The physics of hot weather
Dr. Phil Patterson, chair of the Department of Physics, played a starring role in 11Alive weatherman Chesley McNeil’s forecast during the noon newscast on July 13. McNeil turned to Dr. Patterson for a few words about the physics involved in the heat wave gripping the South.

To view the resulting news clip, which showed students from Dr. Patterson’s class and a few familiar faces from around campus, go to WXIA-TV.

SPSU secures $1.4M UTeach grant to fund teacher program
The governor’s Office of Planning and Budget has awarded SPSU approximately $1.4 million in Race to the Top funding. This grant will help the university launch it’s new teacher preparation program, which will offer degrees in Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics and Physics, with an education track leading to certification.

SPSU is one of three Georgia universities that received these funds in a highly competitive process that began in January. The Race to the Top Fund is a $4.35 billion U.S. Department of Education program designed to encourage educational innovation and reform.

The funds will allow SPSU to replicate UTeach, a successful national model teacher preparation program. SPSU’s plan to establish such a program was approved by the University System of Georgia Board of Regents in June, and the university will begin offering courses towards its new teacher preparation program in Spring 2012.

The UTeach program enables future secondary teachers (grades 6-12) to become highly qualified in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). A successful UTeach pilot program at the University of Texas at Austin has been replicated on 22 campuses nationwide.

SPSU, the University of West Georgia and Columbus State University will be the first universities to implement UTeach in Georgia, and SPSU is the first polytechnic university in the U.S. to do so.

Since 2001, over 550 students have graduated from the UTeach program. More than 80 percent of UTeach graduates are still teaching five years after graduating and almost half of them teach in high-need schools.

“The UTeach program is a natural fit for SPSU as a polytechnic,” said Dr. George Stickel, who will direct SPSU’s teacher education program, SPSUTeach. “UTeach focuses on mathematics and science, and since over 77 percent of our students are in STEM fields, this program will serve our students and community well.”

Stickel added, “We will start offering the introductory education classes for SPSUTeach in the spring of 2012 and will follow with the other courses. We will work closely with the Georgia Professional Standards Commission to obtain program approval and accreditation by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education.”

As part of the competitive process to obtain the UTeach grant, five SPSU officials traveled to the UTeach Institute’s Annual Conference in Austin, Texas, in May. They took part in a series of interviews about the university’s teacher-preparation plans and capabilities and the need for STEM-qualified teachers in SPSU’s service area.

The UTeach grant will fund the hiring of master teachers with recent public school experience and current certifications to provide intense mentoring for the teacher candidates. The money also will fund the purchase of laboratory and computer equipment and supplies, as well as the training of the personnel conducting the program.

The team consisted of Dr. Ron Dempsey, vice president for Advancement; Dr. Zvi Szafran, vice president for Academic Affairs; Dr. Alan Gabrielli, then dean of SPSU’s School of Arts and Sciences; Dr. Phil Patterson, chair of the Department of Physics; and Stickel.

Dr. Gabrielli and Dr. Stickel will serve as co-directors of SPSUTeach.

Welcome to SPSU’s newest dean
Dr. Thomas Nelson, who formerly headed the Department of Biology at North Georgia College & State University (NGCSU), took up his new post as dean of the School of Arts and Sciences on July 1 and was introduced to SPSU faculty at the General Faculty Meeting on
July 7.

Prior to joining NGCSU in 2008, Dr. Nelson served for 14 years as professor and director of the Environmental Biology Program at Eastern Illinois University and five years as chair of the Biology Department at Arkansas Tech University. Dr. Nelson holds a degree in Biological Sciences from Illinois State University and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in Ecology from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale.

Dr. Nelson’s research specialties are in wildlife ecology and directing undergraduate research, areas to which he has contributed over 30 professional papers and 70 presentations at conferences and workshops.

Welcome to SPSU, Dr. Nelson!

Televised discussion on region’s growth includes Dr. Rossbacher
Next week, SPSU President Dr. Lisa A. Rossbacher will take part in the taping of a panel discussion on the future of the metro Atlanta region that is being co-sponsored by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and WSB-TV.

Fellow participants will include Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed; Metro Atlanta Chamber President Sam Williams; Tad Leithead, director of the Atlanta Regional Commission; Amir Farokhi, executive director of Georgia Forward; Catherine Ross, the former head of the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority; and A.D. Frazier, an Atlanta businessman who served as chief operating officer for the Atlanta Olympic Games.

The discussion is scheduled to air on WSB-TV on Sun., Aug. 7, and excerpts from the transcript also will appear in the newspaper.

SPSU to host Geek Squad Summer Academy 2011
On Aug. 2-3, for the fourth year in a row, SPSU will host the Atlanta-area Geek Squad Summer Academy. Staff and faculty members are preparing the campus for the Girl Scouts’ arrival. Fun, classroom learning and an overnight campus experience in the university student housing are on the agenda.

The academy is a partnership between SPSU, Best Buy and the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta. The Girl Scout Council is handling logistics, SPSU is providing facilities and Best Buy’s Geek Squad is providing equipment and instructors.

The Summer Academy is designed to bring Geek Squad agents into the community to teach young girls about computing and technology in a fun and interactive way.

Registration ends Fri., July 22. To view more information about the overnight experience and register, visit www.spsu.edu/gssa/.

Hornet’s Nest, SPSU Magazine earn awards
Two of SPSU’s publications, the Hornet’s Nest and SPSU Magazine, earned national and international recognition this spring.

Both publications received Hermes Creative Awards from the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals (AMCP) – gold awards for the spring 2010 issue of SPSU Magazine in the Design/Publication Overall and Publications/Magazine categories and an honorable mention for the Hornet’s Nest in the e-Newsletters category.

The Hermes Creative Awards, an international competition, is aimed at professionals who take part in the concept, writing and design of traditional and emerging media. Winners are those whose work serves as a benchmark for the industry.

Over 4,400 applicants from the United States and several other countries competed this year for the honor of having the publication they manage recognized for its excellence and creativity.

The spring 2010 issue of SPSU Magazine also earned an APEX Award for Publications Excellence in the Design and Layout category. This annual competition is sponsored by the editors of Writing That Works: The Business Communications Report, and this year nearly 530 magazines submitted 3,300 entries that were evaluated by a panel of judges.

Congratulations to the Office of Public Relations for making these award-winning publications possible.

SPSU trustee appointed to lead Cobb EMC
SPSU Foundation Trustee Chip T. Nelson, who had been serving as interim CEO of Cobb EMC since late February, was given the permanent appointment by the electrical-distribution co-op’s board of directors on July 11.

Nelson has been employed by Cobb EMC for 37 years, working his way through the ranks to vice president of the co-op and most recently serving as chief operations officer, a post he filled for seven years.

According to co-op officials, “Cobb EMC has one of the most advanced power distribution and management systems in the world today. It is recognized as a model of efficiency for utilities throughout the U.S. and abroad and Nelson played a key role on the team that made that system a reality.”

Nelson earned a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering Technology from SPSU in 1981.

SPSU adds two instructional designers
Kathryn Morgan and Derrick “Buddy” Sterling recently joined the Office of Faculty Support and Development as instructional designers.

Morgan and Sterling help design and develop online courses. Their job is to make online classes more efficient, develop and revise instructional tools, and provide training to instructors and faculty with technological needs.

Morgan, who started her job on June 1, was already familiar with the campus, as she earned a Bachelor of Science in Technical Communication here with a concentration in Professional Editing and Communication. She also worked for three years as a transfer enrollment counselor and managed the front desk in the Welcome Center.

Sterling came to SPSU in early February from Mississippi State University, where he was an instructional technology coordinator. Sterling earned both a Bachelor of Science in Informational Technology Services and a Master of Science in Instructional Technology at that institution.

Have news to share?
If your department has an upcoming event or other news to share with the campus community, please send an e-mail with all the pertinent information to Diane Payne (dpayne@spsu.edu). To be considered for use in a specific issue of the SPSU Hornet’s Nest, a news item must be submitted no less than four weeks before the date of the issue.

Volume 4, Issue 27
July 20, 2011