_________________________________________________________________________________________________ Western Carolina University
Cullowhee, North Carolina
Vol. 24, No.12
May 2012
Getting Old? Let’s DO Something About It!
By Elizabeth Tait
Assistant Professor
School of Health Sciences
May is Older American’s month and while I could cram this issue full of statistics on the number of people who were 65
and older in 2010 (it’s 40+ Million – up from 35 million in 2000), I figure you can look all that up yourself
(www.census.gov).
Rather, I want to talk with you about aging well and what we can do about it. I think often about our efforts here at
Western to help students prepare for careers, while we do little to prepare them for living the long lives they are destined
to live in the days of modern medicine. And I see so many of my colleagues nearing retirement and wonder if they have
spent any time at all preparing for living into late life, which they are likely to do. So, I feel compelled to write this
column for my faculty family and hope you will digest it in the spirit it is intended.
As a gerontologist, and lover of words, I’ve been collecting quotes on age, aging and LIFE. Just what are these ‘golden
years’ anyway? Any idiot can grow old – that’s just a matter of surviving each day and waking up the next morning. I
believe the actual ‘gilding’ of age is attitude. It’s how you live every moment each day that makes all the difference. As
George Carlin said, “Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath
away.” And it’s being AWARE of those accumulated moments that can indeed make every day ‘golden’.
Which is not to say that the physical process of aging is going to be a picnic. As Bette Davis succinctly summed it up,
"Old age is no place for sissies." We don’t prepare for old age; we prepare for death. How many of us have Wills but not
Advanced Directives?
Don’t let me lose you on this. I’m going to use scary terms like “legal” and “death.” Don’t be scared – be prepared. But
first, let me scare you, just a little, so you pay attention later.
In 1912- 100 years ago--we died at home, after a short illness, surrounded by our family. It was, as my kids call it, the
‘fast food death’. Death was ‘fast, cheap and easy’ and ‘you had it your way.’ Times have changed.
Death in 2012 generally follows on average a 3-year period of morbidity where we may or may not lose our ability to
care for ourselves (take the time to look up: Activities of Daily Living – (ADL) and Instrumental ADLs). We Americans
have done a poor job preparing for this period. Scared yet? You should be. We generally don’t have the money set aside
for Long Term Care – and frankly, we don’t want to be in an ‘institution’ nor do we want a ‘stranger’ in our house to care
for us (and whom we think will likely rob us blind!). No, we want what our grandparent’s had; we want to die in our own
bed, after a short period of illness, being cared for by our family. However, our family has moved, our daughters have
jobs, and frankly, the level of care needed now is far more complicated than the comfort-care our long-ago relatives had.
But fear not! There are things YOU can do for yourself NOW that will potentially lengthen your good years and shrink
that period of morbidity at the end. You’ll still die (and wouldn’t it be creepy if we didn’t?), but hopefully it will be with
YOU in control of what and how you spend those last years, months, days.
First, complete your Advanced Directive. What is an Advanced Directive (AD)? The Advanced Directive is a legal
document for communicating YOUR future healthcare preferences in the event that you can no longer make your own
decisions. Google “advanced directives”, select your state of residence and start reading. They all have their ‘flavor.’
Pick one that suits you and modify it to make it your own. Most WNC hospitals have a copy of “5 Wishes” that you can
take home to fill out. Discuss the document, your feelings and your choices with those who love you. Once you have
come to terms about how you wish to die, and your family has been informed of your choices, and you’ve selected a
Health Care Advocate (Power of Attorney), get four or five copies signed and witnessed. Keep one yourself, your
advocate will also keep one, give one to your attorney and one to your doctor, the fifth one pack in your purse or your suit
case – yes other states will honor your AD – but you have to have it with you. We all write wills to take care of our stuff.
Isn’t a document to take care of our wishes even more important?
Now, let’s talk about what you can do to pare down end-of-life morbidity. When I give talks about “Aging Well,” I often
start my talk by holding my hands out a yard apart. “This is 100 years.” Then I mark the mid-way point, and say, “This is
age 50. Per clinical studies we start to accumulate chronic conditions at or around age 50. Would you like to know the
cure for dementia and how to push back that onset of morbidity to say, age 99 and 7/8ths?” Enthusiastic nods usually
follow. “It’s a recipe we all know,” I continue, “Eat a heart healthy diet, get daily exercise, maintain social relationships,
keep learning, and floss!” There’s always a wise-acre in the back who says, “I’ll wait for the pill.” To which I’ll reply,
“It’s your funeral.” This is generally followed by laughter and then sober silence.
Aging can be a delightful process and a lot of that depends on our attitude. I hope you’ll take a moment to do the
following: First, find and read “Attitude” by Charles Swindoll, then call a friend, take a walk, better yet, take a walk with
a friend, and be aware of wonder. Meanwhile, I’d like to close by sharing some of my favorite “oldie” quotes”
Earth's crammed with heaven,
And every common bush afire with God;
But only he who sees takes off his shoes
The rest sit round it and pluck blackberries.
--- Elizabeth Barrett Browning
All my life I've been taught how to die, but no one ever taught me how to grow old. --- Billy Graham, Newsweek, Aug. 14, 2006
Old age is 15 years older than I am. --- Oliver Wendell Holmes
Youth is wasted on the young. --- George Bernard Shaw
It’s not the years in our life that count; it’s the life in our years. --- A. Lincoln
Most poor suckers are standing in the river of life dying of thirst. --- Auntie Mame
Life is short – eat dessert first. ---Murray Tait
May you live all the days of your life. --- Jonathan Swift
_____________ Coulter Faculty Commons for Teaching and Learning
Responses to our April Special Edition Faculty Forum
Challenge to WCU: Stop the Interim Train
By Mary Jean Ronan Herzog
Professor and MAT Coordinator
From Bruce Henderson:
Unless there has been careful succession planning and leadership development to prepare for internal promotions, I
would argue that the university is better served by doing national searches for senior administrative positions. If an
interim is required while such searches are done, so be it. There is no reason why well-prepared internal candidates of
either gender cannot apply for open positions. Moreover, as far as I know, there is no university policy to preclude
interims for applying for their positions. Outside hires often bring important new ideas. Perhaps more important, they
bring new perspectives on what we have been doing. They can help break down the insularity and bad habits that creep
into any organization over time. Units can become self-protective, old biases can go unchallenged, change can be
avoided, and levels of performance frozen at mediocre levels. Our college was well-served by two internal hires for
almost 30 years. Bringing in a dean from outside provided us with a fresh perspective that was much needed and another
external hire may do so again. If an internal candidate becomes the consensus candidate after a full search, we will have
some confidence that we chose that candidate with an open mind.
Bruce B. Henderson
Department of Psychology
Western Carolina University
Cullowhee, NC 28723
828-227-3784
henderson@wcu.edu
_______________
News & Notes from the Faculty Senate
Erin McNelis, Chair
Wednesday, April 25 was the last meeting of the Faculty Senate for the 2011-2012 academic years, and perhaps fittingly,
several of its agenda items reflected a year’s worth of work or more.
The question of whether to include a statement regarding collegiality in the Faculty Handbook has been the focus of much
discussion and in the past year and a half in the Faculty Senate, in the Faculty Forum, in departments, in colleges, and in
the hallways. Earlier this month, the Collegial Review Council sent an email to all members of faculty asking that they
read the resolution the council was bringing to this Faculty Senate meeting that would approve inclusion of a statement on
collegiality in Section 4.04C in the Handbook. The Council asked faculty to make their senators fully aware of their
thoughts and positions on this resolution, both positive and negative. Multiple senators brought forward comments from
their colleagues and shared with the Senate summaries of the feedback they received. Thoughtful and articulate
statements were made both in favor of and in opposition to this resolution. It was clear that this is a weighty topic that
evoked a great deal of thought and emotion, and much time had been invested in this deliberation. After the question was
called and the period of discussion and debate ended, the full Faculty Senate (all senators were present at the meeting)
voted 14 (Yes) to 11 (No) with one abstention to pass this resolution. From this point, the resolution will be sent to the
Provost and the Chancellor, who will weigh in on this decision. Before this statement can be added to the Faculty
Handbook, it must receive the approval of the Chancellor, the Board of Trustees, and the Board of Governors.
Bruce Henderson, the Chair of the General Education Task Force, was at the Faculty Senate as the Senate considered a
resolution accepting the Final Report of the Task Force (see http://www.wcu.edu/30479.asp for the report and other
detailed information from the Task Force) and charging the chairs of the Liberal Studies Committee and University
Curriculum Committee to work together to formally get feedback regarding the proposed general education program from
each college via each of their curriculum committees. After consulting with the colleges, the LSC and UCC are to
reconvene jointly to review the proposed curriculum change and then bring a formal resolution to the Faculty Senate for
action, which includes recommendations for an implementation process if the program is approved. The Task Force’s
report marks the culmination of two and a half years of work and consultation with the faculty and colleges on the group’s
part (the Task Force was created in response to a resolution that passed the Faculty Senate in December 2009) and now it
is our responsibility as faculty to follow-up. We need to review the proposed general education program; hold discussions
in our departments and colleges about the program, its impact on our own curriculum, and its potential implementation
process and issues; and we need to share these thoughts, concerns, and suggestions with our curriculum committees this
fall semester so a recommendation can be brought to the Faculty Senate from our joint curriculum committees for action
before the end of Spring 2013. I particularly ask those faculty members who have seen the university transition general
education programs previously to step up and share your knowledge and expertise to help this be a positive and efficient
process, should the new program be adopted. We owe that effort to our students who will benefit from our desire to
provide a curriculum that empowers them to become more knowledgeable, involved, and intentional learners.
The Child Care Task Force, commissioned by the Faculty Senate in October 2010, also submitted an updated final report
to the Faculty Senate detailing its recommendations for improving WCU’s services and policies regarding child care.
These needs are also echoed in the 2020 Strategic Plan which lists developing new and improving existing family friendly
policies as a part of its goals in Strategic Direction 4.3. The Faculty Senate accepted and endorsed the Task Force’s report
and recommends that their suggestions and proposed family-friendly policy go to the Chancellor’s Leadership Council
(CLC) for further discussion and consideration. As the CLC is a body made up of student, staff, faculty, and
administrative leaders in the University for the purpose of discussing and vetting issues pertinent to all members of the
University. The Child Care Task Force recommendations, as a faculty and staff-driven initiative, are perfectly suited for
discussion and adoption by the CLC. The Faculty Senate, in its resolution, recommends that once the CLC endorses the
Task Force’s suggestions and policy, it then send these to the Executive Council for action.
The Faculty Senate meeting closed with the recognition of its members completing the last meeting of their terms. The
Senate wanted to give special recognition to Interim Provost Beth Lofquist (who had to leave the meeting earlier for yet
another meeting), in honor of her retirement and in recognition of her work with and support of the Faculty Senate over
the years. The face of the Faculty Senate could change quite a bit as fourteen of its members finished their term this year
and elections have been held or are currently being held for these positions. The Senate Planning Teams from this year
and next year anticipate meeting several times over the summer to help prepare for a new year in faculty governance, to
maintain and build the momentum from an increasingly active faculty and Faculty Senate, and to identify potential means
of improving the Faculty Senate’s efficiency and effectiveness.
Before closing, I would like to offer my sincere gratitude to all who have stepped up to let their voices be heard, to
participate, to be instigators of change, and to challenge the status-quo when it is was not the best for our faculty, our
students, our staff, or our institution. Although this is likely to cause contention, anxiety, or fear for everyone, myself
included, I must recognize that this is how we grow and hopefully improve our living and working conditions. It is also
my hope that, in the near future, these challenges and changes can be less of a struggle and more of a welcome and open
process built on earned trust and dedication to a greater good for our university. It has been an honor representing a
faculty that has a passion for teaching, a commitment to scholarship, and a dedication to our university, our students, and
this region.
Respectfully submitted,
Erin McNelis
Faculty Chair
______________
Editorial Notes
By Vera Holland Guise
Another academic year has come and gone and we graduate another class of Seniors and
prepare to enter another bunch of bright young faces in the Fall. Serving as Faculty
Fellow in the Coulter Faculty Commons in charge of editing and publishing the Faculty
Forum is so very rewarding. I want to extend a special thank-you to everyone who wrote
an article or commented on one. Also, a special thanks to Erin McNelis, who has
faithfully written the summaries of the Faculty Senate’s work—a year of stellar efforts
to address, from a faculty standpoint, some of the issues that face learning institutions in
general and WCU in particular. Inclusion of the Faculty Senate reports in The Faculty
Forum gives the Faculty Senate another venue to reach faculty, but it also enhances The
Faculty Forum’s mission to promote dialogue and exchange between and among faculty
about the issues. We make a great team together! Let us know what YOU want to write
and hear about this Fall! See you then.