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MHC Team Participates in Inaugural Ethics Bowl
Wake Forest University received 1st place at the North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities (NCICU) inaugural Ethics Bowl competition. The theme for this year’s event was “Ethics in the Workplace”. High Point University took home the 2nd place trophy.
The competition was held February 10-11, 2012 at Meredith College in Raleigh and featured students from 14 independent colleges and universities in North Carolina. Teams of students from Campbell University, Gardner-Webb University, High Point University, Livingstone College, Mars Hill College, Meredith College, Methodist University, Montreat College, Mount Olive College, St. Andrews University, Salem College, Shaw University, Wake Forest University and Wingate University participated.
Mars Hill’s team was coordinated by Dr. Barry Sharpe, an associate professor of political science and director the college’s Ethics Across the Curriculum project. Team members were:
- Christina Dalamangas, a sophomore biology and religion major
- Meagan Green, a senior social work major
- Michael Pinkerton, a senior business administration major
- Reba West, a junior sociology major
- Austin Wynn, a senior business administration major
- Michelle Payne, a sophomore history and political science major.
The 14 institutions were randomly divided into two divisions and competed in four rounds of debate. Each round involved a hypothetical ethical case. The teams prepared a five minute response to the scenario and presented their claim. The debates were scored by a panel of trained judges that include business and community leaders from across the state. The teams were evaluated on the quality of their argument, research, presentation style and moral theory. Wake Forest University and High Point University earned the highest scores in each division and advanced to compete in the final round.
According to a participating campus coordinator, “My student team enjoyed themselves thoroughly: not just competing, but talking with other students, making connections with business leaders, mingling at the elegant dinner and just being included in such a cordial and important experience. In fact, as soon as my students and I got in the car after the final round, they commented that participating in the NCICU ethics bowl was ‘the most fun they’ve had so far in college.’”
The NCICU Ethics Bowl was designed to provide an academic experience that increased student awareness about applying ethics in leadership, decision-making, interpersonal relationships and other issues in today’s society. The purpose of the competition was to emphasize the importance of being able to apply ethical standards to situations students inevitably will face in their upcoming professional careers. The NCICU Ethics Bowl will be an annual event.
“The students competing in the Ethics Bowl were most impressive,” stated NCICU President, A. Hope Williams. “They demonstrated impeccable judgment and strong ethical standards in their decision-making. It was exciting to see the interaction between these future leaders and our state’s current corporate and civic leaders.”
Duke Energy and Wells Fargo were the presenting sponsors of the 2012 Ethics Bowl. Other sponsors of this event include The Council of Independent Colleges/ The Foundation for Independent Higher Education, AT&T Foundation, Dominion Foundation, RBC Bank, UPS Foundation, Burlington Industries Foundation, Affinity LLC, BCWH Architecture, Fidelity Investments, Martin Marietta Materials and Piedmont Natural Gas.
NCICU is comprised of North Carolina’s 36 private, non-profit liberal arts, comprehensive and research colleges and universities accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. NCICU represents independent higher education in the areas of state and federal public policy and on education issues with the other sectors of education in the state. It also provides research and information to and about private colleges and universities, conducts staff development opportunities and coordinates collaborative programs. For more information, visit www.ncicu.org.