Current Issue: Volume 27 - Number 18 - July 1, 2009
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Summer enrollment up at MSSU
For university students, summer traditionally is a time to kick back and relax. However, more and more Missouri Southern State University students are taking summer classes.
That trend has resulted in an increase in enrollment of more than 4 percent compared to the same time last year at MSSU. This increase comes on the heels of an increase in enrollment last spring.
Enrollment for the summer semester is 1,850, an increase from the summer 2008 figure of 1,776.
The Full Time Equivalent (FTE) figure has also increased. The FTE number for this summer is 1,302 compared to 1,290 for last year, a 10 percent increase.
Total credit hours increased by 963, a 10.9 percent compared to the same time last year.
"Students see Missouri Southern as their school of choice," says Delores Honey, Assistant Vice President for Assessment and Institutional Research.”
Figures also show increases in first-time freshmen and out-of-state students.
Students get the edge
Eight students from the Robert W. Plaster School of Business Administration at Missouri Southern State University competed at the Future Business Leaders of America - Phi Beta Lambda (FBLA/PBL) National Leadership Conference held June 20 - 23 in Anaheim, Calif.
FBLA/PBL is an education association with a quarter million students preparing for careers in business and business-related fields. The Missouri Southern students competed against 1,800 students from 36 states across the U.S.
To qualify for the nationals, the students had to compete at the state level. At the national conference, six of the eight students placed in the top 10 in the U.S. in their competitive areas.
The club's president, Morgan Manley, junior Marketing major from Parsons, Kan., lead the team and competed in Public Speaking. Nathan Bramwell, sophomore International Business major from Reeds, competed in Marketing Analysis & Decision Making.
The winners were:
Kaylee Parker, 2nd place in Desktop Application Programming Dani Henkle, 8th place in Desktop Publishing (shared with Sarah Cornell) Sarah Cornell, 8th place in Desktop Publishing |
Brock Hauser,3rd place in Financial Concepts Elizabeth Welters, 2nd place in International Business Randon Coffey, 3rd place in Sports Management & Marketing |
Canadian Football League Games to Air on KGCS
The unique action of Canadian Football League games returns to KGCS-TV through the America One network, starting in July. The games feature professional teams from the CFL, airing primarily on Friday and Saturday evenings.
CFL games feature many former collegiate players from the United States. Some rules are changed and the field has different dimensions that what is found in the U.S. Teams from major Canadian cities and provinces are featured in the telecasts, including Edmonton, Saskatchewan, Winnipeg, Toronto, Calgary, Hamilton, and BC.
"This year's telecast schedule is also timely, in light of the fact that the fall semester at Missouri Southern is the Canada Semester," says Judy Stiles, KGCS General Manager. "The telecasts are another way of expanding awareness to another aspect of life in Canada."
The CFL telecasts may be seen on KGCS-TV, broadcast channel 22, Cable One channel 7, and Mediacom channel 77. The station operates as a service of the Department of Communication, serving viewers throughout the region.
Newsmakers is produced by KGCS-TV, a service of the Department of Communication at Missouri Southern State University. For a game schedule, see http://www.mssu.edu/news/2009/CFL-09.html.
Mass e-mail communication policy announced
In accordance with a new policy, announced by MSSU President Bruce Speck, use of GroupWise campus-wide e-mail address lists that begin with the prefix All (for example All-Campus-Community, All-Classified, All-Employee, and All-Faculty) are not allowed unless specifically approved by the University Relations and Marketing Department.
Any individual desiring to distribute a mass communication must adhere to the following guidelines.
Personal announcements should be submitted for posting to Accents by going to website address www.mssu.edu/accents/accentsindex.htm and selecting the online form link. Requests should be submitted according to deadlines provided by the Accents! editor.
Some examples of items that will no longer be sent via mass email include campus events and announcements such as concerts, lectures and programs directed to the general campus community, personal items for sale such as a house or car, faculty and staff activities and accomplishments, and other items of personal or civic interest. All submissions are subject to approval.
Campus-wide announcements for academic or other university-related business should be sent to the University Relations and Marketing Office via publicinfo@mssu.edu. Rod Surber, University Relations, will determine the appropriate internal address list.
For any questions, please contact Rod Surber, the office of the Assistant Vice President for Business Affairs, or the office of the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs.
Student Health Center feeThe Student Health Center will institute a $10 visit fee for employees, effective July, 1, 2009. The Health Center is happy to continue providing medical care to our employees, but realize our mission is to provide service to MSSU students.
This fee will be $10 per visit for those individuals needing an appointment with the medical staff.
Jan Dipley, Health Services Coordinator, says the Student Health Center appreciates the opportunity to serve employees and feels a $10 fee per visit is reasonable. If employees go to Urgent Care or see their personal physician, there is a significant co-pay involved. This is an attempt to continue serving our employees in a reasonable manner.
Over-the-counter medications continue to be offered at no charge for those individuals who need some type of medication during the work day
For additional information, please contact Jan Dipley, Kuhn Hall (Room 306) at (417) 625.9323. Interested parties also may e-mail dipley-j@mssu.edu or Pamela Hosp, Student Health Center, at hosp-p@mssu.edu.
Exit Interviews
Sheila Saba, Financial Aid Office, reminds students that all graduates with student loans are required to complete exit counseling/interviews prior to July 30. The interviews can be completed in person or they can be completed online.
Information can be obtained by contacting Financial Aid at (417) 625-9325 or saba-s@mssu.edu.
Sheila emphasizes that a policy of "No Exit Interview = No Records" is firmly enforced for graduates with student loans.
Lifelong Learning Summer Institute
The Lifelong Learning 2009 Summer Institute is set to begin next week in the Library, Room 418. Betty Baker, Lifelong Learning, says this training is free and open to anyone who is teaching a course at Missouri Southern and wanting to use Blackboard to enhance; hybridize; or teach entirely on-line. The focus is on enrichment through course design and use of multimedia.
The kick-off session focuses on Blackboard itself with a hands on Introduction leading to an on-line Instructor training course.
An Introduction to Blackboard – Hands-On 1 1/2 hour sessions
July 6 & 7 @ 9:30 a.m.; 11a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
This hands-on introduction is a pre-requisite to the on-line Blackboard Instructor Training – a 3 week self-paced, instructor led course available Thursday, July 9 through Thursday, July 30. This course is available for anyone who has not already taken it, but is especially geared toward one of the training requirements of anyone signing a first time development contract for an on-line course to be taught in the spring of 2010 or later.
The introduction will address such things as What Blackboard Is, It’s Features and Tools. You will experience a guided tour of some of the features of Blackboard, along with tips and suggestions on what Blackboard can do to help YOU save time!
The second week begins the enrichment phase of the Summer Institute:
Instructional Design for Distance Courses: 1 hour sessions
July 13 @ 9 a.m. & 10 a.m.
July 14 @ 9:30 a.m., 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
This topic is available for anyone to attend, but is a training requirement of anyone signing a development contract for an on-line course to be taught in the spring of 2010 or later. A course development Rubric will be reviewed, along with a course/media outline plan to get you contemplating ways to present and communicate your on-line materials in an engaging interactive manner.
Audio File Creation & Posting Links
July 15 and 16 @ 9:30 a.m.; 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
This topic is available for anyone to attend, but is especially geared toward one of the training requirements of anyone signing a development contract for an on-line course to be taught in the spring of 2010 or later who already has familiarity with content in the introduction to Blackboard session. Are you ready to take your materials presentation to another level? Incorporating audio into your course can add greater depth and dimension to your lectures and tutorials.
Text can be informative, but often the spoken word can convey more depth and understanding. FREE software programs enable you to create audio files in a variety of formats for downloading or streaming. Files are stored outside of Blackboard and accessible only through Blackboard via an external link, or can be made public and downloadable through a pod cast.
Seating is limited, but multiple sessions are offered. Reservations are required. Please send an e-mail to LLLTraining or contact Scott Snell at ext. 3003 or Betty Baker at ext. 9888 with the sessions, dates, and times that you would like to attend.
News from HR
Human Resources announces staff changes and/or additions to the MSSU campus for the month of July.
Susan Craig will be joining the faculty community effective July 1. Susan will be an Assistant Professor in Teacher Education along with being the Director of the First-Year Experience Program. On July 1, Patrick Brooks Johnson will join the Athletics Department as an Intern with the Men's Basketball program for the 09-10 basketball season.
A restructuring in Student Services was completed to better serve the students and campus community in anticipation of opening the Beimdiek Recreation Center. Darren Fullerton has been promoted to the position of Director of Student Life. Leslie Willis will join the campus as Director of Campus Recreation on July 13.
Kristine Steddum joined the MSSU staff on June 23 as Accounts Payable Clerk in the Business Office.
Please join Human Resources in congratulating and welcoming these individuals for their achievements and in being a vital addition to the MSSU campus.
Managing your health care and living well
Human Resources and Freeman Health System have teamed up to provide MSSU employees important information about regaining control over healthcare expenses. Through a series of presentations by Freeman Health System, employees will have an opportunity to learn how to get the most out of each doctor and pharmacy visit.
Kris Drake, Freeman Health System Wellness Coordinator, will be on campus in July and September to provide information on managing your healthcare and living well. Subjects covered will include the definition of self-care, how to get the most from your doctor’s visit, and developing a treatment plan. These hour long “Lunch n Learn” meetings will be scheduled three times in July at various times to accommodate differing lunch schedules. An hour lunch break will be allowed to attend these meetings.
Bring your lunch and enjoy an informative and worthwhile investment of your time to learn important tips in managing your health expenses. Three additional meetings will take place in September for anyone who misses the opportunity to attend the first luncheons. Watch for additional information regarding meeting times and locations via e-mail.
Kleindl elected to top post in ACBSP
Brad Kleindl, Dean of the Robert W. Plaster School of Business, has been elected president of the Midwestern Council (Region 5) of The Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP). ACBSP is the leading specialized accreditation association for business education supporting, celebrating, and rewarding teaching excellence. The Midwestern Council of ACBSP includes colleges and universities in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and the Canadian Province of Manitoba.
The mission of the ACBSP is to establish, promote and recognize educational standards that contribute to the continuous improvement of business education and, through the process of accreditation, to recognize business schools and programs that adhere to these standards.
The Midwest Council is charged with providing a regional forum to foster a better understanding of business education and for the exchange of ideas concerning collegiate business education programs, curriculum, and articulation among member institutions. It also assists member institutions in the region in their efforts to improve their professional business schools and programs and to assist them in their efforts to attain accreditation.
Betty Baker and Scott Snell, Lifelong Learning, will make presentations at this year's Missouri Distance Learning Association meetings. Their presentation will focus on training materials for faculty teaching Internet courses. The election committee of MODLA has also selected Jerry Williams, Lifelong Learning, as one of the nominees for President of MODLA.
Susan Craig, First-Year Experience, will be featured on the July 2 edition of KODE-TV's Good Morning, Four States. She will discuss 1) Applying to MSSU and enrolling for fall; 2) Southern Welcome; 3) The University Experience course; and 4) First-week events (Campus Craze, Welcome Week activities, etc. ).
Charles Nodler, Archivist in the Spiva Library, helped present an information session of the Missouri Museums Association for Southwest Missouri Museums on June 27 in Carthage.
For Sale: 2003 Pontiac Grand Am GT - black, sunroof, newer tires, clean car - good condition and well maintained. $4800 Call (417) 529-8091 or (417) 622-0864.
Wanted: Working electric dryer. If you have one to sell, please contact Betsy at ext. 9513 or e-mail leighninger-e@mssu.edu.
For Sale: 2003 Toyota Matrix, 51,000 miles, 4 cylinder automatic, 35 mpg hwy; 28-30 town. Blue/grey, sun roof, all electric windows, 6 CD changer, cloth blue/grey interior, hatch back with 6 feet from hatch to back of front seats-holds a lot! Excellent first or second car. $8200 Call (417) 540-3423.
For Sale: 1997 Chevy Tahoe LT, maroon color, in good condition, air-conditioned, power windows, locks, seats. $2500 or best offer. Please call 417-529-9118 or ext. 9398.
