Welcome to ForUM, the e-newsletter for University of Montana staff, faculty and administrators. ForUM is published weekly during the academic year except during scheduled academic breaks.
"The President's Update," a video series for UM President Royce Engstrom to communicate with the campus community, is now available on the President's Office website and on the official UM YouTube channel.
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University Names New Dean
Perry Brown, UM provost and vice president for academic affairs, has announced that Roger Maclean will serve as the new dean of the University's School of Extended & Lifelong Learning, formerly known as Continuing Education. He will replace current Dean Sharon Alexander, who will retire at the end of this year.
Maclean received a doctorate in adult education from Pennsylvania State University. He comes to Missoula from Illinois, where he served as the executive director of Educational Outreach at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville. He previously served as associate dean for the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Executive Education and Continuing Studies divisions.
Brown said Maclean visited campus in early November, and through his interactions with members of the UM community, quickly rose to the top as an outstanding candidate. He received the support of SELL staff and the search committee, led by UM College of Visual and Performing Arts Dean Stephen Kalm, as well as support from others across campus and the community.
Maclean will begin his new position Jan. 14. For more information, call Brown at 243-4689 or e-mail provost@umontana.edu.
School of Extended & Lifelong Learning
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UM Set to Transition to Moodle
UM is transitioning from its current Blackboard Learning Management System to Moodle, an open-source learning management system. Initially prompted by the state requirement to review UM's Learning Management System, the selection resulted from campus needs, expressed preferences for certain features by faculty and students, and evidence from other institutions.
The transition to Moodle will take place in three phases and will be completed by fall semester 2011.
- Phase 1: Pilot. Students and faculty in the College of Visual and Performing Arts, School of Business Administration and School of Law will pilot the use of Moodle during spring semester 2011.
- Phase 2: Fully Online Courses. All fully online courses at UM will be designed and delivered in Moodle for summer semester 2011 and beyond.
- Phase 3: Course Supplements. All online course supplements for face-to-face classes will use Moodle in fall semester 2011. Blackboard will not be in use at this time, although it will remain active until spring semester 2012.
The transition will require some effort on the part of instructors and students. There is a need to become familiar with new terms and features and, for instructors, to rebuild existing Blackboard courses in Moodle. The Instructional Design and Development Team, in conjunction with the Learning Management System Advisory Committee, are available to help instructors with the redesign process.
Training and support will be offered in the following areas: workshops, online tutorials for faculty and students, tip sheets, and step-by-step guides to adding content in Moodle. Support also will be available 24/7 on UMOnline.
The Learning Management System Advisory Committee consists of the following individuals who will act as point persons for their respective units:
- College of Arts and Sciences: Charles Exley and Jesse Munro.
- College of Forestry and Conservation: To be determined.
- School of Law: Stacey Gordon.
- School of Business Administration: David Firth.
- College of Health Professions and Biomedical Sciences: Danielle Wozniak.
- College of Technology: Linda Eagleheart.
- College of Education and Human Sciences: Lisa Blank.
- School of Journalism: Ray Fanning.
- College of Visual and Performing Arts: Rick Hughes, chair of the advisory committee.
For more information on the transition, visit the Learning Management System shift website. Questions regarding the transition to Moodle can be directed to Kelly Lemar, interim director of educational technology, School of Extended & Lifelong Learning, at kelly.lemar@mso.umt.edu. Questions regarding trainings or support can be directed to Robert Squires, interim associate director of instructional design, Extended Learning Services, at robert.squires@mso.umt.edu.
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Tickets Available Now For Irish Music Series
UM's Irish Studies Program, School of Music and the Friends of Irish Studies will bring "A Springtime of Irish Traditional Music" to Missoula and Butte during February, March and April. The series features a lineup of exciting performers to present the finest of Ireland's music and song tradition.
Season tickets for the concert series cost $45. Tickets for individual concerts cost $15. Concert tickets would make a great holiday gift, and they are now available on the GrizTix website.
Tickets also can be purchased in Missoula on the UM campus at the Adams Center, The Source in the University Center and the School of Music. They also are available at Southgate Mall and Rockin Rudy's. Tickets can be purchased in Butte at the Butte-Silver Bow Public Archives, Cavanaugh's County Celtic and Granite Mountain Bank.
The concert series will open with a lecture titled "Bridging the Atlantic" by award-winning broadcaster and author P.J. Curtis, who has spoken on Irish music to audiences worldwide. Curtis will focus on the historical connection between Ireland and America in terms of the music. He also will trace the influence of Irish music on the development of America's music heritage, beginning in the 1700s.
The lecture events are free and open to the public. They will take place from 7:30 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 3, in Butte at the Butte-Silver Bow Public Archives and from 7:30 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 5, in Missoula at UM's Music Recital Hall.
Following is the Missoula concert series schedule. All Missoula concerts will take place from 7:30 to 9 p.m. in UM's Music Recital Hall:
- Thursday, Feb. 17: Irish Fiddle -- James Kelly
- Friday, March 18: Uilleann Pipes -- Eion Ó Riabhaigh
- Friday, April 8: Accordion and Traditional Song -- Séamus Begley
- Thursday, April 21: Folk Music and Ballads -- Séan Tyrrell
Butte concerts will be held from 7:30 to 9 p.m. in the Montana Tech Library Auditorium. The Butte concert series schedule is:
- Friday, Feb. 18: Irish Fiddle -- James Kelly
- Sunday, March 20: Uilleann Pipes -- Eion Ó Riabhaigh
- Saturday, April 9: Accordion and Traditional Song -- Séamus Begley
- Friday, April 22: Folk Music and Ballads -- Séan Tyrrell
For more information, call Terry O'Riordain of UM's Irish Studies Program at 243-6359.
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MMAC Receives Gift of Artworks
The Montana Museum of Art & Culture has received a gift of 19 oil paintings and seven charcoal drawings by artist Frances Carroll Brown, granddaughter of Montana copper baron Marcus Daly. Brown was born Feb. 23, 1909, in Baltimore. When she was 3, her mother, Margaret, died, and Brown inherited her mother's fortune. As a young lady of means, Brown embodied early 20th-century society.
Brown's art contributes to a growing list of significant female artists who played a compelling role in Montana art history. Her psychological portraits are artistically and historically significant, ranging in subject matter from workers and day laborers to high society portraits and artist models.
Her art, which remains largely unknown, is fundamentally humanistic, indicating a fascination with a variety of racial, religious and class backgrounds. In addition to the 26 pieces preserved at MMAC, six drawings by Brown survive at the Daly Mansion in Hamilton.
Read the Full News Release
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Masterpiece Exhibitions Open to Rave Reviews
Current exhibitions at the Montana Museum of Art & Culture at UM that offer a rare opportunity to view impressive European masterpieces have been very popular with those who have visited the museum's galleries since the exhibitions opened in mid-November.
The exhibitions, "Renoir, Magritte, Gauguin and other European Masterpieces from a Private Collection" in the museum's Meloy Gallery and "Three Centuries of European Prints from the MMAC Permanent Collection" in the museum's Paxson Gallery, will be at MMAC through March 12, 2011.
Comments from viewers range from "wonderful" and "terrific" to "fantastic" and "amazing." One local artist said that "being able to examine the paintings closely as well as ponder from a distance without distraction is invaluable. As good as books and the Internet are, there is no substitute to seeing the work in person."
MMAC has expanded hours throughout the course of the exhibitions and will be open during UM's winter break, except for official holidays when all University offices are closed. Gallery hours are from noon to 3 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday and from noon to 6 p.m. Thursday and Friday.
The museum has scheduled tours for people from areas that include Bozeman, Polson, Charlo, Hamilton and Troy, as well as for many Missoula-based classes and community groups. For more information, call 243-2019.
Montana Museum of Art & Culture
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Get Information About CHOICES
Preliminary information about the current status of the Montana University System CHOICES benefits program and possible benefit changes for the plan year starting July 1, 2011, will be available at meetings scheduled this month.
CHOICES informational meetings will be held in the University Center Theater, located on the third floor of the UC, on:
- Monday, Dec. 13, at 3 p.m.
- Wednesday, Dec. 15, at noon.
- Tuesday, Dec. 21, at 11 a.m.
- Tuesday, Dec. 21, at 1 p.m.
Each meeting will last about one hour.
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Submissions must reach University Relations, 317 Brantly Hall, by noon Tuesday for inclusion in the following week's newsletter. Be sure to note that the submissions are for ForUM. E-mail submissions may be sent to campnews@mso.umt.edu. Items will be included as space permits. For more information, e-mail Brenda Day, ForUM editor.
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