-- 30 --

Sitting in the college office awaiting the last videos being submitted for the final in Public Speaking. This semester the final was to do a simulated video job interview. More and more preliminary interviews are being held on google chat or skype and so I decided that this semester that would be the final project.  For nearly all of the time I have been teaching public speaking I have started the class by telling students improving the skill of public speaking would have a direct, positive impact on their personal bottom lines. That was my W-I-I-F-M (what's in it for me) statement to get them a reason for doing all of the speaking assignments that were part of the class. Closing with the video interview is something I should of thought of earlier but teaching here on the Coker College campus has been a constant learning experience and the idea just came this semester. The fact that it is my last semester as a college professor just underlines why there has been so much joy in this "job." Life-long learning is a concept we discuss all the time in this liberal arts academy and my experience as a professor has been my concrete example -- semester after semester.

 One of the major elements that I have focused on sharing with students throughout the 16 years I have been doing this job full time is the relevance of the classroom to the real world. One way of making that happen has been professionals in the field of communication who have shared their time in our classrooms.. There were many over the years who made instant positive impacts with their stories and they made a difference to our Coker students learning. I don't think anyone every said no. The photos here show only two examples.

For much of my life I  have had a penchant for sharing what I have been thinking, reading, studying and doing and the classroom has been a fertile ground for some of that kind of discussion. Dr. George Lellis gave me my first opportunity to teach and for years I was an adjunct in the Coker evening program teaching Public Speaking. Back in the days when I was working at Sonoco and also serving on the School Board, the classroom offered such a different experience that it was one I looked to for rejuvenation. Fortunately, that feeling continued once Dr. Lellis and the search committee gave me an opportunity to teach full time back in 2000.  It has been an enjoyable, fulfilling time of watching students grow while feeling my own growth at the same time. The colleagues with whom I have been fortunate to serve Coker and Coker students are among the smartest and most caring people with whom I have worked. They sure helped me grow year after year.

The Coker Community is such a vital part of my personal journey and my personal story that it is a bit difficult to be writing -30- in the headline instead of at the bottom of the story as is the old journalistic sign for THE END. But for college teaching it is -30-, which I really believe is just the transition to another headline of activity that will include all of the memories, experiences and relationships that were my identity as Professor Puff Daddy.
                                                        -30-

Coker College Opens Lacrosse History With Victory

Cobra lacrosse team marches onto field for first game in the Coker College lacrosse history. The team came out with a 14-7 victory.



Head Coach Tony Smith and his assistant coach Matt Spivey shake hands after first Coker College lacrosse victory on Friday, February 10, 2012, at Byerly Park in Hartsville, S. C., home of the Cobras. The Cobras topped Shorter College 14-7.

A couple of hundred people braved the cool temperatures to take in the first lacrosse match in the history of Coker College. From the sounds of the cheers throughout the game, they were excited to be part of this new Coker tradition. It has been a lot of years since I have viewed lacrosse, except on the television screen. After being on the SUNY Cortland Red Dragons (usually on the bench)team for a year, I have always believed lacrosse is my favorite sport. After watching the Cobras in their opener, I am still convinced.

The game requires skill, speed, strength, and a certain disregard for a sense of personal security. It is exciting to watch and should be a great addition to the roster of sports at Coker College in Hartsville, South Carolina.

Morning News sports editor Mark Haselden has a great end-of-game story featuring the Captain of the Cobra team.

How do you know? How do you measure?

People often have to listen to me say that teaching at Coker College is the best job I have had in a career that has been filled with job satisfaction, job challenge and job growth. But, a question I often ask myself is how do you know and how do you measure this amorphous quality of "best."

We are ending final exams for the semester on the Coker campus and that may be one thing giving rise to the questions of 'knowing' and 'measuring.' Another reason the questions are there is a quick text message I received from a colleague.

The colleague is one of my senior colleagues -- a person who has been building community at Coker College over a significant career. As I was grading some "news" stories for the WRITING FOR THE MEDIA class I came across a quote that I thought was especially telling. The 'reporter' had written a personality profile about a person looking forward to graduation and reflecting on her college career. The quote that struck me was something like "He is the hardest professor that I have had at Coker, and he is also the best."

A short time after grading that story I saw that professor and shared the quote with him. He thanked me and a few hours later sent me a text-email thanking me again for sharing the story.

But, that short email did much more. It affirmed again the message we share with our students and with our prospective students and their parents -- that no matter how long we have been on this campus, we measure our worth by our interactions with our students. This is a teaching college and a learning community. A part of his message was "...Confirmation for us is compensation. We know none of us is in it for the money. I'm convinced that we get in return what we expect..."

So, one way I know this is the best job I have had in my career is the way I feel when I get such a genuine response from a veteran colleague who continues to "expect" great things from his students and whose students continue to get great teaching from him - class, after class, after class.

And we will continue to study how we know and how we measure what we know because assessment continues to be a crucial way of telling how we are doing.

Thanksgiving holidays are upon us at Coker

On Monday I was talking with my Public Relations class about "Marketing YOU -Inc." As part of that discussion I did mention that teaching at Coker College is the best job I have had so far in my life. So -- obviously something for which to be thankful.

In an email message this morning, President Robert Wyatt, shared some of his Thanksgiving thoughts for the Coker College campus. It seems appropriate to share that message as part of the Coker College Experience:

From Dr. Wyatt
Good morning,
As we prepare to gather with friends and family over the holiday break, I am humbled by the blessings that we share as colleagues and by the commitment to excellence you bring to our community.
Indeed, we have much to appreciate. Working together, Coker’s trustees, faculty, staff, alumni and students have developed a strategic plan to guide us through the most ambitious period of growth in Coker’s history. And, owing to your good work, we have made long strides on the path toward becoming the institution of our shared vision. Consider that in the last six months, among other things, we have:
• Welcomed the largest influx of 14 new faculty members in college history, a new provost and numerous staff members;
• Opened Coker’s first downtown loft apartments;
• Established the Joseph L. and Betty C. Wiggins School of Education;
• Created Trans4mations, an innovative four-year academic program to ensure our students are well prepared for the futures they will lead.
• Found ways to expand co-curricular opportunities to challenge and engage students with new programs to begin in 2012 including a competitive debate team, glee club, gospel choir, wind ensemble, and a Coker-Hartsville chorale;
• Added men’s volleyball for 2012;
• Watched our men’s soccer team make history by winning both the regular season and conference tournament championship.
• Received national recognition for academic excellence from organizations including US News & World Report, Washington Monthly, Princeton Review, Colleges of Distinction and, most recently, the National Survey of Student Engagement.
Beyond these myriad accomplishments, I am personally thankful for the friendship and support you have given to Nancy, Lara and me and to each other. It is an exceptional privilege to count you as my family.
May the warmth of this holiday be a special blessing to you.
Thank you, always.
Robert

Coker 101 with David Dorfman Dance Company

The David Dorfman Dance Company has been on the Coker College campus for the past couple of days. What an amazing opportunity this has been for the dancers and for many others in the Coker community who have been involved in classes with this company.

About an hour ago one of the dancers stopped by to say hello as she was leaving one of the classes. Earlier I happened to see a Facebook status where she was talking about how much working with these dancers means to her. As we talked I said, 'so, you have enjoyed David Dorfman.' Talk about and immediate and from the heart response - "I have so loved being with him and his dancers," she said with a bit of a lump in her throat.

This evening the David Dorfman Dance Company is putting on a concert called the Prophets of Funk. This concert is one of the major arts events for Hartsville and there is no question it is bring an idea of modern dance movement that will be leaving an impact on the audience. Angela Gallo and Erin Leigh, who teach the dance program at Coker, have both known David Dorfman for some time and have been very enthused about this visit to the campus and the community. The group even plans a quick question and answer get together at the Midnight Rooster of Hartsville on Friday morning.

In the Writing for the Media class this morning we were discussing potential story ideas for the "Coker Beat." One of the ideas offered was the dance company's involvement on campus. I happened to mention to three of the golfers who were sitting near each other that for the dancers having a professional company of this caliber on campus was much like having one of the top touring pros on campus. Perhaps the major difference is these dancers are involved directly in teaching and working with students -- majors and non majors. They are conveying their craft through actual movement; not just making an appearance. It is events and experiences like this one that are often tough to assess but are the activities that provide life-long memories for those who become involved. I am certainly not a person who knows dance or who has much luck with "movement" but I am one who is moved by the difference this kind of experience provides for Coker students and for members of the community who take advantage of Hartsville being a college town.

Just because I think it makes sense, I do want to mention that the David Dorfman Company visit to Coker and Hartsville is being partially underwritten with grants from the South ARTS Dance Touring Initiative in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts, ARTWORKS and the Hartsville-Coker Concert Association.

Coker Alpha Students understand a challenge

Charles Bethea, a Coker College student at the Marion/Mullins campus. was getting students at the campus to sign a card for one of their own who had recently been diagnosed in breast cancer. He had garnered a lot of signatures from his fellow students.




One thing that becomes quickly apparent when teaching in the evening program at Coker College is that all the students seem to have a story. Some will tell the story and others just continue building their story but you will find people balancing a lot of things in their quest for their college degree.

Lapoleon "Charles" Bethea has one of those stories. At 55, he is one of the older but not the oldest of the students at the Marion/Mullins campus. He graduated from Dillon High School in 1974 and went straight into the work force - not even considering the possibility of college. But now, on disability because of a stroke, a heart problem and twice broken neck, he has focused on a dream and a challenge of getting a degree in psychology that will allow him to take many of his volunteer activities to the next level.

At the Monday night Homecoming gathering, held between the early and late classes, Charles shared a little of his story with his fellow Coker students. He told them about fighting his way back from a 2008 stroke and deciding in the recovery that "I had not lost the will to keep going." During that recovery friends would stop by to check on him and talk about things. A few of those friends were pursuing their college degrees and the spark caught and Charles had a new dream. "I worried that I might not be smart enough or that I might not remember all that I needed to remember but they did it and I thought I could too." So, in 2009 he began his Coker career.

Charles notes, with more than a little surprise, "it was not as difficult as I might have thought. There is always someone a fellow student, a faculty member or a Coker staff member who is interested in helping." Charles, who had loved reading for most of his life, finds that nowadays he is reading psychology texts, or philosophy articles more than his favorite western author, Louis L'Amour, but he his enjoying it at least as much. He describes how his psychology instructor, Dr. Brown brings experience to the classes and how she imparts "so much insight." He notes the challenge of being forced from his normal thinking by a Dr. Isley-taught philosophy class. "He forced you to think out of the box."

Charles is walking with some crutches and a boot on his leg from a recent fracture but he is at class each night. With all of his medical troubles, and they are frequent, he says he has only missed about three class nights over these past three years.

A native and resident of Dillon, he got to live a lot of places as a construction worker during the 1970s and '80s retuning to Dillon in 1990 to recover from a heart attack. Despite health issues, he has been Chairman of the Dillon County First Steps, he is a Guardian Ad Litem and works with a variety of activities and groups in Dillon to build his community. He is certain that the quality education he is getting through the Coker ALPHA program will allow him to build on his volunteerism and find new, more effective, ways to continue helping people.

Charles Bethea is one of the many stories of adults who are back in college working toward a dream deferred and as they tell their stories, it is easy to feel the impact the Coker College ALPHA program is making within the Pee Dee community.

A couple of Sunday photos from Coker 8-14

We got a bright rainbow that was even a double rainbow from some perspectives











Volleyball practice was pretty intense on Sunday afternoon as the Cobras work to lay the foundation for a strong season.

This was a busy day for first-year students as most had academic overviews in the morning and many still had placement tests to take. There was also an ice cream drop in at President Wyatt's home and later in the evening was the candle lighting ceremony of the Commissioner families. The camera was not around enough to get all those events but you can find a lot of really good weekend shots on the Coker web page.

Ribbon Cut for Coker's downtown student apartments

Shared values of community are part of the uniting theme between the city of Hartsville, S. C. and Coker College as the two organizations work toward building a strong town/gown relationship. A very tangible example of this effort was unveiled on Tuesday, August 9 as the ribbon was cut on new apartments in downtown that will be home to 20 Coker students in apartment-like residential living. Dr. Robert Wyatt, president of Coker College, told the crowd that he looks forward to the many ways Hartsville and Coker can become an even stronger partnership because he sees the best of community in both the city and the college.

More than 200 people were on hand for what was an exciting event for downtown Hartsville as Lenora Lefew, director of the Hartsville Downtown Development Association told the crowd that if you were taking "Downtown 101" you would quickly find that downtown residential living would be one of the major requirements. She said the community is excited to welcome the students into the Hartsville downtown.

Jason Umfress, Dean of Students, said that as the relationship between Coker College and Hartsville continues to strengthen, his goal would be see Hartsville recognized as one of the nation's top college towns.

Steve Avant, who owns the buildings in which the new apartments have been created, said this present is a sort of visit to the past. Much of the space that is now the Coker apartments was decades ago the Marguerite Hotel, used for business people on trips to markets in Hartsville. There are many stories about how quickly this project became a reality but Steve Avant summed it up by saying "while I have some visions for the growth of downtown I am only able to implement the vision by responding to the dreams and desires of people in the community."

The students who have seen their new living arrangements are even more excited now than when they found they had won the room draw for the new apartments.

As the quick ribbon cutting broke up and the tours began the prevailing buzz from Mayor Mel Pennington and Lenora Lefew and President Wyatt and many community members and students was how can we keep this partnership building and this excitement growing.

Coker recognized for strong program

I am including the recent news release that points to the recognition of Coker as a "best' school. This was released by Coker College on August 2.:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Coker College Named a Best in College the Southeast by The Princeton Review



HARTSVILLE, S.C. – Aug. 2, 2011 – Coker College is one of the best colleges in the southeast according to the nationally known education services company, The Princeton Review.

Coker is one of 135 institutions The Princeton Review recommends in its “Best in the Southeast” section of its website feature, “2012 Best Colleges: Region by Region,” released this week on PrincetonReview.com.

“We're pleased to recommend Coker College to users of our site as one of the best schools to earn their undergrad degree. We chose it and the other terrific institutions we name as 'regional best' colleges mainly for their excellent academic programs,” said Robert Franek, Princeton Review's senior vice president and publisher.

“While community members on campus and off understand well the traditions and pride that have shaped Coker College, we know too, that national recognition plays an important role in our future,” said Coker College President Robert Wyatt.

“When national editors at Princeton Review, U.S. News & World Report and, earlier this year, at Colleges of Distinction, take note of excellence – in our case, the extraordinary achievements of Coker College’s students, faculty and staff – they lift not only Coker College, but they call much needed attention to the role of education in the nation’s prosperity. I applaud, in particular, Princeton Review’s commitment to speaking to our students, the individuals whom we serve and by whose promise we are driven,” Wyatt said.

Collectively, the 629 colleges named "regional best(s)" constitute about 25 percent of the nation's 2,500 four-year colleges. From several hundred schools in each region, the company winnows its list based on institutional data collected directly from the schools, visits to schools over the years, invited input from college counselors and advisors, and the opinions of Princeton Review’s staff.

In addition, the firm considers and publishes information provided directly from current students via an 80-question student survey. The survey asks students to rate their own schools on several issues—from the accessibility of their professors to quality of the campus food—and answer questions about themselves, their fellow students, and their campus life.

“Only schools that permit us to independently survey their students are eligible to be considered for our regional 'best' lists,’” Franek said.

Representative responses selected from the student survey featured distinctions of Coker’s vibrant student life including the following:

“There are a wide variety of extracurricular activities at Coker College, but the majority of students here are either involved in theater or play a sport. When they aren’t on stage or on the playing field, students may be hanging out at the on-campus coffeehouse or in each other’s dorm rooms, studying, and socializing. During the warmer months, students enjoy taking advantage of Coker’s beautiful campus. The school owns a boathouse at a nearby lake—it’s a nice place to hang out when it’s hot.”

Other Coker students appreciated advantages of attending a residential college that might sometimes go unnoticed:

“‘In the surrounding community of Hartsville, Coker students take advantage of ‘free Fridays that allow us to bowl, skate, and eat for free,’ and many say they like to ‘go to the local coffee shop or catch a movie for $1.50.’”

For more information about Coker’s listing with the Princeton Review, visit www.coker.edu. For information about admission to Coker College, visit http://www.coker.edu/future-students.html.
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Coker College readies undergraduates for personal and professional success through a distinctive four-year program that emphasizes a practical application of the liberal arts as well as hands-on and discussion-based learning within and beyond the classroom. Coker is ranked among the “Best Colleges” in the South by U.S. News & World Report as well as The Princeton Review. Located in Hartsville, S.C., Coker is within two hours of the cultural, financial and recreational resources of Charlotte, Columbia, Charleston and Myrtle Beach.



www.coker.edu

SUBSCRIBE TO COKER’S YOUTUBE CHANNEL http://www.youtube.com/cokercollege

Students are the lifeblood of a college like Coker

Our first and our ultimate mission at Coker College is to provide a quality education for our students that will prepare them for a lifetime of learning and earning.

As part of the Sabbatical that I have had the privilege of having this shttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifemester, I was able to undertake a research project that has involved trying to determine the impact of the Coker College communication education on the lives of the students who have graduated during the ten years I have been serving on faculty. If I can develop an effective report, our department is hoping to be able to use this research as part of our evaluation or assessment of the effect of our programs. The graduates were gracious with their time. Out of 86 people on the list I think I was able to get the survey to 81 and had 64 individual responses. Of those responses, more than 60% said they would choose communication as their major if they were to redo the college experience. At the same time, nearly 70% of those responding said the field of work they are no in was not what they had thought they would be in while in college.
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That note is a preface to the idea of college admissions, which is the idea that sparked this post. Earlier in the day Dr. Robert Wyatt, Cokers' presidenthttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif, noted a separate blog that was about students not getting into the colleges to which they had applied. Coker was mentioned in that blog as a college that has a rolling admissions policy and one that takes applications into May.http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

A bit later in the day I had the good fortune to be introduced to a high school soccer player who has begun to look at college options in the Southeast.http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif She was with Coach Dan, our women's soccer coach as he hosted her visit. Coker is pretty much the type of college that if you do visit you will have an excellent idea if this is the fit for your four-year college experience. Our Admissions people and our student ambassadors do a good job of presenting Coker as it is, giving prospective students (and parents) an authentic view of the campus.
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We are a small liberal arts college that puts our students first. All of our classes are taught by faculty members whose primary evaluation is how they do with students in the classrooms, labs, studios and other educational venues. Those faculty who choose Coker and are chosen by Coker have teaching as their first job. That is a major reason I say students are the lifeblood of our Coker Community. While research, writing and other academic pursuits are important, it is the classroom that counts.

There is an ongoing country-wide discussion of the value of a college education, the work ethic of those who provide that education and other issues that ahttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifre providing justifications for such ideas as decimating the Pell Grant program, that provides students with a financial need some funding for their college.

We are seeing the demise of the Middle Class in this country and actions like eliminating funds that help middle class students and even lower middle class students attend college is just going to exacerbate the divide between the rich and the rest. Good, solid college educations for students who are not from the rich is what is going to keep this country strong. That is the kind of student who is the lifeblood of Coker and we think that is the kind of student who is the lifeblood our country.

Women Golfers in first-ever tourney

The Coker College Women Golfers had their first tournament last weekend and they demonstrated a foundation to build on according to an article in the MORNING NEWS of Florence. The Tommy Baker coached team came in tenth of twelve teams on a very tough course. Mark Haselden wrote an interesting story about this first-ever tourney.

What, who, where, why. is Coker College

When is the fifth W of the inverted pyramid style of constructing a news story and the When of Coker College is NOW!. This is already an exciting semester in the classroom and the feeling of student engagement is strong in classes all over campus.

Always, I am trying to get students to use specific examples. So, in today's Organizational Communication class we were lucky enough to have a professional corporate communicator who works as a writer/editor/strategist for Sonoco, a multi-billion dollar global packaging company. As she discussed the kinds of communications that she creates the students were getting a first-hand, up-close view of the real world tools, challenges, rewards and frustrations. There were a lot of dots from theory and background that students will now be able to connect using some of the specific examples that Mary Ruth Austin shared with them in today's class.

As we walked out the door following class, there was evidence of a great deal of activity as the annual ACTIVITY Fair was taking place with organizations from both on and off campus showing students the kinds of opportunities available in this one-of-a-kind campus and this cosmopolitan smaller host city of Hartsville, SC.

So, what about those other four Ws of Coker College? One of the new ways we are describing our Coker College opportunity was distributed by Kyle Saverance, our new director of marketing and communications. This is the short version:

Coker College readies undergraduates for personal and professional success through a distinctive four-year program that emphasizes a practical application of the liberal arts as well as hands-on and discussion-based learning within and beyond the classroom. Coker is ranked among the “Best Colleges” in the South by U.S. News & World Report as well as The Princeton Review. Located in Hartsville, S.C., Coker is within two hours of the cultural, financial and recreational resources of Charlotte, Columbia, Charleston and Myrtle Beach.

Campus going to get pretty quiet

Summer day school ended this past week and the Term V night classes will be completely over this week. There are final classes, final exams, final papers and all the last-minute items of all terms or semesters with students most anxiously awaiting the grades that come following the work. So, with the holiday this Friday, will come nearly three weeks of no classes and no students. But, I saw a calendar the other day and new students will begin rolling in right after the first week of August as resident assistants begin their preparations, the men and women's soccer teams will begin their practices and we will be in the second semester of the college's centennial year.

As noted earlier, the Coker Connection, where about-to-be first-year students get to meet some of their classmates appeared to be quite a success. One of my colleague's daughter's was not sure she was going to enjoy it and called her mother at 1:30 in the morning telling her what a great time she was having. Team building, conversations, some pre registration and other activities filled in the times not spent by students getting to know one another.

Since this seems to be a potpourri of things, one of the student helps seems to have come up with the idea of extending the Coker late night breakfast to the summer program and we cooked some breakfast food for student dinners last Thursday and this also seemed to add some important Coker camaraderie to students stressed with pending finals.