September Conference to Gather Representatives from Indigenous Tribes around the U.S.
Due in part to the transformation of the Winnebago community in Nebraska as a result of their practice of the Transcendental Meditation® technique, a conference is scheduled on campus in late September that will bring representatives from American Indian tribes around the U.S.
Speakers will include elders from the Hocak, Mohawk, and Passamaquady tribes, and the former tribal chair of the Sac and Fox Nation. Hosts and participants will include the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Indian Health Services, the National Indian Education Association, Winnebago Tribal Health Services, Winnebago Treaty Hospital, and the Hocak Elders Council.
The David Lynch Foundation, which initiated and funded the Winnebago project in Nebraska, is also supporting and hosting the conference.
“We’re thrilled this is happening,” said Bob Roth, vice president of the Lynch Foundation. “It’s just amazing how the Transcendental Meditation technique has helped the people on the Winnebago Reservation during the past year and a half. It’s not only helping them to abate a lethal epidemic of diabetes, but it’s also helping them to reconnect with their spiritual heritage. They feel like it’s helping to save their lives and their culture.”
An inspiring six-minute documentary about the Winnebago project that includes interviews with tribal leaders and members can be found on tm.org.
The conference, titled “Building a Healthy, Sustainable American Indian Community,” will be held September 25–27. Topics will include culture, education, health, agriculture, and energy.
Headlines
Dr. Schmidt-Wilk Reappointed Editor of Journal
Management professor Jane Schmidt-Wilk was recently reappointed to a three-year term as editor of the Journal of Management Education, an award-winning, peer-reviewed journal that is a leading publication for college-level teachers of management.
The board of directors of the OBTS Teaching Society for Management Educators appointed Dr. Schmidt-Wilk to a second term because of the outstanding contribution she has made to the continuing quality and standing of the journal.
Dr. Schmidt-Wilk first received an 18-month appointment as interim co-editor in 2005 while a search for a new editor took place. The board ultimately selected her above other candidates for the role of editor in 2006, appointing her to her first three-year term.
In her role as editor, Dr. Schmidt-Wilk receives article submissions, recruits peer reviewers, and disseminates submissions to these peer reviewers.
She has also helped to develop a strategic vision for the journal to foster greater excellence in management education and to increase the journal’s visibility and impact within the larger academic community.
The journal is published by SAGE Publications, and covers research and analysis on teaching management and organizational behavior.
Headlines
Campus Building Gets Geothermal
By Lee Leffler
The new storage building by the Golden Dome Market’s is now being heated and cooled with geothermal technology as part of a pilot project to install geothermal systems in additional campus buildings.
Geothermal technology involves drilling holes in the ground, inserting loops of pipes, then circulating water through the pipes. Since the ground in this region is a constant 55 degrees Fahrenheit, heat can be either extracted or rejected as it is circulated through the pipes, providing winter heating and summer cooling.
The University is leasing a special rig to drill holes horizontally, 15 feet underground. The drill can run under lawns, parking lots, and other terrain, without disturbing the landscape. When the drill has gone far enough (usually several hundred feet), it is sent to the surface. A loop of polyethylene pipe is attached to the drill head, and the drill slowly retreats back through the hole, bringing the pipe with it. Soon, the pipe is underground, ready to be filled with water and connected to a ground source heat pump that uses only a small amount of electricity (about a quarter of the amount used by a small space heater).
When the Golden Dome Market’ storage building was first completed, the University had planned to install conventional air conditioning and a gas furnace. When they found out that connecting gas pipes to the gas main would cost $4,000, they looked to Campus Sustainability Coordinator Mark Stimson for a sustainable and less-expensive idea. Mr. Stimson calculated that they could install a geothermal system for approximately the same cost as conventional systems, and the long-term costs would be about half.
Four pipes were needed for the Golden Dome Market storage building. Some pipes have been installed for the Sustainable Living wing of the Library. The next target is Henn Mansion, which will require 17 pipe loops and will be ready in sometime in July.
While the pilot project is being funded by the University, future installations will depend on grants, loans, and donations.
Headlines
University Again Collecting E-Waste
Again this year campus residents will have the opportunity to discard unwanted electronics knowing that the toxic components of their items will not be released into the environment and that all possible components and materials will be recycled.
“The Second Annual Great E-Waste Roundup” will continue through Saturday, August 8. Drop-off points are listed on posters around campus. Last year’s roundup collected 20,000 pounds.
Items that are being accepted for recycling include computers, monitors, fax machines, printers, desktop copiers (but not regular copiers), stereos, and other electronics.
With the conversion to digital TV and the predominance of LCD TVs, the Roundup will be an opportunity for campus residents to recycle their old cathode ray tube TVs (which contain four to 10 pounds of lead and should never be put in a dumpster).
The Roundup is for M.U.M. students, faculty, and staff. “We just don’t have the time or the manpower to accept items from outside the campus community,” said Mark Stimson, campus sustainability coordinator.
The Roundup is being sponsored by Apple, Inc., which provides the service free to educational institutions and which will be hauling away all of the waste in August. Apple processes all of the waste in the U.S. Data is wiped from storage devices, and some components are reused. Those components not reused are ground up, sorted, and materials such as plastic and glass are reused.
Headlines
Ken West Exhibits Landscape Photos
Ken West, who teaches both management and photography, is currently exhibiting “The Sweet Light,” a collection of landscape photographs, at Teeple Hansen Gallery in Fairfield through July 25.
The photographs, taken on the Jefferson County Trail System, were recently featured at Ohio’s National Center for Nature Photography, which has displayed works of some of the country’s best known nature photographers.
Art Weber, Director of the National Center, described Mr. West’s exhibit as “Sweet light. Sweet photographs. A really sweet exhibit of landscape and nature photographs. Ken West knows light, knows photography and has mastered a breakthrough process called high dynamic range (HDR) that results in images that open up a whole new vision for photographers.”
“We are pleased that Ken chose Teeple Hansen Gallery to premier his new show in Iowa,” says gallery co-owner, Bill Teeple. “The HDR process gives his work a stunning reality and a unique look.”
The Teeple Hansen Gallery is located at 108 W. Broadway, Suite 206. Enter by 21st Century Books and go to the second floor. Hours are 1st Friday Art Walks 6:30 to 10:00, Fridays and Saturdays 1:00 to 4:00, and by appointment. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call (641) 919-6252 or (734) 358-9897.
Headlines
School Tennis Team Wins Second at State
Maharishi School tennis players again this year qualified for the state competition, with the boys earning second place in the team competition and fourth place in the doubles competition.
Also qualifying for state was Thomas Weiss, the only 9th grader among the 16 players competing for the state singles title, and the doubles team of Angela Sickler and 9th grader Minna Mohammadi, who finished in eighth place. In the 22 years of the School’s tennis program, the boys tennis team has been among the elite “final four” at state 12 times, including the past five years in a row.
Their success this season is all the more remarkable in that the team is young, with two freshman among the top four players and no seniors.
Taking fourth place in doubles were 11th grader Joseph Gelfand and 10th grader Derek Thatcher. Others playing at the state team competition included Sam Arsanjani, Jay Stewart, and Brenton Schwartz.
The girls team made it to the substate final, but didn’t make it to state after losing to perennial champ Comanche.
In golf, Maharishi School’s John DeAngelis won both the conference and sectional championships, and barely missed qualifying for state.
Headlines
School Student Published in Book
Maharishi School sixth-grade student Davin Titus recently had a letter to President Obama published in Kids’ Letters to President Obama.
The book contains about 200 letters selected from over 2,000 submissions. The letter by Mr. Titus included a poem that listed attributes of President Obama, each one beginning with a letter of President Obama’s name. That portion of the letter caught the editor’s attention and was published.
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