Alumni parents begin their legacy era

Alumni parents begin their legacy era

Families share mixture of pride, nostalgia and optimism for new generation of Pirates

College move-in and the start of the new semester carry extra Pirate pride for alumni parents entering their legacy era at East Carolina University.

Meredith Davis '96 took advantage of early drop-off to deliver daughter Maleah's dorm furnishings on Aug. 1. Maleah is the third Pirate in her family to live in White Hall. Her room is next door to where her mother lived as a freshman and the same dorm her aunt also lived in.

"We've kept White Hall in the family, or should I say White Hall has kept us," Meredith Davis said.

Davis whirled between nostalgia and excitement for her daughter's new chapter as they set up Maleah's room. The built-in, wooden furnishings and dorm-life necessities of Meredith's memories were replaced with matching headboards, lofted beds with fluffy, monogrammed pillows and a potted green plant to "add a little life" to the cozy room.

"There is so much more flexibility and communication now. When I lived in the dorm in the 1990s, the bed, dresser, mirror and desk were all permanently attached and couldn't be moved," Meredith Davis said. "Having furniture that can be rearranged gives students so many more options for how they want their room to look and function. We just showed up and figured it out. Needless to say, we didn't have anything that matched!"

Meleah Davis smiled as she surveyed her new room. A few more moving bags remained to unpack and décor to put in place; it was beginning to look like home.

Marching into His Future

Across campus on College Hill, Jennifer Johnson '03 was happy to be setting up her son Sidney for a dorm life she didn't have. Her ECU experience began after completing service in the Navy.

Sidney Johnson said he was 4 years old when he was captured by the ECU spirit. His parents had brought him to a football game. "I remember the band, the voice over the loudspeaker, the boom of the cannon," he said. "The whole atmosphere was great."

Ever since, Sidney said ECU is where he wanted to be. He is a member of the Marching Pirates and moved into Ballard Hall, where band students reside as part of the Music Living Learning Community.

Mother and son have talked about her favorite classes. She is eager to see him make his way and "have fun while becoming his best self."

Go to Class!

A lot has changed in how dorm rooms are set up, how classes are taken and the opportunities today's students have. What hasn't changed is parental advice for how to make the most of college. A message written on a whiteboard carries a father's advice and encouragement to his sons - Go to class! - Dad. It's advice all parents have for their students.

Jeremy '02 and Amanda '02 Gore said they wanted their son Jackson to understand the potential challenges of dorm life. Jeremy bought Harlan Cohen's bestseller, "The Naked Roommate," to help Jackson "wrap his head around living in a dorm." Jackson settled into Ballard Hall and left the book at home after reading through a few chapters.

While dorm advice may not have landed as intended, the Gores hope their son will learn from others' mistakes and is not afraid to make mistakes of his own.

"As Virgil said, 'Fortune favors the bold.' Take the initiative to connect with the amazing students around you at ECU," Jeremy Gore said. "While classroom learning builds knowledge, real wisdom comes from your experiences and the community you build."

For Anne and Gary '95 Benton, the message for their son Beau is to "remember what you are there for." Beau appeared set to prove he is ready to pursue an engineering degree.

Setting Beau up in his White Hall room was a family endeavor. His parents and sister Anna joined Beau for move-in day. They had previously used design software to plan furniture placement and prepare for implementation. The selected pre-measured carpet fit to perfection, creating a canvas for lofted beds, shelving for an entertainment center, desks and a futon that clicked into place like it was made for the room.

"We are all so excited he is following in his father's footsteps," Anne Benton said.

Tracy Pulley '03 asked her daughter Jessica which of them was more excited about Jessica's first year at ECU. "She said definitely me," Tracy Pulley said. Jessica is an elementary education major and is part of the College of Education Living Learning Community.

"I am excited for her, but I am more proud than anything else," Tracy Pulley said. "My advice to my daughter is to put herself out there. Get involved. I didn't make an effort to meet people and get involved, and I hate that I don't have those memories. I want her to do all the things and have so much fun while getting a quality education."

Family Pride

Madison Owens is continuing a long family tradition of choosing ECU. Her mother, Laura Owens '98 '00 '15, was with her when she moved into Greene Hall as part of the ECU Honors College. Madison earned her associate degree from Pitt Community College and is majoring in clinical lab sciences and biology at ECU.

Laura Owens said Madison was probably more excited about being a Pirate, but Laura is a close second.

"I am super excited she chose ECU and is going to be staying in Greene Hall where I stayed," Laura Owens said. "She asked me how Greene now compares to when I went. It is so much better now, great remodeling and air conditioning."

Madison has a deep family lineage at ECU. In addition to her mother, both sets of her grandparents attended ECU, and her great-grandfather was a special education professor.

Kelly Honeycutt '99 kicked off her family's move-in preparation by joining a Pirates Set Sail event in Surf City in early August. She said the experience added to their excitement about their son Austin attending ECU.

Pirate pride runs deep in Austin Honeycutt's family. His father, Anthony Honeycutt '99, studied criminal justice and was a Kappa Sigma at ECU. His mother majored in vocal performance and was a member of Chi Omega. His legacy includes his grandmother, Susan Kay Worsley '72 and uncle, Dr. Jim Galloway '69. The family will celebrate those legacies at the ECU Alumni Legacy Celebration during Family Weekend in September.

"We are thrilled that Austin chose to attend ECU to pursue a degree in nursing not only because his father and I both enjoyed our time there, but because it is close to home," Kelly Honeycutt said. "I'm so excited to be able to get a small taste of those college days by watching my child participate in all the wonderful things ECU has to offer."

Then and Now

For many Class of 2030 parents, the university their children have chosen feels drastically changed and more advanced than memories of their alma mater.

Box fans were their air conditioning devices. Their children have AC units and Woozoo fans. One mom recalled her landline telephone and cassette tape answering machine. Internet was available through dial-up - if at all - when they were in college and they were "big time" having a word processor in their room. Today's freshman all have their own MacBooks and Wi-Fi everywhere.

"It is so much more advanced now than what I remember, but that was before the days when everything was online," Kelly Honeycutt said. "I had an email address and sometimes would turn assignments in on a floppy disk, but that was pretty much the extent of the world wide web for us back then."

Social media groups for parents of ECU students, dorm life TikTok videos and move-in must-have lists are also new for today's Pirate parents. Moms and dads admitted they likely set new records for time on the Parents of ECU Students Facebook Group, watching "dorm mom" reels to know what students need.

Melanie Hawes '93 relied on advice from a sorority sister to help prepare for daughter Scotland to move into Clement Hall.

"I turned to her for advice on everything we needed for the dorm and am so thankful for her guidance," Melanie Hawes said. "I was on social media some but relied on my friend's advice more. Today, these dorms are luxurious, much fancier and filled with items that we never even thought of long ago."

Leighann Beam '94 left the social media searching to daughter Morgan, who moved into Ballard Hall as a Teaching Fellow.

"It seems like there is so much more stuff now," Beam said. "I feel like I fit everything into one car in 1990, and we used three cars [this time]."

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