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The accomplishments of the College rest primarily on the successes of our faculty. In addition to the awards and honors won by the faculty this year, several of which were highlighted in my “virtual faculty meeting” presentation, more than sixty faculty members were reviewed for promotion and tenure, senior faculty reviews, and second and fourth year reviews. I am particularly proud of the alacrity with which our newest faculty have adjusted to their Penn State careers and are beginning to make contributions to the teaching programs of their departments and to their own research programs. Kudos must also go to our senior faculty whose long-term commitment to the College is so critical to our success. This is the fifth year of the senior faculty reviews. As in the previous years, I am impressed with the dedication and productivity of our longer time Penn State faculty. Most are doing a fine job in educating our students, in their own research programs, and in contributing to their departments, University, and professions. Without the support of the staff, our accomplishments would be far fewer. Our staff continues to be a high performing one throughout the College. Departmental and program staff continue to adjust to the increasing complexity of College and University budgets and programmatic activities and the increasing enrollment and related activity. Moreover, this year, we began a major reorganization of our computer support staff, one that has coincided with changes in the University’s information technology systems. I am confident that these changes will result in significantly improved support across the College. A challenge in having a first-rate faculty and staff, and continuing to compete for the highest quality students, is finding the financial support necessary to support their work. In the last couple of years, we have our start-up support for new faculty and have initiated support designed to catapult newly tenured faculty toward their next major project and beyond. As well, we are increasingly providing funds through the RGSO and in partnership with the IAH, SSRI, and PRI to support specific faculty projects. The cost of competition for new graduate students is escalating faster than perhaps any other cost, and this is a significant part of new resource allocations. Of course, moving forward in all these areas requires funds. In addition to increased support from Old Main for the College’s activities, we have provided much of the new money from development revenues. The results of the Grand Destiny campaign, concluded last June, have made a huge difference in support for faculty and programs across the College. This is, of course, most obvious in departments and programs that have received direct gifts, such as the increased graduate support and endowed professorships in the history department, and the programmatic support in the Rock Ethics Institute. But less visible but equally important are funds flowing to departments that have not seen direct gifts, funds from College endowments being used for start-up, for support for faculty research, for graduate student top-offs, and for support for undergraduates who are pursuing study abroad, internships, or research with faculty. Even less visible is the increased support for undergraduate scholarships, which, though it doesn’t directly bear on departmental faculty and staff, does help keep the doors of Penn State open to those whose families cannot afford the full tuition. During the past few years, the amount of funds we have given to our Liberal Arts undergraduate majors for scholarship and related support has risen from $72,000 to more than $400,000 for 2004-05, with the typical award increasing from $700 to $2000. Although the Grand Destiny campaign is over, we continue to be just as active in fund raising. And our priorities remain the same: support for faculty and students, programmatic support for departments and centers, and support for the Moore building project. Our staff and the deans have been visiting alumni far and wide during these last several months, as we seek to make new connections as well as to keep in touch with those who are already well connected to the College. We are also working to find ways to involve departments more directly with alumni. We are seeking to develop some departmental boards of visitors to provide more direct links between departments and their alumni. These efforts are labor intensive for our staff and department heads, so we are moving slowly with this initiative. But we do hope to have four or five boards in place within the next two years. It is only through private fund raising, in conjunction with support from Old Main and from faculty grants, that we can continue to provide increasing funding to support the programs of our faculty. With best wishes for the successful conclusion of the semester. Susan Welch Vernon Jordan to Speak at Liberal Arts Spring Commencement Mark your calendar for the Liberal Arts spring semester commencement on Saturday, May 15, 2004, at 12:00 p.m. in the Bryce Jordan Center. We are delighted to announce that the commencement speaker will be Vernon E. Jordan, Jr. He will also be receiving an honorary doctoral degree. Vernon Jordan received his J.D. from Howard University School of Law in 1960. In 1971, Jordan was appointed president and CEO of the National Urban League. In 1981, after a successful recuperation from an assassination attempt by a white supremacist, Jordan resigned and accepted a position as legal counsel with the law firm of Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer, and Feld. During Clinton's presidency, Jordan became one of Washington's most influential individuals. Currently, he is a partner in the investment firm of Lazard Frere and Company in New York. I hope you all took time to express thanks to our staff on April 21, 2004, Staff Appreciation Day. Its newest name is “Administrative Professionals Day.” Regardless of what we call it, it was an opportunity to thank our staff for the wonderful job they do year round. We are very fortunate to have a terrifically efficient and caring staff. Our staff are crucial to every function of the College from scheduling courses, directing lost students to the proper classrooms, assisting in grant preparation, providing computer support services, maintaining budgets and schedules, raising money, and providing a pleasant and informative link to students, alumni, parents, potential donors, and the rest of the University community. On behalf of all the faculty, administrators, and students in the College, let me say “thank you” to our staff for the good job you do! Susan Welch Back to TopOn March 25 to April 1, the Liberal Arts Web site included the “Virtual Faculty Meeting,” a set of presentations by faculty and staff relating to current Liberal Arts matters, including recent faculty awards, changes in information technology support, review of study abroad opportunities, alumni and fund raising activities, and to the faculty senate and the faculty senate's proposed reform of the intercultural and international curriculum requirements. Although there were 166 “hits” on the introductory Web page, as best we can determine from a closer analysis of visits to each presentation, few people did, in fact, review any of the specific presentations. It seems like the attendance at this virtual meeting was no greater than our historically poorly attended spring faculty meeting. I will be consulting with our Senate Caucus and Faculty Advisory Committee concerning other possibilities for structuring faculty meetings. Please feel free to send your thoughts on the matter. Susan Welch To show appreciation to our outstanding teaching, advising, and research colleagues in the College, each spring at the annual Alumni Society Board of Directors Awards Reception, we honor the past year’s “best.” On March 25, we honored the winners of University and College awards at a special ceremony. Congratulations to the following faculty who have won University-wide awards! Milton S. Eisenhower Award for Distinguished TeachingMark Morrisson, associate professor of English, is a specialist in modern British and American literature. Mark inspires his students through his ability to bring history, the arts, and technology to bear on his courses. His students comment on his approachable personality, his willingness to help them individually, and the breadth of his knowledge. Faculty Scholar Medal for Outstanding Achievement in Arts and HumanitiesEach of Professor Linda Woodbridge’s books has broken new ground and brought new insight to Renaissance literature and culture. Her most recent volume, the one for which she received the Scholar’s Medal, is about vagrants and homeless persons in English Renaissance literature. In this work, she investigates the Tudor laws and attitudes affecting the poor and homeless and examines the literary representation of the poor and homeless in such diverse works as Shakespeare’s King Lear, jest books, and books of political theory. Moreover, because Professor Woodbridge is committed to teaching and institutional excellence as well as to scholarly excellence, she has integrated her scholarly achievements into all of her professional activities. Last year she won a University-wide teaching award. Graduate Program Chair Leadership AwardDavid Day has served as the director of graduate training in the Department of Psychology since 2001, and has provided dynamic and effective leadership in this critical role. The department has a large graduate program, offering training in five separate areas of psychology, and maintaining very high standards for admission and high levels of scholarly productivity among its graduate students. The success of these graduate programs is due in no small part to the contributions of David. In addition to his administrative role, David has developed and taught a highly-effective first-year graduate student seminar that helps students in diverse areas of the department develop consistent norms and expectations for their graduate studies, and a clear appreciation of the importance and applicability of rigorous science in psychology. Graduate Faculty Teaching AwardProfessor Susan Squier, the Julia Gregg Brill Professor of English and Women's Studies, is famous in the English department for her “dissertation group,” which meets regularly to read work-in-progress or to discuss professional matters, such as job searches and publication protocols. Since 1994, Professor Squier has completed the direction of six dissertations, and she is currently supervising five more. Her students have gone on to academic jobs in fine research institutions; and two of them recently published books which received high praise in the Times Literary Supplement. Receiving the University's Graduate Faculty Teaching Award confirms Professor Squier's sterling reputation for the attention she gives to her students, in class and outside of it. Also honored at the ceremony were College award winners. Outstanding Teaching Award Sherry Roush, assistant professor of Italian, is in her fifth year of teaching at Penn State. Over this period she has been a mainstay of the Italian program, having served as coordinator, advisor, and program-builder. Sherry has been a prime moving force in expanding the number of Italian majors and minors, hosting events and trips for students and potential students, recruiting and training adjunct faculty, advising numerous students, building bridges with other departments, and laying the groundwork for a recently proposed Italian studies major. Outstanding Faculty Advisor Award Sydney Aboul-Hosn has been the advising coordinator and the primary academic adviser for all Comparative Literature majors and minors since 1998. Students who wrote letters on behalf of Sydney for this award commented on her constant availability, her thoroughness in knowing the entire university, her maintaining contact beyond office hours, and especially her individualized advising attention. Sydney shows students that even within our large University they can receive personal attention from an adviser who knows them as individuals and takes a genuine interest in them. Emeritus Distinction Award The recipient of this year’s Emeritus Distinction Award, Professor Thomas Rogers, joined Penn State’s faculty in 1961 and retired in 1991. A productive creative writer during those thirty years, Tom’s work as writer and mentor has continued since his retirement: a new novel, Jerry Engels, is published in the U.S. and in France, and faculty members and former students continue to seek him out for advice. Tom’s sense of community extends beyond Penn State, and he has continued to make better the lives of a variety of people. Class of 1933 Distinction in the Humanities Award Adrian Wanner, professor of Slavic and comparative literature, and head of the Department of Germanic and Slavic Languages and Literatures, has an impressive list of accomplishments in research, teaching, and service. For example, this year, he published his second book, Russian Minimalism: From the Prose Poem to the Anti-Story, the first comprehensive book on the literary form known as the Russian prose poem. As a teacher of the humanities, Adrian Wanner consistently receives very high evaluations from his students. And, he has guided the German doctoral program through an important curricular updating, emphasizing the professional development of graduate students, and has encouraged them to work in comparative, international contexts. Adrian Wanner truly is a model humanities scholar, with notable contributions in research, teaching, and service. Distinction in the Social Sciences Award In the five years that Richard Felson has been at Penn State, he has published two books and a dozen journal articles and book chapters to add to the two books and sixty articles and chapters that he had published in the two previous decades. His research has earned him recognition as one of our nation's leading experts on domestic violence, interpersonal assault, and criminal behavior. His most recent book, Violence and Gender Reexamined, encourages psychologists, lawyers, social scientists, and concerned laypersons alike to question preconceptions about violence and gender. Marcy North, associate professor of English, is one of this year’s recipients of the Roy C. Buck award, a fund established by Emeritus Professor of Sociology Roy Buck to support research and reward publishing by junior faculty. Marcy researches the history of the book, and Early Modern and late Medieval literature. Her winning research proposal involves continuing her explorations of interrelations between print and written manuscripts in the late Renaissance. The second Buck award winner is Alicia Grandey, assistant professor of psychology, who received the award for her article which will appear in the Journal of Organizational Behavior, entitled “The Customer is Not Always Right: Customer Aggression and Emotion Regulation of Service Employees.” Alicia’s research focuses on employees’ experience of stress and emotions and explores the concept of “emotional labor,” where employees manage their emotions as part of the job. Outstanding Teaching Award Cheryl Glenn was honored for her collaborative approaches to teaching and learning, her expertise in the classroom, and her innovative course design in the English department curriculum. To a required first-year General Education course, English 15, Cheryl brought energy, expertise, and a commitment to rigorous teacher training in her preparation of new fixed-term lecturers and graduate teaching assistants. Her complete revamping of this course has improved instruction in basic writing for a substantial percentage of the University's undergraduates. Karen Bierman, director of the Children, Youth, and Families Consortium and Distinguished Professor of Psychology, from Duke University for “Development and Prevention of Substance-Use Problems.” Keith Crnic, professor of psychology and director of the Child Study Center, from the University of North Carolina for “Children in Rural Poverty: Risk and Protective Mechanisms.” George Farkas, professor of sociology, demography, and education, from the Spencer Foundation for “Race, Friendship, Tracking, Aspirations, and Achievement.” Marie Hojnacki, associate professor of political science, from the National Science Foundation for “Collaborative Research on Agenda-Setting: Temporal, Institutional, and Cross-Sectional Dynamics of Attention to Disease in the Public Arena.” Patricia Johnson, associate professor of anthropology, demography, and women's studies, and James Wood, professor of anthropology and demography, from the National Science Foundation for “REU SITE: The North Orkney, Scotland, Population History Project.” Eric Plutzer, associate professor of political science and sociology, and Michael Berkman, associate professor of political science, from the National Science Foundation for “Public Opinion and Policy Responsiveness in Small Electorate: Institutions and Spending in American School Districts.” Mark Shriver, assistant professor of anthropology, from the University of Florida for “Hypertension Pharmacogenetics.” Eric Silver, associate professor of crime, law, and justice and sociology, from Rutgers-The State University of New Jersey for “Mental Health Services and Criminal Justice Research Center.” Robert Stern, Distinguished Professor of Psychology, from Abbott Laboratories for “A Comparison of the Ability of Protein and Ginger Products to Reduce Delayed Nausea of Chemotherapy.” Kenneth Weiss, Evan Pugh Professor of Anthropology and Genetics, and Cooduvalli Shashikant, associate professor of molecular and developmental biology, from the National Science Foundation for “Making Waves: From Pattern to Structure in Dental Evolution.” Faculty Honors Garrett Fagan, associate professor of classics and ancient Mediterranean studies, was elected Chair of the American Institute of Archaeology Program Committee. Julia Hewitt, associate professor of Spanish and Portuguese, was named and given the title of Distinguished Visitor, in Puebla, Mexico, an honorary title the City government gives in recognition of academic standing and roles in Mexican communities and education. Joan Landes, professor of women's studies and history, has been awarded a Distinguished Scholar Grant from the Getty Research Institute and will join the Getty Research Institute's community at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles for 2004-05. The program for the year will be devoted to the theme of “Duration.” Robert Schoen, Hoffman Professor of Family Sociology and Demography, is the winner of the Mindel C. Sheps award for 2004. This is a significant award given every two years by the Population Association of America and the University of North Carolina School of Public Health for “outstanding contributions to mathematical demography, demographic methodology, and the modeling and analysis of population data.” Penn State Library Displays Robert Lima's Poetic World “The Poetic World of Robert Lima,” an exhibit in the University Libraries' Diversity Studies Room, 109 Pattee Library, is on display March 19 through August 20, 2004. It is a retrospective of Robert Lima's work, which includes over 400 poems that have appeared in print in the United States and abroad, in books, journals, newspapers, and anthologies. Robert Lima, a poet, playwright, translator, biographer, bibliographer, and critic, is Professor Emeritus of Spanish and Comparative Literature and Fellow Emeritus of the Institute for the Arts and Humanistic Studies. The following graduate students were recognized at a luncheon on Tuesday, April 20, 2004, at the Nittany Lion Inn. Outstanding Teaching Award for Graduate Students María del Carmen Yáñez Prieto, Department of Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese, and David O'Hara, Department of Philosophy Graduate Student Award for Excellence in Research in the Humanities Kristin Jacobson, Department of English Graduate Student Award for Excellence in Research in the Social Sciences Megan Kurlychek, Department of Sociology Outstanding Teaching for Non-Tenure Line Faculty Gregg Rogers, Department of English Penn State Alumni Association (Alumni Association Dissertation Award) Barbara Alfano, Department of Comparative Literature Graduate School (Graduate Assistant Outstanding Teaching Award) Dennis Foster, Department of Political Science, Sandra French, Department of Communication Arts and Sciences, and Matt Seigel, Department of English Five Penn State Demography Program international graduate students have been selected by the Population Reference Bureau, Washington, D.C. to be Population Policy Fellows for the 2004-05 cohort. The selected students include two Liberal Arts students, Bina Gubhaju and Tom Owuor, both sociology and demography. Congratulations also to Gordon De Jong, Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Demography, the director of the demography dual degree program. Congratulations to Sara Ryan, junior in political science and African and African American studies and Schreyer Honors College student, who won the highly competitive Harry S. Truman Scholarship. The Truman Scholarship is widely considered one of the most prestigious scholarships awarded nationwide, and is the premier undergraduate scholarship for leadership and service. It provides financial support for a student's senior year and for graduate study. Sara plans to graduate in 2005. Her research thesis focuses on strategies of state lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) organizations to pass pro-LGBT legislation. Among other activities, she has worked through internships on the Pennsylvania Hate Crimes bill and Anti-Discrimination bill. Multicultural Resource Center 2004 Award Recipients Kajal Patel, liberal arts student, received the Multicultural Resource Center's Volunteer Service Award, and Tiffany Mitchell, liberal arts student, received the Multicultural Resource Center's Academic Achievement Award. Both were presented at a ceremony on April 15. 2004 Best Student Conference Paper Hock-Peng Sin, psychology graduate student, received the 2004 Best Student Conference Paper in the Human Resource Division of the Academy of Management. Congratulations to the many Liberal Arts students who have won University awards for their outstanding scholarships. Evan Pugh Scholar Award—Juniors Kate Hand and Hannah Myers, English; Julie Bistline, French; Brian Lushko and Margarete Roeber, history; Robert Schaper, Japanese; Anna Saracino and Kristen Zendlock, psychology; Amy Lucas, sociology Evan Pugh Scholar Award—Seniors Molly Zuckerman, anthropology; Lauren Merian, crime, law, and justice; Joo Ook Kim, economics; Sara Paull, English; Margaret McCormick, French; Christopher Oechler, international politics; Corinne Thatcher, Latin American studies; Karen Gabel, Matthew Mauriello, Nicole Stockey, and David Veatch, psychology President Sparks Award—Undergraduate candidates with a 4.00 cumulative grade-point average Rachel Frankel, communication arts and sciences; Cornelius Cornelssen, comparative literature; Matthew Webster, liberal arts; Kim Levengood, political science; Andrew Farris and Laura Rosell, Spanish President's Freshman Award Allison Allmon, Kayla Budzina, Jordan Cattie, Nolan Doroski, Vanessa Kettering, Jacqueline Lecuyer, Shannon Rafferty, Erin Rossi, Lindsay Sheaffer, Mark Taticchi, Justin Teague, Ryan Tritch, and Matthew Vodzak, liberal arts Comparative Literature Luncheon The Comparative Literature Luncheon is a weekly informal lunchtime gathering of students, faculty, and other members of the University community. Each week there is a short (twenty-minute) presentation, by a visitor or a local speaker, on a topic related to a humanities discipline. Daniel Walden (dxw8@psu.edu) is the coordinator for the series this semester. We meet every Monday in 102 Kern at about 12:15 p.m. Coffee and tea are provided (no charge). You can bring your lunch or buy something on a tray in Kern Cafeteria (next door) and bring it into 102. The speaker will begin at about 12:40 p.m. Allowing a few minutes for discussion, we'll conclude in time for you to get to classes that meet at 1:25 p.m. All students, faculty, colleagues, and friends are welcome. For details; check the WebEvents Calendar. Institute for the Arts and Humanities The Institute for the Arts and Humanities recently announced the recipients of its graduate student summer residencies. This competitive program provides advanced graduate students with a $3,000 stipend and the use of an office in Ihlseng Cottage during the summer term, enabling them to spend focused time working on their dissertations or final creative projects. Five Liberal Arts students were funded for summer 2004: Jana Byars, Ph.D. candidate in history, will write her dissertation on concubinage in early modern Venice; Rangar Cline, Ph.D. candidate in history, will write his dissertation on angel veneration in Mediterranean society in the third through the fifth centuries; Ryan Drake, Ph.D. candidate in philosophy, will write his dissertation on the value of the written text to Plato; Melissa Littlefield, Ph.D. candidate in English and women’s studies, will write her dissertation on the history of the technologies of truth detection, and their resuscitation in the recent “war on terror;” Ned O’Gorman, Ph.D. candidate in communication arts and sciences, will write his dissertation on the construction of collective identity in the wake of extraordinary events, particularly those marked by trauma and national calamity. Lee Ann Newsom, Celeste Kinginger, and Mark Wardell were elected to represent the College for the Graduate Council. These faculty represent your views to the Council. Please let them know of your concerns. The WebEvents Calendar features, lectures, talks, and conferences between April 15 and June 30. Thomas Freeman Magner died Saturday, March 27, 2004. Tom, a member of the Penn State faculty from 1959 to 1984, was Associate Dean Emeritus of Research and Professor Emeritus of Slavic Languages. A memorial service was held March 28. Contributions in his memory can be made to Schlow Memorial Library, 118 S. Fraser Street, State College, PA 16801, or to Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church Building Fund, 820 West Parkway, State College, PA 16801. If you need to obtain or exchange parking permits, please come to Room 111 Sparks Building Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., only. Please remember to bring your license plate number(s) with you when you register for your permit. Once you have a permit, please be sure you report new or changed license plate numbers to Louise Sharrar at lsharrar@psu.edu or 865-7691. As a reminder, if you are leaving the College, you will need to return your parking permit to 111 Sparks Building. Regina Hassel, senior research technologist, psychology, Child Study Center, REDI Grant Tanya Hockman, staff assistant VII, undergraduate studies Teri Rudy, college advancement assistant, alumni relations and development LA Times is compiled by Louise Sharrar, Dean’s Office, 110 Sparks, 865-7691, lsharrar@psu.edu LA Times is also available on the Web at: http://www.la.psu.edu/ This publication is available in alternative media on request. Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the physical access provided, please consult Louise Sharrar 814-865-7691 in advance of your participation or visit. The Pennsylvania State University is committed to the policy that all persons shall have equal access to programs, facilities, admission, and employment without regard to personal characteristics not related to ability, performance, or qualifications as determined by University policy or by state or federal authorities. It is the policy of the University to maintain an academic and work environment free of discrimination, including harassment. The Pennsylvania State University prohibits discrimination and harassment against any person because of age, ancestry, color, disability or handicap, national origin, race, religious creed, sex, sexual orientation, or veteran status. Discrimination or harassment against faculty, staff, or students will not be tolerated at The Pennsylvania State University. Direct all inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policy to the Affirmative Action Director, The Pennsylvania State University, 328 Boucke Building, University Park, PA 16802-5901; Tel 814-865-4700/V, 814-863-1150/TTY U. Ed. LBA 04-233 |
