Morgan Davis

College of Nursing

Bachelor of Science, Nursing

Davis, an ECU nursing and Honors College student, was selected for guaranteed admission to the BSN to PhD program through the early assurance program. She will graduate early with her bachelor’s degree after three and a half years and will begin her doctoral program this spring.

Davis plans to work in Vidant Medical Center’s pediatric unit, eyeing a career in global and children’s health care after earning her doctorate.

“I’d really like to work internationally, setting up health care and education resources for families in low- and middle-income countries,” she said. “I’ve seen in other countries that parents always want to help their children, but they don’t always have the education or the resources. I think that’s something we should be able to provide to people and improve.”

Davis has participated in several international health care missions, completing her senior honors project this summer in Guatemala with Dr. Kim Larson, principal investigator of a clean water study in a rural Mayan village. For her proposal — which won an Undergraduate Research and Creativity Award — Davis interviewed families who had received water filters to help understand Mayan families’ beliefs related to health and illness.

Kalifornia Dolan

Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences

Bachelor of Arts, English

Dolan, surrounded by teachers in her family, always knew she wanted to join their ranks, and a major in English was a natural fit. Then she discovered a new passion and added a minor in linguistics.

“Ever since I took my first linguistics class at ECU, I’ve been hooked,” she said.

A summer studying in London earned her valuable experience with different teaching styles as well as nurturing new connections. “My bonds with my friends have only deepened since our time studying abroad, and my time in England will never be forgotten,” she said.

Dolan hopes to become an English professor and is applying to ECU’s Master of Arts program for the spring.

Grace Joyner

College of Fine Arts and Communication

Bachelor of Fine Arts and Bachelor of Art Education

Grace Joyner will officially graduate on Dec. 15, but she’s already working as an art teacher at La Grange Elementary School in Lenior County.

Joyner will graduate magna cum laude in the School of Art and Design and earn dual bachelor degrees in art education and art with a concentration in ceramics. She spent her last semester at ECU as a student teacher – first at Stokes School and later at South Central High School. Then she was offered the position in La Grange and was able to start before graduation due to her good work as a student teacher.

“ECU's art education program has prepared me for my career by challenging me with courses and providing opportunities for me to experience teaching in a real classroom setting even before my student teaching,” Joyner said. “The art program also prepared me for my career by offering a variety of classes exploring many different art forms and mediums. By combining my experiences from each of these programs, I was well prepared for my art teaching career.”

Joyner said she was drawn to ECU because of the ceramics program and because it was close to her hometown of Rocky Mount.

In addition to teaching, the 22-year-old Joyner plans to keep creating her own artwork.

Some of Joyner’s highlights at ECU included being a member of the ECU Ceramics Guild, taking a boatbuilding class, studying abroad in Italy and volunteering as a peer advisor and global ambassador for students wanting to study abroad.

Travon Mays

College of Engineering and Technology

Bachelor of Science

Travon Mays of Pamlico County had a lot going on when he came to ECU two years ago. His second son had just been born. He was married and working a full-time job at Barbour-Hendrick Honda in Greenville as a technician. And, with a two-year degree in hand from Craven Community College, he entered the College of Engineering and Technology’s Industrial Distribution and Logistics program wide-eyed and prepared for a new, full-time experience to add to his already full plate.

Mays is quick to say that he couldn’t join any student organizations because he didn’t have the time. He needed to focus on his four-year degree that he hoped, along with his faith, would provide him “more opportunities to try and do better” for his family.

“I give all the credit to God who helped me to stay focused and to keep striving every day,” said Mays.

When Mays walks across the stage during graduation ceremonies, he’ll have almost 15 family members cheering for him. He also will have answered those who told him that graduating would almost be impossible with everything that was going on in his life.

When asked what he’ll think once the degree is in his hand, he said, “I survived it all.”

After graduation, Mays will take a new job at Hendrick Chevrolet in Durham as a service adviser.

Duy Pham

College of Health and Human Performance

Bachelor of Science, Public Health Studies

The College of Health and Human Performance’s Duy Pham says helping others in the aftermath of devastating hurricanes this year was a humbling experience.

Pham, 24, interned with the American Red Cross this semester. He will graduate Dec. 15 with a bachelor’s degree in public health studies with a concentration in community health.

Initially based in Durham, Pham worked as a Red Cross disaster services intern, traveling to Texas and the U.S. Virgin Islands for hurricane relief work.

In Texas, he spent two weeks working in shelters with people who were displaced by Hurricane Harvey.

Later, he went to St. Croix for two months where he worked in sheltering, reunification and distribution of emergency supplies after Hurricanes Irma and Maria.

He helped connect people with resources to get back on their feet and registered hundreds across the island so family and friends off the island would know they were safe. He also was able to help locate people who were missing, reuniting some families, before his deployment ended.

“It was a great opportunity for me to see public health in the field. I saw a world different than the one I’m living in the United States and am very humbled by this experience,” Pham said. “The people on the island are so amazing and I’m glad that I was able to provide them with some sort of relief for their suffering during my time there.”

A Cary native, Pham plans on taking a semester off to work, save money and gain additional work experience in his field of study. He also intends to become a certified nursing assistant while working on requirements for admission to ECU’s College of Nursing next fall.

Luise Armstrong

Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences

Master of Science, Biology

Two decades of police work was just the start for Luise Armstrong.

“I was ready to retire and move on to a new type of scientific endeavor,” she said.

She returned to school at the University of Central Arkansas, where she majored in environmental science and discovered a love of fieldwork. “I knew that I wanted to become a field biologist or ecologist, to work as a part of a conservation team,” she said.

Armstrong credits the successful completion of her degree to support within the Department of Biology and from her children. She worked alongside her daughter, who earned a doctorate in August.

“We would celebrate the small victories along the way and commiserate over the phone when emotional support was needed,” she said. “My son called me the day of my thesis defense to tell me how proud of me he was. It is a fine day indeed when your grown child is proud of you.”

Congratulations to all the 2017 graduates!