English Field Day today on campus

Approximately 500 students from twelve high schools (grades 9-12) in the region will participate in the 25th annual English Field Day sponsored by the English & Philosophy department today, Friday, Nov. 30.

More than 1,000 tests will be administered to determine both individual winners of competitions and sweepstakes winners from among the schools.

Most activities will take place during the morning hours in Hearnes Hall at MSSU.

Tests will cover all areas of language arts, from mechanics and usage to spelling, vocabulary, reading comprehension and mythology. The tests are modeled after those students will encounter later in the SAT and ACT for college entrance.

The students also will compete in college bowls of mythology and overall knowledge. English Field Day also will include a creative division for writers of poetry and fiction.

According to George Greenlee, English and Philosophy and coordinator of the event, preparations begin in January of each year, and involve the entire English department faculty and more than 50 students who help monitor and evaluate the tests.

Christmas Crisis at Mistletoe Mesa this weekend

Christmas can be a stressful time of year - especially if evildoers take over the town and kidnap Santa Claus!

That is the premise of R. Eugene Jackson’s Christmas Crisis at Mistletoe Mesa, scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 1 - 2 in Taylor Performing Arts Center at Missouri Southern State University.

Sarah Jones directs this holiday adventure for children. Imagine two people so mean they would ban Christmas, rip down all the decorations and outlaw Christmas wrapping. Mama and Ebenezer Grunch do exactly that when they trick Happy Holiday into signing over the deed to the town of Mistletoe Mesa.

They even kidnap Santa Claus and lock him in the outhouse, along with his eight reindeer. Mary Christmas, Tiny Kim, and Holly Bush will have to work fast to save their town and their favorite holiday.

Curtain time is 2:30 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday. General admission for this children’s play is $1 for adults and 50 cents for children 12 and under.

Tickets may be reserved in person in the lobby of Taylor Auditorium or by calling the box office at (417) 625-3190 between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. Monday through Friday. To see a cast list and photo, visit http://www.mssu.edu/news/mistletoe_mesa.html.

Henan Song and Dance Troupe to perform at MSSU

The Henan Song and Dance Troupe will perform at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 5 in Taylor Performing Arts Center.

The one-time performance is free and open to the public.

The Henan Song and Dance Troupe originally was scheduled to perform at MSSU on Sept. 19, but a delay in receiving their visas from the U.S. Embassy in Beijing resulted in a postponement of the concert.

The group finally arrived in the United States on Nov. 25. Following a concert in Springfield, Mo. and a trip to New York City and Washington, D.C., the musicians will travel on to Joplin.

Kexi Liu, associate professor of music at MSSU, was responsible for bringing the Henan Song and Dance Troupe to campus. In 1994, he was invited to perform as a guest soloist with the symphony orchestra of the group. He performed a Haydn violin concerto and a Bach violin concerto with them.

Founded in 1957, the Henan Song and Dance Troupe of China is a state-owned performance organization of 300 artists with its own symphony orchestra, traditional Chinese orchestra, opera company, dance company, folk arts company, puppet theater, art studio, and stage art center.

For years, the Henan Song and Dance Troupe has traveled all over China and has visited more than 30 countries and regions in Asia, Africa, Europe, America and Australia with well-known performing artists and musicians. It has presented operas, dance dramas and musicals.

Its symphony orchestra has performed with the cooperation of many Chinese and foreign conductors, performers and singers. It has won praises for its excellent performances. Its traditional Chinese orchestra has visited countries all over the world, and its unique music style and high level performance has been well received by audiences.

For more information, contact Dr. Kexi Liu at (417) 625-9681.

Kolpin-Rubison donation paves way for TV upgrades

A generous contribution from the Ruth I. Kolpin Foundation is allowing KGCS-TV at Missouri Southern State University to begin plans for upgrading the station’s signal and making the transition to digital broadcasting required by the Federal Government. The multi-year grant will provide funding for the various phases of the upgrade project.

“We are really appreciative of Mrs. Kolpin-Rubison and her Foundation in supporting KGCS-TV as we prepare to enter the new era of television broadcasting,” says Judy Stiles, KGCS General Manager. “The required upgrade is very costly, and this will allow us to build on our services to Missouri Southern and the Joplin community.”

The coverage area for the station will increase greatly, reaching more counties in Southwest Missouri, as well as providing over-the-air service for parts of Southeast Kansas and Northeast Oklahoma. The project will include new transmission equipment that will allow KGCS to move to a new channel, extend the reach of its broadcast signal and provide digital programming when the Federal Government mandate begins in 2009.

Additional phases of the upgrade include new digital equipment for the broadcast facilities, located on the Missouri Southern campus. “This will allow our students an opportunity to gain valuable hands-on educational experience using state of the art digital equipment,” says Stiles.

The broadcast studios at MSSU will be named the “Ruth I. Kolpin Studios.” A dedication ceremony is anticipated after the first of the year.

Christmas Concert slated for Sunday, Dec. 16

The Choral Society of Missouri Southern State University will present its Christmas Concert at 3 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 16 at First Community Church, 2007 E. 15th St. in Joplin.

Comprised of singers from the Tri-State area, the ensemble will provide festive seasonal music for all ages. The opening selection is Fanfare and Gloria based on G. F. Handel’s Water Music.

A Charlie Brown Christmas will not only entertain children, but also bring out the child in the adults. Three Christmas favorites, The Christmas Waltz, The Most Wonderful Time of the Year, and Silver Bells will be featured in Christmas in Three Quarter Time.

Choir accompanist Eleanor McLemore of Webb City will perform Bill Wolaver’s arrangement of What Child Is This? Closing the performance will be the cantata A Candlelight Christmas by the well-known American composer Benjamin Harlan.

In four sections the work includes four narrators: Beryl and Esther Kingsbury of Carthage and Gayle O’Hare and Greg Holz of Joplin.

Under the direction of Al Carnine, Music, the concert is free and open to the public.

Saltzman book signing planned

Art Saltzman, English, will have a sale and signing for his latest collection of literary nonfiction, Solve for X, at Hastings Book Store at 526 S. Range Line in Joplin from 6 - 8 p.m., Monday, Dec. 3.

Amazon.com comments: "The twenty-five essays that constitute this volume investigate a wide range of concerns: from child prodigies to the problems and pleasures of chance, from the generation of our species to the generation gap, from the mind-body problem to the paradoxical purpose of pointlessness in human endeavors, from the culture of cars to the culture of guns, from our phobias to our foibles."

He is the author of several other books including This Mad Instead, Designs of Darkness in the Contemporary American Fiction, The Novel in The Balance, Objects and Empathy and Nearer.

Art's writing has appeared journals including Gettysburg Review, Iowa Review, Black Warrior Review, Ohio Review, River City, Fiction International, Gulf Coast and Mid-American Review and other publications.

Art Saltzman won the Missouri Governor's Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2003 and has won a variety of awards for his writing. For more information call (417) 625-9643.

Contemporary Series features Copying Beethoven

The Contemporary Foreign Film series will feature the film Copying Beethoven (U.S.A, 2006) at 7 p.m., Friday, Dec. 14 in Cornell Auditorium in Plaster Hall.

When a young Vienna Music Conservatory student and aspiring composer accepts a job as a copyist for Ludwig van Beethoven, she finds her destiny forever interlinked with that of the legendary musician. Agnieszka Holland directs this motion picture that stars Ed Harris as Beethoven.

Anna Holz, played by Diane Kruger, accepts the job despite a warning that the composer is a callous wretch. Anna's work with Beethoven and her kindness causes the composer to view their venture as a blessing but his derision of her own composition causes her to abandon the project. Anna is determined to flee Vienna and marry her paramour but Beethoven tracks her down and Anna is forced to choose between love and duty.

The film won the Best Film Award in the San Sebastián International Film Festival. For information, contact Nick Kyle at kyle-n@mssu.edu.

Santa photos and gifts available at fund raiser

The group WISE (World Issues for Study by Educators) in Teacher Education Department will sponsor a fund raiser next week.

Santa photos and a Santa Shop will be featured from 3 - 6 p.m. on Dec. 5 - 6 in Taylor Hall next to the Child Development Center.

Prices will be reasonable and a variety of gifts will be available.

The fund raiser will help fund a trip to Washington, D.C. next spring. For information, contact Vikki Spencer, Teacher Education, at ext. 9622

Chinese watercolors offered to campus community

The beautiful Chinese watercolors that made up the recent display in the Spiva Art Gallery are now on sale. They were painted by Mr. Du Zhenglin, of the Beijing Foreign Studies University, whose works are quite popular in China.

The paintings are priced at $200, $150 and $100. An optional frame may be purchased for $10.

To view or buy the paintings, which are currently stored in Room 305 of the Art Building, please contact Val Christensen, Art, at ext. 9631. Checks should be made payable to MSSU.

Senior Honors Thesis presentations scheduled

The Honors Office would like to formally invite the campus community to the upcoming Honors Senior Thesis Presentations. One student, senior Teacher Education major Abbie Cooper, made her presentation on "Effects of Gifted Education" on Nov. 28. Upcoming presentations include the following:

Hallie Hocker, Senior Communications - Public Relations major will read her thesis, "Relationship Dissolution: The Verbal Aftermath" at 3 p.m., Monday, Dec. 3 in Webster Hall Room 223.

Individuals give many answers as to the reason(s) they "break-up". Some are vague and some are specific. Hallie will take a look at these reasons given in the contexts of family, friends, coworkers/acquaintances, and religious organizations to see if there is a pattern to disclosure of break-up stories.

Mariya Gavrilova, senior Marketing/Spanish major, will speak on "Energy Drink Consumption and Academic Performance among College Students" at 2:30 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 6 in Cornell Auditorium in Plaster Hall.

Mariya's presentation exposes the energy drink behavior of college students at MSSU and reveals attitudes toward energy drink consumption. Her presentation will also examine students' likelihood to consume more energy drinks to improve academic performance.

Faculty member's work on display

Selected artwork by Frank A. Pishkur, Art, will be in the 6th Annual Midwest Clay Artists' Holiday Show and Sale at Gregory Krepps Ceramic Studio, 113 West 5th Street in Pittsburg, Kan. from Dec.1 - Jan. 1.

An opening reception will take place from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 1. Gallery hours are 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

Functional pottery as well as sculptural forms created by over 20 ceramic artists will be on view and available for purchase.

Midwest Clay Artists is a regional group of dedicated artists who choose clay as their medium. The group was formed to let local ceramicists share information, problems and solutions, and discuss the art of creating with clay.

The group also serves to promote members' work and the art of clay within the community. Many of the group's members have ties with MSSU's Ceramics Department and some of the works on display have been created on this campus.

Deadline: Tuition and fees due December 17

Missouri Southern has implemented a fee-collection policy change for the spring 2008 semester. 

The University will implement the policy that 100% of tuition, fees and books will be due prior to the beginning of classes for spring 2008. Pre-enrolled students’ payment must be received by the Business Office by Dec. 17 of 2007.   Students’ options for payment remain open for this fee collection policy change. 

Financial aid that is completed and ready to process to the student’s account with full payment will preserve the student’s class schedule.  Please note that deadlines for filing FAFSA for the fall 2008 semester have been moved up to ensure that students’ financial aid is packaged in time to coincide with fee collection policy changes.
 
Students are encouraged to view and pay their accounts online via LioNet using the Quick Pay channel. LioNet offers secure access to payment online by credit card (Visa, MasterCard, Discover) and check. Using this option for payment will help the student avoid the long lines associated each semester with fee due dates.

TuitionPay, a monthly payment plan company used for years by MSSU, will be available for students still wishing to make payments for any current balance on their account. 

Signing up before Dec. 1 enables students to enroll for a 5 month payment plan. However, students must be signed up for this option prior to the fee due date.

Southern Sports Sunday highlights basketball games

"Southern Sports Sunday" telecasts of Missouri Southern basketball games begins this coming weekend on KGCS-TV. The program features taped replays of Southern home games throughout the season. The first games to be featured are Wednesday night's women's game against Webster University and Saturday's men's game with Augustana. Both games will be shown in their entirety beginning at 7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 2.

"Our students do all of the production work on these sports telecasts, from play-by-play and color commentary to operating cameras and directing," says Judy Stiles, KGCS General Manager. "This gives them valuable hands-on experience in covering live sporting events."

Southern Sports Sunday will take a break over the semester break, but return for MIAA conference basketball games in January, with the first telecast scheduled for Sunday, January 6.

Telecasts may be seen on KGCS-TV, UHF channel 57, Cable One Channel 7, Mediacom Channel 77, and cable systems served by Southern Instructional television (SITV).

In addition to providing coverage of Southern basketball games, KGCS is teaming up with the Women's Basketball program to sponsor ball girl shirts for the 2007-08 season. The shirts are worn by girls selected by the women's team staff to help as ball girls for home games. "We feel that this is an excellent outreach program for the women's basketball program," Stiles says.

Warming communities . . . one coat at a time

Winter is nearly here and children need coats. The MSSU Golden Crest Circle of Omicron Delta Kappa, the National Leadership Honors Society, is collecting clean, reusable coats and jackets to assist the One Warm Coat community service effort. Coats of all shapes and sizes are welcome and nearly all children's sizes are needed.

One Warm Coat is dedicated to distributing reusable coats, free of charge, directly to local children and adults.  The program is a wonderful way for you and your family to pass along coats and jackets that you no longer need.

ODK makes donating a coat simple. Bring your coats and jackets to the blue boxes located in the following MSSU buildings: Webster Hall; Hearnes Hall; Reynolds Hall; Billingsly Student Center (Lion's Den); Taylor Education Building; Spiva Library; Plaster Hall; and East, McCormick and Blaine Residence Halls.

The coat drive will last until Friday, Dec. 7. More information is available at http://www.onewarmcoat.org.

Since One Warm Coat's inception in 1992, more than 400,000 coats have been provided at no cost to those in need. For information, contact Elaine Freeman, Teacher Education, at ext. 9759 or ODK president Sarah Jones at (816) 752-5888.

African art featured at Spiva Regional Gallery

Josie Mai, Art, has curated a show opening at the George A Spiva Center for the Arts Regional Gallery at 223 W. 3rd Street in Joplin.

The show is called face.africa, and consists of 30 original works of art created by the students of the Missouri Fine Arts Academy. The show is open to the public Dec. 1 - Jan. 6.

The subjects are young women from Kibera, Kenya who will receive the portraits as gifts in July 2008.

See more of Mai's work at www.josiemai.com, www.soulfarikenya.com, and order the show catalog at http://www.lulu.com/content/1453608.

FACULTY/STAFF

Janet Buzzard, Business Administration, presented a paper entitled "Efforts to Enhance Distance Education in the Robert W. Plaster School of Business Administration, Missouri Southern State University," at the Delta Pi Epsilon Conference in New Orleans, November 16, 2007. The paper was co-authored by Beverly Block, Business Administration, and Betty Baker, Lifelong Learning.

Art Saltzman, English, has had an essay accepted by Fifth Wednesday Journal. "A Knowing Look" will appear in the Spring 2008 issue.

CLASSIFIED

Santa Service: Santa Claus is coming to town. Professional Santa service, over 15 years experience as the happy holiday helper. Available for parties, family get-togethers, and Christmas Eve visits. Available for functions from Dec. 3 through Christmas Eve. Prices available on request 10 minute house visit is $15. Book now while there are still times available. Call (417) 437-6936 or e-mail burrow-l@mssu.edu

For Sale: Very nice bridal keepsafe storage box, 27 ½" x 31 ½" x 8", with acid free tissue. Designed for bridal gown storage but could be used for heirloom linens, clothing, quilts, etc., $35. The box is at the Learning Center if anyone would like to see it. Call Anita at ext. 3725.