SHSU Update for Week of November 28

• Student Teachers Sweep Statewide Awards
• Orchestra Offers Fairy Tales and Fantasy
• Grad Students Present Crime Papers
• 'Nutcracker' Tickets Going Fast
• 79th Annual Tree of Light
• Society of Physics Students Honored
• English, Criminal Justice Speakers

Student Teachers Sweep Statewide Awards

Corey Cornett of Clute was named the elementary recipient of the award, and Jeremy Rehbein of Pasadena was named the secondary recipient.

The award is given each year to a student teacher enrolled in a program leading to teacher certification in an accredited Texas university during the previous calendar year.

In order to participate in the competition the student teachers must write a lesson plan following a given form, provide a videotape showing the student teacher teaching the submitted lesson plan to students in the classroom setting and submit supporting materials.

Judging is based on planning and preparation, knowledge and presentation of subject matter, management of instruction, interaction and communication, and professional image and presentation.

Cornett completed his student teaching in the Aldine school district at Reed Intermediate School and Carrol Academy. Rehbein completed his student teaching in the Conroe school district at Conroe High School and Mitchell Intermediate School. He is currently teaching in the College Station school district as the director of percussion study.

The announcement was made at a meeting of the Consortium of State Organizations for Texas Teacher Education in Lubbock.

Orchestra Offers Fairy Tales and Fantasy

The concert is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in the Beto Criminal Justice Center Killinger Auditorium. Tickets are $5 general admission and $3 for students, with free admission for faculty/staff and students with SHSU identification.

Phillip Schroeder, a member of the SHSU music department faculty, wrote "Fantasy for Clarinet and Chamber Orchestra" with a particular performer in mind. That performer is Tamara Raatz, also a member of the SHSU music faculty.

"There are few aspects of the compositional process more satisfying than the successful realization of music that is crafted to the strengths and preferences of a particular performer," said Schroeder.

"The 'Fantasy for Clarinet and Chamber Orchestra' is the fifth solo or ensemble work written for and dedicated to clarinetist Tamara Raatz. Her beauty of tone, control of dynamics, lyric and technical breadth, even tone quality across registrations, and sensitivity to musical character influenced every aspect of the compositional process."

Huntsville concert-goers will also hear a live preview of a piece that they will be able to enjoy in their own homes and cars in about a month.

Raatz and Schroeder traveled to the Czech Republic in June to record and perform the "Fantasy" with the Moravian Philharmonic, Juri Mikula, conductor, for the Vienna Modern Masters label. A compact disc recording of that concert will be released in late December.

Also on Tuesday's program will be Sleeping Beauty and Prince Charming, a green serpent and a country of singing jeweled pagodas, all features of Joseph Maurice Ravel's "Mother Goose Suite." It was first performed as a piano piece for four hands in Paris in 1910 by children aged six and 10 and two years later as a ballet suite by the New York Symphony.

Also in the concert is Brahms' "Academic Festival Overture," written in 1819 and inspired by the suppression of liberal, patriotic fraternities outlawed in Germany after the end of Napoleonic rule.

"This song is a solemn hymn of liberty-loving men against reactionary despotism," said Carol Smith, SHSU Symphony Orchestra conductor. "It is not nationalistic and could be sung everywhere where freedom is suppressed by tyranny."

Grad Students Present Crime Papers

The students and their topics were: Che Williamson--"An Integrated Theoretical Approach to Insurance Fraud;" Stephanie A. Whitus--"Reporting Child Abuse: A Cross-Generational Logistic Regression Model;" Donna Vandiver--"From the Communications Decency Act to the Child Online Protection Act: Can Pornography on the Internet be Regulated?"; Patti R. Salinas--"Death Rows: What a Difference Gender Makes;" and Derek Paulsen--"Wrong Side of the Tracks: Exploring the Role of Newspaper Coverage of Homicide in Socially Constructing Dangerous Places."

Also, Michael DeValve--"Ideological Counter-Terrorism;" Dale Colledge--"AIDS in a State Prison: Examining Inmate Attitudes on AIDS and Related Issues" and "Using Content Analysis of Advertisements as a Measure of Private Sector Involvement in Criminal Justice;" Maldine Barnhill--"Frying Daubert: The Admissibility of Scientific Evidence in the Texas Court System;" and Cary Adkinson--"The Portrayal of the Law and Criminal Justice in American Comic Books."

"Graduate student participation at national and international conferences is an opportunity for Sam Houston State University to showcase academic talent," said Wes Johnson, assistant dean of graduate studies in the College of Criminal Justice.

"The level of research conducted by graduate students and faculty of the College of Criminal Justice has had significant influence on criminal justice policy and theory development," he said. "Participation at the conference helps students fine-tune their research agendas, develop job contacts, and become sensitized to international criminal justice issues.

"Our products are our students, and SHSU has a lot to be proud of in these CJ graduate students. I speak for them when I thank the university for support of graduate student research activities."

The American Society of Criminology is an international organization composed of over 5,000 members. Its members include practitioners, academicians, and students in the many fields of criminal justice. The theme for this year's conference was "Explaining and Preventing Crime: The Globalization of Knowledge."

'Nutcracker' Tickets Going Fast

Proceeds from a 7 p.m. opening night reception with champagne, eggnog, holiday hors d'oeuvres, caroling and an opportunity for photographs with the Nutcracker dancers will fund scholarships for Theatre and Dance students.

Tickets are $25 for opening night, including the reception. For other performances tickets are $12 general/$10 SHSU students, students and seniors, and $8 for those under 12.

The Theatre Center ticket office, at 409-294-1339, will open at 9 a.m. Monday.

79th Annual Tree of Light

The event is scheduled at 7 p.m. Thursday (Dec. 2) on the east side of the Lowman Student Center.

Those who attend are encouraged to bring nonperishable canned food to benefit the Good Shepherd Mission, as well as unwrapped toys benefiting Toys for Tots.

A number of campus choirs and music groups will perform, while representatives of campus organizations will talk about the importance of the holiday season. While Christmas will be highlighted, so will other religious holidays such as Hanukkah.

There also will be free refreshments and candlelight caroling.

For more information, call the Department of Student Activities at 409-294-3861.

Society of Physics Students Honored

Of the 600 chapters in the nation, 32 were chosen as outstanding chapters. This is the eighth year in a row that the Sam Houston State University Chapter has received this award. The award is based on chapter activities throughout the year.

In order to promote public interest in physics, the SHSU Chapter gives physics demonstrations at schools throughout the area, as well as to groups which come on campus. Last year, the chapter participated in SciTech 99 in The Woodlands, and established a program of demonstrations at area high schools and middle schools.

The chapter also funds an annual physics scholarship with money raised by raffling off a calculator donated by Hewlett-Packard.

Chapter members are also active in research. Last year, six research papers were presented at the Fall meeting of the Texas Sections of the American Physical Society, the American Association of Physics Teachers, and Society of Physics Students, held in El Paso.

The Society of Physics Students is a student organization that is affiliated with the American Institute of Physics. The objectives of the society are to encourage and assist students who are interested in physics to develop the knowledge, competence, enthusiasm, and social responsibility, which are essential to the advancement of physics, to stimulate interest in the advanced study of physics, and to promote public interest in physics.

The officers of the chapter make a large contribution to its success. The officers last year were: DeAnna Redden, president; Heath Jones, vice president; Kent Chaney, treasurer; Meosha Babbs, secretary; and Tommy Binford, public relations.

This year's officers, who are working to win the award for the 9th consecutive year, are: Tommy Binford, president; Jaakko Halmari, vice president; Jake Hammons, treasurer; Paul Mauer, secretary; and Jason Baughman, public relations.

The faculty adviser for the chapter is David Donnelly.

English, Criminal Justice Speakers

The research mini-colloquium series of the Department of English will present Professor Tuija Virtanen-Ulfhielm from the Vaxjo University, Sweden. He is one of the leading Scandinavian text linguists and has published extensively on text and discourse analysis.

He will speak on the topic of "Analysing Argumentative Strategies: A Reply to a Complaint" at 7:30 p.m. Monday (Nov. 29) in Evans Building, Room 417.

William Dyson, currently a senior consultant for the Institute for Intergovernmental Research, who headed the Terrorism Task Force in the Chicago region for more than 10 years, will speak on "Terrorism Into the Next Millennium: The Past, Present and Future of Domestic Threats." Dyson's presentation is scheduled for noon Thursday (Dec. 2) in the Beto Criminal Justice Center's Killinger Auditorium.

A veteran of more than 31 years with the FBI, during which he was intricately involved in, managed, and/or directed many of the FBI's most prominent terrorism investigations, he also functioned as a certified bomb technician and has lectured and taught extensively.

Dyson received many awards during his career, and in 1991 received the Attorney General's Distinguished Service Award, one of the highest awards that can be bestowed on a federal law enforcement officer.

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SHSU Media Contact: Frank Krystyniak
November 28, 1999
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