2013 WMU News

Twitter messages by Dr. Jeffrey Angles requesting Japanese books to support WMU's recently launched Japanese major resulted in thousands of book donations and many touching letters.

Prescribed burns are planned through the end of February at Asylum Lake Preserve to dispose of piles of brush that have accumulated as a result of University efforts to remove invasive vegetation.

Members of WMU's Alpha Tau Omega fraternity will camp out for 48 consecutive hours Tuesday through Thursday, Feb. 19-21, to raise funds for Kalamazoo Valley Habitat for Humanity.

The next Distinguished Speaker Series talk will be presented by William A. "Bud" Brian, founder and original owner of Budco. He will speak at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 27, in 2000 Schneider Hall.

The Lawrence Lithography Workshop will exhibit prints in the Richmond Center for Visual Arts' Monroe-Brown Gallery Thursday, Feb. 21, through Friday, March 22.

WMU students Brendan Duffy, Shane Petersen and Alec Robbins will compete Thursday, Feb. 21, for the title of this year's funniest Bronco, followed with a set by Roy Wood Jr.

Dr. Hal B. Jenson, founding dean of the WMU School of Medicine, will speak at the Keystone Community Bank Breakfast Speaker Series at 8 a.m. Friday, Feb. 22. Continental breakfast will begin at 7:30 a.m.

Dr. Leroy R. Ray Jr., professor emeritus and former director of the Black Americana Program, died Feb. 12 at age 82. A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 16, in Bloomingdale, Mich.

The contributions of Chinese women writers in China’s historiography will be outlined in a talk by visiting Chinese scholar Dr. Clara Wing-chung Ho at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21, in 2028 Brown Hall.

The conference and lecture Wednesday and Thursday, Feb. 20-21, will feature Johns Hopkins Professor Brian K. Gibbs as well as a series of workshops to address the serious health disparities in American society.

A national non-profit organization has given WMU's career center gold-level certification for 2013 as a place where lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students can find career resources.

School of Music students will perform the second act of "Die Fledermaus" as part of an opera workshop planned for 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21, and 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 22, in the Dalton Center Recital Hall.

Genre-bending band the Red Sea Pedestrians will perform at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 20, in the Dalton Center Recital Hall. A discussion hosted by Dr. Dan Jacobson will precede the show.

Dr. Jocelyne Cesari, professor at the French National Center for Scientific Research, will present the talk "Islam and Democratization: Lessons Learned from the Arab Spring," at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 19, in 2008 Richmond Center.

The weekly music show, which airs on WMUK-FM Saturday nights and Sunday mornings, is celebrating 35 years of bringing bluegrass and roots music to its listeners.

The deadline for submitting applications or nominations for two awards, the University Assessment Excellence Award and University Individual Assessment Excellence Award, is Friday, Feb. 15.

WMU students can get a little one-on-one help with their research papers and projects during the Spring into Research event from 4 to 10 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 19, at Waldo Library.

Dr. Nancy E. Snow will present "Learning to Look: Lessons from Iris Murdoch on Moral Growth" at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 12, in the University Center for the Humanities, 2500 Knauss Hall.

Brown Hall, the Chemistry Building and Phase I Western View buildings all earned LEED certifications within the past year. Several other campus buildings are in the process of being certified.

A collaboration agreement allowing WMU to offer advanced classes at Wayne County Community College District's Northwest Campus will expand the University's growing presence in southeast Michigan. 

Anne Devereaux Jordan, a former faculty member well known in the realms of children's literature and science fiction writing, died Feb. 2 at age 69. Services were held Sunday, Feb. 10, in Ashford, Conn.

Former WMU professor Dr. John Geisler has been honored with the first Lifetime Achievement Award bestowed by the Michigan Counseling Association and a scholarship initiated by the association in his honor.

Senior Ronald Altman has been chosen to present his paper at a prestigious international conference in April. David Curwen, WMU associate professor of dance, will also present a paper at the conference.

Rosemary Lyon, a retired staff member in the College of Arts and Sciences, died Sunday, Jan. 24, at the age of 89. A memorial service has been held in Kalamazoo.

If you or someone you know has an eating disorder, help is available. Learn more by picking up information being made readily available on campus or registering to attend the Sindecuse Health Center's body image workshop.

University graduate Taylor Paskin has designed a completely online anatomy and physiology class that employs both a virtual anatomy lab and hands-on lab assignments that students conduct at home.

Reservations are being accepted for a faculty and staff mixer from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 12, in Miller Auditorium, which will feature a Mardi Gras-type atmosphere.

Gladys Stuifbergen, a retired senior clerk in the Office of Admissions died Sunday, Jan. 24, in Kalamazoo. She was 98. Services and internment have been held.

An international robotics expert from France will be the featured presenter at the 2013 Engineers Week Dinner. A social hour and dinner will precede the talk and will begin at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 19, in the Fetzer Center.

Nominations are due by Thursday, Feb. 28, for the spring semiannual Make a Difference Awards, which honor staff members who provide exceptional service to the University.