Top News

SEVERAL FROM SOUTHWESTERN TRAVELLING TO NATION’S CAPITAL FOR OBAMA INAUGURATION

Several Southwestern students, staff members and administrators will be among the thousands travelling to Washington, D.C., for the Jan. 20 inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama.

When asked why they are making the trip, all give the same response: They want to be part of an historic occasion.

Read the rest of the story here: http://www.southwestern.edu/newsroom/story.php?id=605

CLASS AT SOUTHWESTERN THIS SEMESTER WILL STUDY HOW WELL OBAMA ADMINISTRATION DOES IMPLEMENTING PUBLIC POLICY

Barack Obama ran a spectacular presidential campaign, but how will he do when it comes to actually implementing public policy?

Students taking Gilbert St. Clair’s Public Policy class at Southwestern this semester will have the chance to examine this topic.

“We’re going to be tracking campaign promises against public policy proposals,” says St. Clair, who is a visiting professor of political science. “I also want to see if we can find examples of deal-making.”

Read the rest of the story here:

http://www.southwestern.edu/newsroom/story.php?id=600

SOUTHWESTERN STUDENT HELPS CHILDREN LEARN HEALTHY EATING HABITS

As a junior in high school, Southwestern University student Gillian Graham created a program to teach pre-school and elementary school students in her hometown of San Antonio about healthy eating habits.

With Southwestern’s support, Graham has now expanded her program to Williamson County.

The program Graham started is called the Rainbow Foods Program. Graham explains that by eating as many of the six colors of the rainbow as possible in each meal, children will have a healthy, balanced diet.

“The main idea of the program is to eat your colors everyday,” Graham says. It is good to start at a young age since it is hard to change your practices when you are older.” 

With the help of Suzy Pukys, director of civic engagement, Gillian is now working with the Taylor Independent School District in their afterschool program called Duck University. Once a week, she holds a Rainbow Foods class where students are taught how to put meals together at home. 

Read the rest of the story here:

http://www.southwestern.edu/newsroom/story.php?id=613

Events

WORLD-REKNOWN GUITARIST TO PERFORM AT SOUTHESTERN JAN. 16

Classical guitarist Nicholas Goluses will give a solo guitar concert on Friday, Jan. 16, at 7 p.m. in the Alma Thomas Theater. The concert will consist of works by Paolo Bellinati, Benjamin Britten, Manuel De Falla, Astor Piazzolla, Fernando Sor and Mikis Theodorakis. It is free and open to the public.  

Goluses is professor of guitar and director of the guitar programs at the Eastman School of Music, which is widely recognized as one of the world’s premier conservatories and a leading center for guitar study.

The concert is sponsored by the Department of Music in the Sarofim School of Fine Arts. For more information, call 512-863-1379.

SOUTHWESTERN FACULTY MEMBER TO GIVE PIANO RECITAL JAN. 17

Vincent Lam, an adjunct instructor of music at Southwestern, will give a solo piano concert on Saturday, Jan. 17, at 7 p.m. in the Alma Thomas Theater. The program will feature works by Mozart, Schubert and Liszt. It is free and open to the public. 

Lam joined the Southwestern piano faculty in 2006. He earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in piano performance from the University of Minnesota.

The concert is sponsored by the Department of Music in the Sarofim School of Fine Arts. For more information, call 512-863-1379.

PRE-SHILLING LECTURE EVENTS SCHEDULED

Several events have been scheduled in conjunction with the 2009 Shilling Lecture, which will be given at Southwestern Feb.10 by Wangari Maathai, the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize.

On Jan. 21 and 22, there will be screenings of “Taking Root: The Vision of Wangari Maathai,” a documentary about the inspiring story of Kenya’s Green Belt Movement.          

The Jan. 21 screening will begin at 4 p.m. in Room 105 of the F.W. Olin Building and will be followed by a panel discussion. The Jan. 22 screening will be held at 7 p.m. in room 105 of the F.W. Olin Building.

On Jan. 27, Greg Maddox, a professor of history at Texas Southern University, will give a lecture titled “Cooling the Land:  Africans and African Environments.” The lecture will begin at 4 p.m. in Room 110 of the F. W. Olin Building. It is designed to help participants understand the wider context of the environmental initiatives spearheaded by Maathai with her Greenbelt Movement in Kenya.

MEMORIAL SERVICE FOR ROB ATKINSON JAN. 23

A memorial service for Rob Atkinson, who was killed by a car on University Avenue in December, will be held Friday, Jan. 23, at 4 p.m. in the Lois Perkins Chapel. The service will be non-denominational and will include prayers, music, a eulogy and speakers. It is open to everyone who would like to attend.

Media Coverage

James Gaeta was interviewed for a piece News8 Austin did about how families are coping with college costs in light of the current economic situation. Watch the story at http://www.news8austin.com/content/top_stories/default.asp?ArID=228716

News8Austin also did a story on Southwestern students going to the inauguration. Watch the story at http://www.news8austin.com/content/top_stories/default.asp?ArID=228997

KXAN interviewed Southwestern employee Maria Kruger about her plans to attend the inauguration. Watch the story at http://www.kxan.com/dpp/news/local/Three_generations_headed_to_inauguration

The Austin American-Statesman ran a story about the 2009 Brown Symposium. Read the story at http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/01/09/0109hinotes.html

The Williamson County Sun ran a story about the Jan. 12 guest lecture by Jeff Burke.

Notables

Laura Hobgood-Oster, professor of religion and chair of the Environmental Studies Program, has been appointed to the National Council of Churches Ecojustice Working Group. The NCC represents 45 million people and 100,000 congregations and is the largest ecumenical organization in the United States.

Eileen Meyer Russell, associate professor of music, is presenting a master class at the 2009 Annual Tuba-Euphonium Conference to be held in Washington, D.C., Jan. 28-31. The conference is sponsored by the U.S. Army Band and features concerts, recitals, exhibits, master classes and lectures by leading low brass authorities from around the world. Russell’s presentation will be for those who double on trombone and euphonium.