September 2006

CLA UPDATE FOR FACULTY & STAFF

John Contreni

Dear Colleagues,

The semester got off to a roaring start with a record grand total of 39,228 students enrolled in the University on the West Lafayette campus.

The College enrolled 6,403 undergraduate students, up 164 from the previous year. These students represent 20.5 percent of all Purdue undergraduates.

We also count 1,154 graduate students in our ranks, up 41 from the previous year. Our graduate programs account for 16.4 percent of the University's graduate students.

Thanks to everyone, especially faculty, teaching assistants, graduate lecturers, continuing and limited-term lecturers, and academic advisors for accommodating this dynamic growth. Everyone in the College should feel gratified that growing numbers of students find our programs in the arts, humanities, social sciences, and health professions attractive pathways to their future lives and careers.

We expect much from our students and they expect much from us. May everyone's expectations be met!

For a welcome letter to our undergraduate students, click here.

Twelve faculty colleagues have agreed to join me and serve on what we are calling the "Focus Taskforce." Our challenge this semester will be to craft a mission statement that succinctly captures what we are all about and communicates what we do in the College effectively and imaginatively to our multiple audiences. We want to think in new ways about the contributions we make to our concentric communities.

We won't be thinking in a vacuum. I invite all members of the College to contact me or one of the other members of the Taskforce with your ideas and suggestions. Here are their names: Russ Jones; Bill Graziano; Frank Lambert; Shirley Rose; Paul Dixon; Diane Brentari; Dan Frank; Tithi Bhattacharya; George Avery; Mohan Dutta; Ken Ferraro; and, Glenn Parker. We have one representative from each department and one representative from Interdisciplinary Programs. I plan to invite a member of the Dean's Advisory Council to join the group as well.

We will also consider how our colleagues in the Colleges of Engineering and Science have conceptualized and highlighted their accomplishments to larger communities. I am also recommending three books, each of which has something to offer to our deliberations. Richard Florida's The Rise of the Creative Class explores the societal impact of "purveyors of creativity," those 38 million people in the United States, including university faculty, who "use creativity as a key factor" in their work. Thomas Friedman's The World is Flat moves the discussion to a global scale and, surprisingly, has much to say about education in the new global economy. Daniel Pink's A Whole New Mind presents the interesting hypothesis that we are moving from the information age to the conceptual age, a new age that requires the kind of thinking broadly characteristic of a liberal arts education. All of these authors stress the fundamental transformations under way that we must take into account when thinking about how the College fits into the present and prepares for the future.

The Taskforce will present its report to the College in the spring semester for comment and response. Stay tuned!

Sincerely,

John J. Contreni
Dean

New Associate Dean Susan Curtis, professor of History and director of the College's Office of Interdisciplinary Studies, has been named Associate Dean for Interdisciplinary Programs and Engagement. Professor Curtis will continue to support the College's 13 interdisciplinary programs, administer periodic program reviews, and explore new interdisciplinary initiatives inside and outside of Liberal Arts. Her responsibilities in engagement will be to work with departments, faculty, and students to conceive and implement a focused engagement strategy for the College. The appointment was effective Aug. 14.

NEWS AND RESEARCH

Study finds some faithful less likely to pass the plate

Religious shepherds need to keep better watch over their flocks and add activities to keep from fattening them up, says a sociologist who has found that some religious activities may promote obesity.

Ken Ferraro

"America is becoming known as a nation of gluttony and obesity, and churches are a feeding ground for this problem," says Ken Ferraro, a professor of Sociology who has studied religion and body weight since the early 1990s. "If religious leaders and organizations neglect this issue, they will contribute to an epidemic that will cost the health-care system millions of dollars and reduce the quality of life for many parishioners."

He analyzed the religious practices and body mass index, often referred to as BMI, of more than 2,500 people during an eight-year period from 1986 to 1994. He found that the use of religious media resources, such as television, books or radio, was a strong predictor of obesity among women. The incidence of obesity increased by 14 percent for this group. At the same time, the more often women attended religious services, the less likely they were to be obese.

Men were less likely to be obese if they sought counseling and comforting through religious sources, Ferraro says.

Ferraro's study, published in the June issue of the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, identified different religious characteristics, such as affiliation and attendance, as well as gender, and their effects on weight. He also measured the impact of a person's belief in his or her faith, how someone practiced his or her faith, and a person's tendency to seek comfort and support from religious figures. More

CLUB helps children with autism improve social skills

Children with a form of autism called Asperger's Syndrome can participate in a weekly Purdue program that emphasizes social skills and peer interaction.

Dixon at Kids CLUB carnival

The Kids CLUB (Communicating, Listening, Understanding and Building interaction skills) program is available for children ages 5-8, tweens 9-12, and teenagers 13-16.

"Autism can affect children very differently, and those with Asperger's do not experience cognitive delays but are affected by language problems related to social skills," says Maria Dixon, a speech language pathologist and clinical assistant professor.

The club provides a social outlet for children and teenagers because they tend to have difficulty interacting with others, Dixon says. During the weekly sessions, the group focuses on elements of conversation – starting conversations, handling disagreements, taking turns, and listening. The activities are built around what the children want, such as writing and publishing a newspaper, organizing an environmental club or running a carnival.

For more information or to register, call 494-3795. More

9/11 anniversary coverage can disturb all ages

People should be cautious about how much 9/11 anniversary coverage they watch because reliving such moments may be more emotionally upsetting than viewers think it will be, says a mass media effects expert.

"Of course there is the temptation to watch these images again," says Glenn Sparks, a professor of Communication who studies how frightening images on television affect people's health. "Some of these images – people jumping from buildings or the towers collapsing – are so deeply ingrained in our minds that many people might not anticipate their capacity to elicit intense emotions all over again. When you begin to feel a sense of emotional fatigue from seeing these familiar images, take that as a signal that there isn't much to be gained by watching these events yet again."

Sparks advises that people heed any warnings about graphic content.

"Reliving this event can resurrect the initial trauma that we all experienced when we watched the first news reports," Sparks says. "The emotional reactions that the coverage triggers in people can be very intense and ultimately may not help people deal with understanding the significance of the event. It might be healthier to have a low-key reflection of people talking about the events and paying tribute to those who acted heroically." More

Go back to school by studying teachers in movies

Teachers might be able to learn a few lessons about how to engage their students by watching how teachers are portrayed in movies, says a film expert.

Richard Stockton Rand

"There are dozens and dozens of films about teaching," says Richard Stockton Rand, a professor of Theatre. "And we see a range of teacher prototypes in film: from Kevin Kline in The Emperor's Club, to Michelle Pfeiffer in Dangerous Minds, to Glenn Ford in Blackboard Jungle. Usually teachers are portrayed in a way that makes us all wish we had those kinds of teachers. And as teachers, we often wish we were those kinds of teachers and had the perfect answers at our fingertips."

As a result, students and their parents may have unrealistic expectations about teachers because of the way on-screen teachers are portrayed, Rand says.

"For the most part, movies about teachers all conform to classic dramatic structure where a chaotic classroom becomes an idyllic realm of transformation for students," he says. "Students have epiphanies, problems are solved, and we leave the movie theater with hope for the future. This is entertaining and inspiring, but the real thing is far more chaotic, unpredictable and thorny than anything seen on film. The willingness to confront problems, to embrace the struggle to learn, and to go on learning in a world where issues don't resolve and simple solutions don't exist – this is what the classroom should be teaching." More

New book studies 19th century writer

A Political Science professor's new book reflects on the roots of American identity through the writings of a mid-19th century writer.

"After 9/11, I was concerned there would be questions about the source of American national identity," says Michael A. Weinstein, a professor of Political Science. "So, I wanted to go back to the period when America's values, traits, and identity were being culturally formed during the mid-19th century."

Weinstein focused on Oliver Wendell Holmes' writings, especially his lesser-known works such as A Moral Antipathy and Over the Teacups. Weinstein's analysis is published in The Imaginative Prose of Oliver Wendell Holmes (University of Missouri Press).

Holmes, who also is known for his medical career and his son, Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., was a part of the New England Renaissance. During this period, from 1840-55, writers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Walt Whitman, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville, and Henry David Thoreau wrote about American life. More

Community donor gives to Purdue youth sports camp

On Sept. 6, Lafayette Bank and Trust was honored for its longtime support to Purdue, including a pledge of $100,000 during the next five years. The gift will be split among three programs that benefit state youths – the Purdue Opportunity Awards, the National Youth Sports Program at Purdue, and ON-TRACK!, a new program to reach out to middle school students.

The award-winning National Youth Sports Program at Purdue, an annual five-week summer program that promotes sports, healthy lifestyles, learning skills, and community service, received $15,000. The Department of Health and Kinesiology in the College of Liberal Arts organizes the program.

About 400 children, ages 10-16, participated in this summer's program, which ended July 21. The program targets students who qualify for either free or reduced lunch programs defined by federal guidelines. The students, in teams of about 15, rotate through activity stations that include basketball, tennis, softball, swimming, soccer and volleyball, as well as computer skills training, nutritional information, dangers of substance abuse, community service-learning projects, and career opportunities. More

EVENTS

– Steve Yarbrough, award-winning author of three novels and three collections of stories, will present a fiction reading at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 12 in the Hicks Undergraduate Library Bookstall. There also will be a fiction discussion at 10 a.m. on Sept. 13 in Hicks Undergraduate Library Bookstall. Yarbrough teaches creative writing at California State University-Fresno. The events are sponsored by the Department of English and the Creative Writing Program as part of the 2006-07 Literary Reading Series.

– Dr. Thomas Perls, a physician and researcher at Boston University Medical, will speak at 7 p.m. on Sept. 25 in Fowler Hall at Stewart Center. His talk, which is free and open to the public, will highlight the New England centenarian study, which is considered the largest genetic and social study of centenarians and their families. Perls is the author of Living to 100, Lessons in Maximizing Your Potential at Any Age.

Perls' talk is part of "The Legacy of Longevity," the 10th symposium for the Center on Aging and the Life Course. The one-day event covers a variety of aging issues, including professional development and career information for gerontologists. For more information about the symposium, contact Peggy Favorite.

Purdue Theatre to present Seven Guitars

The Purdue Division of Theatre, in association with the Purdue Black Cultural Center, will present Seven Guitars, a play by August Wilson, as part of its 2006-07 season and celebration of 100 years of theatre at Purdue.

Seven Guitars

Performances will be at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 21, 23 and 27-30 and at 3 p.m. on Sept. 24, 30 and Oct. 1 in the Carole and Gordon Mallett Theatre in the Yue-Kong Pao Hall of Visual and Performing Arts.

Set in 1948 in Pittsburgh's Hill District, the play follows a group of African-American friends through the drama and excitement of their lives.

The Purdue production will feature a guest director, Theresa M. Davis, and a guest actor, Damani Singleton, in the role of Floyd Barton. In addition, two Black Cultural Center staff members, Bill Caise, assistant director of the center, and Juanita Crider, program advisor at the center, are part of the seven-member cast. More

The Importance of Being Earnest to hit Purdue stage

Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest will run Sept. 22 through Oct. 6 to open Purdue Theatre's 2006-07 Marquee Series.

The Importance of
Being Earnest

Directed by Kristine Holtvedt, associate professor of Theatre and head of acting, the comedy satirizes the upper crust of Victorian English society. The play tells the tale of two young men who bend the truth in order to escape family obligations and capture the hearts of their true loves. The ensuing chaos that results from their web of deceit leads to more surprises for all of those involved.

Considered by many to be his best work, Wilde wrote The Importance of Being Earnest in 1895.

"Born in Dublin, Wilde was an outsider to the inner sanctums of English upper-class society and he had an outsider's acute perception of its values and standards," Holtvedt said. "Wilde satirizes morality in Victorian society, its conventions of social position, income, and respectability, its hypocrisy, and its 'marriage market.'" More

Peace studies series on 'War and Peacemakers'

The Committee on Peace Studies at Purdue will present a video series on "War and Peacemakers."

Videos will be shown on Monday nights, and everyone is invited to attend and participate in a discussion after each showing.

The schedule is: