Monday Memo December 5, 2016

Message from the Dean

Dear Colleagues,

In this last week of fall semester, I urge every faculty member to convey to your students the value you place on their opinions. All teachers can improve, and I suspect that most of us have done something differently in a course as a result of evaluations. If our students know that we actually utilize their feedback, I believe they will be more willing to complete course evaluations. Also, reaching out to students in this way will go a long way towards improving the way in which we are rated by our graduating seniors.

Speaking of students, the December commencement is on the 15th at 7pm at the KFC Yum! Center. Please make every effort to attend and support those who are celebrating such an important milestone. It is so important for the graduating students and their parents to see faculty in attendance.

Good luck with finals and grading! Also, since this is the last Monday Memo of the semester, I want to convey my best wishes for a peaceful and relaxing break. We all deserve a vacation! Hopefully, we can all come back in the New Year rested and looking forward to a fresh start.

With much appreciation,

Kimberly Leonard

Kimberly Kempf-Leonard

Dean

Deadlines

Faculty: Deadline Dec. 16 for 2017 CCHS Faculty Fellows Application
The Commonwealth Center for the Humanities & Society is proud to announce the 2017-18 Faculty Fellows theme and call for applications. The deadline for applications is Dec. 16, 2016. The theme for 2017-18 will be Affect, Emotion, Sensation. This year’s theme invites faculty to bring new perspectives to scholarship on the nature and significance of affect, emotion, and sensation for humanistic research. In keeping with its core mission, CCHS seeks to foreground forms of humanistic inquiry in research and advanced learning not only in humanities departments but also across the whole range of departments of the College. Fellows will receive at least one course release as well as a modest supplemental research/travel stipend from CCHS.  Applications are due Dec. 16, 2016 and require a current CV, a proposal of up to 1000 words stating the project to be pursued while a Fellow, and a letter of support from the department chair. Please visit the CCHS website at http://louisville.edu/cchs/faculty-fellows/affect-emotion-sensation for details. Inquiries can be sent to john.gibson@louisville.edu or tracy.heightchew@louisville.edu.

Faculty & Staff awards due Jan. 11
Time is running short. Please consider nominating a colleague for an A&S Award. Nominations are due Jan. 11. The awards will be given at the annual Celebration of A&S Excellence on April 25, 2017 in Bigelow Hall. In addition, the winners in each qualifying award category will be forwarded to the President and/or Provost’s Offices as the College’s nominations for the corresponding University-wide awards. The various awards include the A&S Distinguished Faculty Awards, the A&S Outstanding Performance Awards for staff, the A&S Supervisor Awards, the Diversity Champion Awards, and induction into the A&S Hall of Honor. For awards’ criteria and nomination forms

Departmental community service projects
If your department, center or institute is doing anything philanthropic for the holiday season, on or off campus, please provide details to Alicia Kelso at UofLNews.com by Dec. 9.

LALS Club donations for Ky. Refugee Ministries by Dec. 6
The Latin American and Latino Studies Club is collecting new and gently used winter coats, hats, scarves, gloves, blankets, toys, and household items for Kentucky Refugee Ministries. Drop off items you would like to donate to the LALS Offices (Stevenson 304-306) between now and Dec. 6.

Donate to Ronald McDonald House by Dec. 9
The Staff Senate, led by the efforts of the Staff Morale and Community Outreach Committee, is volunteering for a Ronald McDonald House Adopt-A-Meal on Dec. 9. They are also accepting items for the RMH’s Holiday Wish List through Friday, Dec. 9th. The Holiday Wish List items are bundled into Christmas gift baskets to comfort and cheer the up to 36 families who stay at the RMH while their children receive treatment at Norton’s Children’s Hospital (formerly Kosair). Please drop off Wish List donations in Gardiner 240. The Ronald McDonald House is an approved UofL community service opportunity through the Office of Community Engagement.

Donate to refugees at Slaughter Elementary by Dec. 12
The Giving Day will be returning to Slaughter Elementary on Friday, Dec. 16. The project benefits immigrant and refugee kids and their families. Slaughter is a high poverty school with one of the highest percentages of ESL students in Jefferson County. This project allows each student to go “shopping” for loved ones. After selecting the gifts, they return to their classrooms for a wrapping party. Ideas for items to donate include gently used toys, puzzles, gadgets, stocking stuffers, purses, jewelry, socks, hats, mittens, paint sets, candles, holiday decorations, stuffed animals, puzzles (with all the pieces), ties, watches, belts, nail polish, CDs, playing cards, scarves, stuffed animals, trinkets, kitchen items, picture frames, clothing and accessories, baby items, dolls, salt & pepper shakers, wallets, purses, art supplies, tie clips, etc. Please keep in mind these children are traveling home on the bus, so items shouldn’t be oversized. They are also in need of wrapping paper of all colors and designs! Items can be dropped off in Gardiner 240 through Dec. 12. For questions, contact lindsey.ronay@louisville.edu.

Teaching, Research, Creative Activities, & Service

Prof. Peteet presents at Harvard
Prof. Julie Peteet (Anthropology) presented an invited paper, “Ruptures, Mobility and Indignity,” at a conference at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University, Nov. 17.

Prof. Moazzen on Iranian Studies council
Prof. Maryam Moazzen (Comparative Humanities) was elected to serve a three-year term on the council of the Association for Iranian Studies.

Prof. Ziegler guest edits Central Asian Survey
Prof. Charles Ziegler (Political Science) was guest editor for a special issue of the journal Central Asian Survey on authoritarian persistence and resilience in Central Asia. In addition to editing the collection he wrote the Introduction and an article, “Great Powers, Civil Society and Authoritarian Diffusion in Central Asia.

Prof. Golding leads graduate course in India
Prof. Alan Golding (English) recently led a week-long graduate and professional course on "The Literary Avant-Garde," at Saurashtra University, Rajkot, India, at the invitation of the Indian Government's Global Initiatives of Academic Networks (GIAN) program. As part of the program, Prof. Golding also delivered a keynote address on "Shakespeare and Experimental American Poetry."

Prof. Hammond receives $1.8 million NIH grant
Prof. Gerald B. Hammond (Chemistry) received a $1.8 million dollar grant funded by the National Institutes of Health. Prof. Hammond provides this description of his research, which is funded through 2021: “Nucleophilic Halogenation Reagents: The halogens (fluorine, chlorine, bromine and iodine) are important intermediates in drug discovery, and, in the case of fluorine, a major presence in biologically active compounds. More than 25% of drugs contain fluorine atoms, including the top three pharmaceuticals. However, putting fluorine on a molecule can be very challenging. The primary goal of this NIH-funded grant is to develop of a new generation of halogenation reagents and conditions that are user-friendly and environmentally-benign, capable of opening the door for chemical reactivities and selectivities hitherto unknown.”

Prof. Omer-Sherman presents at University of Rochester
Prof. Ranen Omer-Sherman (Comparative Humanities) presented a paper, "Levinasian Nomadism and the Unmoored Characters of ‘Transparent,’" at "Transparent: A Multidisciplinary Symposium" at the Susan B. Anthony Institute for Gender, Sexuality and Women's Studies of the University of Rochester, Dec. 1.

Prof. Song presents at Kent State
Prof. Wei Song (Geography & Geosciences) presented at the Colloquium Series of the Department of Geography at Kent State University on Dec. 2. The title of his presentation was "View-Based Greenery: Assessment of City Buildings' Green View Using Floor Green View Index.” Prof. Song discussed a wide variety of environmental and psychological benefits of urban vegetation, as well as a new quantitative indicator measuring urban dwellers' view-based exposure to greenery.

Prof. Orend’s sociology students create diversity billboard
Prof. Angela Orend (MA Sociology ’02) had her Fall 2016 Introduction to Sociology students create a public service announcement in the form of a billboard. The class project placed a particular emphasis on diversity and inclusion to get students actively engaged in a community conversation about issues of social justice. The winning design has been placed on a billboard on Frankfort Avenue next to the Irish Rover.

Latest State of Metropolitan Housing Report released Dec. 13
The UofL Center for Environmental Policy and Management and the Anne Braden Institute for Social Justice Research announced the release of the 2016 State of Metropolitan Housing Report on Dec. 13, 2016 at noon at New Directions Housing Corporation, 1000 East Liberty Street, Louisville The Metropolitan Housing Coalition (MHC) will host a public event at New Directions Housing Corp. to release and discuss our annual State of Metropolitan Housing Report (SMHR) on affordable housing in Metro Louisville and southern Indiana. The 2016 State of Metropolitan Housing Report is subtitled: “Living in Community, Housing for People Living with Disabilities and Our Aging Population.”

Master of Urban Planning receives re-accreditation
The Master of Urban Planning Program received a 5 year re-accreditation period with a potential 2 year extension, for a total of 7 years, by the National Planning Accreditation Board (PAB). The Board voted to approve at the November annual meeting in Portland, Oregon, following a successful site visit in March 2016. The vote follows an inaugural 7 year accreditation period that was awarded once the program became eligible in 2009. The MUP degree is the only graduate planning degree available in the state, and was started in the year 2000.

Criminal Justice establishes Lambda Alpha Epsilon
On Nov. 16 Criminal Justice Chair Prof. Gennaro Vito and Vice-Chair Prof. George Higgins, along with advisor Kim Hendricks, conducted a chartering ceremony for the new Omicron chapter of Lambda Alpha Epsilon. It’s part of the national organization of the American Criminal Justice Association. Thirty members were inducted into this chartered organization. For more info and a complete list of members inducted, visit Criminal Justice Lamda Alpha Epsilon.

Items of Note

2017 Grawemeyer Award winners announced
Education and political science scholar and former aid worker Dana Burde has won the 2017 University of Louisville Grawemeyer Award for Ideas Improving World Order for examining the influence foreign-backed funding for education has on war-torn countries and how such aid affects humanitarian and peace-building efforts. University of Washington psychology professor Marsha Linehan, who developed a therapy to treat chronically suicidal patients and extended its power to help people with borderline personality and other disorders, won the 2017 University of Louisville Grawemeyer Award for Psychology. Columbia University religion professor Gary Dorrien offers a new perspective on modern Christianity and the civil rights era by delineating the tradition of social justice theology and activism that led to Martin Luther King, Jr. in his book The New Abolition: W. E. B. Du Bois and the Black Social Gospel, which earned him the 2017 Grawemeyer Award in Religion, given jointly by UofL and the Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary.

In the News

16 'Will in the Ville' Shakespeare events (The Tennessean, 10/4/16) – On ‘Will in the Ville’ events, which were co-sponsored by many faculty and staff members, and departments within the College of Arts & Sciences.

Grawemeyer Winner Dana Burde Talks Education During Conflict (WFPL, 11/29/16) and Author of book on foreign-backed education in Afghanistan wins 2017 Grawemeyer Award for World Order (Insider Louisville, 11/30/16) – On 2017 Grawemeyer Award winner for Ideas Improving World Order Dana Burde.

Renowned Ethicist Gary Dorrien Wins 2017 Grawemeyer Award In Religion (WFPL, 12/1/16) and Renowned ethicist and social justice scholar wins 2017 Grawemeyer for Religion (Insider Louisville, 12/2/16) – On 2017 Grawemeyer Award winner in Religion Gary Dorrien.

For Grawemeyer Winner, Journey With Mental Illness Leads To New Treatment (WFPL, 12/2/16) Professor who developed therapy for ‘uncurable’ mental illnesses wins 2017 Grawemeyer Award in Psychology (Insider Louisville, 12/3/16) – On 2017 Grawemeyer Award winner in Psychology Marsha Linehan.  

Happy birthday to Phi Beta Kappa!

phi beta kappa

On this day 240 years ago (December 5, 1776),  Phi Beta Kappa – America’s most prestigious undergraduate honor society – was founded.

Did you know that in addition to being an honor society celebrating excellence in the liberal arts and sciences,
Phi Beta Kappa is a champion for freedom of thought and an advocate for the value of an education in the arts and sciences. In fact, Phi Beta Kappa recently created an advocacy toolkit: toolkit.pbk.org