A&S Newsletter (Fall 2010)

Arts & Sciences

new sle t te r

December 2010

Getty College Council Members for 2010-11 Dr. Dawn Brooks, BS ’93 Senior Director, Lilly Research Laboratories Eli Lilly & Company

Honorable Cheryl Mason, BA ’86 Chief Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals

Dr. Inara Brubaker, BS ’59 Senior Research Associate, Retired UOP LLC

Jeff McClellan, BS ’98 Head of School, MC2 STEM High School Cleveland Metropolitan Schools

James E. Cates, BA ’67 Consultant, Author, Philanthropist and Retired Senior Executive IBM Corporation Dr. Jennifer Counts, BS ’91 Section Head, Regulatory Affairs Procter & Gamble Dr. James L. Crates, BS ’62, JD ’65 Partner McKinley & Crates Law Firm Dr. James F. Essinger, BA ’79 Research Fellow The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company Dr. Karen Keyse Fields, BA ’78 President Vice President for Global Academic Programs, Provost and Executive Vice President University of Nevada, Las Vegas Tonya J. Hunter, BS ’02, JD ’05 Attorney Speedway SuperAmerica LLC

The A&S Newsletter is a publication of the Getty College of Arts & Sciences.

Getty College of Arts & Sciences 525 S. Main St. Ada, OH 45810

A&S

Getty College of

Editors: Josh Alkire Amy (Rettig) Prigge, BSBA ’94 Design: Nancy Burnett

R. Scott Miller, BA ’77 Director, Global Trade Policies and Global Government Relations Procter & Gamble

Photography: Ken Colwell Contributors: Cynthia Drake Matt Markey

Jane C. Reed, BA ’70 Teacher, Retired Keith E. Richards, BSEd ’70 Superintendent, Retired Newark City Schools

The A&S Newsletter is published by Ohio Northern University, 525 S. Main St. Ada, OH 45810, 419-772-2000.

Mark E. Smith, BA ’73 Managing Director, Fixed Income Division Loomis Sayles & Co.

In the Getty College of Arts & Sciences students gain the edge professionally through an applicationcentered curriculum.

Combining a long tradition of professional education with a comprehensive program of liberal education, the college seeks to give students the advantage when they compete for their first position and over the long run.

Michael B. Smith, BA ’69 President The Washington Center Rod Thompson, BA ’69 Teacher, Planetarium Mentor Exempted Schools Dr. Thomas Vukovich, BSEd ’65 Associate Provost, Retired University of Akron Dr. Ora “Bud” Winzenried, DPS ’01 Owner, Retired Kenton Structural and Ornamental Steel

www.onu.edu/as

STEM CELL RESEARCHER HEADLINES KEISER LECTURE

Dr. Renee Reijo-Pera, a leading stem cell research expert, presented “Human Health, Development and Stem Cells,” during the Keiser Distinguished Lectureship in Life Sciences program in October.

Reijo-Pera is a professor of obstetrics and gynecology and director of the human embryonic stem cell research

and education at Stanford University. Her research focuses on understanding the genetics of human embryo growth and development and the basic properties of human embryonic stem cells. She especially concentrates on the embryo’s ability to generate pluripotent stem cells, somatic cells and germ cells.

Early in her research, Reijo-Pera identified one of the first genes expressly concerned with human germ cell development. Her laboratory has created several techniques to differentiate human embryonic stem cells from germ cells and the genetic manipulation of pathways.

Throughout her career, ReijoPera has been honored with numerous awards. In particular, she was named one of Newsweek magazine’s 20 Most Influential Women in America.

Named in honor of professor and ONU alumnus Terry D. Keiser, BSEd ’64, the Keiser Distinguished Lectureship in Life Sciences brings nationally prominent life sciences scholars to ONU’s campus each year to lecture and interact with students.

Dr. Roseanna Dufault, professor of French and chair of the Department of Modern Languages, has been honored with the Prix du Quebec 2010 in recognition of her promotion of Quebec studies and promotion of cross cultural understanding.

Mme Monique GagnonTremblay, from Quebec’s ministry of international relations, made the presentation at the 2010 the American Council for Quebec Studies (ACQS) Conference in Burlington, Vt. Dave Massell, president of ACQS, looks on.

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Thanks, in their own words...

“I am really enjoying my time here at ONU, and I owe it all to you. Your gift made it possible for me to attend.”

“ONU has become more than a college to me. It feels more like a family. I can only hope I will be in a position to help future students the way that you have blessed me.”

The devotion of professor Robert L., BSEd ’51, and Mrs. Mary Bowden to the young women and men of Ohio Northern University is legend. Whether in the laboratory or at their dining room table, the Bowdens cared for and inspired future teachers, scientists and leaders. Through the Robert L. Bowden Scholarship, Mary seeks to continue to inspire and support generations of students to come.

For information on how you can establish your own legacy or support the Dean’s Opportunity Fund at Ohio Northern University, contact Richard Borowski at 419-772-2041 or r-borowski@onu.edu

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A&S

Getty College of

Arts & Sciences

n ew sl ette r DEAN’S COLUMN

ART AND DESIGN BIOLOGICAL AND ALLIED HEALTH SCIENCES CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY COMMUNICATION & THEATRE ARTS EDUCATION ENGLISH HISTORY, POLITICS AND JUSTICE HUMAN PERFORMANCE AND SPORT SCIENCES MATHEMATICS AND STATISTICS MODERN LANGUAGES MUSIC NURSING PHILOSOPHY AND RELIGION PHYSICS AND ASTRONOMY PSYCHOLOGY AND SOCIOLOGY TECHNOLOGICAL STUDIES

FULBRIGHT TRIP BROADENS GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE

Friends, As you read this inaugural newsletter from the Getty College of Arts & Sciences, I am sure you will be struck, as I am every day, by the rich variety of teaching and learning opportunities in the college.

One of the hallmarks of an arts and sciences education at Ohio Northern University is experiential learning. Working side-by-side with a faculty member in the laboratory introduces students to the challenges and excitement of conducting original research.

Student teaching, presenting at professional conferences, internships and undergraduate research are but a few of the opportunities arts and sciences students take advantage of every day.

A group of students and educators from Ohio Northern University and the surrounding area have spanned that geographic gap with a bridge built on friendship, trust, relationships and the most basic of educational assistance.

The University has become an effective ambassador with this venture, which has at its foundation the study of the emerging democracy in South Africa, and what it might tell us about our own mature and continually evolving form of government.

Continued...

December 2010

DEAN’S COLUMN

FULBRIGHT TRIP

SYMPOSIUM HIGHLIGHTS

HISTORY MAJOR SELECTED

CONDUCTOR’S MUSICAL

GETTY ADVISORY COUNCIL

SYMPOSIUM HIGHLIGHTS YOUTH MINISTRY PROGRAM

Students also benefit greatly from the insights that their professors, like Dr. David Smith, associate professor of geography, or professor Lloyd Butler, BM ’00, resident artist and director of the Freed Center Orchestra, bring to the classroom, from conducting research in Tajikistan to conducting a symphonic performance in Estonia. In the past year alone, students have traveled with faculty to England, South Africa, the Dominican Republic and Spain.

These faculty members open doors for students, encouraging them to seize unexpected opportunities and to gain a deeper understanding of the complex, ever-changing world of the 21st century.

For several decades, William E. Croy Jr., BA ’71, H of F ’02, felt there was a hole in Ohio Northern University’s religion curriculum.

As the college moves forward to semesters, beginning in fall 2011, the curriculum continues to offer outstanding professional and pre-professional programs based on a strong liberal arts tradition.

Arts and sciences students graduate with an exceptional academic foundation, strong leadership abilities and a sense of engagement with the larger community. These attributes make Ohio Northern University an education of great value.

The youth ministry program at ONU, launched in 2001-02, now claims 100 percent placement for its graduates in graduate programs (mostly seminaries) or youth ministry positions and is fairly unique among universities that are affiliated with mainline protestant denominations, says Ray Person, professor and chair of Ohio Northern’s Department of Religion and Philosophy.

Dr. Catherine Albrecht Dean

Africa seems such a distant land, an exotic, strange and somewhat forbidding place. Those thousands of miles of separation might as well be millions, unless you make a connection with the people who live there – people with concerns not unlike those of many elsewhere: education, fair representation, justice, and the preservation of personal dignity.

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Without a program to adequately prepare students for youth ministry, Croy would make it his mission to rectify that need. Now serving as an ONU trustee, he has seen the creation of a youth ministry major and the first Youth Leadership Symposium this spring.

“Over the years, I’ve shared my concern that we do something better to train people for careers in youth ministry,” says Croy, a former youth minister who served as pastor of Maple Grove United Methodist Church in Columbus.

CONDUCTOR’S MUSICAL PASSPORT BRIDGES TWO CULTURES Though the language of music is universal, crossing borders can provide a new awareness for musicians from different cultural backgrounds.

That’s what professor Lloyd Butler, BM ’00, co-director of the Musical Theatre Program and music director of the g

Upcoming Events Jan. 8 Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Musical 10 a.m., Freed Center for the Perfor Performing Arts

Continued...

HISTORY MAJOR SELECTED LECTED FOR PRESTIGIOUS FELLOWSHIP

22 Jan. 2 River North Chicago Dance Compa Company and ONU Dance Company 8 p.m p.m., Freed Center for the Perfor Performing Arts

This summer, while manyy students spent time at the beach or the mall, Carol Wilson was transcribing ibing original Civil War documents thatt had never been seen before by the general public.

Feb. 2 Instrum Instrumental Ensembles Concert 8 p.m. p.m., Snyder Recital Hall

It was part of the Gilder Lehrman History Scholars fellowship ip program at one of the most ost renowned historical collections ctions in New York City.

Wilson, a senior Honors student and professional writing and history major from Royal Oak, Mich., was selected d along with only nine other students for the distinguished fellowship out of more than 200 applicants nationwide.

8, 10, 12 Feb. 8 Proof Free Freed Center for the Performing Art Arts Fe Feb. 9, 11, 13 Last Five Years La Freed Center for the Fr Performing Arts Pe Feb. 18 John Bucchino’s It’s Only Life p.m., Freed Center for the 8 p.m Performing Arts Perfor March 13 University Singers Concert Univer p.m., Snyder Recital Hall 7 p.m

“I think what appeals to me most about this program is that the focuss is on trying to make history ory interesting to the public,”” says Wilson, whose minor or is museum studies.

Continued... d...

www.onu.edu/as www.o

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FULBRIGHT TRIP BROADENS GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE better person and teacher,” Spencer said. “I learned so much, not only from those I met in South Africa, but also from my fellow group members, an experience I value greatly.”

Seeing rhinos on a daily basis reminded her how far she was from home, but the passion for educating the teachers there showed her how closely their mission mirrored that of teachers here in the U.S.

Katelyn Amendolara, a senior art major from Canfield, Ohio, said she was initially taken aback by the conditions at the schools in the township the group visited – schools surrounded by large, razor-wired fences, bare dirt grounds, and holding small classrooms with limited supplies – but she was buoyed by the children’s zest for learning.

– Betsy Bair

Continued...

Dr. Sandra Crosser, a professor in ONU’s Center for Teacher Education, received a Fulbright Group Studies Aboard grant from the U.S. Department of Education that allowed her to take a small group to South Africa’s Mpumalanga Province for a month this summer to study the culture, political history, language and literature of South Africa as they also examined that democracy still in its infancy.

The Fulbright Group Studies Abroad grant, totaling $88,440, was to fund a Short Term Curriculum Development Project titled “South Africa: Perspectives on Democracy.” The U.S. Department of Education grant covers 55.5 percent of the total project costs. ONU’s in-kind and direct costs related to the project are $58,679 and the total participant fees are $12,441, making up the remaining 44.5 percent of the costs.

The ONU contingent, which included four teachers, four teacher candidates from the University and six faculty members, built a playground at a

school in South Africa and presented teachers in the province with 700 pounds of basic school supplies they brought from America in their luggage.

Two notebook computers were given to teachers at a poor secondary school so they can better prepare themselves to educate their students.

“We were able to help them out with some instructional supplies, but we gained much more in terms of understanding as a result of this venture,” said Crosser, who has visited the same area and conducted outreach activities with other CTE faculty there for the past three years.

“The kids were like sponges. They were so open to learning anything and everything,” she said. “I studied art while I was there, and the arts were very rich in creativity and resources.”

Betsy Bair, a senior early childhood education major from Stow, Ohio, said seeing rhinos on a daily basis reminded her how far she was from home, but the passion for educating the teachers there showed her how closely their mission mirrored that of teachers here in the U.S. “We spoke with people individually and with groups, and we found so many common threads.”

“I met some great people who genuinely care for their students and wanted to make themselves better educators for their students,” Bair said. “I studied the democracy and school system in the area to a point where I have a million more questions, but know a million more things than I had before.”

Crosser said the ONU group benefited greatly from the University’s past work in the area.

“At first, the people were very skeptical, but those relationships we’ve built in the schools and the community over the years are a key. They build trust, and people become much less foreign,” Crosser said.

She said the group left South Africa enriched by the culture, the friendships and relationships the ONU educators built there, and the knowledge gained in a month of firsthand contact.

“We come back feeling like it was a very rewarding and educational experience for everyone, but we also come back with an overwhelming list of things we would like to do there.”

Shawnee High School social studies teacher Chad Spencer was one of the area educators who took part in the exchange. He said his month on the African continent allows him to bring a wealth of first-hand knowledge of South Africa and its inherent issues and problems directly to his classroom.

“The most valuable part of this experience for me is that it has given me a broader global perspective that hopefully will serve to make me a

Students win Goldwater awards Samantha LaChey, Merrill Miller, Cailey Williams

Stephanie Ash, Joshua Szekely and Mitchell Thayer

relaxation rate of the azo dye molecule and presented his findings at the National American Chemistry Society Conference this spring in San Francisco.

In addition, Stephanie Ash, a junior physics major from Beavercreek, Ohio, and Mitchell Thayer, a senior physics major from Painesville, Ohio, received honorable mention honors in the competitive national scholarship program.

With a focus on green energy research, Ash worked on thin-film solar cell research at the University of Toledo in summer 2009 under the supervision of Dr. Robert Collins.

She also started low-energy electron diffraction research at ONU with Dr. Melita Caragiu.

Joshua Szekely, a senior chemistry major from Madison, Ohio, has been selected as a 2010 Goldwater Scholar by the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship Excellence in Education Program. For six consecutive years, Ohio Northern students have been the recipients of this premier award honoring those in the fields of

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mathematics, the natural sciences and engineering.

Szekely’s primary research focuses on physical organic chemistry particles and, specifically, the azo dye isomerization. Under the supervision of ONU chemistry professor Jeff Gray, Szekely researched the thermal

In 2009, Thayer conducted research with the support of a National Science Foundation Grant that focused on intramolecular charge transfer in 4-aminobenzoic acid derivatives at the College of Wooster under Dr. Sarah J. Schmidtke and Dr. John Lindner.

Student work to be published in ‘New York Review of Science Fiction’ The work of three ONU students was published this past summer, in installments, by The New York Review of Science Fiction. The work, an annotated bibliography on vampires, is the result of a research project conducted by Samantha LaChey, BA ’10, Merrill Miller, a senior creative writing major from McMurray, Pa., and Cailey Williams, BA ’10.

The students began work on the project in fall 2009 as part of their coursework in English 232: Research Practicum. This practicum was designed for English students, particularly those who intend to go on to graduate school and are interested in learning how to conduct intense research. The student researchers compiled a 10,000-word annotated bibliography on the secondary research done in English on vampires since Bram Stoker penned Dracula in 1897. The bibliography includes peerreviewed journal articles, essay compilations, encyclopedias, dictionaries and historical studies. An annotated bibliography not only summarizes research, but also comments on its level of quality, so the process allowed the students to sharpen their analytical skills.

The students’ research was directed by Dr. Druann Bauer, assistant professor of English.

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3 Music education major student teaching in Estonia As another example of Ohio Northern’s Estonian connections, Virginia Harrod, a senior music education and vocal performance double major from Fairfax, Va., completed her student teaching requirement there this fall.

Harrod lived in Estonia for three months teaching music to students from first through 12th grades.

“I was looking forward to getting to investigate their break from Communism, which happened during my lifetime through what is now known as ‘The Singing Revolution,’” Harrod says.

The Singing Revolution describes how the Estonian people won their freedom in part through massive song festivals, she says. “It is the most moving testament to music and how it really can change the world.”

Harrod lived with an Estonian family during her experience to fully immerse herself in Estonian culture and tradition.

“For every student who has gone there, it’s been a tremendous experience for them,” says ONU music director Lloyd Butler, BM ’00.

“I think the benefit for students is that it’s truly a cultural experience, especially since it’s Eastern Europe, which is a very different way of life.

It teaches students the importance of having an appreciation for other lifestyles and other cultures.”

Class Notes

Nursing program receives grant Rhonda Thompson, MS, RN, CNP, an assistant professor of nursing, has received a grant for $504 from the Epsilon Chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International at Ohio State University to assist with her study of “What Factors Motivate University Staff to Reduce CVD Risk?” The grant was used to purchase pedometers for study participants to monitor their daily step counts for the six-week walking program associated with the study. She has recruited ONU faculty and staff for the study, which looks at what types of educational information is effective in motivating them to walk to reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease.

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CONDUCTOR’S MUSICAL PASSPORT BRIDGES TWO CULTURES Simple Gift,” which was written for President Barack Obama’s inauguration.

Continued... symphony orchestra at Ohio Northern University, learned when he guest conducted the Parnu City Orchestra in Estonia last spring.

Butler created a podium exchange program with the Estonian orchestra’s conductor, Juri Alperten, who will guest conduct Ohio Northern’s student orchestra in spring 2011. It’s the latest in a series of collaborative efforts between ONU and Estonia, including various study-abroad opportunities for music students.

During his time in Parnu, Butler planned a program for the professional orchestra that included the European premier of John Williams’ “Air and

“My program was built with an American element to it, and Alperten’s is going to mostly focus on Eastern European melodies, music that we don’t do a lot of,” Butler says. “There’s something that comes inherently from music when people from the culture and region are leading it. That’s the value in having a podium exchange.”

Though Butler says the language barrier in Estonia wasn’t insurmountable, he noticed differences in cultural interpretations of the American musical selection he brought to the musicians, who were used to standard selections by Mozart and Beethoven but not the distinctly American rhythms embraced by Williams.

“It was almost like a whole new orchestra, having to re-teach them,” he says. “Certain rhythms are associated with different cultures. For students from our University, it will be a challenge to learn something that isn’t quite from our culture.”

Butler said that when musicians explore music from outside their cultural repertoire, there are benefits on both sides of the podium.

“It’s tremendously positive. It brings a lot to the way I teach, the way I look at music,” he says. “It’s hard to put into words, but when I conduct an orchestra, I like to see their overall interpretation of a work.

There’s something about that process that identifies with their culture. Until I hear their interpretation, I haven’t thought of a particular piece in a particular way. That’s what I take from it.

whether they’ve had the opportunity to visit Estonia or not, will benefit from their conductor’s musical journeys.

It’s almost like a stamp in their musical passports.

“As musicians, it’s always a learning curve. You might interpret a piece one way one year, and 20 years later, with a whole new life experience, it’s a whole new piece, a whole new interpretation.”

Because of these new insights and interpretations, Ohio Northern music students,

HISTORY MAJOR SELECTED FOR PRESTIGIOUS FELLOWSHIP Continued...

During the five-week program, the scholars worked on a project that explored the secession crisis in 1860 and 1861 before the Civil War. Each scholar was tasked with a state that played a role in the crisis. The students had to create a pamphlet and a documentary that will later be shared with high school and college students.

To aid the scholars in their project, they used primary sources from rare, unpublished historical manuscripts in the Gilder Lehrman Collection, met with nationally known historians, and toured rare archives at the New York Historical Society, New York Public Library and Metropolitan Museum of Art.

High school students experience U.S.-Japan Summer Camp U.S. high school students had the opportunity to learn Japanese, experience Japanese culture and earn college credit at the U.S.-Japan Summer Camp over the summer on campus. Open to a limited number of high school freshmen through seniors, the camp was dedicated to fostering scholarship, enhancing language skills and promoting cross-cultural understanding. In addition to academic coursework, students experienced cultural dinners, discussions and field trips.

ONU political science professor Robert Alexander directed the camp. Satomi Wise served as the on-site assistant director and instructor of Japanese.

ONU history professor Russ Crawford offered a class on Japanese culture.

Program assistants include Ohio Northern students Kelly Morman, a junior political science major from

Wilson, who had previously never taken a Civil War history course, said it was challenging and exciting to begin the project, which included eight to 14 hours of research every day during the program.

never been transcribed before – we were transcribing them for the first time for people to read online. It’s really amazing to see something that the public has not seen before,” she says.

“I’ve been learning a lot here,” she says. “We’ve had several Civil War historians come in to speak to us. We toured the New York Historical Society and saw some original letters from George Washington and some from Abraham Lincoln. It was very cool to see.

Wilson says her studies at Ohio Northern prepared her well for the intensive research experience.

“My professional writing degree has helped me take this massive topic and boil it down so it can be more easily understood and interesting to a wider audience,” she says. “And without my historiography class, I would not have even known where

“Part of our project the first week was to transcribe some original documents from people from the Civil War. They’ve

Monroeville, Ohio, Veronica Fetsko, a freshman forensic biology major from Greenville, Pa., and Matt Wiseman, a senior history major from Findlay, Ohio. The U.S.-Japan Foundation supported ONU’s camp with a $40,608 grant.

Honorary degree Michael Smith, BS ’68, Hon. D. ’10, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in history, received an honorary doctorate of public service in May. Smith serves as president of the Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars, an independent nonprofit organization that serves hundreds of colleges and universities in the United States and other countries by providing selected students challenging opportunities to work and learn in Washington, D.C., for academic credits. The center

has 70 full-time staff and more than 40,000 alumni, many of whom are in leadership positions in the public, private and nonprofit sectors in the U.S. and around the world. Under Smith’s leadership as president, the Washington Center’s

enrollment has grown by more than 5 percent per year for the past three years. As an active Northern alumnus, Smith has served on ONU’s Getty College Council since 1989.

Afghanistan. Smith also examined the consequences of climate change, which would contribute to political destabilization and trigger migration in Central Asia.

Professor awarded Award-winning fellowship to conduct Songwriter hosts research in Central Asia Master Class

Dr. David Smith, associate professor of geography, spent two months over the summer in the Republic of Tajikistan conducting research on water and conflict issues in Central Asia after being awarded a U.S. Embassy Policy Specialist (EPS) program fellowship from the International Research & Exchanges Board (IREX).

Advising and reporting his research to the U.S. Embassy in Tajikistan and during a United Nations meeting, Smith’s research focused on the potential for conflict over water resources in the region, Tajikistan’s dam-building efforts and how plans are contributing to cooperation and conflict with its neighbors, and the effect of the continuing unrest in neighboring

New York cabaret songwriter John Bucchino presented a master class for theatre, musical theatre and music students and worked with eight students in individual coaching sessions last spring. Bucchino’s songs have been performed and recorded by renowned pop, theatre, cabaret and classical artists such as Liza Minnelli, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Yo Yo Ma, Art Garfunkel, Michael Feinstein, Audra

McDonald, The Boston Pops, the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir in a variety of venues, including Carnegie Hall, The Metropolitan Opera, The Hollywood Bowl, The Sydney Opera House and The White House.

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