Over the past month, Elizabethtown College has seen the departures of several long-time staff and faculty members.
Professor of sociology and anthropology Dr. Robert Wheelersburg announced his retirement from Etown. Chaplain and Director of Religious Life Dr. Rev. Tracy Sadd also departed from the College as of Jan. 15 but declined an interview. She worked for the College for 18 years.
In addition, the resignation of Director of Diversity, Inclusion and Title IX Coordinator Dr. Armenta Hinton was announced on Friday, Jan. 31, her last day on campus. Vice President for Student Life Dr. Celestino Limas is assuming “responsibility for diversity and inclusion efforts at the College” and Title IX responsibilities were shifted to Human Resources, according to the email announcement. Assistant professor of psychology Dr. Ian MacFarlane also left the College in January for another job.
Both Hinton and MacFarlane were unable to be reached at this time.
After completing graduate school, Wheelersburg began his work at the College in 1989, marking 31 years of service in February. Throughout his time at the College, Wheelersburg primarily taught courses in anthropology. Additionally, Wheelersburg served as a professor of international studies for five years.
He focused on area studies such as Native Americans and Scandinavian emergency management and intelligence operations.
“I taught first-year seminar probably a total of 25 times, which I really enjoyed,” Wheelersburg said in an email interview. He noted that the biggest reward for him was the students at the College.
“I was never bored here thanks to the challenges my students gave me,” he said.
Overall, Wheelersburg described his experience at the College as “an absolute delight.”
Wheelersburg also served as a leader among his colleagues. He originally served as Dean, but he later held several other leadership positions at the College. In describing his experience at the College, Wheelersburg said he chaired “every important council and committee on campus; some twice.”
Wheelersburg also immersed himself and students in enriching research. Throughout his time at the College, Wheelersburg took around 100 students overseas and coordinated events for American Indian Heritage Month with the Center for Global Understanding and Peacemaking. He also helped send 40 faculty members to approximately 20 different countries.
Reflecting on his work at the College, Wheelersburg emphasized the administration’s support of his study abroad endeavors and thanked his colleagues overall.
In regard to his most interesting experience research experience, Wheelersburg described a SCARP project with Etown student Pareesa Zaman ’17. As part of the project, he arranged for Zaman to work with the Icelandic Red Cross to aid Muslim asylum seekers throughout the summer. In addition to mentoring students in their research, Wheelersburg also conducted research on Arctic indigenous people. He specifically focused on reindeer herders originating from northern Europe and Russia.
“It’s hard to get old; like the Beatles sang, ‘Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I’m 64,’” Wheelersburg said on his departure. “But it’s my turn to be old so I must say goodbye.”
