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An Update from the Columbian College of Arts & Sciences

November 2012

Contents

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Upcoming Events

Early Modern Humans on the Edge of Land and Sea
Nov. 14, 10:00 am
Media and Public Affairs Building, Room 309

Fall Danceworks
Nov. 15, 16, & 17, 7:30 pm
Dorothy Betts Marvin Theatre

Comparative Politics Workshop: Kristin Fabbe
Nov. 16, 12:30 pm
Hall of Government, Room 428

Security Policy Workshop: Keren Yarhi-Milo
Nov. 26, 4:00 pm
1957 E Street, Suite 605

Playing with Time: Pancakes and Bells in "The Shoemaker's Holiday"
Nov. 27, 11:10 am
Rome Hall, Room 771

Stuttering in Pre-Schoolers & School-Aged Children
Nov. 27, 5:00 pm
1957 E Street, Room B-12

Conversation with Artists: Pedro Reyes
Nov. 29, 6:00 pm
The Phillips Collection

European Politics Speaker: Julia Lynch
Nov. 30, 12:00 pm
1957 E Street, Suite 412

University Singers: Elijah
Dec. 2, 3:00 pm
1313 New York Avenue NW

Security Policy Workshop: Jenna Jordan
Dec. 7, 12:30 pm
Hall of Government, Room 428

Knots in Washington
Dec. 7, 1:00 pm
Foggy Bottom Campus

Maida Withers Dance Construction Company: Collision Course ? a.k.a Pillow Talk
Dec. 7, 8, 8:00 pm
Dorothy Betts Marvin Theatre

GW Chamber Choir: Messiah
Dec. 9, 2:30 pm
St. Stephen Martyr Church

Alumni Events

GW Speech and Hearing Alumni Open House at the 2012 Annual ASHA Convention
Nov. 16, 8:30 pm
Atlanta, Georgia

GWebinar: Leverage Your College Diploma
Nov. 19, Noon
Online

GW LinkedIn Group Virtual Networking Hour
Nov. 20, Noon
Online

Reception for GW Alumni in DC Government
Nov. 29, 5:30 pm
Ben?s Next Door

Alumni Holiday Party
Dec. 5, 6:30 pm
Alumni House



Department News

Art Therapy

Anthropology

East Asian Languages and Literature

Eleanor Roosevelt Papers

English

Fine Arts and Art History

Forensic Sciences

Geography

History

Judaic Studies

Math

Media and Public Affairs

Midieval and Early Modern Studies

Museum Studies

Music

Philosophy

Physics

Political Science

Public Policy and Public Administration

Religion

Romance, German, and Slavic Languages

Science and Engineering Hall

Sociology

Speech and Hearing Sciences

Statistics

Theatre and Dance

University Writing Program

Womens Studies

Arts & Sciences Magazine in Print and Online
Columbian’s College’s annual GW Arts & Sciences print magazine, which arrived in mailboxes this month, is now online. The magazine showcases the groundbreaking research of our faculty on pressing issues such as childhood obesity and climate change, and reveals the extent and impact of student scholarship, alumni engagement, and philanthropic support over the past year. Enjoy reading our latest issue and please share your feedback via the comments section beneath each article or send an email to ccasnews@gwu.edu. Also, let us know if you did not receive the print issue as we may need to update your address. Read more.


Caterpillars Provide New Clues on Impact of Warmer Temperatures
Superstorm Sandy put climate change back in the national spotlight in late October, but Associate Professor of Biology John Lill needed only to look in his backyard to see the evidence of warmer temperatures. A specialist in the area of plant-insect interactions, Lill saw a species of caterpillars weeks before they were expected, an observation that sparked new questions by him and PhD candidate Mariana Abarca on how a change within one species’ life cycle affects the other insects and plants that move within its circle. Read more.


GW to Operate Renowned Koobi Fora Field School
The National Museums of Kenya and Columbian College’s Center for the Advanced Study of Hominid Paleobiology have teamed up to provide a unique opportunity for students to train with ecologists, archeologists, and paleontologists onsite in one of the most spectacular and productive paleoanthropology field research areas in the world. Last week, GW President Steven Knapp and Director General of the National Museums of Kenya Idle Farah agreed to jointly operate and administer the Koobi Fora Field School, an international training and research program in the Republic of Kenya’s Silbiloi National Park. Read more.


GW Students Sweep Top Honors in Chinese Speech Contest
GW students earned the top awards at the second annual Jiangsu Cup Chinese Speech Contest. Thirteen undergraduate finalists from five different schools in the greater Washington, D.C. area competed in the November 4th event sponsored by GW, Nanjing University, and the Jiangsu International Cultural Exchange Center of China. Gold Award winners Julian Panero, a senior majoring in Economics and Chinese Literature and Languages, and Todd Morrill, a student in the School of Business, will receive full scholarships for graduate study at Nanjing University in China. Silver award winners included Chinese Literature and Language majors Andrew Chester, Mark Timms, and Ian Evarhart, each of whom will receive a fully funded eight-day tour of Jiangsu Province in summer of 2013. Read more.


GW Recognized as a Top Producer of Fulbright Scholars
GW has again been recognized by the Chronicle of Higher Education as a top producer of Fulbright students. Next year, eight GW alumni and four graduate students are teaching and completing research in Europe, Africa, Asia and South America as winners of Fulbright Scholarships. The recipients will teach English and complete research on a wide range of issues, including immigration, civic engagement, and urban development and planning. Among them are Columbian College graduates Shaylen Foley, BA’10, and Anna Garrison, BA ’12, who will teach in Indonesia and Colombia, respectively. Read more.


TSPPPA Professor among Awardees of $2.6 Million NSF Grant
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded Associate Professor of Public Policy Dylan Conger and researchers from the University of Washington and SRI International a $2.6 million grant to study the redesigned Advanced Placement (AP) science courses. Their research will focus on both implementation and student outcomes resulting from the revised AP science curriculum developed by the College Board in collaboration with NSF and the National Research Council. The redesigned curriculum emphasizes the development of scientific inquiry skills rather than the acquisition of limited knowledge across many content areas. Read more.


Alumni in Politics
Columbian College alumni have long been making a name in the political world, and this election year is no exception. Among those who were re-elected to Congress in last week’s election were House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, BA ’85, and New York Representative Steve Israel, BA ’81. In state elections Brad Hawkins, MPA ’01, was elected  state representative for his district in Washington, and John “JB” McCuskey, BA ’04, was elected to the West Virginia House of Delegates. Click here for a list of other GW Alumni who won their political races.


Nominate a Professor for a GW Teaching Award
Do you know a professor or a graduate teaching assistant who is the definition of “great teacher"? The Provost’s Office is calling for nominations for the annual GW teaching awards, including the Oscar and Shoshana Trachtenberg Prize for Teaching Excellence (undergraduate teaching only), the Bender Teaching Awards, and the Philip J. Amsterdam Graduate Teaching Award. To submit a nomination, visit the Teaching & Learning Collaborative website. The deadline for submissions is December 3.


New Books
Associate Professor of English Antonio Lopez authored Unbecoming Blackness, which will be released on November 26.

Melissa Panek, professorial lecturer of French, wrote her first book The Postmodern Mythology of Michel Tournier.

Edward Robinson, outreach director for the Forensic Science Program and associate professor of forensic sciences, penned the textbook An Introduction to Crime Scene Photography.


Awards and Recognition
Megan Black, doctoral candidate in American Studies, was awarded the 2012 Gene Wise-Warren Susman Prize for her paper "Guardians of 'Global' Resources: Visualizing Energy and Empire in U.S. Government-Sponsored Film, 1949-1956" at the annual meeting of the American Studies Association. Kathleen Brian, doctoral candidate in American Studies, received an honorable mention for the same prize for her paper "'The Suicide Contests': Corporate Victimhood in the Life Insurance Industry, 1862-1883."

Chair of the Music Department Douglas Boyce received a prestigious Fromm Music Foundation at Harvard University 2012 Commission for a project with Trio Cavatino.

Mariana D. B. Figueira, postdoctoral fellow and instruction in the Professional Psychology Program, was recognized by the American Pscyhoanalytic Association as a 2013 Teacher Academy Scholar.

Assistant Professor of Classics Elise Friedland is the 2013 recipient of the Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award from the Archaeological Institute of America.

The GW Geography Team won the Geography Bowl Competition at the Mid-Atlantic Division of the Association of American Geographers' meeting. Students Raynell Cooper and Chris Hart placed first and second and will compete as part of the Mid-Atlantic Division team at the national competition in April.

Kevin Hatala, a student in the Hominid Paleobiology PhD Program, has been awarded a $9,142 grant from the Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research, and a $14,925 National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant for his project "Fossil Footprints and the Dynamics of Footprint Formation: Implications for the Evolution of Human Gait."

Alexander Huang, associate professor of English and director of the Dean’s Scholars in Shakespeare program, is a co-recipient of a five-year, $208,336 grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada to work with scholars on a digital edition of Shakespeare's King Lear.

Chair of the Department of Fine Arts and Art History Dean Kessmann and Chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance Dana Tai Soon Burgess each received a $5,000 Artist Fellowship grant from the District of Columbia Commission on the Arts and Humanities.

Kristin Kirkpatrick, BA ’98, was recently named one of 35 health experts to follow on Twitter by the Huffington Post.

Ryan Krog, a graduate student in political science, received a Prestage-Cook Travel Award from the Southern Political Science Association to attend the January 2013 SPSA Conference in Orlando.

Chair of the Department of Biological Sciences Diana Lipscomb placed in the top 20 of Nikon's Small World Microphotography contest.

Assistant Professor of American Studies Elaine Peña received the Honorable Mention from the 2012 Association of Latina and Latino Anthropologists Book Award committee for her book Performing Piety: Making Space Sacred with the Virgin of Guadalupe.

Assistant Professor of Forensic Sciences Daniele Podini was awarded a $268,000 grant from the National Institute of Justice to support the development of a new method to help detect spermatozoa from sexual assault evidence.

Shannon Powers, a graduate student in political science, was selected to serve as a non-governmental organization delegate to the 11th Session of the Assembly of States-Parties of the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

Victor Weedn, chair of the Department of Forensic Sciences and renowned for his work as a forensic scientist, received the President’s Award for "Special and Ongoing Service" at the National Association of Medical Examiners.

Widmeyer Communications, led by School of Media and Public Affairs (SMPA) National Council member Scott Widmeyer, received the Diversity Distinction in PR Award 2012 from the Council of PR Firms and PR Week. Widmeyer Communications supports SMPA’s Prime Media Movers program.

At the national meeting of the American Musicological Society, Professor of Music Laura Youens received the Claude V. Palisca Award for best edition or translation for Thomasii Crequillonis Opera omnia, Vol. 18: Cantiones Quatuor Vocum. Youens worked on the music of Renaissance composer Thomas Crecquillon for 23 years and was the editor of seven volumes of a 20-volume series.


Selected Published Works
Jonathan Chaves, professor of Chinese, co-authored the catalogue and translated the poetic texts of the Chinese calligraphy collection that is now on display at the San Francisco Asian Art Museum. The calligraphy is from the collection of Jerry Wang, co-founder of yahoo.com.

Gregory D. Squires, professor of sociology and public policy and pubic administration, co-authored an op-ed for The Nation entitled “America’s Warfare Welfare State”.

"Direct Observation of Subcellular Metabolite Gradients in Single Cells by LAESI Mass Spectrometry" was featured in the October Angewandte Chemie, International Edition. The article was authored by Professor of Chemistry, Biochemistry, and Molecular Biology Akos Vertes, graduate student and recent winner of the Dimitris N. Chorafas Foundation Prize Jessica Stolee, undergraduate student Getachew Mengistu, and post-doctoral scientist Bindesh Shrestha.


 

 

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