Monday Memo September 18, 2017

Dean's Message

Dear Colleagues:

Today I share with you an op-ed I recently submitted to the Courier-Journal in response to Governor Bevin's recent (and repeated) disparagement of the value of liberal arts degrees. 

Here is the message: "Arts and culture make Louisville economically attractive."

Thanks, and please feel free to forward me your thoughts.
 
Sincerely,

Kimberly Kempf-Leonard, Ph.D.

Announcements

Red Cross sets up dedicated link for UofL donations
The Kentucky Red Cross has set up a dedicated link for UofL community donations toward recovery efforts related to hurricanes Harvey and Irma. Donations can be made at: http://www.redcross.org/gocards.

A&S Staff Meeting this Thursday at 1pm
Dean Leonard is hosting an an A&S Staff meeting on Thursday, September 21, 2017 at 1:00 in Bingham Humanities, Room 100, to discuss staffing needs in A&S departments during this time of fiscal constraints and a hiring freeze. She will provide an overview of the changes to A&S staffing related to fiscal operations thus far, and fill staff in on changes already made by Belknap Business Ops and Human Resources as well as those on the horizon. 

Excused Absences Policy 

From Dr. Dale B. Billingsley, Acting Executive Vice President and University Provost: This is a reminder that the university has an Excused Absences Policy that allows students to be absent from class when they participate in university-sanctioned events or activities, the definition of which is as follows: “A university sanctioned event or activity shall be one in which a student represents the university to external constituencies in academic or extra-curricular activities. These include but are not limited to student government congresses, intercollegiate athletic and debate contests, music competitions, academic meetings, and conferences…” Please refer to the full policy here.

The intent of the policy is to ensure that faculty will provide opportunities for students to make up work they miss as a result of university excused absences. Students who provide documentation of participation in university-sanctioned events must not be penalized.

The policy also assumes that students with excused absences will work diligently to complete the assignments for the class and will create as little disruption to class processes as possible. To that end, students are expected to attend lecture and laboratory sessions and field experiences in the courses for which they are registered with the fewest absences possible. Students are expected to complete assignments on time, actively participate in their classes, and provide documentation of dates for university excused absences or notification of tentative dates. Students are to acknowledge that their excused absences make their regular attendance at other times essential.

As the chief academic officer of the University, I expect all students, staff, faculty, department chairs, and deans to follow university policy, and this policy is no exception. Every effort should be made to accommodate students who are representing the University. Questions about the proper administration of the policy should be taken up with the sponsoring faculty or staff member who may consult with this office by contacting provost@louisville.edu.

Active Learning Teaching and Technology Institute

The Delphi Center is pleased to announce a new event for 2017, the Active Learning Teaching and Technology Institute to be offered during fall break, October 9 and October 10. Join your colleagues to delve into active learning pedagogies, flipped classroom approaches and other instructional strategies that aim to create environments that enhance learning and assess learners’ progress.
 
Sign up for a single 75-minute session or attend one or both days to discover current practices and practical suggestions for implementing active learning strategies and leveraging instructional technology in a variety of disciplines. Contact Deb Hatfield, 852-0412, with questions. Registration is now open.

Research & Creative Activity

Announcing new book series Environmental Degradation and Public Health (Praeger Publishers)
This book series, edited by Prof. John Gilderbloom (Urban & Public Affairs), will include works focused on environmental degradation and public health, aiming to show how pollution and other environmental abuses are reducing quality and length of life, and harming social life as well as economy. Studies, for example, estimate at least 3.5 million lives have been shortened by environmental toxins in the U.S. over the last decade, and 7 million more will face premature death due to environmental toxins across the next 10 years. Toxins to be examined range from air pollution by industrial smokestacks and automobile emissions, to ground and water pollution from agricultural runoff, hazardous waste spills, and toxic waste dumps. The development, growth, and damage of ozone to city dwellers will also be examined and detailed. Less heralded personal sources of pollution will also be explained in series books, including one planned on third-hand smoke and the legacy effects of smoking tobacco in homes and apartments. Much attention will be paid to environmental degradation in cities, where pollution and the resulting threat to dense populations is highest. Also addressed will be the issue of “environmental racism,” as we see the most polluted places are home to a far larger percentage of “minorities” (African Americans and Latinos, most noticeably) than white Americans. The roles of both the polluters and the politicians who fail to regulate the activity are discussed. Series books will also detail solutions to the problems of pollution.

Authors interested in submission may contact the series editor at john.gilderbloom@louisville.edu.

Items of Note

Great work SPI AOC participants!
The participants of the Southern Police Institute’s 138th Administrative Officers Course (AOC) were moved by stories of Texas first responders answering the call of duty after Hurricane Harvey only to find that their own homes and property had been destroyed. Therefore,the 138th AOC took up a collection and purchased $500.00 worth of men and women’s underwear, t-shirts, and socks. The Jeffersonville Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge 100, added $1,000 in gift cards to be used by those first responders in need of other items. Class members shipped the items to a Texas State Trooper who delivered the items to a command center in one of the most devastated areas. 

Kudos

Alumna Jessica Williamswins Fulbright to Brazil
Jessica Williams tried three times to earn a prestigious Fulbright scholarship. Last week her diligence was rewarded: she was selected for the prize and will spend most of 2018 in Brazil as an English teaching assistant at a public university.

Ms. Williams graduated from the College of Arts & Sciences with degrees in Spanish, political science and Latin American and Latino studies. Read her full story here.

A&S Student Brandt Coleman granted the 2017 SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Environmental Excellence Awards
Brandt Coleman, a senior honors student in the liberal studies program, just named a recipient of the 2017 SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Environmental Excellence Awards. These awards have celebrated and helped spotlight the inspiring stories of young conservationists working at the grassroots level to protect the planet. Mr. Coleman will be graduating in 2018 with a degree in environmental analysis and a concentration in marine biology.

Prof. John I. “Hans” Gilderbloom (Urban & Public Affairs) nominated as one of the world’s most influential urbanists
Congratulations to Prof. John I. “Hans” Gilderbloom who was nominated as one of the world’s most influential urbanists. This crowdsourced list of nominees reflects the diversity of the many related fields of urbanism—both in demographic considerations like age and gender, and also in the many forms that urbanism can take. 

Prof. Gillderbloom is the only one nominated from Kentucky and is among the ranks of many influential planners, both living and dead. To find out more about the list and to vote for him others, go to Planetizen's website. To read more about Prof. Gilderbloom, click on his hyperlinked name once on the site.

In the News