In the spring of his sophomore year, Roymieco Carter (B.F.A. ’91) thought he was staring down an impossible situation. It was time to register for fall classes and while he was in good standing academically, his financial aid hadn’t yet been approved. Carter was certain he’d have to drop out.
He decided to stop by the office of Murry N. DePillars, who served as dean of VCUarts from 1976 to 1995 to ask for help.
“I said to him, ‘I’m really scared. I’m worried that if I’m not in school next semester, that I won’t be able to come back. I want to be here so bad, but I don’t think I’m going to be able to do it,’” Carter said. “He just looked at me and said, ‘Come with me.’”
Carter followed DePillars to another building and watched as the dean had a quiet conversation with one of the staff members. The employee then asked Carter a few questions before handing him a form to take with him to the Mosque where he could register for classes.
“I ran straight to the Mosque and handed them that paper with the biggest smile on my face,” said Carter, who is now the director of the visual arts program at North Carolina A&T State University. “I was so worried about my entire future, but this man, with the power he had, set my feet back on the path. I’m still, to this day, trying to pay back that debt.”
DePillars’ wife, Mary, said the former dean would often come home with a story of a student experiencing financial strain, whether they lacked the funds to travel home for a family emergency, or needed supplies for a class project.
“It was not uncommon for Murry to go to the train station with his trusty American Express card and get a ticket for the student,” she said. “Or to call up Main Art Supply and tell them he was sending a student up there, and to put their supplies on his tab. If he was working late and ordered a meal, he would ask them to send extra for a student who hadn’t eaten since the day before.
“It always started with the phrase, ‘Mary, I’ve got a kid.’ He had his eyes open for students who were in distress, because he never wanted students to drop out of school over something small in his eyes.”
Today, VCU has a variety of programs to help students facing unexpected expenses that might otherwise derail their progress, from academic supplies and medical care to emergency housing and childcare. Now, with the help of Mary DePillars, VCUarts is expanding on these support programs with the Murry N. DePillars Student Fund.
Jody Symula, assistant dean for student affairs, said the DePillars Student Fund provides up to $500 for emergency expenses, as well as some of the “invisible costs” that come with being a VCUarts student. For instance, she added, many first-year students are surprised by the paper, paints, and other supplies needed for their Art Foundation courses. These students end up in a perpetual cycle of worrying about how to secure materials for their next assignment.
“I think that there’s a lot of silent struggling that impacts students in invisible ways,” she said. “With a robust DePillars Student Fund, we hope to be more aware of what our students need and to be better able to support them. We want students to be students first, and the more we can clear the decks of all these little things that negatively impact their experience, the better.”
In addition to helping students, the fund also honors the former dean’s legacy of removing barriers and helping talented young artists reach their potential.
“His care for his students took many faces,” Mary DePillars said. “What we’re trying to accomplish with this fund is to help students who have a short-term or small need so that they can stay at school, concentrate on their studies, and graduate and become productive citizens.”