Week of  March 30 - April 5, 2009

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:

Finance Majors Visit Wall Street

Caldwell Named Governor's Award Winner

Computer Class Draws Crowd

March 2009 Points of Pride

Tower Sports

News Briefs

Calendar

Ads

Archives

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.

Finance Majors Visit Wall Street

Five Western finance majors traveled to New York City over spring break to learn more about financial markets and institutions.

Andrew Gillies, Lindsie Leib, Vanessa Morris, Larry Motley and Michelle Polk, along with Carol Roever, interim dean of the Steven L. Craig School of Business, spent five days in the nation’s financial capital, meeting with several leaders of Wall Street and taking advantage of numerous cultural opportunities.

“The impact that this trip had on me was almost indescribable,” Leib said. “The expertise of the presenters was inspiring and challenged me to a new level of professionalism.”

Two former Western students played a key role in helping the current students learn more about the world of finance. Steve Koenig, who played football for Western and is currently managing director of Latin America derivatives trading at the financial services giant J.P. Morgan Chase, set up appointments for the group at J.P. Morgan and BGC Partners, an inter-dealer brokerage company. Esther George ’80, senior vice president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, arranged an appointment at the New York Federal Reserve.

“These opportunities would not have been available without Steve and Esther,” Roever said. “Thanks to their help, our students met privately with a number of people who provided key insights into finance and the current economic crisis.”

At J.P. Morgan, the students met with Joyce Chang, managing director and global head of the firm’s emerging markets and credit research group. Chang has been named by Institutional Investor as the No. 1 emerging markets strategist for seven consecutive years. Her presentation was one of the trip’s highlights for Michelle.

“It was very informative to hear about real economic issues and how the financial sector is dealing with the recession,” Polk said.

BGC Partners was created in 2004 by Cantor Fitzgerald, the brokerage service that lost 658 employees in the attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. One of the executives the students met with was in the tower that day and spoke about that experience and how the firm rebuilt itself. The other BGC executive talked to the students about career options and job hunting strategies.

At the New York Fed, the students heard a private lecture by Til Scheurman, vice president of bank supervision. His discussion of the current economic situation was “timely and relevant,” Leib said. After his talk, the students toured the Fed’s vault, which holds about $70 billion in gold, the world’s largest accumulation of the precious metal.

Another highlight of the trip was a rare visit to the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. The group met with Steven Wheeler, director of archives and philanthropic programs at the Exchange, and because it was such a small group he was able to take them on the floor and introduce them to the J.P. Morgan representatives.

“It was a surreal experience to go on the trading floor and see firsthand how the stock market operates,” Polk said.

The students also participated in several cultural activities. They attended the taping of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on NBC (appearing briefly on camera when the audience was shown), visited the newly-established Museum of American Finance, rode the Staten Island Ferry, attended a performance of the Broadway musical “The Lion King” and visited Ground Zero, the former site of the World Trade Center.

The trip was supported financially by the MWSU Foundation and the Student Government Association.

Top of Page

Caldwell Named Governor's Award Winner

Dr. Benjamin Caldwell, associate professor of chemistry and chair of the chemistry department at Western, has been selected to receive the Governor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching, to be awarded at the Governor’s Conference on Higher Education next month.

“Dr. Caldwell is an outstanding educator and a valued colleague,” said Dr. Joseph Bragin, provost and vice president for academic and student affairs. “He exemplifies what we at Western mean by teaching excellence, and I’m delighted with his selection.”

The award recognizes effective teaching and advising, service to the university, commitment to high standards of excellence and success in nurturing student achievement. One faculty member from each university and college in Missouri will receive the award during the Governor’s Conference on Higher Education on April 22 at Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Mo.

A selection committee chose Dr. Caldwell from among all faculty members who received the Dr. James V. Mehl Outstanding Faculty Scholarship Award, the Jesse Lee Myers Excellence in Teaching Award or the Board of Governors Distinguished Faculty Award during the past three years.

Dr. Caldwell and his colleagues have revamped the introductory chemistry lab course to provide Western students with the most current techniques and equipment in use. He has also forged interdisciplinary collaborations between biology and chemistry, and his presentations at national meetings of the American Chemical Society on topics like the use of aquatic plants to remove heavy metal contamination from waste have drawn favorable attention to Western’s science programs.

In addition to his teaching and scholarship, Dr. Caldwell directed Western’s Summer Research Institute for six years, chaired the Professional Leave and Golden Griffon Scholarship Committees, served nine years on the Honors Committee, serves on the strategic planning committee on community service and workforce development, is the faculty adviser of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity and is the chemistry department’s pre-health professional adviser.

Dr. Caldwell has been at Western for 11 years. He received his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Randolph-Macon College in Virginia, and his doctoral degree in chemistry from the University of Virginia.

Top of Page

Computer Class Draws Crowd

Western computer information systems major Derek Spalding wanted to combine a fund raiser with community service, and judging from the response of the community, his idea was a success. The president of Western’s student group of Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP) came up with the idea of holding a class to teach basic computer skills. The class was held last week, and extra chairs had to be brought in to the 80-seat classroom in Agenstein to accommodate the crowd.

The three-hour class was free, but Spalding produced a 40-page step-by-step manual and sold them for $5. They ran out of the 50 copies he had produced 10 minutes before class even started, and had several people order one.

Connie Hecker, instructor of computer science, said she really wasn’t surprised by the turn out, because older people are always asking her very basic questions about computers. “This generation (of students) takes computers for granted, but there are a lot of older people who didn’t grow up with computers.”

Hecker, who co-advises the student group with Deborah Becker, instructor of computer science, said her mother-in-law was given a laptop for Christmas and was in attendance at the class. “It’s been like a new toy; she is so excited.”

Helen Crawford showed up early for the class, but had to hurry in to find a seat. She said she already owns a computer, but she wanted to learn how to send pictures and emails to family and friends.

Albert and Zelma Smith came for the class because they were thinking about buying a computer. Zelma said they wanted to learn about email and the Internet.

After the class, audience members were invited to fill out a survey to list specific computer topics they may be interested in learning about in the future, and Spalding said they most likely will be holding more classes because of the survey results.

The profits from the books are funding the student group’s trip to the national collegiate conference for AITP in Oklahoma City next week. At last year’s conference, students brought home a first-place award for their web application project. This year, students were entering contests in artificial intelligence, office automation and application development; and Hecker and Becker were making a presentation as well.

Along with Spalding, David Haeker, a music major, and Ben Hacking, computer science major, taught the class.

Top of Page

Tower Sports

Baseball

• Win vs. Northwest Missouri State University, 8-3, March 29

• Win vs. Northwest Missouri State University, 8-1, March 29

• March 30 at Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, Mo., at 1 p.m. Doubleheader.

• April 1 at University of Nebraska-Omaha in Omaha, Neb., at 1 p.m. Doubleheader.

• April 3 vs. Emporia State at 6 p.m.

• April 4 vs. Emporia State at 1 p.m. Doubleheader

• April 5 vs. Emporia State at 12 p.m.

Softball

• Win vs. Missouri S&T, 7-4, March 24

• Win vs. Missouri S&T, 4-1, March 24

• April 1 at Truman State in Kirksville, Mo., at 2 p.m. Doubleheader.

• April 4 at Fort Hays State in Hays, Kan., at 12 p.m. Doubleheader.

Tennis

• Loss vs. Nebraska-Omaha, 0-9, March 27

• April 1 at Washburn in Topeka, Kan., at 2:30 p.m.

• April 3 vs. Missouri Southern State at 2 p.m.

• April 4 vs. Lincoln University at 1 p.m.

Men's Golf

• Placed 6th at Pasta House Drury Invitational in Springfield, Mo.

Up 'til Dawn Up 'til Dawn is a student-led program hosted on college campuses throughout the country. You can be a part of our campus' effort to support St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, the internationally-known center for research and treatment of catastrophic childhood diseases. For more information, please visit www.stjude.org. Want to get involved? There will be a team informational meeting at 5:30 p.m. March 30 in the Hoff Community Room, Blum Union room 218. Contact Lolita Murphy at lmurphy or call the CSE at 4159 for more information. Up 'til Dawn Awareness week is April 13-17.

FAFSA Reminder Help us help you – make sure your financial aid application is submitted by April 1. Fifty-three percent of students who did not complete their FAFSA before April 1 last year would have qualified for the Access Missouri grant. That could be $2,150 that you did not need to borrow to pay for school. See Financial Aid if you need assistance – Eder Hall Room 103. Visit www.fafsa.gov to fill our your FAFSA.

Nontrad Lunch On April 1st the nontraditional students invite you to have lunch with them at the nontraditional student center, Eder 200. For a donation of $2 you will receive a hot dog, chips and a drink. All proceeds from your donations will benefit the Nontrad Association and March of Dimes.

Softball Tournament The men of Phi Delta Theta are hosting their second annual Co-ed softball tournament to help raise money for ALS, better known as Lou Gehrig's disease. It will take place April 4 at the Bluff Woods baseball fields in St. Joe. The tournament will begin at 10 a.m. and will be played throughout the day on four fields. Cost is $80 per team; each team must be co-ed and have at least ten players on it. If you are interested in entering a team or donating to the cause or if you just have questions, contact Tyler Rhoad at 816-262-5907. All proceeds from this tournament will go to the ALS Association to fund research and find a cure for ALS. If you would like to find out more about ALS please visit www.alsa.org.

National Healthcare Decisions Day Faculty and students from the departments of nursing and history, philosophy and geography will be hosting an informational booth April 16 in Eder Lobby from 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. in recognition of the second annual National Healthcare Decisions Day (NHDD). Information related to advance directives and healthcare decision-making will be available. This effort is sponsored by Heartland Regional Medical Center's Ethics Committee and is intended to encourage all adults to make their wishes known in regard to healthcare decisions. According to the NHDD website, www.nationalhealthcaredecisionsday.org, "National Healthcare Decisions Day is an initiative to encourage patients to express their wishes regarding healthcare and for providers and facilities to respect those wishes, whatever they may be". A list of supporters and contributors to this effort is included on the NHDD website.
 

Top of Page

Monday, March 30

• Senate meeting at 5 p.m. in Blum 220

• Up 'til Dawn team informational meeting at 5:30 p.m. in Blum 218

Tuesday, March 31

• Residence Council meeting at 7 p.m. in the Commons Building

Wednesday, April 1

• Last day to submit FAFSA for financial aid

• Western Activities Council meeting at 4 p.m. in Blum 223

• Nontrad lunch in Eder 200

Thursday, April 2

• “Sounds of the Season” First Thursday Noontime Concert Series at 12:10 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church, 301 N. 7^th St.

Saturday, April 4

• Phi Delta Thetha ALS Softball Tournament begins at 10 a.m. at Bluff Woods

Top of Page

March 2009 Points of Pride

Excellence in Our Faculty and Staff

• Dr. Evelyn Brooks, professor of nursing, received a State of Missouri, Department of Mental Health, 2009 Youth Suicide Prevention Initiative Mini-Award Grant in the amount of $2,900. Eduardo Castilla-Ortiz, assistant professor of Spanish, will assist with the initiative.

• Dr. Cindy Heider, assistant vice president of academic and student affairs, was appointed to serve on the University of Missouri-Kansas City Higher Education Administration Program Advisory Board.

• Dr. Cindy Heider, assistant vice president of academic and student affairs, has been appointed to the Curriculum Alignment/Cross Disciplinary Competencies and LAMP Assessment Committee created by the Missouri Higher Education Chief Academic Officers.

• Dr. James Puckett, instructor of chemistry, was appointed as a National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) Summer Congress Planning Committee member. Dr. Puckett represented the NSTA District XI (Kan., Mo., and Neb.) at the NSTA Council meeting in Arlington, Va. In addition, Dr. Puckett served as a judge for the Toshiba/NSTA Regional Explor-A-Vision competition.

• Carol Roever, interim dean of Steven L. Craig School of Business, co-authored an article in the March 2009 issue of Business Communication Quarterly titled, “Team-Building Success: It’s in the Cards.”

• Dr. Michael Chiao, assistant professor of business, had his article, “Relative Accuracy of Analysts’ Earnings Forecasts Over Time – A Markov Chain Analysis” accepted for publication in the January 2009 issue of Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting journal.

• Dr. Vivek Madupu, assistant professor of business, authored an article titled, “How Did You Find Your Physician? An Exploratory Investigation into the Types of Information Sources Used to Select Physicians,” accepted for publication in the International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Marketing.

• Geo Sipp, associate professor of art, had four prints from his Algerian Series selected for exhibition at the Mini Print International of Cadaqués, Spain. The exhibition will be on view for 81 days before moving to the Galerie L’Etangd’Art in Bages, France. Other international venues have yet to be determined.

• Geo Sipp, associate professor of art, had four prints that utilized Solarplate printmaking techniques submitted for inclusion in the International Print Triennial-Krakow 2009. This is the largest presentation of contemporary print in Europe. The works will also be presented at the International Print Triennial in Vienna, the Print Triennial in Oldenburg, and the “PrintArt” Triennial in Vienna.

• Teresa Harris, assistant professor of art, recently had work accepted into the 2009 Kreft Juried National Exhibit at the Kreft Center for the Arts on the Concordia University-Ann Arbor campus. The mixed media piece was entitled “Congruency.”

• Dr. Vivek Madupu, assistant professor of business, presented his paper, “Barriers to Cross-Border Shopping and the Role of the Internet: A Netnographic Study of Canadian Cross Border Shoppers,” at the Academy of Marketing Theory and Practice conference.

• Dr. David Ashley, professor of biology; Dr. Cary Chevalier, associate professor of biology; Dr. Mark Mills, assistant professor of biology; and Dr. John Rushin, professor of biology; along with biology students Teresa Ausberger, Sandra Levy, and Mike Voltz, gave presentations and organized sessions at the annual Missouri Natural Resources Conference, held in Osage Beach.

• Dr. Mike Ducey, associate professor of chemistry; Dr. James Puckett, instructor of chemistry; and members of the Alchemist Club served as judges for the West Platte High School Science Fair.

• Victoria Sample, central stores and laboratory coordinator, presented a chemical safety and storage program titled, “Safety with a Twist!” to the Chemical Educators Association.   

• Kent Pickett, assistant professor of computer science, gave a presentation at Central High School’s Math Club on computer programming and simulation.

• Dr. Jennifer Hegeman, associate professor of mathematics, and Dr. Ken Lee, retired professor of mathematics, attended the 13^th annual Conference of the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators in Orlando, Fla. Dr. Hegeman and Dr. Lee presented a workshop titled, “I Can’t Pass Mathematics for Elementary Teachers, but I Want to be a Teacher.”

• Dr. Tingxiu Wang, professor of computer science, mathematics, and physics and department chair; gave a computer science, mathematics, and physics colloquium titled, “Methods Beyond Pre-Calculus and Calculus Textbooks.”

• R. E. Moore, director of developmental math, attended the annual conference of the National Association for Developmental Education. Moore made two presentations at the conference. One was a report on a study of mathematics placement practices and procedures at various colleges and universities and the other on Western’s use of the ALEKS program to help students be successful in general studies mathematics courses.

• David McWilliams, developmental math specialist, attended the 2009 National Association for Developmental Education (NADE) Conference in Greensboro, N.C. While there, McWilliams attended the NADE Certification Institute. NADE certification recognizes programs that meet or exceed criteria of good practices as defined by research and literature of the field.

• Dr. Jane Frick, professor of English, and Tom Pankiewicz, assistant professor of English, participated in the National Writing Project’s Annual Review in Berkeley, Calif. As reviewers, they wrote evaluation letters for NWP re-authorization grant proposals.

• Dr. Jane Frick, professor of English, conducted a workshop, “Replacing the Research Paper with an I-Search Project,” at Missouri’s annual Write to Learn Conference for teachers, grades K - 12. Also at the conference, Dr. Frick and Erin Walker, graduate assistant, coordinated the Missouri Scholastic Writing Regional Affiliate Awards Ceremony with Amy Lannin, Missouri University education professor. Over 100 students, parents, teachers, and authors, including novelist Chris Crutcher, participated in the ceremony honoring the 2009 winning writers, which were selected from 195 submissions from students at 60 schools throughout the state. Western is the primary sponsor of the Missouri Writing Regional Affiliate. Students submitted their contest entries to Prairie Lands Writing Project at Western. Area teachers scored the writings at Western in January with the winning entries selected in a third round of judging at the University of Missouri - Columbia.

• Dr. Brian Cronk, professor of psychology, gave a poster presentation, “Establishing a Collaborative Relationship with a Community Organization to Teach Statistics: Advantages and Disadvantages to Students, Faculty, and the Organization,” at the 31^st National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology in St. Petersburg Beach, Fla.

• Dr. Kelly Henry, associate professor of psychology; and Dr. Jim Bargar, professor of psychology, gave an invited presentation at the 31^st National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology titled, “CYA: Designing and Assessing Applied Learning Experiences to Minimize Risk Exposure.” Dr. Henry and Dr. Bargar’s talk was presented twice at the meeting in St. Petersburg Beach, Fla. They also served as part of the judging panel for awards given at that conference, judging 105 posters to select the winners of the Frank Costin Memorial Award for Excellence and the Society for the Teaching of Psychology Award.

• Dr. Elizabeth Hendrix, assistant professor of education, presented, “Laying the Groundwork for Public Life,” at the Auburn University College of Business in Alabama.

• Dr. Nannette Wolford, professor of physical education, presented an in-service for physical education teachers in the Kearney (Mo.) School District. Dr. Wolford provided updated trends in assessment, accountability, a cross-the-curriculum teaching and use of technology.

• Dr. Nannette Wolford, professor physical education; and Freda Allen, instructor of health, physical education and recreation; presented a workshop titled, “Quality Health and Physical Education 2009: GLE Activities and Assessments to Fit Your Curriculum,” for the Regional Professional Development Council in Maryville, Mo. There were 32 physical educators, health educators, and future physical education professionals in attendance.

• Dr. Nannette Wolford, professor of physical education, along with students in her Foundations of Physical Education and Elementary Physical Education Methods classes, coordinated the 2009 Jump Rope for Heart event for 13 elementary schools in St. Joseph. There were 400 jumpers who participated, raising $19,422.58 for the American Heart Association.

• Dr. Nannette Wolford, professor of physical education, and her Methods and Techniques of Dance and Gymnastics class completed a three-day session of working with 32 homeschooled children. The students in the class taught the children tumbling skills, partner and individual stunts as well as basic apparatus skills.

• Wonda Berry, director of recreation services and facilities, will once again direct the Missouri Valley AAU Basketball Tournament at Fort Osage on April 3-5.   

• Dr. Susan Hennessy, professor of French, organized and moderated an on-campus panel, “Surviving and Thriving in the Foreign Language Classroom,” for those considering a career teaching foreign language.

• Dr. Susan Hennessy, professor of French, gave a guest lecture on the works of French playwright Molière for the Kansas City Chapter of the Alliance Française and the American Association of Teachers of French.

• Western hosted the fourth annual conference on Applied Learning in Higher Education on Feb. 20 – 21.  Presenters include:

• Dr. Michael Charlton, assistant professor of English, presented “Publishing for the Public: Desktop Publishing and Service Learning.”

• Dr. Karina Vazquez, assistant professor of Spanish, presented a poster, “Working with Social and Cultural Representations: Concepts and Applications of Service Learning in Spanish in Different Social Contexts.”

• Dr. Stephanie Corder, assistant professor of nursing; Dr. William Russell, assistant professor of physical education; and Dr. Justin Kraft, assistant professor of health, physical education and recreation; presented, “G.A.M.E on Griffs!”

• Roger Voelkel, assistant professor of nursing; and Heather Kendall, assistant professor of nursing; presented, “Using Simulation to Improve Nursing Student Competence in Management of a Chest Tube Drainage System.”

• Deb Becker, instructor of computer science, and Connie Hecker, instructor of computer science, presented a poster titled, “Community Service-Based Applied Learning.” Students in their classes have designed a website application built for victims of abuse in conjunction with the YWCA of St. Joseph and the Buchanan County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.

• Venny Pruitt, director of Western’s Northland programs, is on the planning committee for the first “Star Business Partner Awards” to be presented by the Northland Education and Business Alliance. 

• Peggy Ellis, director non-credit programs and business and industry training, presented a professional development seminar for 27 Bank Midwest employees.

• Ron Cohen, resident hall director, presented programs to his Leaverton Hall residents on respect and confrontation.

• Dave Brown, director of the counseling center, was a guest speaker at the office of residential life’s professional staff development series. Brown conducted the short version of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator with the staff and helped them interpret their results. He then used the results to help them learn how to work best with each other.

• Matthew Gregg, student employment coordinator, coordinated a series of Hire Learning Workshops on three consecutive Wednesdays preceding the Career Fair for students to learn job search skills. A consultant on job search, Martha Davis, presented the first session. Tracy Fender with the Missouri Career Center presented the second session and a panel of employers from the St. Joseph area presented the third session. The students who attended were awarded Certificates of Hire Learning for their participation in the series.

Excellence in Our Students

• The Alpha Sigma Alphas were presented with the A.C.E. Award (Autism Connections & Education) for all the work they have done to raise Autism Awareness. This award was established this year, and the Alpha Sigma Alphas were the first recipient. It was presented to them at the ASA District Days in Kansas City in front of all of their Missouri peers and National Headquarters by Kathy Kelly, administrative coordinator for student development, who is on the Executive Board for the Autism Alliance of Northwest Missouri.

• The Griffon Gold chapter of the National Residence Hall Honorary (NRHH) inducted the following students into the organization: Tahani Atieh, Nick Button, Jordan Carney, Jamie Cunningham, Bridget Janssen, Kristen Miller, Hannah Parrott, and Ashley Wilcher. NRHH recognizes the top one percent of students in the residence halls, based on leadership and academic skills. The organization is dedicated to developing recognition, service and leadership programs in the residence halls.

• Leann Pridgen, art major, placed as a finalist in the 29^th Annual Student Photography Contest and Publication, sponsored by Nikon. More than 4,000 students from all over the world participated in the contest and only a small percentage of student work is accepted. The book, “Best of College Photography 2009,” will publish the selected photographs of all winners, honorable mentions and finalists.

• Diane Pace, a Western nontraditional student, is receiving one of two National Omicron-Psi Scholarships in the amount of $1,000.

• Bonnie Drees was elected to the Midwest Affiliate of University and Residence Hall Regional Board of Directors as the Regional Communication Coordinator of Special Projects at the No Frills Conference. Drees will oversee the website, maintain the listserv for the organization, and be responsible for public relations in the region along with other tasks described in her job description. Drees will officially take the position following the national conference in May 2009.

• Jonathan Thiele, psychology student, will have his paper, “Affect, Morality, and Reason: How Do People Make Moral Decisions?” published in the forthcoming issue of The Journal of Psychological Inquiry. The paper is based on his honors thesis done under the supervision of Dr. Phil Wann, professor of psychology.

• Biology students Teresa Ausberger, Sandra Levy, and Mike Voltz, along with Dr. David Ashley, professor of biology; Dr. Cary Chevalier, associate professor of biology; Dr. Mark Mills, assistant professor of biology; and Dr. John Rushin, professor of biology; gave presentations and organized sessions at the annual Missouri Natural Resources Conference, held in Osage Beach.

• Three nontraditional students gave a presentation at the National Association of Non-Traditional Students in Higher Education Conference, held in Lacey, Wash. 

• Erin Walker, graduate assistant, along with Dr. Jane Frick, professor of English, coordinated the Missouri Scholastic Writing Regional Affliate Awards Ceremony with Amy Lannin, Missouri University education professor at Missouri’s annual Write to Learn Conference for teachers, grades K - 12. Over 100 students, parents, teachers, and authors, including novelist Chris Crutcher, participated in the ceremony honoring the 2009 winning writers, which were selected from 195 submissions from students at 60 schools throughout the state. Western is the primary sponsor of the Missouri Writing Regional Affiliate. Students submitted their contest entries to Prairie Lands Writing Project at Western. Area teachers scored the writings at Western in January with the winning entries selected in a third round of judging at the University of Missouri – Columbia.

• Resident Council members, Brent Lockmiller, Bonnie Drees, Samy Northcutt, and Kayla Wymore, attended the Midwest Affiliate of University and Residence Halls No Frills Conference in Duluth, Minn. The yearly conference provides members of residence councils opportunities to network with other universities. Jen Kacere, resident hall director and resident council co-advisor, also attended.

• Jamal Ahmed, Michael Bennett, Phil Bluett, Leonard Lawson, Bonnell Roberson, Bryan Smith, and Darian Whilford attended the Big XII Black Student Government Conference in Lawrence, Kan. along with Kathy Kelly, administrative coordinator for student development.   

• Tiffany Porter has done an outstanding job volunteering with two Conversation Partners students.  She has mentored them in various ways, including advice about college. Conversation Partners is a Pass the Power Program.

• Ashley Mayhew is creating a new program brochure and assisting in developing a special event to celebrate Pass the Power’s 20 years of service.

Excellence in Our Programs

• The Western Institute was awarded $950,000 from the omnibus budget bill for a Western “Bio Bus.” The Western Institute’s mobile trainer will be re-outfitted with select scientific equipment. The bus will visit local schools to enhance interest in science education and careers. It will also be used for workforce development.

• Shannon Swanson, Western art alumnus, has achieved great success in her two years since graduating. Here are a few notes to highlight Swanson’s achievements:

• She was hired at HOK as a graphic designer in the environmental graphics department. HOK is the world’s leading sports architecture firm with offices in Kansas City, London, Hong Kong, New York, Singapore, and Brisbane, Australia. Their clients include 24 Major League Baseball franchises, 30 NFL franchises, 80 professional and civic arena clients, 40 soccer and rugby teams and 120 colleges and universities.

• During the fall 2008, she became the Signage Manager for the Super Bowl. She has been given the opportunity to repeat her manager position for 2009 Super Bowl.

• This spring, she is on the designing team for Kaufmann Stadium. She has been working on this project for two years.

• She completed her first solo project in Goodyear, Ariz. This involves two spring training facilities (one for the Cleveland Indians, one for the Cincinnati Reds). She completed the signage for all three locations.

• In a White Paper by McGraw-Hill Higher Education Publishers titled, “Rising to the Challenge: Overcoming Post-Secondary Mathematics Obstacles with Aleks,” Western’s Developmental Mathematics Program was used as a case study:  Using ALEKS in an Emporium Model.

• The admissions counselors have completed the Ready Set Go programs for the St. Joseph School District. Presentations were made at Bode, Robidioux, Spring Garden and Truman Middle Schools.

• Classroom Services held four demonstration sessions for faculty to view a prototype of a teacher station and presentation equipment that will be installed in Remington/Agenstein classrooms and labs following construction.

• The Spring Career Fair was held in Fulkerson Center with 60 companies participating. Among them were first-time participants in the sciences: Aerotek, Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Grafton Scientific and Plasma Biological Services. Over 300 students, alumni and community members participated. KQ2 featured the event on the 5 p.m. news. Grafton Scientific conducted on-campus interviews the following Friday. 

• The Education Expo was held in the Fulkerson Center, and more than 70 school districts were registered to attend. This is the largest teacher fair in the greater Kansas City region. Teacher candidates from Western, Benedictine College, Park University, University of Saint Mary and Northwest Missouri State University participated. Linda Garlinger, career services director, is working with education majors both on campus and in the Northland to prepare their credentials for the job search process.

• An Etiquette Dinner sponsored by Alpha Kappa Psi and Alpha Omega was held in Spratt Hall with 50 students in attendance. Nodaway Valley Bank and Enterprise Rent-A-Car sponsored the meal.

• Ellen Kisker, director of the nontraditional student center, was notified that the Eastside Rotary Club voted to give a $1,000 nontraditional student scholarship for the 2009-2010 year. This followed her presentation to the club about Western’s nontraditional students. Kisker will assist the club with the award. Two local PEO chapters also award scholarships in the amount of $1,000 each.

• Recreation Services will help host the YMCA/United Way Emergency Cup Classic Basketball Tournament. The Recreation Management 322 class will also be helping with that event to afford students an applied learning experience.

• Teams of students, representing 15 regional middle schools, competed in the annual MathCounts Competition on Western’s campus. Western mathematics major Adelaide Quaney was the guest narrator for the final countdown round. The competition is organized by the Society of Professional Engineers and hosted by Western. Dr. Steve Klassen, association professor of mathematics, is the MathCounts liaison.

• Dual credit enrollment numbers are complete. Fall 2008 enrollment total was 687, up two percent from fall 2007. Spring 2009 enrollment total is 250, an increase of 23 percent from spring 2008.

• During the month of February, Residence Council hosted a Superbowl party, self-defense demonstrations, and yoga night. Student Sterling Dorrell gave a concert in the food court as a part of the student concert series.

• During the month of February, Western residents participated in the following events:

• Sex in an Envelope – Scanlon Hall RAs Brent Lockmiller and Amber Adams hosted the program Sex in an Envelope to help residents make good choices when it comes to sexual education.

• Valentines Social – RAs Alyson Frazier and Adrianna Trice hosted a Valentines Social in Scanlon Hall.

• Black History Movie Night – RAs Alyson Frazier, Gary Weidemann, and China Thomas hosted a Black History Movie Night in Scanlon Hall.

• The Game of Life – RA Patrick Banks hosted a program for his residents called The Game of Life where Leaverton Hall residents received real-life scenarios of raising a family and were able to see how their lives would be affected if they found themselves in these scenarios.

• Rock, Paper, Scissors – RA Mercedes Hyman gathered Leaverton Hall Fitness Floor residents for a game of Paper, Rock, Scissors. This showed competitive residents how they can use their hands to win without physical contact and without sports equipment.

• The “N” Word – RAs Shaheed Hayes and LaKeitra Brown presented, The “N” Word, where Vaselakos residents watched a movie about the origins of the “N” word followed by a group discussion.

• The 5 Languages of Love – RA Shaheed Hayes presented The 5 Languages of Love, where Vaselakos residents learned the 5 Love Languages and watched a movie, “The Break Up.”

• Movie Nights – RAs Levi McClure, Lindsey Jackson, and Megan Wagner all hosted movie nights with the residents of Vaselakos Hall.

Top of Page

Wanted: One to two roommates wanted for a three-bedroom house. Five minutes from Western. Very nice home - $400-$450. You would have your own entrance and bathroom. Need someone ASAP. Call 816-387-6510 for more information.

For Sale: NASCAR Tickets! April 2009, Kansas Speedway, Craftsman Truck and Indy Car Series, 4 tickets each race. Half price - $25 per ticket. Email bjm1465@missouriwestern.edu for more information.

For Sale: KAWASAKI 2007 Ninja 250, blue, 2,500 miles, garaged, jacket and helmet included, $2,700. Call 816-671-9338 after 5 p.m. or email saffell@missouriwestern.edu for more information.

Needed: The Library is looking for a medium-size bookcase (3-4' wide x 4x5' high), metal or wood, for a project to be set up in the Commons Building. If any department can help, please notify Judy Noland at judnol or 4554.

Top of Page