Northern News

What’s happening on campus and in the Northern Colorado community

Governor Ritter Praises Monfort College Accomplishments

Colorado Governor Bill Ritter visited the Monfort College of Business in March, meeting with Interim Dean Tim Jares, faculty, staff and students who gave up part of their spring break to meet the governor. Jares briefed the governor on the College’s journey to receipt of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, top 5 percent performance by graduating seniors on the nationally benchmarked ETS Major Field Test in Business, and accountability/partnership issues in higher education. Ritter then engaged in a dialog with faculty and students regarding the College’s success in undergraduate business education, the College’s performance excellence journey and plans for the future, and higher education funding issues in Colorado. The governor’s visit concluded with a tour of Kepner Hall. By all accounts, the governor was very impressed with the program and facility, applauding the college’s achievements and voicing support for UNC and higher education in Colorado. The governor’s office requested the visit to the College. Other stops for the governor in Northern Colorado included a visit to the corporate headquarters of JBS Swift & Co., a luncheon speech by the governor at the Greeley Chamber of Commerce CEO Forum, and a visit to the Greeley Tribune.

UNC Joins National Accountability System

The University of Northern Colorado is participating in the Voluntary System of Accountability, a national initiative designed to help students, their families and others by providing comparable and transparent information about individual institutions. For more information about the program, or for a list of the 238 other colleges and universities participating, visit http://www.unco.edu/assessment/vsa.html

UNC Technology Professor Latest Fulbright Scholar

Jim Gall, associate professor of Educational Technology at UNC, has been selected as a Fulbright Scholar for Fall 2008. Part of the Fulbright will involve teaching multimedia at a design institute in the Ukrainian city of Kharkov. Gall received a bachelor’s degree in computer science with a minor in mathematics from the Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. In 1990, he earned his master’s degree in instructional systems from the Pennsylvania State University and later received a PhD in instructional systems in 1995 from the Florida State University. At UNC, Gall teaches software design and development and supervises the ICET Computer Lab in McKee Hall. With more than 10 years of practical experience in software development and instructional design for Andersen Consulting, Electronic Data Systems, and General Electric, Gall is also involved in numerous college and campus initiatives regarding technology infrastructure. Gall previously taught instructional design and statistics at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

Arts Educators Get Hands “Dirty” to Improve Classroom Instruction

Amidst centerpieces of tiny Zen gardens and fiber artist Elda Kohls’ fabric designs created with dyes made from dirt around the world, the University of Northern Colorado hosted Dirt, a four-day seminar on arts integration in public schools. The brainchild of Andrew Jay Svedlow, dean of the College of Performing and Visual Arts, and spearheaded by Executive Director Connie Stewart, Dirt served as a powerful example of how to enrich the “fertile soil of education by using art, music, drama and dance when teaching other subjects.” This was the second year the university’s Center for Integrated Arts Education has hosted the event. Attended by educators, arts specialists and administrators from nine schools across the country, the seminar provides a wealth of hands-on activities that can be used in the classroom. “The university is proud to play a role in helping individual schools and districts strategically plan ways to infuse the arts into their curriculum,” said Svedlow. “We want to provide opportunities to encounter new ideas about the role of the arts in the intellectual, physical, and creative development of young people. By using visual and tactile elements, students experienced another dimension of learning that would be far more memorable than reading alone. The creative process allowed the students to draw their own connections to people of another time and place.”

University Names New Monfort College Dean

The University of Northern Colorado has named Don Gudmundson dean of the university’s Kenneth W. Monfort College of Business following a national search. Prior to joining UNC, Gudmundson oversaw 2,300 students as senior associate dean of the College of Business at University of Wisconsin—Oshkosh. He had served as a faculty member there since 1991. “Dr. Gudmundson will bring to the position years of experience in teaching, research and administration,” said UNC Provost Abe Harraf. “He has the background and skill set to lead the award-winning business college on the path to continued success.” At Oshkosh, Gudmundson helped create a downtown facility in Green Bay, Wis., and established a Global MBA partnership with schools in Germany and India. “I am honored to be selected to be the Dean of the Monfort College of Business,” Gudmundson said. “The college of business has been on an exciting journey and I look forward to continuing that journey.” In 2004, Gudmundson was named the University of Wisconsin College of Business Professor of the Year. He holds a PhD in Strategic Management from the University of Kentucky, and an MBA and bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin.

UNC Receives $14.5 Million for Butler-Hancock Hall

The University of Northern Colorado will receive $14.5 million for Butler-Hancock Hall renovations thanks to legislation signed by Gov. Bill Ritter. The legislation, which Rep. Jim Riesberg of Greeley helped sponsor, allows the state to issue Certificates of Participation to speed up funding for more than $200 million in higher education construction projects. Butler-Hancock renovations will be completed by local contractor Hensel Phelps and improve the building’s academic areas and include a classroom addition. Upgraded electrical wiring and locker rooms reconfiguration will maximize space, particularly for physical education classes offered by the School of Sport and Exercise Science. Funds will also be used to install air conditioning to make the facility more marketable to private users and more comfortable for students, alumni and community members who attend UNC events. “This is an exciting opportunity for UNC to leverage the state’s investment to raise private funds for additional Butler-Hancock renovations,” UNC President Kay Norton said. “By integrating the state-funded academic renovations with privately funded improvements, we can maximize the impact of both state taxpayer and private donor dollars.” A campaign is now under way to raise an additional $7.5 million in private funds for the multi-use athletic training facility identified in UNC’s 2006 Athletic Facilities Master Plan. The facility would house athletic training and strength and conditioning activities as well as UNC’s Athletic Hall of Fame. An additional $6 million will also need to be raised through private donations to the project. “It’s an enormous undertaking, but we’re up for the challenge,” said Development Officer Jack Maughan. “It’s going to improve our facilities tremendously for our student-athletes.”

Holman Honored by HESAL Program

The faculty of the Higher Education and Student Affairs Leadership doctoral program have named Debra Holman, associate director of the University Honors Program, this year’s recipient of the Dr. Jean Schober Morrell Award for Leadership in Student Affairs. Through a competitive nomination process, the award is presented annually to a UNC student-services professional who demonstrates outstanding leadership to students, staff and the university community at large. Holman received a monetary prize for the award. If you would like to contribute to future recipients, please contact Michael Muskin at 970.351.1408 or email Michael.muskin@unco.edu.

Diversity Efforts Recognized

The National Association of College and University Residence Halls, a student-run organization representing 400 colleges in 50 states and four countries, has awarded the Commitment to Diversity Award to the University of Northern Colorado. The annual award recognizes a university’s student-directed diversity awareness, education programming and overall commitment to diversity. A group of UNC Residence Hall Association students, led by senior Sara Valencich, prepared a 40-page report that helped advance them to the national conference at Oklahoma State University. The report documented yearlong university diversity initiatives and highlighted academic and event programming offered by campus groups and individuals, including Student Activities, Residence Life, the cultural centers and faculty and staff. Letters of support in the report included a commendation from Gov. Bill Ritter. “The national selection committee, composed of board members from each of the organizations eight regions, applauded the partnerships formed on campus and with the city of Greeley to promote and foster diversity,” said Valencich.

Graduation, may 2008

In May, more than 1,400 undergraduate students received their degrees during the spring commencement ceremony at Nottingham Field. The featured speaker was UNC alumna Jeannie Ritter ‘78, and First Lady of Colorado. That same weekend, graduate students received their master’s, specialist’s and doctoral degrees during a separate ceremony at the Butler–Hancock Sports Pavilion. Pictured above (l) the First Lady of Colorado Jeannie Ritter shares a touching moment with graduates, while university President Kay Norton (r) congratulates the Class of 2008 and challenges them to go out into the world and “ . . . build community and transform lives, one life at a time.”

Foreign Teachers Attend UNC Under Federal Program

The College of Education and Behavioral Sciences and the School of Teacher Education, hosted 18 teachers from Central America and the Caribbean who were participating in the Cooperative Association of States for Scholarships (CASS) program. Funded by the United States Agency for International Development and administered by Georgetown University, the program started in 1989, with the goal to improve the academic skills and practices of teachers in Central America and the Caribbean. The program focuses on identifying and recruiting teachers who work in rural areas and educate children from indigenous populations, particularly teachers who have shown strong leadership skills and commitment to their rural communities. Countries participating in the program included Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic. The program is a collaborative effort between the United States and countries in Central America and the Dominican Republic. The CASS teachers arrived in January and left in June. While at UNC, they completed a specialized academic program, spent one day per week in elementary schools, and participated in community service, which included extensive work with the Bright Beginnings Program through United Way. “We are very proud and honored to have been the first institution of higher education in Colorado selected to participate in the CASS Program. It was a privilege to work with such talented and dedicated teachers who shared their culture, language, history, and educational practices with our UNC community,” said Prof. Madeline Milian, director of the CASS/UNC Program.

SES Professor Receives National Award

Jim Stiehl, professor of Sport and Exercise Science, has been named the recipient of the Julian W. Smith Award by the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance. Stiehl was recognized during the organization’s annual convention on April 9 in Fort Worth, Tex. Each year, the alliance recognizes a member who has made significant and sustained contributions to recreation and outdoor education. In his 30-plus years as a physical education and special education teacher, Stiehl has devoted himself to under-served youth by developing alternative programs through community and university partnerships that promote safety, healthy choices and social skills. Stiehl is a former instructor with the National Outdoor Leadership School. In addition to teaching graduate and undergraduate courses at UNC, he supervises UNC’s Challenge Ropes Course, a campus program he helped create in 1989.

NHS Third Annual Student Research Celebration

The UNC College of Natural and Health Sciences’ Third Annual Student Research Celebration honored noteworthy research by undergraduate and graduate students, as well as exemplary research mentoring by NHS faculty, on April 10, in conjunction with the University’s Student Research Day and Academic Excellence Week. More than 130 people from UNC and throughout the Greeley community participated in the annual banquet and student poster session. The evening also included presentations from Michael Bradshaw, an undergraduate student in the School of Biological Sciences, and Nissa Yestness, a graduate student in the School of Mathematical Sciences. Both Susan Keenan, undergraduate mentoring, and Jennifer Clarke, graduate student mentoring, were honored as Faculty Research Mentors of the Year. Sponsored by Greeley Centennial Rotary, additional details about the Student Research Celebration can be found at www.unco.edu/nhs/highlights/student_research2008.html. If you would like to support NHS Student Research Celebration Fund, please contact the UNC Foundation at www.uncfoundation.org.

SRC Academic Awards Announced

The 2007-2008 Student Representative Council Academic Awards were presented to the following people: Professor of the Year—Allen McConnell, Monfort College of Business; Advisor of the Year—Ron Reed, Monfort College of Business; Graduate Assistant of the Year—Kelly Kirven, doctoral student in Higher Education and Student Affairs Leadership and GA for the Office of Multicultural Affairs; and Student of the Year—Lauren Dent, undergraduate in the Monfort College of Business.

WRC Honors 'Inspiring Women'

The Women’s Resource Center recently honored faculty, staff and students during its 2008 Inspiring Women Awards. This year’s winners were Keiko Krahnke, assistant professor of management and special assistant to the president for diversity; Julie Trujillo, coordinator of advising/counseling, Center for Human Enrichment; and Susan Rae, UNC student.

Monfort Students Shine on the National Stage

Graduating seniors at the Monfort College of Business have once again scored in the top five percent collectively on a nationally administered exit exam. Spring 2008 scores, combined with fall and summer 2007, put Monfort seniors in the highest scoring band possible for the year on the Major Field Test in Business, a standardized test produced by the Educational Testing Service of Princeton, NJ. This marks the fifth consecutive year that Monfort seniors have scored at or above the 90th percentile on the exam. “Collective scores in the top five percent in the nation is a great accomplishment and speaks very highly of our students and program,” said Interim Dean Tim Jares. The test is the most widely used instrument at business schools to assess core business knowledge. At last report, 477 schools administered the exam nationwide. In addition to that accomplishment, a Monfort team claimed first place at the Direct Marketing Educational Foundation’s 2008 Collegiate ECHO Competition. Their direct marketing campaign for Pitney Bowes was among entries from students at colleges nationwide. Monfort’s “Gold Echo” award-winning undergraduate student campaign titled “Spice Up Your Mail” targeted non-profit organizations, marketing the Pitney Bowes Stamp Expressions™ Printer—a desktop printer that lets customers print USPS® approved postage designed through the Internet. This marks the 10th time a direct marketing team from UNC has placed in the top three in the national competition.

Reaching Their Peak: Cumbres Program Celebrates 10 Years of Preparing Future Teachers

The University of Northern Colorado Cumbres Program marked its 10-year anniversary during their Annual Fiesta at the Denver Merchandise Mart this past spring. Cumbres, or “peaks” in Spanish, is a special teacher preparation program that recruits students committed to working with Hispanic school children and students of poverty in the public schools. UNC students in the Cumbres program pursue endorsements in Bilingual Education or Teaching English as a Second Language, in addition to their required degree curriculum. More than 90 percent of Cumbres students are first-generation college students. Cumbres uses a cohort concept, in which an identified group of teacher education students begin together as freshmen and take a cluster of courses each year that not only prepare them for their area of primary teacher certification, but also for an endorsement in Second Language. “What sets these teacher education students apart is that they are being specifically trained to teach public school children who may be bilingual in English or Spanish, or whose primary language is Spanish,” said Eugene Sheehan, dean of the College of Education and Behavioral Sciences. In addition to the bonding that the cohort experience produces, Cumbres students are also assigned mentors—individuals in the Greeley community or faculty and staff at UNC—who work one-on-one with Cumbres students. Many of the Cumbres participants are also members of the Presidential Leadership Program, University Honors Program and the Stryker Institute for Leadership Development.