A native of Marthaville, Louisiana, Ronald James Slay earned an undergraduate degree at the University of Mississippi in 1912. For the next decade, he served as head of the Department of Science at the Mississippi Normal College in Hattiesburg. In 1924, Slay finished his master’s degree at Teachers College, Columbia University. The year before, in 1923, Slay joined ECTC as director of instruction in science. In 1928, following further graduate study at Johns Hopkins University and the University of Chicago, Slay completed a Ph.D. in science at Teachers College, Columbia University, making him the first faculty at ECTC to hold a doctorate in the subject. His dissertation was entitled, The Development of the Teaching of Agriculture in Mississippi. Slay continued as the director of the science curriculum at ECTC until 1945 when he was appointed dean of the college. In addition to East Carolina, Slay also taught, during the summers, at UNC Chapel Hill and Duke. Following his passing in 1948, the ECTC Board of Trustees voted to name the new men’s dormitory, still under construction at the time, in his honor.
Active on campus, Slay served as a faculty advisor to the Tecoan and the Lanier Society. He also worked with science students to found Phi Epsilon, a student club for the promotion of science on campus and in the community. Eager to help students, in 1925, Slay participated, along with a number of other ECTC faculty in a “Womanless Wedding” fund raiser for the Tecoan, appearing, along with R. C. Deal, as a flower girl, reportedly, in “a dainty white dress with much lace and yellow accessories, including hair ribbons and gold slippers.” In recognition of his multifaceted contributions to student life, the 1929 Tecoan was dedicated to him.
Also an active scholar, Slay was a fellow in the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a member of the National Council on Elementary Science, and a member of the National Association for Research in Science Teaching.
In 1944, following the resignation of President Leon Meadows and the assumption of his duties by Dr. Howard J. McGinnis, formerly the registrar, Slay assumed McGinnis’ old post as registrar. In 1945, Slay was appointed dean of the college. However, in the summer of 1947, Slay took a position as chair of the Physics Department at Wagner Memorial Lutheran College, Staten Island, New York. Just a year later, on September 18, 1948, Slay, then 58, fell victim to a heart attack.
At ECTC, the newly hired Dr. Leo W. Jenkins followed Slay, in 1947, as dean of the college, a position he held under the new president of the school, Dr. John Messick. The same year, the North Carolina legislature authorized expenditure of $488,388 for the construction of a men’s dormitory at ECTC. The new dorm, part of the post-WWII building boom at ECTC, was meant to accommodate the growing number of men on campus. Even before construction was complete, the ECTC Student Legislature approved a resolution asking the Board of Trustees to name the new building in honor of Slay, “a leading figure in the growth and development of the college” from 1923-1947. Recognizing Slay’s contributions to the campus, the Board endorsed the student resolution and named the new dormitory in honor of Slay, the leading figure in science education during East Carolina’s growth as a teachers college.
Sources
- “Board Of Trustees Names Two Buildings Saturday: New Men’s Dormitory To Be Slay Hall.” Teco Echo. Vol. 24, No. 9. January 28, 1949. P. 1. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/38171
- Cogdell, Lessie. “The Womanless Wedding.” Tecoan. P. 259. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/15331.248
- Corey, Johnny. “Likeable Dean Ronald J. Slay Joined ECTC Faculty In 1923.” Teco Echo. May 16, 1947. Vol. 22, No. 15. P. 1. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/38138
- “Dedication.” Tecoan. Pp. 6-7. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/15334.34
- “Faculty Students Mourn Death Of Former Dean Ronald Slay.” Teco Echo. Vol. 24, No. 2. September 24, 1948. P. 1. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/38164
- Jones, Wilbur. “Buildings Tell Long Story of East Carolina.” Teco Echo. Vol. 25, No. 13. January 13, 1950. P. 1. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/38194
- “Many Alumnae Return For Founders Day Celebration.” Teco Echo. Vol. 7, no. 11. March 5, 1932. Pp. 1, 6. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/1234 and https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/1234
- “New Dorm.” Teco Echo. Vol. 26, No. 1. P. 3. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/38212
- “Ronald James Slay.” Science Education. Vol. 32, no. 5. December 1948. P. 367. https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.3730320504
- “The Womanless Wedding.” Teco Echo. January 16, 1926. Vol. 1, no. 2. P. 5. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/37804
- West, Bernard. “Recent Building Program Gives Campus ‘New Look.'” Teco Echo. Vol. 25, Summer No. 2. June 16, 1950. P. 3. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/38208
Additional Related Material
Citation Information
Title: Ronald James Slay
Author: John A. Tucker, PhD
Date of Publication: 10/14/2019