For 46 years, he’s spent some of his best memories through opportunities and activities on campus. “I got married in 1965, a year after coming out here,” he said. He spent his honeymoon chaperoning a summer trip through ETSU with a group of students studying at Monterey Institute of Technology for school credit. The couple was able to visit Mexico City during the trip.
Charles “Chiggy” Gunter is an associate professor in the Geoscience Department and is known today as the faculty member who has seen the most change on campus.
He’s been employed at ETSU since 1964. “I didn’t know that Gunter is the longest serving faculty member at ETSU, that is interesting to know,” said Heather Goffe, who is in Gunter’s cultural geography class.
Gunter is from Shelbyville, Tenn., and went to the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro. He started out studying history but obtained his bachelor’s degree in geography. “I still have a love of history though,” Gunter said.
Although everyone in the Department of Geosciences refers to Gunter as Chig he says his actual nickname is a little different.
“My nickname is actually Chiggy,” Gunter said. “Most of my friends through high school called me this. My dad was called Chig and it was because of getting into chiggers. Some nieces and nephews when I was young would call me Little Chig and my dad Big Chig.”
Gunter has witnessed some of campus’ historical moments such as former U.S. President Richard Nixon’s speech on the steps of Burgin Dossett Hall.
“I’ve got a picture at home,” Gunter said. “It was a rainy day, I remember, and everybody had umbrellas and raincoats on. There was just a mass of humanity there.
Gunter said the biggest change on campus has been enrollment growth. When he started teaching at ETSU, enrollment was peaking at 7,000 compared to today’s more than 15,000 students. “I can’t remember exactly how many students we had back then,” he said. “They were predicting we’d get bigger and we didn’t for the longest time but it’s much bigger now.”
He has also watched the construction of new buildings and the layout of campus change. Gunter remembers walking on Maple Street up to the administration building and going around campus on a “new” roadway built for easier transit around campus. “There was the dome, the new library and various things like that going up,” he said.
Attire and atmosphere have changed as well, Gunter said. “People [students, faculty and staff] were dressed up more. We have a more casual style now.”
Technological advancements too, have changed Gunter’s teaching style.
“He is really involved in online education,” said Ingrid Luffman, lecturer and colleague since 1997. There are advantages and disadvantages of online teaching, Gunter said.
“I wish I could see who the people are,” Gunter said. “Rarely do I have someone come in where I get to meet the person. At the same time, I have one student who is expecting a child. So, it’s especially helpful for those who are or need to be away from campus.”
Students can expect Gunter to go out of his way to help them get in classes. He is dedicated to helping students get where they need to be, Luffman said. “He will often offer extra sections for students who need particular classes,” she said. “He’ll offer them in addition to his regular course load. It helps people graduate.”
Not only is Gunter dedicated to his students, his colleagues speak highly of his work ethic. “Chig, he works all hours,” Luffman said. “I come in on the weekends and he’s usually here.”
Even students notice his dedication to his job. “It is an amazing achievement on his part and shows great commitment to the college,” Goffe said.
Having been here for nearly half the existence of the college, Gunter is close to the date he has set for leaving the university.
“I plan to teach, perhaps, until I have been here for 50 years,” he said. “But, plans could change.”
Gunter has a mind full of stories about ETSU and the changes it’s undergone. “It feels like a different environment altogether,” he said.
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