Several A&S faculty members are part of an international conference being held here in Lexington May 13-15. A&S Biology professor Phillip Crowley and psychology professor Thomas Zentall along with agricultural economics professor Helen Pushkarskaya and computer science professor Judy Goldsmith lead the UK interdisciplinary team on Comparative Decision Making (CDM) and scheduled the conference. Close to 25 researchers from UK’s colleges of Agriculture, A&S, Business & Economics, Education, Engineering, and Medicine formed the CDM group to explore different viewpoints, methods, and applications of decision-making analysis on campus and beyond. While the group meets regularly for seminars and other events, their ultimate goal is to create a new Graduate Certificate Program in Comparative Decision Making Studies.

The conference will include speakers from across the globe, faculty and student poster presentations, and discussions on how to encourage the development of the emerging CDM field. Zentall and Crowley plan to edit a book based on the presentations which will be published by Oxford press.

The conference is hosted at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Lexington May 13-15.

The Loudoun House will be the site of a Lexington Art League gallery talk and panel discussion featuring several College of Arts & Sciences faculty members. History department professor and chair Francie Chassen-Lopez will moderate the discussion which will feature commentary by Ana Liberato, sociology professor, Christina Alcalde, gender and women’s studies professor, Sophia Wallace, political science professor, and Andres Cruz, editor of La Voz de Kentucky, on topics of globalization, immigration, and migration.

I am very pleased to announce the recipients of the College’s 2010-2011 Awards for Outstanding Teaching.  They are Ben Braun (Mathematics), Nathan DeWall (Psychology), Paul Koester (Mathematics) and Linda Worley (Modern and Classical Languages).  Drs. Braun, DeWall, Koester, and Worley are all exemplary practitioners of the art of teaching and are to be congratulated for their dedication to making the classroom a rewarding place for students and instructors alike.  These faculty members have also made significant contributions to education beyond the classroom, including to University-wide and national educational initiatives.  I would like to take this opportunity to thank Peter Mirabito (chair), Chana Akins, Juliana McDonald, and Leon Sachs for their sterling effort as this year’s selection committee.

Congratulations to our distinguished faculty recipients!

Take a trip this summer and go places with A&S online courses! Learn about Japanese culture, astronomy, oceanography, Greek and Roman mythology, and many other subjects from home or abroad. This is a perfect opportunity for students who want to continue their studies or explore new topics. Online courses also offer plenty of flexibility for busy summer work schedules. With over 50 courses, A&S has something for everyone – from anthropology and biology to political science and statistics.

The courses range from general education classes to requirements for your major and will be offered in two summer sessions.

Summer Session I
4-week Session (May 10-June 7)
First 6-week session (May 10-June 21)

Summer Session II
8-week session (June 9-August 4)
Second 6-week session (June 23-August 4)

Please check course pre-requisites, APEX, and discuss summer registration with your academic advisor. For more information and a complete list of courses, visit: www.as.uky.edu/OnlineEd

Enroll this summer and see where A&S online courses can take you!

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I would like to invite everyone to attend this year’s A&S Distinguished Professor Lecture given by Dr. Peter Perry from the Department of Mathematics. Dr. Perry’s research focuses on spectral and scattering theory, spectral geometry, inverse problems and nonlinear partial differential equations. He is former chair of the Department of Mathematics and currently serves as the Director of the MathExcel Program. His awards and honors include UK University Research Professor, an NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship, and Fulbright Fellowship. He is the author of numerous books and articles, the organizer of a host of meetings and conferences, and has given presentations across the globe.

Since 1944, A&S has recognized the accomplishments of its faculty with the Distinguished Professor Award – the highest professional recognition offered by the College. It is bestowed on the basis of three criteria: outstanding research, exceptionally effective teaching, and distinguished professional service.

Please join us on April 26 at the Student Center Small Ballroom for a presentation given by former Army Ranger and Infantry officer, Nate Self. Captain Self’s talk,
"Leadership in Crisis,"
is open to all students and will begin at 11:00 am.

As an Army Ranger Captain, Self led a group of soldiers to the top of Takur Ghar Mountain in Afghanistan in 2002 to rescue a missing-in-action Navy SEAL. What ensued was the highest-altitude battle ever fought by U.S. troops, as well as the first War on Terror casualties. The effort was dubbed “Rescue on Roberts Ridge” and had it not been for Self’s quick-thinking and leadership, more men could have been lost.

I would like to recognize two members of the A&S community on their recent accomplishments. First, I am proud to announce that A&S academic advisor Jessica Baer was selected as a NACADA Outstanding Advising Award winner in the Primary Advising category. The award is part of the National Academic Advising Association’s annual awards program which honors advisors for their dedication to student success. She had been previously honored as a Ken Freedman Outstanding Advisor at UK earlier in the year.

I am also pleased to note that Rachel Philbrick, a graduate student in Classics, was the recipient of a Jacob K. Javits Fellowship from the United State Department of Education. This competitive fellowship is given to only 33 graduate students who are pursuing degrees in the social sciences, arts, and humanities who demonstrate outstanding academic ability. Upon completion of her degree, Ms. Philbrick will continue her studies in a doctoral program where she plans to become a professor.

Congratulations to both on their exceptional achievements!

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Mr. Ahmed Kathrada and Ms. Barbara Hogan were warmly received by students and teachers at Lexington Catholic High School this morning. Students at the school were honored to meet Mr. Kathrada and listen to him speak about his experiences fighting apartheid, being imprisoned next to Nelson Mandela for 26 years, and helping to build a new South Africa upon his release. Lexington Catholic students had already studied Mr. Kathrada’s life through reading his memoirs, “No Bread for Mandela,” which was just released in the United States last month. Following Mr. Kathrada’s remarks, the Commonwealth of Kentucky appointed him an honorary Kentucky Colonel.

To see more pictures of this and other events during their visit to Kentucky, visit our Facebook page. To learn more about our South African Initiative, visit southafrica.as.uky.edu.

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As part of our year-long international programming, we are pleased to welcome two distinguished South African guests to campus this week – Ms. Barbara Hogan and Mr. Ahmed Kathrada. Both individuals are world-renowned anti-apartheid activities who played a major role in the creation of a democratic South African along with Nelson Mandela.

During their visit, a stateside exhibit of Ahmed “Kathy” Kathrada: A South African Activist for Non-Racialism and Democracy will open on April 13, 2011 in the Webb Museum of Anthropology at Lafferty Hall on UK’s campus. In honor of their work on human rights issues, Ms. Hogan and Mr. Kathrada will receive honorary degrees from the University of Kentucky on April 14. The University Press of Kentucky has also released Mr. Kathrada’s memoir, No Bread for Mandela, and there will be a book signing at Joseph-Beth Booksellers on Saturday April 16 at 2:00 p.m.

To learn more about these inspirational individuals as well as other South African activists, please check out our newest issue of Ampersand. A&S will also stream the convocation ceremony live at A&S InsideOut.
 

The A&S Diversity Committee, which promotes cultural awareness in the College, recently held their quarterly staff meeting. The featured guest speaker was LTC Jason Cummins, Professor of Military Science in UK’s Army ROTC whose presentation on diversity in leadership highlighted personal development strategies and encouraged new lines of thinking about diversity. Cummins' presentation was engaging and disarming at the same time to promote candid conversation around what can be a difficult subject to discuss.

The next meeting will be a networking event that will be held in the courtyard of Patterson Office Tower and the Classroom Building in June. All A&S Diversity Committee events are open to A&S staff members and are a great way to meet people with similar interests outside of your home department or program. A reminder invite will be sent to staff closer to the event. We hope to see you there!