Summer 2008

Message from the Dean
Welcome to the launch of our first College of Arts and Sciences electronic newsletter. Because we have so many events, initiatives, and activities that we want to share with you, we decided an electronic forum is the best way to keep you posted several times each year. Since I last wrote to you, enrollment in the College has increased to more than 4,000 students. Over one-third of TWU’s 12,000 students are earning degrees in Arts and Sciences. We have over 45 undergraduate degree programs, including a new Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry, and new Bachelor of Business Administration degrees in Finance, Accounting, and Human Resources. In the Bachelor of General Studies program, we have added areas of concentration in Criminal Justice, Dance, and Women’s Studies. At the graduate level, we have over 30 degree programs, including doctoral degrees in Molecular Biology, Counseling Psychology, Dance, Rhetoric, School Psychology, and Sociology. And we have added outstanding faculty to teach, conduct research, and provide service in these areas.
Along with the increase in numbers of students, faculty, course and degree offerings, is an unparalleled level of quality. Our commitment to excellence is being realized in interdisciplinary collaborations across the College, such as the new Arts and Sciences Public Affairs Forum, in the accomplishments of individual departments and programs, and in the daily work of students, staff, and faculty. It is my hope that you will enjoy this update and that you will continue to join with and support us in achieving our mission of educating global citizens. Ann Q. Staton Dean
CAS News
College Initiatives
CAS Public Affairs Forums
Perspectives on the Middle East	Left to Right - Dr. Ann Staton, Arts and Sciences; Dr. Val Belfiglio, History and Government; Dr. Mahmoud Sadri, Sociology; Dr. Michael Bergel, Biology; Samah Elhajibrahim, History and Government; Dr. Jim Alexander, History and Government.
College of Arts & Sciences Public Affairs Forum Launched in Spring 2007, the Public Affairs Forum advances the mission of the College to educate students as global citizens by bringing contemporary issues (e.g., political, social, cultural, economic, international) into an environment of thoughtful and respectful examination, discussion, and debate. The Forum is a collaborative, interdisciplinary initiative for students, faculty, staff, and community members to engage in civil discourse about important civic issues. Recent forums have focused on emerging trade relations between the U.S. and China, perspectives on the Middle East, and the historical context for the Iran-American conflict. The format includes lectures, panel discussions, and open dialogue sessions.		The Iran-American Conflict in Historical-Comparative Perspective
Eagle & Dragon: Evolving Trade Relations Between China and the U.S.	Left to Right: Dr. Mahmoud Sadri, Sociology; Dr. Jim Williams, Sociology; Mr. James Chen, Office of the Governor, Asia/Pacific Economic Development & Tourism, Austin; Dr. Carolyn Gunning, TWU Provost; Director Yao Wenliang, Consulate General - People's Republic of China; Dr. Anil Kumar, Senior Economist, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas; Dr. Michiko Hayhurst, Management.

	Spring 2008 Faculty Spotlight Series Sponsored by the College of Arts and Sciences, this lunchtime series of presentations features ongoing research, scholarship, and creative work by faculty members in the College. The purpose of the series is to further promote these activities at TWU and to foster collegial and interdisciplinary relations among faculty members across the College and the University. Although the presentations are by faculty members in Arts and Sciences, they are open to students, faculty, and staff across the campus. Business Intelligence Tools for Strategic Management: An Empirical Study of Large Finnish Companies Dr. Michael Raisinghani, School of Management February 13, 2008 Thicket: A Dance of Hyper-real and Surreal Sonic Environments Professor Jordan Fuchs, School of the Arts: Dance March 12, 2008 Antioxidants and Enzymes: What Are They Good For? Absolutely Everything! Dr. Mary Anderson, Dept. of Chemistry and Physics April 2, 2008 Hierarchical Differential Games between Manufacturers, Retailers, and Banks Dr. Ellina Grigorieva, Department of Math and Computer Science April 16, 2008

Education for Civic Engagement: Beyond Science and Across Disciplines Arts and Sciences Interdisciplinary Forum - April 29th, 2008 SENCER (Science Education for New Civic Engagements and Responsibilities) is a faculty development and science education reform program supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF). SENCER has established and supported an ever-growing international community of faculty, students, academic leaders, and others to improve undergraduate STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education by connecting learning to critical civic questions. SENCER is the signature program of the National Center for Science and Civic Engagement. In April 2008, Wm. David Burns, Executive Director of the National Center for Science and Civic Engagement, spent two days on the TWU campus speaking to students and faculty about education for civic engagement -- both in science, as well as in other disciplines across Arts and Sciences. Left to Right: Ann Staton, Arts and Sciences; Ann Hughes, School of Management; Cynthia Maguire, Chemistry; David Burns (Speaker), Executive Director of the National Center for Science and Civic Engagement; Richard Sheardy, Chemistry; Penny Hanstein, School of the Arts; Reg Rezac, Accounting; David Rylander, Management; Mark Sandel, Social Work; Claire Sahlin, Women's Studies.
TWU Arts Triangle TWU’s School of the Arts hosted the TWU Arts Triangle Walking Tour on Thursday, April 3rd. The tour, which was free and open to the public, began at the Redbud Theater Complex on the northwest side of Hubbard Hall. TWU dance, drama, art and music students performed at various locations as the tour continued through the campus before ending with an open-studio reception and refreshments in the Fine Arts Building. Approximately 300 people from the campus and community joined the tour to see students perform, observe their “artmaking” in progress, and see their artistic creations.
Departmental News
Bachelor of General Studies
	The conclusion of the 2008 spring semester marked the end of the fourth academic year of the Bachelor of General Studies Program. Since its inception in fall 2004, the BGS program has increased to over 400 students, with more than 100 graduating in the spring. There are 12 concentration areas, eight of which may be completed 100% on-line. A typical student in the BGS program is a career driven, non-traditional student who enrolls at TWU to pursue a degree that can build upon her or his prior coursework. BGS students usually complete the degree within two years. Many of them have gone on to law school, graduate programs, and alternative certification programs for teaching. Pictured is December 2007 BGS graduate Olufemi Akintitan with BGS advisor Brandie Golleher.
Biology
Expanding Your Horizons In addition to preparing undergraduates and graduate students for careers in biology, the department is also involved in outreach activities to attract more young women into the field of science. Faculty, students and staff from Biology and Mathematics, as well as others in the College of Arts and Sciences and across the campus, joined with the American Association of University Women (AAUW) in organizing a Math and Science career conference for middle school girls. The event, called Expanding Your Horizons, was held in February 2008, on the TWU campus. Over 400 girls, parents and teachers participated, attending hands-on sessions led by math and science professional women. Possible careers included food chemist, entomologist, veterinarian, game warden, Environmental Protection Agency professional, physician, botanist, engineer, and nutritionist. Sessions were held for parents to discuss financial aid for the students and the courses necessary in high school to prepare for math and science majors.
Chemistry & Physics
	National Conference on Science Education A science education team from the Department of Chemistry and Physics was selected to participate in the National Conference on Science Education for New Civic Engagements and Responsibilities (SENCER) in Washington, D.C. in April 2008. The team gave a poster presentation in the Sam Rayburn Building describing a new course in Environmental Chemistry, and spent time with Congressman Michael Burgess of Lewisville discussing the need for all students to have an understanding of science and its importance in their lives as citizens. The Washington Symposium and Capitol Hill Poster Session is an annual gathering of invited educators, administrators and students who discuss the next steps in improving science, technology, engineering and mathematics education. Left to Right: Cynthia Maguire, Lecturer in Chemistry & Physics; Angelia Spurgin, MAT graduate student; Kerise Owens, elementary education senior; Congressman Michael Burgess; Dr. Richard Sheardy, Professor and Chair, Chemistry & Physics.
Criminal Justice
Criminal Justice Major Now Online Beginning in Fall 2008, Criminal Justice majors will be able to complete all of their major courses online. TWU will be the only university in this part of Texas to have an online criminal justice major. Criminal Justice is an interdisciplinary major, shared by the Department of History and Government and the Department of Sociology and Social Work. With a focus on preparing women for careers in criminal justice, the major also provides a strong liberal arts foundation for future criminal justice practitioners.
Dance
	TWU Dance Faculty perform in Out of the Loop Festival Collaboration was the name of the game as Dance Department Assistant Professors Jordan Fuchs, Sarah Gamblin and Professor Mary Williford Shade made an impressive showing at the Water Tower Theatre’s highly acclaimed Out of the Loop Festival in two evenings of dance at the Addison theatre complex on March 14 and 15, 2008. Lacy & Shade Dance, a collaboration of Shade and Sandy Lacy, presented an evening of dance, which included work by Gamblin, Fuchs and other guest artists from around the country. Fuchs also presented an evening of dance with the Texas premier of Thicket, a collaboration of sound and movement with composer Andy Russ, previously hailed by the New York Times as “magical.” Both evenings of dance were praised by Margaret Putnam of the Dallas Morning News for “mining deep emotions,” with Shade’s performances particularly noted for conveying “dozens of feelings with the most subtle of looks” and Gamblin’s work for being impressively “cool to the point of icy.”
Drama
Texas Woman’s University opens the new $3.2 million Redbud Theater Complex. Texas Woman’s University’s new Redbud Theatre Complex was inaugurated on Saturday April 14, 2007 with a gala opening featuring the American musical classic The Fantasticks. The $3.2 million dollar complex, designed by Bottino Grund Architects of New York and Austin, is located on the northwest side of historic Hubbard Hall and features an intimate 120 seat proscenium theater with tiered seating. “The new facility is complete with makeup, costume and scenic shops, rehearsal hall, greenroom and all of the other areas needed to train first rate theater professionals and educators for years to come,” said Professor Sharon Benge, director of the drama program.
English, Speech, and Foreign Languages
	Federation Rhetoric Symposium The Department of English, Speech, and Foreign Languages hosted the thirty-seventh annual Federation Rhetoric Symposium on February 8, 2008. The Symposium was titled “Phronesis and Political Rhetoric: Campaigns, Compromise, and the Crusade for Civic Discourse.” This year’s keynote address, “Are We Ready for a Woman President?,” was presented by Dr. Karlyn Kohrs Campbell of the University of Minnesota. Dr. Campbell asked the audience to consider the long and complex history of the “political woman” and the ways in which this complicated history has influenced the 2008 presidential election. More than two hundred people attended the symposium, coming from universities and graduate programs from the DFW area and from across the country. Presenters came from a number of fields—including history, government, English literature, women’s studies, political science, and rhetoric—giving the event a highly interdisciplinary quality.
Fashion and Textiles
The 60s Revisited TWU’s Programs in Fashion and Textiles created an exhibit for the Greater Denton Arts Council (GDAC) entitled “The 60s Revisited” during the summer of 2007. Based on a collaboration between Dr. Sheri Dragoo and Margaret Chalfant, GDAC Director, the display featured colorful art and fashion from the 1960s. Fashions were sourced from TWU archives, student re-designs, alumni work and vintage accessories from local vendor Circa 77. Colorful schemes pulled from color trends of the 60s were created for the East Exhibit area, including black and lipstick pink, turquoise and royal blue, Sunkist orange and harvest green. Students researched and designed apparel with a strong sixties influence. Vogue, Mademoiselle and Glamour magazine covers from the time were exhibited alongside colorful trend boards featuring new and innovative fabrics of the 60s, including Tencil, polyester, and polyolefin. News stories and current events of the sixties and their impact on fashion and fabrics were featured. The opening reception was Sunday, June 22, 2007 and hosted many art and costume connoisseurs of the Denton area.
History and Government
	Jim Alexander Retirement Dr. Jim Alexander retired in summer 2007 after 27 years at Texas Woman’s University. For 23 of those years he was Chair of the Department of History and Government bringing with him his gift for good-natured leadership and his instinct for justice and integrity. Jim’s leadership, commitment, and good humor built an uncommon academic department fortified by the mutual respect and common purpose he fostered. Jim has kept his office on campus and continues to teach his signature Constitutional Law and other courses for the department. Continuing work as Project Director for Law Enforcement Management Institute of Texas (LEMIT) is opening new national and international opportunities for Jim that he now has more time to pursue. His colleagues have missed his 6th floor presence, but understand his desire to spend more time with his wife Mona and son Jason, and, more to the point—golf. Check out Jim’s retirement web page for comments from alums, perhaps some you know: http://drjimalexander.wordpress.com/
Management
Business Excellence Reception In April 2008, The School of Management hosted its sixth annual Business Excellence Reception, an event designed to enhance connections between students of business and working business professionals. As a result of the annual event, students have received over $12,000 in additional scholarship funding and have developed relationships yielding over 100 internships and permanent positions. Some 175 business people, students, faculty and other guests attended this year’s event. Dr. David G. Gallo, Director of Special Projects at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, served as keynote speaker. Dr. Gallo works closely with scientists and engineers at the forefront of global exploration and participates in numerous undersea expeditions around the globe. Actively involved in work to map the undersea world, Dr. Gallo serves as leader in numerous expeditions, including exploration of RMS Titanic and the German battleship Bismarck. Dr. Gallo’s presentation of the beauty of life under the sea revealed his love for exploration and discovery and inspired all in the audience to seek out new discoveries of their own. Left to Right: Lecturer Sherrie Taylor; Director Ann Hughes; Dr. David Rylander.
Math and Computer Science
	Harlan C. Miller Twenty-Sixth Anniversary Lecture and Awards Dinner The Department of Mathematics and Computer Science hosted its 26th annual Harlan C. Miller Lecture and Awards Dinner in April 2008. The celebratory event honors the memory of Professor Emeritus Harlan C. Miller, who chaired the department until her retirement in 1966. The Lecture Series in Mathematics was inaugurated in the spring of 1982, with initial funding provided by the Trammell Crow Family Foundation. Dr. Isabel Darcy, faculty member in the Department of Mathematics at the University of Iowa, was the keynote speaker. Awards were given to seven outstanding undergraduates. Left to Right: Dr. Don Edwards; Katie Vandermeer, Rose Marie Smith Endowed Scholarship for Student Teachers in Mathematics and Computer Sciences; Kandis Schroeder, Maurine Faulkner Endowed Scholarship; Alyson Evans, Harlan Miller Memorial Scholarship.
Music
Music Therapy TWU's music therapy program constitutes a long-time strength and niche within the Department of Music and Drama. Established in 1957, it was one of the first degree programs in the country. The program is the largest undergraduate program in the metroplex and has one of only two masters degree programs in the state of Texas. The program is currently nearing completion of arrangements for a university affiliated internship with the Frisco Independent School District. This will bring to four the number of university affiliated internship sites that TWU has with area Independent School Districts: Arlington ISD, Denton ISD, Frisco ISD, and Lewisville ISD. Students have also been accepted recently to internship sites across the country, such as California, New Jersey, New York, and Minnesota.
Psychology and Philosophy
	Passages Dr. Roberta Nutt retired from the Department of Psychology and Philosophy in the summer of 2007 after 31 years of service. She was the founding Director of the Doctoral Counseling Psychology Program. Dr. Nutt is now working as the Director of Professional Affairs for the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards in Montgomery, Alabama. Dr. Sally Stabb, longtime director of the Masters Counseling Psychology Program, assumed the position of Director of the Doctoral Counseling Psychology Program. Dr. Debra Mollen stepped in as Director of the Masters Counseling Psychology Program. Dr. Jack Sibley, the department's principal philosopher for 36 years, retired in May, 2007 and passed away in June, 2007. The department held a celebration of this beloved faculty member and his many contributions. Dr. Brian Harding (pictured left) joined the department as Assistant Professor of Philosophy in the fall of 2006. He received his doctorate from Fordham University in Bronx, New York. Dr. Chris Hart (pictured right) joined the department as an Assistant Professor in the fall of 2007. He has his doctorate in experimental psychology and was on the faculty of East Central University in Ada, Oklahoma prior to coming to TWU.
Social Work
Child Welfare Conference Texas Woman’s University and the University of North Texas hosted the Third Annual Child Welfare Conference on November 30, 2007. Over three hundred Child Protective Services staff, community child advocates, foster/adoptive parents and University faculty, staff, and students attended the conference entitled CPS Back to Basics: Ensuring Safety, Well-Being, and Permanency. TWU Chancellor and President Dr. Ann Stuart introduced the keynote speaker State Senator Royce West. Senator West has an impressive 14 year legislative career with the Texas Senate. He has received numerous honors including recognition by Texas Monthly as one of the “Ten Best Legislators in Texas.” Senator West has maintained his commitment to and advocacy for children and families with his ongoing support of meaningful child welfare reform. Senator West’s keynote speech focused on the latest Texas legislative mandates and progress in child welfare reform. Left to Right: State Senator Royce West; Dr. Abigail Tilton, Program Director of Social Work.
Sociology
	Faculty and Student Research Presentations In March 2008, nine members of the Department of Sociology attended and presented papers at the annual meeting of the Southwestern Social Science Association. Dr. Jim Williams, Professor and Chair, and Dr. Mahmoud Sadri accompanied six Sociology doctoral students, and one Sociology masters student to the conference in Las Vegas, Nevada. Papers were competitively selected and topics ranged from building community in online classes to relationship violence. Left to Right: Dr. Mahmoud Sadri and Dr. Jim Williams presented a paper, as did students Beverly Carlsen-Landy, Erin Rider, Patrice Lockett, Holly Pottle, Soni Oli, Shilpa Karbhari, and Robert Reed.
Visual Arts
Susan kae Grant: A Retrospective Professor Susan kae Grant was honored during the month of October 2007, by the McKinney Arts Center (MAC) in Dallas with a restrospective of 30 years of her artistic work—photographic images, handmade books, and an installation of her Night Journey. In much of Susan kae Grant's photographic work from the early 80's to present, she has acted much like a film director in staging and controlling all aspects of her photographic images. The work tends to be autobiographical and concerns relationships, dreams and gender issues. Another equally compelling aspect of Susan kae Grant's art making is that of her book arts. She has published 13 handmade limited edition books that incorporate letterpress and digital technologies on handmade papers, with photographic imagery and text. The books, still concerned with issues related to her photography, detour into the use of exotic materials that are provocative and symbolic, giving a tactile significance to the work.
Women's Studies
	The First Women’s Studies Program in the State of Texas Spring 2008 marked the tenth academic year since the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board approved the M.A. degree program in Women’s Studies—the first women’s studies degree of any kind in the State of Texas. As the nation’s largest university primarily for women, Texas Woman’s University has been a leader in women’s education for over one hundred years. In this unique institution, Women’s Studies has developed an innovative graduate curriculum grounded in multicultural-women’s studies and social-justice perspectives. Since 2000, over fifty students have graduated from the program. Many of them are using their women’s studies degrees as a foundation for doctoral education at TWU and universities throughout the country. Others are using skills and knowledge gained in the program in their work as community activists and professionals in the fields of education, health care, business, and social service.

Spring 2008 Convocation: College of Arts and Sciences Faculty and Staff Awards Top Row Left to Right: Dr. Jeff Robb, History and Government, Distinction in Service Award; Dr. Jim Alexander, History and Government, Cornaro Award; Ann Downing, Multi-Ethnic Biomedical Research Support Program (MBRS), Outstanding Staff Achievement Award. Front Row Left to Right: Dr. Mark Hamner, Mathematics and Computer Science, Mary Mason Lyon Award; Dr. Thomas Brown, Music, Humphries Award for Dedication to TWU; Dr. DiAnna Hynds, Biology, Mary Mason Lyon Award; Joan Wall, Music, Distinction in Teaching Award. (Not pictured: Dr. Michael Raisinghani, Management, Distinction in Scholarship Award.)
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