VOL. VII, NO. 1 SEPTEMBER 2000

We’ll celebrate the beginning of the new school year with a meeting and social at my house, 4834 Van Buren Avenue, from 2-6 pm on Friday, September 8th. One of the purposes of this event is to touch base with good friends and keep up with what is going on both on campus and off. We’ll also get a preview of the coming year’s activities and do some joint planning. I’d appreciate it if many of you could sign up to help with 1) the picnic in October, 2) Women’s History month in March, 3) Phoenix scholarship selection committee (probably February), 4) the closing social in April, or 5) "Women on Wednesdays" (in collaboration with Services for Women Students). If you have a topic you’d like to present for "Women on Wednesdays", a video we could show and you (or someone else) could comment upon, or a suggestion for a speaker, panel or other presentation, please let me or Gloria Perez-Jensen know. Finally, if you are interested in teaching for Women’s Studies in the 2001-2002 year, OR IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO HELP DIANE KRANTZ TEACH AN EVENING INTRO. TO WOMEN’S STUDIES CLASS THIS SPRING, PLEASE CONTACT ME OR AMELIA RIGHT AWAY. Call 626-8049 or 626-6103 or email me at spowell@weber.edu.

introduces the new staff….

Carol E. Merrill is Coordinator and has been with the office for 4 years. She teaches in Social Work as adjunct faculty and also for the First Year Experience. A Weber State University alumna with a University of Utah Master’s Degree in Social Work, Carol is an artist in her spare time.

Gloria Perez-Jensen, Gender Equity Coordinator, joined SWS as a Counselor this May. Her split position allows her the best of both worlds. A graduate of Weber State in business and foreign language, Gloria’s loves include traveling and great restaurants.

Mandy Medina shares responsibilities and balances her time between two separate jobs -Coordinator for Student Government and Counselor in SWS. She joined the staff in August. Also a graduate of Weber State with a Social Science Composite Teaching Degree, she holds a Masters of Public Administration from Michigan State University. Mandy is a gifted stained glass artist.

Kathy M. Lynch is the newest member of the staff, becoming a full-time counselor in September. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in History from BYU and a Master’s Degree in Social Work Administration from West Chester University. Kathy’s sensitivity to the individuals’ special needs will be a tremendous asset to the office.

Wendy Stephens, the department secretary, holds the office together. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Education/ Office Technologies from Weber State. Wendy enjoys movies and videos.

SWS has been busy creating new programming for the 2000 - 2001 academic year. Fall

Semester will feature a September 18th Open House shared with the Non-Traditional Student Center. On September 27th, the Women’s Fair will provide information about campus and community resources for women - a great opportunity to network. Lastly, "Women on Wednesdays" continues as a weekly lunchtime event spotlighting guest speakers - bring your lunch and bring a friend!

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Congratulations, both professional and personal, are in order for several of our colleagues. Enthusiastic kudos to:

- WS emerita colleague Priti Kumar who received the "Spirit of the American Woman for Higher Education" award presented by Your Community Connection this past May. - Judy Elsley as she begins her position as Coordinator of the BIS program.

- Kathleen Herndon, the new Coordinator of the Teaching/Learning Forum.

- Angelika Pagel, Executive Council member and new mother of Natasha Maria Pagel-Aprill, born 3:43 PM on 9 August at 6 lbs. 8 oz., 20 inches long.

- Emilie Turner, WS minor, for selection as one of the first recipients of a Matthew Shepard scholarship.

- Rebeca Boyd, WS graduate and currently a graduate student at the Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY, who won first place in the Utah State American String Teachers Association solo competition She also toured Europe in August with the school orchestra, highlighted by a performance at the Heidelberg Music Festival.

This past June, some WS faculty and students attended the annual meeting of the National Women’s Studies Association in Boston, MA. Students Michelle Stephens, Emilie Turner, and Carrie Wagner presented a panel discussion centered around their individual research projects for WS 4060. The audience (no, not all from our program!) received the panel with enthusiasm and lively discussion. Faculty attending the meeting included Drs. Diane Krantz, Marjukka Ollilainen, Sandra Powell, and Gloria Wurst. Travel to the meeting was simpler for Emilie Turner than for the rest of us since she was coming from Washington, DC, where she spent an exciting summer working as an intern for the National Gay/Lesbian Task Force.

Of potential interest to Women’s Studies folks is an upcoming WSU Sigma Xi presentation by Dr. Sharon Emerson, University of Utah, entitled "Evolutionary Stories from Southeast Asian Frogs." She will speak at 1:00 PM on Tuesday, 19 September, in LL121. Sharon came to our campus a few years ago to present the story of her career as a biologist pursuing interesting questions related to the evolution of animal body forms in unusual circumstances – such as frogs flying. In 1995, her research accomplishments caught the attention of the MacArthur Foundation which presented her with one of their "genius awards." In Sharon’s upcoming seminar, she will talk about her research career using a quilt metaphor to "tie it all together." Sharon is a very engaging speaker with a remarkable ability to help audiences understand the excitement and significance of her work. Please come and expand your scientific horizons.

Of interest, though perhaps not of the completely enjoyable kind, is the upcoming Pygmalion Productions rendition of "The Bad Seed" with friend and colleague Caril Jennings in the role of a criminologist. The play will run at the Egyptian Theatre at 7:30 PM, 13–16 September, with a 2 PM Sat. matinee.

Finally, the WS Traditional Student Scholarship endowment has enough funding to make awards soon. Call the WS office for further information.

8 September: Annual Fall Retreat, Sandra Powell’s house, 2 – 6 PM.

19 September: Sigma Xi lecture, Sharon Emerson, 1 PM, LL 121.

18 – 30 September: WSU Greek Festival, call 626-6431 for flyer listing specifics.

27 September: Women’s Fair 2000; UB Blrm., 9 AM – 2 PM.