President's Blog

The quest motif has been a recurring theme around the world in our art and in our literature. Whether it is western culture and the search for the Holy Grail, or Tolkien's stories, or whether it is an eastern tradition like the Buddhist themes in Siddartha's quest for enlightenment, we humans are often in a quest mode. I believe that Pellissippi State is in that mode as well.

We are at a point in our organizational life that we are seeking to become something more than we have been. I know that we have always been good and always true to our mission and to our community. But now, I think we realize we have everything in place to be a really great institution of higher learning and have committed to becoming that.

I saw evidence of this throughout this past week as faculty prepared for and delivered the first class sessions of the semester. There was little, if any, of the usual shuffling of students in and out of rooms once class began. I saw students in their seats, fixated on the task at hand, and I saw faculty hard at work delivering on the charge to make it the most important day of the semester. It was an impressive first day.

I think that our first President's Convocation will be an important event as well. Our students will get to come together, as they rarely do, and join us in our quest on that day. We are providing them with one of our very best in Ed Francisco to guide them during this time, and I believe that we will be a better institution at the end of the day.

I hope that you will join us on September 8 in the PAC. Encourage your students to join us. We will begin promptly at noon.

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If you trace your lineage back far enough, you will find that we are all Africans. The National Geographic Society is engaged in a project that will allow you to submit your DNA for analysis and will provide you with a map of the path of your deepest ancestors. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/genographic It won't tell you who your great-great grandfather is, but it will show you the origins of your ancestors and the path they took from 60,000 years ago. As with all our ancestors, mine started in Africa. Somehow, over the years, they moved up through the Middle East and into the mountains and plateaus near India, Pakistan, Afghanistan where they stayed for 10,000 years or so before heading west toward Europe and Spain. I have always marveled at how the early pioneers in America could face the dangers of exploring the American West. Now that seems like such a simple journey compared to the hardships of our deep ancestors. The strength of the human species is even more remarkable than I had imagined.

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It is odd where you meet up with Knoxvillians. This summer Sue and I stayed at a resort on the South African coast owned and operated by a Knoxville couple, Breese and Kathryn Johnson. They are warm, engaging people who have managed to purchase a beautiful tract of land called Mosaic Farm near Gansbaii, South Africa, a place famous for cage shark diving with Great White Sharks (I went, but got seasick). Deanne Pannell also visited Mosaic Farm this summer with her husband and children. http://www.mosaicfarm.net

I met the most wonderful people in S. Africa. A memorable guide was named Louis, a retired naval officer who spent the day showing us around villages and introducing us to people that we would have never met without his assistance. Another South African I met was a young man working as a cashier in a shop. He was wearing a badge designating him as a trainee. When I casually mentioned to him that I knew he would be happy when he didn't have to wear the "trainee badge" anymore he said, "No sir. I am very proud to be a trainee with this great company. If they want me to wear it for two years, it will be ok with me." It was a reminder that I was not in America.

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