November 2008

John Contreni

Making history

It wasn't only the last leaves of autumn that fell in droves from trees in mid-north Indiana this month. Indiana voters in record numbers dropped ballots in boxes, real boxes and their digital equivalents.

Students on campus were energized by the run-up to the historic election and either voted early or stood in long, impressively solemn lines in the Memorial Union as they inched toward the polling place in PMU 118.

On November 11, a rainy Tuesday, several hundred students, faculty, and staff endured inclement weather and the exhaust and noise from a nearby bus stop to gather around what we call the Landmark Tree outside the Class of 1950 Lecture Hall. The tree had been painted with a vulgar epithet directed toward now President-Elect Obama.

Nov. 11 Rally

The message shocked the Purdue family, not so much for its vulgarity, I suspect, but for its calculated cruelty in being scrawled on a tree around which African American students, particularly, like to gather between classes.

To judge from those who listened to speakers from across the University in last Tuesday's rain, the cruelty didn't work. The anonymous spray-painter's targets refused to be victims. As student Naiya Ashby replied to a reporter earlier in the week, "It was ignorance. I'll just be the bigger person."

Sincerely,

John J. Contreni
Justin S. Morrill Dean

Promotion and tenure guidelines The College Web site has a new page dedicated to promotion and tenure guidelines and processes. The new page is intended to provide guidance to tenure-track faculty throughout the promotion and tenure process. In addition to the College's promotion and tenure policies, the page includes departmental guidelines for promotion and tenure, and a roster of the current College Area Committee members. Links to important documents, such as a table showing the outcome of College tenure track faculty promotions during the last five years is available along with a second table that indicates the average number of years in rank for associate professors promoted to full professor in the last five years. The data is presented by rank and gender.

CLA strategic plan A College-wide committee is hard at work on the College's new strategic plan. The plan will serve as the College's roadmap for action for the next six years, 2008-2014. It will address the three goals of the University's "New Synergies" plan, which was approved by the Board of Trustees last June: Launching Tomorrow's Leaders; Discovery with Delivery, and Meeting Global Challenges. A draft of the College's plan will be circulated for comments and reactions. The plan will be presented to the faculty senate for approval in the spring semester. CLA's committee is composed of: Mark Bernstein, Philosophy Kristina Bross, English Larry Campbell, Alumnus Ann Clark, Political Science John Contreni, Dean and committee chair Ken Ferraro, Sociology William Gray, History Ellen Greunbaum, Anthropology Larry Leverenz, Health and Kinesiology JoAnn Miller, Associate Dean Jim Nairne, Psychological Sciences Patrice Rankine, Foreign Languages and Literatures Tom Recker, CLA Advancement David Santogrossi, Associate Dean Jennifer Simpson, Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences Steve Visser, Visual and Performing Arts Steve Wilson, Communication

RESEARCH & NEWS

Purdue English professor honored as Indiana's top educator

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

Robert Lamb

Robert Lamb, also a professor of American Studies who has been at Purdue for 17 years, was recognized on Nov. 20 as the 2008 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.

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 include testimonials from students, professors and administrators. More

Purdue trustees recognize Sociology professor

Kenneth Ferraro

The Purdue University board of trustees on Nov. 21 ratified the appointment of Kenneth F. Ferraro as a Distinguished Professor of Sociology.

Ferraro has taught at Purdue since 1990 and is the founding director of the Center on Aging and the Life Course.

His recent research uses a life course framework to examine health inequality, especially ethnic and racial differences, and the cumulative effects of obesity on health. He is the current editor of the Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences. More

Some whites struggle more with obesity related to discrimination than blacks, Hispanics

A new study confirms that discrimination is a stress factor that is related to obesity, but surprisingly, this is most true among ethnic white groups and not blacks or Hispanics.

Haslyn Hunte

"We wanted to determine whether feeling discriminated against was linked with having excess tummy fat in adults," says Haslyn Hunte, an assistant professor of Health and Kinesiology who led this study as a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health and Society Scholar. "We did find such a link - but not where we expected. Feelings of discrimination were associated with excess stomach fat among ethnic whites - Italians, Jews, Irish and Polish Americans in Chicago - but not among other whites, blacks or Hispanics.

"White ethnic groups that include those of Polish, Italian, Jews and Irish descent have been historically discriminated against in the United States. Some will argue that we as a society have moved on from discriminating against others because of their race or ethnicity, but this data and other recent research suggests a different story." More

Historian talks about how politics, elections are portrayed in movies

While political movies entertain, they also raise important questions about American government, says a Purdue University historian.

Randy Roberts

"There has always been a strong connection between Hollywood and Washington, D.C.," says Randy Roberts, a Distinguished Professor of History. "It's a reciprocal and symbiotic relationship. Washington looks for the glamour of Hollywood to help its crusades, and Hollywood looks to Washington for legitimacy."

Roberts says there are two recurring themes in political and election films. The first focuses on the country's problems and the hero who fixes everything, and the second theme examines how America's leaders are chosen. More

Twilight film may really bring vampires to life for some

The upcoming Twilight film may not only entertain moviegoers, but it also has the potential to encourage people to really believe in vampires, says a Purdue University mass media expert.

Glenn Sparks

"Research on paranormal beliefs shows that when a fictional story is successfully presented in a realistic way, it can move people to believe or at least move them away from disbelief and toward more uncertainty about the supernatural," says Glenn Sparks, a professor of Communication.

Sparks has published several studies about the effects supernatural television shows have on the way people form and adjust their beliefs about the supernatural. "This reminds me of what happened with the 1973 film The Exorcist. Many people said they had never considered demon possession before, but some of those who saw the movie began thinking it was a possible phenomenon." More

Prof: Volunteering beats holiday blues, may lift spirits

Volunteering to do good this holiday season also may be good for you, says a Purdue sociologist.

Kenneth Ferraro

"There is certainly a social benefit for volunteers, especially for older adults, because it engages them with others," says Kenneth Ferraro, a professor of Sociology who studies volunteering and health. "Plus, it helps people of all ages with their outlook. When you help others, the problems you have may not seem as difficult or insurmountable. It changes your perspective."

"They say Thanksgiving is a time to count your blessings and focus on the positive. Volunteering implicitly does that." More

Purdue students to survey Indiana residents' opinions

Purdue University political science students will call hundreds of Indiana residents from Nov. 6-25 to participate in a public opinion poll.

Suzanne Parker's "Public Opinion " class will conduct phone interviews from 6-9 p.m. on Sundays through Fridays. Students will make calls from the Political Science Data Lab and will ask questions about state and national government, political issues, and current events.

Parker, an associate professor of Political Science, and the students participating in the class project will analyze the data then write reports about the results. More

Purdue student TV news show debuts Spanish edition

Purdue University's student video newsmagazine, "Fast Track," is debuting a new show in Spanish this fall.

"Fast Track te Informa" will air regularly at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, then repeat at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday and at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday through Thursday on Comcast's Channel 5.

"Fast Track," a video newsmagazine, which covers Purdue and local news each semester, will air at 6 p.m. on Fridays. Ten episodes of "Fast Track te Informa" will be produced a semester, in addition to 12 episodes for "Fast Track." More

FACULTY & CLA HONORS

Communication professor receives engagement grant

– Lorraine Kisselburgh, assistant professor of Communication, is one of 10 Purdue faculty members who have been selected to receive service-learning faculty development grants. Each recipient will use the $2,000 grants to design courses in which students use the skills they learn in the classroom to complete community service projects.

Poet's poems recognized by the Morse Poetry Prize

– Dana Roeser, a visiting instructor in the Department of English, is the winner of the 2008 Morse Poetry Prize for her collection of poems, In the Truth Room. The collection has been published by Northeastern University Press.

Young liberal arts alumni recognized with 2008 award

Purdue University's College of Liberal Arts honored three young alumni with the 2008 Emerging Voice Award.

Tanasha Anders, Jo Alice Blondin and Ron Carpinella are the recipients of the award, which is given by the College of Liberal Arts Alumni Board. The awards were given on Oct. 25 at a College of Liberal Arts Homecoming event and were part of Experience Liberal Arts. More

EXPERTS IN THE NEWS

The Economist, Chicago Tribune, Times of Northwest Indiana, Ft. Wayne Journal Gazette, Louisville Courier-Journal, Associated Press –
A state that dislikes change may contemplate it after all
and Long lines for last day of early voting
(James McCann, Department of Political Science)

Lafayette Journal & Courier, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review –
Indiana shifts from red to battleground
(Bert Rockman, Department of Political Science)

LA Times, Indianapolis Star –
Discrimination against whites linked to obesity
(Haslyn Hunte, Department of Health and Kinesiology)

Yahoo Sports' The Ring (Online magazine) –
Congress working on pardon for Johnson
(Randy Roberts, Department of History)

O, The Oprah Magazine –
Five things you'd never think would make you fat (but guess what?)
(Susan Swithers, Department of Psychological Sciences)

Congressional Quarterly, Yahoo News –
Republicans use 'Anti-American' charge on house floor as well as campaign trail after all
(Jeremy Straughn, Department of Sociology)

Indianapolis Star –
Students, teacher praise Republican senator's specifics, Obama's demeanor
(Bob Deutsch, Department of Communication)

AboutKidsHealth.com –
Picking your battles
(Steve Wilson, Department of Communication)

Catholic Chronicle, Catholic News Service –
Speaker says with more deacons, lay ministers church shows vibrancy
(James Davidson, Department of Sociology)

Indianapolis Star –
The tricky side of Halloween
(Melinda Zook, Department of History)

Ft. Wayne Journal Gazette –
This time, Indiana matters: Experts see early omens in state tally
(William Shaffer, Department of Political Science)

Lafayette Journal & Courier –
Debate clears up questions for local viewers
(Rosalee Clawson, Department of Political Science)

Lafayette Journal & Courier –
A Halloween history lesson
(Melinda Zook, Department of History)

Lafayette Journal & Courier –
Does Facebook make friendships better, or worse?
(Glenn Sparks, Department of Communication)

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