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News in Brief
AROUND CAMPUSBezanson to consider art and the Constitution in Presidential Lecture
University of Iowa law professor Randall Bezanson will lay out a method to extend Constitutional protections to artistic expression when he delivers the University of Iowa's 2008 Presidential Lecture, "Art and the Constitution," at 3:30 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 24, in the Levitt Center for University Advancement. Admission is free and open to the public. "There is little legal framework to protect art or artistic expression," says Bezanson, a First Amendment expert. "There's no mention of it in the Constitution, and generally, the Supreme Court has not attempted to take up the question. As a result, it's up in the air as to whether many forms of art have any substantial constitutional protection." Prior to Bezanson's lecture, cellist Anthony Arnone of the UI School of Music faculty will perform selections from Suite for Solo Cello #1 in G Major for solo cello by J. S. Bach. Read the full University News Services release at: http://news-releases.uiowa.edu/2008/february/021108presidentiallecture.html.
President Sally Mason approves campus-wide, smoke-free policy "A smoke-free campus will provide a healthier environment for employees, students, and other constituents," Mason says. Recognizing that the change will be difficult for employees and students, Mason says the University will use the 17 months before the policy takes effect to ensure that all employees and students have access to smoking cessation programs and services at no cost or at sharply discounted rates. "I will be appointing a team to implement this policy," Mason says, "and the first task of that team will be to ensure that we are taking every step we can to help smokers quit." For staff and faculty, UI Wellness offers a range of opportunities for smokers, including smoking cessation classes and reimbursement of up to $300 for nicotine replacement or prescription drugs to aid them in quitting smoking. For details, visit the UI Wellness web site at www.uiowa.edu/hr/oe/worklife/wellness/.
UI salt supplies running low due to higher than normal snowfall Forty-five tons of salt: That's all that remains of the 600 tons University of Iowa Facilities Management purchased for the winter. It may seem like a lot, but Bob Brooks, associate director of campus and facilities planning for landscape services in UI Facilities Management, says it goes pretty quickly. "During a 'normal' snowfall event, we use between 25 and 30 tons of salt. Mixing that with sand and spreading it onto the 31 miles of roadway and 32 miles of sidewalk we maintain…yeah, it goes pretty fast," Brooks says. UI Facilities Management normally uses 300 tons of salt per winter, while the most ever used was 400 tons in the winter of 2000. The salt is spread primarily on the west side of campus, including Hawkins Drive, Newton Road, Oakdale campus, and Hawkeye campus roads. UI Parking and Transportation also uses salt and sand from Facilities Management storage for main campus parking. The problem this winter, Brooks says, is that the salt shortage is widespread. "Cities, county governments, and everyone in between are having trouble contracting with other outside suppliers because we've got so much snow and ice. Our main concern is once the remaining 45 tons is gone, our current supplier cannot guarantee any more," Brooks says. "We are exploring every option possible to make sure we can continue to provide safe road and walk conditions in spite of the diminishing supply of salt." Read the full University News Services release at http://news-releases.uiowa.edu/2008/february/021208salt_supply.html.
UI Libraries' new digital collection features African American women A new digital collection from the UI Libraries, "African American Women Students at the University of Iowa, 1910–1960," is now available online at http://digital.lib.uiowa.edu/aaws. The collection features 150 digitized artifacts, including photographs, scrapbooks, correspondence, and oral history audio clips, drawn from the holdings of the Iowa Women's Archives, the University of Iowa Archives, the African American Historical Museum and Cultural Center of Iowa, and the State Historical Society of Iowa. The project was led by Shawn Averkamp, a fellow in the School of Library and Information Science's Digital Libraries Program, and coordinated by the UI Digital Library Services department. The goal of the project was to compile and increase access to primary source materials from a variety of archival collections, thereby helping to piece together the history of African American students at the University. This history has been underdocumented since African Americans were often excluded from such mainstream student publications as the yearbook and the Daily Iowan. Read the full University News Services release at http://news-releases.uiowa.edu/2008/february/021208african_american_collection.html.
Iowa named a best value in higher education The University of Iowa is among the top 100 best values in higher education, according to Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine. The University was ranked as the 54th best value of 500 public colleges or universities reviewed by the magazine and ranked in its February issue. Factors that went into determining the rankings were top flight academics (measured by SAT/ACT scores, admission and retention rates, graduate rates, and student-to-faculty ratios) and affordable costs—including total costs for in-state students, students with need, students without need, and average debt. The University was ranked 74th among public universities based on its out-of-state tuition. For a complete list and accompanying story, visit www.kiplinger.com/money/collegevalues.
Faculty, staff invited to learn about commercializing research The John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center and IOWA Center for Enterprises invites faculty and staff interested in commercializing research to a lecture at 4 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 21, in the Kelch Conference Room of the Carver Biomedical Research Building. In “Bridging Academic Research & Public Benefit: Commercializing Research,” Peter Donnelly of the UI Research Foundation will explore University resources available to aid in the commercialization process and how to assess the commercial viability of a product or research. Register at www.iowajpec.org or call 335-1022.
Get out and vote in Staff Council elections Voting for the University of Iowa Staff Council, which represents more than 5,500 professional and scientific and merit exempt/confidential staff, continues until Feb. 28. Visit the Staff Council web site at www.uiowa.edu/~staff/Archives/2007-08/N-E/20080211-scnominees.html to read profiles of the candidates and to cast a vote. The candidates are: Administrative Academic (voters select eight) Professional Health Care and Nursing (voters select one) Professional Research (voters select three) Merit Supervisory Exempt/Confidential (voters select two)
See what Learning and Development courses are right for you UI Learning and Development, a unit of Organizational Effectiveness, provides professional development services to faculty and staff. There are many learning opportunities that will support your professional development and growth. Look for classroom instruction on leadership issues for managers, frontline supervisors, human resource professionals, and office professionals. Check out the following links:
DISCOVERIESFunctional immune cells derived from embryonic stem cells For the first time, researchers have used embryonic stem cells to develop functioning immune system blood cells—an important step in eventually using embryonic stem cells as an alternative source of cells for traditional bone marrow transplantations. The study team was led by a researcher with The University of Iowa and the Veterans Affairs (VA) Iowa City Health Care System. The study, which was done on animal models, used a previously discovered protein to overcome the fact that new blood cells derived from embryonic stem cells are normally not self-renewing. The finding was published online in December in Blood, the official journal of the American Society of Hematology. "These results show, for the first time, that functional white blood cells, the key players in the body's immune system, can be successfully derived from embryonic stem cells expressing a protein called HOXB4," says the study's lead author, Nicholas Zavazava, professor of internal medicine and director of transplant research at the Carver College of Medicine and a staff physician at the VA Iowa City Health Care System. "The finding may help leverage an existing advantage that embryonic stem cells have over traditional transplants, which use donated bone marrow, umbilical cord blood or peripheral blood," he added. Read the full University News Services release at http://news-releases.uiowa.edu/2008/february/021308embryonic_cells.html.
TRANSITIONSWolff named Carver College of Medicine associate dean for diversity In this senior administrative position, Wolff will advise the collegiate leadership and develop strategies for the recruitment and retention of a diverse medical faculty, staff, and student body. She also will help advance and expand diversity efforts in the research, education, and service missions of the college; ensure the college's diversity programs are aligned with collegiate and university strategic plans; collaborate with the college's academic departments, centers, and other units to create and evaluate diversity initiatives; develop educational and training sessions for faculty, staff, and students to ensure culturally competent working and learning environments; and participate in local, state, and national efforts to increase diversity in the health care profession. Read the full University News Services release at www.news-releases.uiowa.edu/2008/february/020408benitawolff.html.
Fritzsch named biological sciences head, Iowa Entrepreneurial Endowed Professor A molecular developmental neurobiologist, Fritzsch is internationally known for his research on the evolution of the sensory neurons of the inner ear, which has provided insights into the genetic basis of hearing loss. His research program is funded by the National Institutes of Health and by a federal Small Business Innovation Research Grant for the development of neuronal tracers. Read the full University News Services release at http://news-releases.uiowa.edu/2008/february/020108fritzsch_appointment.html.
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