Thursday, March 24, 2011

Culver-Stockton College presents JazzFest
Culver-Stockton College Division of Fine Arts will present the 14th annual JazzFest on Thursday, March 31, 2011.  This full-day event will include performances from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. by high school and junior high groups from Missouri, Illinois and Iowa. Performances will be every half hour in the Robert W. Brown Performing Arts Center on the campus of Culver-Stockton College. JazzFest will also feature a clinic at 3 p.m. provided by the two guest artists, vocalist Kathy Kosins and pianist Reggie Thomas. Additionally, Kathy Kosins will conduct workshops on musical theatre singing, painting to jazz and promotion and arts management. These events are free and open to the public. At 7:30 p.m. the JazzFest concert will take place in Alexander Campbell Auditorium, and will feature the C-SC Jazz Ensemble and guest artists. Concert admission is $7.50 for adults, $5 for seniors and $4 for students.  For more information, call the Culver-Stockton Division of Fine Arts at (573) 288-6346.

C-SC Greek Week plans for fun and philanthropy
Culver-Stockton College Greeks will be participating in a week full of games, entertainment and philanthropy events Sunday, March 27 through Sunday, April 3. Greek Week is an annual event that encourages unity along with some playful competition among the Greek chapter houses. C-SC is home to eight national fraternities and sororities: Alpha Tau Omega, Chi Omega, Kappa Alpha Psi, Delta Upsilon, Lambda Chi Alpha, Sigma Kappa, Sigma Sigma Sigma and Tau Kappa Epsilon. Chapters will compete and earn points throughout the week. Points can be earned through raising money for philanthropies, winning themed game and entertainment competitions; participation points are also awarded. This year’s theme is “MTV – You’ll never look at Greeks the same way again.” The slogan was selected to reflect how Greek life is changing at Culver-Stockton. Greek Week organizers say chapters are working harder than ever to emphasize their rituals and fraternal values in their daily lives. "This looks to be the best Greek Week seen on C-SC’s campus,” says Greek Week 2011 Advisor and Interim Dean of Student Life Bob Dudolski. "This will definitely be a fun and exciting week for our campus, and I look forward to inviting all of the non-Greek students to come out and see these great events!" One of the most anticipated events of the week is “A Mile in Her Shoes,” taking place Tuesday, March 29. “A Mile in Her Shoes” is a community service event to raise money for an all-Greek philanthropy. Each Greek man finds a Greek woman to sponsor them by pledging a specific dollar amount. For their part, the men wear high heel shoes to complete their one mile walk. For more information about Greek Week or to view the complete schedule, visit the Greek Week website at http://www.wix.com/culverstockton/greekweek2011. Read more online.

C-SC faculty perform during annual recital
The glories of music past and present come alive at the Culver-Stockton College Faculty Recital on Thursday, March 24th at 7:30 p.m. in Merillat Recital Hall in the Brown Performing Arts Center on the C-SC campus. Each year, the C-SC music faculty invite the public to share as they bring music of a high professional caliber to the students they teach. This year, the recital features Renaissance lute songs sung by tenor Kevin Baker and a baroque cantata by J.S. Bach sung by soprano Carol Mathieson with obbligato accompaniment by violinist Jane Polett and continuo by Karla McReynolds at the organ. Also playing on obbligato, Trent Hollinger will transform the Bach oboe part on soprano saxophone. Wolfgang Mozart’s father Leopold was a fine musician, too, as Thomas Polett demonstrates with a concerto for alto trombone by the older composer. He will be accompanied by pianist Anda Zirnitis, who will also play a very contemporary sonata by Benjamin Lees, which is characterized by constant shifts in rhythm, harmony and dynamics. Completing the tribute to contemporary composers, Trent Hollinger will play a piece for soprano saxophone by Italian composer Giacinto Scelsi. Soprano Lacey Phillips will sing from the romantic art song repertoire, and pianist Abbie Brewer will perform all movements of the romantic Keltic Sonata by the first American composer to achieve European acclaim, Edward MacDowell. The C-SC Faculty Recital is sponsored by the Division of Fine Arts and is offered as part of the college’s Academic and Cultural Events programming. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, call the Division of Fine Arts Office at (573) 288-6346.

C-SC director of student success featured in national newsletter
Sarah Craig, C-SC director of student success and first year experience, was recently featured in a quarterly newsletter published by the national Tourette Syndrome Association. Craig was interviewed for an article featured in the spring 2011 issue of Inside TSA. The article, titled Executive Function and TS: in college, at home and in the workplace, explores executive function deficit in adults. Executive function refers to the set of cognitive abilities that control and regulate other abilities and behavior. They include the ability to initiate and stop actions, to monitor and change behavior as needed, and to plan future behavior when faced with novel tasks and situations. In the article, Craig discusses warning signs that could be an indication of executive function deficit, specifically in college students. Dr. Martha Denckla, director of developmental cognitive neurology at the Kennedy Krieger Institute and professor of neurology, pediatrics and psychiatry at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine is also featured in the article. Craig’s primary focus at C-SC is helping first-year students transition to college successfully. Her area of expertise is executive functioning; including time management, organization and helping students succeed academically at the college level.

C-SC Art Instructor concludes solo exhibition
Jennifer Bock-Nelson, part-time instructor of art, recently concluded her solo exhibition at the Epping Gallery of McHenry County College in Crystal Lake, Illinois.  The College purchased two of her paintings from the exhibition for their permanent collection.  Bock-Nelson is also exhibiting with seven other contemporary artists in the inaugural exhibition, entitled "The Color of Time," of the Stacy C. Sherwood Center Rotary Gallery in Fairfax, Virginia. The exhibition runs from February 4th through April 13th of 2011.

Nominations for Helsabeck Prize
Nominations are being sought from the Culver-Stockton College community for the Helsabeck Prize for Excellence in Teaching. The Helsabeck Prize, established in 1980, is a cash prize of $1,000 and will be awarded during Commencement. Your help is needed to identify a current faculty member who, in your judgment, exhibits those qualities that mark the truly outstanding teacher. Since Culver-Stockton is, above all things, a teaching institution, awards for excellent teaching speak to the very heart of the college’s work. While definitions of excellent teaching will vary, frequently identifying qualities include the following: knowledge and proficiency in the subject area; creative approaches to the subject matter; ability to nurture interest, enthusiasm and responses in students; clarity of educational objectives and course expectations; maintenance of high expectations and standards; openness to other points of view; fairness; and effective timely feedback to students. The winner will be chosen by a panel of faculty, students and administrators. You are invited to submit a nomination to Dr. David Wilson, Interim Dean of the College, Henderson Hall. Nominations will be accepted through April 18, 2011.

Three Women basketball players named scholar-athletes
The Culver-Stockton College women’s basketball team had three players recognized as 2011 Daktronics-NAIA Women’s Basketball Scholar-Athletes by the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics this week. The Lady Wildcats, with three team members honored by the NAIA, tied for the most players honored by any school in the Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC). Central Methodist University also had three players honored by the NAIA. Named to the list were senior guards Breezy Guymon and Anna Grgurich, and junior forward Danielle Harper. Guymon and Grgurich were honored for the second consecutive season. Guymon, an athletic training major from Carthage, Ill. (Carthage HS), played in just eight games for the Lady Wildcats this season due to complications from a knee injury that occurred during the 2009-10 season. She averaged 3.6 points and 13.4 minutes per game. In her career, Guymon played in 87 total games, making 85 starts. She averaged 8.4 points and 2.2 rebounds per game, scoring 719 point during her career. She leaves C-SC ranked seventh on the all-time list for 3-point field goals made with 130. In the classroom, Guymon was named to the President’s List three times and Dean’s List four times during her tenure on the Hill. Grgurich, a communication major from Novinger, Mo. (Novinger HS), was a three-year letterwinner who missed her entire senior season due to a knee injury. In her career, Grgurich played in 52 games, making 10 starts. She scored a career-high 12 points against Evangel University on February, 21, 2009. Off the court, Grgurich has been named to the President’s List every semester of her college career. In addition to communication, Grgurich is also pursuing a minor in graphic design. Harper, an accounting and finance major from Eldon, Mo. (School of the Osage), is a two-year letterwinner who missed her entire junior season due to a knee injury. Harper has played in 42 career games for the Lady Wildcats, averaging 1.1 points and two rebounds per game. One hundred twenty-seven women’s basketball players were recipients of the NAIA-Daktronics Scholar-Athlete honor. Student-athletes must have a junior or senior academic standing and maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.50.

Thompson Named HAAC Player of the Week
Culver-Stockton College senior Jared Thompson was named the Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC) Baseball Player of the Week for his performance in the Wildcats’ six victories last week. This is the second straight week a Wildcat player has won the award. Andre Terrell earned the honor last week. Thompson, a 6-foot-2 outfielder from Fresno, Calif. (Edison HS / University of California at Davis), batted an extraordinary .588, collecting 10 hits in 17 at-bats during the Wildcats’ 6-0 week. Among his 10 hits were one double, two triples and one home run, which was a grand slam, for a slugging percentage of 1.059. He scored seven times, recorded 12 runs batted in, walked once and stole a base. Thompson recorded multiple hit and multiple RBIs in four of the six games last week, and hit safely in all six games. For the season, Thompson is batting .304 with a team-leading 28 runs batted in. He has four doubles, two triples and three home runs for a slugging percentage of .519. Thompson has scored 15 runs and stole four bases. The Wildcats, currently 17-7 overall and 10-0 in the HAAC, are scheduled to play an HAAC doubleheader against MidAmerica Nazarene University on Wednesday, March 23, at Nichols Field in Canton. Game one is slated to begin at 1 p.m.