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Last update: 12/12/06

Vol. 38, No. 40, December 7, 2006 / Log Archive

Thursday is the 65th anniversary of Dec. 7, 1941, the "date which will live in infamy." If you haven't yet seen the day's Green Bay Press-Gazette, there was a nice remembrance quoting Pearl Harbor survivors on the battle, and author and History Prof. Andrew Kersten on homefront sacrifices and the military fallout. (A tactical "disaster," he says, for the attackers). In news today:

• Commencement basics
• OK for UW-Green Bay accessibility project got student boost
• Holiday sale
• Haynie earns grant for 'Culture of Food' course
• 'Food' sounds appetizing

• 'Greening of UWGB' is capstone topic
• Gore's movie here
• More public recognition for Journey to Jordan
• Hutchison returns from Italy, urban/historic preservation conference
• McCartney to talk area's 'brand,' downtown

• Mark your calendar for 'Social Class on Campus,' candid discussion
• A wheel of fortune for Kari Merchant
• It wasn't a bill collector
• 'Goose bumps' for Tony, a new hip for Dick
• Flores goes pro in Ireland

• Watch the Regents
• Admissions policies are hot topic
• Here? Not so much
• UW Faculty Senate endorses partner benefits
• Mutating spam

• Murderous schedule continues: Phoenix women host Iowa, Indiana State
• Outreach staffer on Downtown development
• Moore writing here
• Football arrives for MLK fundraiser
• Remember: Give a Kid a Book

• Reminder: Fuel Cell technology is Oxford topic Friday
• Reminder: Jazz Friday, Choral Sunday
• 'Tis the Season, Saturday
• Ecumenical Center rummage

Commencement basics
Mid-year ceremonies are 11:30 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 16, at the Weidner Center. Chancellor Bruce Shepard will preside over this, the University's 37th fall commencement. Names and numbers:

• About 379 students are eligible to receive degrees, including 17 master's degrees.

• The commencement speaker is Mark King, a 1981 graduate of UW-Green Bay who is now president and CEO of Taylor Made-adidas Golf. He was named Golf Industry Executive of the Year in 2001.

• Carolina Bacelis is the student speaker. A standout researcher, she will receive her bachelor's in environmental science and biology. She has also served as president of the Latin American student organization.

• The Alumni Association will present the Outstanding Student Award to Ellie M. Reich, Merrill, graduating with highest honors and a major in history and a minor in education.

• The Chancellor's Award for service on behalf of the University and community will go to Donald F. Harden, former UW-Green Bay associate chancellor.

• Two UW-Green Bay faculty members will be awarded named professorships for their outstanding scholarly work. Prof. Robert Howe, will receive the Barbara Hauxhurst Cofrin Professor of Natural Science. Prof. Lynn Walter will be appointed the Ben J. and Joyce Rosenberg Professor.

Additional details, including full writeups on honorees, will be posted next week.

State approves UW-Green Bay accessibility project, and students helped
The Division of State Facilities has approved a $146,500 project to make restrooms at UW-Green Bay more accessible for people with disabilities. The restrooms are located in the Cofrin Library, Studio Arts, Wood Hall and Instructional Services. The project will be completed in summer 2007. Former Social Work students Rachel Kelbert and Stephanie Duscher helped raise awareness of the need to make the restrooms more accessible, particularly for those in wheelchairs. (You might recall their poster and video from the Academic Excellence Symposium.)

Bookstore's Holiday Sale
It's today (Thursday, Dec. 7) and Friday. The annual Phoenix Bookstore Holiday Sale offers 25 percent off, storewide. We just saw Santa making his rounds in the Library. Ho, ho, ho.

Something to chew on: Haynie earns grant for 'Culture of Food' course
Congratulations to Prof. Aeron Haynie, English and Humanistic Studies, chosen the first recipient of the Instructional Development Council's new Advanced Course Development Grant. The grant provides support for Haynie to take an existing, content-variable course — Humanistic Studies 351: Interdisciplinary Themes — and put some meat on its bones as "The Culture of Food," to be offered for the first time in fall 2007.

Sign us up: 'Food' sounds appetizing
More on Prof. Haynie's proposal for "an exciting new interdisciplinary course that shows students how the humanities can help them understand the most basic aspect of their lives: food." Her abstract cites a litany of engaging issues: obesity, school lunch nutrition, contaminated produce, the mainstreaming of organics, global hunger, the fast-food industry, the origins of American food rituals and habits, food in literature and film, women's studies (why are some eating disorders so prevalent?), and more. The course would show how the humanities can be used to examine contemporary debates about scarcity, cultural difference, gender, ethnic identity... making important intellectual issues concrete and real to students, to "connect learning to life" in a very visceral way. The course is also likely to include a service-learning component (a trip to a food pantry, for example).

'The Greening of UWGB' is capstone topic for grad students
Next Tuesday (Dec. 12) at 6:30 p.m. in Rose Hall 250, the Environmental Science and Policy Program graduate students in the capstone class will present "Energy Sustainability: The Greening of UWGB." Their presentation culminates a semester-long project investigating ways to make the University more energy-sustainable in response to Governor Doyle's energy initiative. A poster session with refreshments will follow at 7:30 in the Rose Hall foyer. Contact Prof. Patricia Terry, chair of the ES&P graduate program, with any questions.

Gore's 'Inconvenient Truth' to be shown here
Wrapping up its film festival, the Sierra Student Coalition presents several free showings of "An Inconvenient Truth," the 2006 film hosted by Al Gore that issues a "global warning" about global warming. The first showing, at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday (Dec. 12) in Rose Hall 250, precedes the grad students' presentation (previous item). Additional showings are at 6 and 8 p.m. Thursday (Dec. 14 in the Union's Christie Theatre. For more, e-mail johnsoma@uwgb.edu.

'Journey to Jordan' cited in Congressional Record, international newsletter
UW-Green Bay's "Journey to Jordan" Institute, which sent 14 high school students to Jordan during the summer of 2006 for intensive Arabic language and cultural study, is drawing attention far and wide. In November, U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold cited the program in a statement for the Congressional Record highlighting International Education Week. Feingold also praised the ongoing relationship between UW-Green Bay and educators in Jordan. The full statement is online at http://feingold.senate.gov/~feingold/statements/06/11/20061113.htm. Earlier this week, the 10,000-member Association of International Educators sent word of the statement to its members through the association's online newsletter.

Hutchison back from Italy, global session on urban/historic preservation
Ray Hutchison, professor and chair of Urban and Regional Studies, joined scholars from Italy as well as Russia, Poland, Serbia, and Slovakia at an international conference in November hosted by the Romualdo Del Bianco Foundation at the school of architecture, Universita di Firenzi, in Florence. Hutchison is a member of an international working team discussing applications of new computer technologies to urban surveys and revisions to the Declaration on the Architectural Survey signed in Rome in 2000. Hutchison will produce an English translation of the New Charter for the Architectural Survey, as well as a Web site with links to various European Union as well as national and city charters on the Architectural Survey (historic preservation) and similar topics.

Area's 'brand' to be topic of next UW-Green Bay downtown lecture
UW-Green Bay's "Downtown Third Thursdays" lecture series resumes with Donald McCartney, senior lecturer in Business Administration, giving a public presentation Thursday, Dec. 14 on "Showcasing your assets: the Northeast Wisconsin/Green Bay 'brand.'" McCartney's free talk is from 11:15 to 11:55 a.m. at the Baylake Bank Learning Center, 301 N. Adams St. To register, e-mail skorczeb@uwgb.edu. For more on the speaker and topic, click http://www.uwgb.edu/univcomm/news/archive/2006dec.htm#downtown.

Mark your calendar for 'Social Class on Campus,' candid discussion
All staff and faculty are invited to hear Dr. Will Barratt, Indiana State University associate professor of education, speak about the impacts of social class on college campuses. His presentation is from 3 to 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 8, in Phoenix Room A. According to Dr. Barratt, social class is arguably the best predictor of student college choice and student success, yet it receives minimal attention on campuses. While first-generation students are a hot topic and college access is a prominent issue nationally, relatively few make the connection to social class issues. Barratt will offer a similar program again at 7:30 p.m. in the Phoenix Rooms. This program is sponsored by the Campus Life Diversity Programming Task Force and the Classified Staff Advisory Council. Look for more details in coming weeks, or contact Student Life at 465-2200 ext. 40.

A wheel of fortune it was, for Kari Merchant
With an interdisciplinary, problem-solving education... and an uncanny ability to think fast and identify words and phrases as they are revealed letter-by-letter... a young woman can go far these days. If you haven't yet heard, UW-Green Bay communication student and "Wheel of Fortune" contestant Kari Merchant won everything in sight during her recent game show appearance. A trip to Greece. A trip to Maui. A healthy $22,000 during the puzzle-solving competition. Then, an additional $100,000 during the "bonus" round. Press-Gazette coverage is archived at http://www.uwgb.edu/univcomm/news/page/thenews.htm.

It wasn't a bill collector
Kari Merchant, who told host Pat Sajak on-air that she'd like to be a TV anchor some day, appears to have a refreshing, straight-forward manner. Hers is the "diary-of-the-week" at the official "Wheel of Fortune" Web site. It includes her recollection of getting The Call:

"I wasn't sure if I was really going to be on the show. Then, one day I was in the underground level of my college talking to my sister on the phone. Because it's underground, I have very little reception, so I pretty much have to find one spot and stay in it if I want to hear. So, this really weird bill-collector-looking number beeps in on the call waiting. Jokingly, I said, "Laura, hold on, this might be Wheel of Fortune." Click http://www.wheeloffortune.com/contestant_diary.php.

'Goose bumps' for Tony, a new hip for Dick
Former Phoenix basketball coach Dick Bennett was scheduled to have hip-replacement surgery today (Thursday, Dec. 7). The AP story on Washington State's upset win over Gonzaga earlier this week played up the get-well gift provided by new coach Tony Bennett '92 and his dad's old Cougars team. Click http://wsucougars.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/recaps/120606aaa.html.

Flores' hoops-hopping journey continues
From the Dominican Republic to the United States and now on to a professional career in Ireland, Benito Flores has seen the world thanks to basketball. For an update on the former Phoenix player and volunteer assistant, click http://uwgbathletics.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/120606aaa.html.

The Regents are meeting! The Regents are meeting! And you can watch
If you want to. The Board of Regents meeting Friday (Dec. 8) will be webcast from 9 a.m. until noon. Click http://www.uwex.edu/ics/stream/regents/meetings/.

Admissions policies are hot topic
The Regents are discussing a revised Systemwide admissions statement that would continue to emphasize academic factors, but also consider other predictors of a student's success in college by conducting a "comprehensive review" of each applicant. That's a practice already in place at some campuses, but contentious at others.

An advance story outlines the issues you'll be hearing more about: http://www.appletonpostcrescent.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061205/APC0101/612050577/1003/APCnews.

At UW-Green Bay, not a particularly problematic practice
Readers of "Inside UW-Green Bay" will recall an item in the most recent magazine noting that Admissions here has been using something called "comprehensive review" for some time, already. The upshot? All or nearly all high-achieving applicants get in, and access for late-bloomers and special-talent candidates remains possible. The short item is archived at http://www.uwgb.edu/univcomm/news/page/INSIDE3.htm#morenews.

'UW-Madison Faculty Senate endorses partner benefits'
Although the university is prohibited from offering domestic partner benefits, UW-Madison's Faculty Senate recently passed a resolution favoring such benefits, in part to aid efforts to recruit and retain employees. Click http://www.dailycardinal.com/news/uw-madison-faculty-senate-endorses-partner-benefits.html.

Globally, spam grows
Saw this item recently: Spam-filtering company IronPort Systems says spam doubled from last year to this, now representing more than 90 percent of all e-mail traffic. Much of the increase is attributable to image spam, which does an easy end run on low-end filters. The article is online at C-Net, http://news.com.com/2100-7355_3-6141262.html.

Murderous schedule continues: Phoenix women host Iowa, Indiana State
Way back when, when UW-Green Bay went Division I, it was billed in part as a chance for campus and community to see the Phoenix vs. the best teams in the country. In 25 years, there's seldom been a better example of that than Kevin Borseth and this year's women's basketball team. Nine straight games against teams who went to the NCAAs or WNIT last year! Thursday, it's 7-2 Iowa at the PSC for the 3-3 Phoenix. Saturday, it's tough Indiana State. Click http://uwgbathletics.cstv.com/.

Outreach staff member offers two cents on Downtown development
Outreach staff member Dan Moore is an active community volunteer who is chairperson of Downtown Green Bay Inc.'s Urban Design Committee. His perspective on downtown development was featured on the editorial page of the Dec. 6 Green Bay Press Gazette. Among his comments:

"Cities that embrace change and persistently guide that change through informed design are rewarded with not only engaging public spaces, but also a civic can-do attitude that permeates their community's response to changes of all kinds." See http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061206/GPG06/612060600/1269.

Moore writing here
Dan Moore shares his thoughts at the Web site DowntownVital.org he founded and maintains. A more fleshed-out "editorial" on the subject above is posted at http://www.downtownVital.org/html/editorial1129.htm.

The Football is now here, for MLK fundraiser
The Football is in the display case outside the American Intercultural Center (Room 207 Cofrin Library), and the silent auction is now under way, through Dec. 15. As we told you the other day, the goal is to raise money for the upcoming Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. community celebration. The marquee item is a Green Bay Packers' 2006 Collectors' Series Football with logo marking the 10th anniversary of the Super Bowl victory in New Orleans. Please stop by the AIC, CL 207, during business hours (8-4:30) to write in a bid. Winner will be notified by phone and have three days to make arrangements to pay for and pick up the item. Questions? Please call 465-2720.

'Tis the season to be readin': Give a Kid a Book
Check out the Phoenix Bookstore sale (item No. 5, above) and be reminded that the Cofrin Library is collecting for the Brown County Library's "Give a Kid a Book" Campaign through this Friday (Dec. 8). The donation box is located on the Plaza level of the library, across from the elevators. The books will be distributed to thousands of children in low-income families right here in this area. The staff of the Cofrin Library strongly encourages everyone on campus to donate a book to the campaign and share the gift of reading.

Reminder: Fuel Cell technology is Oxford topic on Friday
It's true: Combine hydrogen fuel with oxygen air, and the PEM Fuel Cell creates electricity without combustion. That's the topic of a UW-Green Bay "Oxford Lecture Series" session by Prof. Atife Caglar, mathematics, at 11 a.m. Friday (Dec. 8) in Room 328 of the Environmental Sciences building. Click http://www.uwgb.edu/univcomm/news/logarchive/logarchive38/2006dec4.htm#fuelcell.

Reminder: Jazz on Friday, Music of the Season on Sunday
The UW-Green Bay Jazz Ensembles perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 8 at the University Theater. Click http://www.uwgb.edu/univcomm/news/archive/2006dec.htm#jazz.

The UW-Green Bay Concert Choir and Phoenix Chorale will perform at 7:30 p.m. Sunday (Dec. 10) at the Weidner Center. Click http://www.uwgb.edu/univcomm/news/archive/2006dec.htm#choral.

'Tis the Season, this Saturday at Union
It's a fun, family event, click http://www.uwgb.edu/union/assets/images/timesensitive/tistheseason.pdf

Ecumenical Center continues to promote rubbish
Oops — that's not at all accurate, and makes it sound like a Richard Dawkins column — we meant, of course, "rummage." And they'll have plenty of it, and good stuff, too, at next weekend's sale: http://www.uwgb.edu/univcomm/news/logarchive/logarchive38/2006dec4.htm#rummage.

The Log News is a twice-weekly publication e-mailed to all UW-Green Bay faculty, staff and off-campus subscribers on Monday and Thursday afternoons, and to students as news warrants.

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