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August 2009
Wright State lecture series to feature Kettering cartoonist
Ted Rall, a nationally syndicated political cartoonist and former Kettering resident, will be among the featured speakers in Wright State University’s 2009-2010 Presidential Lecture Series.
Rall is a 1981 graduate of Fairmont West High School whose first cartoons were published in the Kettering-Oakwood Times, according to his Web site. His panel-style political cartoons now appear in more than 100 U.S. newspapers, including the New York Times and Los Angeles Times.
Rall is president of the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists. His honors include the 2000 Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award. He will speak at Wright State on May 3, 2010.
Other speakers in the Presidential Lecture Series include Greg LeMond, the first American to win the Tour de France; bestselling authors Greg Mortenson (“Three Cups of Tea”) and Frans Johansson (“The Medici Effect”); and James Fallows, China-based correspondent for The Atlantic.
All lectures are free and open to the public. Locations have not been announced for the 2010 lectures.
Here is the schedule for the 2009-2010 series:
Friday, Sept. 4: Chris Sacca, former head of Google Inc.’s special initiatives. 3 p.m., Ervin J. Nutter Center.
Oct. 15: Richard Pimentel, expert on disability and diversity issues in the workplace. 7 p.m., Wright State Student Union Apollo Room.
Nov. 5: JD Talasek, director of cultural programs, National Academy of Sciences. 7 p.m., Wright State Creative Arts Center.
Jan. 26: Mary Frances Berry, author, educator and historian. 7 p.m.
Feb. 16: James Fallows, China-based correspondent for The Atlantic. 7 p.m.
March 5: Greg LeMond, first American to win the Tour de France. 8 p.m.
April 7: Greg Mortenson, co-author of “Three Cups of Tea.” 7 p.m.
April 9: Frans Johansson, author of “The Medici Effect.” 9:15 a.m.
April 20: John Corvino, philosophy professor and “gay moralist.” 7 p.m.
May 3: Ted Rall, nationally syndicated editorial cartoonist. 7 p.m.
For more information on the 2009-2010 Presidential Lecture Series, click here.
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Ohio University approves tuition increase
Ohio University students will pay about $100 more per quarter in tuition starting with the 2010 winter quarter.
The university’s board of trustees on Friday, Aug. 21, approved a 3.5 percent increase to the Athens campus instructional and general fees for the upcoming winter and spring quarters.
Ohio University President Roderick J. McDavis attributed the tuition hike to a decrease in state support in Ohio’s biennial budget enacted earlier this summer, according to a media release.
The projected State Share of Instruction funds on which the university developed its fiscal year 2010 budget was reduced by $2.2 million from Gov. Ted Strickland’s budget proposal, according to the release.
The budget compromise also made changes in the Ohio College Opportunity Grant program, reducing need-based state support for Ohio University students by $1.7 million, according to university officials.
“At Ohio University, we are very concerned about how these changes will affect our students who depend on financial aid,” McDavis said.
The state budget raised the cap on tuition and fee increases at Ohio’s public colleges and universities to 3.5 percent in fiscal years 2010 and 2011.
The university announced in July that it did not plan to raise fall tuition after the state budget was finalized.
Fall tuition and fees for undergraduates at Ohio University is $8,907. With the board approved increase, a full-time student will pay approximately $100 more per quarter, according to university officials.
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Wright State honored for disability services
Wright State University’s Office of Disability Services has been honored with the 2009 Advocacy Award by the the Governor’s Council on People with Disabilities.
Wright State received the award on Thursday, Aug. 20, during the council’s annual awards ceremony at the Ohio Statehouse Atrium in Columbus. Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner presented Wright State with the award.
The award is one of five the council gives annually to individuals and organizations who have shown outstanding leadership and determination on behalf of people with disabilities.
Wright State’s Office of Disability Services has advocated for an accessible environment for students, faculty and staff with disabilities since 1970, and since that time has served more than 5,000 students, according to the council.
This year Wright State launched a five-year program funded by a $3 million National Science Foundation grant to recruit Ohio students with disabilities to enter the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields in the Dayton and Columbus regions.
Wright State leads the program, Ohio’s STEM Ability Alliance, which also includes Sinclair Community College, Ohio State University and Columbus State Community College.
Less than 10 percent of graduating high school students with disabilities make it to a four-year college or university, said Jeff Vernooy, Wright State director of disability services.
“Kids with disabilities are the second largest minority group in the State of Ohio,” Vernooy said. Recruiting them to major in STEM fields can help the Dayton region build a skilled workforce for the future, he said.
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UD ranked among nation’s best values
The University of Dayton was listed as one of the nation’s top values in the magazine’s 2010 edition of “America’s Best Colleges,” released Thursday, Aug. 20.
UD ranked 36th on the “Great Schools, Great Prices” list. Only 50 schools made that list, including such prestigious universities as Harvard, Princeton and Yale, along with Notre Dame, Boston College and Georgetown University.
“The higher the quality of the program and the lower the cost, the better the deal,” according to U.S. News.
“Our inclusion on the list validates that our transformative education, innovative and challenging curricula, and learning-living community make the University of Dayton one of the best values in higher education,” said Daniel J. Curran, university president.
U.S. News also listed UD among it “A+ Schools for B Students” for the second straight year. The list encompasses schools that the magazine says deserve a closer look.
UD ranked among the 10 best Catholic universities in U.S. News’ overall rankings.
For more on U.S. News’ Best College rankings, click here.
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Wright State Regional Summit goes online
Wright State University’s 2009 Regional Summit will be held online, rather than as a public event at the school.
In lieu of hosting an in-person summit this year, as it did in 2007 and 2008, Wright State has created a special edition of Community magazine and a new Web site to update people on how the university is working with community partners to enhance the Dayton region.
“We announced at last year’s Regional Summit that we would be more innovative in how we try to engage the community,” said David R. Hopkins, university president. “By transforming what was previously a half-day event into a publication and online forum, we are able to take advantage of technology that opens the door to the widest possible participation.
“Holding the summit ‘virtually’ also allows us to extend the conversation on rethinking the region’s future throughout the entire year,” Hopkins said.
The Regional Summit, “Rethinking the Region’s Future,” issue of Community magazine is the result of the summits held in 2007 and 2008.
The special issue was distributed to more than 50,000 Wright State alumni in a 16-county region and to more than 700 community and government leaders, according to university officials.
The public is invited to participate in the conversation about the region’s future online. To visit Wright State’s Regional Summit 2009 Web site, click here.
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UD students use fish shocking to study river health
University of Dayton students embarked Tuesday, Aug. 18, for an annual two-day kayaking trip to study the health of the Great Miami River.
About 45 UD students, faculty, staff and community partners left Taylorsville Dam in Vandalia on Tuesday and will camp overnight at Island MetroPark in Dayton.
At 11 a.m. Wednesday, the members of UD’s Rivers Institute will stop at RiverScape for fish shocking and presentations from Five Rivers MetroParks and the Miami Conservancy District. The students will finish their trip at SunWatch Indian Village.
Fish shocking involves passing electrical current through the water to stun fish to bring them to the surface for counting and studying. The diversity of fish species is a good indicator of water quality in the area, according to UD officials.
Fish shocking does not harm the fish, which return to their original state within minutes.
The two-day trip is an annual orientation for the incoming class of River Stewards, a group of UD students who lead the Rivers Institute, a university organization that seeks to connect the Miami Valley with its rivers.
“We are looking at the river corridor as a way to connect cities in this region through economic growth, community building, educational and recreational opportunities,” said Leslie King, Rivers Institute coordinator, in a media release.
For more information on the Rivers Institute, click here.
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Eight area universities named “military friendly” schools
Wright State University and Central State University are among the eight regional colleges to be named as a “Military Friendly School” for 2010.
The rankings announced Monday, Aug. 17, by G.I. Jobs magazine places the designated schools among the top 15 percent of all colleges, universities and trade schools nationwide, according to the publication.
Other area schools on the list include the Ohio State University, Miami University, Cedarville University, Wittenberg University, Xavier University and the University of Cincinnati.
The ranking recognizes the schools’ military-friendly policies, efforts and results to recruit and retain military and veteran students.
The institutions will be included the 2010 Guide to Military Friendly Schools, to be published in September for military members and veterans who are seeking a college.
To request information from the military friendly schools in the G.I. Education Handbook, click here.
A new Web site, www.militaryfriendlyschools.com, is scheduled to launch in September.
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Wright State staff sets fundraising records
Wright State University’s staff, faculty and retirees have set new records in recent months for university fundraising, according to Wright State officials.
Wright State employees and retirees have raised more than $350,000 for student scholarships and programs for the university’s largest internal annual giving initiative, the Campus Scholarship and Innovation Campaign (CSIC). The amount raised to date surpassed the goal of $265,000 and represents a seven percent increase over the same period last year.
In February, Wright State administrators, vice presidents and deans agreed to forgo potential salary increases, choosing instead to donate the savings to a new Graduation Fund for needy students who are facing economic hardships to help them reach graduation. Faculty and staff, through CSIC, also have given to the new fund, which has a goal of raising $1 million.
Employees also have boosted their support of local organizations, according to university officials. Wright State employees doubled their contributions this year to the 2009 Culture Works United Arts Fund Drive, which ended June 19, raising $13,452. Their donations will help school-aged children to gain exposure to the arts through educational outreach programs.
“Everyone across campus is focusing on our core mission of educating students, and that has spurred their generosity and led them to record-setting philanthropy that benefits the whole community,” said Bryan Rowland, vice president of advancement, the department that leads fundraising efforts at Wright State.
In contrast, charitable giving dropped two percent nationally in 2008 and continues to decline in 2009, according to a June survey by the GivingUSA Foundation.
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UD offers alumni career assistance
The University of Dayton is offering free career assistance and networking to area UD alumni who find themselves unemployed by recent corporate changes or who may be seeking new employment opportunities.
The Alumni Career Transitions Panel and Networking Night will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 17, at the Time Warner Cable Flight Deck at UD Arena. The event is free, but registration is required.
A networking session is scheduled to start at 6:30 p.m. followed by an employment panel featuring representatives from local organizations. Alumni also will have the opportunity to speak with career advisers and staff members from the UD career services and alumni outreach offices.
Alumni not seeking new positions are also welcome to attend to offer support, encouragement and employment leads, according to UD officials.
Registration is required by Wednesday, Aug. 12. Register by visiting http://alumni.udayton.edu, clicking on “Chapters & Groups,” selecting the Dayton chapter and clicking on “events.”
Parking is available at the UD Arena by entering Gate C off Edwin C. Moses Boulevard.
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