AUM Weekly 9-29-15: Warhawk Spotlight: MLA students; Jack and Ruth Lee Scholarship

Students: Jack and Ruth Lee Scholarship applications available

Applications for The Jack and Ruth Lee Scholarship, which provides $500 to be put toward books and supplies for the spring 2016 term, are now available. Eligibility requirements include a minimum GPA of 2.5, full-time enrollment, demonstrated financial need (will be verified by Scholarships Office and FAFSA), and eligibility to receive assistance from the AUM Center for Disability Services. Applications are available in the Scholarships Office (in Admissions, first floor of Taylor Center) and The Center for Disability Services. The deadline is Nov. 10, 2015.

Rice thankful to further his education at AUM

Tyler Rice moved from Montgomery to Birmingham as a child, later attending high school in the Birmingham area as well.

Yet the recent MLA scholarship winner was destined to return to Montgomery for his education.

“One of the reasons I got out of the military was to get an education and better myself as a citizen,” Rice said. “At the same time, the disciplines and principles I learned in the military have been very beneficial throughout my college career.”

Today Rice, who served two tours in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom, is studying history at AUM in pursuit of a Master of Liberal Arts degree. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history from AUM earlier this year.

“Blown away by the level of education and hands-on experience” he received in the History Department as an undergraduate, Rice also is thankful for the recognition of professors in the MLA program and feels perfectly at home at AUM.

“I just really like the community,” he said. “I was born in Montgomery and grew up playing baseball in AUM’s youth league. So I have fond memories of this place, and it has been really special coming back.”

Warhawk Spotlight: MLA students receive Martha Bedwell Scholarship

Promotion of lifelong learning: Master of Liberal Arts students Chloe Brown and Tyler Rice recently received the Martha B. Bedwell Memorial Scholarship for MLA students, founded by the MLA graduate’s husband to honor her memory. The scholarships will help both students continue their studies at AUM.

Cross-country assignment brings Brown east from Mississippi

Chloe Brown might not have come to AUM had she not taken an offer to help coach running.

After earning a bachelor’s degree in arts from Belhaven University in Jackson, Miss., earlier this year, Brown accepted a position as a graduate assistant with the men’s and women’s cross-country teams at AUM.

Now that she’s at AUM, she’s excited to assist cross-country head coach Dr. Michael Gross while she studies art history in AUM’s Master of Liberal Arts program.

“The scholarship will help me to focus on my studies and on continuing to create art, and it’s also going to help me become a deeper learner,” Brown said.

Brown has always enjoyed art and is inspired by the work of post-Impressionist Paul Cézanne, photographic pioneer Eadweard Muybridge, and contemporary artist Janine Antoni, who uses her body, such as her hair, to create art.

She hopes to remain close to art throughout her life.

“I would like to work in an art museum, to be around art all the time and learn all about its history — why people made it, what’s interesting about it, the culture and time periods behind works of art – or be a professor and teach everything I’ve learned in art history to other people,” Brown said. “I really do like seeing people grow and learn, so teaching art would be an ideal profession.”

by Caitlin Forrest | Sep 29, 2015

(Editor’s note: The Warhawk Spotlight features news about people, projects and programs at AUM that illustrate our Core Values. Need a refresher on our Core Values?)

UCF professor to speak at mathematics colloquium

Dr. Qiyu Sun, professor of mathematics and graduate coordinator in the Department of Mathematics at the University of Central Florida, will speak at an upcoming mathematics colloquium titled “Greater Montgomery Area Mathematics Colloquium — Wiener’s Lemma for Matrices and its Applications to Sampling.” Sun will discuss Wiener’s lemma-to-noncommutative matrices as well as recent advances in localization-preserved operations and their applications to sampling theory. Sun, who also is working on applied harmonic analysis, sampling theory and signal processing, has published one monograph and more than 100 papers in various journals. He has made more than 60 invited presentations of various types, including keynote talks, invited talks, colloquia and lecture series. Sun’s research has been supported by the National Science Foundation, and he is also an editor of several journals.

The lecture is supported by the AUM Lecturer’s Program.

Friday | Oct. 2 | 2–3 p.m. | Goodwyn Hall 202 | Refreshments and drinks provided at 1:30 p.m.

Long serves as panelist, AUM students attend AU Hispanic Heritage Month event

Dr. Pamela Long, an associate professor in the Department of History and WorldLanguages and Cultures, served as a panelist during a Hispanic Heritage Month event at Auburn University entitled “Pathway to Success: The Hispanic Journey,” hosted by the Auburn Association of Latino Students and sponsored by the Auburn University Multicultural Center. The purpose of the Sept. 23 event was to foster dialogue between panelists and audience on what it means to be Hispanic in America. As a panelist, Long discussed HB56 and her role as a plaintiff against the anti-immigrant law. Five AUM Latino students — Pedro Munguía, Jessy Munguía, Karla Olmos, Luis Vázquez and Omar Brito — attended the event with Long in order to meet Auburn Latino students and learn how to organize a Latino student organization at AUM.

Whitby speaks about hazing; AUM community lends hand against hazing

Seventy-five AUM fraternity and sorority members attended the educational session “Gravity is Broken: The Real Impact of Talking About Hazing” during National Hazing Prevention Week (Sept. 21–25), sponsored by the Office of Student Involvement and Leadership Programs. On Tuesday, Sept. 22, guest speaker Steve Whitby encouraged students to challenge and change current chapter practices by building each other up instead of tearing each other down. The lecture encouraged everyone to identify personal stances on hazing and to have a discussion with friends and group members.

Also, students, faculty, and staff helped lend a hand against hazing by putting handprints on the National Hazing Prevention Banner last week as part of National Hazing Prevention Week, sponsored by the Office of Student Involvement and Leadership Programs. More than 75 AUM community members participated in the activity during lunch hour Wednesday, Sept. 23, and the banner will hang outside Taylor Center during this week.

Farrow discusses book in Nebraska, Colorado

Dr. Lee A. Farrow, professor of history and director of the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching, recently presented and signed copies of her new book, “Alexis in America: A Russian Grand Duke’s Tour, 1871-1872, in North Platte, Neb., and Denver, Colo. Each year in North Platte for the last 12 years, a group of dedicated history lovers has converged and commemorated the Grand Duke Alexis Buffalo Hunt in an event called the Grand Duke Alexis Rendezvous. After Farrow spoke about her book and signed copies of it at the Nebraska gathering, she traveled to Denver, where she signed copies of her book and gave a presentation at The Book Bar.

Hundreds attend Study Abroad Fair

The Study Abroad Fair was held Sept. 23 and attended by about 300 guests who were eager to learn about the 2016 study-abroad opportunities. If interested in finding out about how you could earn scholarships up to $1,500 to study abroad, contact the Study Abroad office at [email protected].

CELT collecting variety of foods for AUM Food Pantry

In October, CELT will be collecting breakfast bars, granola bars, and pop tarts for the AUM Food Pantry. Please bring your donation to a CELT session or to the CELT office (800 Library Tower).