Vol. XXXVII No. 30; Oct. 3, 2007
Editor: Gayla Marty, brief@umn.edu

Read Brief on the Web at http://www.umn.edu/umnnews/Publications/Brief/Brief_10032007.html.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE
--Additional $11.4 billion approved for federal Pell Grant program.
--"Driven to Discover" campaign, in second year, highlights 12 U discoveries.
--People: New associate VP for public engagement, and more.

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

AN ADDITIONAL $11.4 BILLION FOR THE PELL GRANT PROGRAM, approved by Congress Sept. 7 with support of Minnesota's delegation, was signed by President Bush Sept. 27. It will mean a maximum $4,800 Pell Grant for low- to moderate-income students in 2008-09 and 2009-10--an increase of $490--and $5,400 by 2012-13. Other provisions of the legislation include lower interest rates on undergraduate subsidized loans and loan forgiveness to students who take public service jobs. The law went into effect Oct. 1. See the news release.

"DRIVEN TO DISCOVER" HIGHLIGHTS 12 U DISCOVERIES. This year's ads feature faculty and students working together to show how research enhances education. Beginning this week, look for new TV commercials; prints ads in the Star Tribune, Pioneer Press, and Sunday New York Times; sidewalk clings; and other on-campus elements. Driven to Discover aims to help the U community and the public better understand the University's vital role in the state's economy and quality of life as well as the U's goal to be among the top three public research universities in the world. Learn more about the new campaign.

PEOPLE: The new associate VP for public engagement will be Andrew Furco from the U of California-Berkeley, effective Jan. 2. Read about this and more appointments and awards in People.

CAMPUS ANNOUNCEMENTS AND EVENTS

University-wide:

CALL FOR ACTIVITIES AND EVENTS: INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION WEEK 2007 will be Nov. 12-16. All U campuses, colleges, departments, and student organizations are encouraged to plan activities and events that highlight international education at the U. The first IE Week was declared by the U.S. departments of state and education in 2000 to encourage policies and programs that prepare students for a global environment and attract future leaders from abroad to study in the United States. See the U-wide IE Week site.

"STEM CELL RESEARCH: AT THE INTERSECTION OF SCIENCE, POLITICS, LAW, AND CULTURE" will be the topic of two public lectures by visiting professor Zach Hall, founding president of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine. Oct. 9, noon-1:15 p.m., theater, Coffman Union, UMTC; Oct. 11, 7-8 p.m., room 417, University Square, UMR. Free and open to the public; registration is required to receive continuing education credits for the UMTC lecture. See the visit schedule.

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH DIRECTOR Thomas Insel will deliver the Graduate School's 2007 Guy Stanton Ford Memorial Lecture, "From Neurons to Neighborhoods: Making the Link Between Science and Service." Oct. 16, 12:15 p.m., Ted Mann Concert Hall, UMTC. Free and open to the public. See more information.

"COLLABORATING ACROSS BORDERS: AN AMERICAN-CANADIAN DIALOGUE on Interprofessional Education" will be a conference for U.S. and Canadian health professionals, educators, students, and policy makers about issues and trends in health education, practice, and policy. Oct. 24-26, Twin Cities campus. See IPE to register.

"BOTANY AS CULTURAL DIPLOMACY"--a public policy symposium for U researchers, scientists, and community health professionals, arts organizations, and the public--will feature a keynote address by botanical artist and international NGO consultant Dianne Aigaki. Oct. 11, 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. See more information on the calendar or call 952-443-1422.

Crookston:

UMC HOSTED MOBILE COMPUTING CONSULTANT Neil Card of Algonquin College, Ottawa, Ontario, Sept. 26-27. Algonquin is considering issuing laptops to its 12,000 students; UMC has been a laptop campus since 1993. Card visited classrooms, held roundtable discussions with faculty and staff, and gathered information.

ENROLLMENT for degree-seeking students is on the upswing, with significant increases in new freshman, international, and online student numbers this fall semester. Enrollment has increased more than 8.5 percent since fall 2006. See the news release.

Duluth:

"POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER: Supporting the Families of Returning Troops" is a workshop designed to educate doctors, nurses, social workers, psychologists, counselors, teachers, community leaders, and human service organizations about delivery of services to veterans and their families. Speakers will be Clyde Markon, Civil Affairs and Medical Director, Twin Ports VA OPC; Jeff Hall, VA Rural Outreach Coordinator for Returning Veterans; and Kathy Dowell, assistant professor of psychology. The workshop qualifies for CEU credits. Sponsored by the Department of Psychology and the UMD Veterans Resource Center. Oct. 5, 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Rafters, 3rd floor of Kirby Student Center. Advance registration is required. See more information.

"LEADERSHIP AND COURAGE" will be the topic of a lecture by wheelchair triathlete Trish Downing, 2006 Challenged Athlete of the Year. Downing has competed in more than 50 marathons and triathlons and is only the second woman wheelchair athlete to qualify and compete in the Hawaii Ironman. Sponsored by the UMD Commission on Women and Rec Sports. Oct. 5, noon, rotunda, UMD Library. See event details.

DOCUMENTARY PRODUCER AND DIRECTOR Shakti Butler will present two events Oct 8: first, a lecture, "Communicating Across Differences," 9 a.m., Ballroom A, Kirby Student Center; then an interactive film screening of "Mirrors of Privilege: Making Whiteness Visible," 4 p.m., Ballroom B. Butler is a facilitator, trainer, and lecturer on a variety of topics, including the interconnectedness of racism, classism, sexism, and homophobia. Sponsored by the UMD Chancellor's Diversity Initiatives, Diversity Commission, and Multicultural Center. See event details.

Morris:

UMM IS PREPARING TO HOST THE BOARD OF REGENTS, Oct. 10-12. The community is invited to coffee with President Bruininks, Oct. 11, 7:30-8:30 a.m., Common Cup Coffeehouse, downtown Morris. See the news release.

AN EXTRAORDINARY COLLEGE EXPERIENCE FOR WOMEN is offered at UMM, according to Cosmo Girl!, which published "100 Best Colleges" as a supplement to its October 2007 issue, this year in partnership with The Princeton Review. See the news release.

SUPER SATURDAY SCIENCE will host girls in grades 5-7 to expand their interest in science. Oct. 13, 9 a.m.-noon, UMM Science Building. See the news release.

Rochester:

COLLEGE OF EDUCATION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT (CEHD) DEAN Darlyne Bailey met with UMR representatives, CEHD alumni, and members of the Rochester education and human services communities Sept. 30-Oct. 1 as part of her Hot Dish Tour of Minnesota. See the news release.

Twin Cities:

FACEBOOK IS A NEW UMTC EMERGENCY COMMUNICATION TOOL: To supplement communications tools used during campus emergencies, UMTC has created the U of M Emergency Notification Facebook group. U community members who join can have access to the latest information on crisis situations, such as weather emergencies, hazardous material spills, or crime alerts. Recent crises on campuses around the country, including recent bomb threats at UMTC, prompted the change. Facebook, a popular social networking Web site, has been primarily a student phenomenon, but membership is rapidly expanding to the employment ranks of higher education. Facebook members can join the group. Others may first become a Facebook member.

TIPS FOR TAKING SHELTER ON CAMPUS IN CASE OF SEVERE WEATHER are posted on the Department of Emergency Management Web site. See "Severe Weather Emergencies" and scroll to the end.

COMMUNITY FUND DRIVE BEGAN OCT. 1 AND RUNS THROUGH OCT. 31. This year's goal is a participation rate of 40 percent and a total of $1.25 million for state charities. View the welcome from cochairs Steve Cawley, VP and CIO for information technology, and Billie Wahlstrom, vice provost for distributed education and instructional technology, at Minnesota charities count on U.

"THE CONDITION OF OUR NATION'S TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE: Are We Heading Toward a Crisis?" is the topic of a discussion with state and national leaders, including Rep. Jim Oberstar and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, in the Oberstar Forum on Transportation Policy and Technology. Oct. 8, 12:30-4:30 p.m., Radisson Hotel Metrodome. Free, but space is limited and registration is encouraged. See forum information.

"ALGEBRA, STATISTICS, COMPUTATION, AND BIOLOGY" will be presented by Bernd Sturmfels, U of California-Berkeley and one of the founders of algebraic statistics, and DiaNA, a fictional character who plays hopscotch and rolls tetrahedral dice, in the next IMA Math Matters Lecture. Oct. 9, 7 p.m., 125 Willey Hall.

DIALOGUES ON THE INTERSECTIONS OF IDENTITY, a year-long series of campus conversations presented by the Office for Equity and Diversity, will begin with Cherríe Moraga, Chicana lesbian writer, editor, teacher, and activist. A workshop is full, but limited space remains for her reading and discussion, "A Chicana Codex of Changing Consciousness." Oct. 18, 7:30 p.m., 3M Auditorium, Carlson School of Management. Registration is required. Contact oed@umn.edu or 612-624-0594. See event details.

"THE WONDERS OF THE BRAIN: From Neurons to Emotions" is the theme of Mini Medical School's five-class series this fall. Topics will include anatomy and chemistry of the brain; the developing brain through adolescence; dementia and Alzheimer's Disease; and more. Mondays, Oct. 8-Nov. 5, 6-8:30 p.m. $75 for five classes; space is limited. See more information.

NORTHROP SEASONS BEGIN--dance on Oct. 13 with Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan, and jazz on Oct. 14 with the Pat Matheny Trio, including Christian McBride and Antonio Sanchez. See Northrop Memorial Auditorium.

MORE EVENTS include the Transgender Commission social event (Oct. 3); Community Involvement Fair (Oct. 3); noon lecture on preconception health for women (Oct. 4); "Bridges Fall Down," a discussion with geography professor John Adams, to kick off the 2007-08 Headlines series (Oct. 4); discussion about "The Map That Named America: 1507-2007," a Bell Library holding on display this fall (Oct. 5); American Indian Cultural House five-year celebration (Oct. 6); "Sanctified Violence in Ancient Mediterranean Religions," an international conference (Oct. 6-8); The World Without Us author Alan Weisman (Oct. 8); Minneapolis Mayor Rybak on "Rebuilding Common Ground" after the I-35W bridge collapse (Oct. 9); retired General Mills Foundation leader Reatha Clark King in the Carlson School's "Inside the Boardroom" series (Oct. 9); Café Scientifique on the St. Anthony Falls Research Lab (Oct. 9); and Graduate and Professional School Day (Oct. 10). 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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