2018 Catawba College Ethics Bowl Team
Catawba College students will be among students from 21 other campuses across North Carolina participating in the 8th annual Ethics Bowl hosted by North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities (NCICU). The collegiate teams will be debating the topic “Ethics and the Environment” at the event which will be held February 8 and 9 at the N.C. Legislative complex in Raleigh.
Catawba students participating include Cassie James of Robbins, N.C.; Eleanor King of Matthews, N.C.; Hannah Ryan of Roseanna, Australia; and Bryana Eller of Randleman, N.C. Dr. Norris T. Feeney, an assistant professor of Politics, is serving as the Catawba team’s campus coordinator.
“The Ethics Bowl is both academically challenging and personally rewarding experience for our students,” said NCICU president Hope Williams. “Determining ethical responses to complex situations leads to personal awareness and valuable discussion among team members and participating business and community leaders.”
Each Ethics Bowl team consists of four-to-six students. A campus coordinator works with the students to prepare them for the competition which consists of four rounds over the two-days, plus semi-final and final rounds. In each round, a specially developed case study outlining a complex ethical situation related to the environment will be presented to the teams for debate. The round is awarded to the team that makes the most sound, persuasive presentation. Approximately 60 business, non- profit and government professionals will serve as judges and moderators.
A banquet for campus participants, judges, moderators and sponsors will be held on the evening of Friday, February 8, at the North Carolina Museum of History. Jay Barnes, president and CEO of the North Carolina Aquarium Society, as keynote speaker, will share his unique perspective of the state’s aquatic resources and the society’s work as environmental stewards.
Barnes has enjoyed a long career with North Carolina’s aquariums. After graduating from N.C. State University’s College of Design, he began as curator in 1980, and later went on to serve as Director of the Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores for 20 years. After retiring from the state in 2009, he joined the Aquarium Society staff where he led fundraising efforts and membership programs as Director of Development before being named the Society’s president in November.
The NCICU Ethics Bowl is made possible by sponsorships. Presenting sponsors for the event are Duke Energy and Wells Fargo. They, along with 27 additional sponsors, make it possible for students to participate at no cost to themselves or their institutions.
“Students consistently cite the NCICU Ethics Bowl as a highlight of their college experience,” Dr. Williams said. “We deeply appreciate the corporate and civic leaders who make this event possible through financial contributions and by volunteering their time as judges and moderators.”
In addition to Catawba College, other NCICU member colleges and universities participating in this year’s Ethics Bowl include Barton College, Belmont Abby College, Campbell University, Chowan University, Gardner-Webb University, High Point University, Johnson C. Smith University, Livingstone College, Louisburg College, Mars Hill University, Meredith College, Montreat College, North Carolina Wesleyan College, Queens University of Charlotte, St. Andrews University, Saint Augustine’s University, Salem College, University of Mount Olive, Wake Forest University, William Peace University, and Wingate University.
