October 17, 2008

Dear Friends,

Election season is upon us and Boise State University is once again proving to be a key resource for voters trying to define one of the most interesting and important elections in a generation or more.

Led by faculty members in the College of Social Sciences and Public Affairs (SSPA) and Dean Melissa Lavitt, Boise State experts are busy educating the voters about the key issues, finding innovative ways to engage students in the electoral process and providing insightful analysis leading up to the Nov. 4 vote.

This month, a series of three expert panels, titled “Election 2008: Know the Issues,” explores hot topics sure to be top of mind for voters as they make their selections on Election Day. SSPA faculty and community experts discussed issues such as immigration, energy and the environment in two public forums held on campus in recent weeks. The final forum – focusing on perhaps the hottest election issue, the economy – will be held from 12:40-1:30 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 28 in the Student Union Building Farnsworth Room. Free and open to the public, these forums are designed to help voters make the most informed choice possible.

A program jointly created and coordinated by SSPA’s Social Sciences Research Center and Ada County’s elections division is giving Boise State students an opportunity to become an integral part of the electoral process as a new generation of poll workers. As the current pool of poll workers ages, building up a new cadre of young, engaged patriots to fill their shoes is essential. Starting with a small nucleus of Boise State Presidential Scholars, this non-partisan program helped recruit and train 185 new Ada County poll workers from the student body for the primary election in May. Between 300 and 400 Boise State students are expected to be working the polls in one capacity or another during the general election next month.

And Boise State’s political pundits, professors Gary Moncrief, John Freemuth, and Jim Weatherby, among others, are continuing their roles as expert observers of the electoral process in the media. Look for them on our local television stations on election night.

Thank you for all that you do for Boise State. Go Broncos!

Sincerely,

Bob Kustra

Here are a few recent or upcoming items of interest from Boise State University:

• The Center for Idaho History and Politics at Boise State University and Idaho First Lady Lori Otter teamed up on a new book for Idaho youngsters titled “Ida Visits the Capitol.” Aimed primarily at fourth graders, who study Idaho history as part of their academic year, the 32-page book includes information on Idaho history, governors, tribes, land, people, symbols and more. The book is written in a simple and engaging style that easily appeals to all ages. Each page includes interesting facts about Idaho, a timeline related to a specific subject and a topic to prompt further discussion. Several pages also include tips for teachers, such as Web sites, object lessons and places to visit.
• Boise State University will present a free, open-to-the-public presentation by “Three Cups of Tea” author Greg Mortenson at 7 p.m. Nov. 18 in the Morrison Center. There are no tickets; seating is first-come, first-served. Groups of 10 or more should contact Brian MacDonald at (208) 426-4624 for seating arrangements. Mortenson’s appearance is part of Boise State’s First Year Read program. Every new degree-seeking student was given a copy of “Three Cups of Tea” and has spent the fall semester discussing the book with fellow students and faculty in classes. Three Cups of Tea” tells how Mortenson sold everything and lived in his car to make good on his promise to an impoverished Pakistani village to build a school for its children.
• Boise State was one of three organizations presented with the EnviroGuard Award by City of Boise Mayor David Bieter on Oct. 1 for its commitment to the environment, joining Barger-Mattson Auto Supply and St. Luke’s Regional Medical Center. An independent committee made up of small and large business owners, city and state agencies and business assistance organizations judged the applications based on environmental benefits, waste reduction, economic benefit to the company and efficient use of raw materials. Boise State’s long-term master plan for ultimately making the campus climate neutral was central to the award.
• Ernest Hemingway scholars, Boise State students and faculty, and the Treasure Valley community have a new asset for their study and pleasure — the John Robert Bittner Collection on Ernest Hemingway. Housed in the Special Collections Department of Boise State’s Albertsons Library, the Bittner Collection consists of 300 research books on Hemingway's life and writings, supplemented by works on the expatriate life of 1920s Paris, Spanish bullfighters of Hemingway’s era, Hemingway’s editor Maxwell Perkins and other Hemingway literary associates. Denise Alexander Bittner of Eagle donated the collection in memory of her late husband, John Robert Bittner, a Hemingway scholar and award-winning professor of journalism and mass communication at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.