07/20/2022
TPC alums and friends,
As some of you may have already heard, Dr. Sherry Southard passed away yesterday after a battle with cancer. All who worked with Sherry during her 23 years at ECU know that neither our TPC master's and certificate programs nor the PhD program and could have existed without Sherry: she was there at the start, she served as graduate advisor for most of the program's first two decades, and she created or co-created many of our courses.
Sherry was the heart of this program. For me, she was the first person I met when I arrived in 2001, and she was my mentor. By modeling her own practices and love of her students, she helped me learn to be a better teacher, and especially, a devoted teacher of distance education (or, as she preferred to call it, distance learning). If you had a class with Sherry, you know that she was as present in her online classes as any face-to-face instructor has ever been, and I hope our more recent students still find that our program continues to manifest this commitment to engaged, personal education that Sherry built into our program's ethos.
Though I'm going to miss this warm, welcoming mentor, collaborator, and friend, I feel her presence every time I teach, and I hope we all remember Sherry every time we learn together.
Ever the forward-looking technical writer, Sherry composed her own obituary a few weeks before she passed. Here are Sherry's parting words.
Sherry Southard
21 November 1942 -- 19 July 2022
Family includes husband Bruce, sons Derek and Mark, daughter in law Dana, grandsons Benjamin and Jack, sister Glenda Brown, nephew Larry and his son Zander.
When I completed my undergraduate degree at Purdue, I also earned a secondary education certification. As part of that program, I student taught 7th graders math. I learned that I loved teaching, but I most likely would not survive teaching in middle school. After earning my PhD, I taught at Oklahoma State University (11 years) and then East Carolina University (23 years). Those who know me are aware of my accomplishments. My students are my accomplishments. You gave me more than I gave you.
I loved and was loved by family, friends, and students, many of whom moved into the categories of family and friends.
"There is a universal truth we all have to face, whether we want to or not, everything eventually ends. [But] some people ... are so much a part of us, they'll be with us no matter what. They are our solid ground. Our North Star. And the small clear voices in our hearts that will be with us ... Always!" (From Alexis, Graduation Speech, Castle)
Any donations in my name should be to groups working to support women's rights, eliminate hunger, protect animals, improve education, or any organization whose work you value.
