALS program will offer me a chance to explore the cultures of the world and the delicate balance of their existence on earth.  I have long realized the benefits of education.  I also realize that there is no better place to study that in a classroom with adult learners.  Each student brings a unique personal history and experience into the mix.  I have found that the best learning adventures are those where life experiences is noteworthy.
    Besides working for the Red Cross, I am involved with several organizations in our community.  I feel that continuing my education will enhance my understanding and effectiveness in these groups.  I have attended several adult learning experiences at UNCW.  I have benefited form all of them.  Indeed, at this time of my life I believe that the Master of Liberal Arts will give me an opportunity to challenge myself and satisfy my curiosity.

Russell Heiland Jr.

   There are two primary reasons why I am applying to the MALS program.  One is professional, the other personal.  Currently I am in the process of pursuing ordination in the field from Unity School of Christianity.  For me, this essentially means serving a lengthy internship as administrator of Unity Christ Church in Wilmington, NC coupled with periodic, prescribed study at Unity School for Religious Studies in Unity Village, MO.  While I am gaining invaluable day-to-day experience in ministry by working in the church, I feel that my education will be far more complete by attaining a Masters Degree in Liberal Studies.
    In ministry I desire to facilitate individuals' connection with the Divine in a positive and loving manner.  To do so requires of me the ability to appreciate others' particular life experiences; thus my own world view must be broadened continually.  The MALS program provides an ideal forum for this to occur.  By melding my own experiences with classroom dialog and guided study, I anticipate developing a greater depth of understanding for how others view the world and what they perceive to be their  spiritual needs.  Learning how to recognize these things will augment my ability to facilitate the spiritual growth of others.
    I learned the value of liberal arts education by earning an undergraduate degree in International Studies, a broad-based liberal arts program.  It is my belief that anything which stimulates thought, definition of values and awareness of world issues is an asset to individuals and, by extension, the communities in which they live.  Moreover, I realize I have a need to be challenged intellectually.  These factors compromise my second reason for desiring admission into the MALS program - my own continued personal growth.
    It is my belief that the MALS program can benefit me greatly both professionally and personally.  It is also my belief that my participation in the program can benefit the other students and the program itself.  I am eager to begin and hope that my credentials warrant admission into the program.

John Kunak Jr.

    The City of Wilmington has rapidly grown into a diverse community of individuals over the past few years and has literally become a melting pot for many races, ethnic groups, and persons of varying morals, ideals and opinions.  These new members of our community come from all regions of the United States and from foreign countries alike, and I being a police officer, encounter and interact with these persons everyday.  Some are colleagues and some are individuals in need of help.  It has been my experience, that racial and cultural differences within the community often present obstacles that make my job as a problem solver challenging.  In order to successfully perform my duties as a sworn public servant and problem solver, I feel that it is necessary to educate and familiarize myself with the community and attempt to understand their perspective on issues, so that I can execute my conflict resolution skills to the best of my abilities.  Moreover, I feel that by studying under the Liberal Studies Program, I can achieve this objective.  
    The courses provided in the Liberal Studies Program are very appealing to me as a police officer because they deal with the issues that affect my job, both directly and indirectly.  Religion, sex, childhood experiences, poverty, and social policy all influence what course of action will be pursued to resolve a problem or conflict.  The more I understand these issues and how they effect individuals in their actions and thought patterns, the better I can assist them in resolving their problem.  The flexibility of the program is also very appealing because it allows the opportunity to perform directed individual study on issues that are not covered in the course curriculum.  I anticipate focusing my individual studies on juvenile delinquency and the role of the parents as disciplinarians.
    Obtaining a Masters degree in Liberal Studies will also help me with career advancements within the police department.  The opportunity to achieve rank and attain a leadership position has always been a strong desire of mine, and a Master degree will afford me this opportunity more quickly.  Additionally, by participating I this program and acquiring a better understanding of the issues of the divers community which I service, I can relay my knowledge to my subordinates and offer them advice and guidance, should I attain a leadership position.  This program would also assist me, from a supervisory standpoint, when dealing with colleagues as conflict issues arise.  Just as the community is diversifying as the city grows, so is the police department, ands the same issues that affect conflict resolution within the community, also affect resolution of the issues that arise within the department.
    In short, I feel that obtaining a Masters degree in Liberal Studies would contribute to my understanding of the issues that shape the lives of the citizens of Wilmington, and assist me with developing innovative venues of conflict resolution.  More importantly, this degree would also allow me to expand my knowledge and afford me growth as a person by challenging my thought process and presenting me with new experiences.

Nancy Manic    

    In 1972 I cautiously took one class at Western Carolina University urged by my husband who felt that education should be joyful, continuous, and effortless.  At that time the impetus was Gail Sheehy's book "Passages" which helped us see continues stages of the life process.  When I graduated with a Bachelor in Nursing degree in 1980 it was indeed joyful for my family, but mostly for me.  Going back to college was the best thing I ever did for myself and I have said that many times over the years. I can't say it enhanced my work experiences as much as gave me a tremendous confidence in myself and my abilities.
    Twenty years later and close to the end of my work career, I am again looking at entering school tentatively, unsure of how Liberal Studies could improve my career, but certain that it will enhance my life.  At this time when my work of ten years has been phased out and I struggle to continue meaningful work, I feel that I need to re-focus, put aside the strong work ethic, and remember there are interesting passages yet to discover.
     The nursing curriculum is rigid in its format focusing on scientific courses and clinical practice.  The flexibility of the Liberal Studies program is appealing in offering the opportunity to study a wide range if courses that are of interest to me.  The fact that the students are more mature, yet a wide variety of ages with the wealth of life experiences is also attractive.  Probably most important for me is the excitement of continuing the life-long learning process that I perceive to be important in the overall health and well-being of a person's life. I strongly believe that maintaining health into advanced age requires personal commitment to physical exercise, healthy nutrition, and mental stimulation.
    The beauty of enrolling in Liberal Studies is that there is no requirement to have a career plan.  It will be interesting to see where study in a graduate program takes me in this passage of life.  I look forward to the challenge and am pleased for the opportunity.

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