Mlyn Pilots UNC, Duke Scholarship

Eric Mlyn, currently the director of the Burch Programs and assistant director of the Johnston Center for Undergraduate Excellence, began as director of the Robertson Scholars Program on Wednesday.

The program, funded by a $24 million grant from UNC alumnus Julian H. Robertson, Jr. and his wife Josie, will sponsor about 30 Duke University and UNC students per year, allowing them to take classes at both schools.

Mlyn said he will be leaving his current positions to focus his attention on the new program. His duties will temporarily be handled by other faculty members such as American studies Professor Joy Kasson, who will be the interim advisor for the Burch Fellows Program. Searches to fill Mlyn's empty positions have not started yet.

The program office will be located on UNC's campus, as specified by the founders.

"I've been in Chapel Hill for 10 years, working on what I'd say is innovation in undergraduate education," Mlyn said, speaking of his time working with UNC students. After a decade as a political science professor, he said he has been involved in many aspects of student life.

Wyndham Robertson, the sister of the program's founder and chairwoman of the selection committee, said this involvement led to his nomination. "He was extremely impressive," Wyndham said. "We were looking for a very unusual person, and we think that's what he is."

But it was more than just his connections with students that made Mlyn the ideal candidate. Judith Ruderman, the vice provost at Duke and a member of the selection committee, said his connections to the area and his vision for the program impressed her. "He's in love with both campuses, and he just thinks that it's a shame they haven't maximized their relationship," Ruderman said.

Mlyn also said he feels his goals seemed to complement those of the program. "I want Durham/Chapel Hill to be seen as an academic mecca," Mlyn said, citing the reputation of Cambridge, Mass. as an example.

But Mlyn said it will be the students themselves who are at the heart of this program. The Robertson Scholars will come together for seminars and projects outside the classroom, and each will spend one semester in residence on the other university's campus. The first class of recipients will be selected for the Fall 2001 semester.

"These students will be kept busy - but they will have the means to accomplish what they hope to accomplish," Mlyn said. He said he does not believe the program will put students in the awkward position of being outsiders on both campuses.

"My sense is that in the end, they will feel part of both universities," Mlyn said.

Students from all parts of the country will be eligible for the scholarship, and Ruderman said they will be chosen based on a combination of academic strength and dynamic personal qualities.

"We want students who are interested in spanning boundaries, both between Duke and UNC but also in the world," Mlyn said. "Everything won't be the same on both campuses. This program is modeled on cultural difference and diversity."

The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu.