A student forum and two faculty, staff and community focus group sessions will be held on Thursday, November 19 to seek input on how to build a better, stronger, more inclusive Hornet Nation in which all voices are heard and respected, and everyone has a sense of belonging. Students meet from noon to 2 p.m. Other campus and community members meet for focus groups from 3 to 3:50 p.m. and 4 to 4:50 p.m. For more: http://bit.ly/1HTbWwv
Hats off to the Emporia State football team! For the second time in three years and just the third time in school history, the Hornets will be going to the NCAA Playoffs. The Hornets will take on 2014 NCAA National Runner-Up Minnesota State on Saturday, November 21 in Mankato, Minnesota. Kick-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Blakeslee Stadium. For more: http://bit.ly/1HNI30G
If you’re not headed to Mankato for the game, join fans for a watch party at 1 p.m. Saturday in Memorial Union’s Webb Hall.
The work of Connie Schrock (professor in mathematics) to help Shawnee Heights High School add new math curriculum drew attention of the Topeka Capital-Journal. The new program has led 81 percent of Shawnee Heights seniors to take math classes beyond their graduation requirements. The program first drew a news story, then this editorial: http://bit.ly/1McJEtm
Forward Amelie Heun earned second-team All-MIAA honors to highlight five Emporia State soccer players on the all-conference team as selected by the league coaches. She is joined by third-team selection Jaide Allenbrand and honorable mention selections Yadira Rivera, Maria Walden and Kelsey Wakefield. For more: http://bit.ly/1Q5E0PI
Congratulations to Jasmine Greene (B.S. Political Science '13), who completed her master's and now works as a program assistant at South Dakota State University. She handles special projects, data analysis, financial management, strategic planning, etc.
Emporia State lost in three sets to No. 1-seeded Central Oklahoma in the first round of the MIAA Tournament on Tuesday night, ending their season with a 11-18 record. For more: http://bit.ly/1X7yrzE
Our third edition of Collaborate hit the streets earlier this month. Collaborate is joint annual report for Emporia Public Schools, Emporia State University and Flint Hills Technical College. In addition to printed copies for key constituencies, it is published digitally at www.EmporiaEducation.org, and postcards providing the link are mailed to every residence and business in the 66801 (Emporia) Zip code.
Just in time for Veterans Day, Emporia State University was designated a 2016 Military Friendly® School. And a new Veterans Lounge was dedicated Nov. 9. The lounge is a way for our veteran students to unwind and decompress together in their own special area. For more: http://bit.ly/1PpK0RM
Emporia State University students in the Department of Nursing brought home four major awards from the Kansas Association of Nursing Students state convention held late last month in Wichita. The department received the School of Excellence Award, the Image of Nursing Award, Break-through to Nursing Award and the Community Health Award. Six Emporia State nursing students also were elected to state offices, and two were selected for offices in the National Student Nurses Association. For more: http://bit.ly/1Pq63bd
Elaine Henrie, director of financial aid, scholarships and veterans services, was quoted in a U.S. News article about student loan repayment myths. The article was presented in slide format on the U.S. News & World Report website, but printed in its entirety here: http://yhoo.it/1NSo8g8
Two honorary student organizations housed in the School of Business have received special recognition for significant achievements within their national chapters. The Emporia State chapter of Beta Alpha Psi, an international honorary organization for accounting, finance, and information systems at AACSB accredited universities, was awarded Superior Chapter at this year’s annual meeting in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Beta Gamma Sigma, the international honors society for AACSB-accredited business programs, awarded the Emporia State chapter Highest Honors for the 2014-15 academic year. For more: http://bit.ly/1StuV1H
Guns on Kansas college campuses remains a hot topic, and KSNT TV in Topeka interviewed Janet Weaver, Associated Student Government president, about student views. See the video here: http://bit.ly/1MMSxzu
Students, staff, and visitors at Emporia State University will be able to connect with university police at the push of a button, through 10 new emergency phone stations being installed across campus. The “Blue Light” phones replace an outdated system of phones that have been in place for years. Each of the phones will be uniform, using the color red associated with emergencies, plus a bright blue LED light and reflective “Emergency” lettering to make them easier to locate. For more: http://bit.ly/1SOF1ug
Congratulations to Justine Becker (M.S. Biology student; Advisor: Brent Thomas). During the recent annual meeting of The Kansas Herpetological Society at Fort Hays State, the awards committee announced Justine as the recipient of the 2015 Howard Kay Gloyd-Edward Harrison Taylor Scholarship (named in honor of two distinguished Kansas herpetologists). The scholarship is awarded to a student on the basis of potential for contributing to the science of herpetology. Justine joins a long list of ESU students who have received this recognition — 14 since 1993.
Also during the herpetology conference … Garrett Rotert (undergraduate) and Dr. Lynnette Sievert presented Amphibian and Reptile Survey of Reading Woods, Lyon County, Kansas; Justine Becker (M.S. student) and Dr. R. Brent Thomas presented Male Response to Female Chemical Signals in Painted Turtles (Chrysemys picta); and Greg Sievert and Andrew Coleman (M.S. student) presented Efficacy of Three Artificial Cover Materials in Herpetological Surveys of Prairie Habitats. Dr. Alexis Powell also attended the meeting. Greg Sievert was a runner-up for the Suzanne L. and Joseph T. Collins Award for excellence in Kansas Herpetology for 2015 for his photograph of Copperheads. In addition, ESU alumnus J. Daren Riedle presented a paper and serves as the KHS KDWPT liaison. Alumnus Eric Kessler is President-elect for KHS, alumnus Kelley Tuel was elected as Secretary for KHS and alumnus Daren Riedle was elected as Treasurer of KHS.
The Emporia State men's team placed 21st in the team competition and Emily Schoenfeld was 37th individually for the women at the NCAA Division II Central Regional Cross Country Championships in Joplin, Mo. on Saturday. For more: http://bit.ly/1M9WOJS
Congratulations to Professor Mirah Dow, who was appointed Interim Dean of the School of Library and Information Management, effectively immediately. Mirah will serve in this role through the rest of the academic year and until a permanent dean is in place. We will launch a search for our next SLIM dean soon, with July 1, 2016, as the anticipated start date for that appointment. For more: http://bit.ly/1H0yziA
Congratulations to Dr. Bill Jacobson (ESU Alumnus; 2005 - MS Physical Sciences, Earth Science)! We have received the news that Dr. Jacobson has successfully defended his doctoral dissertation titled “Field and Laboratory Study of Flàajökull Glacier, Iceland” at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee. Here’s a video of Bill’s study area: http://bit.ly/1OHiuAW
ESU Facilities is working with Emporia Main Street to expand the Veterans Banner Program onto campus next year. This will provide approximately 50 more locations for these banners honoring veterans on the campus itself.
Memorial Union and ESU Facilities installed a green light above the south entry door to the Union to participate in the Green Light A Vet program to honor veterans.
ESU Police Corporals Jerry Cook and Jerrod Schumann passed out rub-on tattoos and pencils to children attending the Halloween Day football game against Washburn. A great idea that pleased many kids. Jerry provided all the items that were passed out.
Fan “Jenny” Barger, distance coordinater in Distance Education, took the Oath of Allegiance and became a U.S. citizen on Friday, November 6. Jenny is the Distance Education Coordinator and her ceremony was witnessed by 18 friends and neighbors from Hornet Nation.
Information Technology is partnering with Facilities to expand our campus network connectivity to the recently renovated Ross Reservation building near Americus. IT is developing a special “point to point” wireless connection between the Ross Reservation and main campus.
LeLan Dains (BS 08 - Recreation), Emporia, is part of the team at Dirty Kanza Promotions who received the 2015 Governor's Tourism Award in October for the impact the Dirty Kanza has made on Kansas tourism. The Dirty Kanza is a 200-mile, solo, self-supported bicycling endurance race on gravel and dirt roads in the Flint Hills region of east-central Kansas.
IT is partnering with multiple faculty to develop a Lightboard, which is essentially a “glass chalkboard” enhanced by LIGHT, to record video lecture topics. We’re “value engineering” the development of the lightboard by building our own parts from a 3D printer. Anna Catterson and Rob Gibson are spearheading this initiative. Here’s a video to show you what the “viewer” would see: http://bit.ly/1NOkV3l
A total of seven Emporia State soccer returners were honored for their work in the classroom with the announcement of the MIAA Academic Honor Roll and Scholar-Athlete awards. Amelie Heun and Jaide Allenbrand were both named MIAA Scholar-Athletes. They were joined on the MIAA Academic Honor Roll by McKenzie Koch, Ally Taylor, Kelsey Wakefield, Katie Wolfe and Emily Haselwood. For more: http://bit.ly/1HHNCxG
More than 230 people attended the 66th Annual Counseling Conference at Emporia State on November 5, organized by the Department of Counselor Education. The featured speaker addressed the disconnect adolescents have today in a hyper-connected world and what counselors can do to help students.
On October 30, Kappa Mu Epsilon, mathematics honorary society, sponsored a trip to Kansas City to visit the Linda Hall library. Five faculty, 13 students and one alumnus viewed numerous aluable historical mathematical books, including Eudlid’s “Elements” (1482) and texts of DeMoivre (1738), Descartes (1637), and Newton (1687). Before returning home, the group ate dinner at Pizza Bar and watched the Royals play in Game 3 of the World Series.
Hornet Connected Learning in The Teachers College is presenting the Learn & Do Mobile Technology Series. These learning sessions, led by ESU faculty and instructional technology specialists, will focus on helping you "Connect, Collaborate, Consume, and Create" with a variety of mobile devices, both in and out of the classroom. Sessions will be offered November 18 and 19 and December 2 and 3. Learn more and register at: http://bit.ly/1iZyznl
Nearly 100 educators gathered at Emporia State on November 9 for the 18th Annual Kansas Regional Reading Recovery & Early Literacy Conference. Book scholarships and scholarships for teachers to attend the Reading Recovery national conference in February in Ohio.
ESU’s Department of Mathematics and Economics hosted the Si Se Puede Hacer Ciencias y Matematicas (Yes, You Can Do Science and Mathematics) STEM outreach program for middle school Hispanic/Latino students on Saturday, October 31. Sixty-one students and 12 adults (teachers or parents) registered for this program. The program consisted of a morning motivational speaker, a series of four hands-on workshops in a variety of fields such as nursing, engineering (three of these), physics (three of these) and veterinary medicine. Also tours were given of ESU. The luncheon speaker was Dr. Ever Ponciano of Internal Medicine Associates. Provost David Cordle and Dean Brent Thomas also gave welcoming presentations.
A film crew from C-SPAN was on campus Monday to tape the Civil War history class taught by Dr. Brian Miller (associate professor and associate chair of history). The taping is for C-SPAN’s American History TV, which airs programming on weekends on C-SPAN3.