Retirements
Ardean Wessel,
assistant to the president is retiring Dec. 31, after over 28 years of
service to Black Hills State University. During her more than 22 years
in the president’s office, she served under four presidents and one
acting president. She is only the third person to be the assistant to
the president since 1942. Prior to her current position, Wessel
worked in the business and purchasing offices.
She was
born and grew up in Rapid City, attended the University of North Dakota
and received her bachelor’s degree from BHSU.
Her plans
include spending more time with her grandchildren and being a ‘snow
bird’ in Florida during the winter.
Kathy Schneider, director of the Retired and Seniors Volunteer
Program (RSVP) will retire after 20 years of service at the end of the
month. There will be an open house on Oct.30 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the
Spearfish Senior Citizens Center. The BHSU faculty, staff, and students
as well as the public is invited to attend.
RSVP has been in operation in Spearfish since 1973. It joined with
the Sturgis RSVP office in 2002 to become the Northern Black Hills RSVP
and has been sponsored by Black Hills State University since that time.
RSVP has a dual purpose of providing a quality volunteer experience as
well as fulfilling needs for non-profit agencies and the frail elderly
in our communities. There are over 500 volunteers in four counties who
contributed just under 100,000 hours last year. Volunteers serve Meals
on Wheels, work with children in the schools, help with mailings and
administrative tasks for the cities and chamber offices, provide
transportation to the elderly for grocery shopping or doctor's
appointments, as well as "fun projects" like visiting with tourists
while serving at one of the museums in town or rocking babies at the
BHSU daycare.
Schneider started as the RSVP secretary in 1986 and has served as
director since 2001. In her 20 years, she's managed 38 senior tours
covering every state in the U.S. except for Delaware and Alaska. With
those 38 tours, she made over $277,000 for the program. And, she'll do
one last senior tour this month, prior to her retirement. With all the
changes that have taken place over the years, she managed to increase
the number of volunteers, the number of volunteer hours, oversaw the
expansion of the program into Faith, Lemmon and Bison, and all with a
smile on her face, according to co-workers.
Schneider will be greatly missed but her time and talents will be
greatly appreciated as the program continues to be successful with great
hopes to continue the trends she began.
CSA Position Open
The following Career Service position is open:
For additional information or to apply visit:
http://YourFuture.sdbor.edu
Professor to present paper at national
conference
Dr. Sheng Yang, assistant professor of economics and finance at Black
Hills State University, recently presented a paper at the 62nd
International Atlantic Economic Conference in Philadelphia.
In the paper, Yang empirically examines the excess capacity
hypothesis, which was given as one of the two competing hypotheses in
the study of entry-deterring behavior in industrial economics.
According to Yang, time-series data from the U.S. primary aluminum
industry are used to test the effect of excess capacity and production
variation on firm entry decisions. The result from the estimate of the
logit model shows that entry decision is statistically significantly
affected by the excess capacity yet has insignificant correlation with
production in the industry throughout the sample period.
Yang also served as panel discussant at the conference session of
market structure, firm strategy, and market performance.
Yang received his doctorate in economics from the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln in 1998. He joined the BHSU faculty in 2004.
BHSU teams with state fish hatchery for research
An article highlighting research by Black
Hills State University and McNenny Fish Hatchery was recently published
in the Rapid City Journal. The project teams the South Dakota
Department of Game, Fish & Parks with Daniel Bergey, a biology professor
at BHSU, and could change the way rainbow trout are stocked in the Black
Hills.
See the complete article
Honors thesis
defense scheduled for Ashley Vanderwerff Hurd
The Black Hills State University community is
cordially invited to the Honors thesis defense of Ashley Vanderwerff
Hurd’s “Changing Ideals: A Truth Universally Revealed by Jane Austen’s
Heroines,” Wednesday, Oct.11 at 5 p.m. ,
in the Meier Hall third floor conference room.
Hurd’s honors thesis advisor is Dr. Mary Husemann,
assistant professor of the College of Arts and Sciences. Her reader is
Dr. Sasha Pursley, assistant professor of the College of Arts and
Sciences.
For more information, contact Dr. Roger Ochse,
director of the Honors Program at 642-6386 or
RogerOchse@bhsu.edu . Refreshments will be served.
Student groups
prepare for awareness programs
Black Hills State University student groups are
preparing several awareness programs this week.
The Residence Hall Association is sponsoring an
alcohol awareness program in which some students wear paint on their
faces for the day to represent an alcohol-related fatality.
Instructions to the students include remaining silent, except for class
participation. Students who are employed are also instructed to
participate in their work activities in a normal fashion. Discussion of
the issue is encouraged.
Also, plans are underway to have a “safe zone”
program on campus. Oct. 11th is National Coming Out Day and BHSU
students would like to emphasize the right of all students to take pride
in the life style they have chosen and to express their views. It is
anticipated that the programs will bring attention to the issues of
alcohol misuse and the need for diversity in society, according to Dr.
Judith Haislet, vice president for student affairs at BHSU.
Homeless awareness
event brings the streets to BHSU
United Ministries and Black Hills State
University’s Global Awareness Committee will sponsor a Homeless
Awareness walk-through Wednesday, Oct. 17 at 7 pm in the David B. Miller
Student Union Yellow Jacket Legacy Room.
The program will begin with a self-guided tour of a
“homeless set” built by the BHSU Theatre Department. Within the set,
visitors will experience re-enactments of homeless living conditions
performed by BHSU student actors.
Guest speakers will include Jim Castleberry,
director of Cornerstone Mission in Rapid City, as well as residents of
Cornerstone.
Admission is free and open to the public; donations
of non-perishable food items for the BHSU Pantry or money for Oxfam
World Hunger are encouraged.
Persons with disabilities requesting accommodations
for this event should contact Jeanne Higgins, director of United
Ministries at 642-6556 at least 48 hours prior to the start of the
event.
BHSU to host Make
a Difference Day
Do you want to make a difference in the lives of
others? Many people do says Janette Hettick, C-U-R-E volunteer
coordinator at Black Hills State University.
According to Hettick, sometimes individuals feel
they do not have enough time to volunteer, or they are unsure of where
to start. The Community-University-Resource-Exchange (C-U-R-E) program
at Black Hills State University has the answer: Make a Difference Day.
Make a Difference Day is the largest national
service day in America. Last year, over 3 million people participated,
completing thousands of projects in hundreds of towns. This day
promotes community togetherness, neighbors helping neighbors. The idea
is to put your own agenda aside for a day to help others who are in
need.
Last year more than 650 BHSU students and community
members volunteered in the local celebration of Make a Difference Day.
BHSU students and community members participated in a variety of ways.
Projects included food drives, various area clean up activities, book
donations, a hurricane relief fund raiser and other assorted acts of
kindness benefiting organizations and individuals. The AmeriCorps*VISTA
C-U-R-E program has coordinated Make a Difference Day projects in
Spearfish for the past two years.
This year, the C-U-R-E hopes to unite community and
campus to make this an enormous event for Spearfish. Everyone is
encouraged to participate regardless of age, gender, class, or talent.
Groups and individuals will perform service projects in the Spearfish
area Oct. 28, at 9 a.m. Activities can be as large as collecting food
and clothing for the poor, or as small as visiting a lonely neighbor.
Longer projects, such as food or book drives, or projects with children
in schools, can be conducted during the week as well.
Activities will conclude with a free lunch for all
participants in the Student Union Marketplace from 11 a.m. to 12 noon.
This will be a time for community building and reflection on the
morning’s events. BHSU’s President Kay Schallenkamp will provide
welcoming remarks at 11:20 a.m. Those who do not participate in events
but would like to eat may do so, at the cost of one non-perishable food
item for the Spearfish Food Pantry or one new, unwrapped toy for the
kickoff of the Red Shirt Table toy drive.
Individuals and organizations are invited to create
service projects that are directed toward their interests, or they may
join other activities planned by student and community organizations.
The C-U-R-E office can help you find a project that is right for you.
“We would like to encourage everyone in Spearfish
to get involved with Make a Difference Day activities,” says Hettick.
“This event has potential to positively affect hundreds of Spearfish
residents, and it is a great way for community members to get to know
students at Black Hills State and vice versa.”
The AmeriCorps*VISTA members ready to coordinate
Make a Difference Day activities with participants. Contact Hettick or
Trainumin the BHSU C-U-R-E office at 642-6471 or email JanetteHettick@bhsu.edu
for more information or to participate in this event.
BHSU Faculty Senate
minutes
Black Hills State University Faculty Senate
minutes, September 20, 2006
Members present: Jim Hesson, Dan Bergey, Laura
Colmenero-Chilberg, Daluss Siewert, Bobbi Sago, Verona Beguin, Annette
Ryerson, Jill Kary
The meeting was called to order at 3:30 p.m., Meier
Hall conference room.
Introductions were made welcoming the new Student
Senate member, Jill Kary.
The agenda and minutes from the August 24, 2006
meeting were approved. The minutes will be sent to all faculty and
Campus Currents. Bobbi Sago will take care of this.
The following years of remaining service, including
this year, were identified for present Faculty Senate members:
College of Arts and Sciences
College of Education
College of Business and Technology
-
Verona
Beguin (1)
-
Annette
Ryerson (3)
Student Senate Representative
President Jim Hesson spoke on his belief that
during 2006-2007 the Faculty Senate should concentrate on making BHSU a
better place to work, learn and live. His intention is to hold
efficient and effective meetings with a focus on potential solutions and
action.
The updated and approved version of the Faculty
Senate Constitution and Bylaws will be sent to all senators and placed
on the BHSU website for access by all faculty. Verona Beguin will take
responsibility for this.
Discussion was held concerning the number and form
of reports that should be required from Senate committees during the
academic year. No decision was made. Micheline Hickenbotham and Jim
Hesson will review the standing committees for any action needed on
them.
Jim Hesson will seek nominations from the College
of Education to fill the missing senate seat.
Laura Colmenero-Chilberg was appointed Faculty
Senate member to the University Assessment Committee with Annette
Ryerson as alternate when necessary.
Discussion was held on the hiring of the new
security officer. It was reported that the position is still being
advertised and that no officer has yet been hired. Dan Bergey will
follow up on this.
The meeting was adjourned at 4:30 p.m.
Respectfully submitted, Laura Colmenero-Chilberg, Faculty Senate
Secretary
|
