Graduate College Showcase
Date: February 4
Time: 2–8 p.m.
Location: PSU Ballroom West
The Graduate College will host the first Graduate College Showcase! It is a wonderful opportunity for current Missouri State undergraduate students, as well as the residents of the Springfield community and southwest Missouri, to learn more about the graduate opportunities at Missouri State. All graduate programs will be represented, as well as a number of graduate student services, including: Office of Financial Aid, International Student Services, Office of Multicultural Student Services, Career Center, and more!
The Graduate College is asking faculty to share this information with their undergraduate students and their contacts at other universities.
More information can be found on the Graduate College Showcase web site:
http://graduate.missouristate.edu/Showcase.htm
From the Faculty Senate Chair
Rebecca Woodard, Faculty Senate Chair-elect, and I attended the fall meeting of the Missouri Association of Faculty Senates back in October. As I shared in a previous Communiqué, one issue that surfaced during our discussions with other Senate representatives from across the state was F + 1 (domestic partner/non-married household residents) benefits. Truman State University’s AAUP chapter and the University of Central Missouri’s Faculty Senate have been particularly active in developing resolutions. I want to update you on the latest information. The University of Missouri’s Equity Office is preparing a report for the University of Missouri System administrators regarding the impact of not providing domestic partner benefits on hiring. The faculty and staff across the four-campus system are being surveyed in early February about their benefits package, including the need for domestic partner benefits. I will have more information for you as it becomes available.
- Fall 2010 Blended Course Applications due to Deans on February 1.
- Annual merit reports due to departmental personnel committees on February 12.
- Public Affairs Professorship applications due to the Provost on February 15.
- Town Hall Meeting, February 24 at 3:30 in the PSU Theater.
- Enrollment period for the Faculty Retirement Incentive Plan, January 14–March 1.
An Ad Hoc Senate Committee is being formed to review the recent recommendation by the Academic Relations Committee to create an “additional online summary of instructor performance” separate from the iGrade Student Evaluation Form, using suggestions given by SGA. Faculty who are interested in serving on this Ad Hoc Committee are encouraged to contact the Senate office by January 30.
Margaret Weaver
Faculty Senate Chair, 2009-10
836-5360
The schedule of panels, panel titles, and panel descriptions are now available on the Public Affairs Conference website. The site will be continually updated as additional panelists are confirmed, panelists are assigned to sessions and special events are finalized. You will also find the biographical sketches of the speakers who have committed to participating in this spring’s conference. Please consider including plenary talks, panel sessions and special events in your syllabi for the spring semester.
Plenary Speakers:
| April 14 | Noon–1:15 pm | Plenary Session |
Mr. Adam Huttler |
| 7:30–9:00 pm | Plenary Session |
Mr. Bob McTeer |
|
| April 15 | 12:30–1:45 pm | Plenary Session |
Ms. Winona LaDuke |
| 7:30–9:00 pm | Plenary Session |
Mr. Raj Patel |
|
| April 16 | 10:00–11:00 am | Plenary Session |
Mr. Robert Kennedy, Jr. |
Thank you,
Dr. Mahua Barari Mitra
Provost Fellow for Public Affairs
Conference Chair
mahuabarari@missouristate.edu
Sustainability in the Curriculum Workshop: Toward Sustainability in the Curriculum at Missouri State University—CALL FOR APPLICATIONS
Sponsored by: Missouri State University, Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning
Workshop organizers: Lora Vess, Ph.D. (Department of Sociology, Anthropology, Criminology)
and Alexander Wait, Ph.D. (Biology)
The purpose of this workshop is to facilitate sustainability across the curriculum, by providing the resources and tools for faculty at Missouri State University to incorporate sustainability into the curriculum. This will be accomplished by training and facilitating twelve faculty who agree to one of the following:
1) Develop a new course on sustainability within their Department or College.
2) Significantly change an existing course so that it specifically addresses sustainability.
3) Participate in the development of a professional certificate in “sustainable development”, “sustainability” or “developmental practice”.
Faculty can either transform existing courses or develop new courses that address sustainability within the Missouri State University Public Affairs mission, or within a general framework that best fits the curricular change/addition.
Application selection will seek to ensure that there is a balance of participants from across the University. Each participant will be required to write a report that will be made public on how they changed/developed curriculum. Each participant will be required to attend one or more “green lunches,” which are held monthly, and give a 15-minute presentation. Brown bag “green lunches” are open to all faculty, staff, students and administrators, as well as the public. The application is available online.
Faculty Stipends: $500—Faculty who submit evidence of curricular changes in progress by August 2010 will receive $500. Faculty will be expected to send in a final report when curricular changes have been implemented, class tested, and assessed. Faculty will also have to agree by August 2010 to participate in follow-up presentations scheduled for fall 2010 and spring 2011.
Contact Information:
Lora Vess, LVess@MissouriState.edu, 836-5985
Alexander Wait, AlexanderWait@MissouriState.edu, 836-5802
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GA/TA Introductory Mentoring
Date: February 4
Time: 12–12:50 p.m.
Location: FCTL—LIBR 204
Facilitator: Dr. Eric Nelson, FCTL Provost Fellow for Teaching and Learning
Current and aspiring graduate and teaching assistants are invited to join.
This is the first meeting date for the GA/TA Introductory Mentoring. Participants will meet for 10 weekly meetings. You will receive the schedule at the first meeting in LIBR 204. Meeting dates and times will be posted on the FCTL website and the MSU Calendar of Events.
Meeting dates/times might be adjusted according to your class schedule and teaching assignments. However, meetings must begin during the first week of February. Please RSVP to fctl@missouristate.edu regarding meeting conflicts.
Participants will receive a free complimentary copy of McKeachie’s Teaching Tips: Strategies, Research, and Theory for College and University Teachers. Certificates for successful completion of this program will be awarded.
CNAS Public Lecture Series
Dates: February 23, March 23, and April 20
Time: 7:30–8:30 p.m.
Location: Temple Hall 002
Parking will be available in Lot 4, South of Temple Hall
The Magic of Chemistry
Date: February 23
Speakers: American Chemical Society/Chemistry Honor Society Student Affiliates and faculty advisor Dr. Diann Thomas, Department of Chemistry
Have you ever wondered how fireworks get their brilliant colors, or why glow sticks glow? Have you ever wanted to know how to write secret messages with “magically” appearing ink? The secret is in the chemistry! In this talk, several demonstrations of common (and not-so-common) reactions will be carried out and explanations of the chemistry behind the “magic” will be presented. Kids of all ages are invited to come and see some of the wonder that draws us back to the lab day after day.
Sensor Technology
Date: March 23
Speaker: Dr. Erich Steinle, Department of Chemistry
Specialized devices known as sensors are utilized in nearly all aspects of everyday human life. Smoke alarms, motion detectors, blood glucose monitors (for diabetics), anti-shoplifting measures and thermometers are just a few of the sensors that we rely on to monitor important information. For example, a smoke alarm uses a sensor to detect the presence of smoke and alerts people in the vicinity with an audible alarm. In this presentation, we will discuss current and future sensor technology, focusing on devices that we encounter daily. The last part of the presentation will focus on some of the sensor research occurring presently on the Missouri State University campus.
Alien worlds: Hot super-Earths, warm Jupiters, and the search for ET
Date: April 20
Speaker: Dr. Mike Reed, Department of Physics, Astronomy & Materials Science
Our view of the Universe fundamentally changed in 1995 when the first planet was found around another star similar to our Sun. At that point we knew that other, and probably billions of planets existed, making it far more likely that other life-friendly planets exist and we also found a place completely foreign to our solar system and counter to theories about making solar systems. Since then, over 400 planets have been found around other stars. These planets have challenged our theories about how planets form and have supplied prospects for places where alien life could develop. During this talk, I will briefly discuss how these planets are being found and why Earth-like planets are not being found. I will discuss the varied types of planets being found and how that compares to the leading theory of how our solar system formed. Lastly, I will talk about life outside of our planet and the ongoing search to answer that ages-old question, “Are we alone?”
Faculty & Student Seminar
Origin of the pro-Slavery, pre-Civil War Phrase:
“Sound on the Goose Question”
Date: February 1
Time: 4 p.m.
Location: Cheek Hall 102 (big room in Cheek Hall lobby)
Speaker: *Dr. Emmett Redd; Physics, Astronomy & Materials Science
All are welcome to attend!
Caution: The audience is alerted that a short segment of the seminar will evoke “Period Language” of the 1850’s Americana. This “Period Language”, while historically accurate, may be quite jarring, coarse, and offensive.
Abstract:
In October 1854, an Episcopal clergyman heard others questioning whether he was “sound on the goose” upon his return to Weston, Missouri. He termed it a “Strange cabalistic!” signifying its meaning was hidden. He afterward found out that it meant one was in favor of Kansas becoming a slave state, but never knew its origin. About 120 years later, I learned that no one knew its origin from a National Public Radio segment called, “A Word in Your Ear” by John Ciardi. His show piqued my interest and later internet searching which began to generate fruit in 2004. Sporadic searching through 2008 led to a widely reprinted story from a November 1853 Washington, DC, newspaper. It featured a former president’s politically-active son, a pro-slavery newspaper editor, and a local-politician’s trick phrase.
*Dr. Emmett Redd received his PhD from the Missouri University of Science and Technology (formerly, University of Missouri at Rolla). His research interests include Optical Neural Networks, Powering Electric Cars, and the Space Elevator. He teaches Electronics and Microcontrollers. His personal interests include ranching and leading Lindley Christian Church. He is a Professor.
