December 2006

John Contreni

If April is the "cruelest month," what do we say about December?

That here, in mid-north Indiana, the weather starts to get dicey?

That we come to work in the dark and leave campus in the dark as the hours of daylight grow shorter and shorter?

That, for some, whirlwind end of semester activities are compounded by whirlwind holiday plans?

Inevitably, December brings to mind end-of-the-year reviews. What have we accomplished this year? In this instance, I'll keep my brief and inevitably incomplete summary to the months since June when I was privileged to begin serving the College as its sixth dean.

We welcomed twenty-eight new faculty colleagues to campus, colleagues who with one semester at Purdue behind them are well on their ways to becoming seasoned veterans. Learn more about them from a "New Faculty Spotlight" in the upper right-hand corner of the College's Web site.

We also welcomed a record number of students to our programs and were able to accommodate their work seamlessly in our classrooms, labs, and studios. I continue to marvel at the superb dedication of our colleagues in Advising and Career Services who do so much for our students and faculty.

We also celebrated the selection of Randy Roberts, History, as the 2006 Indiana Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education. Randy is the very exemplar of the outstanding scholar and teacher at a research intensive university. And, as we know, there are many other examples of this powerful combination of research productivity and teaching effectiveness throughout the College.

The spring issue of the College's magazine will list many of the 2006 faculty and student publications, exhibitions, and awards. Check out the display case in Beering for an impressive exhibit of books recently published by College authors and editors.

I want to particularly commend the hard work and skill of colleagues who brought important conferences to campus this fall. June saw the 2006 Black Graduate Conference in Psychology draw highly talented future professionals to Purdue from around the country. In July, the National Communication Association Doctoral Honors Seminar brought another outstanding cohort of future scholars to campus. In early September more than 600 participants gathered at Purdue for the fourth North American Victorian Studies Association (NAVSA) conference, jointly meeting with the 14th annual North American Society for the Study of Romanticism (NASSR). The NAVSA Web site describes this meeting as the largest gathering of nineteenth-century specialists since the 19th century! Later in September, the 31st Annual Meeting of the Semiotic Society of America convened on campus to consider "The Future of Semiotics." And just last week, the College hosted the 22nd Annual Symposium on African American Culture & Philosophy on the theme, "Blacker than thou: Authenticity and Identity in the Diaspora."

All these events, combined with a stellar Purdue Theatre season and exciting, thought-provoking exhibits in our galleries, showcased Purdue University and provided tantalizing glimpses to our concentric communities of some of the exciting work going on in the College. And the circle grows wider. The Kennedy Center/American College Theater Festival Region III Selection Committee has just invited a performance of Purdue Theatre's The Importance of Being Earnest at the festival in Milwaukee's Pabst Theatre in January.

So, thanks to all for a wonderfully productive and fulfilling year and best wishes for a restful, enjoyable, and safe winter break!

Sincerely,

John J. Contreni
Justin S. Morrill Dean

NEWS AND RESEARCH

National youth sports camp camp shapes up attitudes, self-esteem

Participation in a national summer day-camp program has a significant effect on the attitudes of children regarding education, self-perception and sportsmanship, according to a new study.

NYSP camper

A national study of more than 3,500 children enrolled in the 2006 National Youth Sports Program found that children, ages 10 to 16, demonstrated positive changes in their attitudes and perceptions regarding education, self-perceptions and sportsmanship at the end of the program.

The program, for students who qualify for either free- or reduced-lunch programs defined by federal guidelines, promotes physical activity and positive living by teaching new sports, healthy lifestyles, learning skills, and community service. Purdue's Department of Health and Kinesiology has participated in the program since 2002.

The national study was conducted by Sarah Ullrich-French, a Purdue doctoral student in the Department of Health and Kinesiology, and was supported by a grant from USA Funds.

Students were surveyed at the beginning of 39 programs around the country. They were asked about their attitudes regarding whether school is important, if they want to graduate from college, if they like the way they look and act, if playing fair is important, and if they are responsible for their own actions. Questions also addressed drug use, nutrition and physical activity. The children were asked the same questions again at the end of the program, and the researchers found a significant increase in their positive attitudes toward these topics. More

Think twice before giving pets this holiday season

Giving a cat or dog for the holidays requires givers to do their homework to ensure the pet is a welcome addition to the family, says a Purdue ethics expert.

Mark Bernstein

"A child may ask for a puppy or a kitten or it may sound like the perfect gift for a girlfriend, but there is a tremendous amount of thought and planning that needs to take place before adopting a pet," says Mark Bernstein, a Philosophy professor and the Joyce and Edward E. Brewer Chair in Applied Ethics.

Whether the pet is a Christmas gift or adopted any other time of year, Bernstein says it is important to focus on the correct pairing between human and animal. More

Randy Roberts honored as Indiana's top educator

A Purdue History professor has been named the state's top professor by the only national ranking specifically designed to recognize excellence in undergraduate teaching and mentoring.

Randy Roberts

Randy Roberts, a professor of American History who as been at Purdue for 18 years, was recognized Nov. 16 as the 2006 Indiana Professor of the Year. The annual award program is administered by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education.

Roberts is the ninth Purdue professor in the past 20 years to receive this award. The council recruits judges within higher education to choose finalists, after which a panel of Carnegie Foundation judges selects the winners based on "extraordinary dedication to undergraduate teaching." Nominations contain testimonials from students, professors and administrators.

The Department of History has had two professors named Indiana Professor of the Year. Purdue's seven other previous award recipients represent departments in engineering, physics, medicinal chemistry, entomology, chemistry, philosophy, and biological sciences. More

Preserve culture, beliefs when promoting health to India's rural residents

Improving a person's health in India, or in any country, needs to start with an understanding of culture, says a Purdue Health Communication expert.

Mohan Dutta

"India is certainly growing as a global center for economics, education, and business, but parallel to this growth is an increasing gap in health care for India's rural residents," says Mohan Dutta, associate professor of health communication who is studying the health beliefs of low-income rural Indians. "Today's health-care technology that is used to communicate and to treat people is amazing, but there are many cultural barriers that prevent some rural groups from accessing these benefits."

Dutta is coordinating a large multi-site study that is examining health beliefs among low-income residents of India. One group being studied is the Santali people of Midnapur, West Bengal. They are low-income, and many of them are field workers. More

EVENTS

– The 76th Annual Literary Awards Competition is seeking submissions by Feb. 16. The competition, which awards more than 70 prizes in writing categories such as journalism, Asian studies, linguistics, philosophy, history, playwriting, business writing, and poetry and the short story, is sponsored by the Department of English, Purdue Libraries and the College of Liberal Arts. Nearly $14,000 will be distributed in award money to the winning students. The Literary Awards banquet and reading on April 19 will feature award-winning writer Sherman Alexie. He is the author of novels Reservation Blues and Indian Killer and the screenplay Smoke Signals. The reading, which is free and open to all, is 8 p.m. in Stewart Center's Fowler Hall.

FACULTY & CLA HONORS

– Purdue's Introductory Composition program is a winner of the Conference on College Composition and Communication's Writing Program Certificate of Excellence for 2006-2007. Established in 2004, this award is presented to 20 writing programs each year. Purdue and the other recipients will be honored at the conference's March meeting. The award was given to Purdue for many reasons, including the program's success in mentoring and training its teachers and innovative technological approaches to teaching composition. The program is part of the College of Liberal Arts' Department of English.

EXPERTS IN THE NEWS

NewsHour with Jim Lehrer –
Thanksgiving about gathering of traditions, essayist says
(Bich Minh Nguyen, Department of English)

Lafayette Journal & Courier –
Class gives a glimpse of Goth
(Emily Allen, Department of English)

Lafayette Journal & Courier –
Sharing holiday in a global fashion
(Mohan Dutta, Department of Communication)

Naples Sun Times –
Losing weight better with two heads
(David R. Black, Department of Health and Kinesiology)

Beijing Review –
Keeping the faith
(Yang Fenggang, Department of Sociology and Anthropology)

Beijing Review –
Left turn for Bolivia
(Michael Weinstein, Department of Political Science)

Reuters –
War can be avoided in Somalia despite rhetoric
(Michael Weinstein, Department of Political Science)

San Diego Union Tribune–
Rules held sacred, but effectiveness under fire
(Jennifer Thackaberry Ziegler, Department of Communication)

Lafayette Journal & Courier, Indianapolis Star –
West Lafayette man pumps iron, trains others to sculpt physique
(Sidney Pellissier, Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures)

Business Week –
Building a better computer
(Scott Shim, Patti and Rusty Rueff Department of Visual and Performing Arts)

Associated Press, Asheville Citizen-Times –
No family for the holidays? Party with your friends, the family you choose (Andrew Buckster, Department of Sociology and Anthropolgy)

Business Wire –
Professor participates in study of greater China corporate communication practices
(Jay Wang, Department of Communication)

Forbes –
Fitness industry pushes better trainers
(Ken Baldwin, Department of Health and Kinesiology)

This edition of Liberal Arts eNews is available online.

Previous editions of this newsletter can be found on the Liberal Arts eNews home page.

Any story ideas can be sent to Amy Patterson Neubert at the Purdue News Service, 494-9723, apatterson@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu