The Praeci Podcast Carter Pape

In the final part of the three-part Chancellor Series, I spoke with Thomas Conway, the chancellor of Elizabeth City State University, an Historically Black University. Conway is retiring after over 40 years in the UNC System, 32 of which he spent at NC State.


We discussed how Dr. Conway is feeling about retiring, how NC State launched him into a successful career in higher education, and what he did to pull ECSU out of a six-year slide it experienced in enrollment and tuition revenue before he arrived on campus.


Coverage of Elizabeth City State University news:


ECSU Chancellor Willie Gilchrist Resigns Amid State Investigation Into Campus Crime Reporting from HuffPost
Questions about ECSU chancellor [Stacey Franklin Jones]’s resignation from The WS Chronicle
ECSU audits show questionable hires, spending from The News & Observer
Thomas E.H. Conway, Jr. installed as Elizabeth City State University Chancellor from the ECSU newsroom
Elizabeth City State University enrollment up for first time in 7 years from The Virginian-Pilot
ECSU Chancellor Thomas Conway ’94 PHD Named Distinguished Alumnus from NC State College of Education News
Conway helped ensure ECSU’s turnaround continues from the editorial board of The Daily Advance


The Chancellor Series is a series of interviews with leaders in education from around North Carolina who started or built their career at NC State. Each of these individuals have now moved on to become chancellors or presidents of North Carolina colleges and universities, and are making big impacts at those institutions.

Jeff Del Pinal is the program manager for NC State Ground Services, a part of the Facilities Division. He is responsible for keeping the grounds of NC State safe for students who are walking, biking, or lounging around campus. He does his job with safety and sustainability as top priorities. Jeff also has very early mornings, and that’s especially true on snow days.


What does it take to maintain the grounds of the largest college campus in North Carolina after it snows? And is this the guy who decides whether classes get cancelled?

In this second part of the three-part Chancellor Series, I spoke with James Anderson, the president of Fayetteville State University, the second-oldest public institution in North Carolina. Anderson spent 11 years at NC State, and has also worked at Texas A&M and the University of Albany.


We discussed legislative influence on higher education in North Carolina, how he developed NC State’s First Year College with Jo Allen (last episode’s guest) and Thomas Conway (next episode’s guest), and the conversation he had with Denzel Washington the actor looked for a college to send his son.


The Chancellor Series is a series of interviews with leaders in education from around North Carolina who started or built their career at NC State. Each of these individuals have now moved on to become chancellors or presidents of North Carolina colleges and universities, and are making big impacts at those institutions.

The Chancellor Series is a series of interviews with leaders in education from around North Carolina who started or built their career at NC State. Each of these individuals have now moved on to become chancellors or presidents of North Carolina colleges and universities, and are making big impacts at those institutions.


In the first part of this three-part series, I spoke with Jo Allen, the president of Meredith College. She is the first alumna president of Meredith and has also spent time on the faculty or administration of East Carolina University, NC State University, and Widener University.


We discussed what men who are admitted to Meredith’s graduate school gain from attending a women’s college, her thoughts on de-prioritization of higher education by the North Carolina legislature, and her perspective on the #MeToo Movement.

Monica Osburn is the Director of the NC State Counseling Center, which has struggled to grow its operations as the demand from students seeking help grows. Osburn talks about the growth challenges the center has faced, how it’s helping students who have survived sexual violence, and how it’s addressing the stigma of mental health on campus.

Reggie Barnes oversees the Bias Incident Response Team (BIRT), which was launched earlier this year as a means of recording and responding to incidents of bias at NC State.


Responding to incidents of bias introduces a central tension for NC State administrators who value the constitutional tenant of protecting free speech, as this speech may sometimes undermines other missions of the university, particularly that of creating an inclusive campus environment.


In this episode Barnes talks about how the university responds to incidents of bias, what the consequences of using racially derisive language are at NC State, his experiences as an undergraduate at a university where he was in the minority, and how to create better environments for discussing topics related to race.