October 19, 2010

Inside this Issue

From the Chancellor
Featured Events & Activities
Around Campus
Accolades

From the Chancellor

I know I often refer to certain times or events on campus as a special point in the semester or year.  To that point, we are currently midway in the fall semester.  The semester continues to go well even with daily or weekly issues that require attention.

I want to follow up on the incident of three weeks ago when three students suspended a wooden statue over the entrance to the Sargeant Student Center.  I want to assure the campus community such incidents are and will be taken seriously.  We will follow current policies for possible disciplinary action.  The students involved will be brought to the Student Conduct Committee this Wednesday.

Next week will provide an important opportunity to engage community members in a discussion about academic programs.  Several Program Improvement Audit Committee (PIAC) members will be on campus on Tuesday, October 26, to meet with program faculty and department heads.  The engagement of these individuals is especially important this year as we are doing our strategic planning.  The All College Advisory Council will also be meeting that day, and that group will engage in a similar discussion.

All members of the Advisory Council and PIAC members are invited to attend the Torch & Shield and donor recognition banquet that evening.   This event is one of the very special evenings of the year on campus.  Contact the Development Office for more information.

We recently received very good news regarding our retention rate for the class of fall 2009.  While we aspire to go higher, our rate increased slightly to just below 70%.  The better news is that we have reached the highest graduation rates ever achieved on campus.  Our four-year graduation rate for the class of 2005 and 2006 is 38.4% and 37.6% respectively.  Our five-year rate for the class of 2005 is 50.3%.  Our goal is a graduation rate for 4, 5, and 6 years of 40%, 50%, and 55% respectively.  We are getting closer to our goal and this is directly attributed to the dedication and hard work of our faculty and staff.

I will be off campus from October 27 through November 6 traveling to make a presentation at a higher education conference in Seoul, South Korea, and to visit the Seoul National University of Education (SNUE).  I will then travel to Hangzhou, China, to the Zhejiang Economic and Trade Polytechnic (ZJETP) to meet with administrators, faculty, and students.  The partnership with ZJETP is an ongoing one that will continue to enroll upper division students at UMC.  Kimberly Gillette, Ph.D., Sean Shin, and my wife Barbara will be traveling with me.  Jingpeng Tang, Ph.D., will join us in Hangzhou.

I wish you all the best as we continue with the semester.

– Chuck
Charles H. Casey, Chancellor
University of Minnesota, Crookston

Featured Events & Activities

National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week, Monday, October 18 through Friday, October 22

Second Annual Major Fair, Tuesday, October 19 – 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Sargeant Student Center

Meet the Candidates Forum, Tuesday, October 19 – 6:30 p.m., Kiehle Auditorium

One-Act Play:  “Help Wanted” Performed by Teatro del Pueblo, Wednesday, October 20 – 6 p.m., Kiehle Auditorium, free and open to the public

Golden Eagle Volleyball and Soccer “Locks of Love” Event, Friday, October 22 – 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., International Lounge, Sargeant Student Center

Admissions Hosts Campus Preview Day, Saturday, October 23 – 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Sargeant Student Center

All Campus Advisory Committee and Program Improvement Audit Committee (PIAC) Meetings, Tuesday, October 26 – various times and locations

Torch & Shield Recognition Banquet, Tuesday, October 26 – 5 p.m. reception, 6 p.m. program, followed by dinner, by invitation

Minnesota GreenStep Cities Program Informational Meeting, Wednesday, October 27 – 1  to 5 p.m., Bede Ballroom, Sargeant Student Center, open to the public

Impact 20/20 Rural Broadband Initiative Open Forum, Wednesday, October 27 – 6 to 8 p.m., Bede Ballroom, Sargeant Student Center, open to the public

For details on these and a comprehensive listing of other events or to discover what’s happening this week, visit UMC Today at www.umcrookston.edu/today or review our news page at blog.lib.umn.edu/umcweb/news.

Around Campus

Administrative Affairs –

The All Campus Advisory Council (ACAC) will hold its annual meeting on Tuesday, October 26, from 11 a.m. to noon and from 1:15 to 4:30 p.m. in the Minnesota Room of the Sargeant Student Center.  The ACAC will be joined by various Program Improvement Audit Committees (PIACs) for a noon luncheon in Bede Ballroom.  Following the luncheon, several individual PIACs will meet in various rooms across campus. The PIACs listed below have scheduled meetings to follow the luncheon.  Those PIACs not meeting on October 26 will meet at another time during the academic year.

Accounting PIAC - Kiehle 105 from 2 to 4:30 p.m.

Agricultural Business PIAC – Centennial Hall Conference Room from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Agricultural Systems Management PAIC –Sargeant Student Center 244 from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Agronomy PIAC – Kiehle Heritage Room(Kiehle 124) from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Animal Science PIAC – University Teaching and Outreach Center (UTOC) from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Aviation PIAC – Selvig 308 from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Criminal Justice PIAC - Kiehle 116 from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Equine Science PIAC – University Teaching and Outreach Center (UTOC) from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Hotel, Restaurant, and Tourism Management PIAC - Sahlstrom Conference Center 107 from 2 to 4:30 p.m.

Natural Resources PIAC – Owen 208 from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Sport and Recreation Management PIAC - Alseth-NWSA Board Room (Dowell Hall 116) from 2 to 4:30 p.m.

Academic Affairs –

A delegation from the New Century Learning Consortium (NCLC), a national consortium of small and mid-sized colleges and universities committed to high quality, vigorous online and blended learning initiatives, made a site visit to the Crookston campus on Monday, October 18.  The delegation included faculty members from the University of Illinois at Springfield, one of the charter member institutions of the NCLC.  They met with department heads, faculty, and staff to learn more about UMC’s online degree programs and related student support with the prospect for inviting UMC to join the NCLC.

Student Affairs –

October 18-22 is National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week.  Events throughout the week will focus on helping students making responsible choices.  Visit www.umcrookston.edu/umcnews for details about events planned for each day.

Fall Semester Convocation will be held Thursday, October 21, at 12 noon in Kiehle Auditorium.  Shawn Friedland, Crookston Student Association president, will serve as master of ceremonies.  The featured speaker will be Linda Kingery, director of the Northwest Regional Sustainable Development Partnership, who will address the partnership and its initiatives.  The U of M, Crookston Choir will perform musical selections under the direction of George French, associate professor of music; Chancellor Charles Casey and Vice Chancellor Tom Baldwin will recognize student academic achievement; and fall season varsity coaches will recognize their respective teams and provide team updates.

Register now to attend the U of M’s Second Annual GLBTA System-wide Summit scheduled for Friday, November 5 through mid-day on Sunday, November 7, on the campus of the University of Minnesota, Morris. The theme of this year's summit is "Sustaining ourselves and our communities: Honoring histories, sharing resources, and affirming identities."  Featured keynote speaker is renowned Anishinaabekwe activist, environmentalist, and author Winona LaDuke.  The purpose of this weekend event is to encourage system-wide networking, resource sharing, strategic planning, and visioning for campus climate change related to gender and sexual identity, as well as other intersecting social and cultural identities such as race, class, culture, age, ability, and size.  For more information and to register for the summit, please visit the event’s website: glbta.umn.edu/summit. Please RSVP to UMC’s GLBTA Programs Coordinator Kim Jorgensen (jorge382@umn.edu) to reserve a spot in a UMC vehicle for the trip.

Admissions and Enrollment Management –

New recruitment materials including a newly designed viewbook and general information piece have arrived and are being used by admissions counselors and staff.  The new pieces play off the theme “College Essentials” and feature bold images of macaroni and cheese, pepperoni pizza, and apples while providing information about the Crookston campus and its programs.  The overarching theme “Small Campus. Big Degree.” is still the main headline theme for campus marketing efforts.

Admissions will host a Campus Preview Day on Saturday, October 23.  Prospective students and their families will check in at the Sargeant Student Center by 10 a.m.   The schedule includes a welcome presentation by Admissions, campus tours, academic sessions, and lunch. 

International Programs –

Meredith McQuaid, associate vice president and dean of international programs at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, will visit the Crookston campus on Monday, October 25.  She will be joined by Joan Brzezinski, director of the Confucius Institute; John Romano, assistant vice president for international scholarship; and Molly Portz, chief of staff and faculty services.  The delegation will meet with UMC faculty and staff to discuss various international program initiatives.

Friday, October 29, is the deadline for proposals for the U of M’s Internationalizing the Curriculum and Campus Conference scheduled for March 25, 2011.  The call for session and poster proposals is now open for the second annual conference.  For more details, visit www.international.umn.edu/icc/icc_conference.php.

A delegation from the Crookston campus will travel to South Korea and China October 27 through November 6 to continue fostering relationships with Seoul National University of Education (SNUE) in Korea and Zhejiang Economic and Trade Polytechnic (ZJETP) in Hangzhou, China.  While in Korea, Chancellor Casey will speak at the Korean Education Research Association (KERA) International Conference and at SNUE.  The visit to SNUE will reciprocate a visit made by President Song of SNUE to Crookston last spring.  The time in Hangzhou will solidify the newly-signed software engineering program agreement with ZJETP and allow for greeting a new group of students who were admitted into the 3+2 program UMC has with ZJETP.  These students are working on their studies at ZJETP for the next three years in preparation to attend UMC in 2013.

Development & Alumni Relations –

The Torch & Shield Award Banquet is slated for Tuesday, October 26, in Bede Ballroom, Sargeant Student Center.  Registration and reception begin at 5 p.m., program at 6 p.m., followed by dinner (by invitation).  The Torch & Shield Award is the highest honor bestowed by the University of Minnesota, Crookston.  In addition to recognition of this year’s honorees—Phil Baird, Sue Brorson, Dave Hoff, and KROX Radio—the program also includes gift club recognition for lifetime and annual gifts.  U of M, Crookston Senior Jill Zelinsky will be the 2010 Torch & Shield student scholarship speaker.  Chris Mayr, senior director of development, will bring greetings on behalf of the University of Minnesota Foundation.  It is imperative that those who plan to attend RSVP by contacting Sue Dwyer at 218-281-8401.

University Relations –

Working with the academic department heads, University Relations has developed a series of ads that will run each day for the next two months in The Crookston Daily Times. Each week the ads, which appear in the upper right corner of the front page, will highlight two different degree programs from among those offered by UMC’s four academic departments.  The ads are intended to help inform the Crookston community about the full spectrum of degree programs now offered on campus.

Athletics –

The Athletic Department recognized the recipients of the 2010 Ed Widseth and Agassiz Bowl Scholarships on Saturday, October 16, at a breakfast on campus and at half-time of the U of M, Crookston and Northern State University football game.  The Ed Widseth Scholarship recognizes those qualities epitomized by Ed Widseth—outstanding athletic, leadership, and academic achievements.  A minimum GPA of 3.0 is required to receive this distinguished award.  The 2010 award winners are Ben McGraw of Wasilla, Alaska;  Luke Williams of Port Moody, British Columbia; Andrew Steinfeldt of Green Bay, Wis.; Josh Perea of Pico Rivera, Calif.; and Steven Perry of Poplar, Wis.  The Agassiz Bowl Scholarship, sponsored by Crookston Chamber Agribusiness, was presented to Shane Rasley of Deer River, Minn.

Golden Eagle Women's Soccer goalkeeper Anna Ogaard, a senior from Maple Grove, Minn., was named Defensive Player of the Week by the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) for the week of October 4-10.  Ogaard was stellar in net for the Golden Eagles recording ten saves as U of M, Crookston picked up their first win of the 2010 season on Saturday, October 9, defeating NSIC rival Minnesota State University Moorhead by a 2-1 score.  Her ten saves tied for single most in an NSIC game that week.

The UMC Western Equestrian Team will host eleven other teams at its annual home show on Saturday, October 23, and Sunday, October 24, at the University Teaching and Outreach Center (UTOC).  Saturday's events begin at 1 p.m. while Sunday's begin at 9 a.m.  Among those attending and competing with the Golden Eagles are Bethany Lutheran College; Ellsworth Community College; the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities; North Dakota State University; Ripon College; Rochester Community and Technical College; South Dakota State University; St. Cloud State University; the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire; the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse; and the University of Wisconsin-River Falls.

Accolades

Lhakpa Gurung, a senior from Nepal majoring in early childhood education, has been selected as a recipient of the 2010 Tapestry Award presented by the U of M’s University Women of Color Council.  She was cited for her outstanding contributions to diversity and equity and for having “gone beyond all expectations to exert enormous leadership on campus, and [having] fostered a climate of inclusiveness, respect, innovation and collaboration in service to social justice.”  She will be publicly recognized at the organization’s Annual Fall Welcome Breakfast on Thursday, October 21, in the Mississippi Room of Coffman Memorial Union on the Twin Cities campus.

Natasha Kuhle, assistant athletic director and senior woman administrator at UMC, has been selected to take part as a facilitator in the inauguralNCAA Student-Athlete Leadership Forum.  Only 30 college athletic professionals from Divisions I, II, and III were chosen to serve as facilitators for the forum, which will take place October 21-24 at the Disney Contemporary Hotel in Orlando, Florida.  The four-day event will engage a diverse and dynamic representation of student-athletes, coaches, faculty, and administrators and will provide pertinent and customized sessions to enhance personal awareness and leadership skills needed to impact student-athlete development at the campus and conference level and beyond the collegiate realm.

Publication notes:  The E-Update is published twice each month August through April and once each month May through July.
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If you have any questions regarding the information in this news update, please send them to urumc@umn.edu.

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