UM Celebrates 114th Birthday
 

Community members are invited to celebrate the 114th birthday of UM on Charter Day, Thursday, Feb. 15.

Charter Day events, held each February to commemorate the 1893 founding of the University, are free and open to the public.

This year’s celebration kicks off at noon in the University Center Atrium. Birthday cake will be served and Andrea Helling, president of the Associated Students of UM, will speak.

Charter Day award winners will be honored at a 5:30 p.m. ceremony followed by a reception in the University Center Ballroom. Entertainment will be provided by jazz combo Special Blend.

Award Winners 

 UM Garners Gold In Regional Competition
 

The Council for Advancement and Support of Education District VIII has found much to like in the work of UM this year.

Executive Vice President Jim Foley’s new marketing campaign of television commercials to promote the University were recognized with a CASE Grand Gold award. Winners of the Grand Gold are eligible for the highest award bestowed by CASE – the Virginia Carter Smith Grand Crystal Award, to be presented later this month during District VIII’s annual conference in Boise, Idaho.

University Relations Director Rita Munzenrider received a Gold award for UM’s 2005 President’s Report – “A Legacy of Giving.”

The report was produced by the University Relations team of Munzenrider; Todd Goodrich, photographer; Patia Stephens, Web content manager and news editor; and Cary Shimek, senior news editor. It was designed by Neal Wiegert of UM Printing & Graphics.

Stephens and Shimek both received CASE Gold awards for feature stories in University Relations publications. Stephens won the award for her feature “When Speech Wasn’t Free,” which appeared in the fall 2006 Montanan. Shimek took the Gold for “Ranching Human Lice,” a feature story in the spring 2006 issue of Research View.

The CASE awards recognize the best accomplishments of advancement professionals on behalf of their institutions.

 

 Academic Freedom Topic Of UM Debate
 

Two national experts will be at UM this month to continue ongoing discussions about academic freedom and the autonomy of institutions of higher learning.

Anne Neal, president of the American Council of Trustees and Alumni, and Roger Bowen, general secretary of the American Association of University Professors, will hold a debate titled “Academic Freedom and Institutional Autonomy” at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 14, in the University Center Theater.

UM President George Dennison will serve as moderator for the event.

Both Neal and Bowen have been strong voices in discussions about the meaning of academic freedom and accountability for institutions of higher learning. The UM debate was generated by articles written by Neal and Bowen that were published in the fall 2006 edition of the academic journal The Montana Professor, for which Dennison serves as editor.

The debate is free and open to the public.

 

 Lecture Offers Feminist View Of Iraq War
 

Cynthia Enloe, a pioneer in the feminist study of international relations, will give the next installment of the President’s Lecture Series at UM.

Enloe will present “Women and the Iraq War” at 8 p.m. Monday, Feb. 12, in the Montana Theatre.

Earlier that day from 3:10 to 4:30 p.m., Enloe will give a seminar titled “Women and the Globalization of Factories” in Gallagher Business Building Room 123.

Both events, presented in conjunction with UM’s Women’s Studies Program, are free and open to the public.

Enloe, a research professor in the Department of International Development, Community and Environment at Clark University, Worcester, Mass., is UM’s 2006-07 Maxine Van de Wetering “Women Making History” Lecturer.

She has written numerous books, including “The Curious Feminist: Searching for Women in The New Age of Empire” and “Maneuvers: The International Politics of Militarizing Women’s Lives.”

President's Lecture Series 

 Event Tackles Evolution Debate
 

UM will join universities across the nation to celebrate the birthday of Charles Darwin this month by presenting the film “Flock of Dodos: The Evolution-Intelligent Design Circus.”

The Missoula premiere of the 85-minute documentary will be held at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 12, in the University Center Theater. The event is free and open to the public.

A panel discussion, moderated by Carol Brewer, associate dean of UM’s College of Arts and Sciences, will follow the film. Panel members include UM Professor Betsy Bach, president of the National Communication Association; Eric Olson, brother of “Flock of Dodos” filmmaker Randy Olson; and Hellgate High School science teacher Dave Oberbillig.

The event is sponsored by UM and the Ecologists, Educators and Schools Program.

Ecologists, Educators and Schools Program 

 University Libraries Join Forces
 

Libraries at UM and Montana State University have jointly licensed software and entered into an agreement to share expertise and computer space.

Bonnie Allen, dean of the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library at UM, and Bruce Morton, dean of libraries at MSU, are developing programs to digitize the unique archival collections in the libraries to make them accessible to Internet users.

Allen now uses the software, specifically designed for digital collection management, to share the pages of the Walter Bone Shirt Ledger and works with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribe to digitize its tribal newspaper, the Char-Koosta News.

Walter Bone Shirt Ledger 

 UM Research Conference Calls For Abstracts
 

The Graduate Student and Faculty Research Conference now is accepting abstracts for poster and oral presentations from UM faculty members and graduate students.

The conference will be held Saturday, April 14, at UM. Abstract submissions are due by Wednesday, March 14.

The conference welcomes presentations of speeches or posters previously presented elsewhere. Student presentations may include a portion of a thesis or dissertation, or a successful seminar or course paper.

The interdisciplinary focus of the conference this year will be highlighted by a roundtable discussion, “Fire in the West,” featuring faculty members from various UM departments.

Complete instructions and forms for submitting abstracts are online.

Graduate Student and Faculty Research Conference 

 Students Fare Well In National Competition
 

Several UM students have been rewarded for their standout performances in the national Hearst Journalism Awards program.

Print journalism senior Zachary Franz won eighth place and a $500 scholarship in the in-depth reporting competition. Franz’s story for the Native News Honors Project placed UM’s journalism school in fourth place nationally among all accredited programs in the Hearst competition.

In earlier print competitions during the 2006-07 academic year, senior Amy May placed fifth, winning a $600 scholarship.

Alex Strickland, who graduated last spring, placed 16th in the editorial writing category.

In Hearst’s broadcast competition, for which winners were announced in December, senior Melanie Overcast’s first place and Amanda Harris’ 17th place in radio news put the UM radio-television department in fifth place overall among all schools. Overcast won a $2,000 scholarship.

School of Journalism 

 Grizzlies Move To Second Place In Big Sky
 

The Montana men’s basketball team lost 70-68 to the Portland State Vikings Feb. 1, in Missoula.

Sophomore forward Jordan Hasquet led the Grizzlies offensively with a game-high 25 points, five rebounds and two assists. Saturday night, UM defeated the Eastern Washington Eagles 85-78 on the shoulders of a double-double performance by Jordan Hasquet.

He led the way for the Grizzlies with a season-high 26 points, a game-high 11 rebounds and an assist. Hasquet was named Big Sky Conference Men’s Basketball Player of the Week for his efforts. Senior forward Matt Dlouhy had 14 points and six rebounds to lead Montana to a 76-69 win over Sacramento State Wednesday night in Missoula.

Hasquet notched his second consecutive double-double performance with 13 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. The win was the Grizzlies' fifth in their last six games, improving their record to 13-11 overall and 7-4 in the Big Sky Conference.

The Grizzlies, currently in second place in the Big Sky standings, will next play rival Montana State in Bozeman, Saturday at 7:05 p.m.

Montana Grizzlies 

 Lady Griz Climb To Top Of Big Sky
 

Montana sophomores Mandy Morales and Britney Lohman both had double-doubles and the Lady Griz defense held the Vikings to 30.2 percent shooting in UM's 77-57 win at Portland State Feb. 1.

Morales had her fourth career double-double with 19 points and 11 assists, while Lohman had her third career double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Saturday afternoon, Montana defeated Eastern Washington 71-53 at Cheney, Wash., to improve to 20-2 on the season and 8-1 in Big Sky Conference play.

Once again it was Morales and Lohman who led the Lady Griz to victory. Morales finished with 23 points and nine assists, while Lohman added 21 points.

By reaching the 20-win mark, the 2006-07 Lady Griz become coach Robin Selvig's 25th 20-win team in his 29 seasons at Montana.

The Lady Griz, now in first place in the Big Sky Conference, will attempt to remain there this week with a road game at Sacramento State and a home game against Montana State. UM faced Sac State Thursday night at 8 p.m. at the Hornets Nest, and return home to host the Bobcats Sunday afternoon at 4 p.m. at Dahlberg Arena.

Montana Grizzlies