PUBLICATIONS Inside Illinois Vol. 25, No. 13, Jan. 19, 2006

brief notes

Martin Luther King commemoration
Tuskegee Airmen among those featured
Members of the World War II fighter pilots who became known as The Tuskegee Airmen, and Marc Morial, a former mayor of New Orleans, are scheduled to be on the UI campus this month to take part in this year’s commemoration of the life of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., which continues through Jan. 26.

The veterans will answer questions from the audience after the 7 p.m. Jan. 19 free showing of “The Tuskegee Airmen,” a PBS documentary narrated by Ossie Davis, at Foellinger Auditorium. The pilots fought in Europe and North Africa. Their training was viewed by the military as an experiment to see whether blacks could fly in combat. The airmen took part in more than 15,000 sorties and 1,500 missions.

Morial, who served two terms as the mayor of New Orleans, will speak Jan. 26 at 7 p.m. in Smith Memorial Hall. The topic of his keynote address is “Civic Engagement in the Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina Disaster and Recovery Efforts in New Orleans.” Morial is the president of the National Urban League. A graduate of the Georgetown University Law Center, Morial also served two terms in the Louisiana state senate.

University Primary School
Enrollment begins for 2006-2007
University Primary School, an early childhood gifted education program, is accepting enrollment applications through March 18 for the 2006-2007 academic year. The school serves preschool, kindergarten and first-grade children in a project-based curriculum.

An informational meeting about the program will take place from 7 to 8 p.m. Feb. 16 in Room 26 of the Children’s Research Center, 51 Gerty Drive, Champaign. Child care will be provided.

Children must be 3 years old on or before July 1 for the pre-school classroom and 5 before Sept. 1 to be considered for kindergarten enrollment.

For more information, call Nancy B. Hertzog, director, at 333-3996, or pick up an information packet in Room 98 of the Children’s Research Center. More information also is available online.

Public forum
U.S. immigration policy examined Jan. 27
Why is the issue of immigration so contentious in a nation of immigrants? Why do Americans welcome immigrants but also consider them a threat? As Congress considers changes to immigration, what are the policies that make sense?

A panel of experts will address those questions and others at 4 p.m. Jan. 27 in a public forum at the UI. The forum, sponsored by the university’s Center for Advanced Study, will be on the third floor of the Levis Faculty Center.

The event is free and open to the public, and will include time for public discussion prompted by questions from the audience.

Scheduled to participate on the panel, which will deal with the political, social and economic issues surrounding the immigration debate, are Illinois professors Ilana Akresh, sociology; Hadi Esfahani, economics; Augusto Espiritu, history; Alejandro Lugo, anthropology; Dorothee Schneider, sociology; and moderator Noreen Sugrue, Women and Gender in Global Perspectives Program.

The event is the latest in an occasional series of CAS Forums on Critical Issues, organized to address current topics of public interest. Previous forums have dealt with issues such as stem-cell research, civil liberties and national security, and planning for natural catastrophes.

For more information about this and other CAS events, check the center’s Web site.

‘No Child Left Behind’
Public forum on local education issues
The “No Child Left Behind” Act will be the topic of discussion at a public forum Jan. 28 at the UI.

The Saturday morning forum, titled “Making ‘No Child Left Behind’ Work for Parents, Children, Schools and Communities,” will run from 9 a.m. to noon in the auditorium of the Krannert Art Museum.

“Since the law went into effect five years ago, its ramifications on anyone who is even slightly touched by public education, in any manner, are magnificent in scope,” said Preston Williams, deputy superintendent for the Urbana School District and the organizer of the event. “The ultimate goal of this forum is to demonstrate how a community can work together to make the legislation effective for everyone.”

The event will start with presentations, followed by a town hall-style panel discussion. A continental breakfast will be offered at 8:30 a.m.

Parents, teachers, administrators and anyone with an interest in public education in Champaign and Urbana are invited to attend.

The forum is the second in a series of four this academic year being sponsored by the university’s College of Education and organized by the university’s chapter of Phi Delta Kappa, a professional association for educators. Co-planners include Parkland College and the Champaign and Urbana school districts; at least eight campus and community organizations are co-sponsoring the event.

Scheduled presenters: James Anderson and Lizanne DeStefano, UI professors of education; Becky McCabe, director of assessment for the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE); Kevin Seymour, director of the SchoolWorks program based in the Champaign-Ford Counties Regional Office of Education; and John Woodward, Urbana High School principal.

Their presentations will cover NCLB-related topics such as technical policy issues, implications for African-American achievement, ISBE responsibilities in implementation, state-required school improvement plans, and the individual’s role in making NCLB work.

Teachers and school personnel can earn CEU and CPDU credits by attending.

The remaining forums will be: “Early Childhood Education in Illinois: At the Crossroads” (Feb. 25), and “The Transition Into Adulthood” (April 1).

Campus Recreation
IMPE closes Jan. 29 for renovation
The last day of operation for the main portion of the IMPE (Intramural-Physical Education) Building will be Jan. 29. All areas except the east wing will close for renovation. The east wing will remain open throughout construction. The east wing doors will open on Jan. 30 at 6:30 a.m.

Campus Recreation is undergoing a $77 million renovation approved by a student referendum in 2001. The first phase of the renovation includes the IMPE east wing – which includes four courts for basketball and volleyball and 10,000-square-foot fitness area, completed in January 2005 – and CRCE (Campus Rec Center East), completed in March 2005, which includes an indoor aquatic center with temperature-controlled pool, spa and water slide, two multipurpose rooms, three courts for basketball and volleyball, 10,000 –square-foot fitness area, 1/8-mile indoor track and three racquetball courts.

The second phase of renovation – the remainder of IMPE – is scheduled to be completed in fall 2008 and will include 13 courts for basketball, volleyball and badminton, 12 courts for racquetball, handball and walleyball, three squash courts, 50-meter indoor pool, 50-meter outdoor pool with sundeck, eight multi-purpose rooms, 34,000-square-foot fitness area, 1/6-mile indoor track, climbing wall, full men’s and women’s locker rooms and pro shop.

For more information on the Campus Recreation renovation, call 333-3806.

‘A Minute With …’
New Web feature highlights UI experts
A new dynamic feature has been added to the uiuc.edu home page to show both the public and the media that Illinois faculty-staff experts have much to contribute to current, critical issues.

“A Minute With … ” is an opportunity for Illinois experts to give brief answers to a few questions on timely issues. By sharing their knowledge and educated opinions on the Web site, the News Bureau, part of Public Affairs, which is responsible for content of the feature, hopes to highlight work on campus that is relevant to current events and show that the university makes a positive contribution in virtually every aspect of society and is highly responsive to society’s needs. At the same time, faculty and staff members who participate will be showcased as topical experts and articulate communicators.

Faculty and staff members who would like to comment on an issue in the news can contact the communication officer in their unit or the News Bureau at 333-1085.

National Center for Supercomputing Applications
Building dedication, lecture to be Jan. 25
The National Center for Supercomputing Applications will host a formal dedication of its new building at 1205 W. Clark St., Urbana, at 4 p.m. Jan. 25. National Science Foundation Director Arden Bement and other notable campus and state figures will participate in the dedication. Tours of the facility and demonstrations of NCSA technology will be offered.

At 7 p.m., Bement will kick off NCSA’s 20th Anniversary Distinguished Lecture Series with a talk titled “Un-Common Sense: Recipe for a Cyber Planet.”

Both the open house and Arden Bement’s lecture are free and open to the public.

College of Law and College of Business
Real estate entrepreneur to speak
On Jan. 30, the UI College of Law and College of Business will jointly host a lecture featuring business leader and real estate investment entrepreneur Samuel Zell. Zell is chairman of Equity Group Investments, LLC, an entrepreneurial real estate investment firm. A Chicago native, Zell is a self-made billionaire.

Zell’s talk, “Life From an Entrepreneur’s Perspective,” is free and open to the public and will take place from 3 to 4 p.m. in the Max L. Rowe Auditorium at the UI College of Law. A reception will follow in the Pedersen Pavilion.

As chairman of Equity Office Properties Trust, Zell has been at the forefront of the real estate industry for more than 40 years.

Spurlock Museum Learning Center
‘Around the World Wednesdays’ begins
The spring series of “Around the World Wednesdays” begins this month at the Spurlock Museum. On Wednesdays from Jan. 25 through March 8, children and their parents are welcome to learn, create and play together with crafts and activities from around the world. Arrive anytime between 9:30 and 11:30 a.m. The program ends at noon. A donation of $1 per family member is requested for each visit. For more information, contact Julia Robinson at 265-0474.

Nations on travel-warning list may be available
New study-abroad policy adopted
Beginning this summer, UI students may be able to study abroad in countries with active travel warnings issued by the U.S. Department of State.

“The university will soon adopt a new policy by which student travel to regions of the world under U.S. State Department travel warnings will be considered on a case-by-case basis,” said Jeremy Geller, director of the UI’s Study Abroad Office. Current policy prohibits university-sanctioned participation in study-abroad programs in all countries where travel warnings are in force.

Among those destinations most frequently requested by UI students are Kenya and Israel, Geller said. Travel to Israel has been suspended since 2002, when the State Department issued its strongest warnings to date, as the result of an increase in attacks there attributed to terrorists.

In the future, students who wish to travel to regions with travel warnings must first seek permission from Student International Academic Affairs, Geller said. They also must complete and sign a waiver, stating that they understand the risks associated with such travel and take full responsibility for their personal safety while abroad.

In amending its travel policy, the university remains committed to two major priorities: making available to students the practical, international experience they need to become engaged, informed citizens of the world, and providing such opportunities in a manner that takes into consideration the students’ health, safety and well-being, Geller said.

Accomplishing both goals is essential, according to UI Chancellor Richard Herman, who said he believes participation in international exchanges, programs and studies is critically important in today’s increasingly complex and interconnected world.

“As we prepare our students to lead a globalized world, Study Abroad allows them to learn firsthand about other cultures and peoples,” Herman said. “That cultural understanding simply can’t be developed without the immersion that comes with visiting another country.”

School of Art and Design
Saturday art classes for kids and teens
Registration is now open for Saturday Art School, a community art school taught by art education undergraduate and graduate students and faculty members in the School of Art and Design.
Classes, held at the Art and Design building, begin Feb. 4 and will meet for 10 Saturdays, culminating in an open house/art exhibition for students and families April 29 in the Link Gallery of the Art and Design building.

Cost is $75 per student. Classes are available for students from pre-school/kindergarten (minimum age 4 1/2) through high school. Elementary classes meet for two sessions each Saturday (9 to 10:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.) while seventh- through ninth-grade students and high school classes meet in a studio format from 9 a.m. to noon.

The spring curriculum offers new media experiences as well as opportunities to improve traditional media skills.

For more information or to enroll, contact Carole Smith, 333-1652. Space is limited and registration is accepted on a first-come first-served basis.

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