By Emily Ford
Salisbury Post
Lynne Scott Safrit’s success in the business world proves the value of a liberal arts education, people at her alma mater say.
Safrit graduated cum laude from Catawba College in 1980, with a major in English and minors in music and psychology.
She went on to work for Cannon Mills and then David H. Murdock, rising through the ranks of his real estate development companies. She now directs development of the N.C. Research Campus in Kannapolis.
“It proves you don’t have to go to a big university to learn skills to be successful,” said Phil Kirk, vice president for external relations. “The individual attention she received here helped her succeed.”
Safrit was an excellent student and had the highest grade in Dr. Bethany Sinnott’s English class.
“She’s had such a marvelous career, it really demonstrates how an English major can prepare you,” Sinnott said.
English majors learn critical thinking skills while analyzing literary texts. They also learn to express themselves clearly verbally and in writing, an advantage in any field, Sinnott said.
Safrit, who was inducted into the Catawba College Business Hall of Fame last year, started college at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
“It was too big,” she said. “I was sort of a number there.”
She transferred to Catawba as a sophomore, where she “felt my professors were genuinely interested, not just in the fact that I was getting good grades but that I was learning,” she said.
Safrit credits Catawba with giving her the self confidence and life skills she’s needed in her career.
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Contact Emily Ford at eford@salisburypost or 704-797-4264.