No. 12 NIU wins in Michigan, boosts record to 6-0
Michael Turner rushed for 199 yards with two touchdowns and NIU forced four second-half turnovers to rally from a 17-point deficit and defeat Central Michigan 40-24 in Mid-American Conference action Saturday.
The Huskies kept their record unblemished at 6-0 overall and 2-0 in the conference while defeating CMU for the sixth consecutive year. The Chippewas dropped to 2-4 on the year including an 0-3 mark in MAC play.
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University community invited
to comment for self-study
All members of the campus community are invited to review and comment on the initial draft of NIU’s sweeping “self-study” – a comprehensive look at the institution’s mission, planning and operations developed as part of the accreditation process for the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association.
The result of nearly 18 months of work, the self study contains information from a dozen subcommittees and numerous resource people.
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Peters calls for ‘recommitment to
public purpose,’ preparation for
coming enrollment boom
 Public universities are unprepared for a coming “tidal wave” of new students, and policymakers must be persuaded to reframe the debate on college costs if the U.S. is to avoid a devastating gap between “educational haves and have-nots,” according to NIU President John Peters.
Speaking Oct. 2 at his fourth annual State of the University Address, Peters cited numerous statistics and reports that show an unprecedented number of students attempting to enter American colleges and universities over the next decade – at the very time that state support for higher education has plummeted nationwide.
“How will this state or any other state accommodate this burgeoning number of new students?” Peters asked.
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NIU partners with Rockford schools
to enhance teacher quality
Children in four Rockford Public Schools will become prime beneficiaries of a partnership between Northern Illinois University, District 205 and Rock Valley College recipients of a $5 million federal grant to enhance teacher quality and student performance.
The five-year U.S. Department of Education grant of $4.875 million to the Rockford Education Alliance – or Project REAL – concentrates on Jefferson High School, the Rockford Environmental Science Academy, Nelson Elementary School and, with a focus on special education populations, Rolling Green Elementary School.
Faculty and students from five NIU colleges, including Education, Engineering and Engineering Technology, Health and Human Sciences, Liberal Arts and Sciences and Visual and Performing Arts, will become extensively engaged in the four schools next spring through mentoring and professional development of teachers and future school leaders.
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University Libraries gets grant to create
Web site on ‘Mark Twain’s Mississippi’
 NIU is bringing Mark Twain and his favorite setting – the Mississippi Valley, circa 1800s – to the Internet.
University Libraries has won a $212,000 grant from the Institute for Museum and Library Services to launch “Mark Twain’s Mississippi,” an online project that will set the author’s celebrated Mississippi works into historical context.
The project will include the digitization of “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” and “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.” Dozens of accounts of the Mississippi Valley from Twain’s contemporaries also will be digitized and placed online.
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Easter Seals DuPage will premiere
NIU student documentary
On the day Sam Williams was born, he almost died.
“We have a child born with a brain injury,” his mother told his father. “If he survives, we have an altered life.”
Sam Williams survived. And, indeed, he alters and changes people. He has enriched the lives of his family members and transformed the perspective of those who look beyond his disability.
Just ask Casper Rice and Lauren Pollock.
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‘That’s more like it:’
Hillery named Kohl’s Professor
 Julie Hillery’s lifelong career in retailing – it began when she was 16 – is paying off for NIU.
Hillery, an associate professor in the School of Family, Consumer and Nutrition Sciences in the College of Health and Human Sciences, was last week named the Kohl’s Professor of Retailing and Merchandising. Hillery will serve a courtesy appointment in the Marketing Department of the College of Business.
It is the first named professorship for Kohl’s, which also will provide $5,000 annually in scholarships split between students in textiles, apparel and merchandising (TAM) and students in marketing.
The retailer also will assist with curriculum development and some in-class projects.
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Stromborg joins national nursing board
 Marilyn Frank Stromborg, chair of the NIU School of Nursing, has accepted an appointment to the National Advisory Council for Nursing Research.
Stromborg begins her three-year term immediately on the council, part of the National Institutes of Health. She received an invitation from Tommy Thompson, secretary of Health and Human Services, in late September.
“This is really an honor. This is considered one of the most prestigious and influential nursing councils in the country,” Stromborg said.
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NIU to host pow wow Nov. 1
Native American students at NIU will host their 11th annual Native American Pow Wow, from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 1, in the Campus Recreation Center.
This year’s event will feature traditional dancing and drumming, storytelling and crafts. Admission is free.
“Pow wows are an important part of many nations’ traditions, having both cultural and spiritual significance,” said event coordinator Rita Reynolds, business manager for the NIU Graduate School.
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Downtown DeKalb to showcase
Victor E. Homecoming Open House
Community members are invited to catch the NIU Homecoming spirit and enjoy the delights that downtown DeKalb has to offer.
Downtown DeKalb is decked out in red and black Thursday, Oct. 16, for the NIU Huskies’ Homecoming celebration. On that night, come downtown after work to enjoy dinner at one of the many fine restaurants there. Afterward, shop the stores with Thursday evening hours and then visit the Downtown Dog Pound at 302 E. Lincoln Highway.
Come to the Dog Pound between 6:30 and 7:30 p.m. to meet NIU President John Peters, football coach Joe Novak and coaching staff, and Athletic Director Cary Groth. Sip coffee with them and wish them luck for the Saturday Homecoming game against MAC rival Western Michigan. Then, show your support for the hometown team at the NIU students’ Convocation Center pep rally: Yell Like Hell! is scheduled for 8 p.m.
Victor-E Homecoming Open House is a CommUniversity event co-sponsored by Main Street DeKalb, NIU, the DeKalb Chamber of Commerce and the City of DeKalb. Main Street DeKalb is a preservation-based, not-for-profit organization dedicated to the revitalization of the downtown district and its rededication as a vital part of the entire community.
Visit the Main Street DeKalb Web page at www.mainstreetdekalb.com. Disability Awareness Day
scheduled for Oct. 15
NIU Affirmative Action and Diversity Resources, The Center for Access-Ability Resources, and the Presidential Commission on Persons with Disabilities invite participation in NIU’s Disability Mentoring Awareness Day on Wednesday, Oct. 15.
Set aside some time to mentor a student with disabilities during a job shadow experience from 9 to 11 a.m. and attend the Disability Forum from noon to 2 p.m. in the Campus Life Building, room 100. Enjoy dialogue with panel guests, including community members and students. The participants will share personal experiences with the audience in an effort to promote awareness and improve understanding. More importantly, the mentoring experience helps students enrich their life plan by considering more career options.
The events of the day will conclude with the third annual disABILITY open house from 3 to 6 p.m., featuring displays by community resources dedicated to helping people with disabilities. Adaptive technology demonstrations will be conducted, and refreshments served.
At 4:30 p.m., the 2003 John Clogston Spirit Award will be presented to the NIU Faculty Development and Instructional Design team for their outstanding contribution to improving the educational experience for people with disabilities at NIU.
To register for mentoring day, and for more information, please visit:
http://www.hr.niu.edu/news/story_detail.cfm?id=102. Nominations sought for
Outstanding International Educator
NIU’s Division of International Programs is accepting nominations for the 2003 Outstanding International Educator award.
The award recognizes NIU faculty or staff members who have made significant and sustained contributions toward international education at the university. The deadline for nominations is Friday, October 31. Criteria for the award and the nomination form are available at www.niu.edu/intl_prgms/IntlEd03.htm.
The award winner will be announced during the International Recognition Reception at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 20, in the Sky Room of Holmes Student Center.
The award program began in 2001. Past recipients include music professor Kuo-Huang Han, political scientist Ladd Thomas and marketing professor Tanuja Singh. Friends of NIU Libraries
to host author Klinkenborg
The Friends of NIU Libraries invite the public to attend the second program of the 2003-04 academic year at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 16.
Verlyn Klinkenborg, a member of the New York Times editorial board and the author of “Making Hay, “The Last Fine Time” and “The Rural Life,” will speak on “The Conscience of Nature.” This informal talk will explore the emotional and philosophical connection that links us to the natural world.
Klinkenborg graduated from Pomona College and received his Ph.D. from Princeton University. He has taught literature and creative writing at Fordham University, St. Olaf College, Bennington College and Harvard University, and is a recipient of the 1991 Lila Wallace-Reader’s Digest Writer’s Award and a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship.
The program will take place in the Staff Lounge of Founders Memorial Library. Free parking may be available after 7 p.m. in the Visitors Parking Lot on Carroll Avenue. There will be an opportunity for discussion and light refreshments following the presentation.
For more information, call 753-9394. Relay for Life meeting
scheduled for Oct. 20
An informational meeting will be held at 9 p.m. Monday, Oct. 20, for all those interested in participating in the American Cancer Society’s Colleges against Cancer third annual Relay for Life ACS fundraiser to be held in April, 2004.
The meeting will take place in DuSable 459. Refreshments will be served.
The Relay itself is an overnight event with food, activities, entertainment, games and cancer information in a festive atmosphere. Relays are made up of 10-member teams, with each member responsible for raising $100 for the American Cancer Society. Last year the NIU faculty/ staff fielded one team (plus 20 or so student teams). More are desired.
Anyone interested can either attend the meeting or call Mary Cozad, of the Department of Foreign Languages, at 753-6448 or 756-9908. Child Care to host
annual book fair
The NIU Campus Child Care Center will host its annual Children’s Book Fair during the week of Oct. 27.
The book fair is held at the center on Annie Glidden Road west of Gabel Hall. Hours are from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday.
Come browse a wide selection with multiple copies of books, early readers, parent resource materials, calendars and much more. At least 15 tables are set up with about 1,800 books and other items available for purchase. Conference for Young Women
scheduled for Oct. 29
The seventh annual NIU Conference for Young women – high school sophomores, juniors and seniors – takes place from 8:15 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 29, in the Holmes Student Center.
The conference will feature tours of the campus, presentations by NIU faculty on topics relevant to women’s collegiate experience and career choices and panel discussions in which professors in law, management, physics and sociology talk about career fields and professional opportunities for women.
The cost for the conference is $33 before Oct. 15 and $38 afterward. Lunch is included. Registration is limited to 30 students on a first-come, first-served basis. A limited number of scholarships will be available to those who need assistance with registration expenses.
For more information, call the Women’s Studies Program at 753-1038 or visit www.niu.edu/clasep online. Flu shots offered
The university will offer free flu shots to any faculty or staff with insurance coverage through the State of Illinois Central Management Services (CMS).
Flu shots will be available from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 29, in the HSC Regency Room, and again from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 20.
Please bring proof of insurance and your NIU OneCard ID to receive a free flu shot. Spouses and Dependents and non-eligible employees also can receive flu shots at a cost of $20 each.
Also, representatives from some of the State and University Employees Combined Appeal (SECA) Charitable Organizations will be on hand Oct. 29 to answer questions.
Bookstore to return
texts to publishers
University Bookstore will begin this week returning books to the publishers for the first-half classes and will return second-half books beginning the week of Oct. 27. Faculty should advise students to make all necessary book purchases before these dates.
For more information, call the Text Office at 753-1866.
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