[InFocus] In Focus

[su-infocus at southwestern.edu]

 IN FOCUS: May 2, 2008
 
* TOP NEWS *
	  	*CALENDAR*
MUNDY, JONES FELLOWSHIPS AWARDED 	  	*CAMPUS CALENDAR *

To view upcoming events at Southwestern by day, week or month, click 
here <http://www.southwestern.edu/sucalendar/main.php>.

Five Southwestern faculty members have received Mundy and Jones 
Fellowships for 2008-09. The fellowships provide a total of $42,000 that 
will be used to fund collaborative research projects with students.

Faculty members receiving the fellowships are:

. Romi Burks, assistant professor of biology, received a Mundy 
Fellowship of $9,000 to conduct a study that will involve junior biology 
majors Colin Kyle and James McDonough. The group plans to study 
egg-laying behavior in two species of applesnails to better understand 
their likelihood of invasion. The research will include a trip to 
Uruguay to study a native species of applesnail.

. Sergio Costola, assistant professor of theatre, received a $9,100 
Mundy Fellowship that will enable junior theatre majors Edward Coles and 
Emily Everidge to attend the Rhodopi International Theatre Collective in 
Smolyan, Bulgaria, this summer. The students are helping Costola write 
the text for a multimedia performance piece that will be presented Aug. 11.

. Traci Giuliano, professor of psychology, received a $9,100 Mundy 
Fellowship for a research project that will involve junior psychology 
majors Braden Ackley, Patrick Egan and Jenny Howell. The team will study 
whether men are punished more than women in cases involving 
student-teacher relationships. They plan to present their work at the 
annual meeting of the Association for Psychological Science in May 2009.

. Julia Johnson, assistant professor of communication studies, received 
a Mundy Fellowship of $11,200 to conduct a study that will involve 
students Nadia Alareksoussi and Brooke Calder. The funds will enable the 
group to conduct research in the Terrence Trans Collection at The Sylvia 
Rivera Law Project in New York, and to interview activists and staff who 
work there. The Terrence Trans Collection is one of only several 
collections in the United States that specializes in documenting 
transgendered activism and lives. They will use the research to write 
papers for presentation at the 2009 meeting of the National 
Communication Association, and to write a book tentatively titled 
Communicating Intersectional Alliances: Difference as the Basis of 
Resistance.

. Elizabeth Piedmont-Marton, associate professor of English, received a 
$2,690 Jones Fellowship for a project that will involve junior English 
majors Bethany Leidlein and Rachel Ridgon. The project is a survey of 
faculty, students and alumni to determine their experiences with writing 
at Southwestern. Funds from the fellowship will enable the students to 
present their work at the International Writing Centers Association 
conference in October 2008. The project is part of a larger initiative 
to improve the quality of writing across the curriculum at Southwestern.

The Mundy Faculty Fellowship Fund was established through the 
philanthropy of Mr. and Mrs. A. J. Mundy of Houston and the William B. 
Jones Faculty Fellowship Fund was established through the philanthropy 
of alumni, colleagues, staff and friends in honor of Dr. William B. 
Jones, professor emeritus of history. Both funds support scholarship, 
research, or other creative activities that involve a faculty member and 
a student (or students) in a collaborative endeavor. These projects 
generally take place in the summer.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
SOUTHWESTERN STUDENTS ORGANIZE BIKE COLLECTIVE

A class project at Southwestern has evolved into an initiative that 
could encourage people in Georgetown to rethink transportation and 
conservation.

As part of a new course titled Introduction to Sustainability, students 
were asked to participate in a project that would get them thinking 
about ways of living that are more sustainable. One group of students 
decided to form a bike collective that would teach bike repair and give 
refurnished bikes to people who need one, paying in work-trade rather 
than money.

The students have spent the year fixing up a shed located at 1205 Maple 
Street to serve as a home for the collective, which they have named it 
the Giracion Bike Collective. Giracion refers to the revolution of a 
wheel and its gears, but can also refer to a literal revolution or change.

"Starting the bike collective this semester has been a great 
experience," said Sarah Reesor, one of 10 students involved with the 
project. "I have met new people, learned a lot about bikes, and it has 
been really rewarding to see the project develop into something we hope 
will be able to benefit many people as well as bring Southwestern and 
the Georgetown community closer together.

Reesor said Giracion will accept donated bicycles in any condition, and 
will either repair them or use them for parts. One source of bikes is 
those that have been abandoned on campus. "If no one comes to claim a 
bike at the Police Department after a semester, they give it to us," she 
said.

The collective also teaches bike safety and repair to anyone who is 
interested. Already, the collective has hosted three groups of 7th and 
8th grade students from the Operation Achievement Program sponsored by 
Southwestern.

To read the rest of the story, click here 
<http://www.southwestern.edu/cgi-bin/newsroom/article.cgi?id=81>.

EVENTS
SPRING MALL BALL MAY 2

The bi-annual Mall Ball will be held Friday, May 2, on the Cullen 
Academic Mall at 4:30 p.m. Food and drinks will be served inside the 
McCombs Campus Center. For more information, contact the Office of 
Student Activities at (512) 863-1345.

MEDIA COVERAGE

. The /Williamson County Sun/ ran a feature on Earth Day activities at 
Southwestern.

. The /Williamson County Sun /ran a story about the shipment of 
refurbished computers to Honduras.

. The /Williamson County Sun /ran a story about the opening of the new 
Giracion Bike Collective.

. The /Round Rock Leader /ran a review of the Cake concert at 
Southwestern. Read the review here 
<http://www.rrleader.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=18588&SectionID=13&SubSectionID=13&S=1>.

NOTABLES

Sophomore *Rob Atkinson* participated in a debate held at Southern 
Methodist University April 25 on whether the United States should have a 
Department of Peace. Atkinson, who is national communications 
coordinator for the Student Peace Alliance, argued in favor of the 
proposal. To read a release about the debate, click here 
<http://media.www.smudailycampus.com/media/storage/paper949/news/2008/04/29/News/Debate.Held.At.Smu.Focuses.On.Possible.U.s.Dept.Of.Peace-3354872.shtml>. 


*Ellen Davis*, director of communications, had an article published in 
the May issue of Public Relations Tactics.

*Maha Zewail Foote*, assistant professor of chemistry and biochemistry, 
has a paper titled "Oxidative DNA damage following photoexcitation of 
daunomycin: Direct role of oxygen" accepted for publication in the/ 
Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology A: Chemistry/. The paper was 
a collaboration with co-author *Radhika Kainthla*, senior Biochemistry 
major.

*Ben Pierce*, professor of biology and holder of the Lillian Nelson 
Pratt Chair, had a paper published in the spring 2008 issue of Council 
on /Undergraduate Research Quarterly/ titled "Developing a Sustainable 
Research Program for Tenure." The paper was part of a series on 
professional strategies for junior faculty members.

*Bob Snyder*, professor of political science, received a $25,000 grant 
from the Earhart Foundation to write a book tentatively titled "The Road 
to 9/11: The US' Struggles with Revolutionary Movements in the Third World."

Kinesiology students *Lauren Arrowood*, *Ben Hoffman* and *Eric Sterner 
*won top honors for undergraduate research at the 29th annual meeting of 
the Texas Regional Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine 
held in Odessa in February for their paper analyzing the effects of 
treadmill use in space.

Juniors *Hannah Adkison* and *Charles Prince*, and seniors *LaToya 
Alexander *and *Jeremy Battle* attended the Engaged Diversity Student 
Leadership Workshop held at Dillard University in New Orleans April 4-6. 
Also attending the workshop were Sue Mennicke, director of intercultural 
learning, and Ron Swain, senior advisor to the president. The program 
was funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.


/Have a submission for "Notables"? Send it to infocus at southwestern.edu./

-- 
Katy Boose
Editorial Coordinator
Southwestern University
1001 E. University Ave.
Georgetown, TX 78626
512-863-1487
boosek at southwestern.edu
www.southwestern.edu

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