Bell talks about ‘the Erskine experience’ at higher education roundtable
Erskine Vice President for Advancement and Alumni Relations Paul Bell ’84 joined representatives from Tri-County Technical College, Wofford College, and OneSpartanburg in a higher education roundtable June 25, presented by Integrated Media Publishing and moderated by David Dykes.
Bell alluded to several abilities and characteristics Erskine seeks to instill in students, such as “great communication skills, both verbal and written,” critical thinking, ethical and moral character, and relational acumen. Such preparation for career success, community responsibility, and family life is part of the “warp and woof of Erskine,” he said, and takes place both inside and outside the classroom. “We’re weaving those things into the culture of Erskine,” Bell said. He noted that Erskine students are encouraged to develop global awareness, so that they “realize there’s a larger world out there and they can have an impact on it.”
Describing the practical outworking of the Erskine culture, he spoke about an alumnus who enrolled in a graduate program at UCLA. The student told Bell that he could see a difference between his own thought processes and those of his graduate school peers.
“I said, ‘What do you mean by that?’” Bell recalled. “He said, ‘At Erskine, I had to take classes outside my major. I was forced to take classes in subjects I wasn’t necessarily interested in, but now I can have dialogues with people who have different backgrounds. …I was also taught business from a Christian ethical standpoint. …that makes a difference in the way I approach what I do.’”
Emphasizing the relational nature of Erskine, Bell said, “We call it the Erskine experience. And that’s what our students talk about when they graduate. Our alumni talk about the relationships and how they grew as a person when they were in school.”
Bell described his administrative position—combining advancement responsibilities with an alumni relations role—as the best job at Erskine. He enjoys connecting students with alumni whose knowledge or mentoring skills might benefit them. He also likes to connect students with donors who have made an impact on their lives.
Sometimes, he said, he is the one who gets to call a student and tell her that a gift a donor wants used “for a student who is struggling” is the “exact amount of money she needs” to return to Erskine the next semester. “That’s what makes me get up in the morning,” he said.
