| | Message from Dean Alan White
 Dear Friends of Harriot College,
As dean of Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences, I am an eyewitness to the growth and accomplishments of the college. We--the faculty, staff, alumni, donors and friends of the college--join together to provide the best liberal arts education for the students of East Carolina University. However, this diverse and varied perspective is not the exclusive privilege of liberal arts majors; we provide the same broad liberal arts perspective to students in all of the colleges and schools at ECU.
A few examples of benefits students receive from Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences include the enhancement of undergraduate education through new programs, expanded graduate and PhD programs, and the opportunity to study abroad. Students benefit from the strength and quality of our faculty, which include contributions through collaborative research, grants and awards, and publications. We also provide opportunities for students to become fully engaged in learning, including faculty-student research mentoring, community involvement and service learning.
Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences offers programs that stimulate undergraduate and graduate student learning and research in all three divisions of the college – the natural sciences and mathematics, social sciences, and humanities. Students have opportunities for a well-balanced education that will last them a lifetime, preparing them for success as future leaders and life-long learners. To be dean of such an engaging array of disciplines and interdisciplinary programs is only one reason for my genuine pride in the work of our college.
In celebration of Thomas Harriot, English Renaissance polymath for whom the college is named, and building upon the tradition of leadership in the arts and sciences, the college has embarked on a journey to inspire students, faculty and the larger community through the Voyages of Discovery Lecture Series.
The series, which advances the spirit of intellectual exploration and discovery, brings to campus distinguished speakers whose pioneering work continues to shape our understanding of the world around us. The inaugural year (2007-2008) included renowned paleoanthropologist Dr. Richard Leakey, professor of anthropology at Stony Brook University, who is recognized for his work in early human origins. The 2008-2009 lecture series brings Walter Isaacson, president and chief executive officer of the Aspen Institute, former chairman and chief executive officer of CNN and the former managing editor of Time magazine.
Like most of us in academia, I love teaching. However, teaching is no longer the simple transmission of a body of knowledge from one mind to another. Teaching that serves the future most effectively is active and inquiry-based. There is no wall of separation between effective teaching and successful student learning.
I glance out of my window in the Bate Building, over the computer screen where I can video conference with research colleagues back in Fargo, North Dakota, and realize that technology has enabled us to fold space and time and to interact in ways that were unimaginable just a few years ago. The boundaries of our community have simply disappeared as technology has made Bangalore, India, as accessible as Bath, N.C.; Greenwich, England, as accessible as Greenville.
I myself continue to be engaged as a principal investigator in the federally funded Virtual Cell project, an initiative that began before I arrived at ECU. Technology and the Internet allow me to interact and be a full participant, reducing the distance between Greenville and Fargo to the meager width of an Internet cable.
Embedded in the honored liberal arts tradition of celebrating inquiry, exploration and discovery, Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences has an enduring commitment to inspire and serve students, faculty and staff, and the larger community. As dean of the college, along with the entire faculty and staff, it is our intention to carry on this service, branching out into the ever-expanding geographic networks and carrying on the tradition of excellence well into ECU’s second century.
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