Boise State Targets New Degree at Adults with Prior College Experience

Boise State University is offering a new degree program aimed at Treasure Valley adults who have earned some college credit but, for various reasons, never completed a college degree. Many of these adults would like to earn a bachelor’s degree in order to broaden their career options or to fulfill personal aspirations.

To meet that need, Boise State is offering the Bachelor of General Studies degree program beginning in fall 2008. Housed in the College of Social Sciences and Public Affairs, this program’s flexible curriculum allows self-directed adults to maximize credits already earned and shorten the time needed to complete their degrees.

“We believe that this program provides an opportunity for people who have had to step away from college, for personal or professional reasons, to return and earn a bachelor's degree related to their varied interests,” said Shelton Woods, interim dean of the College of Social Sciences and Public Affairs. “We are excited to reach out to this group — this is what a metropolitan university should do.”

The Bachelor of General Studies degree allows credit to be awarded for knowledge acquired from external study or from life experiences equivalent to the learning outcomes of traditional courses. Sources may include testing, military or other training programs and the student’s prior learning portfolio.

Tests for which Boise State awards credit include Advanced Placement (AP), College Level Examination Program (CLEP), Proficiency Examination Program (PEP), DANTES, challenge examinations and credit for prerequisites not taken. College-level learning that cannot be translated into credits by one of these programs may be evaluated individually.

Students will work closely with an adviser to develop an academic degree plan that will help them meet their stated goals. Those desiring a more narrowly focused, discipline-specific course of study should consider one of Boise State’s traditional majors.

For more information, visit www.boisestate.edu/BGS or call ext. 6-1709.

Undergraduate Research Highlighted at Monday Conference

Research done by more than 300 undergraduate students at Boise State will be highlighted Monday during the fifth annual Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Conference. Research presentations will run from 1-4 p.m. in several areas on the 2nd floor of the Student Union Building.

The conference provides Boise State undergraduate students an opportunity to share their research projects with students, faculty, staff and the public. About 134 projects representing a diverse range of disciplines in the sciences, engineering and the arts will be on display. Also, winners of the President’s Writing Award will be reading portions of their entries from 1-1:30 p.m. in the Jordan Ballroom.

In This Issue

  1. Come Back and Finish That Degree
  2. Undergraduate Research in the Spotlight
  3. International Programs
  4. Beat Pete Raises $15,000
  5. Research Matters
  6. International Programs
  7. Complete the Survey - Maybe Win Stuff
  8. MFA Reading Series
  9. Diverse Perspectives Film Series
  10. Choral Groups Join Forces
  11. Juried Art Exhibit
  12. Locks-of-Love, A Special Gift
  13. Chemistry Department News
  14. Health, Wellness and Counseling Services
  15. Photo of the Week
  16. Faculty and Staff in Action
New Horizons in Education

William McDonough

Green Architect

Guest Host: John Gardner

Friday, 5:30 p.m. and Sunday, 11 a.m. on NPR News 91

Beyond The Blue

More than 1,100 high school students are participating in Boise State’s concurrent enrollment program this semester. Also known as dual credit, it is a partnership with Treasure Valley high schools to provide college courses to their students.

CAMPUS REC

Beat Pete Event Raises $15,000 for General Scholarship Fund

The inaugural Beat Coach Pete 5K Race for Student Scholarships raised about $15,000 for the Boise State general scholarship fund as nearly 750 runners and walkers participated April 5. The event was presented by Boise State Campus Recreation and Nike.

Bronco football coach Chris Petersen had pledged a $5 donation for every runner who beat his time. Kinesiology professor and two-time luge Olympian Werner Hoeger matched the offer. In the end, 23 people topped Hoeger’s 18-minute time while 322 beat Petersen’s 25:52 clocking. Both individuals made larger donations with Hoeger contributing $500 and Petersen $2,000 for the cause.

In an additional challenge from the Office of the President, the Office of Student Affairs handily won the contest for the highest percentage of college or unit participants. Student Affairs will be treated to a weekday reception in the brand new skysuite facility in Bronco Stadium this fall.

A slide show of the Beat Pete event is online.

RESEARCH MATTERS

Division of Research Features Mullner, Baker on Web Site

Research MattersMaterials Science and Engineering professor Peter Mullner and Center for Health Policy Director Ed Baker are featured in new postings on the Division of Research Web site.

Mullner and graduate student Mike Hagler are featured in a new segment of the “Research Matters” video series. To play the new segment, go to the Boise State University home page and click on the “Research Matters” button, or go to the Division of Research Web site.

Baker’s research involving climbers on Mount Denali is featured in an “In the Spotlight” article on the Division of Research home page. The research was published in the current issue of the journal, Wilderness and Environmental Medicine.

Baker teamed with physicians from the Family Medicine Residency of Idaho on a two-year study of climbers on Mount Denali to determine whether there was a relationship between acute mountain sickness and carbon monoxide levels in climbers’ blood. Their study is titled “Carbon Monoxide Exposure on Denali: Comparing the 2004 and 2005 Climbing Seasons.”

International Programs

Guidelines for Developing a Memorandum of Understanding Available

The International Programs Office has posted guidelines for how to develop a Memorandum of Understanding with an institution of higher education or organization outside of the United States. An administrative process checklist, faculty considerations and a list of Boise State’s current partner universities are available online.

 

COMPREHENSIVE CAMPAIGN

Faculty, Staff Asked to Complete Survey

Friday is the last day to take the electronic survey on the university's comprehensive campaign. In an attempt to gauge campus awareness of the campaign, we are asking faculty and staff to take a few minutes to complete this short survey. All answers will remain confidential. Those who complete the survey by April 10 will be entered into a drawing for a variety of prizes ranging from tote bags to Starbucks gift cards.

Events on Our Campus

Andrew Joron, Kevin Kiely Featured in MFA Reading Series

Two poets will give readings as part of the MFA Reading Series: Andrew Joron will speak at 7:30 p.m. April 11, and Kevin Kiely will read at 7:30 p.m. May 2. Both readings will be in the Student Union Farnsworth Room and are free and open to the public.

Joron initially wrote as a science fiction poet, but after publishing “Science Fiction” in 1992, his work moved towards late surrealism and textual poetry. He is the author of several works, including “The Cry at Zero: Selected Prose,” “Neo-Surrealism: Or, The Sun At Night,” “Fathom,” which was one of the Village Voice’s top 25 books of 2003, “The Removes: The Outside House Series,” and “Terminal Velocities.” Joron also translated the Marxist-Utopian philosopher Ernst Bloch’s literary essays.

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Diverse Perspectives Film Series Wraps Up With ‘A Dream in Doubt’

Boise State will screen the film “A Dream in Doubt” at 5:30 p.m. April 15 in the Student Union Lookout Room and at 10:30 a.m. April 19 at Boise State West, Room 102E. Both screenings are free and open to the public.

“A Dream in Doubt” focuses on Sikh Americans living in Phoenix, Ariz., in a close-knit community of families who experienced a wave of frightening hate crimes in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks. Rana Singh Sodhi, a 36-year-old Indian immigrant, finds his life forever altered by the terror attacks, not because he knew any victims of the attack, but because his turban and beard became symbols of the terrorists who attacked America. Rana’s eldest brother, Balbir — who also was bearded and wore a turban —was America’s first post-9/11 hate crime murder victim, gunned down at his gas station by a man who claimed he was rooting out a terrorist. “A Dream in Doubt” will be presented at 10 p.m. May 13 on Idaho Public Television on the Emmy Award–winning PBS series “Independent Lens,” hosted by Terrence Howard. The Idaho screenings are sneak previews.

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IN Our Community

Choral Groups Join Forces for Concert at University Christian Church on April 26

The final concert of the academic year for the Boise State choral groups will be at 7:30 p.m. April 26 at University Christian Church, 1801 University Drive. Admission is $5 general, $3 seniors, free to students of all ages and Boise State faculty and staff. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis.

This concert will showcase many of the department’s choral groups, including the Meistersingers, University Singers and Vox Angelis. The concert’s featured piece will be “Gloria” by John Rutter for choir, brass and percussion. Brass is under the direction of professors Marcellus Brown and David Mathie, and percussion is under the direction of John Baldwin. The department chair, Mark Hansen, will be the organist for this piece.

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CONCURRENT ENROLLMENT

Art Exhibit Features Work of High School Students Earning College Credit from Boise State

Boise State's Concurrent Enrollment Program, in partnership with Kuna, Meridian and Skyview high schools, is hosting a student art exhibit April 4-25 at the Hispanic Cultural Center Art Gallery, 315 Stampede Drive in Nampa. The public is invited to a reception from 6:30-8 p.m. Friday, April 25.

The high schools have selected the best artwork by their Art I and Art II students for inclusion in the juried exhibition. Some of the participating students enrolled in the art classes are also gaining university credits through Boise State. Art instructors are Jessica Tookey, Kuna High; Anne Henneman, Meridian High; and Gary Olson, Skyview High.

HONORS COLLEGE

Students Participate in Annual Boise Cut-Off for Locks of Love

Would you like to help a child in need? Is your hair 10 inches or longer? Are you looking for a new hairstyle that you can get for free? If the answer is yes, then join the students from the Honors College at their 7th Annual Boise Cut-Off to benefit Locks of Love April 19. Locks of Love is a non-profit organization that provides hairpieces for children suffering from medical hair loss.

The Honors College's Boise Cut-Off will be held from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at the Beehive Salon at 610 South 15th St. Professional stylists will be available cut the hair of about 20 people. Adults and children alike are welcome to participate. Please make advance appointments by calling Tabatha Carroll at (406) 660-0072.

CHEMISTRY

Charlier, Students Make Presentations at National Meeting

Three Boise State undergraduate students presented their research at the 235th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society, the premier professional gathering for chemists, in New Orleans this week.

Chemistry professor Henry Charlier co-authored the posters presented to the gathering by students Christopher Ewing, Briana Flaherty and Matthew Mayer. Students Angelo Romano and Jasmine Furnish were also listed as authors on one of the posters.

Ewing's poster presentation at the Division of Medicinal Chemistry Poster session on Sunday—where he "presented alongside of drug companies and Ph.D.'s and did very well," according to Charlier, was entitled "Carbonyl Reductase Inhibition as a Means to Increase Anthracycline Efficacy." His presentation also unveiled data for new patent applications resulting from the research.

Flaherty presented her poster entitled, "Construction and Preliminary Characterization of Polyhistidine Tagged Phosphotriesterase." She presented Monday at the undergraduate poster session.

Mayer also presented his poster at the undergraduate poster session on Monday. His poster entitled "Binary and Ternary Complexes Involving Small Molecules and Carbonyl Reductase" was selected as a Top Undergraduate Poster by the Division of Geochemistry. He received a cash award and a one-year membership to the Division of Geochemistry.

Also, professor and chemistry department chairman Clifford LeMaster and Sean Ruettgers, the department's computer specialist and chemistry computer laboratory manager, presented the department's poster "Alternative Assessment Methods in Upper Division Chemistry Courses: Benefits to Students, Faculty, and the Department."

YOUR HEALTH

Campus Community Invited to Health Screening April 17

Health, Wellness and Counseling Services is offering a free health screening from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. April 17 in the Farnsworth Room at the Student Union. This screening opportunity will bring together the best practices in integrative medicine today to inform staff, faculty and students about how to take responsibility for their health care. A holistic lifestyle assessment, strengths and weaknesses assessment and referrals to a variety of wellness programming will also be available. Employees and students will find the information, video and activities stimulating. Steps for improving health will be provided. For more information, contact Karla West at kwest@boisestate.edu

Photo of the Week

The Gondoliers

 

Head football coach Chris Petersen presented a $2,000 check for the general scholarship fund to Michael Laliberte, vice president for student affairs, at the conclusion of Saturday’s Beat Pete race. Petersen had promised to donate $5 for every racer who beat him. Of the more than 750 participants, 322 racers beat Peterson’s time of 25 minutes, 52 seconds. The event raised a total of $15,000 through entry fees, sponsorships and challenges from Petersen and Werner Hoeger, a kinesiology professor and 2002 and 2006 Olympian.

A slide show of the Beat Pete event is online.

John Kelly photo

Faculty & Staff In Action

Charlotte Lanier, Service-Learning Program, Ginna Husting, sociology, and Yamin Aguilar from the Agency for New Americans (a community partner for six Boise State Service-Learning classes) were recently recognized at the Governor's Brightest Stars Ceremony. The three were among 100 Idaho Citizens who are "unsung heroes who work tirelessly on behalf of families and children in their communities." The purpose of the Brightest Stars Award Program is to encourage and affirm active participation by citizens of all ages.

Gary Moncrief, political science, presented a paper on turnover in state legislatures at the Western Political Science Association annual meeting in San Diego in March. Moncrief was also chosen to serve on the program committee for the 2009 meeting in Vancouver, B.C. He will be in charge of organizing all the panels on state politics.

Don Winiecki, instructional and performance technology and sociology, recently had a paper titled “An Ethnostatistical Analysis of Performance Measurement” published in the Performance Improvement Quarterly journal. The paper draws upon a multi-sited ethnographic study of call centers and identifies and analyzes the social foundations of employee evaluation practices.

John Ziker, anthropology, had an article, ‘Evolutionary Anthropology and the Environment,’ published in the April edition of Anthropology News. The article noted contributions to the recent Focus the Nation event. Ziker is a contributing editor for the publication.

Local News Sources:

The Idaho Statesman - The Idaho Press Tribune - The Boise Weekly - The Arbiter - Boise State Radio

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