22 February - Division Chair Resignation

Dear Colleagues,

At my suggestion, Mark Krejci and I have discussed my position as Division Chair of Core and Integrative Studies, and have concluded that it would be best if I resigned this position at the end of this year, a year earlier than planned. Since I have no desire to seek a second term, it makes sense that my replacement should begin implementation of the remaining elements of the new Core curriculum next year, with a full term to complete the process and assess the new Core's effectiveness.

In order to identify candidates for this position, Dean Krejci has asked that faculty nominations (including self-nominations) be sent to Nonnie Tangen (tangen@cord.edu). Nominees will be asked to submit a letter of application and vita to the Office of Academic Affairs. A committee will be formed to screen for finalists, who will be interviewed by Dean Krejci before an appointment is made. Nominations should be submitted by March 15.

Best regards,

Dan Breedon

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Subject: DC Resignation - statement of thanks

Colleagues,

I am writing this note assuming that you have read the previous message from Dan Breedon regarding his decision to resign as Division Chair for Core and Integrative Studies. I want to publicly thank Dan for his time as DC and acknowledge the role he played in curriculum reform and preparing this year for next year's introduction of the new First-Year Experience. He will continue to guide this process until his time as the DC has ended.

Dan included in his memo the call for nominations to immediately answer the question: so what is the next step? I am accepting nominations for the position via e-mail messages to Nonnie Tangen (tangen@cord.edu). Nominees will be notified and invited to complete the application process by submitting a letter and vita to me. Nominations should be submitted by March 15th so that we can have the next DC in place during April. This person will provide leadership to the creation and initiation of the new core curriculum as well as guide our discussions during initial implementation. If you have any questions about the position, please contact me via phone or e-mail.

Let me conclude by again thanking Dr. Breedon for his service. Dan has served in a number of leadership roles on campus and he is a model of a faculty member who has a deep passion for the liberal arts identity of Concordia College.

Mark J. Krejci, Ph.D.

Dean of the College & Vice President for Academic Affairs

21 February - OIE Application Deadline Extension and 2007 Scan Baltic Leader Interest

The deadline for 2007 Exploration Seminar and May Seminar applications has been extended from February 28 to March 6. Application materials are available in the Office of International Education.

Faculty members interested in leading the 2007 Scandinavia and the Baltic program are asked to send a letter of interest to Per Anderson (OIE) and Eduardo Gargurevich (Off-Campus Committee) by March 6. Interested faculty will be contacted by Per Anderson regarding expected changes in the program and will be invited to complete the leader application process.

Per Anderson

21 February - National Book Award / Celebration of Excellence weekend

Department Chairs & Program Directors,

We are coordinating the itinerary for the National Book Award / Celebration of Excellence weekend and would like to give you the opportunity to invite one of our guests into your classroom. Leo Damrosch, author of Jean-Jacques Rousseau: Restless Genius and Harold Augenbraum, the Executive Director of the National Book Foundation will be available at several different times on Thursday, March 23rd. Please contact Rebecca Amundsen at amundsen@cord.edu by March 15th if you are interested in inviting one of these speakers to join your class.

Both authors will be teaching Master Classes at 10:30 on Friday, following their remarks at the Honors Convocation. Leo Damrosch will be speaking in Frida Nilsen Lounge on the topic of "Rousseau and the Problem of Education". Alan Burdick will be speaking in Birkeland Alumni Lounge on the topic of "Science Nonfiction". Please let us know if you will be attending with your class to allow us to gauge the number of seats needed.

We eagerly anticipate the arrival of these gentlemen and hope you will join us in welcoming them to our campus. Thank you for your help in making this a successful event.

Mark Krejci Dean of the College & Vice President for Academic Affairs

21 February - Post break special convocation

Colleagues,

I am writing to inform you of a special convocation to be held during chapel time on Monday, March 6th, to be hosted by President Jolicoeur and Amer Ahmed. Given the public discourse in The Concordian regarding issues of intercultural sensibilities and the atmosphere on campus, President Jolicoeur decided to have the community address the issue. There have been many opportunities to discuss this issue, but no formal event that is widely known. I invite you to participate in the discussion as well as invite your students to do the same. While realizing that chapel time is very brief for such a significant issue, nonetheless I believe that we will all benefit from hearing the perspectives of others as well as sharing our own. Hearing reflections from some of our international students suggests to me that we have work to do on creating an intercultural community.

Have a relaxing spring break and I hope to see you and your students at convocation on Monday, March 6th.

Mark J. Krejci, Ph.D. Dean of the College & Vice President for Academic Affairs

20 February - Student Lecture Series - Call for Nominations Deadline

Reminder - Student Lecture Series - Call for Nominations

Deadline, Tuesday, March 7

Student Lecture Series--Call for Nominations

The Special Awards Committee asks faculty members to nominate students for participation in the Student Lecture Series for Fall Semester 2006. This series recognizes outstanding scholarly work done by students at Concordia College, providing them with an opportunity to discuss their findings with others in a public forum. A publicity brochure will be designed using the students' photos. Publicity will also be posted on the Concordia web site and via C-Mail. Presentations of interest from students in all fields of study are welcome in order to represent the broad spectrum of student talents at Concordia. Lecture topics chosen previously for the Student Lecture Series include:

• "Shifting Focus: How the North Korean Invasion Changed U.S. Containment Strategy During the Cold War"
• "Buddhist Psychology and the Cognitive Sciences"
• "From Across the Sea. . . A Look at Two Deadly Tropical Diseases"
• "Body Image, Intercorporeality and the Chiasm: Finding a Theory of Sexual Difference"
• "The Faith of Saint Patrick: What One Man Did to Convert an Island"

Nominating Process

All students who wish to participate must be nominated by a faculty member. Faculty members are requested to nominate students who are working on a class project or who have completed a project in a previous class. Nomination of a student or student group indicates a faculty member's willingness to be a resource person for the student lecturer.

In order to nominate a student or group of students, a faculty member should submit a letter of nomination that includes:

a) an evaluation of the quality of the proposed presentation, and

b) an assessment of when the project will be completed

The student(s) should submit:

a) a concise title for the presentation,

b) an abstract (150 words maximum) of the presentation suitable for publicity purposes, and

c) a 2-3 page summary of the presentation

The above should be submitted in both hard copy and electronic form.

Deadline: Please submit these materials to Dr. Shawn Carruth, Chair of the Special Awards Committee, carruth@cord.edu, by Tuesday, March 7. Notification of selections will be made by Tuesday March 21, 2006.

Criteria for Selection

The Special Awards Committee of the Faculty Senate selects up to three students or student groups to give lectures each semester. Preference will be given to projects and presentations of quality that are likely to stimulate discussion in a general audience. An effort will be made to present a balance in the disciplines represented by the lectures.

Students or faculty members who have any questions about the nomination or selection processes may contact Dr. Shawn Carruth, Chair of the Special Awards Committee, 299-3422 or carruth@cord.edu.

17 February - Mid-term Grade Submission

TO: Concordia Faculty

FROM: Carole Stalheim, Registrar

Mid-term grades for the Spring 2006 session will be due on or before March 6 at 4:00 p.m. All grades will be submitted electronically on the WEB. Beginning Monday, February 20 at 1:00 p.m., you will be able to access the WEB to determine if you have grades to submit. Only students who are new to Concordia this semester or are on probation will appear on your mid-term grade lists, as it is necessary to report their progress. Block 4 grades for these students are being defaulted to "IP" (in progress) since grades are not available for these courses.

If you have any problems accessing the WEB, please contact Dr. Alex Sze, WEB Support Specialist, at sze@cord.edu or at x4153.

Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns about the process.

16 February - Elinor Torstveit

To The Concordia Community

We join in mourning the death of Mrs. Elinor Torstveit. Her 37 year tenure in the Department of Biology was from 1953-1990. Her dedication and contributions to the students, the Biology Department and Concordia is well appreciated. We were honored to have her as a member of the faculty and an emeritus member of the community.

A prayer service will be held on Friday, February 17 at 6:30 p.m. with the memorial services on Saturday at 2 p.m. Both services will be held at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church.

Mark Krejci, Ph.D. Dean of the College & Vice President for Academic Affairs

15 February - International Education News

Year of Recognition

Twice this year, International Education at Concordia has received national recognition for its long and rich tradition of excellence and innovation. In January, President Jolicoeur was one of three Minnesota college and university presidents invited to the U.S. University Presidents Summit on International Education in Washington, D.C. That event situated Concordia at the leading edge of a principal imperative of American higher education. A new report of the Commission on the Abraham Lincoln Study Abroad Fellowship Program states this imperative as that of making study abroad the "norm" for American higher education. The report calls for initiatives that will enable a million American undergraduates to study abroad per year.

As announced last week by Dean Krejci, Concordia has been recognized for the second time this year through the reception of a Senator Paul Simon Award for Campus Internationalization given by the National Association for Study Abroad. This award has been given now to fifteen schools over three years, and Concordia is the first Minnesota institution to receive one. In the case statement that supported the award, Professor Peter Hovde describes our current efforts to expand student participation by fifty percent in five years as the "sixth wave" of Concordia's efforts to internationalize our campus. He credits the College's success to consistent cultivation of faculty leadership. OIE wishes to second Dean Krejci's gratitude for Dr. Hovde's efforts toward well-deserved recognition of what the College has done and of what this community aspires to do.

New Faculty and Program Development Grants

Because leadership development has been important and will be crucial to reaching new goals, the OIE budget for 2006-2007 will fund a new initiative in Faculty and Program Development Grants. These grants will be available to faculty in the coming fiscal year and will be administered so that faculty can use 2006-2007 dollars from May 2006 through May 2007 (or until funds are depleted). These grants will cover faculty expenses for travel to designated locations to develop new study programs (30-day and longer). Grant proposals will be received by OIE and acted upon by Off-Campus Committee beginning in April. 2006-2007 dollars will fund at least 16 proposals at the top award (tentatively $2500). Details of this grant initiative will be outlined in early March in the first edition of a new newsletter from the Office of International Education.

New Study Abroad Working Groups

Study abroad leadership has been encouraged at Concordia through group experience and collaboration. OIE wishes to encourage new programs in new contexts through the support of Study Abroad Working Groups (SAWGs). OIE invites faculty to volunteer for four groups that will be charged to explore new programs for 2008 and 2009. Participating faculty will be asked to develop a coordinated interdisciplinary and interdepartmental strategy for developing multiple programs (30-day and longer) within regions and environments of the planet currently understudied by our students. Interested faculty will commit to two evening meetings this semester (in March and April with a meal provided by OIE). As needed and desired, these groups will continue beyond these meetings. (In response to faculty interest, additional study abroad working groups will be formed in coming semesters.)

The four study abroad working groups forming this semester will be:

• Africa
• Arctic and Antarctic
• Asia
• Latin America and the Caribbean

Faculty interested in serving on one of these groups or who have questions about the program categories are asked to contact Per. If interested to participate, please contact Per by e-mail by March 3 and indicate any Monday-Thursday early evening commitments that cannot be broken.

2007 Exploration and May Seminar Applications

As announced on January 17, please consider submitting a proposal for a 2007 Exploration Seminar or May Seminar. The deadline for applications is February 28. Application materials are available from department chairs or at OIE. Because many students chose this year not to take Exploration and May Seminars for reasons of high cost, OIE staff members are ready to assist faculty with cost-reduction suggestions. These suggestions are not directives but collegial help to reduce faculty challenges and stresses in a time of programmatic transition. If you have any questions or hesitations about an application, please consult with OIE staff. If you want to consult with Per or Christina about your ideas, they will be available until February 22. Stacy and Kirsten will be available until February 28.

OIE Staff Contact Information

Per Anderson, Director (anderson@cord.edu) Stacy Rodlund, Assistant to the Director (rodlund@cord.edu) Kirsten Buchholz, Program Coordinator (buchholz@cord.edu) Christina Larson, Program Coordinator (larsonc@cord.edu)

13 February - 2006 Paul Simon Awards for Campus Internationalization

To the Concordia Community,

It is my pleasure to announce that NAFSA (The Association of International Educators) has awarded one of five 2006 Paul Simon Awards for Campus Internationalization to Concordia College. This award, in only its third year, was established in honor of the late Senator Paul Simon and is to go to exemplary programs of campus internationalization. Concordia will be officially recognized at the 2006 convention in Montreal, Canada, as well as highlighted in NAFSA'S publication "Internationalizing the Campus 2006: Profiles of Success at Colleges and Universities." The other 2006 winners are Earlham College, Arcadia University, Michigan State University, and Purdue University. Past winners have included Duke, St. Norbert's College, Binghamton University, Colby College, UCLA and Colgate.

This is a worthy recognition of the quality program we have developed at Concordia College. Faculty, administration, staff and the student participants have worked together to establish a nationally recognized program. I want to publicly thank Dr. Peter Hovde for guiding the nomination process last summer as well as the faculty and staff on campus and at CLV who helped in the process. As we move forward with plans to expand our global programs, we are being nationally recognized for what we have accomplished.

With thanks and appreciation for all that we have accomplished,

Mark J. Krejci, Ph.D. Dean of the College & Vice President for Academic Affairs

10 February - Faculty Development Opportunities

To: All Faculty

The National Endowment for the Humanities announces the 2006 Summer Seminars and Institutes for College and University Teachers.

See http://www.neh.gov/projects/si-university.html for more information.

Application deadline is March 1, 2006.

The Collaboration announces a Call for Proposals for the 2006 Summer Institute "Improving Student Learning Through Institutional Change"

Forms are available at http://www.collab.org/programsservices/institute.html

Proposals are due March 3, 2006.

The AAC&U is accepting applications for the 2006 Institute on General Education to be held June 9-14 in Washington, DC.

For more information see http://www.aacu.org/meetings/institute_gened/index.cfm

Application deadline is March 8, 2006.

The AAC&U Greater Expectations Institute is also accepting applications. This event is scheduled for June 21-25 in Snowbird, Utah.

For more information see http://www.aacu.org/meetings/gexinstitute/

Application deadline is March 17, 2006.

9 February - F.Y.I. Assessment and Institutional Research Newsletter for February 2006

The February edition of F.Y.I. is online at http://www.cord.edu/dept/acd/local/assess/feb2006.pdf

Contents include:

First-year student survey results

Retention of first-year students from fall 2005 to spring 2006

Survey says: More students plan to lend a hand

Survey says: How faith affects education

Summary of findings:

• 40% of first-year students report that the academic requirements are more challenging than they expected.
• First-year students in 2006 report spending more time studying than first-year students in 2003 and 2005.
• Most first-year students (89%) indicate they understand what their professors expect of them.
• 36% of first-year students indicated they have developed only "some" or "very little" study skills.
• 30% of first-year students say they understand the core requirements "some" or "very little."
• 93% of first-year students who were enrolled in fall semester were also enrolled for spring semester.
• Nationally, the proportion of college students who reported they frequently or occasionally attended religious services during their senior year of high school has declined.

Hard copy is available upon request.

8 February - Flaat Nominations

Colleagues:

The Special Awards Committee solicits nominations for the Flatt Awards for Teaching and Scholarship. Nominations for both awards are due March 13. Forms and instructions for submitting the nominations are available on the Academic Affairs web-site (http://www.cord.edu/academic/). This is a wonderful opportunity to recognize the good work done among and for us. Thank you for all your effort in making these nominations.

Shawn Carruth Chair, Special Awards Committee

7 February - Student Lecture Series--Call for Nominations

The Special Awards Committee asks faculty members to nominate students for participation in the Student Lecture Series for Fall Semester 2006. This series recognizes outstanding scholarly work done by students at Concordia College, providing them with an opportunity to discuss their findings with others in a public forum. A publicity brochure will be designed using the students' photos. Publicity will also be posted on the Concordia web site and via C-Mail. Presentations of interest from students in all fields of study are welcome in order to represent the broad spectrum of student talents at Concordia. Lecture topics chosen previously for the Student Lecture Series include:

"Shifting Focus: How the North Korean Invasion Changed U.S. Containment Strategy During the Cold War"

"Buddhist Psychology and the Cognitive Sciences"

"From Across the Sea. . . A Look at Two Deadly Tropical Diseases"

"Body Image, Intercorporeality and the Chiasm: Finding a Theory of Sexual Difference"

"The Faith of Saint Patrick: What One Man Did to Convert an Island"

Nominating Process

All students who wish to participate must be nominated by a faculty member. Faculty members are requested to nominate students who are working on a class project or who have completed a project in a previous class. Nomination of a student or student group indicates a faculty member's willingness to be a resource person for the student lecturer.

In order to nominate a student or group of students, a faculty member should submit a letter of nomination that includes:

a) an evaluation of the quality of the proposed presentation, and

b) an assessment of when the project will be completed

The student(s) should submit:

a) a concise title for the presentation,

b) an abstract (150 words maximum) of the presentation suitable for publicity purposes, and

c) a 2-3 page summary of the presentation

The above should be submitted in both hard copy and electronic form.

Deadline

Please submit these materials to Dr. Shawn Carruth, Chair of the Special Awards Committee, carruth@cord.edu, by Tuesday, March 7. Notification of selections will be made by Tuesday March 21, 2006.

Criteria for Selection

The Special Awards Committee of the Faculty Senate selects up to three students or student groups to give lectures each semester. Preference will be given to projects and presentations of quality that are likely to stimulate discussion in a general audience. An effort will be made to present a balance in the disciplines represented by the lectures.

Students or faculty members who have any questions about the nomination or selection processes may contact Dr. Shawn Carruth, Chair of the Special Awards Committee, 299-3422 or carruth@cord.edu

6 February - Senate at-large members

To: Faculty

From: Senate Coordinating Committee

Below is a list of faculty who will be serving as Senate at-large members beginning in the Fall 2006.

Elected to a 3-year Term: Ellen Aho; Molly Flaspohler; Mark Gealy (Sabbatical AY 06-07); Heidi Manning; Monica Mori (Sabbatical AY 06-07); Drew Rutherford (Sabbatical AY 06-07); Jonathan Steinwand; Michael Wohlfeil

Elected to a 1-year Term: Cynthia Carver (Replacing Mark Gealy - Sabbatical AY); Joy Lintelman (Replacing Monica Mori - Sabbatical AY); Max Richardson (Replacing Drew Rutherford - Sabbatical AY)

3 February - Director of International Education

To the Concordia Community

It is my pleasure to announce that Dr. Per Anderson has accepted the job as Director of International Education. After the call for nominations went out, a number of very strong candidates were identified. The Off Campus Program Committee served as an interview committee and I also interviewed the candidates. Let me publicly thank those candidates who completed the application process. We had a strong group which served as testimony to the leadership resources in our faculty.

We prepare Concordia students to influence the affairs of the world by helping them to engage the world during their student years. International Education is a key part of our campus culture - one that we want to enrich in coming years. In the end, the faculty serve as the key to a successful program and I know that Per looks forward to working across the campus to help globalize our community.

Mark J. Krejci, Ph.D. Dean of the College & Vice President for Academic Affairs