<table border="0" width="92%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" align="left"> <tr> <td> <ul type="disc"> <li><a href="#katrina">SIUE Responds To Students Affected By Hurricane Katrina</a></li> <li><a href="#grant">SIUE Computer Science Professor Helps Capture NSF Grant</a></li> <li><a href="#shaw">SIUE Shaw Lecture Series To Feature UC Professor Sept. 15</a></li> <li><a href="#11days">“11 Days Of Peace” Campaign Set For Sept. 11-21 At SIUE</a></li> <li><a href="#ERTC">Bethalto Resident Named Director Of ERTC At SIUE</a></li> <li><a href="#taskforce">SIUE Athletics Task Force Assesses Future Of Program</a></li> <li><a href="#hall">Fourth Residence Hall Considered By SIU Board Of Trustees</a></li> <li><a href="#benefit">Benefit Concert At SIUE To Support Hurricane Survivors</a></li> <li><a href="#supper">SIUE Jazz Supper Dance Set For Oct. 2; To Feature Music Of Ellington</a></li> <li><a href="#voodoo">Sept. 30 Big Bad Voodoo Daddy Concert Sold Out At SIUE</a></li> <li><a href="#tickets">Tickets still available for SIUE Jazz Supper Dance; To Feature Music Of Ellington</a></li> <li><a href="#preview">SIUE To Host Two Previews For College-Bound Students And Parents</a></li> <li><a href="#chili">Fourth Annual Chili Cool-Off Set For Oct. 21 At SIUE</a></li> <li><a href="#religion">SIUE Friends Of Religious Center Awards Dinner Set For Oct. 8</a></li> </ul> </td> </tr> </table> <h2><br /><br /> <a id="katrina" name="katrina"></a>September 1, 2005</h2> <h2><span class="clrA">SIUE Responds To Students Affected By Hurricane Katrina<br /></span></h2> <p>(EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.) Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is extending help to students along the Gulf Coast who have been displaced as a result of the catastrophic hurricane and flooding in that region. The announcement was made today by SIUE Chancellor Vaughn Vandegrift.</p> <p>“SIUE joins the rest of our nation in support of the victims of Hurricane Katrina, the horrific national disaster that has resulted in significant death and damage in the south,” Vandegrift said.</p> <p>Boyd Bradshaw, assistant vice chancellor for Enrollment Management for the University, said as of today the University has received a steady stream of calls since the disaster. “We have received a number of inquiries from local students who are attending other colleges and universities in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana who would like to still enroll this fall at SIUE,” Bradshaw said.</p> <p>“We will do what we can to work with these students in getting them admitted and enrolled in classes for this fall term,” Bradshaw said. “Qualified students will receive an application fee waiver and will be granted financial assistance for course tuition.” Those students interested in help from SIUE, may contact Todd Burrell, director of Admissions, by telephone, (618) 650-3705, or by e-mail: tburrel@siue.edu; Judy Bartel, assistant director of Admissions, (618) 650-3552, jbartel@siue.edu; or Phyllis Werner, manager of the SIUE Service Center, (618) 650-3776, pwerner@siue.edu.</p> <p>Vandegrift also said SIUE is sending police officers and a police cruiser to the affected area. “As part of a long-standing agreement to respond to the need for police protection during such emergencies, we’ll be assisting in this regard.”</p> <p>SIUE Police Chief Gina Hays said the department is a member of the Illinois Law Enforcement Alarm System (ILEAS). “Officer Nathan Harris is part of the ILEAS Special Response Teams (SRTs) and he is being deployed this weekend to an area affected by the hurricane,” she said. “Two other officers have volunteered to lend additional help and they are awaiting further information from ILEAS to see if their assistance will be needed.”</p> <p>The chancellor also announced that yesterday the University began admitting and supplying financial aid to “refugee” students from universities impacted by Katrina. “We are requesting that faculty and staff work with these students to aid in their transition to SIUE,” Vandegrift said. “In addition, SIUE has a procedure in place that will be forwarded to faculty and staff regarding the treatment of our students who are being called for military duty in response to this crisis.”</p> <p>Vandegrift said SIUE is exploring avenues through state and affiliated professional organizations to provide further assistance. “We also wish to express our thanks and appreciation to members of the campus community for their help as individuals during this time of national crisis.”</p> <a href="#top">Back to top</a> <h2><br /> <a name="grant" id="grant"><br /></a> September 1, 2005</h2> <h2><span class="clrA">SIUE Computer Science Professor Helps Capture NSF Grant<br /></span></h2> <p>(EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.) A national survey in 2001 showed that one out of 10 employed engineers is a woman and three out of 10 computer engineer-scientists are women.</p> <p>A National Science Foundation (NSF) report shows that females comprised 35 percent of students enrolled in physics, mathematics, and computer science classes at the undergraduate level and 16 percent of students enrolled in undergraduate engineering classes. At the graduate level, less than 10 percent of the students enrolled in physics and engineering classes are women.</p> <p>The NSF would like to see more women study engineering and the sciences, and SIUE Associate Professor Jerry Weinberg is trying to help. He is part of a team that recently received a $360,000 grant, titled “The Effects of Robotics Projects on Girls’ Perceptions of Achievement in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.”</p> <p>Weinberg, who is a member of the Computer Science faculty in the SIUE School of Engineering, said the grant was co-written by two other SIUE faculty members—Associate Professor Sue Thomas and Assistant Professor Jonathan Pettibone, both in the SIUE Department of Psychology—as well as Mary Stephen of Saint Louis University and Catheryne Stein of the KISS Institute for Practical Robotics in Norman, Okla.</p> <p>“We are seeking seventh-grade girls to participate in a competition we will conduct in the spring,” he said. “In addition, the project will involve team-based activity in preparation and planning for the spring competion.” The SIUE professor has for the last several years conducted a high school robotics competition on campus that has been very popular.</p> <p>Weinberg explained that the program begins with teams of six to 10 students who will learn about the robot kits to be used in the competition. Those teams will then design, build, and program a team of small mobile robots. “The students will be led by teachers who will be trained in the use of the robot kits and how to use robotics to support their curricula in science and math,” Weinberg said.</p> <p>“Through designing, building, and programming of robots, participants will learn to comprehend how the tools of math and science are used in creative projects, and to learn about their application in the everyday world.”</p> <p>Weinberg pointed out that the grant will pay for each participant’s registration fee and will provide additional funds for lead teachers stipends and for materials. He also pointed out that the project will involve an in-depth study of the participants to gain an understanding of how such programs affect girls’ perception of their achievement in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). “We also would like to learn whether these attitudes translate into long-term choices in study and career options,” Weinberg said.</p> <p>“Diversity in STEM areas is important because it brings new and fresh perspectives into these fields, resulting in new ideas and solutions that meet the needs of a broader population.”</p> <p>Weinberg is currently recruiting teams from seventh grade classes. To learn more about the project or to become involved, contact Weinberg by telephone: (618) 650-2368, or by e-mail: jweinbe@siue.edu.<br /><br /><a href="#top">Back to top</a></p> <h2><br /> <a id="shaw" name="shaw"></a> September 3, 2005</h2> <h2><span class="clrA">SIUE Shaw Lecture Series To Feature UC Professor Sept. 15<br /></span></h2> <p>(EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.) Michael Turner, the Bruce V. and Diana M. Rauner Distinguished Service Professor in the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Chicago, will be the Shaw Series lecturer at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville on Sept. 15.</p> <p>Speaking about “The Dark Side of the Universe: Beyond Stars and the Starstuff We Are Made Of,” Turner will appear at 7:30 p.m. in SIUE’s Dunham Hall Theater. Admission is free and the lecture is open to the public.</p> <p>Turner is a cosmologist whose research focuses on the earliest moments of the universe. He has made important contributions to inflationary universe theory, understanding of dark matter and the origin of structure. He will speak at SIUE about dark matter and dark energy. Dark matter and dark energy, invisible to telescopes, can only be detected through their effects on other objects, but make up 95 percent of the universe.</p> <p>He holds appointments in the Department of Physics and in the Enrico Fermi Institute at Chicago. For more than 20 years, Turner was member of the scientific staff at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory.</p> <p>Turner has been honored with the Helen B. Warner Prize of the American Astronomical Society, the Julius Edgar Lilienfeld Prize of the American Physical Society, the Halley Lectureship at Oxford University, and the Quantrell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching at Chicago. He has served on or chaired many national advisory committees, and since 1984 he has been involved in the governance of the Aspen Center for Physics, serving as president from 1989 to 1993. From 1998-2003 he served on the Board of Trustees of the Illinois Math and Science Academy.</p> <p>Turner recently was appointed assistant director for Mathematical and Physical Sciences at the National Science Foundation. He received a bachelor of science in Physics from the California Institute of Technology (1971) and his doctorate in Physics from Stanford University (1978). His association with the University of Chicago began in 1978 as an Enrico Fermi Fellow and in 1980 he joined the faculty.</p> <p>Turner is a Fellow of the APS and of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and is a member of the National Academy of Sciences.<br /><br /><a href="#top">Back to top</a></p> <h2><br /> <a id="11days" name="11days"></a> September 4, 2005</h2> <h2><span class="clrA">“11 Days Of Peace” Campaign Set For Sept. 11-21 At SIUE<br /></span></h2> <p>(EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.) To commemorate those who died during the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and to promote global peace, the “11 Days of Peace Campaign” will be celebrated Sept. 11-21 at the domed Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Religious Center and at SIUE’s Morris University Center (MC).</p> <p>The activities will culminate in a U.N. International Day of Peace celebration that will include a march from the MC to the Center, with participants carrying candles while the University’s carillon tolls at noontime on Sept. 21.</p> <p>The Catholic Campus Ministry (CCM) and the United Campus Ministry (UCM), both headquartered at the Religious Center, as well as the SIUE Student Leadership Development Center and the Raise Your Voice student organization are co-sponsoring the event.</p> <p>“This is a celebration of peaceful activities and events,” said Sr. Claudia Calzetta, CCM director. “We encourage all students and anyone from the community to join us in all or any of the activities during these 11 days,” she said. “This is not a series of events with a political agenda nor does this campaign have a political agenda. It does not support or negate any political party,” she said.</p> <p>“We hope that these 11 days will help all of us become more at peace in our relationships with others, with nature, and with the world at large.”</p> <p>A schedule of events is available at the SIUE Religious Center Web site: www.siue.edu/RELIGION. A brochure is available through e-mail: sschwan@siue.edu, or a copy can be FAX-ed; call Susan Schwander for details: (618) 650-3246.<br /><br /><a href="#top">Back to top</a></p> <br /> <h2><a id="ERTC" name="ERTC"></a>September 6, 2005</h2> <h2><span class="clrA">Bethalto Resident Named Director Of ERTC At SIUE<br /></span></h2> <p>(EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.) Paul Shetley of Bethalto recently joined the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville School of Engineering as director of the School’s Environmental Resources Training Center (ERTC), according to Paul Seaburg, dean of the School.</p> <p>Shetley has more than 20 years of practical and management experience in water quality and environmental science.</p> <p>In his new position, Shetley is responsible for managing external grants and projects, and acting as liaison with state and federal funding agencies, water and wastewater operator organizations, and the water and wastewater industry. Among other duties, he also is charged with developing a strategic plan for furthering the academic mission of the ERTC and capital improvements to the Center.</p> <p>Shetley earned a bachelor of science in Earth Science and a master of science in Environmental Studies, both at SIUE. He also is a certified water operator and is a registered professional geologist.</p> <p>Before joining the SIUE staff, Shetley was manager of the Fosterburg Water District for six years and before that was a consultant with environmental engineering firms in the St. Louis Area from 1984-1999. As a consultant, Shetley performed water quality investigations and environmental impact analysis at government and industrial facilities throughout the nation.</p> <p>The ERTC, located on the north edge of the SIUE campus, is designated by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency as the technical training center for personnel involved in the operation, maintenance, and management of drinking water and wastewater treatment systems. The facilities include two teaching laboratories, a library/computer center, classrooms, an auditorium, and houses a fully functional 30,000 gallons/day water and wastewater treatment plant designed and used exclusively for training.<br /><br /><a href="#top">Back to top</a></p> <br /> <h2><a id="taskforce" name="taskforce"></a> September 9, 2005</h2> <h2><span class="clrA">SIUE Athletics Task Force Assesses Future Of Program<br /></span></h2> <p>(EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.) A task force has been established to consider three possible scenarios for the future of Intercollegiate Athletics at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, including options to strengthen the existing program, create a program that would compete at the NCAA Division I level, or develop a “hybrid” that would include Division I and II teams.</p> <p>According to Narbeth Emmanuel, vice chancellor for Student Affairs, the successes of SIUE’s Athletics program since 1999 have been a result of planning by an initial Athletics committee that was commissioned by then-SIUE Chancellor David Werner. “That original committee was created to consider whether the University should field a football team,” Emmanuel explained.</p> <p>“However, it was determined that other alternatives should be explored, and, because of the committees work our programs have been strengthened over the past six years to the point that we are now poised to move SIUE Intercollegiate Athletics to a new level.”</p> <p>Emmanuel cited several successes within the program:</p> <p>• The men’s soccer program has achieved national success;</p> <p>• The men’s basketball program has been ranked nationally for the first time and has</p> <p>achieved conference-level success;</p> <p>• The men’s and women’s track and field programs, as well as the men’s wrestling</p> <p>program, continue to send athletes in increasing numbers to compete at the national level; and</p> <p>• The softball program has grown to a perennial national contender.</p> <p>“SIUE Athletics over the years has become a respected program in the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC),” Emmanuel pointed out. “Such success was no accident, but rather the result of careful strategic planning.”</p> <p>The new task force—made up of SIUE students, faculty, staff, alumni, residents of the surrounding communities, and chaired by SIUE School of Business Dean Gary Giamartino—will now consider the following alternatives:</p> <p>• Continue to strengthen the existing Intercollegiate Athletics program to become the very best at this level, utilizing the current tier system, with special emphasis on tier four sports that includes wrestling and men’s golf;</p> <p>• Consider transitioning from an NCAA-II program to NCAA-I with both the appropriate level of financial resources as well as the necessary facilities to be competitive to achieve national recognition; or</p> <p>• Consider a "hybrid" that would include Division I and II teams with the appropriate resources and consistent with NCAA policies.</p> <p>The task force also will explore personnel and financial resources needed to achieve one of these recommendations. Giamartino said the entire process will be guided by specific core values, including student-athlete academic and personal welfare, integrity and ethics, commitment to Title IX guidelines, and preservation of academic and competitive integrity by seeking membership in an appropriate conference.</p> <p>Giamartino said the work of the task force will be completed by spring 2007. “It is now apparent that SIUE is positioned to develop a strategic plan for the next phase of our program,” he said. “The University is very proud of the athletics programs that have contributed to our recognition and reputation as a premier metropolitan university with national recognition, and the members of the task force look forward to building on that foundation as we explore options for the future.”</p> <p>SIUE Chancellor Vaughn Vandegrift, who recently completed a full year as the University’s head, said the work of the current task force will take into consideration planning from the 1999 task force but also the input Vandegrift received at town hall meetings he conducted on campus last year. “I am confident that the task force will provide a comprehensive report that will help guide us in shaping and developing the future of Intercollegiate Athletics at SIUE,” he said.<br /><br /><a href="#top">Back to top</a></p> <br /> <h2><a id="hall" name="hall"></a>September 9, 2005</h2> <h2><span class="clrA">Fourth Residence Hall Considered By SIU Board Of Trustees<br /></span></h2> <p>(EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.) The Southern Illinois University Board of Trustees today considered a proposal to construct a new residence hall on the campus of SIU Edwardsville, bringing the total of residence halls on campus to four.</p> <p>If approved, this newest hall would accommodate 515 students and would bring the total of students living on campus to more than 3,500. The matter was presented to the board at its regular monthly meeting, conducted today on the Edwardsville campus. The matter will be on the agenda for approval at the Oct. 13 board meeting scheduled at SIU Carbondale.</p> <p>According to the plan, the new residence hall would contain mostly “apartment-style” units housing upperclassmen and graduate students. Unlike the three previous residence halls, the new hall will house such students who want to continue to live near the campus core. Resident upperclassmen and graduate students are currently housed in Cougar Village Apartments, just north of the core campus.</p> <p>Associate Provost David Sill said the new residence hall would be an additional tool in improving student retention at the University. “Some continuing students who have been in the residence halls for a year or two wish to continue to live close to the core,” Associate Provost David Sill said. “But we currently are not able to meet their needs. This new hall will give these students a more supportive and positive experience, which will help with their success as they move toward graduation.”</p> <p>The project would include construction of a three-story, 515-bed student residence encompassing 190,000 square feet and located just south of SIUE’s Bluff Hall at the corner of Circle Drive and Whiteside Road. The project also would include a 550-space parking lot. The construction is expected to be completed in time for the 2007 fall semester.</p> <p>The plan calls for units ranging from single and double rooms and suite arrangements with bathrooms to two- to five-bedroom apartments with full kitchen facilities. The University currently utilizes the 1,500-bed Cougar Lake Apartments to house upperclassmen and families, while the three existing residence halls house freshman and sophomore students.</p> <p>Plans for the new residence hall were drawn from committee recommendations and a survey of currents students who live off-campus. The committee—made up of students, faculty members, and University Housing staff—also took into consideration historical data and projected numbers for returning housing students, the new freshman class, the number of new freshmen living on campus, new transfer student rates, new graduate students living on campus, and the number of existing students who do not live on campus.<br /><br /><a href="#top">Back to top</a></p> <h2><a id="benefit" name="benefit"></a>September 9, 2005</h2> <h2><span class="clrA">Benefit Concert At SIUE To Support Hurricane Survivors<br /></span></h2> <p>(EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.) Four bands from the bi-state area will unite at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville on Saturday, Sept. 17, to raise money for survivors of Hurricane Katrina. This concert, planned prior to the recent disaster, was originally intended to raise funds for the SIUE Football Club and for New Horizons, the student organization at SIUE for people with disabilities.</p> <p>After the disaster, however, it was decided that a major portion of the proceeds would be contributed to hurricane relief efforts. The event will take place in Meridian Ballroom, on the first floor of SIUE’s Morris University Center.</p> <p>Musical acts scheduled to perform include 12 Summers Old of Belleville, Rushmore Academy of St. Louis, Nothing Still of St Louis, and Amnesty Letters of Greenville. Tickets may be purchased for $5 in advance or $7 at the door, which opens at 7 p.m.. The show begins at 7:30 p.m. All ages are welcome.</p> <p>For more information contact Grand One Productions, (217) 556-5712, or Jim Boyle, a specialist in SIUE’s Office of Disability Support Services, (618) 650-2568.<br /><br /><a href="#top">Back to top</a><br /></p> <h2><a id="supper" name="supper"></a>September 13, 2005</h2> <h2><span class="clrA">SIUE Jazz Supper Dance Set For Oct. 2; To Feature Music Of Ellington<br /></span></h2> <p>(EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.) With its theme of “Mood Indigo—A Tribute to the Duke,” the 17th Annual Jazz Supper Dance, featuring WSIE-FM’s Ross Gentile as emcee, will offer an evening of fun, food, and music from 6-10 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 2, at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Reservation deadline is Sept. 23.</p> <p>Proceeds benefit the SIUE Friends of Music scholarship fund that provides scholarships to talented music students. Half of the ticket price is a gift to the Friends organization and may be considered a tax deductible contribution. The Friends organization is a support group for the SIUE Department of Music.</p> <p>Set in Meridian Ballroom, on the first floor of SIUE’s Morris University Center, the Jazz Supper Dance offers a cocktail hour, dinner, and dancing to the big band sounds of SIUE’s Concert Jazz Band, under the direction of SIUE Professor Brett Stamps, director of the Jazz Studies Program for the University. Music during cocktails will be provided by guitarist Rick Haydon, also a professor in the Jazz Studies program.</p> <p>Popular St. Louis area vocalist Mardra Thomas and her husband, pianist Reggie Thomas, an associate professor of Music and head of the SIUE Black Studies program, and musician Scott Alberici also will be featured artists.</p> <p>The event will be lavishly sprinkled throughout with the music of Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington, famed band leader and influential composer who shaped American music for five decades.</p> <p>Tickets for the Jazz Supper Dance are $50 per person; a table of eight may be reserved for $350. A Blue Note sponsorship ($500) entitles a table of eight to preferred seating and recognition in the evening’s printed program.</p> <p>For reservations or for more information, call Martee Lucas in the SIUE Department of Music, (618) 650-3799, or, from St. Louis toll-free, (888) 328-5168, Ext. 3799.<br /><br /><a href="#top">Back to top</a></p> <h2><a id="voodoo" name="voodoo"></a>September 22, 2005</h2> <h2><span class="clrA">Sept. 30 Big Bad Voodoo Daddy Concert Sold Out At SIUE<br /></span></h2> <p>(EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.) The Sept. 30 Big Bad Voodoo Daddy concert, the opening event for the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Arts & Issues 2005-06 season, is sold out. Partners Bank of Glen Carbon is sponsoring the band’s appearance.</p> <p>Arts & Issues, which has a long-standing tradition of bringing world-class performers and noted speakers to Southwestern Illinois, continues Oct. 15 at 8 p.m. with an appearance by legendary singer-songwriter Joan Baez and at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 27 with historian David McCullough, author of the runaway New York Times No. 1 best-seller 1776 as well as the popular biographies Truman and John Adams.</p> <p>Tickets for the Joan Baez concert are $24; students, $12, while tickets for David McCullough are $20; students, $10. More information and tickets are available by contacting the SIUE Fine Arts box office, (618) 650-2774; tickets also may be purchased at the Web site: artsandissues.com.<br /><br /><a href="#top">Back to top</a></p> <h2><a id="tickets" name="tickets"></a>September 22, 2005</h2> <h2><span class="clrA">Tickets still available for SIUE Jazz Supper Dance; To Feature Music Of Ellington<br /></span></h2> <p>(EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.) Tickets still are available for the Oct. 2 Annual Jazz Supper Dance, sponsored by the Friends of Music at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.</p> <p>With its theme of “Mood Indigo—A Tribute to the Duke,” the 17th Annual Jazz Supper Dance, featuring WSIE-FM’s Ross Gentile as emcee, will offer an evening of fun, food, and big band music by the SIUE Jazz Concert Band from 6-10 p.m. that Sunday.</p> <p>Proceeds benefit the SIUE Friends of Music scholarship fund that provides scholarships to talented music students. Half of the ticket price is a gift to the Friends organization and may be considered a tax deductible contribution. The Friends organization is a support group for the SIUE Department of Music.</p> <p>Popular St. Louis area vocalist Mardra Thomas and her husband, pianist Reggie Thomas, an associate professor of Music and head of the SIUE Black Studies program, and musician Scott Alberici also will be featured artists.</p> <p>For reservations or for more information, call Martee Lucas in the SIUE Department of Music, (618) 650-3799, or, from St. Louis toll-free, (888) 328-5168, Ext. 3799.<br /><br /><a href="#top">Back to top</a></p> <h2><a id="preview" name="preview"></a>September 26, 2005</h2> <h2><span class="clrA">SIUE To Host Two Previews For College-Bound Students And Parents<br /></span></h2> <p>(EDWARDSVILLE, Ill) Each year more and more students have been considering Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, and that means a growing number of them have been attending PREVIEW SIUE each fall. In fact, the number of students and parents attending PREVIEW has doubled in the past five years.</p> <p>This year, SIUE will conduct its annual open house event twice to accommodate the larger crowds of visiting students and parents—on Columbus Day, Monday, Oct. 10, and Veterans Day, Friday, Nov. 11.</p> <p>“PREVIEW SIUE is an opportunity for prospective students and their families to obtain answers to all their questions in one visit to campus” said Karen Bollinger, assistant director of SIUE Admissions and Academic Marketing. “Our program is one of the few campus-visit programs that includes participation from virtually all academic and student services units in one setting.”</p> <p>Because of the larger crowds, Bollinger said, it was decided to offer the event over two days. “We believe we can do a much better job in personalizing PREVIEW by offering the event on two separate days,” she said. “We like to get to know the students and their parents, while at the same time offering them the information they’ll need to make sound decisions about a college choice.</p> <p>“At PREVIEW SIUE, our faculty and staff take an active role in talking with prospective students and introducing them to the academic opportunities available at SIUE.”</p> <p>At both events, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Enrollment Management Boyd Bradshaw will present opening remarks at 8:30 a.m. in Meridian Ballroom, on the first floor of SIUE’s Delyte W. Morris University Center. Students may speak one-on-one to department representatives at each event during the information fairs in the Morris Center Goshen Lounge from 10 a.m. to noon.</p> <p>At both PREVIEW opportunities, the opening session, SIUEssentials, will cover information on admission requirements, financing an education, and University Housing options. Students then will have opportunities to tour the central campus, meet with faculty and staff at the information fair, or attend an informational session of their choice. All academic units will play host to the informational sessions for students interested in their respective program.</p> <p>Also, prospective students may attend a panel session made up of current SIUE students. Similarly, prospective parents also may attend a panel of parents of current SIUE students.</p> <p>Informational session topics include Tailor-Made Careers, Transferring to SIUE, as well as academic sessions presented by the SIUE College of Arts and Sciences and the Schools of Business, Education, Engineering, Nursing, and Pharmacy.</p> <p>Check-in and on-site registration begins at 8 a.m. in the Morris University Center. It is recommended that interested students pre-register online at the Web site: www.admissions.siue.edu/ PREVIEW, or by telephone: (800) 447-SIUE.</p> <p>Tours of the campus, residence halls, and SIUE’s Lovejoy Library will be offered until 2 p.m., while campus offices will remain open until 4:30 p.m. PREVIEW parking will be available in the Student Fan Lots. There is no charge for either event.<br /><br /><a href="#top">Back to top</a></p> <h2><a id="chili" name="chili"></a>September 26, 2005</h2> <h2><span class="clrA">Fourth Annual Chili Cool-Off Set For Oct. 21 At SIUE<br /></span></h2> <p>(EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.) The 4th Annual Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Chili Cook-off, presented by the SIUE Club Sports Program, is set for 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21, at Korte Stadium as part of Homecoming Week.</p> <p>Participants are encouraged to enter a chili recipe for the $100 top prize, a trophy, and most importantly, “bragging rights for an entire year,” said Keith Becherer, a specialist in the SIUE Office of Campus Recreation. “Participants may register as an individual, a department, or as an organization,” Becherer said.</p> <p>Registration forms may be obtained at the SIUE Student Fitness Center or by visiting the Web site: www.siue.edu/CREC, or may be ordered by telephone, (618) 650-3245. Registration is $20 per entry. SIUE students and children to age 16 may sample chili entries for $2, while others may taste chili entries for $3.<br /><br /><a href="#top">Back to top</a></p> <h2><a id="religion" name="religion"></a>September 29, 2005</h2> <h2><span class="clrA">SIUE Friends Of Religious Center Awards Dinner Set For Oct. 8<br /></span></h2> <p>(EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.) Two women who coordinate a popular interfaith event in the Metro East each year will be honored Saturday, Oct. 8, at the Third Annual Interfaith Awards Dinner, sponsored by the Friends of the Religious Center (FRC) at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.</p> <p>Judy Williamson and Tina Huck, staff members at the Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows in Belleville, will be the guests of honor at the Oct. 8 event scheduled at 6:30 p.m. at the SIUE Religious Center, the geodesic dome just east of the SIUE Art and Design Building. They will receive the FRC’s 2005 Interfaith Leadership Award at the dinner.</p> <p>Reservation deadline is Oct. 6; tickets are $25 per person, which includes dinner and free parking. The Oct. 8 event also includes a silent auction, with items and gift baskets from organizations and businesses throughout the Edwardsville-Glen Carbon communities.</p> <p>Williamson, a 12-year staff member and programs coordinator, and Huck, an events coordinator who has been on the Shrine staff for six years, plan the annual Festival of Faiths and Cultures at the Shrine each September. The Festival of Faiths and Cultures, featuring an international food court and many activities, is the largest celebration of people, cultures, and faiths in the St. Louis Area.</p> <p>The festival offers foods from various cultures and countries, while entertainment includes stage performances of ethnic and cultural dances from around the world, and an international children’s village. The village engages children in workshops, crafts, and storytelling, also from a variety of countries and cultures. A peacemakers program also teaches children conflict resolution activities.</p> <p>The festival, sponsored by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, also includes an interfaith learning center and gift booths featuring merchandise from around the world.</p> <p>The FRC established the Interfaith Leadership awards to recognize religious leadership and interfaith cooperation in the region. “The leadership provided by Ms. Huck and Ms. Williamson requires broad vision and attention to countless details,” said SIUE Associate Philosophy Professor Greg Fields, who is president of the FRC board and coordinator of the SIUE Religious Studies Program.</p> <p>“Their skill and good spirit encourages cooperation among members of world faith communities in our region,” Fields said. “Meanwhile, the Festival enhances the high level of civil life in the region. Individuals and families, who attend the Festival, experience both learning and recreation in a spirit that celebrates understanding among faiths and cultures in today’s troubled world.”</p> <p>Fields said the FRC, formed more than four years ago, sponsors two main events each year to raise money to refurbish parts of the 34-year-old Religious Center that is need of repair. “We offer this Interfaith Awards Dinner in the fall and also the Celebration of World Faiths in the spring to encourage interfaith dialogue.</p> <p>“The FRC is a support group dedicated to preserving the SIUE Religious Center as a significant contribution to architecture,” Fields said, “as a place for the spiritual growth of SIUE students as the next generation of leaders, and for religious learning and fellowship within the community.”</p> <p>Dinner reservations may be made through the SIUE Religious Center, (618) 650-3246, or, toll-free from St. Louis, (888) 328-5168, Ext. 3246, or, by calling Greg Fields, (618) 650-2461; St. Louis toll-free, (888) 328-5168, Ext. 2461.<br /><br /><a href="#top">Back to top</a></p>