James William Batten

Image Source: Buccaneer, 1963. P. 16.

James William Batten distinguished himself, and East Carolina by association, shortly after joining the School of Education (now, the College of Education) in 1960 as an assistant professor when he was selected to participate in an educational project organized by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) preparing America’s first set of astronauts, the Mercury Seven — Alan Shepard (1923–1998), Virgil “Gus” Grissom (1926–1967), Scott Carpenter (1925–2013), Walter “Wally” Schirra (1923–2007), Donald “Deke” Slayton (1924–1993), Gordon “Gordo” Cooper (1927–2004), and John Glenn (1921–2016) — for space travel. Batten’s role was to prepare the astronauts for the possibility of manual navigation of the Mercury craft according to visual sightings of the movements of constellations. Batten’s work with the pioneer astronauts was conducted at the Morehead Planetarium in Chapel Hill where he had earlier served as a narrator for public presentations while a graduate student at the University of North Carolina. One of the seven astronauts Batten taught, Alan Shepard, achieved distinction a year later, in 1961, as the first American to travel into space.

A Goldsboro native, Batten completed his bachelor’s degree at the University of North Carolina in 1940, and then taught chemistry, biology, and math at Glendale High School in Kenly. The following year, he joined the U.S. Navy and served his country in WWII in both the European theatre and the Pacific. In 1942, as part of his Naval training, Batten studied spherical trigonometry at Columbia University in New York City, sparking a larger interest in space and astronomy. He also worked briefly at the Hayden Planetarium in New York, further contributing to his fascination with the scientific exploration of space. While serving abroad in the Navy, Batten worked as a navigator on surface and aerial bombardment missions. He was discharged in 1946 with the rank of lieutenant commander and remained a part of the Naval Reserve for the next 20 years.

Following WWII, Batten resumed teaching, first at Wilmington College (now, UNC-W) and Princeton High School. He later served as principal of Micro High School, just outside Goldsboro, from 1950 to 1958. Along the way, Batten began graduate work at UNC, completing an MA in education in 1957. The following year, he was awarded a teaching fellowship at UNC and in 1959, began work as a narrator for public presentations at the Morehead Planetarium. In 1960, he completed an EdD in earth science and, shortly after, was hired as an assistant professor of education at East Carolina where he remained until his retirement forty years later.

In addition to his brief work as an instructor in celestial recognition and navigation for America’s first cohort of astronauts, Batten published several books on space science, soil science, and educational research. His teaching focused on science education and research methodologies. He soon rose in rank to full professor and served as chair of the Department of Secondary Education, and then as assistant dean of the School of Education (now, the College of Education). In 1982, Batten was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Arizona for his research on space science technology. In 1990, East Carolina awarded him status as an honorary alumnus. In 1993, a conference room in Speight Building was dedicated in his honor.

One of Batten’s most significant contributions to ECU history and campus culture was his In Retrospect, a well-researched historical catalog of the buildings on campus, details related to their construction, and their names. While East Carolina has grown considerably since Batten’s work was published, his book stands as a unique contribution to the study of East Carolina’s growing campus as of the early 1990s. In certain respects, it appears as though Batten, so fascinated with the names and locations of celestial constellations decided later in his career at East Carolina to document the locations and details of the campus galaxy, mapping down the details for later faculty, staff, and students seeking to navigate its bounds.

Sources

• Batten, James W. In Retrospect. Greenville, N.C.: East Carolina University, 1993.
• Batten, James W. Public Education in North Carolina, 1839 to 1955. Greenville, N.C. 1962.
• Batten, James W. and J. Sullivan Gibson. Soils, Their Nature, Classes, Distribution, Uses, and Care. University of Alabama Press, 1977.
• Batten, James William. Developing Competencies in Educational Research. Greenville, N.C.: Morgan Printers, 1980.
• Batten, James William. Human Procedures in Educational Research. Greenville, N.C.: Morgan Printers, 1975.
• Batten, James William. Our Neighbors in Space. Chapel Hill, N.C.: Morehead Planetarium, 1969.
• Batten, James William. Research as a Tool for Understanding. Dubuque, Iowa: Wm. C. Brown, 1965
• Batten, James William. Research in Education. Greenville, N.C.: Morgan Printers, 1986.
• Batten, James William. Stars, Atoms, and God. Chapel Hill, N.C.: Colonial Press, 1968.
• Batten, James William. The Batten Clan in Johnston County, North Carolina. Greenville, N.C.: Morgan Printers, 1987.
• Batten, James William. The Batten Clan: The Rumblings of a Rolling Stone. Greenville, North Carolina: Education Publications, 1974.
• Batten, James William. Understanding Research. Greenville, N.C.: East Carolina University, Education Publications, 1972.
• Batten, James William and Mary Waddell. Human Perspectives in Educational Research. Greenville, N.C.: Morgan Printers, 1987.
• “Batten Named Narrator at Morehead Planetarium.” Daily Tar Heel. September 24, 1958. P. 1.
• “Buccaneer Faculty Citations: James William Batten.” Buccaneer. 1962. P. 30. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/15313
• “Dr. James W. Batten.” News and Observer. December 11, 2004. P. B12.
• Howard, Henry. “East Carolina Professor Helped Train Astronauts.” High Point Enterprise. May 11, 1961. P. 10C.
• “Science Enthusiasts to Hear Dr. Batten.” East Carolinian. April 2, 1968. P. 3. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/38808
• “Wadsworth, Batten Named Program Narrators.” Daily Tar Heel. December 16, 1959. P. 1.
• Vogel, Marcelle. “EC Faculty Member Assists in Training of Astronauts.” East Carolinian. November 3, 1960. P. 3. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/38678

Related Materials

Image Source: Buccaneer, 1965. P. 66. https://digital.lib.ecu.edu/15316

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