The Grotto
Gazette
Volume 8 Issue 1
September 20, 2005
Professor Strickland shares global perspective with students of
History
By Tara Hall
If you plan to be a teacher of History, you will run into Mr.
Wayne Strickland and spend a great deal of time with him from 6:00-9:00 p.m. on
one or another weeknight. Otherwise most of us never meet him. See, he has a
real life, unlike us students, and he spends his days far from campus in a
tense and exciting world of business and development. But don’t be fooled, he’s
about as relaxed as they come, especially when poring over maps with college
students.
Professor Strickland was born in
Griffin, GA. Because his father was a career officer in the Air Force, he has
traveled extensively all over the world. He had the opportunity to live in New
York, Bermuda, Turkey, and Germany, and also visited many other places. “It was
during our travels that I became interested in Geography. I was fascinated with
the other cultures and with the many different landscapes we encountered during
our travels,” Strickland said. He continues to travel to many places with his
family to this day.
He did eventually return to Georgia
once his father retired, and he finished his high school years in Jonesboro.
From there he went on to Georgia State University (GSU), and received his
Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and his Master’s in Geography. He also
attended the Georgia Institute of Technology where he obtained another Master’s
degree in City Planning, and took additional courses in Business Administration
and Public Administration. He taught courses such as Urban Geography and
Environmental Planning at GSU before moving to Virginia, where he continued to
teach at Virginia Tech as an adjunct professor. He came to the Roanoke area in
1979 when he began his current job.
In 1980 Strickland met Dr. Mark
Miller, a then-new member of the History faculty at RC through Dr. William
Hill. It wasn’t until 1992, however, that Dr. Miller asked Strickland to join
the RC faculty and teach Geography courses. “He said the semester would begin
in two weeks! I was excited about the opportunity to teach Geography again,” he
said.
Strickland
does enjoy his time at RC. He enjoys the faculty’s enthusiasm, the exposure to
the college experience, and the ties to academia that promotes his research in
Geography, but the students make it worthwhile. “Working with students helps me
better understand the concerns [and] issues young people face as they begin to
make the transition from a college environment to the work world.”
Although he
works for the History Department, he doesn’t hang out in the Grotto very often
because he’s busy helping to improve this region of Virginia
. Strickland is the Executive Director of the Roanoke Valley-Alleghany
Regional Commission (RVARC). The RVARC works with 10 counties and cities in
Virginia, from Franklin County to Alleghany County, to encourage cooperation on
various programs from transportation to environmental planning and economic
development. Strickland oversees projects like improving water supplies,
prioritizing highway improvements, and grant-writing to fund housing
rehabilitation, tourism promotion, and other programs.
The RVARC is also the Regional Data
Center for federal and state governments. Various state agencies use the
Commission to house data, some of it as important as Census information. “The
Commission’s website (www.rvarc.org) provides access to a wealth of information
about this region of Virginia as well as the Commonwealth as a whole,” he said.
_________
Welcome to the new Grotto Gazette
By Tara Hall
As the new Editor of The
Grotto Gazette, I feel it’s my duty to formally welcome all our new
prospective history majors, as well as welcome back the loyal members of our
history community. So, welcome! With a record number of new freshman,
I hope that means a record number of new majors. I would also like to extend an
invitation to all new students, be you freshman or just discovering our history
department, to visit the Grotto any time.
Now a little about myself. I think it’s fair to say that most
of you don’t know me; historically I’m not the most social of animals. For that
matter, many of the professors don’t know me very well.
I’d be willing to bet, however, that most of you have seen my
name in The Brackety-Ack
on various occasions. I’m just a humble Copy Editor by title but I have written
my share of articles in the past. I’m a local girl, I grew up just 30 minutes
away, and I’m a member of the Willingham Fan Club on Facebook.
I’m a proud member of the Class of ’07 and I am, obviously, a History major.
The Gazette will
follow a bit of a different path this year than it has in the past. I believe,
and those of you who have completed History Boot Camp (a.k.a. Methods) may
agree that, as students of history, we have a unique perspective on events of
the present and predictions for the future.
We often have an understanding of causation and the progression
of events that other people either miss or dismiss, and I think the Gazette is a perfect forum for us all to
discuss the historical reasons for current events, as well as the historical
significance they will hold for the future. Therefore I think it’s important
for us to discuss those events in a historical context.
But I can’t do this alone. I don’t have nearly the amount of
knowledge I would need to explain all of the events of the present and the
historical background. I hope the professors of the History Department can help
with information, but I want to make it clear that all History majors and
professors are more than welcome to help write it down!
We may even need the help of a Political Science majors or
Biology majors; History has to encompass everything to get a complete picture
of the why’s and how’s. This may be the Historical Society Newsletter, but what
would history be without the other disciplines? I also think it’s important for
we students to keep up with the exciting lives of our
professors and lecturers. Dr. Selby is working on a new book, we have a new
professor in the department; things like this are things we should know if we
ever hope to be like them. If your professor is doing something exciting,
please write it down or send it to myself or Dr. Miller. Don’t hog all the
interesting news!
That being said, we always want to hear about you guys – the majors!
Your lives are pretty exciting too, so if you or a friend is doing something
cool, let us know and we’ll put it in, or write it up yourself!
So, good luck with your first month of classes. We have a new,
exciting website (listed below) for the organization up with more frequently updated information
regarding meetings, news, and everything going on in our ever-growing Society.
Keep in mind that this is a forum for discussion so please share your insights
and input with us; it’s the only real way to learn!
_________
Important News from the Grotto
The
Historical Society now has official website at http://clubs.roanoke.edu/historic/index.htm.
Though it’s not listed on the school’s website yet and is still in the early
stages of its constructions, it is available for students. If you have news you
would like to add to the main page or any other suggestions, please email the
Webmaster.
The
date for the first meeting of the society should be announced within the next
week via email. Keep an eye out for an email from the Officers.
The
History Department is currently revising its curriculum and the major
requirements. If you have suggestions for changes, please send them to a
professor or Officer of the Society. Your opinions do matter!
The
mailing list for the History Department is currently being updated. If you are
not on it and would like to receive our emails, as well as the Gazette in your mailbox, contact one of the professors in the
Grotto to be added.