Helen Akinc

Assistant dean retiring after twenty-year career

After a stellar twenty-year career, Helen Akinc, the assistant dean of student professional affairs at the Calloway School, is saying farewell to Wake Forest. But if ever "retirement" were a misnomer for what comes after full-time employment, it is in Akinc's case. With characteristic energy and enthusiasm, she's looking forward to having more time to work toward her personal goals and to reflect on how best to use her talents during this next chapter of her life.

"When I hit the speed limit and turned fifty-five, I realized that if I were going to pursue other interests I'd have to start now, and part of this means taking better care of myself so that I can pursue my dreams for many years to come," says Akinc.

Akinc joined the Calloway School in 1987 when a faculty member teaching organizational theory and behavior resigned abruptly. She continued to teach the course as an adjunct professor until Kline Harrison, Kemper professor and associate provost for international affairs, was hired as a full-time faculty member in 1990. Harrison remembers feeling concerned about Akinc's reaction to his "taking her job" and says her unexpected response was the beginning of what continues to be a steadfast friendship. "I couldn't believe how gracious, supportive and helpful she was. She even gave me her notes and syllabus," says Harrison.

Hard-wired with a desire to make what is good, better, Akinc used Harrison's arrival as an opportunity to position herself as a student liaison--helping business and accounting grads prepare for a post-Wake Forest life. In her new role, she worked closely with the director of career services, Bill Currin, to help students prepare for the transition from academic to professional life--developing methods that have become a model for other schools and departments within the University.

"Helen always exhibited great interest in individual students and has an appreciation not only for business, but business grounded in a liberal arts perspective," says Currin.

"When I was a sophomore I wasn't sure what I wanted to do," says Noreen Walsh Treadway ('03). Helen put me in touch with about a dozen Wake alumni so I could explore the possibilities."

"She's a champion for her students," says Ian Afflerbach, a senior political science and English major and Kemper Scholar. "She's glad to do whatever needs to be done, and if she can improve on something, she will."

"Helen has made many contributions to Wake Forest, but her three most significant ones have been: the summer management program, a program she used to build bridges between the Calloway school and the college; her commitment to lower-division advising; and her dedication to the Kemper scholarship program," says Harrison.

The summer management program, a crash course in business basics for non-Calloway majors, fell under Akinc's sphere of influence after retired Associate Professor Thomas Goho launched it in the early 90s. While under her charge, the highly integrative and interactive program, which involves a mix of seminars, lectures and field visits, expanded from twenty-five to sixty students.

Along with the summer management program, at the top of what Akinc describes as her most enjoyable responsibilities has been her award-winning, lower-division advising role.

"Dr. Akinc was a source of support to me," says sophomore Jannah Obaid, who came to Wake Forest from Saudi Arabia. "I had many problems my first year, from feeling homesick to failing a chemistry test. Dr. Akinc was there to talk to me and believe in me. I would not have passed my freshman year without her."

With regards to her contribution to the Kemper Scholarship program--a prestigious program of which Wake Forest is one of less than twenty schools to offer--Akinc managed for two years in a row to see two Wake Forest students awarded the scholarship, a stroke of success that would not have been possible without her dedication to and belief in the University's applicants. "We have outstanding students," Akinc says. "And I kept insisting that the Kemper Foundation interview just one more person."

When DeeDe Pinckney, a junior communications major and Kemper Scholar, found herself struggling in Spanish, she feared she'd lose her place in the program, instead she found an advocate in Akinc. "When Helen called me to her office, I was sure she was going to be upset. Instead, she took up for me. She never doubted my abilities. She had faith in me, so I had faith in myself."

Akinc's patience and understanding likely stem from the unique experiences she has shared with her husband, Umit Akinc, who holds the Thomas H. Davis Chair of Business in the Calloway School. The Akincs met while both where at UNC-Chapel Hill and, after marrying, the two moved to Turkey. "Umit wanted to help his country, and we were both very idealistic." War and terrorism in Turkey made it impossible for Umit to teach, so the couple returned to America. "When you've lived in another country, it changes you. You're never completely comfortable in either culture. You're always looking for ways to incorporate parts of one culture into your life when you're living in the other. You have to learn to bridge differences and bridge cultures, and what I've learned in bridging cultures works in bridging other situations."

Nearly fluent in Turkish, Akinc plans to continue cultural bridge-building by publishing a cookbook of Turkish recipes in both English and Turkish. "Most recipes in Turkey are passed on by show-and-tell and are not written down. My mother-in-law taught me how to fix many of the traditional foods, which vary according to Turkey's different regions. I want to make these recipes available to future generations."

Though no longer in her Calloway office, her friends know where to find her. Treadway, who was a business major and art minor during her time at Wake Forest, recalls Akinc's purchase of one of her undergraduate paintings. "It was a sign to me that she cared about my personal and artistic ambitions and not just my place in Calloway. Helen and I no longer talk about jobs. We talk about our shared interest in knitting and crocheting, family life, and many other things that friends talk about. It's clear to me that Helen has been so valuable to Wake Forest because she recognizes the unique qualities in every person and embraces them."

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Story by Kim McGrath