2006 PRESIDENT'S REPORT

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE YEAR

Expedition Images • Ever wonder what Lewis and Clark may have seen as they headed west? Billings artist Charles Fritz did and then traveled to many of the actual sites visited by the famous Corps of Discovery, painting studies of the landscapes and important discoveries encountered by the explorers. The Montana Museum of Art & Culture at UM coordinated a national traveling expedition of the more than 88 paintings, titled “Charles Fritz, an Artist with the Corps of Discovery.” A full-color exhibition catalog, published by The University of Montana Press and Farcountry Press, with text by Stephen and Stephanie Ambrose and UM history Professor Harry Fritz, accompanied the exhibition.

Radio Reaches Out • The Montana Broadcasters Association named the Footbridge Forum, an experimental radio program at UM, “Outstanding Non-Commercial Radio Program of 2005.” The program also won first place in the student audio competition and “Best of Festival” at the Broadcast Education Association conference. Produced, promoted and hosted by students, the program brings together members of the campus and Missoula communities to discuss issues ranging from the development of South Campus to American Indians and higher education. The Footbridge Forum airs monthly and was developed by radio-TV Assistant Professor Denise Dowling. It has won numerous awards since its inception in 2003.

Noteworthy News • Projects by UM radio-television students and Associate Professor Ray Ekness were chosen as best in the nation at the Broadcast Education Association meeting held in April in Las Vegas. Ekness took top honors in the faculty television news competition for his work “Cowboy Poet,” a profile of Great Falls resident Paul Zarzyski that was produced as part of the Montana Arts Council’s Governor’s Arts Awards. Two radio-television students won the television sports reporting category with a story on the University’s lacrosse team. In addition, UM students also were finalists in several categories of the conference’s News Division.

Scientific Scholars • UM students fared well in two prestigious national scholarship competitions this year. Hilary Martens and Elizabeth Morton won Goldwater Scholarships, and Kelly Hopping and Michael O’Brien received Morris K. Udall Scholarships. There were 323 Goldwater scholars across the nation this year, and each received up to $7,500 per year for university expenses. The award recognizes outstanding academic performance and the potential to succeed in careers involving mathematics, the natural sciences or engineering. Hopping and O’Brien were two of 80 Udall scholars from 59 colleges and universities in 2006. The Morris K. Udall Scholarship and Excellence in National Environmental Policy Foundation awards merit-based scholarships to students who have demonstrated outstanding potential and a commitment to pursuing careers related to the environment. The students each received $5,000.

Presidential Visit • Mary McAleese, the president of Ireland, visited UM in May. Her trip launched the University’s new Irish Studies Program and celebrated the strong historical, cultural and immigrant links between Montana and Ireland. The University recently formed a collaborative agreement with the University of Cork for faculty and student exchanges and research, in addition to the development of a minor in Irish studies. McAleese’s UM appearance was a part of a visit to the United States at the invitation of the governors of Colorado and Montana, as well as the University of Notre Dame.

Revved Up • Griz marketing took a turn toward the vehicular this year as local businesses decorated corporate vehicles in UM themes. In addition to a beverage truck and a semitrailer, the growing Griz armada now includes a concrete- mixer truck. The $170,000 2007 Kenworth truck recently purchased by LS Jensen Construction & Ready Mix turns heads with UM logos and pictures of four outstanding University athletes. “We just wanted to be part of Griz Nation,” says Stan Dugdale, general manager of the LS Jensen branch in Missoula. The truck can haul 10 yards of concrete and poured its first load in June. The truck is used in parades and for special UM events. “If they want it at Grizzly events, we shine it up and bring it down,” he says. CSI Missoula • Area seventh-graders got the chance to learn forensic science techniques when the University hosted."

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