SHSU
Update For Week Of Sept. 23
Fall Enrollment
Continues To Climb, Set Records
Sam Houston State University enrollment for the 2007 Fall
Semester is a record 16,416 students, a 3.3 percent increase
over last fall's 15,893.
Preliminary figures from other Texas universities indicate
that SHSU's percentage increase is again among the tops in
the state. Both Stephen F. Austin and UT San Antonio report
preliminary decreases, with Texas State showing a 2.4 percent
gain.
Heather Crowson, vice president for Enrollment Management,
said Sam Houston State is also gaining ground on the University
of Texas-Pan American to become the 10th largest university
in Texas. UT-Pan Am now stands at 17,351 with an increase
of 14 students this fall.
Enrollment gains were less than expected at most universities
throughout the state, while community colleges in general
showed healthier increases. More and more SHSU students are
coming from community colleges, at least partially as the
result of the university's articulation agreements, which
make transferring easier and offer other benefits.
The new enrollment figures comparing full-time equivalent
faculty members and full-time equivalent students also compute
to an improved faculty/student ratio of slightly better than
1:20.
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Fulbright Deadline
Approaches
The Fulbright U.S. Student Program will award approximately
1,400 grants this year for students to travel to more than
140 countries.
SHSU students who would like to participate in the program
should submit their applications, available at www.us.fulbrightonline.org,
to Jurg Gerber, professor of criminal justice, by Oct. 5.
“For over 60 years, the federal government-sponsored
Fulbright U.S. Student Program has provided future American
leaders with an unparalleled opportunity to study, conduct
research, and teach in other countries,” Gerber said.
“Fulbright student grants aim to increase mutual understanding
among nations through educational and cultural exchange while
serving as a catalyst for long-term leadership development.”
Fulbright full grants generally provide funding for round-trip
travel, maintenance for one academic year, health and accident
coverage and full or partial tuition.
Applicants must be U.S. citizens at the time of application
and hold a bachelor’s degree or the equivalent by the
beginning of the grant and do not have to be currently enrolled
in a college or university.
Since its inception in 1946, the Fulbright program has provided
more than 279,000 participants worldwide with the opportunity
to observe each others’ political, economic and cultural
institutions, exchange ideas and embark on joint ventures
of importance to the general welfare of the international
community.
For more information, contact Gerber at 936.294.3172 or gerber@shsu.edu.
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‘Friends’
Gala To Benefit Faculty, Student Musicians
The School of Music will officially kick off the performance
season with a benefit gala on Thursday (Sept. 27).
The Friends of Music “New Beginnings” Gala will
be held at 6:30 p.m. in the Lowman Student Center Ballroom.
The evening will begin with cocktails and hors d’oervres,
followed by a special musical program and a Fisher Tull Endowment
Scholarship presentation.
The recital portion of the event, scheduled to begin at 7:30
p.m., will include performances by a mixture of SHSU music
faculty members and students, including horns, flutes, percussion,
saxophone and a scene by the opera workshop.
Tickets for the event, which is open to the public, are $15
and may be purchased at the door, as well as in advance through
the School of Music.
Proceeds from the gala benefit the Friends of Music fund,
which helps offset various expenses throughout the year such
as instrument and music purchases for student and faculty
use.
In addition, Friends of Music memberships will be available
at the event.
For more information, call the School
of Music at 936.294.1360.
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Theatre To Bring Thebes
To SHSU For ‘Oedipus’
The SHSU department of theatre and dance will tell Seneca’s
story of a country seeking salvation from a horrible plague
with its production of “Oedipus,” Wednesday through
Saturday (Sept. 26-29).
Show times are 8 p.m. each evening, with a 2 p.m. Saturday
matinee, in the University Theatre Center’s Mainstage
Theatre.
Vowing to find the person responsible for the pestilence that
has consumed Thebes and execute all involved, King Oedipus
questions everyone in the palace, including his own wife,
Jocasta.
Eventually, the blind seer Tiresias is called upon for assistance,
but Oedipus is dissatisfied with his prophesies and accuses
Jocasta’s brother Creon of plotting to usurp the throne.
It is not until a messenger from a foreign land arrives that
a horrified Oedipus solves the mystery of the plague, and
of his own birth.
“Oedipus” stars Michael Keeney as Oedipus, Kara
Durrett as Jocasta, Aaron Thacker as Tiresias, Scott McCarrey
as Creon and Glen Philip as the messenger.
The show also features theatre students Rodrick Randall as
Phorbus, Roxana Collingwood as Manto, and Tasheena Miyagi
as the slave, and the chorus is comprised of Lala Babin, Chantel
Balch-Oliver, Chelsea Ryan McCurdy, Amanda Gutierrez, Samm
Lind, Angela Bell, Josh Fehrmann, Sara Anne Luke, Marcus Cumby,
Robby Bardwell, Garret Storms, Greg Hall, Christina Stroup,
Carlos Salinas and Trent Brocato.
Directed by theatre professor Ron Song Destro, the designers
include theatre faculty members Gregg Buck, set and lights,
and Kristina S. Hanssen, costumes, and theatre major Teruhisa
Uchiyama, sound.
The stage manager is theatre major Nicole Wooddell, and the
technical director is Larry Routh.
Tickets are $10 for general admission and $8 with an SHSU
or senior citizen ID.
Because the show contains adult content, children under the
age of three will not be admitted.
For more information, call the UTC Box Office at 936.294.1339.
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ADAI To Teach Students What’s
‘Too Much’
Thirty-five percent of SHSU students have admitted to driving
after drinking, which is a full 5 percent higher than the
national average, according to the 2004 Harvard School of
Public Health College Alcohol Survey.
Because of this, the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Initiative will
show students how much alcohol it would take to impair one’s
driving abilities with “Too Much For The Road,”
on Wednesday (Sept. 26).
The event will be held at 3 p.m. in Lowman Student Center
Room 110, next to the Kat Klub.
Using blood alcohol concentration calculators, students will
find out approximately how much alcohol would result in BAC
levels that significantly impair one's ability to drive.
“Students know the law: that minors (under 21) can be
charged with DUI (driving under the influence) with any detectable
amount of alcohol and that over 21 drinkers can be charged
after a BAC of 0.08 percent,” said Michelle Lovering,
ADAI proactive prevention chair. “However, students
often underestimate the amount of alcohol that would produce
a BAC of 0.08 percent or higher.
“Most have no idea what ‘too drunk to drive’
feels or looks like,” she said.
The program also will discuss alternatives to drinking and
driving, such as using designated drivers, and attendees will
receive updated information about the iDrive Designated Driver
Incentive Program, along with special prizes related to iDrive.
“This program aims to inform students that any amount
of alcohol can impair driving, and that for some, even one
beverage can render a person over the legal limit to drive,”
Lovering said.
For more information, contact Lovering at 936.294.4347 or
org_aai@shsu.edu.
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‘Excellent’
Professor To Inaugurate Series
David Gerling, past recipient of the Sam Houston State University
Excellence in Teaching Award, will share some of his secrets
on Monday (Sept. 24), from 2-3 p.m., during a new series sponsored
by the department of foreign languages.
The Excellence in Teaching Series will be held on the fourth
Monday of each month, is open to all interested faculty and
students, and will be held in Evans Building Room 317, said
Debra Andrist, the new department's new chair.
In addition to winning the university's Excellence in Teaching
Award in 2002, Gerling was named in October 2006 as the Outstanding
Teacher in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences.
“All of us have known a teacher who inspired us, influenced
us, and exemplified good teaching,” de Castro said.
“David Gerling is exactly this kind of instructor.”
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UTA Prof To Give Second Piney
Woods Lecture
Barbara Shipman, associate professor of mathematics at the
University of Texas at Arlington, will explain the “surprising”
connections between mathematics, biology and physics that
she encountered during her journeys on Monday (Sept. 24).
The Piney Woods Lecture Series discussion, "Manifolds,
Differential Equations, Honeybee Dances, And Physics: Some
Unexpected Connections,” will be held from 2-3 p.m.
in Lee Drain Building Room 214.
“We will look at examples of manifolds and how they
are used to study the geometry of certain systems of differential
equations,” Shipman said. “This geometry turns
out to be related to the dance language of honeybees, which
in turn leads to far-reaching consequences in physics that
are currently being developed.”
Shipman received both her bachelor’s and doctoral degrees
from the University of Arizona.
She taught at the University of Rochester in Rochester, N.Y.,
for three years before moving to UTA in 1998.
Shipman studies the geometry of Hamiltonian systems of differential
equations and is working with her father on physics experiments
to develop a new form of energy derived from the force of
gravity.
Following the lecture, a reception will be held on the fourth
floor of the LDB that will give students the opportunity to
meet and talk with Shipman.
The Piney Woods Lecture Series is funded by the Mathematical
Association of America, the Tensor Foundation, the SHSU department
of mathematics and statistics, and the College of Arts and
Sciences.
The series is designed to “invite well-known female
mathematicians to the SHSU campus to speak, and therefore
provides SHSU graduate and undergraduate students exposure
to well-known female mathematicians in a variety of research
areas,” according to Jacqueline Jensen, assistant professor
of mathematics.
For more information, call the mathematics
and statistics department at 936.294.1563.
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Events To Celebrate
Hispanic Heritage Month
In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, which is held annually
Sept. 15 through Oct. 15, the Office of Multicultural and
International Student Services will host a number of events
to give students insight into the Hispanic culture.
On Tuesday (Sept. 25), MISS will introduce the SHSU community
to various Latin American-inspired dances at 6 p.m. in the
Health and Kinesiology Center’s Multipurpose Room No.
3.
Instructors will teach students different styles of dances
and will also perform during the free class.
On Oct. 5-6, dance graduate student Mary Zepeda will perform
her works based on the Mexican bingo game "Lotería"
at 8 p.m. in the Academic Building III Dance Theater.
Finally, MISS, in conjunction with the Program Council, will
give students a taste of Latin America with foods from 10
different countries on Oct. 10.
The "Hispanic Heritage Taste Test" will allow students
to sample different foods from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Lowman
Student Center Mall Area, as well as collect the recipes so
they can make the foods at home.
In addition, prizes will be given away.
“The purpose of Hispanic Heritage Month is to learn
about the Hispanic culture and a little bit more than what
most Texans know as culture near the Mexican border, including
Latin American cultures,” said Ashley McDonough, MISS
program coordinator.
For more information, call the Office
of MISS at 936.294.3588 or the dance
program at 936.294.1875.
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Artists Take On
Human Figure In Exhibit
An exhibit showcasing “three very diverse attitudes
toward using the human figure as a mode of expression”
will be on display in the Gaddis Geeslin Gallery beginning
Monday (Sept. 24).
“Figure This,” featuring the figurative works
of two painters and a sculptor, will be on display through
Oct. 19.
“Michael Hart is a New Mexico artist with a devilishly
subtle sense of humor,” said art department audio/visual
librarian Debbie Davenport. “He invents worlds that
defy logic and reason.
“In contrast, Alfred Quiroz, from Arizona, deals with
overtly political/social issues thru satire,” she said.
“Michael Ferris employs a decorative approach to the
human figure with his inlaid wood sculptures.”
Hart will give a gallery talk on Oct. 4 at 4 p.m., followed
by a public reception from 5-7 p.m.
The Gaddis Geeslin Gallery is located in Art Building F.
For more information, contact exhibit curator Martin Amorous
at 936.294.1378 or amorous@shsu.edu.
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Workshops To Give Job Evaluation,
Negotiation Lessons
Career Services will teach students and alumni all of the
skills necessary in evaluating job offers and negotiating
salaries on Tuesday (Sept. 25).
The workshop will be held from 3:30-4:30 p.m. in the Career
Services Library.
“The workshop will teach students the seven factors
to consider when evaluating a job offer, three ways to respond
to a job offer, and strategies on how to navigate salary negotiations,”
said Rachel Phelps, Career Services counselor.
The workshop is free to all students and alumni. Registration
is not required; however, space is limited to less than 50
people.
The Job Offer And Salary Negotiation Workshop will also be
held on Oct. 9, from 9:30-10:30 a.m. in the Career Services
Library.
For more information, call Career
Services at 936.294.1713.
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Continuing Ed Offers
Online Employee Training Courses
Businesses looking for an easy way to train their employees
in a variety of areas, as well as individuals looking for
personal enrichment, have a new medium for achieving their
goals.
Thanks to a partnership with ed2go, the SHSU Office of Continuing
Education has begun offering hundreds of online, instructor-facilitated
employee training courses in areas such as basic computer
literacy, grant writing and non-profit management, graphic
design and languages.
New sessions of each of the six-week courses will begin Oct.
17, Nov 14, and Dec 12.
The program provides students flexibility to study at their
own pace, with two lessons released each week for the six-week
duration of the course. There is also a two-week grace period
at the end of the course for lessons to be completed, according
to Patsy Collins, in the Continuing Education Office.
“The courses are entirely Web-based with comprehensive
lessons, quizzes, and assignments,” she said. “A
dedicated professional instructor facilitates every course;
pacing learners, answering questions, giving feedback and
facilitating discussions.”
Because the SHSU Continuing Education and ed2go host the entire
operation, participating businesses looking to train employees
don't have to hassle with purchasing, integrating, administering,
or supporting the technology, according to Collins.
The online courses cost $89 and include “expert instructors,
many of whom are nationally-known authors,” Collins
said.
For more information, or a complete list of courses being
offered, call Continuing
Education at 936.294.4568 or visit www.ed2go.com/shsu.
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Send Update Items Here
Please send information for the SHSU Update to the Office
of Public Relations at SHSU. For electronic access to SHSU
news see the public relations Web page Today@Sam.
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SHSU Media Contacts: Frank
Krystyniak, Julia May,
Jennifer Gauntt
Sept. 21, 2007
Please send comments, corrections, news tips to Today@Sam.edu
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