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Submit items to Campus
Currents
The Campus Currents is
distributed every Friday. If you would like to include an item
in the newsletter send it to Campus Currents, Unit 9512 or by
e-mail to Campus
Currents. Deadline is Thursday at 8 a.m.
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Welcome
to Black Hills State University - Top
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- Ron Franke Facilities Services
- Joe Tillman Facilities Services
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Career
Service position open - Top
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| The
following Career Service position is open
For additional information, please check the announcement
bulletin or contact the Personnel Office
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Spearfish
Chamber of Commerce luncheon- Top
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| Spearfish
Area Chamber of Commerce invites you to attend their quarterly
luncheon, scheduled for Tuesday, July 25, Noon to 1 p.m. at
the Cedar House Restaurant. The featured topic will be
Spearfish Community Enhancement Downtown Survey. Myles Kennedy
and French Bryan will present an update of the progress and
activity in this area. |
"This
is an excellent opportunity to network with others while
enjoying a comfortable lunch," said Chamber Director,
Lisa Langer. Spearfish Chamber member cost is $8.50 and
Non-members $10.00. Please RSVP to the Spearfish Chamber
office as soon as possible and no later than Monday, July 24,
605-642-2626. |
Star
Quilt Mural in Student Union game room - Top
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BHSU Upward Bound students painted a Star Quilt mural on
the south wall of the game room in the David B. Miller Yellow
Jacket Student Union this summer. Tessa Clairmont, Kira Kirkie,
Terra Thompson, and Lillian McBride worked three to four hours
a day for a week painting the design. They are all high school
students from Crow Creek.
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The Star Quilt represents the mythology as well as
the traditions of the Native American Indian Tribes. The
design shows a religious observance of the stars and a
reverence for all the heavenly bodies. The Milky Way is called
the pathway of the departed souls. After death it is believed,
by many Native Americans that the spirit of the descendent
passes on the pathway to the Southern Star, the abiding place
of the dead. It is thought that to the stars, the Great Spirit
gave the power to watch over mortals on Earth and impart to
them spiritual blessings. The Star Quilt is given as a token
of this belief. Indians call it God’s eye.
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NIDA
Corporation hosts Electronics Workshop -Top
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Tom
Termes, assistant professor of technology, and Julie Mathiesen,
a Sturgis teacher, were among nine participants in a two-day
workshop sponsored by NIDA Corporation to acquaint teachers
with electronic equipment they donate to help deliver an
electronics curriculum to six participating school districts.
NIDA Corp. donated more than $100,000 in equipment and
curriculum materials to help support Computer Aided
Instruction (CAI) for the Consortium of Advance Technological
Education (CATE). The pilot project is sponsored by BHSU and
Western Dakota Technical Institute and designed to bring
electronics instruction to rural South Dakota schools using
the World Wide Web. |
Electronics
pilot project receives corporate help - Top
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| A pilot
project sponsored by Black Hills State and Western Dakota
Technical Institute designed to bring electronics classes to
six rural South Dakota school districts is benefiting from
more than $100,000 in equipment and training from NIDA
Corporation of Melbourne, Fla.
For the past three years BHSU and WDTI have been developing
a model for bringing Computer Aided Instruction (CAI) to
Spearfish, Sturgis, Belle Fourche, Douglas, Lead/Deadwood and
Eagle Butte. Known as the Consortium for Advanced
Technological Education (CATE), schools with support from a
number of industrial partners including Pope and Talbot, OEM,
RAMVAC, Black Hills FiberCom, Homestake, SCI, and Gateway have
been working on a program that will deliver a basic
electronics curriculum to the six participating school
districts.
After attempting to bring the curriculum via a hub school,
and later through the World Wide Web using a traditional
textbook approach, the model has now developed into the CAI
approach that embeds instructions in the computer. In this
format all student learning is done on the computer and not
dependent upon an instructor being immediately available or
having to work around a school system’s computer firewall.
The NIDA Corporation provided the equipment and curriculum
to meet the needs of the CAI approach. Starting this fall the
pilot project will be configured with the student computers
connected to the NIDA server in Melbourne.
Students will interact with instructors and other students
using MSN software (a free download) on student and hub
computers. Students will also be able to establish a multiple
user chat room. Another software package that has potential is
Microsoft’s Net Meeting which will let users chat, provide a
white board, audio and video. When instructors want to examine
student progress they simply log on to the NIDA server to
access student assignments.
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One of the things the pilot project pointed out is the need
for a well-trained facilitator. This month a NIDA
representative will be in Spearfish to present a two-day
seminar to site facilitators. This seminar will provide an
introduction to distance learning, an overview of the
equipment and curriculum, instruction in the use of MSN and
Net Meeting, and on site equipment set up.
Tom Termes, associate professor of technology at BHSU, said
the NIDA Corporation’s gift of equipment and training has
significantly helped the program evolve to the point that
success is just around the corner. He noted that they recently
presented the pilot model in Bowling Green, Ky., to share the
consortium’s experience with the Kentucky Advanced
Technology Institute. The BH technology instructor currently
spends half his time overseeing the project. He will be
presenting to the American Technology Education Association at
the North Dakota School for Science in Wahpeton, N.D., this
October.
"The size of support and the gift from NIDA will help
us secure a National Science Foundation (NSF) Grant to support
the project," said Termes. "To have a pilot project
with six sites is really something."
In September the CATE pilot will include three high school
sites, one industrial site and a high school with a
substantial Native American student population. Each of the
sites will have all the equipment and curriculum necessary for
instruction in DC circuits, AC circuits, analog circuits, and
digital circuits.
When the program is fully implemented, students will have
the option of dual credit—high school and university credit.
With grant funding it is anticipated that CATE will ultimately
become a self-supporting program giving rural students a
better opportunity to pursue higher education careers in
various technology fields.
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Grant
funds repairs at childcare center
- Top
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| The
childcare center at BHSU was recently granted nearly $3,000 in
state health and safety monies for ceiling repairs and baby
changing equipment.
The center applied for the grant to replace ceiling tiles
that are old and dry, and create dust in the air when rattled
by activities in the upper floors of the building. Some of the
tiles must be replaced.
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An inspection report submitted by
Cindy Koopman, Dept. of Commerce and Regulation, said that in
addition to ceiling tile replacement "it is highly
recommended that appropriate changing tables be available so
the table can be easily sanitized between uses."
The total cost of the project is expected to be $5,165.
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Smith
receives grant for Caribbean snake research - Top
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| Dr.
Brian Smith, assistant professor of biology at BHSU, was
recently awarded a grant from the Cleveland Zoo to continue
his research of the endangered Antiguan Racer snake.
Smith became involved in the study in 1999 after learning
that Antiguan and British nationals were looking for more
researchers to join the project. He and a BH undergraduate
student spent nearly two months last summer surveying the
lizard population of several of the islands. Lizards are the
Antiguan Racer’s primary food source.
According to a report by Smith, "a stable population
of animals is considered to consist of at least 500
individuals."
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There are currently only about 80 snakes in
existence. A plan has been developed to re-introduce snakes to
a variety of small islands off the shore of Antigua.
Smith has returned to the island this summer with a BHSU
student to continue his research. The grant from the zoo was
in the amount of $2,625.
BHSU is a partner in a six-member international consortium
working to save the Antiguan Racer.
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Aaron
Nida named Jackets defensive coordinator - Top
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| A
familiar face will be on the sidelines at Lyle Hare Stadium
this fall as Aaron Nida returns to Black Hills State
University as defensive coordinator for the Yellow Jacket
football team.
 Nida,
a 1992 honorable mention All-American defensive back at BHSU,
served as an assistant coach under BHSU head coaches Ed
Neibauer and Russ Martin. This past year, he was defensive
coordinator and assistant head coach at Sturgis Brown High
School. He also coached ninth grade volleyball and was an
assistant varsity track coach for the Scoopers. This spring,
he was coach for the Dakota Bowl 2000 all-star game.
Athletic Director Dave Little said, "We’re excited
to have Aaron back with us as a coach and instructor. He knows
our system as a former player, assistant coach and Young
Center building operations and equipment manager. With his
background and experience, he’ll be a valuable asset to the
athletic and instructional program at the university."
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Nida
finished his collegiate football career at BHSU in 1992 as a
standout defensive back, earning all-conference, all-district,
and honorable mention All-American honors. He also was a
three-time SDIC championship pole-vaulter for the Jacket track
team.
The Glenrock, Wyoming, native served as president of the
Student Ambassador’s organization, was secretary of the
Athletics Club, member of the Fellowship of Christian
Athletes, and was voted Outstanding Male Student at BHSU in
1993.
Nida will be working under head coach Bob Majeski. Majeski
was appointed head coach after Russ Martin resigned last March
to accept a coaching position at Southeast Missouri State at
Cape Girardeau. Nida fills the defensive position vacated by
Majeski.
Coach Majeski said, " We’re pleased to have Aaron
back on campus in the football program. It’s great to get an
alumnus back who knows the structure of things and understands
the way we want things done. He’s very loyal to the program
and that’s huge."
The Yellow Jackets begin practice Aug. 15 and open the
season Sept. 2 at Dakota Wesleyan University in Mitchell.
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Teaching
with Technology wraps-up second session - Top
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Members of
the second TTL summer session took a break from the labors to
pose for a photo to send to Gov. Janklow in appreciation
for his support of computer education in the schools. Nearly
400 teachers took part in the two sessions at Black Hills
State this summer. |
Grants
opportunities announced - Top
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| These are
the program materials received July 13-July 19, 2000 in the
Grants Office, 220 Woodburn. For copies of the information,
contact our office at 642-6627 or e-mail requests to us at grants@mystic.bhsu.edu.
Fellowship information will also be posted on the Student
Union bulletin board near the information desk. |
- NSF. Conferences, International Travel, Workshops
and Special Years in the Mathematical Sciences. NSF
00-109.
- Literacy. Grants Program. Due September 8.
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