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Vol. XXXVIII No. 34; October 29, 2008
Editor: Adam Overland, brief@umn.edu
Inside This Issue
--Election day is Nov. 4, and President Bob Bruininks and Provost
Tom Sullivan encourage everyone to vote.
--Employee Health and Benefits Fair 2008 provides an opportunity
for U employees to talk to benefits staff.
--People: Michael Darger received Dean's Award for Distinguished
Outstanding Leadership, and more.
Campus Announcements and Events
University-wide | Crookston |
Duluth | Morris | Rochester | Twin Cities
ELECTION DAY IS NOV. 4, and President Bob Bruininks and Provost Tom Sullivan encourage everyone to vote. Record voter turnout and long lines at the polls are expected, so please plan accordingly. Polls are open 7 a.m.-8 p.m. Minnesota Statute 204C.04 allows for employees to be absent from work during the morning of Election Day for purposes of voting. If you think you may miss work, try to let your supervisor know ahead of time. To find out where your polling place is located or how to register to vote, visit the Minnesota Secretary of State Voter Information Web site.
EMPLOYEE HEALTH AND BENEFITS FAIR 2008 provides an opportunity for U employees to talk to benefits staff and representatives from the health and retirement plans about benefit options. Nov. 5, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Great Hall, Coffman Union; Nov. 6, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., UMD Kirby Student Center; Nov. 7, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Oyate Hall, UMM Student Center; Nov. 11, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m., North Star Ballroom, St. Paul Student Center.
PEOPLE: Michael Darger received the Dean's Award for Distinguished Outstanding Leadership; Marla Reicks was presented with the Dean's Award for Distinguished Campus-based Faculty; assistant director of the multi-ethnic program Mike Miller received two awards during the 24th Annual Minnesota Indian Education Association Conference; The U ranked 9th on a list of the 100 most-cited universities in the field of management over the last 25 years in a recent Journal of Management article. Read about these and more awards and appointments in People.
CAMPUS ANNOUNCEMENTS AND EVENTS
AMERICAN TRANSPORTATION POLICY will be the presentation topic at the Center for Transportation Studies (CTS) annual fall luncheon. Bruce Seely, historian of technology and dean of Michigan Technological University's College of Sciences and Arts, will be this year's speaker. Nov. 6, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Radisson University Hotel. For more information and registration, see transportation policy. CTS is a division of System Academic Administration.
A NEW ACADEMIC TECHNOLOGY, iTunes U, is coming to the U in November. In preparation, "iTunes U and Beyond: Perspectives of Faculty" will be the next session of the TEL (Technology-Enhanced Learning) Seminar Series. Faculty members will talk about their experiences using iTunes U and discuss how to move beyond recording lectures to using iTunes U as an outreach and dissemination tool. TEL seminars are free and open to the public. Nov. 4, noon-1:30 p.m., 101 Walter Library. For more information, see TEL seminars.
NOV. 6 IS THE DEADLINE FOR QUALITY FAIR POSTERS AND WORKING SMARTER IDEAS. Departments that want to share quality improvement projects should apply online. Awards for the best posters will be announced at the fair on Feb. 5, McNamara Alumni Center. For more information and to apply, see Quality Fair.
AR-BOO-RETUM! This Halloween theme at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum will take place Oct. 31, 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Bring your little ghosts and goblins and enjoy special Halloween events and activities. Free admission to those in costume. For more information, see Ar-Boo-Retum!
U OF M YOUTUBE: University of Minnesota Extension educators answer all types of questions from farmers all over the state--including questions about goats. From cheese to milk, goats are a growing part of the Minnesota farming economy. For more information, see Goats are the way to go.
THE UMC LEARNING ABROAD OFFICE OFFERS "CHINA CORNER" for those interested in learning or expanding knowledge of the language. Tuesdays, 4-5 p.m., Northern Lights Lounge, Sargeant Student Center. Open to the public. For more information, see China Corner.
A RECOGNITION OF ACCOMPLISHMENT BREAKFAST FOR FACULTY AND STAFF will take place Oct. 31, 7:30-8:30 a.m., Bede Ballroom, Sargeant Student Center. Chancellor Charles Casey will give remarks at 8 a.m.
AMERICAN INDIAN SKIES, offered by the Marshall W. Alworth Planetarium, is part of the planetarium's Stars, Galaxies, and Cosmology Series. Shows are for adults and children alike and combine short presentations with stargazing. Visitors are treated to a view of the sky using the Spitz A3P Star Machine. Free and open to the public. Oct. 29, 7 p.m. For more information, see stargazing.
FICTION WRITER AND UMD ENGLISH PROFESSOR JOSEPH MAIOLO will perform two readings from his original essay, taken from experience with the Cuban Missile Crisis, entitled "My Turkish Missile Crisis." Oct. 30, 7 p.m., and Nov. 3, 3 p.m. UMD Library Rotunda. Free and open to the public. For more information, see readings.
UMD's DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL WORK WAS AWARDED A $25,000 GRANT from the Lloyd K. Johnson Foundation to collaborate with the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa on a project focused on raising healthy American Indian children in Grand Portage. An additional $12,300 grant was received from the U's Office of the Vice President for Research to do similar work in Mille Lacs. The collaborators will use information from community elders, tribal human services, and other tribal professionals to develop training and parenting education materials designed specifically for each tribe. For more information, see American Indian children.
THE 13TH ANNUAL HAUNTED HALLS OF UMD, a community family Halloween event, will take place Oct. 31, 5-7 p.m. The theme for this year's event is "The Wonderful World of Disney." Activities for children include trick-or-treating, a Disney wonderland game room, cookie decorating, Disney karaoke, and Disney face painting. Children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. The event is sponsored by UMD Residence Halls. Check-in will be at the Lake Superior Hall Lobby, 513 Niagara Court. For more information, see Haunted Halls.
UMM TEAMS ACHIEVED FIRST PLACE in the primary competition and second place in a secondary competition during the 2008 Digi-Key Collegiate Computing Competition. This is the sixth consecutive year that a UMM team has placed in the top three at Digi-Key and the second win in three years. For more about UMM, see Morris News.
A LOOK AT THE FUTURE is the final event in the Minnesota Sesquicentennial series at Rochester. Hear from local futurist Stephen Troutman about the future of Minnesota--trends, demographics, medicine, education, and technology. Oct. 30, 7 p.m., 414 University Square. For more information, see Minnesota future.
UNIVERSITY WOMEN OF COLOR FALL WELCOME is a great way to meet and greet other members of the U community, find out what is planned for the year, and get involved with UWOC. This year's theme is "Taking Back Our Health: Issues Which Affect Communities of Color." The year's Tapestry recipient will be presented with the award at the event. Registration is required. Nov. 5, 9-11 a.m., Mississippi Room, 321 Coffman Union. To RSVP or request disability accommodations, e-mail UWOC by Oct. 30.
THE SECOND HARVEST HEARTLAND BENEFIT READING will take place Nov. 10, 7:30 p.m., Bell Museum. Novelist and short-story writer Charles Baxter, Edelstein-Keller Visiting Professor of English, will host the event. Dept. of English Creative Writing Program faculty Patricia Hampl, Madelon Sprengnether, Julie Schumacher, and Michael Dennis Browne will be featured. A $5 donation is suggested. Proceeds benefit Second Harvest Heartland, Minnesota's largest food relief agency. Additional Dept. of English upcoming events include readings by authors Junot Díaz (Oct. 29, 7:30 p.m., Coffman theater); Thomas Lynch (Nov. 3, 7:30 p.m., Cowles Auditorium); and Ethan Canin (Nov. 13, 7:30 p.m., Weisman Museum). For more information, see upcoming events.
WORLD USABILITY DAY, NOV. 13, promotes the benefits of usability engineering and user-centered design in Web applications. Planned events include presentations, an open house in the usability lab, adaptive technology demonstrations, and a panel discussion. Walter Library. For more information and a schedule of events, see Usability Day.
MINI BIOETHICS SCHOOL is a three-week course beginning Nov. 13, covering topics such as ethics and public health emergencies, health care professionals in interrogation, and stem cell research. The course is taught by the Center for Bioethics faculty and hosted by center director Jeffrey Kahn. Registration is $45. All classes are 6-8 p.m., 3-125 Mayo Memorial Auditorium. For more information and registration, see Bioethics.
HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH SEMINAR, "The Impact of Public Reporting on Post-Acute Care," will feature Rachel Werner, assistant professor of medicine, University of Pennsylvania, and core investigator with the VA HSR&D Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion. Dec. 4, 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m., 2-530 Moos Tower. For more information, see public reporting.
"THE GOLDEN ERA OF TANGO: MUSIC AND DANCE," take place Nov. 5, 4:30-5:30 p.m. Throughout its many years of transformation, one period in the history of tango truly shines: 1935-55, otherwise known as the Golden Era. Maximiliano Gluzman of Buenos Aires, Argentina will lecture. Refreshments will be served. For more information, see Tango.
MORE EVENTS include James Dillon's The Book of Elements with Noriko Kawai, piano (Oct. 29); An Evening with Todd Haynes and Greil Marcus (Oct. 29); Designing Effective Research Assignments Workshop (Oct. 30); Maroon & Gold Friday (Oct. 31); Halloween at the Bell: Animal Haunt and Spooky Flashlight Tour (Nov. 1); "Wall Street Corporate Culture: Investment Banking and the Making of Financial Crisis"; A discussion with Karen Ho (Nov. 2) "U.S. and German Health Care, 2006" (Nov. 4). SEE THESE AND MORE TWIN CITIES CAMPUS EVENTS.
Published by Internal Communications in the Office of University Relations at the University of Minnesota. Please send comments, questions, or submissions to the editor at brief@umn.edu. The deadline for submissions is noon on the Friday before publication. All Twin Cities event submissions are handled through the events calendar at http://events.tc.umn.edu.
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