An organization needs all kinds of leaders to be successful and NCCEI has found its quiet leader, one who always leads by example, in Dr. Carol Marion, the 2012 recipient of the Barbara Taylor Distinguished Service Award. Albert Schweitzer, theologian, philosopher, and physician once said, “Example is not the main thing in influencing others, it is the only thing.” This philosophy seems to be the secret to Carol’s success.

In 2009, NCCEI served as the host of the annual Two-Year College English Association Southeastern Conference and took on the challenge of writing a grant that would allow all NC community college English instructors to attend the conference free of charge. NCCEI had never embarked on such an ambitious task. The grant was due about three weeks into Fall semester, you know, when nothing else is going on in the life of a community college teacher. In the final hectic weeks before the grant was due, Carol’s daily 6:00 morning routine include proofing pages and pages of copy, emailing the corrected copy back, only to repeat the process again the following morning as new pages awaited her attention to detail. Her diligence paid off as NCCEI was awarded a $10,000 grant that allowed all NC community college instructors to attend the regional TYCA conference without having to pay a registration fee.

Carol also served as NCCEI’s online newsletter editor from 2008 – 2010. In 2011, Carol became secretary of NCCEI. When committees are formed to plan conferences, Carol always replies, “Put me wherever you need me.” In 2009, she worked on the hospitality committee for TYCA-SE; in 2011 she served on the planning committee for the central region CEI one-day conference. And in 2012 she was a member of the program committee. At every conference, Carol is one of those people who is the first to arrive and the last to leave. Stocking hospitality rooms, setting up registration, stuffing goodie bags, collating materials for participant folders are all tedious, but necessary jobs in organizing a conference. Wherever there is work to be done, Carol is always there. NCCEI Board members have come to rely on Carol’s voice of reason during meetings. She is a thoughtful speaker, one who has the courage of bringing up different points of view that challenge the majority opinion.

For all these reasons and more, Dr. Carol Marion from Guilford Technical College is this year’s Distinguished Service Award winner. Please join us in congratulating on her on her well deserved honor. We couldn’t think of a more deserving person that serves NC CEI in the manner of the award’s namesake – Dr. Barbara Taylor – the quintessential leader by example.