By Amanda Bradshaw Sharpe

University Relations

MURFREESBORO – Chowan University was one of 22 colleges that participated in the North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities Ethics Bowl, debating ethics in law, on February 17-18.

The 2017 Chowan Ethics Bowl team made history as the first team from the university to advance to the semifinal rounds.

Chowan was represented by five students:

Kyle Davison- Junior (Sports Management)

Melissa Hernandez- Senior (History)

Courtney O’Keefe- Sophomore (Criminal Justice)

Kiala Smith- Senior (Business Administration)

Sean Timmons- Sophomore (Religion)

They were accompanied by their campus coordinators Dr. Keith Reich, Chair of the Religion Department, and Dr. J. Brabban, Lee Oliver Fagan Distinguished Professor of the Bible.

The students made an exhilarating and undefeated run-up to the semi-finals in the first four rounds, taking out Wake Forest University in round one and Gardner-Webb University in round two. Pfeiffer University and Wingate University were defeated in subsequent rounds.  This is the first time in the history of the competition that the Chowan University Ethics Bowl team has advanced to the semifinals.  All four rounds were unanimous decisions for Chowan by the judges.

Dr. Keith Reich says, “This really is a special group of students. They came together and played with great teamwork, better than Dr. Brabban or I could have expected. I couldn’t be more proud of them.”

A few of the topics debated include, professional responsibilities, legal liability, humane treatment, individual rights vs. community standards, and corporate ethics in international context. Teams participated in three rounds of debate Friday, and one round Saturday, followed by the semifinal and final rounds.

For more information about Chowan University, visit www.chowan.edu or call 1-888-4-CHOWAN.