UM Public Broadcaster Wins Humanities Award
 

William Marcus, director of UM’s Broadcast Media Center, will receive a Governor’s Humanities Award during a March 1 ceremony in Helena.

The awards, given by the Montana Committee for the Humanities, honor service to and enhancement of public appreciation for the humanities.

As director of UM’s media center, Marcus oversees Montana Public Radio and KUFM, the PBS television station located on campus in the PAR/TV Center.

Marcus, a native of Wibaux has been at UM for 30 years. His career began in radio as a production assistant for MTPR. He has been the host of the popular television show “Backroads of Montana” since its 1991 premiere.

Backroads of Montana 

 Series Examines How Knowledge Shapes World
 

Science, prophecy, poetry, philosophy and the ways in which they shape and reflect the world are the focus of the 2007 Community Lecture Series, set to begin this month at UM.

The series – “Ways of Knowing” – will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesdays from Feb. 13 to March 20 at the University Center Theater.

Linda Gillison, professor of classics at UM, will serve as facilitator for the events. This year’s speakers are all outstanding UM faculty members who teach a Davidson Honors College course of the same name.

Only 250 tickets will be sold for the lecture series. Cost is $20 for the general public, $15 for UM Alumni Association members and $10 for students.

To get tickets, call the UM Alumni Association at 406-243-5211.

Alumni Association 

 Volunteers, Donors Needed For MTPR Fundraiser
 

If listening to Montana Public Radio starts your morning, consider giving back by volunteering at the 31st annual on-air fundraiser.

Between 6 a.m. Monday, Feb. 12, and midnight Sunday, Feb. 18, volunteers are needed to answer calls as part of Montana Public Radio’s Pledge Week. Shifts are two hours and can be extended.

MTPR also asks that people consider donating premiums – thank-you gifts that encourage listeners to contribute. Premium donations are welcome until noon Friday, Feb. 16.

For more information, call 406-243-6400 or 800-325-1565.

Montana Public Radio 

 Students To Host Meth Project Fundraiser
 

UM’s Graduate Business Student Association will host a wine sampling and silent auction Friday, Feb. 9, to raise money for the Montana Meth Project.

“The Distinguished Palate Wine Sampling and Charitable Silent Auction” will be held at 7:30 p.m. at the Parkside in the Wilma and will feature the jazz of Backburner with Erick Funk of Montana PBS’s “11th and Grant.”

Auction items include ski vacations, bottles of wine, dinners for two and other items appropriate for a fast-approaching Valentine’s Day.

Tickets cost $100 per couple and are available by calling Cyndi Stary at 406-243-2064.

 

 Professors, Grads To Receive ACLU Awards
 

Two UM professors and 10 recent graduates will receive awards from the Montana American Civil Liberties Union on Thursday, Feb. 1, in Helena.

Professors Clemens Work and Jeffrey Renz will receive the Jeannette Rankin Civil Liberties Award, a yearly honor bestowed on those who have shown devotion to civil liberties and constitutional rights.

Work, a professor in UM’s School of Journalism, made a vital contribution to the history of free speech in Montana with his book “Darkest Before Dawn: Sedition and Free Speech in the American West.”

Renz, director of the Criminal Defense Clinic at the UM School of Law, has demonstrated a lifetime of work toward defending the Bill of Rights in Montana.

The two teamed up for a project that led to Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer’s pardoning of 78 people convicted under the sedition law in 1918 and 1919.

Ten UM graduates who took part in the project are being honored at the ceremony with the first-ever Vern Klingman Meritorious Act Award, named for the Billings activist. The award is presented to those who have done something courageous or inspirational, said ACLU Montana Executive Director Scott Crichton.

The UM graduates to be honored with the award are Katie Olson, Peter Lacny, Jason Lazark, Kimberly Coburn, Daniela Pavuk, Myshell Uhl, Stuart Segrest, Margaret Weamer, Megan Healke and Laura Hurd.

The awards ceremony and reception are open to the public. Details are online.

ACLU Montana 

 Feast Set To Benefit Culinary Students
 

The Chef of the Year Dinner, a four-course feast to benefit culinary students, will be held Friday, Feb. 9, at UM.

The event is sponsored by the Montana Chefs Association. Proceeds go to the association’s scholarship fund.

2006 Chef of the Year, Melinda Dorn, created the menu for the dinner, which features Montana products in support of UM’s Farm to College program and includes complementary wines. UM College of Technology students will assist with preparation and serving for the event.

Dorn, who teaches culinary classes at COT, is an American Culinary Federation-certified Chef d’Cuisine.

The event costs $75 Tickets are available on the MCA Web site or by calling Tom Campbell, director of the COT Culinary Program at 406-244-0158.

Montana Chefs Association 

 Research Suggests Distinct Bison Herds Roam Park
 

Graduate student Flo Gardipee studies fish and wildlife biology at UM, but she describes herself as “a professional pooper scooper.”

That’s because she researches the feces of bison roaming Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks.

Gardipee obtained samples from the Grand Teton herd, as well as bison groups in Yellowstone’s Hayden Valley, Lamar Valley and Mirror Plateau.

So what’s the scoop on bison poop? First, Gardipee has found a gentle, non-invasive way to study the DNA of the animals in the park. Secondly, the genetic material she and her team extracted suggests the roughly 4,000 bison in Yellowstone are divided into at least two distinct breeding groups, which could have implications for how they are managed.

“If one of the sub-populations is being culled in higher proportion to the other ones,” Gardipee said, “Then we could be losing some level of genetic diversity.”

Full News Release 

 Students Cover Legislature For Radio Series
 

UM students are once again taking to the airwaves to cover the Montana Legislature.

Their newscasts covering the last session of the Legislature in 2005 received such positive feedback that UM’s Department of Radio-Television decided to send students to Helena to cover the 2007 session.

This session is being covered by Cortney Fawthrop of Townsend and Autumn Reagor of Great Falls, both Montana natives.

The broadcasts are sent to more than 50 radio stations statewide.

Montana Public Radio 

 Forestry College Ranks Third In New Assessment
 

UM’s College of Forestry and Conservation was ranked third among graduate forestry programs, according to a new ranking system that measures faculty productivity.

The Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index, an objective assessment backed by State University of New York at Stony Brook and produced by Academic Analytics, measured productivity based on publications, citations and grants on a per capita basis.

UM’s forestry college placed behind only Yale University, the country’s oldest forestry program, and the University of Washington.

Assessment results were released in the Jan. 12 issue of The Chronicle of Higher Education.

UM College of Forestry and Conservation 

 Administrator Selected For National Project
 

UM administrator Bill Muse is one of 78 from around the country named to the Voluntary System of Accountability Project organized by the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges

The project will develop ways that public higher education can become more accountable about learning outcomes and campus engagement, and also will provide information to students and families to aid them in their college selection process.

Muse, UM’s associate vice president for University Planning, Budgeting and Analysis, serves on the project’s 11-member Task Force on Campus Engagement, a group charged with identifying instruments to measure student engagement with campus, how those instruments should be reported and how the information should be gathered.

 

 Grizzlies Win Two
 

The UM men’s basketball team shot 60 percent from the field and limited Northern Arizona to 25 percent on 3-point shooting in a 74-71 Big Sky Conference win Jan. 25 in Flagstaff, Ariz.

Junior forward Andrew Strait scored a game-high 23 points with perfect 11-for-11 shooting to lead UM in the win. Saturday night, sophomore forward Jordan Hasquet registered game-highs with 17 points and 11 rebounds in a 68-51 road win over Northern Colorado.

The Grizzlies, on a three-game winning streak, improved to 11-10 on the year and 5-3 in Big Sky Conference play. Montana will host Big Sky Conference games this week against Portland State and Eastern Washington.

The Griz face off against the Vikings Thursday, Feb. 1, and the Eagles Saturday, Feb. 3, in Missoula. Tip-time for both games is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at Dahlberg Arena .

Montana Grizzlies 

 Lady Griz In Second Place
 

The Lady Grizzlies moved into second place in the Big Sky Conference with a 78-64 victory over Northern Arizona Jan. 25 at Dahlberg Arena.

Sophomore Mandy Morales led both teams with 20 points, her 11th game this season reaching the 20-point mark. She also added a game-high eight assists. Saturday night, junior Laura Cote scored a career-high 18 points to lead Montana to an 85-54 victory over Northern Colorado at Dahlberg Arena.

The Lady Griz improved to 11-0 at home on the season, moving to 18-2 overall and 6-1 in Big Sky Conference play. They are a half game behind league-leading Weber State. UM will be on the road this week with Big Sky Conference games at Portland State and Eastern Washington.

The Lady Griz play the Vikings Thursday night, Feb. 1, at 8 p.m. at PSU's Stott Center. UM will face the Eagles at 3 p.m. Saturday at EWU's Reese Court.

Montana Grizzlies