FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, November 21, 2005

For More Information Contact:
Karen Tatum (910) 642-7141 EX 259- Southeastern Community College, Public Information Officer

SOUTHEASTERN TEACHER NAMED ONE OF TOP 5 COMMUNITY COLLEGES INSTRUCTORS IN NORTH CAROLINA SYSTEM for SECOND TIME

 

RALEIGH -- Van Jenerette, who teaches Political Science and Sociology at Southeastern Community College in Whiteville has been recognized for the second time in less than ten years as one of North Carolina's top five college instructors. The North Carolina Community College System named Jenerette among the finalists for the R. J. Reynolds Excellence in Teaching Award when he was honored at the 2005 State Board of Community Colleges Day of Recognition program in Raleigh on Friday.

Jenerette was presented with the award by H. Martin Lancaster, President of the North Carolina Community College System.

Dr. Kathy Matlock, President of Southeastern Community College and SCC Arts and Sciences Dean Robert Carter also accepted a plaque recognizing Jenerette's award for the college. Jenerette's wife, Katherine was also present for the ceremony.

More than 300 members of the community college system attended Friday's award luncheon including former Governor Bob Scott, former U.S. Senator Jim Broyhill, and N.C. State Senator R.C. Soles along with several members of the North Carolina General Assembly.

In the narrative submitted by SCC for the award, Jenerette was described as a teacher who, "consistently receives the highest ratings from his peers and students alikeJenerette's contributions to our college and community go far beyond the classroom; and he exemplifies the highest standards of instruction, professionalism and dedication to our students, education and ultimately the future of our region. He has vision and understands fully the vital role and mission of our institution."

The State Board of the NC Community College System established the "Excellence In Teaching" program in 1985 and is endowed by R. J. Reynolds. The program is designed to provide statewide recognition of teachers who exemplify the highest quality and standards throughout the NC Community College System. The objective of the award is to identify and individually recognize North Carolina Community College System faculty who have consistently demonstrated excellence in teaching their students, college and communities.

Jenerette has instructed at SCC since 1992 after leaving a 23-year career with the U.S. Army after the end of Operation Desert Storm. He was named both the 1996 and 2004 Instructor of the Year for the SCC when he received the T. Elbert Clemmons Outstanding Faculty Award and received a NISOD Teaching Excellence Award from The University of Texas at Austin in 1998 and in 2005. He Jenerette also received the North Carolina Community College System Excellence in Teaching Award in 1997.

Jenerette resides in North Myrtle Beach with his wife Katherine, who is an adjunct History instructor at Southeastern, and their four children. He received his MS from University of Kansas and his BS from Troy State University, Alabama, where he graduated with honors, 'Summa cum Laude' in 1981. Jenerette he has done post graduate doctoral studies at the University of South Carolina as a PhD candidate.

Jenerette has a long record of Community and Public service. He is a Policy advisor to U.S. Rep. Henry Brown, 1st Congressional District, South Carolina as a member of the Veterans and Military Advisory Committee and served as a Congressional Staff Assistant to U.S. Rep. Arthur Ravenel, Jr., 1st Congressional District. Jenerette was a candidate for the 1st District Congressional seat in the 2000 election. Jenerette was a member of SCC's delegation in the 1998 North Carolina-South Carolina Border Planning Conference which addressed the major regional issues for Horry, Brunswick, and Columbus Counties in the areas of education, economic development, environment, health care and technology.

"I feel very privileged to have the opportunity to teach at Southeastern Community College both from a professional and a personal perspective," Jenerette said. "My great-great grandfather was born in Columbus County to a father who served with the American Forces at Fort Moultrie during the Revolutionary War. and who raised his 26-children near where the college stands today."

Jenerette had a long and distinguished military career. Enlisting as a private in 1967, he served a combat tour as a Recon Scout with an Infantry Battalion on the Korean DMZ during the USS Pueblo Crisis. He rose through the enlisted ranks and received a meritorious promotion to Sergeant and later as a Staff Sergeant he saw duty as a Drill Instructor at Fort Knox. He received a commission as an Infantry Lieutenant after attending OCS in 1972 at Ft. Benning Georgia. He is also a graduate of the US Army Command & General Staff College and has both education and experience in counterguerilla and counterterrorism tactical operations. Van has had a tour of duty with the United Nations Command and has served with allied officers from the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and the United Kingdom. He was honored by the Army for his service and was inducted into the U.S. Army Infantry OCS Hall of Fame at Ft. Benning, GA in 2002.

Jenerette is a member of Southeastern Community College Speakers Bureau has been invited to speak in many forums in both the local community and nationally. Most recently he has been a featured speaker on U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East and the Islamic Framework of International Conflict and Terrorism on three occasions since the 9/11attacks. Van spoke in Washington, D.C. on "American Foreign Policy and Worldwide Force Deployment in Asia on the Korean DMZ, " in June 2001. He was a keynote speaker at the National Racial Deliberation Day Conference, Rider University, NJ, in 1997. Van also has been an invited panelist at a number of public forums on the Iraq War at Coastal Carolina University. He was an invited speaker at the Halifax Community College Diversity Forum 2000 and he was the keynote speaker at the South Carolina State Capitol in Columbia on the Bill of Rights Day commemoration in December 2000 and at the FREE REPUBLIC Annual Conference 2001 at Seabrook Island S.C. on "The US Constitution and the Rule of Law." and his treatise on "Bibles & Gunpowder: The foundations of the American Revolution."

Jenerette is a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Post 10804 and an active member of the American Mensa Society; he was a charter member of the North Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce and served as a member of the North Myrtle Beach City Planning Commission. Jenerette personally established a $100,000 Educational Scholarship Endowment Fund at the Lake Wacamaw Boys and Girls Home on behalf of his late aunt, Beatrice Jenerette Simpson who lived in Conway, South Carolina.

Jenerette says that he enjoys all of the classes he has taught, but teaching Political Science was probably his favorite because of his life-long family involvement in State, Local and Federal politics.

"Even my wife, Katherine has helped out as a guest lecturer for my college classes," Jenerette said. "Her background as a U.S. Congressional aide to Rep. Henry Brown helped my students understand more than any text book could about constituent services and the day-to-day activities of a Congressman and his staff."

He also said that her recent 2004 Senate bid to become the only female Republican State Senator in South Carolina was another plus for his government students, especially since she had such a strong showing by winning the most votes in Horry County and every precinct in her hometown of North Myrtle Beach.

"Katherine told the students the 'inside story' of running an uphill campaign against a powerful incumbent Senator who held elected office in Horry County since 1962," he continued. "Katherine had a near win despite evidence and allegations of voter fraud on the part of her opponents supporters and a last minute newspaper 'mistake' on the official voters guide that listed her as a Democrat and her Democrat opponent as the Republican candidate; which resulted in many confused voters crossing over and casting their ballots for who they believed was the 'real' Republican. My students got a inside look at 'politics-as-usual' and the American election process, thanks to her experiences."

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