Dr. John E. Wear, Jr.

Dr. John E. Wear, Jr., is the Founding Director of the Center for the Environment at Catawba College and Associate Professor of Biology and Environmental Science. During his tenure at Catawba, he assumed responsibility for establishing the college's Environmental Program, coordinating the faculty's creation of four different degrees.

He has committed his energies to environmental initiatives at the local, regional and state level. His leadership has been instrumental in launching a number of sustainability initiatives in the state relating to air and water quality and land conservation.

In the 1990's he served as the Founding Chairman of the N.C. Watershed Coalition, which, at that time, held the second largest statewide watershed conference in the nation. He was also a founding board member and past president of the LandTrust for Central North Carolina and the founding chairman of one of North Carolina's only countywide Sustainable Community Development Commissions. He was instrumental in the development and acquisition of the South Yadkin Wildlife Refuge and in the creation of one of the Southeast's first higher education "green" buildings, the Center for the Environment facility, for which he provided design oversight. He has served on a number of state and regional boards and commissions including the North Carolina Smart Growth Alliance; "Connect," a regional sustainability initiativeof the Centralina Council of Governments; and other regional planning initiatives. He serves on the national board of the "Simple Living with Wanda Urbanska" television series.

Dr. Wear recently contributed a chapter called "Creating the Educational Foundations for Change" to the book Less is More: Embracing Simplicity for a Healthy Planet, a Caring Economy and Lasting Happiness. He is a fellow of the American Leadership Forum and was named the 2003 N.C. Conservationist of the Year by the Governor's Conservation Achievement Awards Program; a 2002 "Guardian of the Earth" by The Charlotte Observer; and the 2001 Green Builder of the Year by the Carolina Recycling Association (the nation's largest recycling organization). In addition to these awards, the Salisbury Civitan Club recognized him in 2001 for work in his community with the Citizen of the Year Award.

He teaches college courses that focus on environmental concepts, issues and the creation of sustainable solutions. He also lectures broadly on a variety of environmental topics, including shifting communities toward more ecological thinking and fostering leadership to advance sustainable solutions.

Dr. Wear holds a Bachelor of Science degree from North Carolina State University; a Master of Science degree from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte; and a Ph.D. from Wake Forest University.

email: jwear@catawba.edu

Halley Brantley

Halley Brantley joined the staff as the Stanback Intern in the Summer of 2010 and is continuing to work with the center as web content manager. Her responsibilities include updating and maintaining the websites for the Center for the Environment and the Campaign for Clean Air. She has a BS in Chemistry from Davidson College and is working on her Masters of Environmental Management at Duke University.

Email: halleybrantley@gmail.com

Kathy Chaffin

Kathy Chaffin, a veteran journalist, is a contributing writer in the Center’s communication efforts. A graduate of Appalachian State University with a bachelor of arts degrees in English and political science, Chaffin has served as a reporter for The Salisbury Post and The Tribune in Elkin, N.C., and as editor or news editor of the North Carolina newspapers The Enterprise in Boonville and the Davie County Enterprise-Record in Mocksville. She has won more than 30 press awards and is currently working on a number of inspirational writing projects.

Email:  kcwriter99@yahoo.com

Lee Anne Corriher

Lee Anne Corriher joined the Center staff in 2011 as the administrative assistant.  She has served as an office manager and legal assistant for Brooke and Brooke Attorneys in China Grove, N.C.; marketing assistant and customer service representative for Metals USA/Southern Alloy in Salisbury; and blood services director for the American Red Cross in Salisbury.  Ms. Corriher holds a bachelor of science degree in communication from Appalachian State University.

Email:  lacorrih@catawba.edu

Cathy Holladay

Cathy Holladay serves as the Center's event coordinator as well as coordinator of the Center's faith-based programs. Additional duties include serving as the chief photographer, helping to plan the Center's activities, assisting with the creation of newsletters and other printed materials and coordinating many volunteer activities.

A graduate of Mary Baldwin College, Ms. Holladay, has been associated with the Center for the Environment since 2007, initially working as a volunteer.

Email: chollada@catawba.edu

Dorothy “Dolly” Farrell

Dolly Farrell serves as the Center’s development coordinator. The former director of development at the Reich College of Education and Appalachian ACCESS Program at Appalachian State University, she has also served as executive director of the Watauga County Habitat for Humanity in Boone, N.C., assistant annual fund director for Widener University in Chester, Pa., and resources team writer and editor as well as workshop trainer for RENEW International in Plainfield, N.J. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Loyola College of Maryland and a master of public administration degree from Appalachian State University.

Email:  dmfarrel@catawba.edu

Amanda Lanier

Amanda Lanier, a 2007 graduate of Catawba College's Environmental Science Program, is the coordinator of programming and operations. Her areas of responsibility include further development of the Friends of the Center and work with the various educational and outreach programs the Center offers. She worked with the Center throughout her college years, conducting research and working with Catawba administrators on energy- saving projects through the Campus Greening Initiative.

Email: allanier@catawba.edu

Juanita Teschner

Juanita Teschner serves as director of communications for the Center for the Environment. She writes and disseminates information to the media on the various environmental initiatives of the Center. She also serves as the editor and primary writer of the Center's newsletters, websites and brochures. A graduate of Missouri State University, Ms. Teschner has worked for Catawba since 1985 and exclusively for the Center since 2001.

Email: juanita.teschner@gmail.com

Craig Midgett

Craig Midgett, a Catawba Energy Corps fellow, is working on the campus-wide American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment and researching various sustainability- and energy-related initiatives on campus. A recent graduate from UNC-Charlotte with a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering, he is a former researcher with the Environmental Assistance Office at UNC-Charlotte. 

Email:  cmidgett@catawba.edu

Michael Smith

Michael Smith, a Catawba Energy Corps fellow, is a LEED-accredited professional as well as a certified building analyst through the Building Performance Institute. A graduate of UNC-Charlotte with a bachelor’s degree in architecture and associate’s degree in sustainability technologies, he worked as an energy efficiency and weatherization coordinator with Habitat for Humanity/Central Piedmont Community College and as a project architect before joining the Center. Smith works on energy-related aspects of campus buildings, including LEED certification.

Email:  mosmith@catawba.edu

Rebecca Turner

Rebecca Turner is an Energy Corps Fellow at the Center for the Environment who is working to help Catawba College become carbon neutral.  She earned bachelor of science and master’s degrees in civil and environmental engineering from UNC Charlotte.  At UNC Charlotte she completed research on reducing the amount of construction and demolition waste that ends up in the landfill, particularly gypsum drywall.  As an undergraduate she led the Society of Women Engineers as their president for two years and completed an undergraduate research project to reduce the amount of methane gas that seeps out of closed landfills. 

David Idol

David Idol, a 2009 graduate of Catawba College with a bachelor of science degree in biology, is an intern in the Catawba Energy Corps program. He is working on energy-related projects throughout the campus. Idol also serves as an adjunct biology lab instructor at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College and is an owner/operator at his family’s farm, Legacy Farms of Kernersville. He has served as an organics lab technician with Research & Analytical Laboratories.

Email:  idold8@gmail.com

June McDowell

June McDowell, an intern with the Campaign for Clean Air, is a 2010 Catawba College graduate with a bachelor of science degree in environmental science.  A former intern for Horizons Unlimited, she served as secretary-treasurer for Beta Beta Beta National Biological Honor Society during her undergraduate years.

Email:  mcdowelljune@yahoo.com

Sarah Moore

Sarah Moore, a senior environmental education major at Catawba College, is an intern with the Center. She has served as a work-study student at the Center since 2008, focusing in 2010 and 2011 on the National Environmental Summit for High School Students.   She is a founding member of the Green Education Outreach team, students who serve as representatives of the Center.  Ms. Moore plans to join the Peace Corps after graduation, followed by graduate school.

Email:  samoore@catawba.edu