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Northern Today
 
Monday, Sept. 29, 2003

Photos from football game
Huskies Win Again!

Huskies improve to 4-0 after 24-16 win over Iowa State

For the first time since the 1965 season, 20th-ranked NIU is a 4-0 football team.

The Huskies wrapped up the non-conference portion of their schedule Saturday with a 24-16 win over the Iowa State University Cyclones at Huskie Stadium at Brigham Field before a record crowd of 28,218.

In addition to its Week Two win over Tennessee Tech, NIU has now defeated teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference (Maryland), Southeastern Conference (Alabama) and now the Big 12 Conference with the win over the Cyclones to complete the non-MAC slate with a perfect 4-0 record.

FULL STORY


Two NIU faculty receive federal funds
for computer-based research ethics projects

photo of computer monitorScholarly research involving human subjects has inherent risks, even if the study has nothing to do with medicine or disease.

“Over the last couple years,” said Jeffrey Hecht, chair of NIU’s Department of Educational Technology, Research and Assessment, “folks who do research with human subjects have had a number of very notable, very public kinds of incidents where things haven’t gone the way they should have. Patients have died. Data has been compromised.”

Federal officials responded with policies trying to oversee the process, later withdrawn after causing a furor in Congress. Nonetheless, Hecht said, identical or similar legislation eventually will become law.

In the meantime, however, the government is granting money to universities to create training modules for people involved in research. “The idea that people ought to be trained kind of caught on,” he said.

FULL STORY


Campus Child Care celebrates 25 years
of providing ‘peace of mind’

Jim GillTrue or false? The freshman class of 1978 numbered only 30, and their parents paid just $1 an hour for them to attend.

Surprise: It’s true – although this “freshman class” is actually the first group of children ages 2 to 5 who were enrolled at the NIU Campus Child Care Center when it opened a quarter-century ago this fall.

“It all started with a group of people who saw a need for child care on campus, specifically for student families, so they went to the Student Association and got some funding,” said Christine Herrmann, the center’s third director. “They were looking for additional space after the first year. They already needed to grow.”

FULL STORY


Chicago attorney hired as university counsel

NIU Legal Services has announced that Vickie Gillio will join that office as a university counsel, effective Oct. 1.

Gillio brings with her two decades of experience in representing colleges and universities in legal matters, as well as an extensive background in employment and labor law.

“She is precisely the type of lawyer we were looking for when we launched our national search back in January,” said NIU General Counsel Ken Davidson. “She has been a general counsel at the community college level, she has advocated on behalf of colleges and universities in her private practice and she will add tremendous depth to our employment and labor law team.”

FULL STORY


New CAHE chair Watson
embraces challenges, opportunities

Lemuel WatsonA provocative bumper sticker in Lemuel Watson’s office with a bold, red-and-black message sticks out among the customary shelves of scholarly books and cultural artifacts.

“Men Who Change Diapers Change the World.”

The movement was sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children organization.

Watson – the new chair of the Department of Counseling, Adult and Health Education in the NIU College of Education –was inspired to become involved with that group by his appointment as a research to the “Call Me Mister” program at his former employer, Clemson University.

FULL STORY


NIU’s Thoreau Edition named
‘We the People’ project

Elizabeth WitherellThe National Endowment for the Humanities has designated NIU’s center dedicated to the writings of American author Henry David Thoreau as a “We the People” project.

The goal of “We the People,” a high priority NEH initiative, is to encourage and strengthen the teaching, study and understanding of American history and culture. Projects that share the designation have a common goal of advancing knowledge of the principles that define America.

Since 1966, NEH has funded the Thoreau center, more formally known as The Writings of Henry D. Thoreau or the Thoreau Edition. The project’s mission is to edit all of Thoreau’s writings.

FULL STORY


NIU students keep
Oak Crest seniors moving

Oakcrest photoMolly Hauswald shifts the blue, plastic, circular maze with her feet, causing the red ball to roll around the round hallways and through the small passages toward the bull’s-eye center.

Turns out Hauswald’s an old pro who usually requires less than a minute to maneuver the ball from the bottom of the outside rung to the hole in the middle.

“Finally!” she sputters after each victory, seemingly frustrated that the not-so-easy task took more than a few seconds.

FULL STORY


NIU gerontology program
targets graying nation

John StolteEveryone knows scores of elderly people.

Maybe it’s their dad, or their grandma, or a great uncle. Maybe it’s their next-door neighbor, or the woman who runs the church bake sale, or the friendly old fellow behind the counter at the lakeside bait-and-tackle shop. Maybe it’s a shut-in who receives Meals on Wheels.

Soon, though, everyone will know a countless number of senior citizens as the nation’s elderly population explodes.

The first members of the Baby Boom generation – those born in 1946, the requisite nine months after World War II ended – have received the American Association of Retired Peoples’ “Modern Maturity” magazine in the mail for years, and are only three years from turning 60.

And yet the country is mostly unprepared for this rapidly approaching onslaught of aging residents, whose growing sophistication and incredible demand for goods and services will tax both industry and government.

FULL STORY


HHS appoints pair of acting department chairs

NIU’s College of Health and Human Sciences has named Sue E. Ouellette as acting chair of the Department of Communicative Disorders and Laura Smart as acting chair of the School of Family, Consumer and Nutrition Sciences.

Ouellette replaces Earl “Gip” Seaver, who is now vice provost, and Smart replaces Mary Pritchard, who now is associate dean of the college. Both assume their positions immediately.

FULL STORY


NIU jazz faculty headline ‘Jazz Fest in DeKalb’

Jazz photoJazz aficionados know the world-renowned NIU Jazz Ensemble.

What they may not know is the wonderful faculty professionals who teach in the jazz studies program in the NIU School of Music, which has produced outstanding ensembles and combos for more than 30 years.

On Saturday, Oct. 11, the public will have the rare opportunity to hear most of that faculty together at one time for a showcase concert that is the centerpiece of “Jazz Fest in DeKalb,” a day-and-a-half mini-festival. The concert is at 7:30 p.m. in the Egyptian Theatre, 135 N. Second St. Admission is $10, and $7 for students and senior citizens.

Harold Kafer, chair of the Nehring Center for Culture and Tourism and dean of NIU’s College of Visual and Performing Arts, said the concert is a rare occurrence.

“I’ve been at NIU since 1991 and I’ve never heard the entire jazz faculty in one place at one time,” Kafer said. “It took over a year of advance planning to find a viable date, given their professional schedules.”

FULL STORY

In Brief

Peters to speak Thursday
NIU President John Peters will deliver his annual State of the University Address at 3 p.m. Thursday in the Carl Sandburg Auditorium of the Holmes Student Center. A reception will follow.

NIU Jewish community
to observe Yom Kippur

Most Jewish students, faculty and staff will be absent from classes Monday, Oct. 6, for Yom Kippur. “Please allow accommodations, following university guidelines,” says accountancy professor David Sinason, the Hillel faculty adviser.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Library hours offered
in e-mailed PDF format

The University Libraries has produced its final three-panel brochure listing building and service hours. Starting with the Spring 2004 semester, the library will issue a single-sheet, two-sided schedule and begin offering a PDF format of the information via e-mail.

Library hours also are always available in both regular and PDF format at www.niulib.niu.edu/hours.cfm.

REACHing out to new students
The Orientation Office will launch a new retention effort in the coming weeks as part of the First-Year Connections program. The new initiative is called REACH: Retention Effort for All inComing Huskies.

Trained student employees will call selected new students to welcome them to NIU and help them get connected to resources on campus and in the community. NIU faculty and staff might receive inquiries from students who have been referred to various services through the REACH program.

For more information, please contact Chris Kubic at 753-1933 or firstconn@niu.edu.

Call for nominations issued
for Presidential Teaching Professorships

All letters of nomination for the 2004 Presidential Teaching Professorships should be submitted to Earl Seaver, in the Office of the Provost (Lowden Hall 307), no later than Monday, Oct. 13.

Following receipt of a letter of nomination, the Selection Committee will invite each nominated faculty member to prepare materials in accordance with the published procedure. Only full professors with tenure and at least six years service at NIU are eligible for the award.

The Presidential Teaching Professorships were established in 1990 to recognize those outstanding teachers who have demonstrated over time that they:

  • instill and develop in students an intensity of interest in, and an appreciation for, the value of the subject.
  • apply rigorous standards to student performance, inspire students to become the best that they can be, and stimulate student growth.
  • command respect and esteem as a teacher rather than merely being popular.
  • demonstrate extraordinary commitment to students and their welfare, not only that the nominee is knowledgeable and prepared for class but is available to them outside of class for help with materials, for advising them, for listening to their concerns, and for assisting them with extra-class projects or activities.
  • explore and develop effective instructional methods and technologies.
  • work actively with students, faculty, and administrators to improve undergraduate and/or graduate education at NIU, and other activities directed toward the improvement of instruction.

The procedure calls for a rigorous and thorough portfolio review including contacting former students. The 2004 recipients will be announced next spring.

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 (+ 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.

ITS reminds campus
of computer security update
If you haven’t patched your machines for the RPC/DCOM flaw discussed in the Microsoft Security Bulletin MS03-039 issued Sept. 10 please do so immediately.

ITS still is observing unpatched machines, or those without the most recent patches, connect to the NIU network where they immediately become infected with Nachi. Many of these are laptop computers, or other mobile devices that have avoided being patched. If you purchase a new computer, make sure it has all of the latest patches installed before connecting it to the network.

Please remember, you do not have time to patch a machine (online) before it becomes infected. You must remove the machine from the network, and apply the patches using removable media.

CDs with the latest patches are available from the ITS Customer Support Center, 120 Swen Parson Hall, or can be downloaded using a properly patched machine from Microsoft TechNet. Full installation CDs and individual service pack CDs are available from ITS Document Services.

The security issue that has been identified could allow an attacker to remotely compromise a computer running Microsoft Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000, Windows XP, or Windows Server operating systems, and possibly gain control over the system.

You can help protect your computer by installing the appropriate update.

Although ITS hopes the problems caused by the next virus or worm will not be as widespread and severe as Blaster and Nachi, it is only a matter of time before the extent of damage is known. Please read the recent article in E-Week.

If you have questions, please contact the ITS Customer Support Center at 753-8100 or helpdesk@niu.edu.

 


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Kudos

Eric JohnsonEric A. Johnson, director of choral activities in the NIU School of Music, was elected president-elect this summer for the Illinois American Choral Directors Association.

FULL STORY


Calendar

Calendar of Events
for Sept. 28-Oct. 11

Employment


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