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February 2010
UD, Wright State on president’s honor roll for service
The University of Dayton and Wright State University are among the regional schools receiving recognition Friday, Feb. 26, for their community service.
UD, Wright State, Miami University and Xavier University have been named to the 2009 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, the highest federal recognition a college or university can receive for its commitment to volunteering, service-learning and civic engagement.
The honor roll was announced Friday by the Corporation for National and Community Service. Both UD and Wright State earned the designation of “distinction.”
Honorees are chosen based on such factors as scope and innovation of service projects; percentage of student participation; and the extent to which the school offers academic service-learning courses.
More than 70 percent of UD students engaged in community service in the 2008-09 academic year, with nearly 20 percent of students contributing at least 20 hours of service per semester.
Approximately 4,883 Wright State students were involved in academic service-learning courses or other forms of community service during the 2008-09 school year, resulting in 226,469 service hours.
“I’m so very proud of our students, faculty and staff who are making a difference in our communities,” said David R. Hopkins, Wright State president. “Our students are passionate about helping others and our faculty are committed to providing innovative learning opportunities that students will carry with them long after they leave Wright State.”
UD President Daniel J. Curran said the recognition belongs not just to the university, but to the thousands of students, alumni, faculty and staff who embody the university’s mission of “Learn, Lead, Serve.”
“When people ask what it means to be a Catholic, Marianist university, this is it,” Curran said. “It’s a powerful belief in community and servant leadership. This passion to serve others and live life together is present in the university’s institutions, classroom, student clubs and in the day-to-day lives of our students.”
The Corporation for National and Community Service oversees the honor roll in collaboration with the Department of Education, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Campus Compact and the American Council on Education.
For more information or to download the honor roll, click here.
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U.S. Sen. Brown opens nominations for service academies
U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown wants you.
Brown (D-Ohio) on Thursday, Feb. 25, encouraged Ohio students interested in applying to U.S. Military service academies for 2011 admission to seek nomination from the office.
“I am honored to nominate young Ohioans for admission to our nation’s service academies,” Brown said in a media release. “These academies develop the next generation of leaders who will serve our country as military officers.”
Brown nominates up to 10 students annually for each service academy: Air Force Academy, the Naval Academy, the Military Academy at West Point and the Merchant Marine Academy.
Student applicants are reviewed by a committee of active and retired military and community leaders appointed by Brown. Selected students are provided with the required congressional recommendation upon applying for admission.
Interested students who meet the eligibility requirements should send their completed application to Brown’s Cleveland office no later than October 1, 2010. The application process is time-intensive, so applicants should plan well in advance.
For more information or to request an application through Brown’s Web site, click here.
Inquiries can also be directed to Brown’s academy coordinator at his Cleveland office (888) 896-6446.
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UD’s Lekan named director at Wright State
Regis J. Lekan, a former University of Dayton director of development, has been named as director of planned giving at Wright State University.
Wright State announced Lekan’s appointment Tuesday, Feb. 23. In his new role, Lekan will visit alumni and friends of Wright State to discuss deferred giving programs.
Lekan’s position is newly created at Wright State, said Richard Doty, a university spokesman.
At UD, Lekan served as the director of development for gift planning, academic affairs and chapel renovation. He retired this month, according to Cilla Shindell, a UD spokeswoman.
“We are looking forward to welcoming Regis to our organization,” said Bryan Rowland, Wright State’s vice president for advancement. “He brings with him a great depth of knowledge and relationships. We will be fortunate to be the beneficiary of his vast experience in planned giving.”
Lekan, a Centerville resident, earned his bachelor’s degree from UD and a master’s in education from Cleveland State University.
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Filmmaker to share Haiti video, stories at UD
Independent filmmaker Gerry Straub will share images of Haiti before and after last month’s devastating earthquake on Tuesday, Feb. 23, at the University of Dayton.
Straub, president and chief executive of the San Damiano Foundation, creates videos to shed light on the impact of poverty and to raise money for Christian charities that aid the world’s poor.
In December, he spent a week in Haiti filming at Cite Soleil (City of the Sun), an impoverished village. Straub spent much of his time there with the Rev. Tom Hagan, a former chaplain at Princeton University, who has served the people of Haiti for nearly 20 years.
Straub had planned to return in February to continue filming, but then disaster struck on Jan. 12. One week after the 7.0-magnitude earthquake, Straub returned to Haiti with a group of pediatric surgeons to film the aftermath and recovery efforts.
Straub will share his videos and the stories of what he experienced in a presentation called “Putting the Power of Film at the Service of the Poor,” at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the Kennedy Union Boll Theatre on the UD campus. The event is free and open to the public.
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Canton university president resigns amid plagiarism allegations
Malone University President Gary W. Streit announced his resignation Monday, Feb. 22, in response to concerns about the use of unattributed materials in some of his speeches, according to a university media release.
Streit is retiring immediately from Malone, a Christian liberal arts university in Canton, Ohio. Streit took office as president in July 2007.
Wilbert J. Friesen, the university’s provost, has been appointed as interim acting president, according to the release.
The Chronicle of Higher Education reported Monday that concerns about plagiarism became public after students noticed similarities between a Jan. 13 address given by Streit and online work written by others.
Streit reportedly began the speech with a description of the Roman figure Janus: “In Roman mythology, Janus was the god of gates, of doors, of beginnings and of endings. His most prominent remnant in modern culture is his namesake, the month of January, which begins each new year. He is most often depicted as having two faces or heads, facing in opposite directions.”
The Chronicle noted that the Wikipedia entry for Janus reads: “In Roman mythology, Janus (or Ianus; “archway”) was the god of gates, doors, doorways, beginnings and endings. His most prominent remnant in modern culture is his namesake, the month of January, which begins the new year. He is most often depicted as having two faces or heads, facing in opposite directions.”
Streit also used material that was nearly identical to portions of two Associated Press articles and a mythology-influenced Web site called Penumbra, according to the Chronicle.
A university spokeswoman told the Chronicle there would “really be no point” to an investigation of the plagiarism accusations because Streit had retired.
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Lutheran assembly picks first Wittenberg delegate
Wittenberg University student Mae Helen Jackson is one of three youth delegates selected to represent the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) at the Lutheran World Federation Assembly in Stuttgart, Germany.
Jackson, class of 2012, is the first Wittenberg University student to be selected as an assembly delegate.
She will join representatives from across the globe at the assembly, which takes place every six years.
It is the Lutheran World Federation’s highest decision-making body.
Jackson’s mother is employed by the ELCA and works at the organization’s Chicago headquarters where the entire family regularly volunteers at soup kitchens and outreach activities, she said.
After graduation, she hopes to participate in a Youth Adult Global Mission trip, which will give her the opportunity to do mission work in such places as England, Africa, Mexico or Argentina.
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Students to battle in Wright State trebuchet competition
Hundreds of regional high school students will compete Friday, Feb. 19, in Wright State University’s 10th annual trebuchet competition.
The competition is a dynamic sporting event in which teams use trebuchets — a medieval device for hurling projectiles — to catapult squash balls at opposing teams.
The students from 14 regional high schools learn trebuchet history while applying math and physics concepts to design and construct the catapults.
The winning team will be the “trebuchet army” that hits the most opponent flags or eliminates all the other teams. The event is annual highlight for many high school technology and science classes, according to Wright State officials.
The trebuchet competition will be held from 8:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. at Wright State’s Ervin J. Nutter Center.
The competing schools include Alter High School, Arlington High School, Carroll High School, Cleveland Central Catholic High School, Fairborn High School, Galion High School, Hamilton High School, Kenton Ridge High School, Miami Trace High School, Miamisburg High School, Ponitz Career Technology Center, Tolles Career and Technical Center, Upper Valley Joint Vocational School and Wapakoneta High School.
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Wright State speaker to discuss China’s transformation
“Americans need not be hostile toward China’s rise, but they should be wary about its eventual effects,” said James Fallows, a national correspondent for The Atlantic, who has covered China’s ongoing economic and political transformation since 2006.
Fallows will discuss his impressions of China at 7 p.m. today, Feb. 16, in a lecture at Wright State University’s Student Union Apollo Room. His address, part of the Wright State Presidential Lecture series, is free and open to the public.
Fallows’ address, “Postcards from Tomorrow Square: Reports from China,” is the keynote presentation of Wright State’s Honors Institute Symposium, “Connecting with China.” “Postcards from Tomorrow Square: Reports from China” also is the title of Fallows’ latest book.
Minxin Pei, an expert on China, Taiwan, East Asia and democracy, will be the luncheon speaker on Wednesday, Feb. 17, in the Student Union Apollo Room. Pei’s address, and all of the symposium breakout sessions are free and open to the public. However, pre-registration is required at www.wright.edu/academics/honors/institute/2010/
Breakout sessions on Wednesday morning will explore Chinese education, religion, medicine, economic conditions, business relations and environmental concerns. Dayton-area educators and business professionals will serve as moderators and panelists for these sessions, as well as afternoon interactive workshops.
For more details on the symposium, contact the Wright State University Honors Program at (937) 775-2660.
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Colleges announce ‘Air Camp’ for area students
Dayton-area middle school students can experience the wonders of flight this July at “Air Camp,” a week-long summer camp designed to inspire students to “soar into the future.”
Sponsored by a group of area universities and foundations, Air Camp will give students in the seventh to ninth grades an opportunity to learn the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) of aviation.
Students will be guided through an intensive week of STEM learning via hands-on exercises and exploration of the area’s major aviation sites. The University of Dayton campus will serve as the host facility, providing room and board and meeting space.
Air Camp will give students practical learning experiences in a full range of aviation disciplines, including aircraft design, testing, operations and maintenance. Students will experience actual flying through Sinclair Community College’s aviation school, encompassing flight-simulator training, flight planning and flying as a co-pilot.
Students will discover the history of flight at Wright Brothers heritage sites and learn the latest advances in aviation technology through behind-the-scenes tours at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and the Air Force Research Laboratory.
“Air Camp is intended to inspire students to discover the possibilities of science, technology, engineering and math in the context of aviation, during a week that will be full of adventure and fun,” said Thomas Lasley, dean of UD’s School of Education and Allied Professions.
The inaugural Air Camp is scheduled for July 18-23 for 40 students who will be chosen by a competitive application process.
Applications are available online at www.AirCampUSA.com and may be submitted though April 15. Only students entering the seventh, eighth and ninth grades in fall 2010 may apply. Tuition, which includes room and board, is $900. A limited number of need-based scholarships are available. The 40 students selected for the first Air Camp will be notified May 1.
Sponsors include UD, Sinclair, Wright State University, the Engineering and Science Foundation, the Frank M. Tait Foundation, the Dayton Foundation, the Thomas B. Fordham Institute and the Turner Foundation.
For more information visit www.AirCampUSA.com.
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Kettering College receives nearly $431,000 gift
Scholarships and renovations at Kettering College of Medical Arts have received a substantial financial boost from a former Kettering Hospital nurse.
Eva Miller, a longtime Kettering resident who died last year at age 99, left a bequest of nearly $431,000 to Kettering College. The gift is the third-largest individual donation in the school’s 43-year history, according to college officials.
Half of the funds will be used for the Eva Miller Nursing Scholarship, with the remainder contributing to ongoing renovations at Kettering College and to the school’s annual fund.
Miller, who lived near the hospital for 45 years, also donated $310,000 to the college in 2004. She established her scholarship fund in 1998.
“Eva Miller was a nurse at Kettering Hospital from the start,” said Charles Scriven, Kettering College president. “She had a great loyalty to nursing, and a great loyalty to the hospital and the college.”
Miller’s previous donations helped to create a new chemistry laboratory in the Boonshoft Center for Medical Sciences at the college, and also contributed to scholarships and the annual fund. Her total giving of nearly $1 million ranks third overall among Kettering College donors, officials said.
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UD bioengineering master’s degree approved
The University of Dayton has received approval for a master’s degree in bioengineering from Ohio Board of Regents Chancellor Eric D. Fingerhut.
The new degree program will help to fill the growing need for bioengineers, and also support state and regional economic development efforts, according to Tony Saliba, dean of UD’s School of Engineering.
Gov. Ted Strickland has identified Ohio’s biomedical industry as one of four growth industry clusters in the state. The Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates the biomedical engineering field is in the top tier of projected growth potential.
Many of Ohio’s current bioengineering and biomedical programs are aligned with medical schools.
“Rather than emphasizing pharmaceutical or medical research, our program will teach students how to apply bioscience and bioengineering principles to areas such as materials, sensors, imaging, therapeutic devices and instrumentation,” Saliba said.
The 30-hour program will be housed in the School of Engineering’s department of chemical and materials engineering. The development and delivery of the program will be a collaborative effort among all of the School of Engineering’s programs, as well as the College of Arts and Sciences.
The UD School of Engineering will start accepting applications immediately for the fall 2010 semester that starts Aug. 25. For more information about admission to the program, call (937) 229-2627.
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