July 2003

Bear Briefs
Forestry Updates Name-The state Board of Regents approved a name change for UM's School of Forestry on July 10. The 90-year-old school was renamed the College of Forestry and Conservation. The school also was reorganized into three academic departments: ecosystem and conservation sciences, forest management, and society and conservation. UM officials said the changes more accurately reflect the diversity of their modern forestry curriculum.

Emmy Winners-The Montana PBS documentary "For This and Future Generations: Montana's 1972 Constitutional Convention" recently won a Regional Emmy Award from the Seattle-Northwest Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. The award, in the cultural/historical documentary category, was presented June 21 in Seattle. The documentary was written by Paul Zalis of Bigfork and directed by Gus Chambers of Montana PBS at UM. Zalis and Chambers co-produced the program. The documentary also was awarded the E.B. Craney Award for Non-commercial Television Program of the Year by the Montana Broadcasters Association at its annual convention in Bozeman on June 21. "For This and Future Generations" tells the story of the 100 grassroots delegates who rewrote the state constitution in the winter of 1972.

New UM Leaders-Arlene Walker-Andrews and James Staub have accepted associate provost positions at UM-Missoula and will begin their positions in August. Walker-Andrews' will focus primarily on student retention and curriculum, while Staub will focus on personnel and student issues. Walker-Andrews comes to UM from Rutgers, where she has served as vice chair of psychology. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree with honors from the University of Texas at Austin and her Doctor of Philosophy degree in experimental psychology from Cornell University. Staub is from Southern Illinois University Carbondale, where he currently serves as associate provost. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the College of Wooster in Ohio and his Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy degrees from the University of South Carolina.

Top Performer-UM staff member Terri Peterson has been awarded a U.S. Army Cadet Command Award for Excellence for being the nation's top ROTC human resource assistant for 2003. Peterson works for UM's Grizzly Battalion, the Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps based in Missoula. She picked up her Superior Civilian Service Medal during a May 21 ceremony in San Antonio. "It was a great honor to receive this award," Peterson said. "I love my job. The cadre and cadets that I have worked with over the past 14 years have brought me great joy." Maj. Gen. John T.D. Casey, commanding general of the command, established the excellence awards last year to recognize top performers from around the country. Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps units are located at 272 colleges and universities throughout the country.

Kyrgyzstan Connection-UM's geography department and Central Asia and Caspian Basin Program have been awarded a $73,000 U.S. Department of Education Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad grant. It will support UM's "Teaching About Central Asia: Mountains and Society in Kyrgyzstan" project, which entails sending 16 Montana students and teachers on a curriculum development/study abroad experience. Naryn State University, a UM partner institution, will host the group while they are in Kyrgyzstan, a former Soviet state, July 15 through Aug. 10. The program was developed by UM geography professors Sarah Halvorson and Jeffrey Gritzner and Otto Koester of the Central Asia and Caspian Basin Program. Their intention is to promote professional development and integrate content regarding Central Asia and Kyrgyzstan into UM curriculum and community outreach efforts.

Leading Lawyer-David Aronofsky, UM legal counsel and adjunct faculty member in the schools of law and education, has been elected to the American Law Institute. The institute is one of the world's most prestigious organizations for legal professionals. Members are selected on the basis of professional achievement and demonstrated interest in the improvement of the law. The elected membership is limited to 3,000. Aronofsky was elected May 14 by ALI's executive committee after review of his accomplishments, service and leadership. The institute's membership consists of distinguished federal and state judges, lawyers and law professors. Aronofsky joins a small, select group of Montanans elected to the institute.

Growing Stadium-All season tickets in the new 4,000-seat north end zone expansion of Washington-Grizzly Stadium have been sold - meaning that UM will have a season-ticket base of more than 17,000 for the 2003 football season. UM Athletics has started a waiting list for individuals still hoping to purchase season tickets for the upcoming season. If interested, contact Colleen Marks at (406) 243-5348. With the expansion, seating capacity in the stadium will top 23,000. Work on the stadium has closed part of UM's Campus Drive until Sept. 1.

Brainy Athletes-The average cumulative grade-point average for UM student-athletes was an impressive 2.89 for spring semester. Fifty-three percent earned a GPA of 3.0 or higher, and 16 percent made the Dean's List with 3.50 GPAs or higher. Twenty of UM's student-athletes earned perfect 4.0s while earning at least 12 academic credits. The teams with the highest average GPAs were women's volleyball and men's tennis at 3.27. Other brainy teams were women's cross country (with a 3.09 GPA), women's golf (3.20), women's soccer (3.19) and women's tennis (3.10).

Legal Competitors-UM's American Bar Association Law School Negotiation Team attended its first International Negotiation Competition July 3-5 in Calgary, Alberta. UM law students Malin Stearns and Todd Denison placed second in the national competition earlier this year to earn an invitation to Calgary. In the international competition, the team faced competitors from Canada, England, Ireland and New Zealand. Ireland finished first; New Zealand and England placed second and third respectively. This is the third team that UM coach Klaus Sitte has taken to a national competition but his first team to compete internationally.

Ticket to College-At least one of 12 recipients of the American Indian College Fund's national Tribal Scholarship Program awards plans to attend UM-Missoula in the fall. Anthony Rider of Hays was awarded a $20,000 scholarship to be paid over two years. Rider, a member of the Gros Ventre tribe, will use the scholarship to work toward an undergraduate degree at UM. The program mandates that recipients pursue a degree in science, mathematics, computer science, engineering or resource management. Rider is currently attending Fort Belknap College in Harlem.

Buy A Brick-Become a permanent part of the UM campus by having your name - or another special person's - engraved on a brick in Centennial Circle near campus's grizzly bear statue. With its classic Main Hall and Mount Sentinel backdrop, the circle remains a favorite place for picture-taking. Centennial Circle Bricks cost $150 each and may be engraved with the names of students, alumni, family members, friends, teachers or anyone else who merits special recognition. To get a brick brochure or more information, call Lisa Arends at (406) 243-2523. Order forms are available online at www.umt.edu/urelations/bricks.htm.

University Relations | Cary Shimek, Editor
The University of Montana-Missoula
32 Campus Drive | Missoula, MT 59812
phone (406) 243-2522 | fax (406) 243-4520
© 2004 The University of Montana