March 31, 2003, Northern Today Abridged

Student art exhibit ongoing

ars nova, a juried student gallery exhibit juried by Ed Paschke, is open through Friday, April 11, in the Jack Olson Gallery in the NIU Visual Arts Building.

For more information, visit www.sa.niu.edu/arsnova.

Lecturer at NIU to address
'cult of thinness,' body image

Sharlene Hesse-Biber, author and professor of sociology at Boston College, is coming to Northern Illinois University to discuss the factors sustaining "the cult of thinness" that has taken over the lives of so many.

This program at 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 2, in the Wirtz Hall auditorium on the NIU campus, will explain how societal factors influence the development of body image and how a distorted body image can lead to disordered eating. In addition, it will challenge the notion that thinness equals contentment.

Hesse-Biber's latest book, "Am I Thin Enough Yet? The Cult of Thinness and the Commercialization of Identity," will provide the basis for this free lecture. All are welcome.

This program is sponsored by the School of Family, Consumer and Nutrition Sciences (FCNS), and will help mark the beginning of a new FCNS program: the Certificate of Graduate Study in Eating Disorders and Obesity. This lecture also is co-sponsored by Student Housing and Dining Services, the School of Allied Health, the Department of Communicative Disorders, the School of Nursing and Women's Studies.

For more information on this lecture, please call the School of Family, Consumer and Nutrition Sciences at 753-1543.

Noted new author to visit campus Wednesday

Author Elizabeth Crane, whose new book has won widespread critical acclaim, will visit NIU for a free public reading and book signing Wednesday, April 2.

Crane will read from her newly published book of short stories, "When the Messenger Is Hot," beginning at 8 p.m. in the Chandelier Room of Adams Hall. She also will field questions from the audience before the book signing.

"I've heard Elizabeth read, and her stories are imaginative, offbeat and whimsical - and at the same time very moving," said NIU English professor Keith Gandal, who arranged the visit. Crane also will visit with students in Gandal's advanced creative writing class Thursday, April 3.

"We're very pleased to have Elizabeth on campus," Gandal said. "Because she's a writer who has just published her first book of stories, I think this event will be particularly interesting and inspiring to students."

The Washington Post calls Crane's new book "a boldly original collection" of short stories, and a January feature on the author in the Chicago Tribune carried the headline, "When the Writer Is Hot."

According to the New York Times Book Review, "Crane has a distinctive and eccentric voice that is consistent and riveting from the first story to the last."

More information about the author is available at her Web site, www.elizabethcrane.com.

Concert to celebrate life of Donald Walker

The Northern Illinois University School of Music will present a concert celebrating the life and work of Donald Walker, professor of piano at NIU from 1967 through 2002. Walker, a renowned and beloved performer, teacher, colleague and friend to countless members of the NIU community and the international music world, passed away in September of 2002.

The free concert will take place at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 5, in the Boutell Memorial Concert Hall in the Music Building located on Lucinda Avenue. It is open to the public.

Performing on the program will be School of Music faculty artists William Goldenberg and the Vermeer Quartet as well as former students of Donald Walker. There will be readings by Alan Chesler and Carolyn Ashley, and recorded excerpts from Donald Walker's solo piano recitals.

For additional information, please call Bill Koehler at 753-8746, Diane Ragains at 753-1865 or the NIU School of Music office at 753-1551.

Art lecture, seminar scheduled for April 9

John Malcolm Steers, of the United Kingdom's National Society for Education in Art and Design, will visit NIU Wednesday, April 9, for a seminar and lecture.

His seminar, "International Trends in Art Schools," begins at 9:30 a.m. in Art Building room 211. Malcolm's lecture - "International Conversations through Art: Is Globalizing a Matter of Choice?" - is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in Art Building room 102.

Malcolm's visit is co-sponsored by the School of Art. For more information, call 753-1473.

Parker, Scudder and Sinason win
2003 undergraduate teaching awards

Their inspiration - and their recognition - come from the students.

Jenny Parker, Joseph Scudder and David Sinason, this year's recipients of Awards for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, now enjoy the university's longest-standing honor. It stands in a class of its own because the nominations and subsequent words of support originate with the young minds on the other side of the classroom.

"It's very special because it's student-initiated," said Parker, an associate professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education. "That's the most meaningful input I can get."

Initiated in 1966, the awards honor excellent undergraduate teaching in the university, encourage improvement of instruction and promote discussion among members of the university community on the subject of teaching. Nominees must be full-time faculty whose major responsibility is teaching and must have worked at least five full academic years at NIU.

Parker, Scudder and Sinason will be honored at 5 p.m. Sunday, April 13, during the Convocation for Academic Excellence in the Duke Ellington Ballroom. Each receives a check for $2,000.

NIU Steel Band to celebrate
three decades with special concert

G. Allan O'Connor wanted to form a steel drum band at Northern Illinois University when he arrived as a young professor in 1968, but it would take five more years before he could assemble a set of instruments.

Now 30 years later, the world renowned NIU Steel Band will celebrate its past, present and future during "Thirty Years of Steel," a special concert scheduled for 3 p.m. Sunday, April 27, in the Boutell Memorial Concert Hall in the Music Building. The concert is free and open to the public.

Guest artist David Rudder, who O'Connor said is "considered by many to be the greatest living Calypso singer," will travel from Trinidad to perform four pieces.

Han to retire from School of Music

Annual world music concert scheduled for April 6

Just try to leave Kuo-Huang Han's office without a handful of Asian candy.

The 32-year professor in the NIU School of Music keeps a generous stash of sweets from the Far East in his top desk drawer, an edible example of his fascination with the culture of foreign countries. "All these candies are made not only tasty, but their wrappers are different," Han says, examining a plum wine confection in a pink-and-white paper. "I like different kinds of music. Why not different kinds of candy?"

That try-anything philosophy defines Han's career, which will begin to wind down after next Sunday's semi-annual world music concert.

NIU nursing professor rebounds from stroke

The surgery was routine. The stroke afterward was not.

Sue Elster, a professor in the NIU School of Nursing, had bilateral replacements of both knees Jan. 9, 2001. While lying in the recovery room, she suffered a moderate stroke that affected the right side of her brain and the area of the brain where speech is located.

Elster spent five days in the neurological ICU and another six days in the neurological unit before she was transferred to the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago (RIC), where she began 13 days of an in-patient stay and four months of out-patient therapy.

"It was just brutal," said Elster, who since has returned to work at the School of Nursing, "but the care was exemplary. The RIC is just wonderful and well-deserving of any of the kudos it gets."

The institute, which School of Nursing Chair Marilyn Frank Stromborg said is "the world's leading rehabilitation hospital," honored the school with an award for contributing to Elster's vocational recovery by incorporating her back into the work place.

Sebenste prepares campus for tornado safety

While the arrival of spring makes most people think about April showers and May flowers, it has NIU Staff Meteorologist Gilbert Sebenste thinking about tornado safety.

Of course, as the person charged with ensuring that the campus is prepared for severe weather, that is his job.

His latest effort in that regard was unveiled Friday, when he upgraded service on the campus weather website to include local NOAA weather forecasts and warnings direct from the National Weather Service.

The URL is: http://weather.admin.niu.edu/liveaudio/.

NIU will celebrate Asian-American heritage

NIU will mark Asian American Heritage Month with more than 20 events in April, including lectures, foreign films, a fashion show, career workshops and a "Taste of Asia."

Festivities kick off with a student, faculty and staff reception Tuesday, April 1. For a complete calendar of events, see http://www3.niu.edu/ptaa/ on the Web.

Throughout the month, activities will highlight Asian and Asian-American cultures, heritage and accomplishments. Asian Americans represent the second largest minority on campus at NIU.

Speakers, performers headline LGBT Awareness Month

The month of April will bring five major guest speakers and performers to NIU as part of the university's annual celebration of Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Awareness Month. Headlining the month are gender activist Nomy Lamm, author Alice Hom, renowned scholar John D'Emilio, performers About Face Youth Theatre and educator Dan Woog.

The month of events also will include an open house for the new Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender (LGBT) Resource Center at NIU, the seventh annual drag and variety show, a poetry night, the ninth annual Eychaner Award Dinner Banquet and an LGBT Formal.

NIU, DeKalb Kiwanis collaborate on baby gestures

The language of gestures for infants can increase learning and speech development, reduce communication frustrations between infants and parents, and provide a bridge for infants facing slower speech development.

The development of a special program for parents to use gesture communication with their infants is the objective of a new collaboration between the Kiwanis Club of DeKalb and the NIU Department of Communicative Disorders in the College of Health and Human Sciences.

The next pilot session for parents or caregivers and their infants starts Monday, April 7. The sessions last about 45 minutes and are spaced a week apart. Local parents or caregivers with infants between 9 months and 2 years are encouraged to enroll for the next session.

Illinois Council on Economic Education honors donors

The Illinois Council on Economic Education (ICEE) hosted its annual meeting and luncheon March 5, where a number of awards for long-standing dedication to the council's work were presented.

Richard G. Cline, former CEO and chair of Nicor, received the Richard S. Peterson Award, which honors individuals who have made exceptional contributions to the council's work through their leadership or service to ICEE.

Eight Illinois-based firms also were honored for their commitment to economic and financial literacy.

L.R. Nelson of Peoria, was recognized for 20 years of financial support for ICEE. Six firms - Household International, Financial Shares Corporation, Royal Neighbors of America, IHC Construction Companies, Elkay Manufacturing Company and The Bank of Edwardsville - received the Partnership for Excellence Award for 25 years of giving to the Council. AmerenCILCO of Peoria, received a Champion of Economic Education Award for 30 years of financial support.

Mooberry to learn more about fire, life safety

University Safety Officer Scott Mooberry has been accepted to the United States Fire Administration's National Fire Academy to attend a two week course titled "Fire Inspection Principles." The USFA is an entity of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

"Attending the course will further my education and knowledge in the field of fire and life safety," Mooberry said. "Specific topics that will be covered include general fire prevention practices, code enforcement responsibilities, inspection competencies, fire safety requirements related to hazardous materials, special hazards in heating, electrical, cooking equipment, and fire protection systems and equipment."

Mooberry also wrote an article titled "Safety and Health Hazards Encountered During Retail Food Inspections" that was published in the March 2003 edition of the Illinois Environmental Health Association (IEHA) News Journal. The IEHA News Journal is the official publication of the IEHA.

3-31-2003