May 30 marks the last full issue of SMU Forum for the 2007-08 academic year. The newsletter will return from summer vacation in August.
Meanwhile, we'll continue to post updates throughout the next few months. Keep up all summer long - subscribe to our RSS feed through your web browser or a news reader such as FeedDemon for Windows or NetNewsWire for Mac.
See you soon!
Memorial Day weekend will be more than just a work holiday: Texas shoppers will also get a break from state and local sales and use taxes on purchases of some energy-saving products. The 2008 Energy Star sales tax holiday begins at 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 24, and ends at 11:59 p.m. Monday, May 26 (Memorial Day).
Qualifying products will display the Energy Star logo (left), which may appear on the appliance, the packaging or the Energy Guide label. Energy Star is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy. A product that earns the Energy Star has met strict energy efficiency guidelines set by these two federal agencies.
There is no limit on the number of qualifying items one can purchase during the sales tax holiday, and an exemption certificate is not required, says Michael Vangeli, P.E., SMU's associate director of energy management. Planning new purchases around the tax holiday "will help save people money and energy," he adds.
Find more information at the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts website.
SMU observes its 93rd Commencement May 16-17 with events for students, faculty, alumni and the entire community.
Dr. Allen Weinstein, the noted historian who oversees the nation's presidential libraries, will speak at the all-University ceremony at 9:30 a.m. May 17 in Moody Coliseum. The University expects to award nearly 2,000 undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees.
Some major events at a glance:
• May 16-17 - Class of 1958 golden reunion
• May 16 - Baccalaureate and Rotunda Recessional
• May 17 - Faculty Breakfast and Distinguished University Citizen Awards presentation
• May 17 - All-University Commencement
• May 17 - School diploma presentations
Find more information at the Registrar's Commencement 2008 website.
Put your budget on notice: The U.S. Postal Service will increase its first-class stamp price for letters weighing 1 ounce or less from 41 cents to 42 cents on May 12, 2008. A list of new prices:
Forever Stamps purchased at the 41-cent rate can be used with no additional postage even after the rate hike. For more information, visit SMU's Postal Services website.
The SMU Staff Association is seeking nominations for several positions on its 2008-09 Executive Board. Staff members are encouraged to recommend colleagues or themselves for the open positions.
The organization seeks nominees for the following:
The following staff members hold continuing positions on the 2008-09 board:
Send your recommendations by May 6 to John Hall, chair of the Nominations Committee, or Bill Dworaczyk, member of the Nominations Committee.
President R. Gerald Turner has accepted 36 of the 38 recommendations recently made by the University's Task Force on Substance Abuse Prevention on programs, policies and issues related to alcohol and drug use. Some recommendations have been accepted partially or with modifications, limitations or reservations; or will be considered with more study. Two recommendations have not been accepted.
"As the Task Force has wisely stated, no one policy or program alone can guarantee wise decision-making on the part of students encountering new freedoms at college or those entering with existing drug and alcohol problems," Turner said in his report. "It is our hope, however, that the many recommendations we will implement will strengthen a culture of personal responsibility and academic achievement, a community in which students make the best use of resources, programs and assistance."
SMU students, faculty and staff members are invited to attend a briefing and discussion on the Task Force's recommendations with Turner, Provost Paul Ludden and Vice President for Student Affairs Lori White at 2 p.m. today (April 29) in the Hughes-Trigg Student Center Theater. Read more from the announcement.
• President Turner's decision
• Executive summary of the decision
• The Task Force's recommendations
SMU students, faculty and staff members are invited to attend a briefing and discussion with President R. Gerald Turner, Provost Paul Ludden and Vice President for Student Affairs Lori White on decisions regarding the recommendations of the University's Task Force on Substance Abuse Prevention. The meeting is scheduled for 2 p.m. April 29 in the Hughes-Trigg Student Center Theater.
Watch SMU Forum for highlights from the meeting.
SMU faculty, staff and students who live off campus can receive a permanent and practical souvenir of Earth Week 2008. Stop by the Hughes-Trigg Student Center Mane Desk 8:30 a.m.-8 pm. April 21-25 to pick up one free low-flow showerhead, while supplies last. Each showerhead can save more than 3,600 gallons of water per year.
Installation demonstrations will take place 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on Earth Day, April 22, in the Hughes-Trigg Commons. The giveaway is sponsored by SMU Campus Planning and Plant Operations. For more information, contact Michael Paul, CPPO's director of energy management and engineering, 8-2122.
SMU celebrates the coming end of the 2007-08 academic year by honoring some of its most distinguished faculty, staff and student citizens. The University's Honors Day Convocation and Awards Extravaganza take place on the afternoon and evening of April 21.
Willard Spiegelman, SMU's Duwain E. Hughes Jr. Distinguished Professor of English, will speak on "Success and Obedience: A List of Suggestions and Advice" at the 11th annual Honors Day Convocation at 5:30 p.m. in McFarlin Auditorium. The ceremony celebrates academic achievement at the University and department levels. A reception follows the Convocation in the Grand Ballroom, Umphrey Lee Center.
The University presents several awards for excellence - including its highest honor, the "M" Award - at the Awards Extravaganza at 7:30 p.m. in the Hughes-Trigg Student Center Theater. Winners will be listed in SMU Forum after they are announced at the ceremony.
Information Technology Services wants to know if your technology needs are being met - and you can tell them what's working (and what isn't) through the department's 2008 Customer Satisfaction Survey. The feedback ITS gathers now will inform its planning and project schedule for 2008-09.
Past ITS improvements that resulted from survey feedback included larger mailbox quotas and more network drive space, expansion of the University's wireless capabilities, and implementation of new blogging software - which has made possible redesigns of SMU Forum and the University's popular Student Adventures site, among others.
The survey takes about 10 minutes and will remain open until April 27. Participants can also register for a chance to win one of ten iTunes gift certificates. For more information, visit the survey site.
In December 2007, SMU's Teaching Technology Group (TTG) funded the development of a University "island" in the popular virtual world Second Life. With the SMU presence now partially developed (above), the TTG is seeking input from students, staff and faculty to complete the island's development and bring it to life with social and educational activities.
Learn more about this project and the opportunities it presents in one of two introductory sessions April 16-17. The meetings will provide an overview of SMU in Second Life and show examples of teaching opportunities in disciplines including biology, art, theatre, history and business. Both sessions will take place in the Crow Building, Room 190, Cox School of Business - choose the date and time that best fit your schedule, and invite students to attend:
Session A: April 16, 3:30-5 p.m.
Session B: April 17, 9:30-11 a.m.
For more information, contact Ulrike Schultze.
Faculty members who seek additional funding for Spring 2009 research projects should plan to apply now for a 2008-09 Sam Taylor Fellowship. The Fellowships award up to $2,000 for full-time faculty members at Methodist-related colleges in Texas. Last year SMU faculty in Chemistry, Theology, Political Science, and Religious Studies received awards.
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." The program does not award for instructional materials or equipment, nor for travel not associated with the Fellowship project.
Applications will be evaluated on the following criteria:
The deadline for application is Sept. 1, 2008; applications may be submitted beginning in early summer. Notification of awards is in late October. For more information, contact Kathleen Hugley-Cook in the Office of National Fellowships, 8-3325.
The SMU community has the chance to recognize indispensable staffers in its libraries and throughout the campus with two spring awards.
Nominations are now being accepted for the 2007-08 SMU Libraries Staff Recognition Awards, which recognize outstanding contributions to the Libraries and/or to the information professions, as well as service to library users. The five awards carry a monetary prize of $500 each. General considerations and criteria for these awards can be found at the SMU Libraries website. Any member of the campus community may nominate a Libraries staff member has not won the award within the past 5 years (consult the list of previous winners). The directors of Bridwell Library, Business Information Center, Central University Libraries and Underwood Law Library are not eligible for the awards.
The deadline for consideration is April 18. Submit a nomination online or e-mail Cindy Ruppi for more information or a paper form.
Meanwhile, the Faculty Senate will present citations and gifts to three outstanding University staff members at its final meeting of 2007-08 on May 7. Nominations for the 2008 Faculty Senate Outstanding Staff Awards will be accepted until noon April 14. Faculty members should e-mail Julie Maynard with:
The Office of the Provost seeks nominations of outstanding teaching faculty, tenured and tenure-track, for several prestigious state and national awards recognizing teaching excellence. These honors include the Piper Professor Award, the Cherry Award, and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) Professor of the Year and carry prizes ranging from $5,000 to $200,000.
Those submitting a candidate's name should include a letter giving the rationale and indicating willingness to be a formal nominator if the person becomes the SMU nominee for an award. Please include names of three additional references for the nominee.
Each nomination should be endorsed by the nominee's department chair; chairs may endorse more than one nominee. Send nominations to the Office of National Fellowships, Office of the Provost, by April 20, 2008. Watch the SMU Forum for additional information.
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Faculty and staff members can get a closer look at a major new Meadows Museum exhibition at a wine-and-cheese reception celebrating "Fernando Gallego and His Workshop: The Altarpiece From Ciudad Rodrigo," on display through July 27, 2008. Festivities take place 4:30-6:30 p.m. April 1 in the Museum's Gene and Jerry Jones Great Hall.
For the first time in the United States, researchers have undertaken an extensive study of a 15th-century Spanish cathedral altarpiece - and in the process unlocked 500 years of secrets. Their findings, along with the entire group of paintings that comprise the altarpiece, are now on view at the Museum.
Also appearing is "Apocalypse: Images from the Book of Revelation," an exhibition featuring biblical images from SMU's Bridwell Library Special Collections. "Apocalypse" runs through June 22. Read more.
(Right, an excerpt from the altarpiece's St. John the Evangelist panel, as painted and as revealed by infrared reflectography.)
Continue reading "Faculty, staff invited to Meadows Museum opening reception April 1" »
Stand up and be counted: Central University Libraries is requesting copies of 2007 faculty publications for its 9th Annual Faculty Recognition Day exhibition, to open April 29. The deadline for submissions has been extended to March 28; the exhibition will run through Commencement Week 2008. For a submission form and more information, contact Cynthia Ruppi, 8-2401.
Louise Raggio ('52), the Dallas attorney for whom SMU's Louise Ballerstedt Raggio Endowed Lecture Series in Women's Studies is named, will be the focus of a television documentary airing on public television. Texas Trailblazer: Louise Raggio is scheduled to air on KERA at 9:30 p.m. Mar. 19, 5:30 a.m. Mar. 23, and 11 p.m. Mar. 24.
Raggio has done more to ensure the protection of women's legal rights in Texas than any other person in history. The only woman in her SMU law school class in 1952, she went on to become the first woman prosecutor in the Dallas County district attorney's office. As a direct result of Mrs. Raggio's efforts in drafting the Texas Marital Property Act of 1967, women gained the legal right to own property, secure a bank loan and start a business without their husband's consent. Following this historical accomplishment, Mrs. Raggio established a law practice and was soon named one of the top 10 attorneys in the country.
The Raggio Lecture brings nationally renowned leaders to the University to speak on gender and women's issues. Launched in 1998, the program has featured such speakers as author and feminist Gloria Steinem, U.S. Representative Patricia Schroeder, feminist author Susan Faludi, former Texas governor Ann Richards, and Teach for America founder Wendy Kopp.
SMU's Rotunda yearbook has extended the deadline to nominate faculty members for the 2008 Rotunda Outstanding Professor Award. Nominations must be received by Mar. 21.
The award recognizes faculty members whose commitment to teaching excellence is reflected in their classroom instruction and in their interaction with students. All students, faculty and staff may submit nominations. To submit a nomination, complete the downloadable nomination form available at the Rotunda website and return it to SMU Box 750456 or the Rotunda office in 314 Hughes-Trigg Student Center. Please include information demonstrating the quality and excellence of the candidate's performance inside and outside the classroom.
All nominations will be reviewed by a faculty committee, which may request additional supporting information from the head of nominee's academic department, academic colleagues, Student Affairs, staff members and others. The 2008 recipients will be announced at the SMU Awards Extravaganza Apr. 21, and be featured in Rotunda 2008.
U.S. Daylight Saving Time for 2008 begins this Sunday, Mar. 9, at 2 a.m. Don't forget to set your clocks forward one hour, and check your computer to be sure it's displaying the correct time.
A limited number of faculty and staff tickets are still available to hear former British Prime Minister Tony Blair's address to the Hart Global Leaders Forum at 11 a.m. Mar. 6 in McFarlin Auditorium. Present your SMU ID at the Hughes-Trigg Student Center Mane Desk - one ticket per ID, while they last.
The Hart Global Leaders Forum offers area high school students the opportunity to interact with national and international leaders in government, business, science and the media.
SMU employees can learn more about the University's Master of Liberal Studies degree program at an information session to take place 6-7:30 p.m. Mar. 6 in the Fondren Science Building, Room 127. The Annette Caldwell Simmons School of Education and Human Development offers the degree, in which students design their own program of study. Degree candidates must successfully complete 36 credit hours of graduate study within 6 years.
SMU tuition benefits will cover the cost of the Master of Liberal Studies degree for most University staff members; the program offers tuition discounts to all others. To attend the information session, RSVP by e-mail or call 8-4273.
SMU faculty and staff members will have the opportunity to see former British Prime Minister Tony Blair during his visit to SMU Mar. 5-6. Free tickets are available for Blair's address in the Hart Global Leaders Forum at 11 a.m. Mar. 6 in McFarlin Auditorium. Present your SMU ID at the Hughes-Trigg Student Center Mane Desk (one ticket per ID, limited availability).
The Hart Global Leaders Forum offers area high school students the opportunity to interact with national and international leaders in government, business, science and the media.
Blair will be at SMU to accept the Medal of Freedom from SMU's John Goodwin Tower Center for Political Studies during formal ceremonies at 8:30 p.m. Mar. 5 in McFarlin Auditorium. The Center, which educates undergraduates in international relations, comparative politics and political institutions, presents the Medal of Freedom every two years to an individual "who has furthered the cause of freedom throughout the world."
The Medal of Freedom presentation is sold out; SMU students may have access to limited seating. Students should come to the McFarlin Auditorium basement at 7:30 p.m. with SMU ID (no backpacks, please). Seats will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. Find more information at the Tate Distinguished Lecture Series home page.
The remaining two finalists for the position of dean of Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences will meet with the campus community today and next week:
Originally published Feb. 27, 2008.
SMU is offering all benefit-eligible staff and faculty members access to a new program designed to measure overall health and provide individualized information for prevention and wellness, at no cost - not even from your $500 preventive healthcare allowance. Read more.
Upcoming screening dates, times and locations:
Mar. 5: Karcher Auditorium, Storey Hall, 7:45-11:30 a.m.
Mar. 6: Hall of Champions, Loyd All-Sports Center, 7:45-11:30 a.m.
Continue reading "SMU offers no-cost health screenings on campus" »
(Updated Feb. 26, 2008, to show new times for Dr. Candelaria's campus meetings.)
Two finalists for the position of dean of Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences will meet with the campus community this week. Watch the SMU Forum for more updates.
Mark Welker, associate provost for research, Wake Forest University, will be the fifth candidate to visit. He will be on campus Mar. 3-4; details are to be announced.
As U.S. citizens contemplate the possibility of electing their first woman president in 2008, SMU's 43rd Women's Symposium will explore the new status of women as leaders on campus and in society with its Feb. 28 event, "The Time Is Now."
"The time is now to talk about all the ways in which women are advancing, in every arena," says Women's Symposium Coordinator Karen Click.
Eleanor Clift (right), contributing editor for Newsweek and co-author of Madam President: Shattering the Last Glass Ceiling, will deliver the Emmie V. Baine Lecture during lunch, which begins at 12:25 p.m. A 3 p.m. interest session, "Madam President: An SMU Model," brings together the University's past and present women student body leaders to discuss their experiences.
With Senator Hillary Clinton continuing a historic run for the White House, Symposium planners brought a heightened sense of the political climate to this year's event, Click says. "We were well aware of this turning point when we put together this year's event - in fact, that's how we came up with our theme," she says. "The unprecedented success of her campaign gives us a platform to speak broadly about women who are shattering glass ceilings everywhere."
Created in 1966 as part of the University's 50th anniversary celebration, the Women's Symposium is the longest continuously running program of its kind in the nation. It features nationally recognized speakers as well as seminars on topics of national interest and workshops conducted by students, community leaders, and SMU faculty and staff.
Symposium registration is free for SMU faculty, staff and students; the deadline is Feb. 22. Register online at the Women's Symposium website.
The entire SMU community is invited to a ribbon-cutting ceremony that will officially open the new Crum Basketball Center. The ceremony begins at 11:45 a.m. on the Center's east practice court; afterward, lunch will be served on the west practice court. The Center is located at Binkley Avenue and Dublin Street, just east of Moody Coliseum.
The University broke ground for the Crum Basketball Center in December 2006 to create a dedicated, state-of-the art space where SMU men's and women's basketball programs can practice and train. It includes separate full-size practice courts for each program, locker rooms and lounges, training and rehabilitation areas, coaches' offices, meeting areas and film editing rooms. The teams began practicing in the new facilities in December 2007.
Learn more about the Center and find construction photos and other artwork at the SMU Athletics website.
A popular new program for SMU students has become an innovative professional development opportunity for SMU employees. The Office of Human Resources will offer an introduction to StrengthsQuest among its Spring 2008 Professional Development Workshops. Read more.
Continue reading "StrengthsQuest among spring Professional Development Workshops" »
This week, SMU faculty and staff will participate in a conference on creating mentoring environments for students. Sharon Daloz Parks, director of leadership for the New Commons of the Whidbey Institute, is keynote speaker for "Big Questions, Worthy Dreams: Mentoring Young People in Their Search for Meaning, Purpose and Faith." The two-day conference features faculty sessions Feb. 14 (faculty may choose to attend a morning or afternoon session) and a staff session 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Feb. 15 (lunch included). This free event is sponsored by the Office of the Chaplain and Religious Life; registration is required. For more information, contact Judy Henneberger, 8-4502.
Updated Feb. 12, 2008, with available meeting places and times.
Five finalists for the position of dean of Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences will meet with the campus community over the next several weeks, says Provost Paul Ludden. The search committee has set the following dates for candidate visits. Watch the SMU Forum for more updates.
SMU's Office of Leadership and Community Involvement has teamed with the White House to become an Official Certifying Organization for the President's Volunteer Service Award, a national program recognizing Americans who have demonstrated a sustained commitment to volunteer service. Established in 2003, the award was created by President George W. Bush to give Presidential recognition for volunteer service. Campus community members may nominate individuals, families and groups for the award; the deadline is Mar. 6, 2008. Read more.
Continue reading "Nominations open for President's Volunteer Leadership Award" »
Eleanor Clift, contributing editor for Newsweek and co-author of Madam President: Shattering the Last Glass Ceiling, will deliver the Emmie V. Baine Lecture in SMU's 43rd annual Women's Symposium Feb. 28.
Created in 1966 as part of the University's 50th anniversary celebration, the Women's Symposium is the longest continuously running program of its kind in the nation. The program features nationally recognized speakers as well as seminars on topics of national interest and workshops conducted by students, community leaders, and SMU faculty and staff.
Symposium registration is free for SMU faculty, staff and students; the deadline is Feb. 22. Register online at the Women's Symposium website.
High school teachers and community college professors will explore new ways to teach history when SMU's William P. Clements Department of History hosts the 2008 Stanton Sharp Teaching Symposium Feb. 9 in Dallas Hall. The symposium offers discussions with some of SMU's most distinguished history professors, who will talk about new scholarship and research materials in their areas of expertise and ways of presenting them to students.
Topics will include the American and Russian Revolutions, the Vietnam War, Native Americans in the 20th century, Mexicans in American history, Americans from Africa, Egypt in the age of Tutankhamen, approaches to teaching Nazi Germany and the Holocaust, and using the World Wide Web to teach U.S. cultural history.
The $15 registration fee ($7.50 for graduate students) includes lunch. Teachers may earn continuing education credit if enrolled in each of the three sessions. Find more information and an online registration form at the History Department website.
SMU's Spring 2008 Career Fair takes place Feb. 13 - and students who want to make the most of it can start preparing this week. Career Fair Prep Day is scheduled for 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Jan. 31 in the lower level of Hughes-Trigg Student Center. Students can get their résumés reviewed by employers, learn how to polish their professional images, participate in an employer Q&A, and get tips on how to make the most of their career fair experience.
Students also may participate in a Speed Networking session 4-6 p.m. Advance registration is required only for this event; students may RSVP online.
Career Fair Prep Day is presented by SMU's Hegi Family Career Development Center and the Cox School of Business' B.B.A. Career Services. For more information, visit the Career Center website.
SMU's Godbey Lecture Series (GLS) of Dedman College is now accepting nominations for its 28th annual Authors' Awards. This year's awards will be presented to three SMU faculty members who had outstanding books published during 2007.
Nominations are open to all SMU faculty members. The faculty member nominated must have authored or co-authored an outstanding book published during the previous year (Jan. 1-Dec. 31, 2007). Nominations will be considered for authored (not edited) books only and will not be accepted or considered if published by vanity presses or paid to be published by the author.
Each winning author will receive a cash prize of $1,000, with co-authors receiving $500 each. The Authors' Award luncheon will honor the winners Apr. 28 in the Umphrey Lee Grand Ballroom. Nominations must be received by Feb. 15. For more information or to make a nomination, contact Dorothy Friedlander, 8-3399.
Reminder: SMU observes the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday Monday, Jan. 21. University offices will be closed, and no classes will be held. Monday class hours will be observed Tuesday, Jan. 22. (Photo courtesy Library of Congress, New York World-Telegram & Sun Collection.)
Reminder: The Emeriti Health Accounts Program for faculty and staff members takes effect Jan. 1, 2008. Faculty and staff members should have received Emeriti enrollment kits at their homes in September. Eligible individuals age 40 and older will be enrolled automatically beginning Jan. 1 and must contact Emeriti to select investment options and provide the names of any individuals to be named dependents on their accounts.
For more information, visit the Emeriti Web site at www.emeritihealth.org or call toll-free at 1-866-EMERITI (1-866-363-7484). Read more about the program from the Sept. 7 SMU Forum.
Mark your calendars now: The next General Faculty Meeting is scheduled for Jan. 16, 2008, in the Hughes-Trigg Student Center (the day after Spring 2008 classes begin). A reception will take place at 3 p.m. in the lower level; the meeting begins at 4 p.m. in the Hughes-Trigg Student Center Theater.
