Time to Celebrate Life, Work of Lionel C. Barrow

This weekend journalism and mass communication education lost a giant and a trailblazer in the passing of Lionel C. Barrow, Jr.

Now in my sixth year as an assistant professor here at the University of Alabama, I know neither my career as a broadcast journalist nor my current full-time role as a journalism professor would have been possible were it not for the hard work of Dr. Barrow.


As a cum laude graduate of the Howard University School of Communications and the 1991 recipient of the Lionel C. Barrow Minority Doctoral Scholarship, I know firsthand the impact Barrow had the lives of so many across the fields of journalism and mass communication.

Funeral arrangements were incomplete as of this writing on Sunday evening. Barrow's passing was announced on Howard University's radio station, WHUR-TV earlier in the day. I'm told that plans are now in the works for a memorial service to be held at Howard University in mid-February.

For the last few years, Dr. Barrow has lived in the Tampa Bay area as his wife, Dr. Frederica Harrison Barrow, is on the faculty in the School of Social Work at the University of South Florida.

Most recently, Dr. Barrow and I sat on a panel at the 2008 AEJMC Annual Convention in Chicago entitled "State of the Division and Discipline: Re-envisioning Minorities & Communication."

I had no idea that would be the last time I would get to hear him talk passionately about the importance of opening doors of journalism and mass communication education to people of color.

He was dedicated even in the final months of his life to diversifying the ranks of our JMC professorate.

Even as I write this posting, I recall Dr. Barrow's suggestions about the research I presented on the panel. Even though I only got to know him in the last seven years, he's certainly been a mentor to me and countless oithers like me who work in this field.

Established in 1970, the Barrow Minority Doctoral Scholarship honors Professor Lionel C. Barrow, Jr., former Communication Theory & Methodology (CT&M) Division head and Dean Emeritus of Howard University.

Dr. Barrow earned his doctorate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and has held a variety of leadership positions in industry, academia, and the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC).

His work was noted in a recent article in Diverse Issues of Higher Education on AEJMC's steps to intensify its effort in the area of diversity.

Dr. Barrow was the second dean of the Howard School of Communication, serving from 1975 to 1985, following the tenure of founding dean Tony Brown.

The Barrow Scholarship is intended to aid doctoral students complete their dissertation research and academic studies.



When I received the award at the 2001 AEJMC Convention in Washington, it was my first time meeting the former dean of my alma mater.

Since then, I've become acquainted with his work as Chair of the Commission on the Status of Minorities.

In one of the best ways to honor his work, I recently took a more active role in CSM as the newsletter editor.

It's just one small way I can give back to an organization in which Barrow had such a critical role.

Even now as I await a decision on my application for tenure and promotion, I know that regardless of the outcome, I owe a great deal to Lionel C. Barrow for helping me get to this point.

My life has been richer not only because of my experience as an undergraduate at what is now the John H. Johnson School of Communications in a program Dr. Barrow steered for so many years but also because of the financial support of the Barrow scholarship I completed my dissertation and am making an impact on journalism in a whole other way.

I look forward to the opportunity to continue Dr. Barrow's legacy even as I become more active as a journalism and mass communication scholar and teacher.

Later this year, when AEJMC recognizes the first recipient of the association's Equity and Diversity Award, we will ALL be thinking of Dr. Lionel Barrow. For it was his hard work that helped position the association to bestow such an honor.

Visitors Stop By This Week to See What We're Teaching about Journalism

The Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communication is sending a team of five professors and working media practitioners to see if we're doing the right thing by our students.    

It's called an accreditation review and most of the best j-schools (journalism schools) go through it every six years.   

An ACEJMC Stamp of Approval is the equivalent of the Good Housekeeping Seal for journalism education. 

The accrediting council looks for such things as class size, placement, labs and facilities, faculty credentials and qualifications, assessment and diversity in making its decision. 

Just 112 programs in the country are accredited by ACEJMC.  The University of Alabama is one of three (Auburn University and Jacksonville State are the other two) accredited programs.  The University of North Alabama in Florence is planning to apply for accreditation in the next few years. 

It will interesting to see what the team of reviewers have to say as they drop in on our classes and chat with us over the next few days.

As if this accreditation review were not enough, we have another team of reviewers arriving at the end of the week to specifically review our Public Relations program.   One of reasons that our public relations  major is one of the largest in the college is its high-quality program that is reviewed every few years by the Public Relations Society of America.

As a news reporting instructor who teaches public relations majors often in my classes, I'll get a chance to visit with that particular team of visitors as well. 

Of course with any review, you always want to put your best foot forward.   But, at the end of the day, what these visitors should see is the good work that we're doing every day in our classes. 

The week for me will end in Nashville as spend the day at the Online News Association workshop at the Freedom Forum's First Amendment Center on the Vanderbilt University campus.    

Like those of us in the Society of Professional Journalists and those of us who teach have been saying all along-- JOURNALISM HAS A FUTURE, ONA has made that the topic of what looks to be an exciting day where those in the online world can focus on how we do good journalism in the current environment.  

More on "Journalism Has a Future" in future blog postings.   

Stovall Does It, Now The Real Work Begins

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.-- As I watched him listen to all the exchange between the faculty and industry voices in the room, Jim Stovall, the Edward J. Meeman Distinguished Professor in the School of Journalism and Electronic Media, who organized ICONN, was clearly proud of all that we accomplished in a short time.

Jim has been talking about this idea of a wire service and a network of journalism educators who are teaching Web journalism for a good while. On Friday as the two-day meeting here wound down, his vision was finally coming into view.

We talked a great deal about organizational issues for ICONN-- who's going to be in charge? will students and faculty be working together? What about those who were unable to be here for this meeting?

Those logistical issues are certainly important.

But, equally as important -- and more daunting for most of us without a programming or computer background is getting this web tool, OCHS, to work for us as a content management system. It's an interesting challenge. I often am the person who is considered by some to be the "techno enthusiast."

However, in a room with Joseph Agreda, the Tennessee Journalist operations manager and Jay Baird from Mochi Media as well as Bob Benz from Radiant Markets (formerly of Scripps Interactive), I felt like the one who needed to bone up on his technical skills.

This re-tooling and retraining that we faculty will have to do to make this Web tool work is exactly what makes bringing digital into our teaching such a challenge.

As I leave Orange Country, I will have to say that Knoxville will be the place where I realized I could do this Web thing-- the technical side. I developed a new level of confidence that a Content Management System is no longer something that I leave to "tech staff" to do for me.

iConn represents a new beginning for me as a journalist operating in the multimedia age. And, for that, and to Jim Stovall, I'm eternally grateful.

Let the real work begin. Joseph

ICONN Sparks New Faculty Friendships

MY NEW FRIEND FROM HARDING U-- The Intercollegiate Online News Network (ICONN) Founders Conference afforded me the opportunity to meet another j-school professor. Dr. Jim Miller, the man behind Jim Miller's Menial Musings, is starting a web journalism class at his university in Searcy, Arkansas.

Harding is not a university I would have thought of first when I think web journalism. Thanks to ICONN, this school is now on the radar as we look at places that are on the cutting edge of teaching multimedia and web journalism.





OTHER FACULTY COLLEAGUES-- Jon Glass, Syracuse University (in the white sweater), suffered through my constant jabs about him being from "Newhouse" (the school I once dreamed of attending as a high school journalist).

Jon has a dual background as a technical staff person who is supporting the digital instruction at SU. (He's also a Florida Gator and a native of Alabama-- who has loose ties to Auburn U., but we won't hold that against him)

Meanwhile at my alma mater, the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia (where I received both my master's and doctorate),there are two advocates -- Mark Johnson (see below) from the faculty and Harry Montevideo (In the gray sweater) from the award-winning student independent study daily, The Red and Black.

Even though I was from Alabama, I was VERY PROUD of my school, UGA, having two very vocal and leading voices in making ICONN go. I look forward to working with Jon, Mark and Harry! I think this gathering was a little heavy on the testosterone. Still there were people like Lyn Lepre, a former UT-Knoxville faculty, who brought insights from her experience at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, NY.





A CLEAR VOICE FOR DIGITAL JOURNALISM-- I take nothing away from all the attendees at ICONN. But, this guy, Mark Johnson, who is leading the digital news instruction at University of Georgia's Grady College of Journalism, was most memorable in his articulation of the challenges we have ahead.

His frank assessment of what is needed as we move forward is something on which I know I will reflect again and again. My only regret is that Mark and I missed each other by two years (He joined the Georgia faculty two years after I completed my Ph.D. in 2002).

Knoxville Brings Memories of What Was My Personal Life

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.-- As we begin the second day of the Intercollegiate Online News Network (ICONN) Founders Conference, it's as good a time as any to depart from the professional and share some personal thoughts about this city and what it means to me to be part of something new in a place with so many personal memories.

I realized yesterday as I was driving up I-75 from Chattanooga how familiar the road signs and exits were to me. That's because I actually had driven this stretch of interstate so many times in another life.

You see there was a certain female to whom I had taken a great liking and who lived in this city back in mid 1990s when I was working as a television news producer at WXIA-TV, NBC's Atlanta affiliate.

She was a friend from college with whom I had worked so closely and connected so well, I just knew that this was a person who would always be in my life. I consider(ed) her my best friend.

Sidebar: When we teach blogging in our journalism courses, one of the things we have to help our students understand is the opportunity that blogs can play for less formal writing that extends, expands and even personalizes a story.

This posting "personalizes" my whole experience here at ICONN

This was the campus where my friend and I used to hang out. She lived only a mile away from the UT-Knoxville campus. She worked part-time at one of the local hospitals and took classes at both Roane State and Pellissippi State Technical Community College.

I remember driving about 30 miles west of here to surprise her at her graduation from Pellissippi State Technical Community College. I remember driving up from Atlanta on Valentine's Day with a surprise care basket one year. I even remember taking a memorable shopping trip with her out to Sevierville, Tenn. (She worked for a short time in Sevier County, just east of Knoxville).

On the UT-Knoxville campus, she and I would go to the Health Sciences Library and hang out. She would study while I would read periodicals. But, at the time, I had begun to ponder the idea of graduate school.

I had even visited the NBC affiliate here, WBIR-TV, wondering about the opportunities in this television market, which was much smaller than either Atlanta or Cincinnati, the city in which I worked before moving to WXIA.

I attended my first academic conference here on the UT-Knoxville campus as UT hosted what's now known as the AEJMC Southeast Colloquium. (AEJMC stands for the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication)

I watched research presentations at the conference at the Knoxville Hilton wondering if I could actually do that one day. (Of course, I eventually did do it lots of times as I worked on a master's and Ph.D. degrees)

Years later-- in this century -- the woman, who I identified as my best friend, married someone else in this town. To this day, I have not met face-to-face with the groom.

She invited me to the wedding. Ironically (or maybe not), I was in Chicago presenting a paper at an academic conference the same weekend.

Some have suggested that I intentionally missed this turning point in my best friend's life.

Perhaps this trip back to Knoxville, the place that holds so many memories, is not only about being a part of something new for my students learning Web journalism, but also about coming to terms with something old that happened in my own life.

As I reflect today, I bring "closure" (that's become a bit of a cliche) to what was and look to open what WILL BECOME in both my personal life and in my work with students in journalism via ICONN.

More Pictures from Day One

DOWNTOWN KNOXVILLE-- The view of the World's Fair Park is spectacular from our hotel, the Cumberland House Hotel. This is a vibrant campus and its proximity to downtown gives it a unique feel among schools in our beloved Southeastern Conference.




IN CLASS WITH Dr. Stovall-- James Glen Stovall is a legend in journalism and as the adviser for The Tennessee Journalist, the host for this gathering. This afternoon, I had the pleasure of visiting and briefly addressing his Writing for Mass Media class. To my surprise, one of my former students at University of Alabama, who transferred to UT-Knoxville, was there and came down front after class to make sure I knew she was there. What a nice surprise.




VIEW FROM THE TOP-- Mike Wirth, dean of the UT-Knoxville College of Communication and Information addresses the attendees at the ICONN Founders Conference dinner. I had the pleasure of sitting across from Dean Wirth and his lovely wife this evening.

UPI Reinvents Itself With New Generation of Students Online

KNOXVILLE, Tenn-- That "other" wire service-- the one that you heard about one day in school, but rarely saw- United Press International (UPI) is back!

As the Intercollegiate Online News Network (ICONN) is born this week here on the University of Tennessee campus, it appears an older journalism player is going through its own reincarnation. Tonight, we got a view of that as Michael Marshall, editor of UPI, shared a little bit of the vision for UPI-University, a major initiative of the soon-to-be 102-year-old news agency.

"We're finding a way to adjust our traditional values to a totally different environment," said Marshall, who plans to give more concrete details about UPI-U during his presentation tomorrow. "We're no longer a news agency in a traditional sense."

Today's college students are a big part of an effort by United Press International to shift the focus to more serious journalism.

As what Marshall termed 'a national and international showcase for young journalists," UPI-U is one way the agency is responding to respond to citizen journalism with news and information that is credible and reliable.

Formerly a news agency for afternoon newspapers, which began to go away in the 1980s with the proliferation of afternoon newscasts, UPI has been under serveral ownership changes before its purchase by News World Communications.

According to the mediaowners.com Web site, News World Comunications' owns the American news agency United Press International (UPI), acquired in 2000. Its flagship newspaper is the Washington Times, founded in 1982. Other newspapers published by News World include The Middle East Times (Egypt), Segye Ilbo (Korea) and Sekai Nippo (Japan). It also publishes magazines (Insight, The World & I, and Washington Golf Monthly).

MY TAKE

The one thing that bothered me about Marshall's remarks tonight was his assumption that there's something wrong with Citizen Journalism.

"The problem with citizen journalism is the whole issue of credibility," said Marshall.

I don't happen to subscribe to the view that all or most citizen journalism is unreliable. Instead, I happen to believe that it is our role as journalists in 2009 to embrace the role that citizen journalists can have in our information gathering. Properly trained, they become our co-laborers in the practice.

What some have called the "pro-am" model of journalism is a cutting edge way to re-shape our view of citizen journalists.

To the extent possible, we should help those citizens who want to do journalism to know how to practice it in a ethical manner.

I hope we'll engage Marshall on this issue as we continue or deliberations and discussions tomorrow.

UT-Knoxville Students turn out for ICONN

KNOXVILLE, Tenn-- The launch of the Intercollegiate Online News Network has provided a place for journalism students in classes to come and have contact with industry professionals.

Follow the live blogging from this event on Twitter!

ICONN Begins with Faculty-Student Exchanges

KNOXVILLE, Tenn-- My Journey to Orange Country has reached its main destination- the University of Tennessee main campus where already we've seen some vigorous exchange between students and faculty pondering the future of journalism classes.

The Intercollegiate Online News Network Founders Conference is now into its third hour. One panel focused "Web journalism and education: What do our journalism programs need?" has concluded and second panel is about to begin.

So far, I've been reminded that I need to be teaching some skills that I may not feel like I'm the expert. One of the biggest news items-- Gannett has implemented a Furlough program, which mandates five days of unpaid leave for all employees.

The idea that emerged from this first panel-- use this as an opportunity for digital training. In exchange, those journalists who are trained can come back and help our journalism students.

The struggles of academics took centerstage as did a slight philosophical difference between those who believe focusing on the fundamentals/standards (or the lack thereof in students) and those who believe the Web MIGHT introduce a different tolerance for the old standards of journalism.

I think the issues that opened the conference will come back up as we have some more concrete discussions about the establishment of ICONN and those of us who will be member institutions.

The second panel is beginning. Gotta go! (Live blogging resumes)

A Three-Day Trip to The Volunteer State Begins

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn-- I've been in and through this great city lots of times, but I often don't stop. Tonight I'm parked in Chattanooga, my stopover point enroute to a meeting on the University of Tennessee campus.

I've called this trip my -- "Journey to Big Orange Country" because it's a little weird visiting the home turf of one of the biggest rivals of both my present employer and my alma mater. At University of Alabama, we have the third Saturday in October circled on our calendar. Whether it's in Tuscaloosa or in Knoxville, the matchup between the Vols and the Crimson Tide is always a grudge match.

Likewise when I was at my alma mater, The University of Georgia, we knew The Vols were always one of our biggest barriers to an SEC East Championship.

But, football season is over. The Vols have a new coach and both UGA and UA beat them this past year. (Thanks for that!) So, at least for 11 months, we can be on the same side -- working toward educating students about web journalism and how to deal in a world of journalism that is changing seemingly by the hour.

I've been looking forward to coming to UT-Knoxville for a few weeks. It's actually a nice campus, one I visited even before deciding to go to graduate school.

I'll save the trip down memory lane-- and look ahead to the inaugural meeting of the Intercollegiate Online News Association (ICONN), a group of advocates for and instructors of online journalism.

Our friends at the Tennessee Journalist are hosting us. I'm just in awe at what the Tennessee Journalist has accomplished in a few short years. It will be great to meet some of the students beyond this Web site.

One of the outcomes of this gathering we hope will be the establishment of the Intercollegiate Online News Network, a wire service to which my students at University of Alabama will be able to contribute and draw from as they work on our Dateline Alabama Web site.

Plans for SoCon'09 Announced

Big news out of the ATL today-- the plans for the biggest social networking gathering in the Southeast were announced. This year's SoCon09 will be held February 6-7, 2009.

It was based on my posts and my experience two years ago at SoCon '07 that this web log is as updated as it is.

SoCon (stands for "Southern Connection") started out in 2007 as the "UnConference" because it wasn't about formal academic presentations or panel discussions. The idea was that everyone who came was expected to participate.

Read more about how it all came together on Jeff Haynie's blog.


Then see all the Reflections from last year's conference. I missed this one. But, it looks like it was even better than the 2007 gathering.

The gathering brings together bloggers and social networking, social media enthusiasts from all over the region.

Election Day- The Voting Experience

Well, the early morning excitement about the beginning of Election Day has subsided. I've voted and now it's time for a little reflection on the entire experience, which took all of about 75 minutes.

Even though I got there as polls were opening, by the time I got the Bobby Miller Recreation Center and parked and (at an adjacent baseball field), it was at least 7:05 when I got in line.

Still, I could tell the line was moving pretty well. The amount of time it took the mark the ballot-- LESS than five minutes, even with the local races.

But, was it worth it standing in line for an hour- absolutely! At some point, that wait, that one day being late to work every four years is worth it.

In such an important election, the inconvenience of waiting in line an hour is minor when it comes to deciding the course of our nation and its standing in the world.

I awakened before 4:30 a.m. as I was so psyched up for today (and had a lot of things to do this morning). Now, almost 5 hours later, I'm still psyched.

But I feel a sense of accomplishment-- that I've done my part as a citizen.

No matter how much we journalists talk about the election as a news story. There's something different when for a period time (i.e. this morning)you become a citizen and stand in line with other more "high-profile" people in your community. Voting is the ultimate equalizer.

Thank God for the orderly, organized manner that we do our civic duty here in Alabama.

Regardless of who wins, it's already been a good day.

Broadcast Educators from Southeast Tackle HD Radio, Digital Conversion

COLUMBIA, SC-- Another story of record attendance here in the South Carolina Capital as the biggest Broadcast Education Association District II meeting takes place here for the first time.

As the largest group of electronic media faculty, the Broadcast Education Association has encouraged fall district gatherings in addition to its annual spring convention, which is held each April in conjunction with the National Association of Broadcasters and the Radio-Television News Directors Association in Las Vegas.

The most successful of these gatherings has, by far, been our District II, which includes those from the states of Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, South Carolina, North Carolina and Florida. The first three District II conferences were held on Middle Tennessee State University campus from 2003 to 2005. In 2006, we hosted the gathering at the University of Alabama and last October, it was hosted by Valdosta State University in South Georgia.

Under the direction of the District II board representative Augie Grant, this year's gathering was held in conjunction with the Annual Convergence Conference with a joint banquet last year featuring Daryn Kagan, a former CNN anchor and now operator of a inspirational Web site, DarynKagan.com

While the two gatherings were held on the same weekend, one could come away with a totally different set of outcomes-- things to change and update in his/her teaching.

Today, one full panel of representatives from local television and radio here in Columbia and two research paper presentations focused on the February 17, 2009 transition to Digital Televlsion and the growing audience for Hyper Digital (not High Definition) Radio.

Those were clearly very timely topics and warrant follow-up from those of us in the classroom and in conjunction with those in industry.

I have much more to say as I reflect on the BEA District II meeting. But, I must move on to other pertinent tasks this evening.

More later.

Stephen F Austin State Shows Out

COLUMBIA, SC-- Much of the academic conference focuses on individual academic paper presentations. In this arena, those presentations have focused mostly on convergence.

But, what we're seeing this afternoon is a divergence of the way convergence is playing out at a smaller state institution. Hundreds of our nation's universities and colleges are just like Stephen F. Austin State.

SFASU brought six members of its faculty for the conference. They've just finished their panel presentation and are taking questions.

This was definitely a unique type of presentation.

Near Record Attendance Here in Columbia

COLUMBIA, SC-- I'm told about 80 people have registered for this year's Convergence Conference and if I heard nothing else-- I'm gotten an earful on the latest data for what newspapers and televisions are doing with their Web operations.

More details later, but as you see from the photo above, there are more people than we've had before engaging in this type of discussion about what's happening online.

I'm ducking out of that session, Newsroom Practices on Convergence" to make this posting. The photo shows what I could see from the back of Salon A here at Conference Center portion of the Clarion Hotel in downtown Columbia.

It's nice to have wireless so that these types of updates are do-able.

Greetings from the South Carolina State Capital

COLUMBIA, SC-- It's become a tradition for me-- for the last six years -- except one-- I travel to the Palmetto State to get the very latest updates on multimedia journalism, convergence and cross-media news gathering.

The experts in the field converge on the University of South Carolina campus to talk about their latest research, challenges in teaching in this area and what's likely to happen in the next few months.

Fortunately, the annual convergence conference calls on our Fall Study Break at the University of Alabama and University of South Carolina.

The conference is always a chance to get multiple "take-aways" to carry to my students.

Next fall, the 2009 gathering will be in November and hosted by our friends at the Reynolds School of Journalism at the University of Nevada Reno

In addition to my postings from my Twitter page, I'll be posting several times this weekend from The Convergence Conference.

2 Million Student Newspaper Subscribers?

It might seem far-fetched. But, the head of the one of the nation's leading grant-making corporations thinks we could see two million students subscribing to local and national newspapers.

This week in a lecture at Howard University, Dr. Vartan Gregorian suggested that in any School of Journalism, every teacher should have one local and one national paper and students should have one local and one national paper subscription that is included in their student activities fee.

Would that actually work?

As journalism instructors, we work hard to get our students interested in reading the newspaper, any newspaper instead of relying only on what they can find in the online environment.

Some have argued that educational strategy of forcing readership of the print edition is "old school" or a lost cause?

Apparently Gregorian doesn't think so.

Gregorian was the first distinguished lecturer in the distinguished lecturer series hosted by the Howard University Johnson H. Johnson School of Communication's Preparing Future Journalism faculty program.


Full disclosure: I am a proud 1992 graduate of the Howard School of Communications!

Go Bison!

CNN's Rick Sanchez Creates Moments with Social Networking

Former WSVN-TV (Miami/Ft. Lauderdale) anchor Rick Sanchez has a saying-- "Television is about the moments it creates."

Tonight Sanchez, who's now at CNN, created several of those moments by integrating the technology of social networking with the traditions of a scheduled news program.

Sanchez doesn't have one of the signature spots on CNN yet-- but he is the weekend evening anchor at the Atlanta-based cable news network where he does two editions of "CNN Newsroom."

On the night after the network broke the story of Barack Obama's choice for a running mate, the network moved into a whole new territory of technology by inviting viewers to comment on replays of the major political speeches of the day-- from Springfield, Illinois.

As Obama's running mate, Delaware Senator Joe Biden gave a speech that Sanchez and his staff replayed in its entirety with breaks and interruptions for viewers and a panel of guests to comment.


It was a revolutionary move. While it's obvious to anyone that the goal of interactivity to hold on to one's audience, we cannot discount the significance of tonight's event.

Sanchez (and more likely his producers) are to be commended for going this route in their reporting.

The real challenge will be seeing how well this is replicated next week when the Republicans have their big announcement of a running mate for John McCain.

News cycles and interest shift and change so it's who knows what else might be competing for the media spotlight a week from now.

Nonetheless, Sanchez and his crew at CNN Newsroom have shown that it can be done-- news operations integrating social networking not only in their coverage plans, but in the plans executed for presenting the news.

From Asheville to the "Villes" of Tennessee

ASHEVILLE, N. Car.-- As the saying goes, "all good things must come to an end." I hate to begin this morning with a cliche. But, it's appropriate as we think about this last day of summer break and the end of my road trip.

I decided to sleep late this last day-- getting a 10:30 a.m. start from Asheville, NC headed west to Sevierville,Tenn then Knoxville, Tenn where I will pick up I-75 and start south.

While we'll certainly make some quick stops in "Big Orange" country (U. Georgia and U. Alabama fans don't like Big Orange Country as much-- it's where "Rock Top" reigns), the only scheduled stop is back in Northeast Alabama where I am scheduled for a late lunch (probably more like early dinner) with a colleague at Gadsden State Community College in Gadsden, Ala.

I've been through Gadsden before, but never done much stopping there.

I'm looking forward to going by the "Smokies" of East Tennessee. It was my first exposure to "The Volunteer State" a decade ago when a good friend of mine lived in Knoxville. She worked in Sevierville and I would catch her at work.

As I depart Asheville and Western North Carolina, I leave with plans next summer to come directly to Asheville and spend at LEAST a full day -- maybe even two at The Biltmore. Time didn't permit me to linger as long as I would like here. But, now I have something to which to look forward in 2009. In addition to my first trip to New England (I have a conference next August in Boston), I will plan to take the long route back here -- and make Asheville a major destination.

Finally, a photo along the banks of Bass Lake in Blowing Rock, North Carolina. Thanks to my host, Dr. Calvin Hall for taking this picture.

Reflecting on Rocky Hock

EDENTON, NC-- The journey to Edenton, NC turned out to be well worth the drive -- the production of "Under His Wings" was great and the people were just fantastic.

Before the 2 p.m. performance of the production of the play based on the biblical story of Naomi, Boaz and Ruth, my brother (in the orange striped sheet) and I posed for a photo with members of the cast and crew at the Rocky Hock playhouse.

The Rocky Hock Playhouse was founded in May of 2000 by Jeff (who stands next to me in the picture) and Gloria Emmerich (standing next to my brother) and has become one of America's most unique full time professional Christian theatres, one published report indicates.

The Emmerichs write and produce five original musicals each year. Gloria Emmerich is the writer of King David, Simon Peter (Fisher of Men), Paul (Fearless Lion of God), Noah's Incredible Cruise, Heaven Came Down, Out of the Darkness, and Jacob, Prince of God. The Emmerichs hire actors from across the United States to perform in their Broadway style Christian musicals.

The Rocky Hock Playhouse is a stock company theatre and is located near Edenton, North Carolina. The Emmerich Theatre Production Company’s first musical in Northeast North Carolina was Under His Wings (the Love Story of Ruth and Boaz).