[InFocus] In Focus: May 9, 2008

[su-infocus at southwestern.edu]

 IN FOCUS: May 9, 2008
 
* TOP NEWS *
	  	*CALENDAR*
FIVE SUMMER RESEARCH PROJECTS RECEIVE FUNDING 	  	*CAMPUS CALENDAR *

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

Southwestern faculty members will collaborate with students this summer 
on research projects covering subjects from artificial intelligence to 
theatre, thanks to awards from the Fleming Collaborative Research and 
Creative Activity Program.

The program enables faculty members and students to engage in projects 
that go beyond the scope of regular coursework. Five different projects 
totaling $113,000 were funded for 2008. The projects involve a total of 
13 faculty members and 35 students:

. *Steve Alexander*, associate professor of physics, and Walt Potter, 
professor of math and computer science, received $22,000 for a project 
that will use artificial intelligence techniques to find organic 
molecules that interact with light in a very precisely defined manner. 
These molecules could potentially be used in a variety of industrial 
applications. Five students will be involved with this project. Part of 
this project involves developing a computer "cluster" that will be 
available after the project to anyone on campus who needs large amounts 
of computer time for their research.

. The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry received $68,000 that 
will enable all of its faculty members to work with student researchers 
over the summer. Thirteen students will be funded through this grant.

. *Sergio Costola*, assistant professor of theatre, received $3,900 that 
will enable English major and Brown Scholar *Delilah Dominguez* to 
attend the Rhodopi International Theatre Collective in Smolyan, 
Bulgaria. Dominguez and three other students are helping Costola write 
the text for a multimedia performance piece that will be presented Aug. 11.

. *Kathleen Juhl*, associate professor of theatre, received $12,000 to 
develop a Theatre for Social Change production that will become part of 
Southwestern's First-Year Student Orientation Program. Sixteen students, 
including senior theatre major *Lindsey Smith*, will be involved with 
the production, which is scheduled to be presented Aug. 23.

. *Sandi Nenga*, assistant professor of sociology, received $6,500 to 
conduct a study of how youth use media, technology and language to 
organize their peer culture. The study will be conducted on sixth, 
seventh and eighth graders attending a middle school summer camp in 
Georgetown. Sociology major *Tristine Baccam* will assist Nenga with her 
research.

John McCann, assistant dean for faculty development and sponsored 
programs, says these eight-week collaborative projects help students 
learn teamwork, problem solving and the techniques necessary to progress 
to more advanced work in professional and graduate schools.

"Undergraduate research experiences have become an essential part of 
student education, particularly in the sciences," McCann says.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
FIVE SOUTHWESTERN STUDENTS SELECTED TO PARTICIPATE IN SUMMER RESEARCH 
PROJECTS SPONSORED BY THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION

Five Southwestern students have been selected to participate in summer 
research programs sponsored by the National Science Foundation.

The programs are all part of the NSF's Research Experience for 
Undergraduates (REU) program. Students selected for the program receive 
travel expenses, room and board, and a stipend of up to $4,000.

To read the rest of this story, click here 
<http://www.southwestern.edu/cgi-bin/newsroom/article.cgi?id=82>.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
*TWO SOUTHWESTERN STUDENTS RECEIVE FULBRIGHT TEACHING ASSISTANTSHIPS *

Two seniors graduating from Southwestern this month have been awarded 
Fulbright English Teaching Assistantships in Germany.

*Chelsea Edge* and *Amy Tanguay* will spend nine months teaching English 
to students in Germany.

To read the rest of this story, click here 
<http://www.southwestern.edu/cgi-bin/newsroom/article.cgi?id=83>.

EVENTS
SOUTHWESTERN TO HOST ALDERSGATE DAY CELEBRATION MAY 22

Southwestern will host an Aldersgate Day celebration on Thursday, May 
22. The event observes the 270th anniversary of John Wesley's 
"heart-warming" experience at Aldersgate Street in London, which became 
the basis for the Methodist faith.

The program will begin at 10 a.m. in the Lois Perkins Chapel with the 
singing of Wesleyan hymns led by Southwestern alumnus Henry Holloway. 
This will be followed by a talk on "Christian Community" by Rev. Debra 
Crumpton, senior pastor at Georgetown's Wellspring United Methodist Church.

 From noon to 1 p.m., a buffet lunch will be available for purchase in 
the Red & Charline McCombs Campus Center for $6.50 per person. After 
lunch, participants will visit a special library exhibit at Southwestern 
featuring antique Wesleyan music publications. At 1 p.m., Ellsworth 
Peterson, professor emeritus of music at Southwestern, will offer a 
multimedia presentation on the topic of "The Wesleys and English 
Cathedral Music." The day will conclude with the singing of additional 
Wesleyan hymns.

The event is open to the public. To attend the event, call 800-960-6363 
or write alumni at southwestern.edu.

MEDIA COVERAGE

. The/ Williamson County Sun/ ran a feature story about Laura Hobgood 
Oster's new book on animals in religious tradition.

NOTABLES

Seniors *Lindsey Albracht* and *Rory Aguirre* have been accepted into 
the French Teaching Assistantship program sponsored by the French 
Ministry of Education. Albracht will spend seven months teaching in the 
Toulouse region and Aguirre will teach in Nancy/Metz.

*Maria Cuevas*, assistant professor of biology, has had an article 
accepted for publication by Oncology Reports. The research for the 
paper, titled "In vitro: cytoxic activity of anthrapyrazole analogues in 
human prostate DU-145 and testicular NETRA-2 carcinoma cells," was 
conducted with Kurt Seilheimer '07 during the Biology Summer Research 
Program in 2006 and the 2006-07 academic year. It was partially funded 
by the Fleming Fund awarded to the Biology Department.

Senior *Jessica Hager* will be staying at Southwestern next year as an 
AmeriCorps/VISTA volunteer working out of the Office of Civic Engagement.

*Sarah Holifield* has been selected to have a "This I Believe" essay 
aired on Houston's Public Radio station, KUHF. She will visit the studio 
to record her essay this summer.

Sophomore physics major *Pelham Keahy* has been selected to participate 
in the Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internships program (SULI) 
sponsored by the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC). He will 
spend eight weeks this summer working with researchers at the center, 
which is operated by Stanford for the U.S. Department of Energy.

Sophomore physics major *Sean Smith* has been selected to participate in 
the Research Internships in Science and Engineering program (RISE) 
sponsored by the German Academic Exchange Service. The program gives 
students in biology, chemistry, earth sciences, engineering and physics 
the chance to spend a summer working with German doctoral students on 
their research projects. Smith will spend the summer conducting 
theoretical physics research with a doctoral student at the University 
of Geissen.

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

LAST ISSUE OF IN FOCUS FOR THIS YEAR
/This is the last issue of /In Focus/ for the 2007-08 academic year. 
The/ In Focus/ staff wishes you a wonderful summer. We will resume 
publication Aug. 15. For the latest news from Southwestern during the 
summer, visit the Southwestern home page at www.southwestern.edu. If you 
have news of interest over the summer, please contact Ellen Davis, 
director of communications, at 512-863-1570 or davise at southwestern.edu./

-- 
Ellen Davis
Director of Communications
Southwestern University
1001 E. University Ave.
Georgetown TX 78626
512-863-1570
www.southwestern.edu

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