Vol. XXXVIII No. 11; March 26, 2008
Interim Editor: Pauline Oo, brief@umn.edu

Read Brief on the Web at http://www.umn.edu/umnnews/Publications/Brief/Brief_03262008.html.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE
--New financial system getting ready to launch
--University partnerships with community
--People: Pat Salmi and Laura Cooper recognized for outstanding work; and more.

Campus Announcements and Events
University-wide | Crookston | Duluth | Morris | Twin Cities

CUFS IS GOING AWAY when the U unveils its new financial system July 1. Enterprise Financial System team members are now testing the new system, which offers more flexibility in gathering data. About 2,800 U employees will be trained to use the system. Read "New financial system continues progress toward July 1 go-live."

PARTNERING TO MAKE HOPES AND DREAMS COME TRUE: The U's partnerships with Hope Community and Learning Dreams are two examples of the most common types of University-community partnerships: partnering with an existing organization and partnering with a community to create a new organization. Read "Partnering with Hope and Dreams."

PEOPLE: Pat Salmi, Institute on Community Integration research associate, received the Minnesota Homeland Security and Emergency Management Award of Excellence for Outstanding Teamwork; Legal Aid Society will honor Law School professor Laura Cooper for outstanding career contributions May 1; associate professor Linda Lindeke is the new president-elect of the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners. Read about these and more awards and appointments in People.

CAMPUS ANNOUNCEMENTS AND EVENTS

University-wide:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MINNESOTA. The U is hosting "Commemorating Discovery: Our Past and Our Future," four panel discussions to commemorate Minnesota's 150th birthday: "The Arts and the Built Environment: Changes in Suburban Life," April 3; "Agriculture and Forestry in the Natural World," April 10; "Changing Demographics: Snapshots of a New Minnesota and a New America," April 17; and "Changing World: Past and Present Threats to the Public's Health," April 24. All events are 5:30-8 p.m., Campus Club, UMTC. Free, but reservations are required because space is limited. To register or learn more about the speakers, see sesquicentennial talks.

U GIVES HONORARY DOCTOR OF SCIENCE DEGREE to alum Jack Dangermond, founder and president of ESRI, the world's leading GIS software company, April 2. He will deliver the inaugural John Borchert Lecture, "The Geographic Approach--A Cross-Cutting Methodology," 4:30 p.m., Memorial Hall, McNamara Alumni Center, UMTC, after the award ceremony. The lecture honors the late John Borchert, U Regents Professor in Geography and member of the U.S. National Academy of Science. Dangermond earned a master's in architecture from the U in 1968. Read the news release.

2008 DISTINGUISHED McKNIGHT UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS are Judith Berman, cell biology and development; Jeffrey Derby, chemical engineering and materials science; Sachin Sapatnekar, electrical and computer engineering; and Andreas Stein, chemistry. The Distinguished McKnight University Professorship Program, cosponsored by the Graduate School and Office of the Senior Vice President and Provost, recognizes outstanding mid-career faculty members whose scholarship brings particular distinction to the U. The Board of Regents will recognize the recipients May 9. For more information, see McKnight grants.

PRESIDENT'S FACULTY MULTICULTURAL RESEARCH AWARD RECIPIENTS are Melissa Avery, Ananya Chatterjea, Tracie Collins, Shonda Craft, Kale Fajardo, Enid Logan, Sarah-Jane (Saje) Mathieu, Ruby Nguyen, Yuichiro Onishi, and Teresa Swartz. The awards, sponsored by the Office of the Vice President and Vice Provost for Equity and Diversity, are designed to encourage and support research on issues related to people of color in North America. For more information on the winners and the award, see equity and diversity.

APPLICATIONS DUE for 2008-09 Faculty Interactive Research Program grants. The program supports public policy research and collaboration in Minnesota. Application deadline is March 27, 4:30 p.m.; visit CURA grants. Questions, e-mail scott001@umn.edu or call 612-625-7340.

Crookston:

UMC Students In Free Enterprise club and General Mills American Indian Council have teamed up to help the students of Red Lake High School create the Taste of Red Lake Cookbook. Read the news release.

CONNECTING LOCAL FOODS AND ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY is the theme of the Home Grown Economy Conference, sponsored by Minnesota Congressman Collin Peterson. March 30-31, UMC. Read the news release.

HIGH TUNNEL AND SEASON EXTENSION workshop by U Extension and Northwest Regional Sustainable Development Partnership. April 10. For workshop details, read the news release. To learn more about high tunnels, read "High tunnel craze feeds farmers market."

Duluth:

UMD TECH FEST 2008 will celebrate 10 years with the theme: "A Decade of Technology." The event will highlight the past, present, and future of technology on campus. March 28, 9 a.m.-3 p.m., Kirby Student Center Ballroom. For more information, see Tech Fest.

LORENTZ WITTMERS, JR. has been named head of the Medical School-Duluth Department of Physiology and Pharmacology. Wittmers, formerly interim head, is renowned for his research on hypothermia. He holds the Edwin Eddy Endowed Professorship and is director of graduate studies in physiology, as well as a Ph.D. adviser. For more information about him, see UMD faculty.

TWEED MUSEUM OF ART presents artwork from its collection created or influenced by the artists of PBS 8/WDSE-TV's recent broadcast of "The Power of Art" series: Caravaggio, Bernini, Rembrandt, Jacques-Louis David, J. W. M. Turner, Van Gogh, Picasso, and Mark Rothko. The pieces, displayed until the end of the school year, were selected by Tweed curator Peter Spooner and installed within the "Portrait, Identity, Culture" exhibition. For more information, see Power of Art.

Morris:

JULIE PELLETIER, assistant professor of anthropology, has received the 2008 UMM Alumni Association Teaching Award. Created by alumni in 1994, the award honors individual faculty members for outstanding contributions to undergraduate education.

HUNDREDS OF AREA HIGH SCHOOL JAZZ MUSICIANS will join UMM and alumni jazzers, as well as guest trumpeter Byron Stripling and saxophonist Eric Marienthal, during the 30th Annual UMM Jazz Fest, April 3-5. For tickets, call Student Activities 320-589-6080. Read the news release.

UMM STUDENTS will present their research during the eighth annual Undergraduate Research Symposium, April 4. The event celebrates student scholarly achievement and showcases the variety and quality of research on campus. Read the news release.

Twin Cities:

WALK-IN HEALTH SCREENINGS AT NO CHARGE for UPlan members: cholesterol, blood glucose, body mass index and body composition, and blood pressure. Staff from Boynton Health Service will administer the routine tests and help you interpret the results. April 1, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., 142 WBOB, and April 17, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Great Hall, Coffman Union. If you are unable to attend on these dates, you can schedule a screening appointment (until the end of April) with MinuteClinic at Coffman Union; call 612-625-3803. For more information about preventive care for UPlan members, see OHR Wellness Program.

INSTITUTE FOR ADVANCED STUDY LECTURES: "The Ethics of Representation," with Leigh Fondakowski, author of The Laramie Project, today, 4 p.m.; "Does Israel Have a Future as a Jewish State?" April 1, 7:30-9:30 p.m., Temple Beth Jacob; "Gay Sounds: A Non-discrete Model of Gay Speech," April 2, 3 p.m. All events are held at 125 Nolte Center, unless noted. For a complete schedule and details on each event, see IAS.

LECTURE ON "BRINGING FEMINISM HOME": Daisy Hernández, writer and coeditor of Colonize This! Young Women on Today's Feminism, will discuss how gender and race have shaped her identity as a feminist and what it means to connect feminism to the communities we call home. March 27, 7 p.m., 125 Willey Hall. RSVP to women@umn.edu or 612-625-9837.

DOCUMENTARY: Free screening of No! Confronting Sexual Assault in Our Communities by the Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action. The film, about the impact of sexual violence on black women and girls, features first-person testimonials and interviews with violence prevention advocates. March 28, 12:15-1:45 p.m., 238A Morrill Hall. Space is limited; RSVP to frank055@umn.edu or call 612-624-9547 by today.

JAPANESE TEA CEREMONY to learn about chadoo, the way of tea. Fumio Watanabe from Yamagata University, Japan, will speak at four sessions: koicha demae (thick tea ceremony), 4:30 p.m., tanatsuki usucha demae (thin tea ceremony with a shelf), 5 p.m.; bonryaku demae (abbreviated tea ceremony on a tray), 5:30 p.m.; chabako demae (tea ceremony in a box), 6 p.m. Green tea and a sweet will be served. March 28, 140 Nolte Center. For more information about this event and the April 1 Symposium on Japanese Discourse, e-mail szatr001@umn.edu.

TOWN HALL MEETING ON TRANSGENDER RIGHTS with Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality. The event will focus on issues of gender identity that create barriers for gender access and equity, such as the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, Social Security gender-record matching, and the Real ID Act. March 31, 7-8:30 p.m., 25 Mondale Hall. For more information, see GLBTA or e-mail neely010@umn.edu.

"The Impact of the 'War on Terror' on the Somali Community," by Omar Jamal, executive director of the Somali Justice Advocacy Center, is part of the American Studies in the 21st Century: A Colloquium Series. March 31, 3:30 PM, 125 Nolte Center.

"BEHIND HAPPY FACES," an open dialogue about depression and suicide with Ross Szabo, coauthor of Behind Happy Faces: Taking Charge of Your Mental Health--A Guide for Young Adults. April 1, 7 p.m., Great Hall, Coffman Union.

MUSIC FROM ALBANIA, BULGARIA, AND ROMANIA is the highlight of "Balkanicus," the School of Music's fifth annual concert of Balkan contemporary music. The program includes "The Flight of the Eagle for Piano"; "Fantasia for Baritone, Cello, and Piano on Heinrich Heine's poetry"; and "EXACT MUSIC for Nine Instruments." April 2, 7:30 p.m., Llyod Ultan Recital Hall.

PLANT SALE: Herbs, orchids, dorm plants, and more. Hosted by CBS Greenhouse and Plant Biology Phytograds. April 2-3, 9 am.-4 p.m., St. Paul Student Center.

MORE EVENTS include a talk with Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Suzan-Lori Parks (today); "AIDS bombs: HIV, Race, and Compliance in Minnesota" (March 27); "Common Senses: Perception and Perspective" (March 28); "Wopida Wotapi Thank You Feast And Celebration" (March 29); and "Communication Before Language" (March 31). SEE THESE AND MORE TWIN CITIES CAMPUS EVENTS.

Published by 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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