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Performance: A newsletter about the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities

Spring 2005 issue

Spring 2005

NASA taps professor's expertise for safety research
Staring off into space has a different meaning for Richard Jarvinen, Winona State University mathematics and statistics professor and NASA research scientist consultant. For him, it is part of his job on the national team that supports the NASA Engineering Safety Center... (read more)

Alternative paths, online options attract students to teacher preparation programs
Earlier this year, the wind was howling and the temperature was 40 degrees below zero in the northern Minnesota town of Backus. But inside her home, Michelle Holden, a student in an innovative teacher training program offered through Bemidji State University, went online to finish two papers, check three discussion boards and work on an assignment in a chat session with classmates... (read more)

Costa Rican village becomes laboratory
This spring, 21 students from Winona State University will travel with faculty members to the seaside village of Playa Dominical, Costa Rica, to gather data on its lifestyle and the potential impact of an impending tourism explosion... (read more)

High school students click with Honors Online classes
High school students now earn college credit from Lake Superior College without ever leaving the high school campus, thanks to an innovative approach to Post-Secondary Enrollment Options program called "Honors Online." The program provides college-level courses to eligible students through special arrangements with the students' high school, using computer labs for the classes... (read more)

Students to run Grandma's Marathon for college credit
Talk about a tough final - you have to run Grandma's Marathon to earn college credit for the course. Lake Superior College is offering new online courses that enable students to earn two physical education credits by training for and running in Grandma's Marathon, or one credit by training for and running the Garry Bjorklund Half-Marathon... (read more)

Minnesota Online Council chair blazes trail for e-learning
When the camera was first invented, people thought it would replace painting. That seems almost ridiculous now, but it didn't at the time, observes Patricia Rogers, a professor in the Department of Professional Education at Bemidji State University. She recounts that old fear now when comparing traditional classrooms with online learning... (read more)

Minnesota Online expands opportunities
Online course offerings in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system have expanded to meet rising student demand for academic programs 24/7, on campus or off campus, to fit into their busy lives. About 80 programs now are offered entirely or predominately online, making academic programs more available to more people so they can earn certificates, diplomas and associate, bachelor's and master's degrees... (read more)

Campus roundup
Fulbright recipients; Faculty and staff honors; Student and alumni honors... (read more)

National Science Foundation grants spark innovative programs
National Science Foundation grants not only support university research but also are helping two-year institutions in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities to design new academic programs, develop scholarship programs, conduct research, and recruit and retain students to pursue careers in high demand fields... (read more)

Replica of the 100-year old Minnesota State Capitol carved from 100 blocks of ice

A replica of the 100-year old Minnesota State Capitol was carved from 100 blocks of clear ice on a platform of Lake Phalen ice blocks by St. Paul College instructor Larry Fischer and a team of carvers. (see another view)


A 'passion for trees' led to new book
A new book, "The Trees of Winona State University," by Bill Meyer and Tom Grier documents every one of nearly 1,000 trees on the Winona campus with detailed maps and dozens of color photographs and close-ups of tree characteristics such as leaves, bark, fruit or blooms... (read more)

Two Hennepin Technical College graduates win gold medals in culinary competition
Two recent graduates of Hennepin Technical College's culinary arts program each won a gold medal in the Culinary Arts Salon competition Feb. 21 at the annual Upper Midwest Hospitality Show in the Minneapolis Convention Center... (read more)

Test car previews mobile electronics installation program
Electronics students have rolled up their sleeves at Minnesota State College-Southeast Technical and are working on a prototype vehicle, a 1997 Acura Integra that will make its debut March 31 at Trade and Tech Day on the Red Wing campus. The prototype is aimed at attracting interest in the college's new program in mobile electronics installation... (read more)

Weaver’s immigrant tale transformed into new movie
Last fall, film maker Ali Selim called Bemidji State University faculty member and author Will Weaver, whom he had met 10 years earlier when he bought movie rights to Weaver's short story, "A Gravestone Made of Wheat." ... (read more)

Nurses, teachers, law enforcement officers featured in campaign
Nurses, teachers, law enforcement officers and other alumni of Minnesota State Colleges and Universities are spotlighted in a new series of advertisements that demonstrate the impact of the system's graduates on the state's economic and community vitality... (read more)

Campuses respond to tsunami disaster
The tsunami that struck Southeast Asia on Dec. 26 set off ripples of relief efforts across Minnesota State Colleges and Universities campuses. Minnesota State University, Mankato, began a fundraising competition among student organizations and staff and faculty departments, with donations going to the American Red Cross for tsunami victims... (read more)

Chancellor's Column: Higher education expert cautions Minnesota against complacency
Patrick Callan has some provocative words for Minnesota's leaders. Callan, director of the California-based National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education and a national expert on accountability in higher education, visited with public officials, educators and legislators on a recent visit to Minnesota. His message: Minnesota, and the United States, must provide higher education to much greater numbers of people than ever was envisioned in the past... (read more)

Congratulations to our graduates in the Legislature
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities are proud of our 44 graduates in the state Legislature and all those who have attended our institutions. Your service makes a difference, and we thank you... (read more)

Meet the new trustee: Ruth Grendahl
"The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities have the distinction of providing students with a unique blend of academic and technical opportunities that are very relevant in today's economy. I look forward to contributing to the board's mission of ensuring the system's high value for current and future students."... (read more)


Performance is a periodic newsletter for faculty, staff and friends of Minnesota State Colleges and Universities published by Minnesota State Colleges and Universities.

Robert H. Hoffman, Board of Trustees Chair
James H. McCormick, Chancellor

Contributing writers: Janet Blixt, Gary Kruchowski, Al Nohner, Lisa Klein Scholl, Peggy Whalen

Contact Public Affairs: (651) 296-0541; Nancy Conner: nancy.conner@so.mnscu.edu