Monday Memo February 4, 2019

Dean's Message

As you know, strategic planning is now underway to make the University a great place to learn, a great place to work, and a great place to invest. Nominations, including self-nominations, to serve on the Learn, Work, and Invest workgroups are being acceptedthrough the end of the day today. I hope A&S will be represented well. Nominate here.

Speaking of making this a great place to work, you can contribute to this effort at the College-level by nominating a staff colleague for an A&S Outstanding Performance Award. The deadline to nominate is February 28. There are a few changes to the process this year to make it a more inclusive and equitable process, so please be sure to read the nomination instructions. One important change is that we are now accepting self-nominations. Please nominate a colleague or yourself for an A&S OPA now. To see the other A&S awards for which we are currently accepting nominations, go to the A&S Awards webpage.

Thank you!

Sincerely,

Kimberly Kempf-Leonard, Ph.D.
Dean

Announcements

The 2018-19 UofL Phi Beta Kappa Lecture

Dean Kimberly Kempf-Leonard cordially invites you to the 2018-19 Phi Beta Kappa Lecture featuring UofL President Neeli Bendapudi speaking on “The Liberal Arts in a Global Economy.” The lecture will be on Tuesday, March 5, 2019 at 6:30 p.m. in the new A&S building at 1606 Rowan St. in the historic Portland neighborhood. A reception will immediately follow. Kindly let us know if you plan to attend: uofl.me/rsvp-march5. 

The Phi Beta Kappa Lecture and reception is hosted by the College of Arts & Sciences with support from the Phi Beta Kappa Association of Kentuckiana.

New HR Training: Compensation 101

First session: January 31, 10 a.m., Clinical and Translational Research Building, Room 123 Are you interested in learning more about how the job evaluation and market pricing process works? How pay grades and ranges are determined? How pay is determined? The Compensation department is offering a new opportunity to share the compensation process and how it works. All employees are invited to join us at one of our upcoming training sessions, “Compensation 101." To register, and to view other dates, please visit the website.

Men's Basketball Tickets Available

Dean Leonard is giving away her two men’s basketball tickets, UofL vs. Notre Dame. Sunday, 3/3 at 1:30 PM. Get entered into the drawing. Deadline to enter is 2/22.

The Graduate Student Regional Research Conference Needs Judges

The Graduate Student Council (GSC) is seeking faculty judges for our upcoming Graduate Student Regional Research Conference happening February 27-28. Judges will work together to evaluate graduate student poster presentations and choose one winner from a poster session of 15-20 posters. Learn more about our conference. Sign up as a faculty judge. Volunteer sign-up will close on February 15 or once we recruit enough volunteers.

In Memoriam

Professor Emeritus Richard M. Davitt (Mathematics) passed away January 17, 2019.

After graduating with a Ph.D. in mathematics from Lehigh University, Prof. Davitt started at UofL as Assistant Professor of Mathematics in 1970, raising to the rank of Professor in 1997 and retiring in 2005. He continued to teach until 2012. Dick helped the department grow from a small teaching oriented program into a Ph.D. granting department while never losing sight of the importance of undergraduate education.

He was very involved in the Honors Program, serving as Acting Director 2003-2004 and continuously teaching in the program. 

Prof. Davitt was also active in service to his profession, serving as chair of the Kentucky section of the Mathematical Association of America. He received many honors for his outstanding service and teaching and always was proudest of his students' accomplishments. We lost a great teacher, mathematician, colleague and friend.

Great Place to Learn

CCSJR is Looking for 2019-2020 Research Fellows

Applications are now open for undergraduate and graduate fellows at the Cooperative Consortium for Social Justice Research for the 2019-20 academic year. Up to eight undergraduate fellows will assist on one of our funded research teams (five hours per week for a $500 per semester stipend). We are also seeking a graduate research assistant (PhD students only) to work with the Consortium's Research Manager. More detailed information and applications are available online at louisville.edu/socialjustice or by emailing transdis@louisville.edu.

Congratulations to the University of Louisville Quiz Bowl Team!

Congrats to the U of L Quiz Bowl team for winning both division’s at the Kentucky Collegiate Quick Recall League tournament held at JCTC! The teams went a combined 13-0 on the day.

The Division I team of Mohammad Hindi (Chemistry major), Travis Liebert (Psychology major), Thomas Rosbottom (Physics major), and Christian Vennemann (Sport Administration major) went 6-0. They defeated the University of Mississippi twice (525-70 and 450-65), EKU twice (525-75 and 535-160), and Cumberlands twice (445-95 and 505-45). Individually, Thomas was the second leading scorer in Division I, Travis was the third leading scorer, and  Mohammed the fourth leading scorer.
               
The Division II team of Emily Beltchev (Bioengineering major), Dylan Boone (Chemical Engineering major), and Luke Schroeder (Biology major) went 7-0. They defeated JCTC Green (375-225), JCTC Red (375- -10), Transylvania (270-175), Cumberlands (360-60), EKU (370-55), JCTC Blue (350-75), and JCTC Gold (370-165). Individually, Emily was the high scorer in Division II and the entire tournament. Dylan was the third leading scorer in Division II.

Alumna Frankie Lewis is a Contestant on Project Runway

From Project Runway's website: Frankie Lewis is a self-taught fashion designer who gained experience in the fashion world by way of creating costumes for her local theater in inner-city Louisville, Kentucky. She first learned to sew in college and worked as a seamstress and designer making local theater costumes for her theater major at the University of Louisville. Frankie is extremely passionate about her designs and hopes that they will help inspire people to believe in themselves. With her former line, Ann DeEvelyn, and her upcoming line, Frankie Lew, she includes fashions for all types of women, inclusive of plus sized options. She pushes the envelope with sexy, chic pieces up to size 24. Frankie continues to change and evolve as a designer, currently focusing on structural and linear designs, but is open to seeing where the wind blows her next.

Mr. Cardinal 2019

Please congratulate A&S student Chris Tipton (Psychology and Biology) for being awarded the honor of Mr. Cardinal 2019. Check out the video that features him speaking about his experience as a  Cardinal.

Great Place to Work

Professor Grubola Awarded the 2019 Louisville Visual Art Educator Award

James Grubola receives the 2019 Louisville Visual Art Educator Award. This award is given to an individual in the Kentuckiana region who has had a longstanding and important impact on developing, teaching, and inspiring artists. This individual will be recognized for their dedication to enriching the lives of students of all ages by meaningfully and continuously educating people in the world of art.

Professor Shiping Hua Publishes "Chinese Legal Culture and Constitutional Order"

Shiping Hua, political science/Asian studies, has published his single-authored book “Chinese Legal Culture and Constitutional Order” with Routledge.  This is his third published monograph on Chinese political and legal culture/thought following “Chinese Utopianism” and “Scientism and Humanism.”

Earlier in 2018, Dr. Hua had published his edited volume “Routledge Handbook of Politics in Asia,” with over 300,000 words and 40 chapters written by scholars from 13 different countries in North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia.   The book has received praises from Dali Yang, University of Chicago, Lynn White, Princeton University, and Lowell Dittmer, University of California at Berkeley.  

Professor Glynis Ridley to appear in a Docudrama about her book, "The Discovery of Jeanne Baret"

Professor Glynis Ridley, Chair of English, will appear on screen in a docudrama being made by the independent film company Atlantis-Film for German broadcaster ZDF in association with the European ARTE network. The docudrama is about the first French circumnavigation of the globe from 1766-69, under the command of Louis-Antoine de Bougainville. In disguise on board was Jeanne Baret, the first woman known to have circumnavigated the globe and the subject of Professor Ridley's 2010 book, The Discovery of Jeanne Baret. Professor Ridley will be filmed at the Muséum national d’histoire naturelle, Paris, in early February, talking about Baret's role in the expedition and showing surviving manuscripts and specimens from it. A full-size modern recreation of an 18th century sailing ship was used for filming, as the accompanying still (which is Professor Ridley's favorite) shows.

Diversity & Inclusion

Professor Almousily awarded the Volunteer Service Award

Professor Khaldoun Almousily, the Arabic language program coordinator, is the first American of Arab descent in Louisville to be acknowledged and awarded the United States President’s Volunteer Service Award for the three consecutive years. He spent 350+ hours in the past three years volunteering with Louisville Metro Police Department. Awards will be presented during a Banquet on March 3rd at the Galt House.

In the News

President Bendapudi kicks off strategic plan - (UofL News, 1/28/19) - President Bendapudi outlines her vision for the future of the University.

UofL Professor plays part in discovery of length of day on Saturn - (WDRB, 1/27/19) - NASA makes a discovery that was previously alluded to by Professor Timothy Dowling.

Linguistics professor creates indigenous alphabet, speaks at UF - (Florida Alligator, 1/23/19) - Professor Hilaria Cruz highlighted for her work developing written language for indigenous peoples.

Bevin was ripped for not sharing his tax returns. Now a Democrat won't - (Courier-Journal, 1/22/19) - Political Science professor Dewey Clayton contributes to a discussion on conduct in political campaigns.

Writers up: University of Louisville hosting 'Poetry Derby' - (Horse Racing Nation, 1/17/19) - Announcing UofL's Poetry Derby, set to happen on April 22nd.

Covington Catholic confrontation shows ugly side of Kentucky and US - (Courier-Journal, 1/23/19) - Professor Ricky Jones gives his thoughts on the Controversy in Washington, D.C. and its widespread implications.

A life in the clouds: The science of extreme weather, cloud physics and climate change at Beer with a Scientist - (UofL News, 1/18/19) - Dr. Jason Naylor will be discussing the nature of tornadoes and cloud physics at an event this month.

Cuddly foxes show the ‘softer side’ of evolution - (Christian Science Monitor, 1/16/19) - Professor Lee Dugatkin's findings on the evolution of Siberian Foxes are explored.

'He Doesn't Know What To Do': Sen. Mitch McConnell's Role In The Shutdown - (WBUR, 1/15/19) - Professor Jasmine Farrier joins a discussion on the political gridlock.

Louisville Visual Art honors UofL artists, educators - (UofL News, 1/15/19) - Recipients of this year's Louisville Visual Art Honors have strong ties to UofL.

Dementia and religion: ‘What if I forget about God?’ - (Salt Lake Tribune, 1/15/19) - Dr. Benjamin Mast's findings regarding dementia are explored.