Current Issue: Volume 25 - Number 14 - November 2, 2007
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Services Monday for Professor Bernie Johnson
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On Thursday, Nov. 1, members of the Missouri Southern community learned that Bernie Johnson, professor in the Robert W. Plaster School of Business and a longtime faculty member, had died of a sudden illness.
Bernie received his Associate's degree from Missouri Southern in 1967, his B.S.B.A from Missouri Southern in 1969 and his M.B.A. from Central Missouri State University in 1972.
He had worked at MSSU since 1974 and, prior to that, was a lecture at Emporia State University. He was named a full professor in 2002.
Bernie was a former member of the Joplin City Council and a former mayor of Joplin. He was appointed to the Board of Directors, Capstone House in January of last year and was a member of the Regional Ad Hoc Legislative Committee of Enhance Economic Development in Southwest Missouri from the fall of 2003 to the present. He was listed in Who's Who Among America's Teachers for the last three years. He held many other academic and community positions.
Visitation will take place from 2 - 4 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 4 at Parker Mortuary, 1502 S. Joplin Ave. in Joplin.
Funeral services for Bernie Johnson will be held at 2 p.m., Monday, Nov. 5, at Calvary Baptist Church, 600 E. 50th Street in Joplin.
Media Showcase Day
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More than 400 area high school and middle school students gathered on campus Thursday, Nov. 1 for the 11th-annual Southern Media Showcase Day, sponsored Missouri Southern State University's Department of Communication.
The day's activities included various speakers and presentations, as well as award presentations for the print and video competition.
The two opening speakers this year were Christopher Clark, news editor for the Kansas City Bureau of the Associated Press and John Hoffman, general manager of Joplin’s KSNF-TV.
Media Showcase Day also featured the presentation of this year's honorees into the Regional Media Hall of Fame.
This year's recipients are Ron Petersen, long-time Carthage, Mo. radio station owner and broadcaster, and Wendell Redden, long-time Joplin Globe sports editor. The Hall of Fame awards were presented for the first time last year, as an extension of the Pioneer Broadcaster Award, established in 1997.
Student awards also were presented during an awards luncheon to winning entries in the annual media competition. Students submit newspaper and video entries in a variety of categories.
Media Showcase Day is coordinated by the faculty, staff and students of KGCS-TV and the Missouri Southern student newspaper The Chart, both of which are services of the Department of Communication. The day's activities were funded by contributions from regional foundations, media organizations and supporters.
Legislative Interns put pen to paper today
Legislative Interns from Missouri Southern State University will put pen to paper to execute their service contracts at 3 p.m., Friday, Nov. 2 in Room 223 of Webster Hall.
The area legislators for whom the interns will be working have been invited to meet the students that will be assigned to their office for the spring 2008 semester.
Interns are a key part of the legislative session, as offices are understaffed and there is much to be done in five months.
Interns are given a wide variety of tasks, depending on the needs of the office. Legislative interns may be involved in the following activities:
* Helping constituents via phone, email, or postage mail;
* Accompanying legislators to hearings or to the House or Senate floor;
* Attending committee hearings without legislators to take notes and report back
to legislators
* Tracking bills while the House or Senate is in session;
* Researching legislative ideas;
* Leading tours of the Capitol;
* Organizing binders of bills, votes, and other duties.
To see a list of the interns, visit http://www.mssu.edu/news/legislativeinternsfall07.html.
2005 Outstanding Alumnus actor Lonny Chapman passes
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Lonny Chapman, stage and screen actor, North Hollywood, Calif. repertory theatre founder and artistic director and 2005 Missouri Southern "Outstanding Alumnus," has died. He was 87.
The Los Angeles Times has reported that Chapman, whose television and movie career spanned more than 50 years, died Oct. 12 of heart disease at Sherman Village Healthcare Center in North Hollywood, according to Janet Wood, a founding member of the Lonny Chapman Group Repertory Theatre.
Born in Tulsa and raised in Joplin, Chapman was a graduate of Joplin Junior College, Missouri Southern's predecessor institution.
After serving in combat during World War II, Chapman returned home with a determination to become an actor. As a new graduate of the University of Oklahoma, Chapman hitchhiked to New York City in 1947 with college friend actor Dennis Weaver. By 1950, Chapman had originated the role of Turk in the Broadway production of William Inge's first play, Come Back, Little Sheba. Weaver was his understudy.
Chapman's screen roles included parts in such films as The Birds, East of Eden, The Rievers, Reindeer Games, and Nightwatch. On television he appeared in a wide variety of series including Gunsmoke, Bonanza, and McCloud, that starred his old friend, Dennis Weaver. In later years he continued to act but on a less frequent basis both in movies and in cameo roles in NYPD Blue and other series.
Chapman is survived by his wife of 65 years, Erma Dean, and son Wyley Dean Chapman.
The L.A. Times reports that a memorial service will be held at noon Dec. 2 at the Lonny Chapman Group Repertory Theatre, 10900 Burbank Blvd., North Hollywood, Calif.
To read Accents! editor Stephen Smith's 2005 interview with Chapman, visit http://www.mssu.edu/news/chapmanobit07.html
Contemporary Film Series features Breaking and Entering
The Contemporary Foreign Film series will feature of the film Breaking and Entering (Great Britain, 2006; 119 minutes) at 7 p.m. tonight in Cornell Auditorium, Plaster Hall.
This engrossing film explores the web of human relationships that develops when the firm of an urban landscape developer (Jude Law) is robbed, repeatedly, by delinquent teenagers, one of whom leads the developer into a passionate and dangerous relationship with the teen's immigrant mother (Juliette Binoche) and further and further away from his commitment to his wife (Robin Wright Penn) and autistic daughter.
The film was written and directed by Academy Award winning director Anthony Minghella who also directed The English Patient.
KOZJ Wine Feast slated
The KOZJ (Ozarks Public Television) Wine Feast 2007 will be held on Sunday, Nov. 4 at Hammons Convention Center in Joplin. Advance purchase Wine Feast tickets are $25 ($35 at the door).
This event will be held from 2:30 p.m. - 5 p.m. Over 60 different wines can be sampled along with food from some of Joplin's finest restaurants.
The "Spotlight on Reserve Wine" tickets are $60. This includes a sit down presentation with reserved wine served along with foods prepared by the Holiday Inn's executive chef. This event starts at 12:15 p.m. and includes early entrance to the Wine Feast.
Anyone interested in purchasing tickets can contact Brad Kleindl, School of Business, at 625-3120 or e-mail kleindl-b@mssu.edu.
Southern Symphony Orchestra to perform November 9
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The Southern Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of Kexi Liu, Music, will perform the first concert of its season, "Sound of China," at 7:30 p.m., Friday, Nov. 9 at Taylor Performing Arts Center.
The concert is free and open to the public. It will be followed by a reception.
Presenting traditional and modern Chinese pieces, the program features the world premiere of West Rhapsody, a piece especially commissioned for Southern Symphony Orchestra from Grammy-winning composer Zhou Long.
The program also includes the popular Yellow River Piano Concerto, and prize-winning pianist Langning Liu will perform the concerto with the orchestra.
Zhou is a Visiting Professor of Composition at the University of Missouri at Kansas City. His works have been recorded on BIS, EMI, CRI, Teldec, Cala, Delos, Avant, and China Record Corporation. Among his numerous honors are a Grammy award (1999) and the Academy Award in Music for lifetime achievement from the American Academy of Arts and Letters (2003).
A native of China and a resident of Toronto, Canada, Ms. Liu is a prize-winning artist who has performed with numerous symphony orchestras including the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Beijing Philharmonic Orchestra, the Royal Conservatory Orchestra, Cathedral Bluffs Symphony Orchestra, and Mississauga Youth Orchestra.
Anthony Tommasini of The New York Times remarked that her performances have “miraculous strength and confident breadth,” and “elegant pianism, warmth and artistic maturity.”
For further information, please contact Kexi Liu at (417) 625-9681, or e-mail liu-k@mssu.edu.
Wind Ensemble and Percussion Ensemble to perform
The MSSU Wind Ensemble and Percussion Ensemble will share the stage on Tuesday, Nov. 13 in Taylor Auditorium. The concert begins at 7:30 p.m. and is free and open to the public.
Rusty Raymond, Director of Bands, says the Wind Ensemble will feature works from the core repertoire by Grainger, Hindemith, Prokofiev, and Chance.
The Percussion Ensemble, under the direction of Brian Fronzaglia, Music, will perform a variety of works including Trio Per Uno by Nebojsa Zivkovic, Music for Pieces of Wood by Steve Reich, Spanish Waltz by George Hamilton Green, Log Cabin Blues by George Hamilton Green, and a traditional piece entitled Excel.
For information, call Rusty at ext. 9634.
A.G. Edwards chief economist to speak
Gary Thayer, Vice President and Chief Economist at A.G. Edwards & Sons, Inc. will be speaking at a community luncheon at Missouri Southern State University in BSC-Connor Ballroom to begin promptly at noon on Friday, Nov. 9.
Mr. Thayer joined A.G. Edwards in 1986 as a foreign currency, energy and interest rate futures analyst. As chief economist he uses quantitative analysis to forecast economic growth, interest rates, exchange rates and stock market activity. He offers analysis and economic direction to the firm’s retail and institutional financial consultants as well as its corporate and public finance personnel. As you may have seen in the news, A.G. Edwards and Wachovia Securities have reached an agreement to merge our organizations. The new firm will be the 2nd largest investment firm in the country.
Please call 624-0600 to RSVP for the luncheon. There is no charge to attend.
"Dragon Awake" Business Conference continues
The Robert W. Plaster School of Business's Conference, “The Dragon Awake: China and its Emergence as a Global Business Leader,” which began yesterday continues today, Friday, Nov. 2. Admission to individual events is complimentary for MSSU students, faculty, and staff. A program listing the events is available at http://www.mssu.edu/business/china_conference.html.
Activities for Friday, Nov. 2 are slated for 12 noon - 1:30 p.m. in the Campus Fine Arts Complex, Spiva Gallery. The cost for the Networking Lunch: is $15. Tickets can be purchased in Room 204 of Plaster Hall. Conference tote bags in red and charcoal are also available for $10 at the door, while supplies last.
"We hope that you will find time to support the academics and business professionals who are sharing their time and expertise with our community," says Kim Gray, Business. She asks faculty members to announce the unique opportunity to attend a professional conference on campus.
Ahmad to speak on opium in the 19th century West
Diana Ahmad, associate professor of history at the University of Missouri Rolla will present "The Dragon Sleeps: The Smoking Opium Business in the 19th Century American West," at 9 a.m. this morning, Friday, Nov. 2 in Cornell Auditorium in Plaster Hall.
Ahmad's presentation is part of a conference being held by the Robert W. Plaster School of Business Administration.
America's current war on drugs is not the nation's first. Though only a very small minority of Chinese immigrants in America was actually involved in the opium business, the spread of opium use into Anglo-American communities was deemed a threat to the America's entrepreneurial spirit and its growing importance as a world economic and military power.
Ahmad is the author of the book , The Opium Debate and Chinese Exclusion Laws.
The book examines how the spread of opium-smoking fueled racism and created demands for the removal of the Chinese from American life.
Awards Lobby debuts in broadcast area
A new "high tech" look greets visitors to the broadcast area of Webster Hall. Visitors are directed to the broadcast area by a modern poster in the main lobby of Webster Hall and a highlighted "On Air" sign displaying the call letters of KGCS-TV, the television station, and KXMS, the radio station at MSSU.
Upon entry into the broadcast lobby area, they are greeted with track lighting and new paint and displays on the walls. One wall displays the framed pictures and descriptions of the Pioneer Broadcaster Award winners. Another wall features the honorees in the Regional Media Hall of Fame. Both award programs are coordinated by the Department of Communication at MSSU.
"This lobby redesign was made possible by the generous support of Leggett and Platt, including. Pam Artman and Scott Clark of that company," says Judy Stiles, KGCS-TV General Manager. "Their Art Department worked closely with the Physical Plant to create an area that is a proud display and unique for campus. We appreciate all they did to make this project possible."
Chamber Choir busy in late October
The Missouri Southern Chamber Choir has had a busy fall. The choir opened the Southwest District Honors Choir Concert in Taylor Auditorium on Oct. 27. This concert featured over 125 freshman and sophomores in one choir and over 150 juniors and seniors in the other choir. Bud Clark, Head of the Music Dept., was guest director.
These students represent over 30 high schools in the Southwest District surrounding the Joplin area. Parents, teachers and friends of the choir members were part of the over 1,200 in attendance at the evening performance. This is the nineteenth annual year that choirs from MSSU have been represented at this major concert.
On Sunday, Oct. 28, the Chamber Choir was featured at the grand opening of the new Freeman Hospital complex in Joplin. They were well received by the large crowd and the dignitaries who included Missouri Governor Matt Blunt.
"I am always proud to display the talents of our students at Missouri Southern," Bud says.
Zhou to speak on musical cross-fertilization
Zhou Long, visiting professor of composition at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music, will present "Composing Music Between Countries" at 1 p.m., Friday, Nov. 9 in Webster Hall Auditorium. Admission is free and the presentation is open to the public.
Zhou explains the concept behind his lecture:
"Thinking about what we could do to share different cultures in our new society, I have been composing music seriously to achieve my goal of improving the understanding between peoples from various backgrounds."
A member of the first composition class at the reopened Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, Dr. Zhou came to the United States in 1985 on a fellowship at Columbia University, where he studied with Chou Wen-Chung, Mario Davidovsky, and George Edwards.
Zhou is currently a visiting professor of composition at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music.
Southern Sports Sunday football coverage wraps up
KGCS-TV will provide tape-delayed coverage of Saturday's final home football game, in the last football edition of Southern Sports Sunday. The games are covered by KGCS students and staff, with students providing the on-air and production crew work.
"This type of sports coverage provides great opportunities for our students who are interested in sports and production, and they provide a service for fans who would like to see the Lions games," says Judy Stiles, KGCS General Manager.
The game against Truman State will be replayed Sunday evening at 7 p.m. on KGCS-TV (UHF channel 57, Cable One Channel 7, Mediacom Channel 77 and on regional cable television systems served by Southern Instructional Television. Plans are in the works to provide coverage of basketball games this season on Southern Sports Sunday.
Janet Buzzard, Marketing/MIS/Business Education, presented a seminar on Advanced Excel 2007 at the Joplin Tri-State Chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants on Oct. 26.
Jill Greer, Social Science, presented "The Otoe-Missouria Flag Song" at the Siouan Session of the Mid-America Linguistics Conference at KU in Lawrence, KS on Oct. 26th. Proceedings of the conference are slated to appear in the Kansas Working Papers in Linguistics e-journal. Jill thanks to the MSSU Faculty Development Fund for financial support.
Elke Howe, CADD/CAMT/MIMS, and Don Schultz, CAMT, took the Competitive Industrial Practices class to Tracker Marine and Newell Coach to observe lean manufacturing practices on Sept. 11 and Oct. 23.
Elke Howe presented a Root Cause Analysis workshop in Ummel Technology in October. There were 72 attendees.
William Huffman, Accounting, presented a two-hour CPE seminar on ethics to the Joplin Tri-State Chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants on Oct. 26.
Allen Merriam, Communication, received a Certificate of Special Recognition for dedication to human rights from the Joplin Chapter of the NAACP at its annual Freedom Fund Banquet on Oct 27.
Don Schultz took CAMT/CADDET/IET students to the Wichita Industrial Trade show on Oct. 17.
For Sale: Underneath pine 3-drawer unit for bunk beds. $30. Call ext. 9377.
For Sale: Black electric yard light. Never used. Never installed. $50. Call ext. 9377.
Free: Beagle puppy, male, great outside pet. All brown with Red Rottweiler markings. He’s very friendly and great with kids. Already has first two rounds of shots done. Call ext. 9371 or 782-2378.
For Sale: Kimball console piano. Asking. $ 70, negotiable. . Recently tuned. Beautiful tone. I am in Criminal Justice at the Justice Center. University phone Ext. 3144. Would negotiate.
Need a good home for the winter: Granddaughter and grandparent had a chicken farm this summer. Three chickens, one working rooster and two hens, remain. Call Don Schultz at ext. 9327 or (417) 623-1098 - cell.
