|
Week of Oct. 23-29 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: Western Well Represented at Disability Conference High School Students Gain Chemistry Credit Cadet to Be Honored at Law Enforcement Banquet New Course Takes a Look at Alternative Energy and Substantial Development 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:
|
|
|||||||
|
Western Well Represented at Disability Conference “When people set limitations on me, I listen to them, then I do my best to prove them wrong. I want to prove people wrong who think the girl in the wheelchair can’t do anything.” Those are the words of Western student Jennifer Koebel when she served on a “Celebrating the Human Spirit” panel at this year’s daylong 15th annual No More Stares Conference last week at the St. Joseph Holiday Inn Riverfront. Koebel, who has cerebral palsy and is wheelchair-bound, shared her story via a communication device along with Western student Jay Claywell, alumnus Dian Smith and Tammy Courter, who has attended Western. Mike Ritter, coordinator of disability services, presented a session, “Caring for the Caregiver,” and one of Western’s counselors, Tim Crowley, gave the keynote address, “It’s All Possible.” The conference is created by people with disabilities to provide disability-related information and insights to the community at large. Koebel said her high school teachers told her she would never be able to go to college, but she didn’t listen to them. She attended Washburn University in Topeka, Kan. for four years, and is currently studying social work at Western. Claywell, a communications major, read an original poem, “Jay, Inc.” Regarding advocating for people with disabilities, he said, “It’s about seeing the need. There’s a reason to be louder, there’s a reason to make noise. Someday I want to own a publishing company and help people say what they have to say.” Claywell has cerebral palsy. Smith returned to school to study social work after a stroke forced her to quit her job. “I had a lot of support from therapists and family,” she said. “I couldn’t let all those people down. Your life may have changed but it hasn’t ended.” Koebel offered final words of advice to the disabled: “Find people who love and support you, and make sure they love you enough to push you when you don’t want to go on.”
|
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
High School Students Gain Chemistry Credit What is the chemical makeup of caffeine? That’s what high school students from Excelsior Springs, Lawson and Lathrop set out to discover recently when they spent the morning at Western learning how to use a gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer to analyze caffeine. The students are all enrolled in the chemistry dual credit program, which is taught via DVD by a Western chemistry professor or by a high school teacher certified by the chemistry department. As part of the course, the high school students visit Western two times, once each semester, and participate in a laboratory experience. They earn five hours of college credit when they successfully complete the course. “Students gain valuable experience through the two on-campus visits to the chemistry laboratories,” said Dr. Michael Ducey, associate professor of chemistry and coordinator of the program for four years. “They conduct experiments with current high-end chemical instrumentation.” “It’s fun. I enjoy it,” said Tara Hales, a senior from Lawson High School. “It’s a lot of work, but you can have fun while doing it.” Hales said she hopes to be a nurse, and was happy to be able to earn college credit while still in high school. The course is identical to the one offered on campus; however, the high school students complete the requirements in a year rather than in one semester, and they receive a reduced tuition rate. Robin Clark, a teacher at Lathrop High School, brought eight students to the lab. “The dual chemistry program is wonderful. We have a lot of help from the chemistry department. It’s probably the most organized chemistry program in the area because of the support from the college professors.” Lathrop High School has participated since 2000, she said. The chemistry dual credit program, which started in 1999, began with six schools participating. This year, 116 students in 20 high schools throughout northwest Missouri and northeast Kansas are enrolled. The program is coordinated by Dr. James Puckett, instructor of chemistry; and Dr. Gerald Zweerink, professor of chemistry, coordinated the program its first two years. The Western Institute offers 70 dual credit courses, and 700 students from 34 high schools are currently enrolled. |
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
Cadet to Be Honored at Law Enforcement Awards Banquet Jeremy Stagner, a cadet in the Law Enforcement Academy at Western, will be honored at the seventh annual Law Enforcement Awards Banquet at 6 p.m. Nov. 9 in the Nelle Blum Union, rooms 218. Stagner will receive the Silver Star for Gallantry in Action, and the Navy and Marine Corp Achievement Medal (with Combat Distinguishing Service). Stagner served in Operation Iraqi Freedom. On Nov. 1, 2005, he was riding in a convoy and the Humvee in front of him was hit in an ambush. One person was killed, and another was on fire. Stagner ran up to the vehicle, extinguished the fire and pulled the burned person back to safety, all the while taking on small arms fire. The Silver Star is the third highest award in the military. Marine Corps personnel will present the awards. The Law Enforcement Awards Banquet is open to the community, and tickets are $20 per person. For more information call 5843. |
||||||||
|
Big Event 2006 |
||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||
| At left, Torrence Jones and Seth Logston and at right, Aaron Corbet and Gretchen Kunkle were just a few of the students that participated in the Big Event. They worked at Habitat for Humanity houses. "I've always wanted to help at the Big Event, but I've always been busy," said Gretchen. "This year I made it a priority." | ||||||||
|
New Course Takes a Look at Alternative Energy and Substantial Development Considering two items that have been in the news a lot recently, the high cost of gasoline and the United States population reaching the 300 million mark, Dr. Ken Dagel’s new course offering at Western couldn’t be more timely. This spring, Dr. Dagel, associate professor of geography, will teach a three-credit course that focuses on sustainable development of the earth as the population increases and alternative energy sources. Dr. Dagel said that when he asks students in his geography classes how communities obtain electricity or how gasoline is produced, “there’s a tremendous disconnect about what students know about energy and how they use it. I’m trying to make them more aware of where energy comes from. If we strengthen their understanding of energy, hopefully it will lead to wiser decisions regarding those resources,” he said. For Dr. Dagel, growing up on a farm in South Dakota was all about conservation and wise use of the land and resources, and his interest in that never waned. In 1999, he spent three weeks in Germany on a Fulbright seminar that focused on Germany’s use of alternative energy sources. His course covers the impact of the population increase on the environment, and with that, the increasing demand for both essential and discretionary material goods. Students will discuss how the demand can be met without causing irreparable damage to the physical environment. The class will also discuss global climate changes, energy sources, alternative energies, renewable energy and energy conservation. “Alternate energy is extremely important. We rely on fossil fuels to such an extent, and those supplies are limited,” he noted. For more information on the course, contact Dr. Dagel at 4161. |
||||||||
|
|
||||||||
|
Students interested in finding a career spoke with employers at the Career Fair on Oct. 18 in the Fulkerson Center. |
||||||||
|
The Undergraduate Research Summer Institute Symposium was held Oct. 17 in the Potter Hall theater lobby. Ten student research projects were on display. |
|
|||||||
|
Western Football is ranked 16th in the AFCA Division II Top 25 Poll, and Dustin Strickler was named the MIAA Special Teams Player-of-the-Week for the second week in a row. Football
Soccer
Volleyball
|
||||||||
|
Important Pre-registration
News Advisement for the Spring 2007 semester begins Nov. 1. If
you do not know who your advisor is please check on My Western
self-service page under Student & Financial Aid, Student Records, View
Student Information. Please contact this individual or the department
concerning sign-up opportunities for advisement. When you meet with your
advisor you will be given an Alternate PIN. You will use this 4-digit
number to access Registration through My Western self-service page and
enroll in classes. Beginning at 7 a.m. on each date, the schedule
listed below will be followed (degree-seeking students only): National Hunger Homeless Awareness Week Committee The Center for Multicultural Education's annual National Hunger Homeless Awareness Week is approaching, and we are looking for a group of students who are interested in helping put together programs and delegate those week's programs. National Hunger Homeless Awareness week will be Nov. 13-18. If you are interested in being apart of this committee please call the office at 4150 or come to Blum 210 at 2 p.m. Oct. 23. Coat Drive How will you stay warm this winter? Alpha Kappa Psi is collecting new and gently used coats of all sizes, gloves, hats, and scarves from Oct. 23 to 27. Items will be donated to the Salvation Army. Drop your donations off at the Department of Business Office in Popplewell 305 or the Admissions Office in Eder 101. For more information contact akpsi@missouriwestern.edu Mayors Thanksgiving Dinner Students are invited to the annual Mayors Thanksgiving Dinner Nov. 19 at the Civic Arena. Social hour begins at 5 p.m., dinner at 6 p.m. Cost is $20 per person and there are tables of eight. During the social hour, music will be provided by Dr. David Bennett, professor of music. The Robidoux Resident Theatre will be performing musical skits about hunger throughout the program. Mindfulness & Meditation Circle Interested in finding new ways to relax, or to just get a breather? Join our Mindfulness and Meditation Circle and learn to live life more intentionally through peaceful yet energizing exercises like deep breathing, guided imagery and walking meditation. We meet on Thursdays from 3:30-4:15 p.m. in the Junior College Room in Blum Union. Co-facilitators are Dr. Russ Phillips, 5886, and Dr. Vincenza Marash, 5994. Weekly attendance is welcomed but not expected. Please bring mat and pillow if available (extras to be provided) and dress comfortably. We look forward to meeting you! Employee Wellness Screening the Wellness Screening will be held from 6 to 10 a.m. on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 and from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. on Nov. 2 in Spratt Hall 214-216. This is a free benefit for all employees and spouses covered by Western's medical plan. There is a $20 fee for those not covered by the university's insurance. Men wanting the PSA blood test (prostate cancer screening test) will be charged $24 to cover the cost of the lab fee. All fees must be paid at the time of the screening. Many educational materials will be available. Please make an appointment by either electronically registering at www.missouriwestern.edu/wellness or by contacting Cristi Campbell ext. 5956 or Bill Russell ext. 4492. Econfest The Economics Department will hold its fifth annual Econfest at 3 p.m. on Oct. 25 in Spratt 214. All students interested in learning more about economics as a major and how the study of economics is used in various occupations are invited to attend. Speakers will be Michael Holden, Commercial Lender of Commerce Bank; Nicholas Limle, Marketing Projects Coordinator of Gray Automotive Products; and Jessica Snyder, Employment Consultant. All are economics graduates of Western. Golden Griffon Marching Band The Golden Griffon Marching Band will perform in the Greater St. Louis Marching Festival at 9:15 p.m. on Oct. 28 in the Edwards Dome. Over 45 high school bands from the Midwest will be involved in the contest. The marching band, the Mystics and flags will perform immediately before the awards are given to the competing bands. The music department's touring fund is funding the trip.
|
||||||||
|
Monday, October 23
Tuesday, October 24
Wednesday, October 25
Thursday, October 26
Friday, October 27
|
||||||||
|
|
||||||||
|
Wanted: Your want ads! You
are welcome to submit ads to the Western ADvantage each week.
|
||||||||
