Submit items to Campus Currents - Top

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.

Position open - Top

The following Career Service position is open:

·        cook, dining services

Resignation - Top

Reunion 2001 kicks off - Top

Today Friday, June 29 a special 25-year breakfast will be held for the Class of ’76 members. That afternoon the 11th Annual Gold Dust/Yellow Jacket Golf Classic and Sports & Leisure Auction will be held in conjunction with the reunion. The golf tournament begins at 1 p.m. Golfers and non-golfers alike are invited to take part in the sports and leisure auction which begins at 7:45 p.m. at the Northern Hills Holiday Inn. Nearly 300 items ranging from autographed sports memorabilia to airline trips to art will be auctioned. Proceeds from the auction benefit student athletic scholarship programs. Other activities on Friday include a disc-golf tournament on campus, and a Spearfish Canyon/Deadwood bus tour.

A campus picnic and open mic are scheduled for Friday beginning at 5 p.m. This event will be fun for the entire family with a festive atmosphere on the campus green with food, entertainment, socializing, games and activities for all ages.

Saturday’s events begin with a reunion run at 7:30 a.m. at the Donald E. Young Sports and Fitness Center. Registration and sign in begins at 6:45 a.m. Participants are encouraged to enjoy an early one-mile run/walk around campus.  

Following a continental breakfast, Spearfish city tours will be given. The Class of ’50 will meet for a special 50-year breakfast at 8:30 a.m. in the Student Union multi-purpose room.

There will also a guided hike up Lookout Mountain that morning. Two seminars are planned for Saturday morning. Harvey Krautschun, Class of ’72, will team up with 

The 2001 Reunion weekend kicked off at a reception in the Student Union multipurpose room attended by 200 Black Hills State alumni and former faculty. More events are planned throughout the weekend.

attorney, Jim Hood, Class of ’69, to provide information through a seminar  titled  “Leave a Legacy – Estate Planning” at 10 a.m. in the Student Union room 221.

A “Continue the Legacy” seminar will be held at the same time for children of alumni to learn what BHSU offers students today. This session will provide information on scholarships and financial aid.

The BHSU Jam in the Spearfish City Park will begin Saturday, June 30 at 11 a.m. This event is free to the public. Food booths will be available. Attendees are encouraged to bring their lawn chairs and enjoy the entertainment of BHSU alumni entertainers. Performing (in this order) will be Frederick Whiteface and the Swing Fantabulous Band, Gary Mule Deer, Abby SomeOne, Williams and Ree, and Kory and Fireflies. Brock Finn will appear between acts.

The final event of the reunion is the comedy improv show by Wayne Brady and Friends. Brady stars in the ABC comedy “Who’s Line Is it Anyway.” The show begins at 9 p.m. at the Northern Hills Holiday Inn. Tickets are available by calling 642-6446.

TTL session wraps up at BHSU - Top

The Governor’s Academy on Technology for Teaching and Learning (TTL) participants wrapped up their session this week by forming the letters UOP (unit of practice) in recognition of the work they did throughout the four-week session. 

The TTL Academies formed an alliance with the Apple Learning Interchange where teachers will showcase the units they have designed during TTL.  Apple has collaborated with the National Science Foundation and the New American Schools Development Corporation to create a structured curriculum framework for sharing lessons, and named it Units of Practice (UOP).  These units exemplify an approach to integrating technology into the teaching and learning process. If teachers wish to do so, the units can then be submitted on the Apple Learning Interchange site where they are searchable according to subject, level, keywords, contributing organization, and state standards.

CAMSE hosts NASA workshop for teachers - Top

By Laurie Barnaud, materials coordinator for CAMSE

Black Hills State University's Center for the Advancement of Mathematics and Science Education (CAMSE) hosted a NASA educators' workshop recently at Central Elementary School in Spearfish. Pam Christol, aerospace education specialist, from Houston's Johnson Space Center presented the NASA workshop.

Christol led workshop participants through hands-on activities relating to microgravity, earth science, rocketry, the planets, living and working in space, and aeronautics. Participants explored various concepts including properties of water, surface tension, and density through activities that the educators will be able to use with students of all ages in their classrooms.

Several participants donned a space suit brought from the Johnson Space Center. Christol explained how the pressurized space suit is actually a balloon in the shape of a person with fourteen layers around it. She showed the educators a simple activity to use with students to help them understand how the space suit is made flexible. Christol blew into a 20" oblong balloon until the balloon was full. She then let out the air, slipped the balloon into a slinky, and again filled the balloon with air. With the slinky in place, the balloon could bend and flex, just as the space suit flexes for the space walker. The space suit used by astronauts in space actually weighs 300 pounds although the model used at the workshop weighed far less.

Rocketry activities culminated in launching of the rockets built by participants. Only two rockets were lost to trees and rooftops. Rockets were built from common household and classroom materials including paper, tape, pennies, and plastic two-liter pop bottles. The highest altitude reached by any of the rockets launched with 60 pounds of air pressure was 120 feet.

Participants spent time at the university's computer lab exploring NASA websites that are available to educators. Christol encouraged teachers to apply to participate in one of the two-week NASA Educator Workshops that are held at NASA's Space Centers. Educators will participate in hands-on workshops and tour the mock-up shuttle and space stations where astronauts train. One of the activities they will enjoy at Johnson Space Center is to watch the Apollo 13 movie in the old mission control center where the original drama was actually played out. The old mission control center has been preserved as a museum since the building of the JSC's new mission control center.

Fourth-grade teachers Margaret Koch, from Vandenburg Elementary, Douglas and Carlene Schlup, from East Elementary in Spearfish described the workshop as "awesome."

Koch said, "All the activities and materials work with the curriculum, and I learned a lot too, about gravity, microgravity, force and motion."

Cindy Stofferahn, fourth-grade teacher from the Meade School District said," I really enjoyed the workshop. I didn't know that all these resources were available from NASA."

Pam Christol, NASA aerospace education specialist from Johnson Space Center, launches a pressurized water rocket made from a two-liter bottle during a recent workshop hosted by BHSU’s Center for the Advancement of Mathematics and Science Education (CAMSE). The launch took place in the parking lot of the CAMSE offices and workshop space at Central Elementary School.

Eighth grade Douglas Middle School teacher, Tony Burns, commented, "Very good workshop. I can definitely use the activities, content, and materials in the classroom."

In addition to classroom teachers other participants attended the conference. Connie Herman, from Lemmon, assistant manager for the Expanding Your Horizons Project which is funded by the U. S. Department of Education under the Women's Educational Equity Act, also attended the workshop.

Herman said, "I'm looking forward to taking these materials and information back to the classrooms and to encouraging girls to pursue careers in science and technology."

Teachers could attend two days or the full four days of the workshop and had the opportunity to earn college credit for their efforts. Lisa Mattson, former kindergarten and now fifth grade teacher at Lead-Deadwood, attended the final two days of the session. She said, "I loved this workshop. I wish I would've gone the other  two days."

Aerospace education specialist visits BHSU for science workshop - Top

By Laurie Barnaud, CAMSE materials coordinator

Aerospace Education Specialist Pam Christol drives thousands of miles each year in a 12-foot van filled with items as mundane as pieces of PVC pipe and balloons to a space suit and a multi-thousand dollar model of the international space station.

Christol brings her one-person NASA workshop to teachers throughout North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado, and New Mexico. She also presents at educator meetings. This past year she presented at the International Technology Education Association conference in Atlanta, Ga., the National Science Teachers' Association conference in Orlando, Calif., and the South Dakota Math and Science Teachers' conference.

She called Sioux Falls her home for two years before moving to Houston, Texas, where she lives with her husband, a public relations specialist for NASA at Johnson Space Center.

Her latest tour has kept her on the road five weeks, but after the workshop at Black Hills State University, she'll be heading home. It's a long drive to Houston, but the road doesn’t seem so long when she is going home.

"I was born in Alabama, but grew up in Oklahoma,” said Christol. “My father was in the Air Force, so we traveled a lot when I was young.  I love to travel, but right now I'm really looking forward to being home."

Her favorite part of the job is working with pre-service and in-service teachers in hands-on workshops. She presents NASA educator workshops on-site at Johnson Space Center as well as at schools throughout her eight-state region. Having spent six years teaching fourth grade in Oklahoma's public schools, and three years teaching science methods classes to undergraduate teachers at Oklahoma State University, she brings a practical approach to the teaching of science and technology.

When asked about her future plans, she said she would eventually like to teach outdoor education and recreation in the leisure science area at the university level. She would also like to teach children about minimum impact camping, outdoor skills and respect for nature.

Christol said, "I have a passion for the outdoors and working with animals. I'd like to pursue those interests in time."

For now, she is an aerospace education specialist who brings enthusiasm and shares her expertise with educators at NASA workshops. 

BHSU Career Center coordinates internships - Top

The Black Hills State University Career Center recently received the new listings for the South Dakota executive internships for the fall 2001 semester. 

These internships provide an excellent opportunity for college students to earn academic credit and money while gaining practical work experience in their major field of study. Internships are being offered in the following state departments:  Agriculture, Game Fish & Parks, Social Services, Education & Cultural Affairs, Military & Veterans Affairs, Corrections, Human Services, and Environment & Natural Resources.

Most of these internships pay a minimum of $8.40 per hour (40 hours per week), depending upon qualifications. The application deadline for fall semester internships is July 23.  A complete list of internships offered is available in the BHSU Career Center, located in the lower level of the Student Union.  An updated online list will also be available soon at www.bhsu.edu/careers.

Contact Sarah Chase, career counselor, for information at (605) 642-6219 or by email at sarahchase@bhsu.edu.

Postal Pete's Tip... - Top
(courtesy of Hanna Swarts, BHSU mail services) 

When using bar coded approved business reply card or envelope, do not place any additional information in the address area or the discount will be cancelled.  Return address or other defining information may be placed in the upper left corner.

Grant opportunities announced - Top

Below are the program materials received June 21-27 in the grants office, Woodburn 218. For copies of the information, contact our office at 642-6627 or e-mail requests to us at grants@bhsu.edu.  Fellowship information will also be posted on the Student Union bulletin board near the information desk.

• Department of Education.  The Professional Development for Music Educators Program.  Professional development model programs based upon innovative methodologies or best practices will be funded under this program.  Deadline:  Aug. 6.

• Department of Education.  Talent Search and Educational Opportunity Centers Program.  Educational Opportunity Centers Program applications due Sept. 28; Talent Search applications due Oct. 19.