Bette Belanger

Bette Belanger,
Assistant to the Director
pnbab@matsu.alaska.edu
or 745-9726

Calendar of Events

February 6, 2003

Volume III
Number 1

Spring 2003 opening enrollment as of 2/4/03 was 1428 (FTE 663.4) which is just 62 students away from last spring’s closing figures and already surpasses last spring’s closing FTE by over 3%. Add students registered for non-credit courses and our total enrollment is 1532. Our Admissions staff has been busy getting out and recruiting students and it shows. Over 50% of the student registration took place using the web registration. Admissions & Records had a web registration area in the FSM lobby staffed by students Greg Stackhouse, Gary Foster, and Stacey Johnston. # Congratulations to Andrea Laughlin-Gaiser who was promoted to Accounting Supervisor in the Business Office. Andrea has been with MSC for 16 years and certainly knows the "business and accounting" procedures of the Business Office for our college. #Also, congratulations go out to Suzan Beaty-Slover who was selected as the Administrative Assistant in the Director’s Office. Her work background is in retail. Suzan is a graduate (1997) of the Office Management & Technology program here at Mat-Su. She enjoys gardening and traveling. Faculty Search Committees have been moving right along with their task of reviewing applicants for five tenure track faculty positions and a new Assistant Director for Academic Affairs. On-campus interviews will be starting soon. As dates and times are firmed up notices will be sent out with each candidate’s interview schedule.	Borough Manager, John Duffy will be on our campus next Monday, Feb. 10 at 3:00 p.m. in FSM 205 to talk to the employees and students of MSC about upcoming projects the Mat-Su Borough has in the works. All faculty, staff and students are encouraged to attend. Chancellor’s 2003 Awards for Excellence nominations are due February 28. If you wish to recognize an outstanding full time faculty, adjunct, staff member, or department this is your opportunity to do so. The awards ceremony will be held on Friday, April 4 at UAA. To download nomination forms and to obtain more information go to the UAA Human Resources web site at: http://www.finsys.uaa.alaska.edu/uaahrs/ ► Upcoming CAFÉ’ Evening Community Forums: Tuesday February 11, 7:00 p.m. FSM 205 "Sentencing–A Delicate Balance" A presentation sponsored by the Alaska Court System will be given by Magistrate David Zwink and Judge Eric Smith. Following a video presentation there will be a Q & A session. Justice students and anyone interested in the topic are encouraged to attend. Tuesday, February 25, 7:00 p.m. FSM 205 (Rescheduled from Feb. 11) "Baseball, Business, and Boosters: The Fitchburg Rollstones, 1865-1876" Dr. Paul Dauphinais will give a talk about baseball and economic development during the 19^th century. All Mat-Su Valley residents, sports fans, historians and baseball aficionados are welcome. Tuesday, March 11, 7:00 p.m. FSM 205 "Friendship Village Project of Viet Nam" Adjunct faculty member Mike Cull will discuss the inception and continuing work of the The Village project. Located in Ha Tay Province the project houses and cares for Vietnamese children and veterans who suffer serious health problems attributed to Agent Orange. Tuesday, April 8, 7:00 p.m. FSM 205 "Klezmer in Alaska" Adjunct faculty member Markus Bishko will discuss his research and performance with the little known instrument the Klezman and his study of Jewish Music.
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► Upcoming Afternoon Café Events: Tuesday, March 4, Noon FSM 205 "Brown Bag Discussion and Book Title Exchange" We will have a book title sharing. Bring in a copy of your latest "good read" and your thoughts on the interest or relevance to others in the discussion group. (No more than 5 min per book, please.) Thursday, April 10, Noon, FSM 205 "Beyond ‘Outside’: Teaching and Learning in Arabia" Library Director, Tom Raffensperger reflects on the challenges and rewards of helping to set up a new women’s community college in the rural United Arab Emirates. A discussion on the broader issues of cross-cultural education and Muslim-Western relations will follow. A display of handicraft and textiles from the Middle East and Central Asia will also be available. A Faculty Development Workshop on Blackboard and Distance Education was held on January 7^th by the Mat-Su Distance Education Committee. Each faculty member who participated received a personal PC Pocket (very nice). If you were unable to attend you may still be eligible to enter a drawing for a PC Pocket. For details contact Rebecca Evans at pfrme@matsu.alaska.edu "Everyone Makes a Difference" A UAA Student Appreciation Luncheon was held January 17 at the UAA Campus Center Den. Hope Haag-Fuller, Jim Taliaferro, Teresa Curtis, Don Zoerb, and Kristal Steele, a few of the students nominated from our campus who attended. Technology Expo 2003 was held at the Cottonwood Creek Mall January 31 and February 1. Robin Burdick, Sandy Gravley, Foxy Hanners, Charles Hamby, and John Rogers represented the college. Robin reports that it was a success and well attended. This was the second year for the Expo put on by the Wasilla Chamber of Commerce. http://www.wasillachamber.org/ Seminars and entertainment were scheduled that illustrated the positive impact that technology provides in our schools, offices and homes. On January 8, Academic Affairs hosted two orientation sessions for new adjunct faculty. The first was held at noon, and the second at 4:00 pm. Those who attended found the sessions very helpful, full of valuable information. Some of the topics covered: Will Miles, Assistant Director for Academic Affairs - Policies, MSC web page, resources, information on how to write a syllabus, syllabus requirements, and class assessments. Sandy Gravley, Registrar - Registration, advising, grades, rosters, underage students, and faculty withdrawals. Debbie Dickey, Business Manager - payroll, tuition waivers, fees, and purchase requisitions. Brenda Forsythe, Blackboard/computer specialist - faculty web pages, and use of Blackboard. Gretchen Germer, Academic Affairs - Voicemail, new email procedures, copy machines, copy codes, faculty mailboxes, use of SmartCarts, tour of campus, and use of web page for forms.	Note: If you were unable to attend the orientation and need information on any of the items listed above contact the person whose name corresponds to the topic you are interested in. UAA Chancellor’s List - Several of our Mat-Su College student workers were named to the Fall 2002 Chancellor’s List. Our congratulations to the following: Kelly Kuzina Amber Ratterree Tara Hein Elaine Bialka Hope Haag To see a complete list of the UAA Chancellor’s List and Dean’s List for fall 2002 go to: http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/index.cfm?fuseAction=newsItem&news_id=311 ART NEWS.... Suzanne Bach, Art Dept. Coordinator announces there will be a ceremonial unveiling of the new sculpture. Created by Gene Stotts, the sculpture is entitled "Hearkening Spirit". The unveiling will take place on Saturday, February 22 at 2:00 p.m. The festivities will take place outside the main entrance of the Fred and Sara Machetanz Building.. Immediately following the unveiling will be the opening of the MSC Art Department’s Faculty Art Show 2003 in the Art Gallery located on the second floor of FSM. The gallery will be open from 2:00 until 5:00 p.m. on Feb. 22 and on Monday, Feb. 24 from 3:00 until 7:00 p.m. Instructors who would like to have their classes view the show during their class times may arrange to have the gallery opened by appointment. Call Suzan Beaty-Slover at 745-9779. Book Review by Dr. Paul Dauphinais Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies Jared Diamond (1997: W.W. Norton, NY) 480 pps. No. This is not a book about warfare. In short, the title refers to why some civilizations rise and dominate others—through guns, germs, and steel. Jared Diamond addresses this in very short order before going on to a far larger question: "Why do some civilizations rise and dominate others?" His answer to this question is thoughtful and won him a Pulitzer Prize. According to the author the development of agriculture is the key issue. Agriculture which produced useable surpluses allowed for the development of the division of labor and the creation of specialized skills such as scribes, artisans, teachers and religious leaders. Large scale agriculture was only able to develop in areas suitable in terms of temperature, precipitation, and length of day. For the classically trained social scientist this idea smacks of geographical determinism, or the idea that geography is the main factor in development. Generally considered to be a poor interpretative tool on a local scale, the idea of attributing some level of credit to geography for the development of pre-industrial civilization has merit when examining a global phenomenon. It is important to note that the author is writing a global history—one of the very few attempted—for the transitional period from hunter gatherer to the growth of early civilization. This is a daunting task and one well met. Material is drawn from a variety of sources and across a range of disciplines. This range brings, at least in my mind, strength to the author’s interpretation and conclusion by acknowledging that no single
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factor is responsible for the development on dominant civilizations or cultures. The author also notes that geography and climate are an equally independent reason why technologically dominant cultures are sometimes unable to subdue more primitive cultures. As with agriculture organisms develop their own comfort zones. Yellow fever, malaria, and other diseases developed in tropical zones where large scale agriculture did not. People living in these areas developed their own immunity to these diseases and the germs enabled indigenous peoples to hold off other cultures for some time. This well written and highly readable book is important for several reasons. It is an excellent example of how an interdisciplinary approach to research encourages new interpretations and a broader understanding to a topic. This book is not written for the professional historian or scientist and therefore avoids much discipline specific jargon. It brings a broad perspective to a broad audience. Finally, it is one of the few global histories written for a general readership that covers an extended period. For those interested in human diversity, general global history, or how DeSoto was able to conquer several hundred thousand Incas with only a few dozen Spanish soldiers, reading this book is not only intellectually satisfying, but time well spent. If you have read an interesting book you would like to share with your colleagues in this newsletter, just send a brief review (500 words or less) to Bette Belanger and we will include it in a future newsletter. Have some other news you’d like to share (research, awards, trips etc?) Just pass it along and we will try to include in a future newsletter.