UNC-system happenings, Sept. 20, 2013

UNC-A students reenact Greek battles

An ancient Roman and Greek history course taught at UNC-Asheville is more than just musty textbooks and exams – it’s also full of sword fights and war reenactments.

Jacob Butera, an assistant professor of classics at UNC-A, is teaching the course “War and Warfare in Ancient Greece and Rome” in which students have the opportunity to participate in mock battles to embody ancient Greek soldiers.

There was interest beyond what Butera expected in the course — it was completely filled and had a waitlist, he said.

As one of the courses available to fulfill the colloquia requirement to graduate from UNC-A, Butera’s class covers many aspects of Greece and Rome, including war tactics, topography, battles, politics and artistic representation.

“I was looking for new directions for the course – creative outputs to get the students to understand the various aspects of the ancient soldier through the reenactment of ancient battle,” Butera said.

The class reenacts battles to understand how politics, society and communal participation played into ancient warfare, he said.

“We did this so that students would start to critically question and examine the complexities of ancient warfare, rather than accepting our sources at face value.”

UNC School of Arts represented at film festival

The trending topic floating around the UNC School of Arts campus is the work of many alumni in seven different films that were screened at The Toronto International Film Festival from Sept. 5 to 15.

Some of the school’s alumni participated in the festival as producers, writers and directors.

One alumnus was featured in the film “You are Here,” which starred North Carolina native Zach Galifianakis from the Hangover Trilogy, Owen Wilson, Amy Poehler and Jenna Fisher, according to a statement from UNCSA.

Six students and 16 alumni of UNCSA also worked on “You are Here.”

N.C. A&T top public HBCU in country

The UNC system can add N.C. Agricultural & Technical State University’s recent award as the top public historically black college in the country to its list of merits.

The university was ranked the top public HBCU in the nation by the U.S. News & World Report and eighth among all HBCUs in the country.

“This ranking is a clear indication that we are moving the university’s aggressive agenda centered around innovative research, exemplary teaching and learning and creative scholarship in the right direction,” Chancellor Harold Martin said in a statement.

The U.S. News & World Report assigned rankings to HBCUs based on criteria such as graduation and student retention rates, alumni giving, financial resources and student selectivity.

Vacant position at N.C. State

N.C. State University’s vacated position of assistant director for Hispanic Student Affairs has sparked inquiries and conversations from students. The position has been vacant since Abraham Dones left the position earlier this semester.

The position collaborates with other campus departments to provide recruitment activities while addressing Hispanic student transition, retention and success. It also handles the events that happen on campus during Hispanic History Month.

N.C. State plans to begin advertising for the position on Oct. 1. The school is looking for a bilingual candidate who can fill critical needs of the department, said Tracey Ray, assistant vice provost for student diversity.

“The position won’t be vacant longer than another two to three months,” she said. “Our goal is always students first. We have a commitment to serving the Hispanic and Latino part of our campus population.”