January 2004

Bear Briefs
Assisting Tsunami Victims—In response to the devastation in Asia, two UM student organizations will staff a table in the University Center from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Jan. 24-28 to collect donations for the American Red Cross International Response Fund. The table will be run by the International Student Association and the South and Southeast Asian Organization. Student efforts will complement efforts of the American Red Cross of Montana, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies of South Asia to provide relief supplies, financial assistance or personnel to areas hit by the Dec. 26 tsunamis. Those wishing to contribute but are unable to visit the University Center at those times can send donations to the American Red Cross International Response Fund, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, D.C. 20013. Internet users can make secure online contributions at http://www.redcross.org.

Helping Helena COT—Longtime UM executive officer Bob Frazier will stay on as interim dean of the Helena College of Technology through the academic year, President George Dennison announced recently. Frazier has been in the HCOT leadership role temporarily since Nov. 12, shortly after Dean Steve Hoyle retired. After reviewing candidate applications for the interim position, Dennison concluded that “Frazier best meets the needs of the Helena college at this time.” Frazier will continue as interim dean until late spring 2005, allowing Dennison time to conduct a national search to permanently fill the position. Frazier has considerable experience working with the Montana Legislature, having served as a higher education liaison for many years. He currently is special assistant to President Dennison and University executive vice president, overseeing marketing and licensing efforts of the Missoula campus. Frazier has worked in higher education for more than 26 years and previously served at Montana State University.

Trick-or-Voting—UM’s Office for Civic Engagement surpassed its goals this semester in projects including the annual Trick-or-Eat canned food drive and voter education program. Trick-or-Eat collected 6,500 pounds of food this year from University neighborhoods. More than 800 volunteers participated in the event held every year on Halloween. About 4,000 meals for needy families were provided to the Missoula Food Bank because of the volunteers’ efforts. The voter education and registration program was led by two student coordinators from the Office for Civic Engagement in coordination with other campus groups, including Votestock and Extreme Voting Week. Overall, the program registered 1,800 people to vote, surpassing its goal by 300. The Office for Civic Engagement is based in the Davidson Honors College. It was founded to promote service and civic involvement in the UM community.

Fixing History—Representatives from UM, the Montana Army National Guard and the Rocky Mountain Museum of Military History recently agreed on a maintenance plan for a historic building at Fort Missoula. The federally owned building, called T-312, is a World War II-era warehouse managed by the Montana Army National Guard and used under a 2000 license agreement by the UM Department of Geology. The University agreed to complete necessary building repairs by Sept. 30, 2005, allocating funding to do so. The repairs include replacing rotted exterior siding, repairing or replacing exterior doors and windows, replacing the roof and painting the exterior. The building is used by the geology department as storage for an extensive geological core sample collection.

Excellent Photography—UM journalism student Michael Cohea placed in the latest round of the national Hearst Journalism Awards Program. Cohea, a senior from Missoula, captured eighth place and a $500 award. He competed in the categories of feature and portrait/personality photography. The Hearst Journalism Program has been called the “college Pulitzers.” More than 100 accredited schools of journalism in the United States participate in the competition each year.

A Take on Taxes—Two decades ago, Montana taxes ranked fifth highest in the nation. Today, our taxes are 39th highest, declining from 12 percent of taxpayers’ income to 10 percent. Learn about Montana’s tax situation at UM’s Bureau of Business and Economic Research’s 30th Annual Economic Outlook Seminar, which will be held in nine cities beginning the last week of January. This year’s theme is “High Taxes, Low Taxes: What’s Next for Montana?” The seminar series is cosponsored by BBER and First Interstate Bank. As in past years, BBER Director Paul Polzin will highlight the latest economic trends and explain what they mean for Montanans. He also will present an economic forecast for each seminar city. The seminar series will begin in Helena on Thursday, Jan. 25, at the Great Northern Hotel. It then moves to Great Falls, Jan. 26, Holiday Inn; Missoula, Jan. 28, Holiday Inn Parkside; Billings, Feb.1, Northern Hotel; Bozeman, Feb. 2, Holiday Inn; Butte, Feb. 3, Ramada Inn Copper King; Kalispell, Feb. 8, Kalispell Center Hotel; Sidney, March 8, Sidney Elks Club; and Miles City, March 9, Town and Country Club. Registration is $70, and continuing education credits are available for an additional $20. For more information call (406) 243-5113, or register online at BBER’s Web site, http://www.bber.umt.edu.

Food for Your Brain—Tune into Brain Busters on NBC Montana stations each weekend to see the state’s brightest high school students compete for thousands of dollars in UM scholarships. An academic quiz bowl now in its third season, Brain Busters pits high school teams from across Montana and northern Wyoming against each other in first- and second-round competition. Winners advance to regional playoffs in the spring and eventually to the statewide championship game. Shows are taped monthly in Billings and Missoula. Brain Busters airs at 5 p.m. Saturdays on KECI in Missoula, KCFW in Kalispell and KTVM-TV in Butte and Bozeman. The show airs Sundays at 9:30 a.m. on KULR in Billings and 10 a.m. on KFBB in Great Falls and KHBB in Helena.

Memories, One Brick at a Time—Become a permanent part of the UM-Missoula campus by having your name — or another special person’s — engraved on a brick in Centennial Circle. Centennial Circle was established in 1993, when UM celebrated its 100th birthday. Paved with red bricks, the circle surrounds Rudy Autio’s landmark grizzly bear statue, located on the western edge of the Oval. With its classic Main Hall and Mount Sentinel backdrop, the circle is a favorite place for picture-taking. Centennial Circle Bricks cost $150 each and may be engraved with names or brief messages. For more information, go online to http://www.umt.edu/urelations/bricks.htm.

For information, contact:
Rita.Munzenrider@mso.umt.edu
University Relations
(406) 243-2522

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