October 16, 2003

1. Bruininks announces academic priorities
2. Quality of entering freshmen on the rise
3. Alumni Association hosts homecoming weekend events
4. A course for the puppies
5. Managing fall leaves
6. Two servings from new opera director
7. Health problems plague childhood cancer survivors
8. U of M Happenings
9. Links

U NEWS

Bruininks announces academic priorities
In his Oct. 2 State of the University address, University of Minnesota President Bob Bruininks spoke about the opportunities facing the University in a time of “fiscal austerity” and the challenges this time presents. Among the opportunities, he identified eight academic areas for focused investment of new and existing resources.

President Robert Bruininks

Bruininks said the University will be seeking state support to focus on the biosciences and biotechnology; environment and renewable energy; translational research in human health; healthy foods, healthy lives; and brain development and vitality over the life span. The other three academic areas--children, youth, and families; arts and humanities; and law and values in health, environment, and the life sciences--will be supported through private gifts and the reallocation of existing resources.

These priorities represent opportunities for the University to build upon its successes, and they “are central to our land-grant mission and research enterprise and reflect the needs and resources of Minnesota,” Bruininks said.

Bruininks also announced the creation, with private funds, of the President’s Interdisciplinary Conference Series. The goal of these eight to 10 academic discussions would be to bring scholarly experts together to help the University connect emerging research to public concerns.

The challenges he noted include declining state appropriations, higher costs for employee health care premiums, competition for top faculty, and additional cost for services related to technology, laboratories, and student services. The University has already eliminated more than 500 positions and raised tuition by double-digit percentages. University employees will also see a wage freeze this year and pay more for health care (subject to negotiations with represented employees). For the complete State of the University address, see www.umn.edu/pres.

--University of Minnesota News Service

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Quality of entering freshmen on the rise
The University is attracting more and better students, as measured by enrollment, high school rank, and ACT scores.

This year, the average high school percentile rank of freshmen on the Twin Cities campus is 79.9, up from 77.8 last fall and up nearly 10 percentage points since fall 1990. The average ACT score went from 22.8 last year to 24.8.

“This is great news,” says University President Bob Bruininks. “Demand from outstanding students is stronger than ever, reflecting the high-quality academic experience the University offers at an affordable price.”

University-wide enrollment figures for fall 2003 are up to 63,769 from 62,789 last year. Enrollment of freshmen students of color has also increased, from 14.5 percent to 16.1 percent (with an increase of 20.8 percent on the Twin Cities campus). At 49,474, enrollment on the Twin Cities campus will likely again be the third largest of any U.S. campus, behind the University of Texas at Austin and Ohio State University. For the first time, enrollment on the Duluth campus has topped 10,000 and enrollment in Crookston’s baccalaureate programs is at a record 1,000.

More students on the Twin Cities campus are also on track to graduate in four years. The average credit load for undergraduate students is now 14.2, up from 13.3 in fall 2001 and13.9 last year. This increase is attributed to the fall 2002 implementation of a 13-credit tuition band (“band,” in this case, means students who take more than 13 credits pay no additional tuition) and a 13-credit minimum requirement for new students.

“Raising graduation rates is an important University priority,” says Craig Swan, vice provost for undergraduate education, “and it appears that the policies we’ve put in place to achieve this goal are working.”

For detailed enrollment data, see www.irr.umn.edu.

--University News Service

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Alumni Association hosts homecoming weekend events
Nearly 150 unique items, from a wine and chocolate party at Chocolat Celeste to a truckload of compost, will be up for bid at the University of Minnesota Alumni Association’s (UMAA) first Spirit Night Scholarship Auction on Friday, Oct. 31, 5-8 p.m. at the McNamara Alumni Center.

In addition to the wine and chocolate party and the truckload of the University’s finest compost, auction items will include a limo ride to and from a men’s Gopher basketball game, where you’ll sit next to President Bob Bruininks; a customized cooking class for six at Betty Crocker Kitchens; a tour of the National Weather Service Forecast Office; and a chance to drive the Zamboni at a Gopher hockey game of your choice. For a complete list of auction items or to learn more about the auction, see www.alumni.umn.edu/homecoming.

And on Saturday, Nov. 1, the Alumni Association will host a homecoming breakfast, Gopher Road Show, and Membership Expo from 8-10 a.m. in the Sports Pavilion, before the homecoming parade passes by on University Avenue. Guests are encouraged to bring their U of M memorabilia--pennants, pins, programs, and posters--to be appraised by Gopher Road Show experts. The cost of the breakfast is $5 for UMAA members, $7 for nonmembers, and $3 for children under 10. The UMAA breakfast is sponsored by Emerald Gardens in collaboration with the College of Agricultural, Food, and Environmental Sciences and the University Parent Program. For more information, visit www.alumni.umn.edu/homecoming.

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A course for the puppies
With activities like “pass the puppy” and “puppy playtime,” the Puppy Classes taught by University of Minnesota veterinary students are so much fun that it’s easy to overlook the animal behavior principles that underlie each exercise.

Since 2002, students from the University of Minnesota Behavior Club in the College of Veterinary Medicine have played an integral role in teaching the very popular course offered by the U’s Veterinary Medical Center. The students complete a 14-hour training program and work with puppies under the supervision of U veterinarian Pam Hand and animal behaviorist Petra Mertens, both of whom developed the Puppy Class curriculum.

“Our hope is that students who graduate from University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine will be advocates of puppy socialization classes within the veterinary profession,” Hand says. Socializing a puppy, she adds, is crucial to preventing many behavior problems, including aggression towards humans and other dogs.

“For dogs, puppyhood is either a stepping stone or a stumbling block,” says junior Donnell Hofeld. “Puppy classes are one of the most valuable things people can do for and with their dogs. [The owners] learn about fun, safe, and effective training methods and get a dog that is well-mannered and socialized--a pet they can be proud of.”

In addition to working with a variety of dog breeds, Hofeld says that teaching a class allows her the chance to hone her communication skills with pet owners. “I gain invaluable experience interacting with--and hopefully improving--both the animal and human aspect of veterinary medicine,” she says.

Each Puppy Class consists of five, 75-minute sessions. Puppies must be between 7 and 14 weeks old at the first class and should be current on vaccinations and veterinary health exams.

The next two Puppy Classes will start on Wednesdays, Oct. 22 and Nov. 19, at 7 p.m. in the Small Animal Hospital on the Twin Cities campus in St. Paul. The cost is $55, which includes 5 sessions and free handouts. Books, training aids, and toys will be available for sale at the classes. To register or for more information, call 612-624-0797.

Edited from an original story by Sue Kirchoff in Profiles, fall 2003.

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Managing fall leaves
It’s time again to don the warm fall jackets and rake the leaves. The following are some tips from the University of Minnesota Extension Service for managing leaves in your yard.

Halbach says your last fall fertilizer application should go down about Oct. 27. Leaves are high in carbon, and “a carbon-to-nitrogen ratio of about 30-to-1 is ideal to speed decomposition of leaf chips,” he advises. To calculate the amount of actual nitrogen in your fertilizer, see www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/horticulture/DG3338.html.

Halbach and Extension educator Robert Mugaas have written Options for Disposing of Leaves, which discusses your choices for at-home and off-site disposal. This publication (item number 5570) and other U of M Extension Service publications on composting, mulching, and home yard chippers and shredders are available free online at www.extension.umn.edu, or for a fee when you order a print copy by phone, 800-876-8636 or 612-624-4900.

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Two servings from new opera director
A pair of seldom-performed operas--a satire and a parody--will mark the University of Minnesota’s 2003-04 opera season and second year at the helm for new University opera theatre director David Walsh.

University Opera Theatre and Workshop director David Walsh (center) with some of his students during a dress rehearsal. Photo by Diana Watters

Benjamin Britten’s chamber opera Albert Herring will open on Thursday, Oct. 30, at 7:30 p.m. in Ted Mann Concert Hall on the Twin Cities campus in Minneapolis. This dark but comic satire examines the theme of outsider in an unforgiving world. The story of a simple grocer boy from a small English village who is crowned May King (in the absence of a suitably virtuous May Queen) “is the antithesis of grand opera,” says Walsh, who replaced long-time opera theatre director Vern Sutton last year. Yet despite this contrary, Albert Herring has captured the imagination of opera audiences for more than 50 years.

Additional performances are Friday, Oct. 31, and Saturday, Nov. 1, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 2, at 2 p.m. Walsh will lead a thought-provoking preview discussion in the lobby 45 minutes prior to each performance. Tickets are $13 to $15 and can be reserved by calling 612-624-2345.

Two U of M orchestral students practice for the opera.

The season will continue in early April with Jacques Offenbach’s final work, The Tales of Hoffmann. Bizarre but fascinating, this parody of artistic genius is an eloquent testimony to Offenbach’s own quest to achieve greatness. The Tales of Hoffmann follows the life of a poet as he goes through lost loves and experiences insanity and drunkenness.

“The idea this season is to delight audiences while giving students an education experience they can really use,” says Walsh, who also teaches opera history, acting, and directing at the U. A native of Canada, Walsh has had a professional directing career spanning more than 25 years and two continents.

To read more about Walsh, see www.music.umn.edu/newsinfo/press_12.htm. To learn more about the U’s opera theatre program, see www.music.umn.edu/degrees/degreesensembles.htm or e-mail walsh057@umn.edu.

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Health problems plague childhood cancer survivors
About 44 percent of childhood cancer survivors face moderate to severe problems with anxiety, pain, regular activity, general and mental health, according to a nationwide study coordinated by the University of Minnesota Cancer Center.

Researchers compared the health status of 9,535 adult survivors of the most common forms of childhood cancer, including leukemia; brain, bone, and kidney tumors; Hodgkin’s disease; and soft-tissue sarcoma with a randomly selected group of the survivors’ siblings. They discovered that the cancer survivors were significantly more likely to report adverse general health (2.5 times more likely), adverse mental health (80 percent more likely), activity limitations (2.7 times more likely), and functional impairment (5.2 times more likely), compared to their siblings.

The study also revealed that, despite the large number of survivors affected by adverse health, 88 percent of all patients still reported that they considered their health to be good, very good, or excellent.

“The general health as perceived by adults surviving childhood cancer is very good, with only 10.9 percent reporting fair or poor health, [yet] long-term adverse effects in specific aspects of health were relatively common,” reported the researchers. “Factors that were associated with impaired health status included being female, not completing high school, having a household income less than $20,000, and having a diagnosis of bone tumor, central nervous system tumor, sarcoma, or Hodgkin’s disease.”

The study is published in the September 24 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association.

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U OF M HAPPENINGS

Life lessons from wheelchair-bound athlete
Former paralympian Judy Siegle of Fargo, N.D., will speak about “Living a Life that Matters” and discuss “Ten Strategies for Overcoming Obstacles in Your Life” on Monday, Oct. 20, at noon and 1 p.m., respectively, in Brown Dining Room on the Crookston campus. Siegle has set several national wheelchair racing records and competed as a member of the 2000 U.S. Paralympics Team. Both events are free and open to the public. For more information, call Laurie at 218-281-8587.

Politics of health care
The Humphrey Institute Policy Forum’s fall conference, “The Politics of Health Care: Prescriptions for Change,” will feature Colorado Governor Richard Lamm, author of The Brave New World of Health Care, and Doug Badger, President Bush’s health care policy adviser. The conference begins with a dinner and a keynote address on Wednesday, Oct. 22, at 6 p.m. and continues on Oct. 23, 8 a.m.-1:30 p.m. For complete program and registration information, call Liz at 612-625-8330 or see www.hhh.umn.edu/centers/policy-forum.

The classics at Morris
The 5th annual Morris Classic Film Festival will run Oct. 23-26 at the theatre on the Morris campus. The offerings this year are Funny Face on Thursday, Oct. 23, at 7 p.m.; The Maltese Falcon on Friday at 7 p.m.; The Wizard of Oz on Saturday at 2 p.m.; The Bicycle Thief on Saturday at 9 p.m.; and Lifeboat on Sunday at 7 p.m. Tickets are $3 ($2 for seniors and under 18) for each movie or $10 ($7.50) for a five-movie pass. Tickets are available in the student activities office or at the door. To learn more, call 320-589-6080.

Money: saving and giving
If you’re a woman and want to learn more about financial management, philanthropy, and estate planning, then mark your calendar for Saturday, Oct. 25, 8:30 a.m.-1 p.m. The U of M Women’s Philanthropic Leadership Circle is sponsoring a workshop by author Ruth Hayden and former estate planning lawyer Robert Peterson at Coffman Memorial Union on the Twin Cities campus in Minneapolis. The cost, which includes breakfast and lunch, is $15 for circle members and $25 for nonmembers. Space is limited; register by Monday, Oct. 20. Call Betty Jo at 612-625-1310. For information about the leadership circle, see www.education.umn.edu/giving/circle/default.htm .

Hooray for traffic jams… or not
The U’s Center for Transportation Studies is challenging drivers in the Twin Cities to view congestion in a different light--as a sign of a successful, thriving city--during its fall luncheon seminar, “Traffic Congestion: Annoying Friend or Dangerous Foe?” on Tuesday, Oct. 28, 11:30 a.m.- 1:30 p.m. at the Radisson Hotel Metrodome in Minneapolis. Tickets are $30 ($10 for students). To register or learn more, see www.cts.umn.edu/news/2003/08/luncheon.html.

Bird feeding 101
Want to get the most out of backyard bird feeding? Then sign up for the Raptor Center’s bird-feeding workshop on Sunday, Nov. 9, 2-4 p.m. on the Twin Cities campus in St. Paul. The cost for the workshop is $7 ($5 for children), or you may buy one of the following packages, which include the workshop fee, a donation to the center, and a gift to help you feed birds in your yard: $20 Goldfinch Level, $40 Chickadee Level, or $75 Woodpecker Level. To register or learn more, call 612-624-4745.

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LINKS

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