CSU, Chico News

In preparation for journalist and author Elizabeth Kolbert’s talk at California State University, Chico, the Northern California Natural History Museum (NCNHM) joins the Rawlins Environmental Professorship, the On the Creek Lecture Series and Chico Performances in presenting a series of book discussions. This four-part series on Kolbert’s book, “Field Notes on Catastrophe: Man, Nature and Climate Change,” begins this Wednesday, Feb. 18, 7 p.m. at Barnes and Noble.

Kolbert will speak in Laxson Auditorium on Wednesday, March 11. Kolbert is a climate journalist who writes for The New Yorker. Her pieces on climate change were collected in her book. “She has taken a topic that many people think of as an impersonal collection of hurricanes, spreading deserts, and rising oceans—or perhaps as two lines crossing on a graph some decades from now—and given it a human face, and, as important, given it urgency,” said Denis Hayes, chair of the International Earth Day Network and president of the Bullitt Foundation, a funding organization whose mission is to “safeguard the natural environment by promoting responsible human activities and sustainable communities in the Pacific Northwest.”

Dean Jim Houpis, College of Natural Sciences, and Jim Pushnik, PhD, Department of Biological Sciences, will lead the first discussion on Wednesday. They will talk about “Adaptation and Mitigation of Climate Change.”

The schedule for remaining discussions and Kolbert’s visit is below. All of the one-hour discussions begin at 7 p.m. and will be held at Barnes and Noble.

Feb. 25 “Implications of Climate Change—Ocean Temperatures and Fisheries,” led by Matt Change, PhD, Department of Agriculture

Mar. 4 “Climate Change and Impacts on Civilizations,” led by Bill Collins, PhD, Department of Anthropology

Mar. 11 Elizabeth Kolbert at CSU, Chico’s Laxson Auditorium (tickets available through the University Box Office)

Mar. 18 “Renewable Energy: What It Can Do for You,” led by Cristina Archer, PhD, Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences.

Everyone is welcome. For more information, call Greg Liggett, director, NCMHM, at 530-898-4121.

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The California State University, Chico, Special Education Teacher Preparation Program was selected to receive the 2009 State Farm® Award for Service-Learning Excellence in Teacher Education. Service-learning is a teaching method that engages students in solving problems within their schools and communities as part of their academic studies.

“Service-learning helps students’ master important curricular content by making meaningful connections between what they study in the classroom and its many applications in the real world,” said State Farm Insurance Companies senior director of education leadership, Kathy Havens Payne. “Teaching teachers how to use service-learning as a strategy to reach their students brings learning to life and helps young people become ready for the real world, as engaged learners, active citizens and active members of our 21st century workforce.”

State Farm selected CSU, Chico for demonstrating significant support for service-learning and for providing its students with exemplary opportunities to learn and practice the skills necessary to implement service-learning in their own classrooms, said Payne.

“At CSU, Chico, service-learning is an important part of our special education teacher preparation programs as well as other credentialing programs in the School of Education,” said Terri Davis, chair of the Department of Professional Studies in Education. “The program’s faculty engages the teacher candidates in service-learning activities, while providing candidates with systematic and explicit instruction in service-learning as a teaching strategy.”

Special education faculty include Davis, one of only 10 national finalists for the Thomas Ehrlich Faculty Award for Service-Learning in 2002; Michelle Cepello, EdD, director of the Special Education Program; and Laurel Hill-Ward, MA, Special Education, coordinator of the Concurrent Education Specialist/Multiple Subject Program.

These three faculty members have implemented service-learning pedagogy for over 12 years. They have made numerous national and international presentations and conducted research projects that provide data regarding the effectiveness of service-learning as a teaching strategy in K-12 and higher education.

Davis supplied this written comment from one teacher candidate about her experience in service learning: “Lessons are made valuable and worth learning when students can share their knowledge and work with others who benefit from that service. Children with special needs find a place within their community which can be unique to the student or expanded to the greater world; self esteem and value are increased.”

The award will be presented to Davis, Cepello and Hill-Ward at the 20th Annual National Service-Learning Conference in Nashville, Tenn. on March 20 at an awards ceremony that honors all 2009 State Farm Service-Learning Awardees.

The special education programs at CSU, Chico are part of a campuswide commitment to service learning. The University is an active member of Campus Compact, a national coalition of nearly 1,200 college and university presidents dedicated to promoting community service, civic engagement and service-learning in higher education.

The State Farm® Award for Service-Learning Excellence in Teacher is administered by the National Service-Learning Partnership at the Academy for Educational Development (a grassroots network of more than 12,000 members form all 50 states and U.S. territories), in partnership with the International Center for Service-Learning in Teacher Education.

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From advice on helping a friend with an eating disorder to discussions about recovery to a stand-up comedian, Eating Disorders Awareness Week, Feb. 22–27, offers something of interest for anyone who wants to find out more. Part of a national outreach effort, the local week was planned by a coalition of services and student groups at California State University, Chico. Students, faculty, staff and members of the community are welcomed at all events.

The National Eating Disorders Association reports that, in the United States, as many as 10 million females and one million males are fighting a life-and-death battle with an eating disorder such as anorexia or bulimia. Millions more are struggling with binge eating disorder.

“This is the first time we’ve brought so many people together to plan this event, and we are excited that we will reach so many more people than we have in the past,” said Stephanie Chervinko, psychologist at the Counseling and Wellness Center and chair of the committee. “Eating disorders can be life-threatening, but with treatment, people get better. So one of the things we want to do is to raise awareness that help is available. Another goal is to provide resources to friends and families, so they have some guidance in their efforts to support a loved one who may be struggling with an eating disorder.”

Schedule of Events:
Monday, Feb. 23
“It’s a Guy Thing,” Presentation by Troy Purdom, Kinesiology
5–6 p.m. BMU 314

Comedian Loni Love
9–10 p.m. BMU Auditorium

Tuesday, Feb. 24
Information Fair
10 a.m.–2 p.m. Free Speech Area (Selvester’s Café for rain)

Understanding Eating Disorders: How to help a friend
Tony Paulson, Summit Eating Disorders and Outreach Program
7–8 p.m. Lassen TV/Study Lounge

Wednesday, Feb. 25
Information Fair
10 a.m.–2 p.m. Free Speech Area (BMU for rain)

“The Road to Recovery,” Panel Discussion
5¬–6 p.m. BMU 314

Thursday, Feb. 26
“Lovely and Amazing,” film and discussion
7:30–9:30 p.m. Common Grounds, BMU
Clothing Exchange before the movie
6:30–7:30

As part of Eating Disorders Awareness Week, The Campus Wellness Center will present the Great Jeans Give-A-Way From Monday, Feb. 16 through Friday, Feb. 27. “The idea behind the clothing drive,” said Chervinko, “is to encourage people to have a healthy body image by having clothes that fit now, not clothes that will fit someday.” The slogan attached to this campaign is, “Be comfortable in your genes!”

Any kind of clothing, not just jeans, can be dropped off at several stations on campus. The collected items will be donated to charities. The drop-off stations include the CAVE Office in BMU 309; the Women’s Center downstairs in the BMU; the BMU Information Center; and the Counseling and Wellness Center, SSC 430.

For more information on the week, call Chervinko at 530-898-6345. For more information on eating disorders, visit the National Eating Disorders Web site at http://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/.

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Adventure Outings, California State University, Chico, will host the Western Regional Outdoor Leadership Conference this coming weekend, Feb. 6 to noon on Feb. 8. One hundred and thirty professional and student staff from university outdoor programs throughout the state will attend the conference, and representatives of several outdoor companies will have booths.

“We at Adventure Outings are very excited to have the opportunity to host WROLC for 2009,” said Ann Marie Redente, program coordinator. “We can’t wait for everyone to arrive so we can share our city, campus and the amazing environment that surrounds us here in Chico.”

The attendees of the conference will participate in a variety of workshops, including leadership development, how to move toward zero waste and exploring the connection between service projects and outdoor recreation.

Royal Robbins, a pioneer in rock climbing, kayaking, business and global stewardship, will provide the keynote address at the banquet on Saturday, Feb. 7. Robbins revolutionized the sport of rock climbing, making numerous first ascents that include the first grade VI climb in America. He was also an early proponent of “clean climbing” to minimize human impact on the rock. Robbins and his wife, Liz, founded “Royal Robbins” clothing company, including global stewardship in their company’s mission.

For information, contact Adventure Outings at 530-898-4011.

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Celebrate Black History Month by stepping back in time and going to the Harlem Renaissance Rent Party, a costume party for a cause, on Thurs., Feb. 12 at 5 p.m. on the Harlen Adams Theatre stage.

Rent Parties were a way for Harlemites in the 1920s and 1930s to pay their rent. Hosts would hire musicians, cook food and with the proceeds have money to cover their rent.

CSU, Chico’s African American faculty invites you to participate in this tradition and at the same time support the Martin Luther King, Jr. Scholarship and the Multicultural and Gender Student Activist-Scholar Award. All proceeds from the Rent Party go directly to these organizations.

To kickoff Black History Month CSU, Chico is declaring Feb. 12 Harlem Renaissance Day.

The Harlem Renaissance Rent Party will be filled with partygoers dressed up as anyone from 1919 to 1929, and prizes will be awarded to those with the best costumes. People are also encouraged to wear their costumes to work that day.

The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement from the 1920s and 1930s in New York City’s Harlem neighborhood. The Harlem Renaissance gave birth to many mainstream African American writers and musicians. Without this movement literature, theatre, art and politics would not be the same. Celebrate this revolutionary time at this year’s Harlem Renaissance Rent Party.

Donations of $5 or more will be welcomed at the door.

For more information, contact Tracy Butts, professor in CSU, Chico’s Department of English and coordinator of the event, at 898-5151 or via email, tbutts@csuchico.edu.

Two California State University, Chico Research Foundation projects in robotics will be discussed today at noon in O’Connell 254. In addition, the robot Scout will demonstrate some of his abilities. Jason Coates, project engineer, will provide information on the two projects.

Nick Repanich, project director, said that in addition to Scout, the project is working on larger robotic vehicles that are out at the University Farm and down at Livermore and unavailable for demonstration. “Plus they weigh 2,500 pounds,” said Repanich, “and there is no easy way to bring one into the classroom. We will have videos of the larger robot, and we would be more than happy to have those interested visit the farm if they want to see it.”

Over the last few years, engineers from ECC have been involved in remote- controlled vehicle projects ranging in size from 1/10th scale trucks to full-sized, side-by-side ATVs. The two current projects include a robot that will do inspections of nuclear facilities and robots that are being developed for Lawrence Livermore Labs.

One project is to engineer a small robot that can be driven ahead of a scouting party to see if there are threats before soldiers enter the area. The robot would have many of the same senses a human has, including sight and sound detection, with an audio/video feedback to a convoy. These kinds of robots also have application in the nuclear energy environment, entering an area and testing for radiation. The scouts are driven from a remote console away from the danger area.

The second kind of robot is a series of full-sized vehicles that would drive in front of large convoy of vehicles, checking for danger far ahead. These can be driven by the passenger in the front vehicle at a fairly high speed.

All of these projects have the common goal of keeping people out of harm’s way by replacing them with inexpensive robotic units with a “disposable” price tag. High development costs are bypassed by integrating off-the-shelf components where possible.

The public and the media are encouraged to attend to learn about the California Mechatronic Center and its work. “We focus on really inexpensive ways to do 80 percent of what a military-specialized robot might do, at one-tenth of the cost,” said Repanich.

Mike Ward, interim dean for the College of Engineering, Computer Science and Construction Management, will be available for comment on the robot projects.

Another demonstration day is being planned for Feb. 20. For more information, contact Repanich at 530-898-5660.

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The Northern California Local Government Leadership Institute announces that enrollment is open for the Leadership Development Program, a seven-course series designed to help local government employees cultivate leadership skills and become more effective and proactive leaders and managers.

The Leadership Development Program, now in its sixth year, has served more than 250 local government leaders throughout California. The series provides strategies and solutions for department managers, administrative staff, supervisors, elected officials and any other local government, tribal or special district employee with an interest in developing more effective leadership skills.

The first class in the series, redefining leadership, launches the program with an examination of the core elements of exceptional leadership and how to effectively apply them in a local government environment. Subsequent courses are leadership ethics, organizational communication, power and influence strategies, strategic thinking and decision making, creativity and innovation, and the leader’s role in budget and finance.

This practitioner-focused program is continually updated to include emerging trends and new approaches to leadership. Leadership Development Program advisers and instructors include John Blacklock, retired Butte County chief administrative officer; Kelly Cox, Lake County administrative officer; Scott Winter, vice president of LearningChange; Tom Lando, retired city manager of the City of Chico; Joc Clark, professional leadership development specialist; Tim Howey, professional government leadership developer; Larry Lees, Shasta County administrative officer; and Martin Nichols, City of Red Bluff, manager.

The 2009 Leadership Development Program starts Feb. 12-13 on the CSU, Chico campus, Continuing Education building, room 107.

For course descriptions and enrollment information, contact the CSU, Chico Continuing Education office at 530-898-6105 or visit the Northern California Local Government Leadership Institute Web site at http://rce.csuchico.edu/leader.

Early and group discounts are available.

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Kijeong Jeon, coordinator of the Interior Design Program in the Department of Art and Art History, California State University, Chico, provided the interior design for California Vocations’ patient care facility for people with autism, the COVE. The facility opened in Paradise in December. The project grew out of the need to have a base site and treatment center for clients in the day program run by California Vocations. The facility was completed with the cooperation and contributions of architects, civil engineers, builders, landscapers and audio-visual specialists from Paradise and the surrounding area.

Jeon was contacted by Bob Irvine, executive director of California Vocations. Irvine and Terry Kozloff, director of the COVE Day Program, had the seeds of the idea two years ago, when changes in the Paradise curbside recycling program, which had been at the heart of the day program, forced them to look at opportunities for more individualized programming. The change in programming also required a base where clients could go to relax and rest.

Jeon took on the project whole-heartedly, said Kozloff. “What a fabulous man!” said Kozloff. “He made a commitment and did the research and planning to make the COVE possible.”

The design of the COVE, said Jeon, is based on research and observations and interviews with people involved or afflicted with autism, including instructors, care givers and clients. “The finished interior environment incorporates spatial volumes, architectural details, colors, lighting and sounds that respond to the particular sensory needs of the clients, while still functioning as an educational environment.”

To the best of Jeon’s knowledge, the COVE is one of the first such spaces in the country to be designed based on behavioral studies of the autistic.

“I consider this space the most fulfilling design project in my professional career, not just for the aesthetic value of the design, but for the impact it could have on the lives of those who could be served by such adaptations in the environment,” said Jeon. “With the population of people with autism increasing, I realize the importance of educating the community and government agencies to the benefits of providing uniquely designed environments that enable people with autism to relax, learn and progress.”

Kozloff said that, although the environment is not for everyone and each person with autism has unique needs and responses, she has seen significant improvement in some people. “There is one person who we believed had much inside we couldn’t reach. He would lie on the floor, not make eye contact and not talk to people,” said Kozloff. “In just a couple of months, he is more social, walks around the facility and uses the touch screen computers. It is really amazing and has made such a difference in his life!”

Jeon plans to remain involved with the COVE. He will participate in post occupancy evaluations, focusing on the effectiveness of the design solutions and the patients’ use of the space. “I want to refine and possibly develop new and more effective design solutions that can be used in residential applications for people with autism.”

Kozloff says that the plan is to find ways to extend the use of the COVE to the community. They have already had many inquiries about using the COVE for children’s classes and meeting other special needs in the community. For more information, you can contact Irvine at 530-877-4146, ex. 202, or Kozloff at 530-877-0937.

California Vocations receives part of its funding from the Far Northern Regional Center.

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The Janet Turner Print Museum will open the doors of its new home Jan. 26 in the Meriam Library at California State University, Chico with an exhibition of newly acquired print art from American art icon Winslow Homer.

Titled “Deconstructing Innocence: Winslow Homer Prints,” the exhibit runs through Feb. 22 and features the Robert R. and Sharon R. Ross Collection of Winslow Homer Prints.

The Rosses, professors emeriti of the departments of political science and mathematics, respectively, donated the art to The Turner last year. The professors knew Janet Turner personally and shared her love of fine art prints. The grand opening of The Turner in its new Meriam Library location will be the collection’s first public showing.

The exhibit includes 29 prints and one block representing different periods of Homer’s life and provides rare, personal glimpses of 19th century American life – its history, culture and morals.

“A realist and naturalist, Winslow Homer is an important figure in 19th century American art,” said Turner curator Catherine Sullivan. “For our museum, the Ross’ gift provides a wonderful opportunity to showcase a significant body of an artist’s work. This collection is especially important as Homer was both a printmaker and a painter, and that makes his work more accessible.”

Homer’s 55-year career as an artist spanned an interesting period in American history as the country changed from a pre-Civil War agrarian society to an industrial society, noted Sullivan. Homer’s work reflects the social change; one example is his portrayal of women who, in the new industrial society, suddenly found themselves with new freedoms and leisure time.

Homer had no formal artistic training. He began as a free-lance illustrator. Some of his best illustrations were done for Harper’s Weekly magazine, for which he covered the Civil War, concentrating primarily on Union Army daily camp life.

Homer evolved from illustrator to printmaker and painter (both oil and watercolor). His portrayals of American life include people in society, the Civil War, children at play, families, farm life, and humans versus nature. Although he lived in New England, New York, Paris and England, ultimately he settled in a secluded village on the coast of Maine, where he spent 27 years. His prints and paintings reflect life on the Eastern seaboard as well as his travels to Canada and the Caribbean.

“The Robert R. and Sharon R. Ross Collection is a perfect exhibit to open a new era for the Janet Turner Print Museum,” said Joel Zimbelman, interim dean of the College of Humanities and Fine Arts. “Our new home is in keeping with Janet’s mission of expanding access to high-quality print art to students and the community alike.”

Robert Ross was a board member of the Turner Print Museum from 2004 to 2006. “From that position,” he said, “I was able to see not only what a great asset the Turner Print Museum was to the University and the Chico area, but how professionally it was curated. I know that these prints will be in good hands.”

CSU, Chico President Zingg will formally announce the museum’s new home, located just inside the Meriam Library breezeway, in a press conference scheduled for Jan. 26. For more information, please call Brooks Thorlaksson, associate dean of the College of Humanities and Fine Arts, at 898-5351.

Museum hours for the Homer exhibition are Monday-Friday, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. There will be a gala opening reception at the museum’s new location Wednesday, Feb. 4, 5:30 -7:30 p.m.

For more information about the Turner and its spring 2009 season of exhibitions, please contact Sullivan at 898-4476 or visit www.theturner.org.

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Feb. 12 will be Charles Darwin’s 200th birthday. To commemorate this occasion, faculty and staff from across California State University, Chico have organized a series of events, including a birthday celebration, a book club, nature hikes, lectures and discussions and a film showing. All events are free and open to the public.

On Thursday, Feb. 12, there will be a family-friendly celebration of Darwin’s birthday. The event will be complete with games, educational displays, prizes, an interactive human evolution exhibit and birthday cake. This celebration will be 10 a.m.–3 p.m. in Sylvester’s Creekside Cafe on the CSU, Chico campus. Students, faculty and staff from the Departments of Geological and Environmental Sciences and Biological Sciences as well as from the Museum of Anthropology will be among the participants.

The Northern California Natural History Museum is sponsoring a book club focused on ”The Origin of Species,” which will meet at Chico Barnes and Noble 7-8 p.m. on three Wednesdays, Jan. 28, Feb. 4 and Feb. 11. CSU, Chico faculty members from the biology, multicultural and gender studies, and philosophy departments will facilitate discussions.

Also planned are two nature hikes guided by biology faculty members, a series of panel discussions on ethical aspects of Darwin’s ideas sponsored by CSU, Chico’s Center for Applied and Professional Ethics, a viewing of the film “Inherit the Wind” about the infamous Scopes “Monkey” trial, and a lecture by Professor Art Shapiro of UC Davis.

“Remarkably, a lot of people don’t appreciate that Darwin’s ideas have improved our standard of living and helped us address big problems in our society,” said Chris Ivey, assistant professor in CSU, Chico’s Department of Biological Sciences and one of the event’s lead organizers. “Many of the advances we’ve made in agriculture, fighting disease, protecting rare species and limiting the impact of pests and invasive species would have been impossible without an understanding of evolution.”

Hundreds of groups across the United States and the globe celebrate Feb. 12 as “Darwin Day” each year in honor of the discoveries and life of the man who famously described biological evolution via natural selection. The Darwin Day Celebration started with one event in 1995. Last year there were more than 850 Darwin Day events worldwide. The annual event was conceived by the Institute for Humanist Studies, an Albany, N.Y.-based nonprofit that promotes reason and humanism.

This year marks both the 200th anniversary of Darwin’s birth and the 150th anniversary of the 1859 publication of Darwin’s “The Origin of Species,” which presented the scientific theory that populations evolve over generations through natural selection.

The theory of evolution was controversial in Darwin’s time and remains controversial in the United States today. Recent Gallup polls show that 43 percent of Americans reject the theory of evolution.

“Evolutionary theory provides a framework for everything we understand about biology,” said Ivey. “It’s unfortunate that it is still misunderstood by some, even after 150 years of validation.”

For more information and a complete schedule of Darwin Day events in Chico, visit http://tinyurl.com/darwinday.

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