Tireless Library Supporter to Receive Prestigious Watauga Award

Contact: dwhiscoe , NCSU Libraries, (919) 513-3425

(Raleigh, NC, 2009)—Dr. J. Lawrence Apple, a professor emeritus in plant pathology at North Carolina State University, will be honored with the prestigious Watauga Medal for his distinguished service to the university. The award, the highest nonacademic honor bestowed by NC State, will be presented at the university's Founders' Day Dinner on Monday, March 9, on the NC State campus. Chancellor James Oblinger will present the medal.

Dr. Apple served on the faculty from 1955 to 1991 and is widely known for his work in international agricultural development. After serving a tour of duty in the Army Infantry and fighting in the Battle of the Bulge during World War II, Apple enrolled at NC State on the GI Bill, ultimately earning three degrees at the university, including a Ph.D. in plant pathology and genetics in 1955. He served as assistant director of research and academic affairs in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, director of the Institute of Biological Sciences, and director of international programs at the university.

Dr. Apple, of Burlington, N.C., is also known for his tireless advocacy for the NCSU Libraries. The Libraries are the "center of the university," according to Apple. "The library houses the records of the intellectual accomplishments of humankind to date," he says, and we need to "make them available as widely as possible, with equal and rapid access." And, as Apple explains, fundraising for the Libraries is "critical to the educational, research, and outreach missions of the university."

Dr. Apple has helped raise funds for the libraries in his roles as president of the Association of Retired Faculty (1994-1997), president of the Friends of the Library (2000-2002) and currently as a member of the Forever Club's executive committee. In 1994 Apple and his wife Ella established the J. Lawrence and Ella H. Apple Library Endowment to support the purchase of materials for the Libraries. They have also been generous supporters of the plant pathology department and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and are members of the W.C. Riddick Lifetime Giving Society.