"Lunch, Learn & Link" brown bag lecture series continues
A Continuing Tuesday Series - Everyone Welcome!
Every Tuesday this summer from 12:30 - 1:15 p.m., the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in cooperation with the Downtown Denver Partnership will host a lecture in Skyline Park off the 16th Street Mall.
Bring your lunch and listen to a 15-minute presentation by one of our faculty members on an interesting topic, followed by small group discussions and questions and answers.
Location:
The lectures will take place in the sunken garden by the Clock Tower close to Corner Bakery and Green Fine Salad Company at Arapahoe Street.
Join us for the second lecture on Tuesday, June 19
Stephen Thomas, Ph.D., Political Science
“China: What We Need to Know”
Review the schedule for the other exciting topics.
Questions? Contact Katy Brown via email or by phone at 303.556.6663
Tenure and promotion recommendations announced
Congrats are due!
CLAS is proud to publicize that four professors have achieved recommendation for continuous tenure and promotion to Associate Professor, and one has received recommendation for promotion to full Professor. All of them deserve recognition for their dedication and hard work in the areas of teaching, research/creative activities, and service. A few highlights on their accomplishments follow.
Pam Laird, Professor, Department of History
Professor Laird’s teaching record is impressive with solid FCQ evaluations for both undergraduate and graduate students across seven different courses. She has significant research accomplishments in business history, including a recent highly praised book published by Harvard Press called Pull: Networking and Success since Benjamin Franklin. Her service record is unparalleled. Currently, she serves on six campus and system committees. She chairs two others – the Faculty Council Personnel Committee and the CLAS Council. She has a long history of working with the Faculty Council, serving on numerous sub-committees and as a member of the assembly itself. At the professional level, she is president-elect for the Business History Conference and serves on a committee for the Society for History of Technology. She has also served on the editorial committee for Technology and Culture.
Eric Benotsch, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology
In the two years Professor Benotsch has been at UCDHSC, he has taught eight classes with four separate preparations. Ranging from 1000 level introductory classes to 5000 level graduate seminars, the instructor and course ratings on the FCQs are consistently in the A range. With 44 peer-reviewed essays, nearly half of which are first-author, and his research on the prevention of HIV/AIDS, Professor Benotsch is commended for his stellar publication and research record. In the last two years he has secured two NIH grants totaling $725,000 for his HIV/AIDS research. His service contributions are evident at many levels, including supporting his department in the development of the Ph.D. program proposal, serving on multiple college and campus level committees, and doing pro bono consulting for several groups in the Denver community. Also, he has served on the editorial boards for the Journal of Health Psychology and the Journal of Behavioral Medicine.
Robert Metcalf, Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy
Professor Metcalf has an outstanding teaching record, instructing courses from freshman seminars to graduate-level classes, all of which earned him an average rating of “A” and enthusiastic student endorsement. His research focuses on the intersection of ancient philosophy, continental philosophy and moral philosophy. He has published widely on this issue, with twelve articles in peer reviewed journals and has two more articles, as well as a book chapter, in press. Professor Metcalf is also recognized for his service contributions. At the department level, he has served on four search committees, served as the faculty advisor for the Philosophy Club and organized the department’s colloquium series. At the college level, he serves on the MH/MSS advisory board and has served on the college budget priorities committee, and he has also served on several campus-wide committees. He is equally active at the professional level, serving as a peer reviewer for journals and presses, as well as organizing the annual meeting of the Ancient Philosophy Society and sitting on the editorial board for Philosophy in the Contemporary World.
Deborah Thomas, Associate Professor, Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences
Professor Thomas’ teaching has been called “transformative,” and she consistently receives strong FCQ evaluations. She was the leader in developing the environmental and urban studies options for the BA in geography and the certificate programs in Geographic Information Science and Emergency Management, Policy and Planning. Her geo-spatial technology research focus is on socially and naturally induced environmental hazards and health issues, and the use of geographic information systems (GIS) to aid in the study of these issues. To support this research, she has received $78,466 dollars in external funding and has had subcontracts or been a consultant on external grants totally an additional $510,816. Professor Thomas also has a strong service record, serving as the undergraduate advisor for the environmental health option and serving as the student advisor in the environmental studies option. Additionally, she is on the Advisory Board of the Hazards Specialty Group for the Association of American Geographers, is an Associate Editor for Natural Hazards Review and an Affiliate Editor for Children Youth and Environment.
Joanna Wright, Associate Professor, Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences
Professor Wright has an excellent teaching record. She has been commended for her development of innovative curricular areas after the closure of the geology undergraduate major. She also developed new classes in environmental geology that are appropriate for the masters program. Her research on dinosaur tracks and their paleoenvironmental implications is internationally recognized, and she has received a total of $30,000 in external funding from the City of Golden, Sun Microsystems, the Geological Society of London and the Paleontological Association. Professor Wright’s service record is also quite impressive with serving as the undergraduate advisor for her department’s earth science option, and acting as a member on the faculty advisory committee for the masters program. She has also been active in the teacher licensure programs with the School of Education and Human Development. At the professional level, she has served as a member of the student poster prize committee for the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology.
Kudos to the CLAS Faculty Development Grant recipients
Joanne Addison, English
“Using Experience Sampling Methods to Understand Literacy Development”
Roxanne Byrne, Mathematical Sciences
“Research on the Perception of the Learning Effectiveness of Online and Traditional Instructional Vehicles Including the Detection of Possible Differences in Perception between Male and Female Respondents”
Jennifer Davis, English
“Reckonings”
Charles Ferguson, Biology
“The High School to College Transition – Issues Facing Students in the Natural and Physical Sciences”
Marjorie Levine-Clark, History
“So Much Honest Poverty: Gender, Work and Welfare Liability in England”
Charles Musiba, Anthropology
“Comparative Morphometric Study of Primate Craniodental Remains from Laeotoli Pliocence Site in Northern Tanzania”
Carl Pletsch, History
“Preparing a New Course: History of Ancient Greece”
Alberto Sadun, Physics
“Optical Observations of Active Galactic Nuclei”
Candice Shelby, Philosophy
“Can We Talk: Leibniz and Spinoza on Religion and Ethics”
Michael Travers and Hai Lin, Chemistry
“Development of a Radical US-vis Spectrometer System for Physical Chemistry Laboratory”
Diana Tomback, Biology
“The Impact of Exotic Disease on Treeline Communities”
Margaret Woodhull, Interdisciplinary Studies
“MH/MSS Visual Teaching Technology”
2006-2007 Outcomes Assessment reports
Due June 30
Just a friendly reminder about the upcoming due date for the “results reports” that each program or department is to submit describing its assessments of student learning and how this information is used in the program improvement process. The due date for these reports is June 30, and the reports should be submitted to the Outcomes Assessment Committee through Kenny Wolf with a copy to Mary Coussons-Read. Kenny Wolf, the interim Director of Assessment, is available as a resource and can provide assistance to programs through consultations. He can also provide templates for, or examples of results reports. Thank you, and please let Kenny or Mary know if you have any questions.
CLAS advising office announces new health careers advisor
Welcome Denise Leberer!
Denise Leberer is the newest addition to the CLAS advising team. With 10 years of experience at UCD in the career center, she is an outstanding addition to the advising staff.
Denise’s role will focus on providing academic advising for the pre-health careers students. She will coordinate with the faculty pre-health advisors regarding student inquiries, academic progress, and eligibility to apply for professional health care programs. She will also contribute to the retention, persistence and successful graduation of CLAS undergraduate students.
Please join us in welcoming Denise to the College. You can reach Denise via email or phone at 303.556.2868. Her office is temporarily located in the Sociology Department in the Lawrence Street Center room 420-S.
Faculty in the News
John Brett quoted in Time Magazine for his expertise on nutritional anthropology. Read about How the World Eats (May 31).
Jana Everett’s MA student, Karen Sugar, fights to save the world
Read about Karen Sugar's efforts in the Denver Post article (June 5).
Naci Mocan's research hits the media circuit
Read about his findings on how the death penalty deters crime (June 11).
Reminders & Events
Lunch, Learn & Link lecture: June 19
Stephen Thomas , Ph.D., Political Science
“China: What We Need to Know”, Skyline Park, from 12:30-1:15.
IN THIS ISSUE:
"Lunch, Learn & Link" Lecture Series
Grant recipients
Outcomes Assessment reports due
New appointment to advising office
Faculty in the News
Reminders & Events
ARCHIVES:
Past issues since Jan 21, 2007.
USEFUL LINKS:
Campus News (PostExpress archives)
The CLAS Deans' Notes is a weekly newsletter
for department chairs and staff.
EDITORS:
Rick Wilson
303.556.2557
Rick.Wilson @cudenver.edu
Katy Brown
303.556.6663
Katy.Brown @cudenver.edu