Professional Notes

Professional notes

Foreign Affairs Club members Peter Billerbeck, Jeffery Brubaker, Rachel Hoffman, Haley Waller, Danielle Lecorps, Rani Thao, Jacob Anderson and Dolkar Tenzin participated in the Midwest Model United Nations conference Feb. 23-27 in St. Louis. The students represented the delegation of Canada, receiving two honorable mention awards for their work in the General Assembly plenary sessions and on the United Nations Refugee Agency Committee. This is only the second year that St. Thomas has sent a delegation to participate in a Model UN conference. The conference was attended by 50 colleges and universities, with more than 80 countries and more than 550 delegates. Dr. Elizabeth Klages, visiting professor in the Political Science Department, advised the St. Thomas delegation. The Foreign Affairs Club plans to participate in the Arrowhead Model United Nations Conference next month in LaCrosse, Wis. If you're interested in participating, contact Klages, (651) 962-5726.

Dr. Sharon Gibson, School of Education, presented a paper, "A Comparative Analysis of Training and Development and Work-Family Education Systems in a Large Corporate Organization," at the 2005 international research conference of the Academy of Human Resource Development Feb. 24-27 in Estes Park, Colo. The paper also was published in the conference proceedings. In addition, Gibson presented with Dr. John Conbere, School of Education, and colleagues from Colorado State University and Xavier University an an innovative session on "HR Cohort Graduate Programs: An Approach to Creating a Sustainable Community and Developmental Culture." Gibson also chaired a symposium, "Relating Human Resource Development to Human Resource Management."

Dr. J. Thomas Ippoliti, Chemistry Department, had a patent published Feb. 22 for "Photochromic benzodioxine fused naphthopyran compounds, compositions and articles containing those naphthopyran compounds," which can be accessed in PDF format from the freepatentsonline.com Web site. Patent 6858732 is the result of a collaborative research project with Vision-Ease Lens Corp.

Deborah Knaust, International Student Services, is serving as the 2004-05 chair of the Minnesota International Educators. MIE is an organization for international educators in Minnesota to discuss immigration and other matters related to international students and scholars.

Dr. Mitch Kusy, Organization Learning and Development Department, was the keynote speaker at the executive conference of PriceWaterhouseCoopers earlier this month in Auckland, New Zealand. Based on his two-year research study of leadership mistakes and recovery mechanisms, his presentation was titled "Leadership Recovery Strategies: The Next Leadership Competency." This presentation was given in collaboration with the New Zealand Leadership Institute at the University of Auckland, where Kusy is initiating a potential partnership with UST's doctoral program in organization development. He also signed copies of his new book, Breaking the Code of Silence: Prominent Leaders Reveal How they Rebounded From Seven Critical Mistakes, co-written by Dr. Louellen Essex. Kusy is a visiting professor at the University of Auckland and working with faculty there on mutual research projects between doctoral students in organization development at St. Thomas and at the University of Auckland.

Dr. Lisa Lamb, Geology Department, attended an invitation-only workshop, "Geoscience Departments: Building Strong Pathways to the Future," Feb. 24-26 at the College of William and Mary. The workshop was funded by the Geoscience Directorate of the National Science Foundation. Workshop participants gathered to discuss successful elements of their programs and to identify strategies to help strengthen departmental programs. Lamb was selected because of the UST Geology Department's successes over the past four years in a growing number of geology majors and minors, new teaching strategies and curriculum development.

Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer, Justice and Peace Studies Department, is the author of a new book, Saving Christianity From Empire (Continuum Books, 2005). It places the war with Iraq in the context of the neoconservatives' "grand strategy" for permanent empire rooted in unilateral exercise of military power, and it discusses why and how Christians have largely abandoned the nonviolence of Jesus in favor of service to empire. The book describes why many people throughout the world view the United States as the gravest threat to the world since the rise of Nazi Germany. U.S. citizens, Nelson-Pallmeyer argues, must choose between empire and republic, and Christians must choose between imperial expressions of Christianity and a "mustard seed" Christianity rooted in the radical nonviolence of Jesus.

Victoria Svoboda, associate dean of students, was selected as the recipient of the Commuter/Adult Learner Perspective by a Student Development Professional Award by the American College Personnel Association's Commission for Commuter Students and Adult Learners. This award recognizes an individual responsible for developing an educationally purposeful and innovative program or service that has been of significant benefit to commuter or adult learners. Particular attention also is placed on the effectiveness of the program or service in addressing issues relevant to academic and personal lifestyle patterns.