Carbondale Calendars and Events
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East St. Louis Calendars and Events

Simply perfect.  That's the pass rate for August 2007 graduates of the SIUC Physician Assistant Program.  It's not the first time either for this remarkable feat.  In fact, the program is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year and since the first class graduated from the program in 1999, there have been a total of 240 graduates.  All but two of those 240, including the recent 21-member class, aced the exam on their first attempt.  Those two subsequently passed on their second attempt.  The School of Allied Health, within the College of Applied Sciences and Arts, in cooperation with the SIU School of Medicine offers the SIUC Physician Assistant Program.  The program, which recently became a master's degree program, incorporates two educational options.  A full 26 months (seven semesters) of on-campus study and clinical rotation work at various Illinois sites capped by an eight-week preceptorship earns the master's degree.  In addition, certified PAs with bachelor's degrees can, utilizing distance learning and a supervising preceptors, finish the master's completion program in one year.

Two graduates of the creative writing program in the English department at SIUC recently gave the College of Liberal Arts cause to celebrate.  Paul Guest, a 1999 MFA-creative writing graduate, is one of 10 Whiting Foundation Fellowship winners for 2007.  The $50,000 annual awards go to "emerging writers of exceptional talent and promise," according to the Mrs. Giles Whiting Foundation.  There was a ceremony to announce the recipients last month at The Morgan Library and Museum in New York City.  Benjamin Percy, who earned a master of fine arts degree in creative writing in 2004, is a featured subject in the November-December issue of "Poets and Writers," a 70,000 circulation, national bi-monthly trade journal for creative writers.

Cole Ramsey of Bowen, who graduated earlier this year from SIUE with a bachelor’s in business administration/ finance, recently won the annual HSBC Bank prize for his scholarly achievement at Sheffield Hallam University in Sheffield, England.  Ramsey was a student at Sheffield during spring semester as part of an exchange program with that university through the SIUE School of Business International Program.  Ramsey earned the honor for his work in an international trade finance module, offered through Sheffield's Department of Organization and Management.  He finished third in the module class.  He also has been invited to a special ceremony to receive the award in Sheffield.

A business student at SIUC is one of only 15 doctoral candidates worldwide chosen to attend the "Climate Change, Uncertainty and Strategic Management" seminar at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, Switzerland.  Bryan T. Stinchfield, a doctoral student in strategic management in the College of Business and Administration, plans to attend the conference set for January 2008.  The seminar will focus on sustainability and technology.  Stinchfield will present a paper entitled "Climate Change Strategies and Firm Performance," which he and Michael D. Michalisin, SIUC associate professor of management, co-authored.

Carolyn B. Smoot, director of paralegal studies at SIUC, is president-elect of the American Association for Paralegal Education, the only national organization serving paralegal educators and institutions that offer paralegal programs.  AAfPE membership elected Smoot to the three-year commitment at its recent national conference in Baltimore, Md. Smoot will serve one year as president-elect, one as president and one year as immediate past-president, an advisory position.  As director, Smoot created the pre-law specialization, established an honors program within the paralegal studies program and doubled the number of available courses in the program.  SIUC offers the only four-year paralegal degree in Illinois approved by the American Bar Association.

The newest members of the SIUE Foundation Board of Directors include Monsanto’s CIO, the Holland Construction Services Inc. CEO, a partner at the St. Louis accounting firm RubinBrown and a clinical professor at the SIU School of Dental Medicine (SIU/SDM).  Veteran Monsanto CIO Mark Showers joins Bruce B. Holland, CEO Holland Construction, RubinBrown CPA Walter R. Knepper and SIU/SDM’s Dr. Neal W. Roller as the newest elected directors of the Foundation Board.

The Aisin family of companies is continuing its support of the engineering studies at SIUC with another $20,000 donation.  Aisin Manufacturing Illinois, Aisin Electronics Illinois and Aisin Light Metals Illinois are donating $100,000 over five years to the College of Engineering at SIUC.  The money will fund the Aisin Scholarship Program, which supports scholarships and internships for outstanding SIUC students majoring in mechanical engineering, engineering technology or industrial technology.  Company officials recently met with engineering college leaders to make the latest check presentation.  The companies, which opened in July 2002 in Marion, make automobile components for Toyota, General Motors and Mitsubishi.  The firms are well-established contributors to SIUC's engineering programs, routinely providing scholarships and company internships to students.  In addition to the current commitment, the companies previously donated $5,000 to install at SIUC the same model of programmable logic computers used in Aisin's factories.

Carl Jennings, who in 2003 retired from BASF Corp., the world's largest chemical company, said SIUC is special to him and his family.  And the two-degree alumnus continues to exhibit generosity toward his alma mater.  Jennings and his wife, Janet, established the Jennings Endowed Scholarship Fund in 1994, through the SIU Foundation.  The College of Science has presented scholarships to students through the endowment for well more than a decade.  And recently, the Jennings donated an additional $100,000 to their endowment fund.  Also, in observance of the University's Southern at 150 plan, which seeks to make Southern a top 75 research institution by 2019, the couple has made a $150,000 commitment to the University.  In addition to the $100,000 they have contributed this year, Jennings said they will donate another $50,000 during the next five years.  Jennings received his bachelor's and doctorate degrees from Southern in 1967 and 1971, respectively.

Nominations are being sought for the 25th annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Humanitarian and Scholarship awards to be given at the Feb. 5 Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration Luncheon at SIUE.  Entries also are being sought for an essay, poetry, and visual arts competition for high school students.  The awards are given each year to recognize those who exemplify the philosophy of nonviolent social change, as demonstrated by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  Two Humanitarian Awards will be given—one to an SIUE employee and another to an Illinois resident, while a current SIUE student is eligible for the Scholarship and a Humanitarian Award.  Nomination applications are available at the Kimmel Leadership Center on the first floor of SIUE's Morris University Center.  The deadline for nominations is Friday, Dec. 7.  For more information, call the center at (618) 650-2686.

A research scientist at the SIU School of Medicine in Springfield has been awarded two five-year federal grants from the National Cancer Institute, a division of the National Institutes of Health.  These grants will study genes that suppress the spread of cancer in the body.  Kounosuke Watabe, professor of medical microbiology, immunology and cell biology, is the principal investigator for the projects.  He also is a member of the SimmonsCooper Cancer Institute at SIU.  One grant will study the gene, KAI1, which suppresses the metastasis of tumors in the body.  The total budget for the grant is $1,013,008.  The second grant will study the gene, Drg 1, which suppresses metastasis of prostate and breast cancers.  The total budget for the grant is $1,036,128.  This is the 14th national grant awarded for Watabe's research.  He previously has been funded for research focused on prostate and breast cancers.  His research, which totals more than $4 million, has been funded for more than 20 years by the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, United States Army, American Cancer Society and American Lung Association.

The SIUC men's basketball team opens regular season play at the SIU Arena Saturday, Nov. 17.  The Dawgs take on Northern Illinois University in a contest that tips off at 7:05 p.m.  The Salukis begin the 2007-08 campaign ranked No. 21 in the nation.  For ticket info, contact the Saluki Ticket Office at (618)453-2000.  The Dawgs play in the ESPN Tournament in Anaheim, Calif. Nov. 22-25 and return to the SIU Arena to face Indiana on Saturday, Dec. 1.  Game time is 8:30 p.m.

The SIU Board of Trustees recently approved two projects on the Edwardsville campus with budgets totaling $12 million.  Also approved were the purchase of new bleachers and a wood floor for SIUE’s Vadalabene Center at a cost of up to $2 million.  Project and budget approvals were given to construction of an Olympics standard wrestling and volleyball center at a cost of $10 million and a $2 million expansion of the SIUE Early Childhood Center.  The board had approved planning in October for the center that will house SIUE intercollegiate wrestling and volleyball, as well as provide a venue for community-based youth wrestling programs.  Project plans call for the center, which will be funded through private donations, to meet standards to serve as a Midwest Olympics Wrestling Training Center.

The football Salukis travel to Virginia Saturday, Nov. 17 to take on Hampton.  Game time is at noon.  The Dawgs are ranked No. 5 in the nation.  SIUC Athletics will host a gathering for the 2007 NCAA Football Championship Subdivision Selection Show on Sunday, Nov. 18 at Copper Dragon in Carbondale.  Doors open at 1:45 p.m.  Saluki football players and coaches will be available for autographs, followed by a brief program featuring head coach Jerry Kill.  The NCAA Division I Selection Show will air live at 2:30 p.m., CST, on ESPNU.  Eight automatic bids, plus eight at-large teams, will be revealed.  The playoffs begin Saturday, Nov. 24, with eight first-round games.  SIUC vies for its fifth-straight playoff berth.