Meet the New Chapter Leadership

Joey Morganthall – Charlotte Area President

Grad Year: 2007

School & Major: Cameron School of Business, Business Administration & College of Arts and Sciences, Communications Studies

Current Employment: Broker, MPV Properties

Activities as a student: Vice President – Delta Tau Delta Fraternity, 4 Years- Club Soccer Team

What motivated you to get involved with the Alumni Association?

I wanted to give back to UNCW because of the quality experience I had at UNCW.  I want to ensure that my education at UNCW is a long term investment, and that Alumni continue to give back and help raise the standards of the University. 

Juliana Nesbit – Watson College of Education President

Grad Year: 2006

School & Major: Watson College of Education, Social Studies Certification,  B. A. in History, 

Current Employment: Social Studies Teacher at Topsail High School

Activities as a student: NC Teaching Fellow

What motivated you to get involved with the Alumni Association? I enjoy being able to give back to the university and the Watson College. I like the networking opportunities, building connections between the university and community, and having an inside look at how certain things at the university are run.

Will Owens – Triangle Area President

Grad Year: 1998

School & Major: College of Arts & Sciences, Sociology and Criminology  

Current Employment: Attorney/Partner, Owens & Miller, PLLC

What motivated you to get involved with the Alumni Association?

I gained a lot from my experience at UNCW, and want to give back to the extent I am capable from 120 miles west of Wilmington.  Through the Alumni Association, I've been able to both reconnect with former classmates, and also meet other alumni from other classes and even other generations.  We've formed good friendships and even a few business relationships.  By volunteering with the alumni association, I'm hopeful of helping other Seahawks foster the same positive experience. 

Jamie Kury Thompson – Communications Studies President

Grad Year: 2003

School & Major: College of Arts & Sciences, Communication Studies and French

Current Employment: Development Director, Coastal Horizons Center

Activities as a student: Alpha Phi, French Club, Study Abroad in Marseille and Paris

What motivated you to get involved with the Alumni Association?

I have had the pleasure of working with interns from the Communications Studies department over the last 8 years. It has been an incredible experience and it made me realize that I really enjoy staying involved with UNCW. It is so wonderful to see how much the department has grown since I was an undergrad and I want to find ways to be of service to a university that did so much for me as a student and now as a professional.   

Lifelong Marine Biology Dreams Realized

Madeline Marens ’12 knew at the age of 5 that she wanted to be a marine biologist – a dream she never outgrew. She majored in marine biology and achieved her goal, landing a job as an aquarist at the N.C. Aquarium at Fort Fisher.

“I really enjoy the aquarium setting and feel like I can be engaged in shark conservation initiatives there,” she said. “The aquarium serves as an instrumental public agency to inspire and commit to the conservation of the environment. I enjoy the hands-on aspect of it.”

Marens credits several UNCW professors – Fred Scharf, Tom Lankford, Ann Pabst and Marcel Van Tuinen – for her passion for conservation.

“The education I received as an undergrad and now as a graduate student has helped me achieve the career I dreamed of as a child,” she said.

Find out more about Madeline at We Are UNCW.