|
Week of April 21-27, 2008 Welcome to the Tower Topics E-newsletter for faculty, staff and students at Western. |
|||||||
|
Missouri Western State University, 4525 Downs Drive, St. Joseph, MO 64507, 816-271- 4200 |
|||||||
|
Click any link for these stories: Math Professor Selected for Summer Program Cadden Receives Teaching Excellence Award Western Professor to Teach GPS Workshop Western Offers Summer Art Classes Lost & Found: If you have lost any items, please come to SU 228 to claim them. You may be required to describe the item. Click on
Guidelines for Tower Topics: Tower Topics submissions should state time, date, place, sponsor, title of event, name of speaker's and admission fees. Send complete information to the Public Relations and Marketing office (Leah Spratt Hall, Room 106). The deadline for all entries is 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, for the next week's issue. Tower Topics will be online weekly during the fall and spring semester. For more information call 271-5651. Student Editor:
|
|
||||||
|
Math Professor Selected for Summer Program Dr. Glenn Rice, assistant professor of mathematics at Western, already knows how he will spend his summer vacation – teaching a graduate course at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln (UNL). Dr. Rice was one of four professors selected to participate in UNL’s IMMERSE program: Intensive Mathematics: a Mentoring, Education and Research Summer Experience, for eight weeks. Dr. Rice will teach 16 “pre-grads,” students who are about to enter their first year of graduate study in mathematics at UNL or elsewhere in fall 2008. He will co-teach with another faculty member and have UNL graduate students as assistants. “I’m looking forward to the interaction between the faculty members and me, and the students,” he said. “These are the best and brightest students.” Only early-career professors who had earned their doctorates and teach at institutions that do not offer a doctoral program in mathematics were eligible to participate in the IMMERSE program. Dr. Rice earned his doctorate degree from the University of Kansas in Lawrence in 2005 and has taught at Western for two years. The “intensive” and the “mentoring” in the IMMERSE acronym are two accurate descriptors of the program. The “intensive” is the three hours of classes and three hours of problem sessions each day, and the mentoring will take place on several levels. According to the IMMERSE website, each early-career faculty participant will have a senior UNL faculty member serve as a mentor, the early-career faculty members will serve as mentors for the graduate students, and those students will serve as mentors for the pre-grad students. Dr. Rice noted that he will also have time to conduct research as part of the program. He will work with his mentor from UNL to identify and begin work on a joint research project, and the work will continue into the 2008-2009 academic year. As part of the program, Western was paid to allow Dr. Rice to be released from some of his teaching duties this semester so he would have time to research and prepare to teach the summer course. “It’s a great opportunity to teach a graduate level course. I’m looking forward to it,” Dr. Rice said. |
|||||||
|
|||||||
|
Cadden Receives Teaching Excellence Award English professor Dr. Mike Cadden is Western’s recipient of the Missouri Governor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching. Dr. Cadden and 14 other faculty members from Missouri’s four-year public universities were honored by Gov. Matt Blunt at a luncheon April 9 in Jefferson City. The award recognizes effective teaching and advising, service to the university, commitment to high standards of excellence and success in nurturing student achievement. “Professor Cadden is held in high regard by colleagues throughout the profession and at Western,” said Dr. Joseph Bragin, provost and vice president for academic and student affairs. “He is an outstanding scholar who has repeatedly demonstrated his ability to bring his scholarship to bear in the classroom. I’m delighted by his selection for this honor.” Dr. Cadden, chair of the English, foreign languages and journalism department, specializes in the teaching of children’s and young adult literature, but also teaches other literature courses and freshman composition. He has won several faculty awards in his 12 years at Western, including the Jesse Lee Myers Excellence in Teaching Award, the Dr. James V. Mehl Outstanding Faculty Scholarship Award, and the Board of Governors’ Distinguished Faculty Award. He recently wrote a book on the author Ursula K. Le Guin, is editing a collection of essays on children’s literature for University of Nebraska Press, and frequently reviews children’s literature in professional journals. |
|||||||
|
|||||||
|
Western Professor to Teach GPS Workshop Western’s Dr. Gary Chevalier, associate professor of biology and certified Trimble Navigation trainer, will teach a three-day workshop entitled, “Introduction to Global Positioning Systems (GPS) for Mapping and Navigation,” May 14-16. The workshop is limited to a maximum of 10 participants to ensure quality instruction and personal attention. April 30 will be the last day to enroll in the class. The course is designed with no prior knowledge in GPS required or expected. The workshop will train on Trimble GEO XH mobile GIS GPS units with Terrasync Pro software. Members of the course will also use Pathfinder Office integration software and will learn to use Bluetooth wireless communication, WAAS real-time differential and Coast Guard Beacon real-time differential. “This course is an ideal workshop for professionals who want to gain operational competence quickly and for students wanting to acquire these skills to increase their marketability,” said Dr. Chevalier. For details including course content and instructions on how to register, visit www.wi.missouriwestern.edu/Seminars/gps_gis/index.html, or call 4100 for more information. |
|||||||
|
Western Offers Summer Art Classes The Center for Community Arts at Western has announced new classes for all ages for the upcoming summer sessions. Classes will start June 2 and run through July 25. Many of the classes will be held at the Downtown University Center, 6th and Robidoux in St. Joseph. “We are very excited to be offering new classes for both children and adults in the community,” said Martha Greer, director of community arts. “We have some really fun and enriching opportunities that will fit a wide variety of interests.” One of the most unusual courses is Russian Language and Culture. Students ages 8-12 will learn the Russian alphabet, numbers and months; will take a look at family life and traditions; and will complete an art project. A similar class, Spanish Language and Culture, will also be taught. Another unusual course offering is Forensic Art for students ages 9-13. This class will teach children basic portrait skills that composite artists use with law enforcement to create suspect sketches. Children ages 5-7 can enroll in the Dr. Seuss Storybook Theatre, where they will engage in interactive play by portraying familiar characters from a Dr. Seuss story. For ages 5-8 there will be Dinosaur Madness, where kids will explore the world of dinosaurs through movement, stories and projects. The Center for Community Arts will also offer creative writing courses for children for the first time this summer. “It is a proven fact that allowing your children to participate in the arts can have a profound impact in their lives,” Greer said. “Children involved in arts programs do better on tests, are more likely to participate in community activities and have higher self-esteem.” There are a number of uncommon classes for adults as well, including interior design, soft doll sculpture, poetry and more. Swing dance and salsa dance classes will be offered. A children’s craft class will be given at the same time as the swing dance class so that parents can learn a few dance steps while their children are participating in a hands-on art activity. For a complete list of Community Arts Classes available this summer, visit the website at www.wi.missouriwestern.edu/arts/, or call the Center for Community Arts at 4106. Enrollment starts now, and class sizes are limited, so interested students are encouraged to apply as soon as possible. |
|||||||
|
Baseball
Softball
Tennis
Men's Golf
Women's Golf
|
|||||||
|
Eggs and Issues Dr. James Scanlon will speak about “The State of Higher Education in Missouri” during the next Eggs and Issues breakfast at 7 a.m. April 23 in the Fulkerson Center. Dr. Scanlon became Western’s president in 2001 and has worked closely with the governor and the state legislature since that time, becoming a well-respected voice on higher education issues. Currently, he is serving a second term as chair of the Coordinating Board for Higher Education advisory committee made up of college presidents in Missouri. Dr. Scanlon will retire as president on June 30.Eggs and Issues is a community education forum that encourages the exchange of ideas on current topics. The breakfast is free and open to the public. KC Kendo Club The center for multicultural education will host the KC Kendo Club at 6 p.m. April 21 in the Spratt Hall, Kemper Recital Hall. The KC Kendo Club specializes in Kendo, which literally translates as “the way of the sword.” It is a Japanese form of fencing. This event will include a demonstration and a workshop. The workshop is open to anyone who wants to learn about this art form through hands-on experience. For more information contact the CME at 4150. Phi Delta Theta Softball Tournament The men of the Phi Delta Theta are hosting the first annual ALS Co-ed Softball Tournament at 10:30 a.m. April 26. The tournament is open to all Missouri Western students, clubs and organizations. Cost per team is $65, with all proceeds going directly to the ALS Association to help find a cure for Lou Gehrig's Disease. Prizes will be awarded to the winners of the tournament. Chipotle will feed the teams, and a raffle will be held for gift certificates and merchandise from area restaurants and businesses. To sign up your team e-mail Stephen Bonuchi before April 24 at sbonuchi@missouriwestern.edu. Strange Bedfellows Does late-night comedy induce apathy and dumb down discussions about current events? If you have watched Jon Stewart, Jay Leno, David Letterman or Stephen Colbert, you may just want to join us for a faculty panel discussion of "Strange Bedfellows: How Late-Night Comedy Turns Democracy into a Joke," by Russell L Peterson (Rutgers University Press 2008) at 4 p.m. April 23 in Spratt Hall 203. Panelists include: Dr. Cynthia Jeney, Dr. Bob Bergland, Dr. David Steiniche, Dr. Steve Greiert. This program is sponsored by the Honors Program and Alpha Chi. Refreshments will be served. Student Publication Reception The English, foreign languages and journalism department, in conjunction with the Developmental Writing Program, will host its second annual reception for the English 100 student publication, Discovering the Student, Discovering the Self at 3 p.m. April 23 in Hearnes 102. Students will read their original work and, afterwards, refreshments will be served. Help out The Thirty! The Thirty, a band from St. Joseph, made up of students from the music department, has entered in a contest to play a festival in Illinois this summer called Cornerstone Festival. In order to play, the band must accumulate enough votes to be put within the top 10 out of 188 bands. Visit http://www.cornerstonefestival.com/Newbandshowcase/TheThirty/?bID=385 to vote. |
|||||||
|
Monday, April 21
Tuesday, April 22
Wednesday, April 23
Thursday, April 24
Friday, April 25
Saturday, April 26
|
|||||||
|
For Sale: Sears heavy duty treadmill. Barely used. Contact johnsond@missouriwestern.edu. |
|||||||
|
Wanted: Your want ads! You
are welcome to submit ads to the Western ADvantage each week.
|
|||||||
