March News

Georgian Court Receives Presidential Community Service Award

Georgian Court University has been named to the 2009 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, the highest federal recognition a college or university can receive for its commitment to volunteering, service learning, and civic engagement.

The Corporation for National and Community Service, which administers the annual Honor Roll award, recently recognized more than 700 colleges and universities for their impact on issues from poverty and homelessness to environmental justice. The national honor recognizes the efforts of students and schools that work to meet community needs using classroom skills and innovative programming.

“Georgian Court students understand the importance of civic responsibility, and eagerly roll up their sleeves to get involved,” says Rosemary E. Jeffries, RSM, Ph.D., university president. “From their work with the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office in examining services for at-risk youth to the countless hours they put in helping Gulf Coast families rebuild after Hurricane Katrina, they know what it means to translate the GCU mission into action.” Read more 

School Psychology Program Gets National Approval

Georgian Court University’s Master of Arts in School Psychology/Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study program has been awarded national approval/recognition (conditional) by the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP). The announcement comes after the review of GCU’s 270-page application attesting to the program’s adherence to NASP’s training standards regarding program content, coursework, and field experiences.  NASP is one of the Specialized Professional Associations of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). The association, which has given GCU conditional approval, represents more than 25,500 psychologists who work in schools, counseling centers, and other educational and health settings.
 
In its report to GCU, reviewers from NASP were very positive and complimentary, says Joseph Colford, Ph.D., director of the university’s school psychology program, whose alumni work with school-age children in schools and in a variety of other settings.  In schools alone, the demand for psychologists is high as they collaborate with school teachers and staff in addressing students’ academic and mental health needs, family issues, and other barriers to learning.
 
The awarding of NASP approval/recognition allows program graduates to earn the NASP’s Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP) credential, a designation that employers often look for as they screen applicants for jobs.

Learn more about the GCU M.A. in School Psychology. 

GCU Welcomes 13 New Faculty Members in Fall 2009
Come back each month for more profiles!

Pamela E. Lowry, Ed.D., joins the School of Education as an assistant professor of education/special education. She recently served as supervisor of special services for the Little Silver, New Jersey, Board of Education, where she was responsible for overseeing special education programs, IEP development and implementation, and professional development. Dr. Lowry has also lectured at Monmouth  University, the College of New Jersey, and Rutgers University. She holds a Ed.D. in Special Education from Rutgers. For more information about the School of Education, click here.

Russell McDonald, Ph.D., joins the School of Arts and Humanities as an assistant professor of English. He comes to Georgian Court from Pennsylvania State University, where he held a postdoctoral teaching fellowship in the Department of English, where he taught upper-level literature course, general introductory literature courses, and first-year writing. Dr. McDonald also held a Mellon Foundation Postdoctoral Teaching Fellowship at Kalamazoo College. He holds a Ph.D. in English Language and Literature from the University of Michigan.For more information about GCU's Department of English, click here.

The Write Stuff

GCU English major Katie Morgan is headed to Philadelphia this month to present her take on author Louise Erdrich’s thought-provoking novel, The Painted Drum. Katie’s presentation was recently selected by the Mid-Atlantic American Studies Association (MAASA), which will hold its conference at LaSalle University in mid-March. Katie will also join MAASA’s roundtable for undergraduate participants during the meeting. MAASA is a regional chapter of the well-known American Studies Association.

Learn more about the B.A. in English and student publications like The Fountain Spray and The Lion’s Tale.

 

A Watershed Moment

What does it take to get children thinking about water conservation? Just ask GCU science education students who designed a curriculum to help middle-school youngsters to examine their water consumption habits. The work of GCU’s Amanda Traina and Jen Mettielo is currently featured in the Barnegat Bay Beat, a quarterly publication of the Barnegat Bay National Estuary Program. The two also taught young learners how to share what they know about water conservation to motivate others, says Louise Wootton, Ph.D.,  CU professor of biology. The GCU student materials also were presented at the recent Alliance for New Jersey Environmental Education conference.

Learn more about GCU’s biology program and check out the GCU water conservation education project.

 

Critical Information

Whether they’re online, on the phone, on their laptops, or playing games with competitors a world away, today’s students are only one click away from the latest info on any given topic.

But having instant access isn’t enough: students must be able to collect information, analyze it, apply it to problems, and use what they’ve discovered in ways that are meaningful and effective.

In short, they must have information fluency---a skill experts define as the ability to incorporate information literacy, computer literacy, and critical thinking across academic fields, media formats and life experiences.

Georgian Court University faculty recently joined others from across the country to explore the topic during the 2010 Information Fluency in the Disciplines Workshop in Literature conference in New Orleans. GCU was selected from a field of 80 applicant teams vying for spots at the gathering. Co-sponsored by Association of College Research Libraries and the Council on Library and Information Resources, and funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the highly selective workshop included about 20 faculty teams representing independent colleges across the country. GCU’s representatives were: Paul R. Cappucci, Ph.D., an associate professor of English; Mary Chinery, Ph.D., associate professor of English and associate dean of Arts & Humanities and Sciences & Mathematics; and Mary Basso, M.L.S., humanities librarian.

Learn more about English and the GCU School of Arts & Humanities.

 

STUDENT LIFE/WILD

There’s so much happening on the GCU campus. Visit us often for highlights of Student Life programs and Women in Leadership Development (WILD), our renowned women’s leadership program. 

 

Alternative Spring Break

Only a few weeks after lending a hand to families still suffering from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, GCU student volunteers are at it again---this time spending their spring break helping out in Camden.

The trip, headed by Tina Geiger, RSM, director GCU’s Service Learning program, is the latest example of the university’s commitment to helping others. The university recently was named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, making this the fourth consecutive year that the Corporation for National and Community Service has recognized GCU’s dedication to volunteering, service-learning, and civic engagement.

Learn more about service learning at GCU.

 

Celebrating Women: Past and Present

Where do women turn for wisdom? That's one of the questions addressed in the Secrets of Women, a March 15-31 display of timeless tidbits and little-known facts about femininity. Members of Women in Leadership Development want the campus community to reflect on the information displayed in the lobby of the GCU Arts and Sciences building, and contribute their own examples of sage advice.

"We're hoping to create more awareness of women's issues, and at the same time, cultivate an appreciation of the shoulders on which we stand," says Georgian Court graduate assistant and MBA student Sandrine Holloway. 

WILD also will host a double-header film session at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March 10 in the Little Theatre. Moviegoers will see two screenings of The Women, the 1939 classic and its 2008 remake. Both films explore themes of love, loyalty, marriage, friendship, and the difficult choices women must sometimes make.

In its third Women's History Month activitity, the women's leadership group will host Ladies Evening Out: A Fancy Hats Affair, at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, March 29 in GCU's historic Casino auditorium. Hats, often an expression of style and personality by the women who wear them, are the focal point of the sit-down dinner and entertainment event. The program is free to the GCU community; admission is $10 for the general public and those who attend without hats.

The point of it all, says Ms. Holloway, is to celebrate womanhood and have a good time. "We hope to inspire a feeling of what it means to belong to sisterhood of support," she says, "and most of all, have fun!"

For information, e-mail Alleyne Thomas at thom9691@georgian.edu.

Compassion through Fashion

When GCU students take to the runway next month, it won’t be to turn heads. Instead, models in the SGA-sponsored fashion show want to create global awareness about female access to education and raise enough money to send 1,000 impoverished African girls to school.

The April 7 show benefits the ongoing efforts of Mercy Global Concern, a project of the worldwide Sisters of Mercy at the United Nations. Mercy Global Concern estimates it takes about $50 to ensure that an African girl gets to go to school. GCU’s Student Government Association last fall pledged to work with Mercy Global Concern to help fund scholarships for girls across the continent. The campus goal is to raise $1,000 by May, says SGA president Brynn Walzer.

Learn more about SGA and student life programs at Georgian Court.

 

Youngsters Get the Royal Treatment

So what happens when Ariel, Pocahontas and Belle meet members of the GCU Council for Exceptional Children? You get a very successful program for youngsters with autism and developmental disabilities, says Lynn DeCapua, Ph.D., a GCU assistant professor of education and licensed psychologist.

“Our GCU students created and implemented a very creative, multi-sensory program for youngsters with developmental disabilities,” says Dr. DeCapua. In their initial presentation at Cedar Grove Elementary School in Toms River, the GCU students led four learning stations, including Under the Sea with Ariel, Catch a Dream with Pocahontas, Beautiful Music with Belle, and Tigger Time.  

The chapter’s goal was to give youngsters a chance to engage in an enjoyable activity while developing their communication and interpersonal skills.

The Disney-themed activity has since sparked the interest of coordinators behind the Council for Exceptional Children’s national convention, slated for April 21-24 in Nashville. Students Nora O'Neill, president of the GCU chapter, and Allison Ripoll, vice president, will travel to the gathering to discuss their project in a poster session at the convention.   

 
Learn more about GCU and the Council for Exceptional Children.

 

 

Georgian Court University Presents

Interested in Georgian Court University Events?  Learn More

Check out our Spring 2010 Programs
The Spring 2010 Mosaic is here! Learn More 

Lectures-In-Song with Fred Miller
What would America be without immigrants? More specifically, what would American music be without the rainbow of foreign cultures that blended so indelibly into the American landscape during the 19^th and 20^th centuries? Join Fred Miller for an evening of unforgettable Irish-American songs. Enjoy a multicourse dinner of regional cuisine paired with traditional music and a multimedia presentation on the artist over dessert and coffee. Irish Presence in American Song will be Friday March 12 at 6:30 PM in the North Dining Room. $35 per person includes a multicourse dinner and presentation, reservations are required. Learn More

New Program!
The McAuley Institute for Lifelong Learning is a new institute tailored for audiences aged 50 or older who want to take advantage of college-level courses without tests, grades, or credits. The first five-week course for 2010 is 20th-Century Irish Innovators. This class, led by Hannah Means-Shannon, Ph.D., GCU lecturer in English, will consist of a study of five major Irish writers and three major genres spanning the literary developments of the 20th century. Learners will examine the Irish impact on the birth of modernism following World War I as well as the Irish invention of postmodernism in the wake of World War II and after. This class begins Friday, February 26, and runs through April 9 from 10:00 a.m.- 12:00 p.m.  Learn More

A Healthier You on The Horizon
Spend an evening with renowned Native American sculptor and Faith Keeper of the Oneida Wolf Clan, Diane Shenandoah. Through oral traditions and song, she will share Haudenosaunee legends and moral lessons, impart the importance of the social, spiritual, and emotional well-being of her people. Join award winning sculptor Diane Shenandoah, March 15, 6:00 PM in the Little Theater. It is $5 per person, FREE to current GCU students with I.D.; reservations are required. Learn More 

Vegetarian Society Presentation
The Georgian Court University Vegetarian Society will host "Veganism to Activism with Jasmin Singer," on Wednesday, March 17 at 5:30 p.m. in the Little Theatre. Ms. Singer, campaign manager for the animal rights organization Farm Sanctuary, will emphasize the health benefits of eating a plant-based diet. She will also discuss the problems that industrial farming creates for the environment, animals, and consumers. This program is free and open to the public; however reservations are required. Please RSVP by sending an e-mail to jc89877@georgian.edu.