Oracle The
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2013
HENDERSON STATE UNIVERSITY
VOLUME 16, ISSUE 6
Vice presidential candidates to visit, speak Moe Skinner Staff Writer Henderson has been trying, to no avail, to fill the position of vice president for university advancement since spring. In July, the university re-launched its search. The vacancy may soon be occupied by one of three finalists scheduled to speak in Caplinger Airway Science Center’s lecture hall this week. This part of the interview process will be in an open forum. Each of the three candidates will be giving a presentation and then answering questions from the audience. This newly formed position will work collaboratively with Dr. Glendell Jones, president of Henderson. “They will be the chief fund raiser for the university,” Jones said. The responsibilities and duties consist of engaging and managing a portfolio of prospects, which include personal cultivation, solicitation, closing of gifts and stewardship. The first of the three candidates, Jennifer Boyett, will speak Sept. 23 from 3 to 4 p.m.
She spent her undergraduate years at the University of Central Arkansas and graduated with a BA in journalism in 2001. She went on to attend the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and received her MA in journalism in 2005. She currently serves as team leader for the fundraising team in the division of advancement at University of Central Arkansas. She is also a member of CASE, Council for Advancement and Support of Education. “I look forward to meeting faculty, staff and students on Monday and discussing the importance of higher education advancement and what I can bring to the table as vice president of advancement.” Boyett said. “I want to be a part of the Henderson team and to serve President Jones because he has demonstrated that he understands the impact an advancement division can have throughout the campus. Working together, I think we can
make great things happen at HSU.” The second of the trio, Dr. Russell Gibbs, former vice president for institutional advancement and communications at Texas A&M Health Science Center, will be speaking on Sept. 25 from 3 to 4 p.m. Gibbs is a pastor and received
“We need the right person to tell our story.” — Glen Jones, president
his master’s of divinity and doctor of ministries degrees from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth. He received his Certified Fundraising Executive certification in 2002, and was recertified in 2005 and again in 2008. Gibbs is also a member of CASE, Council for Advancement and Support of Education, the AFP, Association of Fundraising Professionals and Lions
Club International. The final candidate, Dr. Paul Kettering, former vice president for university advancement at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, will be speaking on Sept. 27 from 3 to 4 p.m. Kettering has 27 years of professional experience in secondary and higher education, and spent 15 of those years as an advancement and development leader. Some of his career highlights include over a hundred fundraising campaigns, initiatives and drives that resulted in gifts and pledges of over $70 million. Each of the candidates will be looking at Henderson as a potential home, but only one will be the best fit. “We need the right person to tell our story,” Jones said. “Anything we can do to showcase our wonderful attributes would be a plus.” All students, faculty and community members are encouraged to attend the meetings, evaluate and assess each of them and share their feedback about the candidates with the search advisory committee. Surverys will be given to those who attend the sessions.
BOYETT
GIBBS
KETTERING
Academic advising offers help to bolster GPAs Heath Sims Staff Writer
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Henderson’s Academic Advising Center has resources for students who are experiencing difficulties in class. The AAC offers students in historically difficult classes a form of group studying called supplemental instruction. Chanda Hooten, academic adviser and coordinator of the program, said that supplemental instruction started during the 1970s in Kansas at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. When it was first started, its purpose was to find a way to keep retention rates of minority students up. Today, the program has found its way into about 3,600 schools across the nation, including Henderson. SI is a series of weekly review sessions provided for all students who want to improve their grade. These sessions are peer facilitated by students who have already been successful in the same class the students are taking. “The purpose of this is to help break down the intimidation barrier some students may have when they are in class and don’t want to ask questions,” Hooten said. These review sessions are set up more like a group study session rather than a tutoring program. The SI leaders are there to help keep everyone on track and address any questions students may have. Departments that participate in SI still have their own form of tutoring programs. Henderson incorporated SI in fall of 2012 with three cours-
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es. The program grew to five courses by spring of 2013 and has grown to 10 courses for the fall of 2013. Each course has been chosen based on how many students, campus wide, sign up for the course and then on how many students have completed the course with a grade of D and under or have withdrawn from the course. Each course has a host teacher. The instructors of SI use this teacher’s course schedule to base their study sessions. This fall the courses included in SI are masters of western literature with Mr. Gibson, college algebra with Ms. Shultz, general psychology with Mr. Bejarano, general chemistry for non-majors with Ms. O’Donnell, intro to biology with Mrs. Benjamin, world civilization to 1660 with Dr. Hickerson, general botany with Dr. Serviss, experimental stats with Dr. Wiebers, general zoology with Dr. Engman, and learning with Dr. Ahmad. Not every teacher that teaches one of these courses is included in SI. It is only one teacher per course. For example, SI only uses Ms. Kristen Benjamin’s intro to biology class for the intro to biology section, although there are other professors teaching intro to biology classes. Fall of 2013 is the second semester offering SI for Mrs. Benjamin’s three sections of intro to biology. This session of the program has seen the highest attendance compared to the other sessions. Records show that 50% of the students enrolled in the
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course utilized the service during spring of 2013. Out of the total number of students that participated in the program, 65% earned an A, B or C in the class versus only 39% of the students who never attended. In the past, 120 students from the total graded enrollment of 287 (42%) utilized the services at least once. The final mean grade for participants was 2.0 as compared
to 1.7 for non-participants. Although most of the SI is geared towards core courses, some departments have used their own department budgets to fund upper level courses. “So far we have had good attendance this semester,” Hooten said. “Anyone can come to the sessions, but a lot of students wait until they get their first test back before coming.” Hooten also said that there
has been an 18-point difference on tests for those who attended the SI sessions as opposed to those who have not. “We are looking for this program to expand even farther in the future,” Hooten said. For those interested in finding more information on SI, the AAC has a full schedule of each section. The AAC is located on the second floor of the Garrison.
Festival celebrates Heritage Month
Photo by Ryan Klare
BAILAMOS Local Zumba instructor Mayte Garcia (center) and Maria Fer-
nanda Carrillo (right) led students in dance on the quad. The repertoire included merengue, salsa and reggaeton dancing. The festival, held on Sept. 17, celebrated Hispanic Heritage month which began Sept. 15 and spans a month, ending on Oct. 15. The festival also included a photo booth, chips and salsa, a Latino exhibition of artifacts and live music. The Trio Trumpets performed a musical number, Laura Luz Castillo sang and Cecilla Delgado danced.
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