Former First Lady Laura Bush visited the SMU campus Nov. 18 to unveil architectural and landscaping designs for the George W. Bush Presidential Center. The following account comes courtesy of The George W. Bush Presidential Center:

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DALLAS--Mrs. Laura W. Bush, Architect Robert A. M. Stern and Landscape Architect Matthew Urbanski today unveiled the design of the George W. Bush Presidential Center, a modern brick and limestone structure that complements the American Georgian character of the SMU campus, set within a low-maintenance, quintessentially Texas landscape.

The light-filled building is both presidential and welcoming, includes elements that evoke both Texas and Washington, and will house the three components of the George W. Bush Presidential Center: an Archive, a Museum and a policy Institute.

"I applaud the work of Robert Stern and Michael Van Valkenburgh in designing a building and landscape that will capture the dignity of the office of the Presidency, while at the same time being warm and welcoming to visitors," President George W. Bush said. "Laura and I are thrilled with the plans."

"The building and landscape evoke elements of the full span of George and Laura Bush's life and service, from their ranch in Crawford to the White House, and help us share the story of a couple committed to public service based on the core principles of freedom, opportunity, responsibility and compassion," said Mark Langdale, President of the George W. Bush Presidential Library Foundation.

"The George W. Bush Presidential Center reflects a unique design that is appropriate in representing the first U.S. President of the 21st Century," said R. Gerald Turner, President of Southern Methodist University. "At the same time, it reflects major components of SMU's Collegiate Georgian architectural tradition of nearly 100 years. As a modern expression of our heritage, this facility will be a welcome addition to the stately buildings and grounds that make the SMU campus a special place for learning," Turner said.

The building and landscape are designed to achieve LEED platinum certification and include numerous sustainable design strategies, including locally sourced building materials (several types of Texas limestone, stained pecan interior paneling), 20 percent recycled materials, solar hot water panels, native landscaping to reduce irrigation and a storm-water management system that conveys, cleanses and collects surface runoff and roof rainwater, and will provide 50 percent of the irrigation needed for the site.

The building and landscape are integrated, with numerous links between indoor and outdoor spaces. Visitors to the museum will enter the building through Freedom Hall, a large, light-filled open space that will tie the different aspects of the museum experience together. On one side of Freedom Hall, visitors will be able to tour the Museum's permanent exhibit, which will include a replica of the Oval Office as it was during President Bush's tenure, complete with an outdoor Texas Rose Garden that mimics the proportion and scale of the White House Rose Garden. The Museum will tell the story of the presidency by examining key decisions and the core principles that defined President Bush's service: freedom, opportunity, responsibility and compassion.

The opposite side of Freedom Hall will house the temporary exhibit space, a ceremonial courtyard and a café. The Institute portion of the building will include a conference center with a 364-seat auditorium with simultaneous translation and broadcast capabilities, along with numerous offices for scholars and a presidential suite for receptions and other functions. The Institute will have its own entrance on axis with Binkley Avenue. The Archives will be the home for the official documents and artifacts of the Bush administration, where they will be presented to the public for study and discussion.

The landscape will be an attraction in and of itself, with seasonable displays in the wildflower meadow, large tree-shaded lawns for sitting, picnicking or playing, numerous gardens and courtyards, tall grass prairie with seasonal wildflowers, and savannah and woodland clearings that provide a range of native habitat for butterflies, birds and other wildlife species.

The landscape will function as an urban park that will engage a broad range of users, including library and special event visitors, SMU students, faculty and staff and the University Park community. It provides numerous spaces for events and gatherings, including performances in the outdoor amphitheater and intramural sports on the west lawn.

Robert A.M. Stern Architects, LLP, is a 220-person firm of architects, interior designers, and supporting staff. The firm is dedicated to the idea that architecture must engage in a conversation across time, connecting the present and future with the past. Robert A.M. Stern Architects brings to the design of the George W. Bush Presidential Center significant experience with the planning and design of museums that present a contemporary architectural response to the legacy of an important American cultural figure, including the Norman Rockwell Museum at Stockbridge, Massachusetts; the Roger Tory Peterson Institute in Jamestown, New York; and the Museum Center at the Mark Twain House & Museum in Hartford, Connecticut. Stern, practicing architect, teacher, and writer, is Dean of the Yale School of Architecture. He is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, and received the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Medal from the Municipal Art Society of New York in 2009 and the tenth Vincent Scully Prize from the National Building Museum in 2008. In 2007 he received both the Athena Award from the Congress for the New Urbanism and the Board of Directors' Honor from the Institute of Classical Architecture and Classical America. Joining Mr. Stern in the design effort were partners Augusta Barone, Alexander P. Lamis, and Graham S. Wyatt, and project architect Jim Pearson.

Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, Inc., Landscape Architects (MVVA) is known across North America and internationally for innovative landscapes that address contemporary social and environmental issues while also achieving, as with the George W. Bush Presidential Center, a timeless style that appeals to a broad range of the American public. Founded in 1982, MVVA has received numerous awards and previously worked with First Lady Laura Bush on the redesign of Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House. Michael Van Valkenburgh was the 2003 recipient of the Smithsonian Institution's Cooper Hewitt National Design Award for Environmental Design and is a 1988 winner of the prestigious American Academy in Rome Prize. He has taught both full and part time at Harvard's Graduate School of Design since 1982. The key senior staff members working on the Library with Michael are firm Principals, Laura Solano and Matthew Urbanski, and Herb Sweeney, Associate and Project Manager.

Mrs. Laura W. Bush chaired the design committee for the Bush Presidential Center. Members of the committee included: Roland Betts, Founder and Chairman of Chelsea Piers, L.P.; The Honorable Mark Langdale, President, George W. Bush Foundation; Deedie Rose, Philanthropist; Witold Rybczynski, Martin & Margy Meyerson Professor of Urbanism and Professor of Real Estate, University of Pennsylvania; Sidney J. Sanders, Vice President, Facilities and Construction, The Methodist Hospital System; and R. Gerald Turner, President, Southern Methodist University.

The Presidential Center will be located at Southern Methodist University, five miles north of downtown Dallas. It will occupy a 23.11-acre site on the main campus, near the corner of SMU Boulevard and North Central Expressway (U.S. Highway 75). The site is near a light rail station.

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• Find more links and media coverage from SMU News
• Learn more about LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council
• Visit the George W. Bush Presidential Center website

Former President George W. Bush told an SMU audience Nov. 12 that the George W. Bush Institute will focus on education, global health, human freedom and economic growth. The Institute will be part of the Bush Presidential Center, which will include the presidential library and museum.

Construction on the center will begin in fall 2010, but the institute's first initiatives are under way with the selection of key leaders and plans for conferences beginning this spring.

"The Institute will be a vital hub of critical thought and practical action," Bush told about 1,500 SMU faculty, students, staff and presidential library donors at McFarlin Auditorium. "It will be independent, nonpartisan and designed to make an impact in the world."

The Institute first will focus on education reform, beginning with the appointment of nationally renowned education scholar James Guthrie to serve as the institute's director of education policy studies; he will serve as senior fellow at the institute. Simultaneously, SMU's Annette Caldwell Simmons School of Education and Human Development announced that he will hold a concurrent appointment as professor in the school, the first such appointment to be made between SMU and the Bush Institute.

Guthrie is currently Patricia and Rodes Hart Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy and director of the Peabody Center for Education Policy at Vanderbilt University. He joins the Institute and the University on Jan. 1, 2010

Sandy Kress, national education leader and former Dallas Independent School District board chair, also will serve as education fellow at the Institute, directing education policy development and outreach.

Guthrie and Kress will lead a national education conference in March 2010 on education leadership, policy and school reform.

In addition, as part of the Bush Institute's focus on economic growth, including energy independence, the institute will partner with the Maguire Energy Institute in Cox School of Business to host an April 2010 conference focused on the benefits of natural gas production in the United States.

In the area of global health, Bush announced the appointment of Ambassador Mark Dybul, U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator from 2006 to 2009, as the institute's first global health fellow. Dr. Dybul will retain his position as distinguished scholar at Georgetown University. In both capacities he will research strategies to provide comprehensive health services to mothers, newborns and children in impoverished African and Asian countries.

"This is an area where research is urgently needed," Bush said. "I've charged Mark with saving as many lives as quickly as possible."

The institute will support human freedom with the creation of the Freedom Collection, a repository of video, oral and written histories documenting freedom movements around the world. The collection will serve as a resource for scholars, activists and policymakers interested in studying the advance of human liberty, Bush said.

"With the Freedom Collection, we will continue our legacy of supporting advocates for freedom around the world," Bush said.

Oscar Morales Guevara will serve as the institute's fellow in human freedom. He launched an international Internet movement in 2008 with fellow Colombians against the narco-terrorist network known as FARC.

Within all four areas of focus, the Bush Institute will integrate the involvement of women and social entrepreneurs. In remarks following those of her husband, former First Lady Laura Bush, who will lead the institute's women's initiative, said, "Research shows that when you educate and empower women, you improve nearly every aspect of society."

The Institute will be home to the U.S.-Afghan Women's Council, which will focus on literacy efforts at early- and adult-education levels for women in the United States and Afghanistan. The council plans a March conference on Afghan literacy.

"Education, global health, freedom and economic growth are areas that have been important to President and Mrs. Bush since President Bush first sought office as governor and then president," said Mark Langdale, president of the George W. Bush Foundation Board of Directors. "The purpose of the institute is to expand on these principles."

Bush ended by pledging that "together, the Bush Presidential Center and SMU will help this campus continue to grow as a great university. We will be a constructive member of a vibrant Dallas community. And we will contribute to the national dialogue in a positive way for years to come. We are proud to call SMU home."

• Read more from SMU News
• Watch the video from the Nov. 12 announcement
• Visit the official George W. Bush Presidential Center website

Celebrated scholar James Guthrie will join the faculty at SMU's Annette Caldwell Simmons School of Education and Human Development while serving as a Senior Fellow at the George W. Bush Institute, a think tank that is part of the George W. Bush Presidential Center to be built on the SMU campus. This is the first concurrent appointment for SMU and the Bush Institute.

At SMU Nov. 12, former President Bush announced in a speech that Guthrie will become the Bush Institute's Director of Education Policy Studies and will direct a program of research into ways to improve the quality of school leaders, including principals and administrators.

Currently, Guthrie is Patricia and Rodes Hart Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy and Director of the Peabody Center for Education Policy at Vanderbilt University, whose education school was ranked No. 1 in the country this year by U.S. News & World Report.

"James Guthrie's contributions to the field of education are legendary," said David Chard, the Leon Simmons Dean of the Annette Caldwell Simmons School of Education and Human Development. "His timely scholarship targets the obstacles that schools must overcome to provide all children access to high-quality education. His presence on our faculty will immediately shine a spotlight on SMU Simmons School's efforts to address some of education's most pressing challenges. Dr. Guthrie's appointment, confirmed by a vote of our faculty, recognizes his outstanding scholarship on education policy development and the critical role of leadership in effective education."

"The unique attribute Guthrie brings is his continual insistence on evidence-based policy, something he did long before anybody even invented a term for it," said Eric Hanushek, Paul and Jean Hanna Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution of Stanford University. Frederick Hess, director of Education Policy Studies at the American Enterprise Institute and executive editor of Education Next Magazine, called Guthrie one of the nation's most eminent thinkers on questions of educational leadership, education policy and school reform.

Guthrie is the author or co-author of 20 books and more than 200 academic and professional articles. He serves as a frequent expert witness in court cases and has been a consultant for state, national and international agencies and governments. Guthrie has been selected to serve on panels of the National Academy of Sciences and is the winner of 12 awards and academic fellowships, among them the Alexander Heard Distinguished Service Professor Award at Vanderbilt University.

Guthrie was a professor for 27 years at the University of California at Berkeley, holds a B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. from Stanford University, and undertook postdoctoral study in public finance at Harvard. Guthrie was a postdoctoral fellow at Oxford Brookes College, Oxford, England, and the Irving R. Melbo Visiting Professor at the University of Southern California.

His three-year appointments to both the SMU faculty and the Bush Institute begin in January 2010. Agreements signed by SMU and the Bush Foundation in February 2008 outline the stipulations for concurrent appointments - to serve on the SMU faculty, fellows must meet the same criteria that apply to appointees to other faculty positions, and their nomination must be reviewed and approved by the appropriate academic department and school.

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The holidays are here again, and SMU Catering is baking a selection of pies, cakes, cookies and breads for your Thanksgiving feast. Choose from the 2009 menu and order form (PDF format), and follow the directions for placing your order in person or by mail, phone or fax. The order deadline is Nov. 20. All prices include tax.

The baked goods are for pick-up only and will be available Nov. 23-24 until 3 p.m. in Umphrey Lee Center. Visa, MasterCard and checks (payable to SMU Catering) are accepted.

Eligible faculty members will receive a salary bonus of approximately $2,000 each in their Nov. 30, 2009, paychecks through projected available resources from the Lester A. and Stella Porter Russell Fund. The Office of the Provost has identified 650 faculty members as eligible according to the parameters set by Stella Porter Russell in her will. The net amounts received by individuals will vary based on each person's employment tax withholdings.

The annual supplement is $200 less than that for 2008, which was awarded to 653 faculty members. Every year the amount of the supplement is based on the number of faculty who are eligible, the expected spending distribution from the endowment, and the effect of current investment market conditions on the endowment.

The slight decrease in the bonus reflects the impact of the global economic downturn on SMU's endowment, says Mike Condon, who as SMU treasurer manages the University's endowment and planned giving assets. The endowment's market value declined by $369 million during the 2008-09 fiscal year, to total $1.032 billion as of May 31. The total return declined 24.2 percent, consistent with endowments of similar size nationwide.

"The financial markets began to stabilize in March 2009, recovering some of their previous declines. SMU's endowment has benefited accordingly," Condon wrote in the Treasurer's 2009 Endowment Report. "We are hopeful that the stabilization is a sign that the worst of the financial crisis is over. As always, we remain focused on pursuing strategies and identifying opportunities that will enable the endowment to meet its long-term return goals - and allow support for the University's programs and priorities to grow significantly over time."

In her will, Russell stipulated that SMU establish an endowment fund in memory of her late husband and herself, to be used to supplement SMU faculty salaries.

Full-time faculty, including those on paid leave, are eligible for Russell Fund bonuses, as well as visiting professors with 2-year contracts and professors on leave without pay for 1 semester. Eligibility for professors on leave without pay for 2 semesters and administrators is subject to decision by the appropriate dean.

Al Armendariz, Environmental and Civil Engineering, Lyle School of Engineering, was profiled as the new head of the Environmental Protection Agency's Region 6 in The Austin American-Statesman Nov. 16, 2009. In addition, musician Don Henley talked about Armendariz's EPA appointment for an article that appeared in The Boston Herald Nov. 9, 2009.

Matt Wilson, Political Science, Dedman College, talked about how the abortion issue could split Democrats in the struggle for votes on health care reform in an article for Reuters that appeared in Vision.org Nov. 14, 2009.

R. Gerald Turner, SMU President, and University System of Maryland Chancellor William E. Kirwan wrote as co-chairs of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics about the need for reform in college athletics funding in a letter published by USA Today Nov. 13, 2009.

Bernard Weinstein, Maguire Energy Institute, Cox School of Business, wrote about the potential for natural gas to transform the global energy market in a letter published by The Wall Street Journal Nov. 9, 2009.

Gary Keith Brubaker, The Guildhall at SMU, talked about how video games based in history spur interest in learning more about the past for a Reuters article published Nov. 13, 2009.

Cal Jillson, Political Science, Dedman College, talked about why the Obama Administration must be careful about calling the Ft. Hood shootings an act of terrorism in an article that appeared in The San Francisco Examiner Nov. 10, 2009.

"Darwin's Evolving Legacy" lecture: Jane Buikstra (left), Regents' Professor of Bioarchaeology and director of the Center for Bioarchaeological Research at Arizona State University, will give the Wendorf Distinguished Lecture in Archaeology. She will speak on "Tuberculosis: a Deep Time Perspective" at 5 p.m. Nov. 19 in McCord Auditorium, 306 Dallas Hall.

"Holocaust Legacies" series continues: SMU professors Virginia Dupuy (Meadows School of the Arts), Christopher Anderson (Perkins School of Theology) and John Holbert (Perkins School of Theology) present "Music Out of the Ashes," a lecture/performance focusing on Victor Ullmann's opera Der Kaiser von Atlantis, written in the Theresienstadt concentration camp but not performed until the 1970s. The evening will include scenes from the opera interspersed with commentary about the camp, the music and the composer and takes place 6-10 p.m. Nov. 19 in the Great Hall, Perkins Prothro Hall.

World music: Imaginative improvisation and plenty of jamming are part of the performance for the Meadows World Music Ensemble (right), directed by Jamal Mohamed. The group performs traditional works and original compositions at 8 p.m. Nov. 19 in the Greer Garson Theatre, Owen Arts Center. Free and open to the public.

Chamber Music Honors Concert: The Meadows School of the Arts presents its most outstanding chamber music ensembles, performing a range of works composed for trios, quartets and quintets. The concert takes place at 8 p.m. Nov. 21 in Caruth Auditorium, Owen Arts Center. Free and open to the public.

For a song: The Meadows Chorale and Concert Choir present "The Spirit Rejoices" at 8 p.m. Nov. 22 in Caruth Auditorium, Owen Arts Center. In lieu of admission, the choirs request voluntary donations to the North Texas Food Bank - give online or at the concert. For more information, call the Division of Music, 214-768-1951.

Social and political satirist Christopher Buckley will give the next lecture in SMU's 2009-10 Willis M. Tate Distinguished Lecture Series Nov. 17. Buckley will present The Lacerte Family Lecture at 8 p.m. in McFarlin Auditorium.

Buckley, who served a stint as chief speech writer for former Vice President George H.W. Bush, has written for numerous national newspapers and magazines but is best known as the author of more than a dozen books. His best-sellers include Little Green Men, Supreme Courtship and Thank You for Smoking, which became a major motion picture in 2006.

A native of New York, Buckley graduated from Yale University and became managing editor of Esquire magazine at the age of 24. At age 29, he published his first best-seller, Steaming to Bamboola: The World of a Tramp Freighter. In 1989 he started a new magazine, Forbes FYI, for which he still serves as editor-in-chief.

The evening lecture is sold out. Buckley will answer questions from SMU community members and local high school students in the Turner Construction Student Forum at 4:30 p.m. Nov. 17 in the Hughes-Trigg Student Center Ballroom.

• Visit the Tate Distinguished Lecture Series homepage

NASA scientist David J. Des Marais, the Hamilton Visiting Scholar in Geophysics for SMU's Huffington Department of Earth Sciences, will present two departmental lectures and one public lecture Nov. 17-20.

Des Marais will deliver his free, public lecture, "Life on Mars," at 7 p.m. Nov. 17 at the Frontiers of Flight Museum, 6900 Lemmon Avenue, at the southeast corner of Love Field.

His departmental lectures will be from noon to 1 p.m. in 153 Heroy Hall:

• Nov. 18: "Early Evolution of Earth Biogeochemical Carbon Cycles"
• Nov. 20: "Marine Microbial Mat Ecosystems and Earth's Early Biosphere"

Des Marais is a staff scientist at NASA Ames Research Center, where he is an interdisciplinary scientist for astrobiology on both the Mars Exploration Rover 2003 science operations working group and the Mars 2005 CRISM infrared spectrometer. His areas of specialization have included the stable isotope geochemistry of carbon in lunar samples, meteorites and oceanic basalts, the biogeochemistry of microbial communities in hypersaline environments, and the biogeochemistry of ancient (Precambrian) carbonates and organic matter.

For more information, contact Sandi Herrera.

Beginning Jan. 5-14, 2010, SMU will offer an expanded January interterm called J-Term. The concentrated program of study allows students to complete one three-credit-hour course within eight class days spread over a two-week period.

For the J-Term's inaugural outing, classes will be held Jan. 5-8 (Tuesday-Friday) and Jan. 11-14 (Monday-Thursday). The schedule provides six hours of instruction per day for a total of 48 contact hours, including time for exams. Available courses feature offerings from Cox School of Business, Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences, and Meadows School of the Arts (including the Temerlin Advertising Institute).

The daily schedule includes a break for meals. Most classes meet during the morning and afternoon from 8:45 a.m.-noon and from 1:15-4:30 p.m. Four afternoon/evening classes are available and will meet 1:15-4:30 p.m. and 5:45-9 p.m.

Students participating in J-Term will be responsible for their own housing. The SMU-in-Plano campus has no residence halls, and those at the University's main campus are closed during that period.

J-Term 2010 courses are not available for registration through Access.SMU. To enroll, students should meet with an adviser to select appropriate courses and to complete an application. The application must be received in Enrollment Services by 4 p.m. Dec. 10, 2009 (Reading Day).

For more information about J-Term 2010, contact Kate Livingston, SMU-in-Plano campus director, 972-473-3401.

• Visit the SMU J-Term homepage
• Learn more about SMU-in-Plano

For the second year in a row, seven SMU faculty members have received Sam Taylor Fellowships from the Sam Taylor Fellowship Fund of the Division of Higher Education, United Methodist General Board of Higher Education and Ministry.

The Sam Taylor Fellowships, funded by income from a portion of Taylor's estate, award up to $2,000 for full-time faculty members at United Methodist-related colleges and universities in Texas. Any full-time faculty member is eligible to apply for the Fellowships, which support research "advancing the intellectual, social, or religious life of Texas and the nation."

Applications are evaluated on the significance of the project, clarity of the proposal, professional development of the applicant, value of the project to the community or nation, and the project's sensitivity to value questions confronting higher education and society.

The winning professors for 2009-10, and their projects:

• Sarah Allen, Division of Music, Meadows School of the Arts, for research on motor skill acquisition in music learning.

• Jill deTemple Religious Studies, Dedman College, for research in Ecuador on a faith-based women's development organization.

• Robert Hunt, Director of Global Theological Education, Perkins School of Theology, for research in the Indonesian Archipelago on shared Christian-Muslim culture and relations.

• Sheri Kunovich Sociology, Dedman College, to study female political candidates and the voting system in Poland.

• Rubén Sanchez-Godoy Foreign Languages and Literatures, Dedman College, for archival research in Salvador, Brazil, and Peru, on 17th-century representations of slavery.

• Susanne Scholz, Perkins School of Theology, to interview and produce a documentary DVD series on pioneering feminist theologians.

• Jeanne Stevenson-Moessner, Perkins School of Theology, for her research on identity and faith formation in cross-cultured children of missionaries.

For more information on the Fellowships, including application instructions, contact Kathleen Hugley-Cook, director of the University's Office of National Fellowships and Awards.

• Visit SMU's National Fellowships and Awards homepage

Senior linebacker Chase Kennemer (left) has been named Conference USA Defensive Player of the Week after making three fumble recoveries and eight tackles during the Mustangs' 31-28 victory over Rice Nov. 7. Currently, SMU is 4-1 in C-USA play, the best start since 1986. Kennemer has registered six 10-plus-tackle games in 2009 and ranks 15th nationally in tackles per game at 10.33. Read more.

The Mustangs' 2009 basketball season starts Nov. 13, as the men's and women's squads both open at home in Moody Coliseum. The women's team plays Loyola Marymount at 5:30 p.m., and the men's team hosts the University of South Florida at 7:30 p.m. Read more: SMU vs. Loyola Marymount | SMU vs. South Florida

Former SMU quarterback Ricky Wesson is among nine individuals who will be part of the Texas Black Sports Hall of Fame's induction class of 2009. Wesson, a graduate of Dallas' South Oak Cliff High School, became SMU's first black starting quarterback in 1973 and went on to become the Mustangs' total offense leader three years in a row, a feat matched only by fellow quarterbacks Don Meredith, Chuck Hixson and Mike Romo. Wesson joins former Mustang inductees Michael Carter, Jerry Levias, Gene Pouncy, Joe Pouncy, Rufus Shaw and Ira Terrell. Read more.

Al Armendariz, SMU associate professor of environmental and civil engineering, is President Barack Obama's choice to head the Environmental Protection Agency's Region 6, which includes Texas - the nation's largest producer of industrial air pollution - and four other southwestern states.

"I look forward to working closely with Al Armendariz on the range of urgent environmental issues we face, in region 6 and across the nation," said EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson, who announced the appointment. "At this moment of great challenge and even greater opportunity, I'm thrilled that Al will be part of our leadership team at EPA. He will certainly play an instrumental role in our Agency's mission to protect our health and the environment."

Regional EPA administrators promote state and local environmental protection efforts and serve as a liaison between Jackson and state and local government officials. Armendariz takes the helm at Region 6 at a time when the EPA has made it clear that Texas pollution enforcement standards are not high enough and must meet federal Clean Air Act requirements followed by other states.

"I think it's fair to say that the new administration, the President and Lisa Jackson have put EPA on a new course to better protect the environment and I'm happy to be part of the team," Armendariz said. "I think it's pretty obvious to the regulated industries and the environmental groups and the politicians that what EPA is doing now is a big departure from what EPA has been doing for a number of years. It's an exciting time."

Region 6 includes the states of Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma and New Mexico, as well as 66 Indian tribes. While on leave, Armendariz will retain his appointment with SMU's Lyle School of Engineering.

"We are thrilled that Al Armendariz' work in improving our living and working environments has been recognized by the President and EPA Administrator," said Geoffrey Orsak, dean of the Lyle School. "Al is an extraordinarily talented, insightful and balanced engineer who will make a significant contribution to our nation and region."

"I am very excited and I'm looking forward to joining the administration," Armendariz said. "I've greatly enjoyed being at SMU. It's been a fantastic place to work and I've had the support of Dean Orsak and Dr. (R. Gerald) Turner for all my activities. It's been a great place to teach and do research, and I look forward to continuing my association with SMU for years to come."

Armendariz joined SMU in 2002 after receiving his Ph.D in environmental engineering from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Public Health. He worked as a research assistant at the MIT Center for Global Change Science at their Atmospheric Chemistry Laboratory in Massachusetts, and at the Radian Corporation in North Carolina as a chemical engineer, before joining the SMU faculty. He also spent a summer on special assignment to EPA's Dallas office as an environmental scientist.

• Learn more from SMU News

SMU's Cox School of Business has been ranked in the top 20 for all its graduate programs by BusinessWeek magazine.

The school's Executive M.B.A. (EMBA) program is No. 9 among the top programs in the world, while the Professional M.B.A. (PMBA) program is ranked No. 15 in the United States. In an earlier ranking, BusinessWeek ranked the Cox full-time M.B.A. program No. 18.

The Cox School is the only one in the Southwest and one of eight in the nation with full-time M.B.A., PMBA and EMBA programs ranked in the top 20. In other rankings, the Cox School's PMBA program is ranked No. 11 by U.S News & World Report, and the EMBA program is ranked No. 15 by The Wall Street Journal.

"The Cox School is consistently recognized for its exceptional educational experience," says Dean Al Niemi. "An outstanding faculty, a strong global network, a strategic location in one of the world's best cities for business, and a number of innovative programs, centers and institutes keep our students on the leading edge of business."

Results of the EMBA ranking were based on a two-part survey in which the opinions of graduates and program directors each accounted for 50 percent of a school's score. The Cox EMBA program was noted for its outstanding teaching and curriculum by its students.

The PMBA rankings were based on a student satisfaction survey (40 percent), academic quality (30 percent) and post-graduation outcomes (30 percent). Students praised the Cox School's myriad of networking opportunities, mentorship program and industry connections in Dallas for setting the school apart.

The complete list of rankings can be found at BusinessWeek online.

After a winning Homecoming 2009 weekend, the SMU community prepares to celebrate another long-standing tradition: Family Weekend, set for Nov. 13-15.

With a theme of "Passport to SMU," the weekend includes activities designed to help families learn more about their students' experiences at the University. Highlights include:

• Nov. 13 - Ford Stadium tour at 10:30 a.m.; Mothers' Club reception and luncheon starting at 11 a.m. in the Hughes-Trigg Student Center; meetings with the faculty at 2 p.m.; and a student talent show at 8 p.m. in McFarlin Auditorium.

• Nov. 14 - Meadows Museum tour starting at 10:30 a.m.; barbecue with the Dads' Club and a tailgate party on the Boulevard starting at 11:30 a.m.; cheer on the Mustangs against the University of Texas-El Paso Miners at 2 p.m. in Ford Stadium.

• Nov. 15 - Mass in Perkins Chapel at 9 a.m.; College Hispanic American Students luncheon at noon in Hughes-Trigg Student Center; and the Asian Council dinner at 6 p.m. in Hughes-Trigg.

• Read the full schedule courtesy of SMU News (PDF format)