(May 2010) The Tribal Chairman of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina addressed the students within the Teaching Fellows Program at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke Tuesday, May 18, 2010 in the Givens Performing Arts Center.
“North Carolina again invests in our state by investing in you. Pursue your dreams. Use this as an opportunity to learn and grow all you can,” stated Tribal Chairman Purnell Swett. “This program will provide you the chance to come academically and culturally enriched.”
According to the UNC-P Teaching Fellows Program, it was enacted by the General Assembly in 1986. The mission of the program was, and continues to be, to recruit talented high school graduates into the teaching profession and to help them develop leadership qualities such as visionary thinking and risk-taking; qualities that have not, in the past, been valued in teachers.
“Let me reassure you by perspective that the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program is truly one great educational and teacher enhancement programs in the entire United States,” commented UNC-P Chancellor Dr. Charles R. Jenkins. The Teaching Fellows Program was one of the components in a ten-point teacher recruitment proposal called "Who Will Teach Our Children." The proposal was developed by the Public School Forum of North Carolina, a nonprofit partnership of business, educational and political leaders from throughout North Carolina, according to the program.
“I have brought a few dancers, along with the drum group. It is my hope that you enjoy the cultural enrichment program we have for you tonight,” continued Chairman Swett. Youth Services Coordinator John Oxendine then gave a cultural presentation describing each dancer’s regalia and dance history, style, and origination. Afterwards each dancer would dance their individual dance style. In between each presentation the Lumbee Ambassadors would impart their own words of encouragement through their personal performances. For more information on the Teaching Fellows Program please contact the department at 910-521-6495 or by email at teaching.fellows@uncp.edu.
