Message from Dean Howard

CLAS Transformation
Few universities in the United States have changed so dramatically over the course of the past 35 years as UC Denver.  In the past decade alone, the Anschutz Medical Campus has been built, and the Health Sciences Center and the Downtown Campus have been consolidated into one institution.  But even limiting the focus to the Downtown Campus, the transformation has been breathtaking.  In 1974, the Denver Campus consisted of the Tramway Company Building at 14th and Arapahoe.  Now the Downtown Campus encompasses buildings on the Auraria Campus, as well as three large buildings in the center of Denver—the CU Building, the Lawrence Street Center, and the new School of Business Building at 1475 Lawrence Street.  The first residential hall was built in 2006, and what was once a commuter campus has increasingly come to resemble a more traditional state university, with a large freshman class and students anxious to form ties to faculty members and to the institution.

There is no doubt that some of the growth of the Downtown Campus has been fueled by the growth of Denver and changes in the way that students and parents pay for higher education.  Increasingly, students are being asked to share the burden of the cost of higher education and it is easier to shoulder this load by attending an urban campus with a multitude of opportunities for employment nearby.  But other factors, especially those associated with the quality and commitment of the faculty and staff at UC Denver over the course of the past 35 years have probably played an even more important role in the growth of the Downtown Campus.   Although resources were limited 10, 20, and 35 years ago (some things never change), when I talk to long-time and retired faculty and staff members they are virtually unanimous in acknowledging the camaraderie that came with knowing virtually every faculty and staff member in the college, as well as the sense of mission associated with providing non-traditional students with second chances and opportunities for better lives.  UC Denver provided, and continues to provide, a high-quality education to its students and, as a consequence, it has grown. 

CLAS Masters
Although our retired faculty and staff members take great pride in the university they helped build, a consistent theme in my conversations with them is disappointment that the university and the college have not better engaged them in their retirement.  Almost all of them feel that they still have much to offer, and they are a bit frustrated that the college has not taken advantage of the resources they can provide. 

In response to these sentiments, CLAS held its first retiree reception this spring and we are in the process of forming a Retiree Association.  In addition, we have developed two programs that allow the college to tap into the valuable expertise of our retirees.  The first of these is the CLAS Visiting Scholars Program. Participants in this program agree to serve as visiting scholars to departments, and are available to provide guest lectures or to fill in when a faculty member is sick or traveling.  The second is a colloquium series titled “CLAS Masters.”  Twice a semester, a retired faculty or staff member will give a talk in an area in which they have remained expert, or in which they have gained expertise, since their retirement.  The series will kick off this September 25, at 2:30 PM, in Tivoli Room 640.  The speaker is Emeritus Professor of English Rex Burns, and the title of his talk is “The Case of the Publishing Racket and Other Publishing Horrors.”  You are all welcome, indeed encouraged, to attend.  Please RSVP to Katy Brown.

Dean’s Office Update
Finally, it is with great regret that I announce that Associate Dean Mary Coussons-Read will step down from her position in the Dean’s Office to return to teaching, research, and more limited administrative duties.  Mary has a distinguished record of service to the college and the university and she has been a tireless mentor of junior, and even senior, faculty members.  She is one of the treasures of the college, and while I will miss our daily interactions, I am grateful that her office in Psychology will be close by and we can still easily converse.

With all best wishes,

Dan

New! STEMapalooza

October 16-17

Don’t miss out on sponsoring a booth at the second annual STEMapalooza. Reach thousands of middle/high school students, their teachers and parents, and network with numerous industry professionals focused on science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) workforce, education and partnerships.  Conveniently located close to campus, this two-day event takes place in the Colorado Convention Center.  We’re looking for interactive booths from our faculty, staff and students to showcase the breadth and depth of our STEM areas. 

Provost Nairn is encouraging all UC Denver schools and colleges to have an even stronger voice in the STEM conversation by participating in this year’s event. The excitement of scientific discovery is alive and well at UC Denver—let’s show our support!

Register for your booth and learn more at www.stemapalooza.org or call Sharon Unkart at 303.556.6543.

New! 5th Annual Undergraduate Experiences Symposium

Foundations of Excellence: Implementing the Path Toward Excellence for First-Year Students

On October 2, join fellow faculty, staff and university leaders for the fifth annual Undergraduate Experiences Symposium. In St. Cajetan's, the event will run from 8:30 am - 2:30 pm. This year's keynote speaker is Scott E. Evenbeck, who is Professor of Psychology and Dean of University College at Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis (IUPUI). For more information, visit the Undergraduate Experiences website.
To register, go here.

New! Disabilities Committee

Call for Committee Members

Amy Vidali of the English Department is recruiting members for the UC Denver Disabilities Committee. If you are interested in disability studies academics and activism, please consider joining the committee, which meets about three times a semester. CLAS is currently under-represented.

The committee is interested in understanding the political, historical, social, and environmental aspects of disability identity and disability access at UC Denver, and is sponsored through Faculty Assembly. Current projects include an ongoing speaker series, with a campus visit by Dr. Susan Schweik scheduled in November as part of the Disability as Diversity initiative (which brought Rosemarie Garland Thomson in Spring 2009). We plan to again participate in the Auraria Disability Awareness festival (October 8th) and serve as faculty liaison to Disability Resources and Services. Future projects include a possible film screening and visit from a disability poet, assessment of campus access and the campus emergency plan, as well as other intellectual and cultural projects suggested by committee members.

Please contact Amy Vidali if you are interested.

New! "INQUIRING MINDS" Student Research Conference

Seeking student project submissions

The first-ever student research conference for CLAS students will be held on November 11 in the Tivoli, Room 320 from 8:30 - noon.

Please post, announce and share this flyer with your students. It's a wonderful opportunity to showcase our students' research. Please encourage them to submit their work for consideration.

As well, please feel free to bring your classes to the presentations on November 11.

Questions: Daniel Auerbach or Charlene Shelton

New! UC Denver University Honors and Leadership Program

UHL Course Proposals

The UC Denver University Honors and Leadership program is accepting course proposals for the 2010-11 academic year. Further information about this university-wide honors program and the course-proposal processes can be found here or by contacting Professor Steven Medema.

New! Writing Center Open House

Wed., September 16
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
NC 4014

The UC Denver Writing Center is hosting an open house on September 16 for students and faculty to meet the consultants and learn about their services. Refreshments will be served. Students can register to win an iPod Shuffle.
Please post and share this flyer with your students.

New! Ethnic Studies Open House

Wed., September 23
Silent Auction: 11:00 am
Refreshments/Program: Noon - 12:45pm
Lawrence Street Center, 2nd Floor Terrace

Please RSVP by September 18: 303-315-3612 or email

Co-sponsored by the office of the Vice Provost & Associate Vice Chancellor for Diversity and Inclusion

View the flyer

Colorado Center for Public Humanities Fall Series: Islam in American Culture

The Colorado Center for Public Humanities has announced its fall series, “Islam in American Culture.” It is a 4-part series, celebrating Islamic contributions to American music, urban design, community life, and literature. The series will explore how Islam has influenced classic American art forms, such as the blues, how it has impacted the built environments of American cities, how it has merged with the nation’s foundational ideals, and how it is being represented by Islamic American writers. The series will also shed light on how the core beliefs and values of Islam have been adapted to the American cultural context. (More information)

H1N1 Flu Precautions

Due to concerns that the H1N1 virus might be widespread on campus this Fall, the Dean’s Office urges you to be proactive.  To minimize transmission of the virus, we encourage all students, faculty members or staff persons who become sick with the flu to stay away from campus, out of the classroom or office, until they are symptom-free.  Standard flu symptoms include fever (100 degrees or higher), cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. In addition, diarrhea and vomiting have been associated with H1N1 flu.

We also urge you to develop plans for accommodating students who contract H1N1 flu because we do not want them to feel pressured to attend classes while they are infectious, due to fear of suffering academic penalty.  We also would not like any student to be penalized academically for work missed while recovering from H1N1 flu.  Therefore, we recommend the following precautions: 

* At the beginning of the semester, inform students about plans and procedures for providing and completing course work if they or you become ill.
* Consider putting all of your course materials on Blackboard, if you haven’t already done so.
* Gather students’ email addresses and phone/cell numbers so that you can communicate with them in a timely fashion.
* Consult with university health services personnel about students with health care needs.
*Provide the following link to students to keep them informed:  www.ucdenver.edu/flualert
* Remind students to take precautions against getting or spreading the flu viruses:
--Wash hands frequently and properly
--Cover your sneezes and coughs
--Avoid others with respiratory illnesses
--Get plenty of rest
-- Stay at home if you are sick

* Tell students to seek health care if they develop flu-like symptoms (high fever, cough, runny nose, body aches, nausea, vomiting or diarrhea).
* Prepare for your class(es) to be covered in the event that you become ill.  And, if you experience symptoms, seek medical attention and stay at home.

CLAS in the Spotlight

Wil Alston, Deputy Director of Gov. Bill Ritter’s Communications Office, will visit Hamilton Bean’s Principles of Public Relations course in the Department of Communication to discuss collaborative decision-making. Mr. Alston was regional public affairs coordinator for the U.S. Health Care Financing Administration from 1996 to 1999. From 2000 to 2004 he operated his own business, The PR Shop, and from 2004 to 2006 he was vice president of the Colorado Black Chamber of Commerce.

A team of Department of Communication majors is launching a new student group called RAISN (the Rape Awareness and Information Support Network). Students and faculty interested in working with RAISN are invited to a meeting at 4:00 on September 14, in the Cimmaron Coffee shop in the Tivoli. For more information, contact Caitlin Mock.

Marking the twentieth year of such public service, Stephen John Hartnett, chair of the department of communication has launched a twelve-week writing workshop at the Denver Women’s Correctional Facility. Two Department of Communication majors, Linda Guthrie and Vlad Bogomolov, accompany Dr. Hartnett to the prison, where they serve as tutors.

Associate Professor of Philosophy David Hildebrand gave a keynote address, "Pragmatic Democracy: Inquiry, Imagination, and Experience"  at the "The Second Nordic Pragmatism Conference: Pragmatism in Society and Democracy" in Reykjavík, Iceland, August 27-29. The conference brought together philosophers, psychologists, sociologists, and educators from Iceland, Finland, the U.S., England, Norway, Poland, Sweden, and Switzerland to discuss pragmatism’s contribution to politics and political theory.

Associate Professor Mike Monsour from the Communication Department will have a book review published in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships. He provides a critical review of the book "The Compass of Friendship: Narratives, Identities, and Dialogues" (Sage, 2009), written by Professor William Rawlins who is one of the nation's top three scholars on friendships in the United States.

Tanzania: Hominid Footprints to Be 'Laid to Rest' in Kingly Manner
AllAfrica.com, 8/22
Charles Musiba, assistant professor of anthropology, is mentioned related to his suggesting that a special museum be erected around the footprint site to protect the prints and act as historical display center.

50 smokes a day for Malawi child tobacco pickers study
Yahoo Health!, 8/24
Malawi's child tobacco labourers suffer nicotine poisoning
ABC.net.au, 8/26
Assistant Professor of Anthropology Marty Otañez was interviewed by Yahoo.com in the health news section, as well as ABC Australia's audio show "The World Today" about his research related to the harmful effects of nicotine on children who are tobacco field workers in Malawi. 

Events

Economics Fall Seminar Series
Patrick Moyes, Universite Montesquieu Bordeaux 4
Friday, Sept. 4
3:30 pm
Title: "Another Look at Inequality and Welfare Measurement"
Lawrence Street Center, Room 450

Islam in American Culture: Islamic Origins of the American Blues
by the Colorado Center for Public Humanities
Thursday, Sept. 10
Noon - 1:30 pm
King Center Recital Hall
Dr. Sylviane Diouf, scholar-in-residence at the Schomburg Center for Black Culture.
Musical performance by College of Arts & Media faculty members, Judith Coe and Sean McGowan.
(More information)

Celebration of Faculty Excellence
Friday, Sept. 11
3:00 pm
NC Atrium

"The Kite Runner" A Dramatization by Sorab Wadia
Friday, Sept. 11
7:30 pm
Eugenia Rawls Theatre, King Center
Information: Daniel.Koetting@ucdenver.edu

Mother of Invention Conference
Sponsored by the Physics Department
Saturday, Sept. 12
7:00 am - 6:00 pm
Tivoli Student Union
(More Information)

Writing Center Open House
Wednesday, Sept. 16
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
North Classroom 4014

CLAS Masters Speaker Series
Professor Emeritus of English, Rex Burns
"The Case of the Publishing Racket, Other Publishing Misdemeanors and a Clouded Future"
Friday, Sept. 25
2:30-4:30 pm
Tivoli Zenith Room (Room 640)
RSVP to Katy Brown by Sept. 18

Economics Fall Seminar Series
Shangjin Wei, Columbia Business School
Friday, Sept. 18
1:00 pm
Title: "The Status-Seeking Motive for Savings and Entrepreneurship: Evidence and Implications"
Lawrence Street Center, Room 450

P-20 Speaker Series: Harrison School District Superintendent Mike Miles, "267.5° West - Principles of a Turnaround District"
Tuesday, Sept. 22
5:30 - 6:45 pm
Lawrence Street Center, 2nd floor atrium
The reform efforts in this district that are gaining state and national recognition, particularly for his stance on improving the teacher evaluation process. (RSVP)

Ethnic Studies Open House
Wednesday, Sept. 23
11:00 am - Silent Auction
Noon - 12:45 pm - Lunch/Program
Lawrence Street Center, 2nd Floor Terrace
RSVP by September 18: 303-315-3612 or email

Economics Fall Seminar Series
Guy David, University of Pennsylvania
Friday, Sept. 25
3:30 pm
Title: "On the Determinants of Organizational Forgetting"
Lawrence Street Center, Room 450

Islam in American Culture: Islamic Design in the Work of Frank Lloyd Wright
by the Colorado Center for Public Humanities
Monday, Sept. 28
6:00 - 7:30 pm
Executive MBA Suite, 1250 14th St., Rm. 150
Dr. Mina Marefat, Fulbright Research Scholar and cultural advisor to the Guggenheim Museum's Major Retrospective on Frank Lloyd Wright.
(More information)

5th Annual Undergraduate Symposium
Friday, Oct. 2
8:00 am - 2:30 pm
St. Cajetan's
Registration

Economics Fall Seminar Series
Peter Kuhn, University of Califonia Santa Barbara
Friday, Oct. 2
3:30 pm
Title: "Employers' Preferences for Gender, Age, Height and Beauty: Evidence from Chinese Job Ads"
Lawrence Street Center, Room 450

STEMapalooza
Friday, Oct. 16 - Saturday, Oct. 17
Colorado Convention Center
(More Information)

UC Denver Open House
Sunday, Oct. 25
11:30 am - 2:30 pm
Auraria Events Center

CLAS Masters Speaker Series
Professor Emeritus of Economics, Suzanne Helburn
"The Economy, Simple Lessons on Avoiding Such Catastrophes and How We Have Failed"
Friday, Oct. 30
2:30-4:30 pm
Baerresen Ballroom, Tivoli 320A
RSVP to Katy Brown by Oct. 23

Economics Fall Seminar Series
Hani Mansour, University of Colorado Denver
Friday, Oct. 30
3:30 pm
Title: TBA
Lawrence Street Center, Room 450

IN THIS ISSUE:

Message from Dean Howard

STEMapalooza

UE Symposium

Disabilities Committee

INQUIRING MINDS Student Research Conference

UHL Course Proposals

Ethnic Studies Open House

Writing Center Open House

Center for Public Humanities Fall Series

H1N1 Flu Precautions

CLAS in the Spotlight

Events

ARCHIVES:

Past issues since Jan 21, 2007.

USEFUL LINKS:

CLAS News

Faculty Resources

Staff Resources

Campus News

The CLAS Deans' Notes is a bi-weekly newsletter
for college faculty and staff.

EDITOR:

Katy Brown
303.556.6663
Katy.Brown @ucdenver.edu