St. Norbert College Faculty Development summer awards announced

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From St. Norbert College, April 19, 2012
by Chris Swietlik, chris.swietlik@snc.edu, (920) 403-3089

Seventeen St. Norbert College faculty are receiving 2012 summer grant awards of $2,500.00 each. The recipients are as follows:

- David Bailey, assistant professor of biology, and Cynthia Ochsner, assistant professor of chemistry, will develop a new course titled "Introduction to Scientific Research," which aims to expose students to scientific research across the disciplines and improve the writing and comprehension of scientific works. They will also help develop a new web site for the college's pre-health study programs. - John Holder, associate professor of philosophy, will employ a different approach to teaching PHIL 105 "Critical Thinking" by integrating a wide variety of academic subjects to challenge students to solve abstract logic problems. - Katherine Muhs, assistant professor of mathematics, will update the format of MATH 212 so that it is more an inquiry-based course to give pre-service teachers a deeper understanding of the mathematics they will be teaching, which is in line with the new Common Core State Standards for Mathematics. - Deborah Anderson, associate professor of biology, will work on the "Research on Mammalian Faunal Change at Raven Ridge" project, investigating the hypothesis that mammal diversity does not increase during the Early-Middle Eocene age in the Raven Ridge, Colorado-Utah location. - Brandon Bauer, assistant professor of art, will contribute to the completion of the final production, printing, and professional presentation of "Finishing Funds for Solo Exhibition." - April Beiswenger, assistant professor of theater studies, will work on the summer project "Show of Dress," to advance professional development as a costume designer and an artist. - Mara Brecht, assistant professor of religious studies, will submit an essay titled, "Pilgrims for Peace or Prayers for Pluralism," to be accepted for publication by the Journal of Interreligious Dialogue. - Erik Brekke, assistant professor of physics, will create a laser source that is high powered with a narrow frequency range to explore nonlinear optical processes. - Deirdre Egan-Ryan, assistant professor of English, will write and present a conference paper meant to serve as the basis for a chapter-length study to be included in a book manuscript, "Strange Moderns: Migratory Women Writers and Urban Spatial Re-Form." - Terry Jo Leiterman, assistant professor of mathematics, will support ongoing scholarship utilizing training in fluid dynamics to test and refine a mathematical model on particle growth. - Jamie Lynch, assistant professor of sociology, will study the varying influence of college attendance on the health of young adults by race and gender. She will present findings at the annual Population Association of America national meeting and submit a manuscript to the journal Demography. - Joel Mann, assistant professor of philosophy, will complete a project titled, "A Tale of Two Curiosities: Antiphon's Third Tetralogy and the Doctrine of Double Effect."
- Rebecca McKean, assistant professor of geology, will work on the taphonomy of marine vertebrates of the Cretaceous Western Interior Seaway. - Tynisha Meidl, assistant professor of education, will complete a manuscript on the literacy approaches teachers use in the classroom to meet the needs of diverse learners. She will also start a second manuscript on the use of book talks as pedagogy to motivate struggling readers. - Karen Park, assistant professor of religious studies, will complete a successful book proposal for an edited volume of primary source material on the Virgin Mary. - Stephen Rupsch, assistant professor of theater studies, will help support the second production with Theater Z during the summer of 2012.
The Summer Grants Program offers faculty the opportunity to obtain financial support for scholarly, artistic, curricular and instructional projects undertaken during the summer months. During the past twenty-seven years, through over 400 individual grants, the program has provided many different faculty with opportunities that otherwise might not have been undertaken or completed.