NIU’s Department of Military Science (ROTC) will conduct tactical labs in the ECO Park woods, north of Stevenson Towers, from 3 to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 19, and Wednesday, March 26.
ROTC students will be in uniform and carrying Rubber M-16 replicas during these tactical labs. Students, faculty and staff are being alerted to this activity in order to avoid unnecessary alarm. Those who have questions regarding these tactical labs can call Christopher Oertwig at (815) 753-6238.
NIU’s Regional History Center/University Archives has the mission of preserving and documenting the history of the university, including the tragic Feb. 14 event.
Although staff members already have been working with various departments on campus, they need to expand their outreach by asking faculty, staff, students and the larger university community to share their items and to spread the word.
No item is too small to be included in the archives, including e-mails, correspondence, poems, official documents, class projects, photographs and videotape.
For more information, or to share, contact the Regional History Center/University Archives in Room 400 of Founders Memorial Library or call (815) 753-1779 during regular office hours.
NIU’s Office of Assessment Services presents the Spring 2008 issue of Toolkit, its quarterly “nuts and bolts” e-newsletter. Toolkit is specifically designed to assist the NIU community with practical assessment issues in a user friendly format.
This issue concludes the report on the Voluntary System of Accountability’s three-prong approach to increasing accountability and transparency of institutional outcomes. Also included: a look at portfolio assessment in the undergraduate nursing program, the “five column model” of an assessment-based student learning improvement process and an answer to the question, “Do we need to collect data on every learning outcome, using every assessment method, every year?”
Back issues are posted on the Assessment Services Web site. Contributions to the newsletter are welcome at any time. Send your assessment methods and outcomes of 300 words or less to cdoug@niu.edu or daskins@niu.edu.
On the menu at Ellington’s this week: Café Italiano is scheduled for Tuesday, Amour de Nouritture takes over Wednesday and Asian Flair concludes the week Thursday.
Café Italiano features minestrone soup or Caesar salad for starters, cavatappi pasta or pasta con brio served with tomatoes parmesan for entrees and lemon ice or almond biscotti for dessert. Each table also will be served a basket of bread.
Amour de Nouritture features roasted garlic and shallot potato soup with cheesy croutons or fresh tomato and onion Napoleon with balsamic vinaigrette for starters, coq au vin and leek or roasted pepper quiche for entrees and chocolate covered éclairs or cherry clafoutis with French vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of cherry sauce for dessert. Each table also will be served sparkling apricot-pineapple punch.
Asian Flair features veggie lettuce wraps or baked pork egg rolls for starters, chunks of white meat chicken and vegetables or vegetable lo mein for entrees and Indian chai cheesecake or Chinese five-spice pears for dessert.
Seating is from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. with service until 1 p.m. The cost is $8 per person. Ellington’s is located on the main floor of the Holmes Student Center. Call (815) 753-1763 or visit www.ellingtons.niu.edu to make reservations.
Renowned filmmaker Byron Hurt will come to campus Tuesday, March 25, for a showing of his film, “Beyond Beats and Rhymes,” followed by a discussion about the messages hip hop music sends about what it means to be a man today.
The event begins at 7 p.m. in the Carl Sandburg Auditorium of the Holmes Student Center. The Women’s Resource Center’s co-sponsors are NAACP, B.R.O.T.H.E.R.S., EBONY Women, S.I.S.T.E.R.S. and the Black Male Initiative.
This event is free, but seats are limited. Call (815) 753-0320 to reserve a space.
International Programs will hold a Student Fulbright Interest Workshop for NIU students who would like to learn more about the prestigious international exchange program.
The workshop will be held from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Wednesday, March 26, in the Heritage Room of the Holmes Student Center. Megan Spillman, a representative from the Chicago Fulbright Office, will give a presentation on the Fulbright program and answer questions.
The Student Fulbright program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and coordinated in the United States by the Institute of International Education, is a competitive fellowship program funding study or teaching abroad at the post-baccalaureate or graduate level.
In recent years, NIU students have won awards that allowed them to teach English in other countries or to conduct dissertation research. Returned Fulbright students often characterize the program as “life-changing,” and the prestige of the fellowship program is recognized worldwide.
More information on the program is available online at www.niu.edu/international/fulbright/index.shtml.
Join the Women’s Center and Recreation Services at 5:15 p.m. Thursday, March 27, for a women-only climbing night at Vertical Endeavors. The price is discounted to $15, but spaces are limited.
Reserve a spot by stopping by The Outing Centre on the west side of the Student Recreation Center. Transportation from the Outing Centre and belay staff will be provided. Beginners and first-timers are welcome.
WNIJ (89.5 FM) and classical music WNIU (90.5 FM) are preparing for a spring membership campaign from Wednesday, April 2, through Saturday, April 12.
Volunteers are needed to answer pledge calls. Those interested in helping should click on the “Volunteer” link at www.northernpublicradio.org or call (815) 753-9000 between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. to find out which hours are left to fill on the schedule.
Northern Public Radio is the broadcast service of NIU.
NIU’s Art Museum will present “Examining Audubon” in the South Galleries of Altgeld Hall from Tuesday, April 8, to Saturday, May 10. The public is invited to an opening reception from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 8.
Prior to the reception, Brian “Fox” Ellis will present a first-person interpretation of John James Audubon as a storyteller. “Adventures with John James Audubon” begins at 5 p.m. in Room 315 of Altgeld Hall. From 5 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 23, Chicago History Museum Curator Joy Bivens will present “Assessing Excellence in Museum Exhibitions” in the South Galleries.
“Examining Audubon” considers the ways in which the works of Audubon created a bridge between art and science, and contributed to the fields of ornithology, ecology and conservation. Gathered from collections throughout the Midwest, this exhibition includes about 30 prints ranging from the small octavo prints to the large elephant folio, which portrays life-size birds such as the flamingo.
Since his death, Audubon’s name has become synonymous with conservation and his images have been adopted and commercialized by numerous organizations. This exhibition also presents a sampling of these products and reproductions. “Examining Audubon” is organized by students enrolled in ART 556, “Exhibition Interpretation” of the NIU Graduate Certificate program in Museum Studies.
The NIU Art Museum is located on the first floor, west end, of Altgeld Hall. The galleries are open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, noon to 4 p.m. Saturday and by appointment for group tours. Exhibitions are free; donations are appreciated. Exhibitions of the NIU Art Museum are funded in part by the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, the Friends of the NIU Art Museum, and the Arts Fund 21.
For more information, call (815) 753-1936 or visit www.vpa.niu.edu/museum.
Members of the NIU Concert Choir will contribute to Wheaton College’s upcoming performances of the Berlioz Requiem, conducted by John Nelson. The performances are at 8 p.m. Friday, April 18, and Saturday, April 19, in Edman Memorial Chapel on the campus of Wheaton College.
The Apollo Chorus of Chicago as well as the Valparaiso University Choir will join the Wheaton College choruses and orchestra. John Tessier is the tenor soloist.
Nelson, chorus master Paul Wiens, Dean Curtis Funk and Tony Payne, director of the Wheaton Conservatory of Music, are dedicating the concert to the memory of the NIU students who lost their lives in the Feb. 14 incident. Tickets will be made available at the Wheaton College family price.
Do you enjoy wearing a costume and performing before an audience?
NIU’s Blackwell History of Education Museum in the College of Education seeks an experienced teacher to play the role of a 1900-era teacher in the reconstructed Milan Township one-room school and occasionally in area schools.
This part-time position pays well and is flexible and fun. Retirees are welcome. For more information, contact curator Lucy Townsend at (815) 753-1236 or ltownsend@niu.edu.
The Christian Faculty and Staff Prayer Luncheon is scheduled for noon Tuesday, March 18, in the East Room of the Blackhawk Cafeteria.
Participants may bring a lunch or purchase one there. All are welcome.
Wouldn’t it be fabulous to have designer clothes, a great apartment and a job that provides you with all of the luxuries of life?
Join the Women’s Resource Center from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 18, to talk about the myths and the realities of the popular HBO hit “Sex and the City” during a discussion of balancing careers, relationships and sexuality.
The event, held at the women’s Resource Center on Normal Road, is co-sponsored by the Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.
The Nehring Gallery in downtown DeKalb will host “The Polish Connection,” an exhibition of work by the NIU art students and faculty who participated in a Study Abroad Program in Poland last spring. The exhibition is on display from March 20 through May 3, with the opening reception scheduled from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, March 20.
Before traveling to Poland, students studied Polish language, culture, history and art at NIU. The works created by the students after traveling throughout Poland suggest the historical, social and cultural life of the Polish community.
The exhibition includes examples of Polish folk art with such work as Pysanky eggs and traditional wooden birds as well as works by students addressing contemporary issues such as the desecration of Jewish cemeteries.
A drawing will be held for a Pysanky egg decorated by artist Billie Giese. Pysanky are a part of a rich history of tradition in Polish culture, as well as all over Eastern Europe. In Poland, they historically were an integral part of the cultural heritage and ritualistic practices.
Pysanky are a special type of decorative egg decorated with batik; that is, beeswax is used to trace designs on eggs that then are dyed in different colors according to the intention of the designer. Designs on eggs may be painted, scratched or dyed without design, but only Pysanky eggs are decorated using the beeswax-and-dye method. Tickets for the drawing are $1 each or 6 for $5. All proceeds will benefit the Nehring Gallery.
“The Polish Connection” is open and free to the public during regular gallery hours from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday and from 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday or by appointment. Nehring Gallery is located on the second floor of the Nehring Center for Culture and Tourism in the historic First National Bank building. The gallery is cooperatively operated by the DeKalb Park District and the NIU College of Visual and Performing Arts Division of Outreach. An entrance accessible to all is available and located at the 111 S. Second Street entrance.
Call (815) 758-6363 or visit www.nehringgallery.org for more information.
NIU’s Art Museum will host “Peggy Macnamara: Nature Studies” from March 25 through May 10 in the North Gallery.
The exhibition features studies, sketches and large-scale watercolor paintings of flora and fauna depicted by The Field Museum of Natural History’s artist-in-residence and is part of a suite of nature-themed exhibitions at the NIU Art Museum.
The public is invited to a reception with the artist from 4:30 to 7 p.m. Thursday, March 27. From 1 to 2 p.m. Saturday, April 5, Macnamara will present an artist’s talk in Altgeld 315.
From 2 to 4 p.m. that same day, she will conduct a drawing workshop in the art museum corridor using the taxidermy birds and animals in the hallcase exhibit “Specimens and Studies” as models. Pre-register for this free workshop for ages 16 and older by calling (815) 753-7867. Space is limited.
“Peggy Macnamara: Nature Studies” will contain large watercolors from her most recent “Migration and Nest” series, which she has undertaken with two Field Museum scientists as well as past works based on museum collections. Several of her smaller drawings and field studies also will be included in this solo exhibition.
Macnamara is currently adjunct professor at the School of the Art Institute (of Chicago) as well as an associate of the Zoology Department at the Field Museum, where several of her large-scale watercolors are on permanent display.
The NIU Art Museum is located on the first floor, west end, of Altgeld Hall. The galleries are open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, noon to 4 p.m. Saturday and by appointment for group tours. Exhibitions are free; donations are appreciated. Exhibitions of the NIU Art Museum are funded in part by the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, the Friends of the NIU Art Museum, and the Arts Fund 21.
For more information, call (815) 753-1936 or visit www.vpa.niu.edu/museum.
NIU’s Art Museum will host “Gabriel Bizen Akagawa: Unpacked / Offset” from March 25 through May 10 as part of a suite of nature-themed exhibitions. A public reception for the artist is scheduled from 4:30 to 7 p.m. Thursday, March 27.
Throughout the course of the exhibition, Akagawa is encouraging and seeking further community participation such as contributing a “tree story,” joining him on a nature walk and contributing to a dialogue by contacting him directly at cratespace@gmail.com. Anyone can contribute to the project in this way. More information about these and other related projects is available at http://www.unpacked-offset.wikispaces.com.
The “Unpacked / Offset” exhibition is a collaborative installation project in which area students, community artists and visiting artist/curator Akagawa recreate “nature” within reclaimed art shipping crates and contribute additional artwork commenting on environmental concerns, such as offsetting carbon emissions. A publication with essay by Audrey Peiper is in production.
Akagawa has exhibited at such Chicago venues as the Janet Wallace Fine Arts Center, Walsh Gallery, Gallery 400, Gene Siskel Film Center, The Beverly Arts Center and Berlin’s Galerie Lifebomb. He recently was awarded a yearlong residency at the Alternator Gallery for Contemporary Art in Canada, in which he conducted environment-based, community-collaborative projects.
The NIU Art Museum is located on the first floor, west end, of Altgeld Hall. The galleries are open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, noon to 4 p.m. Saturday and by appointment for group tours. Exhibitions are free; donations are appreciated. Exhibitions of the NIU Art Museum are funded in part by the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, the Friends of the NIU Art Museum, and the Arts Fund 21.
For more information, call (815) 753-1936 or visit www.vpa.niu.edu/museum.
NIU women faculty, staff and students are invited to a networking luncheon from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, March 28, in the Chandelier Room of Adams Hall. The presentation begins at 12:05 p.m.
Jeanette Rossetti, assistant professor in the School of Nursing and Health Studies, part of the College of Health and Human Sciences, will speak.
“Factors that Make Outstanding Professors Successful in Teaching” will highlight findings from Rossetti’s dissertation in which she conducted an interpretive analysis of the educational philosophy and goal statements of 35 professors who received NIU’s prestigious Presidential Teaching Professor award. The findings of the study and the narratives of the Presidential Teaching Professors give meaning to successful and inspirational teaching.
A Caesar salad lunch will be served at the cost of $9 per person. Please reserve before Tuesday, March 18. To make a reservation, call (815) 753-0320.
Interested in helping first-year students learn how to succeed at NIU? Become a UNIV 101/201 instructor for fall 2008.
UNIV 101 is a one-credit, 12-week course focused on helping freshmen develop the essential academic and social skills needed to make an enjoyable and successful transition to NIU. UNIV 201 is a similar course designed specifically for transfer students.
In fall 2007, NIU offered 91 sections of UNIV 101/201; more than 1,800 first-year NIU students enrolled. As a UNIV 101/201 instructor, you can impact the experiences of these new students and provide them with resources to help them adjust to life at NIU.
Instructors must be a current or retired member of the NIU faculty, staff, or administration, hold a master’s degree and have prior teaching experience. Candidates who do not meet the last two criteria might be paired with teaching coaches.
UNIV 101/201 instructors typically receive a stipend of $1,000 for teaching an individual section or $500 for co-instructing. Once hired, all instructors are required to attend training workshops and department meetings and participate in course feedback through e-mail correspondence and surveys.
An overview session is scheduled for 3 to 4:30 p.m. Thursday, April 3, in the Illinois Room of the Holmes Student Center to share more information about teaching these courses. Please RSVP to firstconn@niu.edu.
More information and application materials are available online. Contact First-Year Connections at firstconn@niu.edu.
The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences External Programming announces its academic summer camp lineup.
It will include Speech Camp, Creative Writing Camp, Sci-Camp Explorations Jr., Sci-Camp Explorations Sr., Film Camp and the Muggle Academy.
Each of the five-day residential camps for pre-collegiate students will be held on the NIU DeKalb campus, with the exception of Sci-Camp Explorations Jr., which will take place at the Lorado Taft Field Campus.
The camps for middle and high school students are designed to foster friendships and keep young minds active over the summer. NIU has a rich history of offering excellent Academic Summer Camps at very competitive prices.
For more information, call (815) 753-5200, e-mail lasep@niu.edu or visit www.niu.edu/clasep.
NIU is proud to offer the Izzo-Inge Family Award for Students with Disabilities for the 2008-2009 academic year. This scholarship was made possible by a generous gift from Charmaine Izzo-Inge and David Inge.
The scholarship is available to students who will be full-time (minimum 12 hours a semester), degree-seeking juniors or seniors at NIU.
Candidates must possess a grade point average of at least 2.5/4.0 and demonstrate a significant disability that affects the cognitive process. Qualified disabilities include learning disability, traumatic brain injury, Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)/ Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), deafness or hard of hearing, visual impairment or other disabilities that affect the cognitive process.
Preference will be given to students who exhibit financial need (as determined by the Student Financial Aid office) and plan to teach special education. Students who do not exhibit financial need nor plan to teach special education are still encouraged to apply.
The deadline for applications is Tuesday, April 1. For an application and/or more information, please contact the Office of the Dean, College of Health and Human Sciences, Wirtz Hall 227 or call (815) 753-1877 or TTY (815) 753-3000.