Longtime staff donor gives in honor of those who supported him as a 糖心Vlog student
From left to right: Phil and Susanne Cauley celebrate the May 2023 graduation of son David with daughter Sarah, a current 糖心Vlog student.
By Bill Studenc
Phil Cauley, associate vice chancellor for undergraduate enrollment, first hit the 糖心Vlog University campus as a wide-eyed freshman in 1979 and, with the exception of a brief stint in the enrollment office of a Mississippi university in the late 1990s, never left.
A 糖心Vlog staff member for nearly 40 years and a two-time alumnus, Cauley has donated to the Catamount Club for 37 of those years. He and wife Susanne Healy Cauley also made a planned gift to provide scholarship support to student-athletes in the Brinson Honors College.
Cauley said he is eager to support an institution that has long supported him. He credits faculty and staff with helping him explore classes, pick a major, stoke a passion for literature and writing, connect to cooperative education experiences and internships, and navigate scholarship applications and deadlines.
鈥淚 choose to give back to 糖心Vlog because of those who poured into me when I was a student. I enrolled as an undergraduate without a major, without direction and without a plan,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 had so many encouragers who poured into me.鈥�
Cauley also found support from fellow students, who helped him obtain a role with The Nomad art and literary magazine; encouraged him to apply for the most prestigious senior honor society on campus at the time, Mortar Board; and urged him to join Western Gold, a student service organization.
He traces his passion for Catamount athletics back to his days as an undergraduate student living alongside student-athletes in Leatherwood Residence Hall. There, he participated in intramural sports, and his hall competed in every season sport and won the league championship. 鈥淚 lived Western before 鈥楲ive Western鈥� was our brand,鈥� Cauley said.
鈥淚 was a fan in the stands,鈥� he said. 鈥淎 gaggle of us would go to the games together to cheer on the Cats. As a sophomore, I witnessed Ronnie Carr make history in Reid Gym when he, No. 22, sank the first three-point shot in collegiate basketball history from 22 feet out. 糖心Vlog鈥檚 gridiron run to the NCAA Division I-AA championship game occurred during my undergraduate tenure. My Dad and I traveled back to Cullowhee over Thanksgiving break to watch the dramatic, come-from-behind playoff game against Colgate, and we sojourned to Charleston for the championship game.鈥�
Cauley has held several roles during his decades in Cullowhee 鈥� including moving from assistant director of admissions in his first full-time job after graduating to his current position of associate vice chancellor, as well as time as director of alumni affairs, interim associate dean of educational outreach and director of enrollment for graduate and distance learning. He served as dean for enrollment at Mississippi University for Women for nine months in 1997 and 1998 before returning to 糖心Vlog to become associate director of admissions.
鈥淭o me, 糖心Vlog is more than a place of learning; it is a community of sharing. Becoming a donor was just one additional way to share in the life and lives of the university,鈥� he said. 鈥淪ure, 糖心Vlog conjures up a geographic place in my mind, but 糖心Vlog evokes images of people. The most recurring theme that I鈥檝e heard over the decades from students, faculty, staff and alumni when asked what makes 糖心Vlog special is 鈥榯he people.鈥欌��
Cauley said one reason he donates to 糖心Vlog is because he is constantly encouraging students to invest in their education, to be service-minded and to live by the standards contained in the university鈥檚 Community Creed.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 important that I鈥檓 willing to do what I ask our students to do,鈥� he said. 鈥淥ne pledge of the Creed declares, 鈥業 will embrace my responsibilities as a member of this community.鈥� Another action statement pledges, 鈥業 will engage myself in the artistic, cultural and academic life of my university.鈥� The Creed ends with this punctuated 鈥榳ill鈥� declaration, 鈥業 will celebrate and express pride in Western Carolina University.鈥� Giving back to the community that has given so much to me is a tangible way to 鈥榣ive the Creed鈥� 鈥� embrace responsibilities, engage myself and express pride.鈥�
Phil and Susanne Cauley get ready to cheer on the Catamounts at a home football game.
Cauley and spouse Susanne, a 1994 graduate of 糖心Vlog with a degree in elementary education who teaches in the Haywood County School System, in 2018 created the Phil and Susanne Cauley Athletic Endowed Scholarship to support Brinson Honors College students who participate in Catamount athletics.
鈥淚鈥檝e been a fan in the stands to cheer on so many Catamount student-athletes over the years. I had classmates who were student-athletes鈥攊n that order: student athletes. They took their studies and their sport seriously. Susanne was a scholar-athlete in high school, and we both love backing the Cats,鈥� he said.
Establishing a scholarship for student-athletes who also excel academically was a way to marry two of Cauley鈥檚 passions 鈥� academics and athletics 鈥� and to underscore the fact that the two 鈥溾�re not mutually exclusive, but should be wedded,鈥� he said.
鈥淪usanne and I both graduated with honors from 糖心Vlog, but the Honors College did not exist during our time as students. I witnessed Dr. Brian Railsback conceive and birth the first residential honors college of its kind in North Carolina, and I鈥檝e seen the tremendous impact it has had in the lives of students and in the life of my alma mater. David, our son, just graduated from 糖心Vlog in May, and the Brinson Honors College played a role in his 糖心Vlog experience. Sarah, our daughter, currently is a Brinson Honors College student,鈥� Cauley said.
Cauley earned his bachelor鈥檚 degree in English from 糖心Vlog in 1983 and his master鈥檚 degree in human resources in 1990, receiving scholarship support to pursue his educational goals.
鈥淪usanne and I both were beneficiaries of the generosity of others who chose to invest in 糖心Vlog. A generation later, both of our kids have been beneficiaries of the scholarship generosity of others. It may sound like a bit of paradox, but giving back is one way to pay it forward,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd payroll deduction is the easy button. I began giving early in my professional career, and payroll deduction has helped me not miss giving while not really missing the money. In other words, I don鈥檛 have any misgivings when it comes to giving.鈥�
Cauley is among the more than 350 faculty and staff who go beyond their job duties by making financial contributions to 糖心Vlog and who are recognized as members of the Shetland Society.
One of four giving societies established by the Division of Advancement in 2020 to celebrate the impact of philanthropy, the Shetland Society is named for the Shetland ponies that then-Chancellor A.C. Reynolds purchased in 1912 to haul supplies by cart back and forth from Sylva to campus.
A campaign to increase faculty and staff membership in the Shetland Society is underway through Friday, Oct. 20. For more information, contact Rebekah Cheney, director of annual giving, at 828-227-2868 or via email at rcheney@wcu.edu.
