ByLion
IN THIS ISSUE, NOVEMBER 16, 2015

Southeastern Military Friendly

Agreement signed with Nunez
Armand to hold readings
Channel named best in nation

Southeastern Hall comes down
Teaching and Learning news

Students collaborate on book exhibit

'A Soldier's Story' to be performed

 

ByLion takes a break
This Week in Athletics
Professional Activities

 

BYLION STORIES

Military Friendly logo

Southeastern designated a Military Friendly School for fourth time 
Southeastern has been named a 2016 Military Friendly School by Victory Media, publisher of G.I Jobs, the premier magazine for military personnel transitioning to civilian life.
     It is the fourth year the university has earned the special designation.
     According to the company, the listing honors the top colleges, universities and trade schools that are doing the most to embrace the nation’s military service members and veterans and spouses as students and to ensure their success on campus.
     “This listing demonstrates Southeastern’s commitment to our veterans and their educational success,” said President John L. Crain. “It is an honor to be included in this listing and to know that we are among the top institutions helping those individuals who have made great sacrifices in service to our state and nation.”
     Southeastern has approximately 270 military veterans attending the university on the Post 9/11 G.I. Bill of Rights. The university maintains a Veterans Upward Bound program, an Office of Veterans Affairs that assists students in obtaining benefits and with other issues, provides academic and other counseling services, offers scholarships specifically for military students and veterans, and maintains a wide range of online and distance learning programs that provide students with flexibility in scheduling.
     Institutions competed for a listing based on such categories as military support on campus, graduation and employment outcomes, and career and job counseling services. The data provided by schools were independently tested by the firm Ernst and Young.
     The 2016 list of Military Friendly Schools shows the commitment of those institutions in providing a supportive environment for military students, the company said in announcing the list.
     “Post-secondary institutions earning the 2016 Military Friendly School award have exceptionally strong programs for transitioning service members and spouses,” said Daniel Nichols, chief product officer of Victory Media. “Our Military Friendly Schools are truly aligning their military programs and services with employers to help students translate military experience, skills and training into successful careers after graduation.
     Victory Media is a service-disabled, veteran-owned small business founded in 2001. In addition to G.I. Jobs, the company also publishes the magazine Military Spouse.

Southeastern, Nunez sign agreement on business programs
Southeastern and Nunez Community College in Chalmette have reached an agreement facilitating the transfer of Nunez business administration students into Southeastern’s business bachelor’s degree programs.
     The agreement provides an easy transition for students graduating with an Associate of General Studies in business administration concentration from Nunez who intend to pursue any degree program offered through Southeastern’s College of Business.
     The agreement – known as a 2+2 articulation agreement – is a cooperative endeavor between a two-year community college program that offers associate degrees and a four-year institution that provides students with an easy transition through the sharing of application and admissions information, transcripts and other records.
     The agreement was signed by Southeastern President John L. Crain and Nunez Chancellor Thomas R. Warner.
     “Our agreement with Nunez Community College opens the door for qualified students with two-year degrees the opportunity to further their education in a seamless manner,” Crain said. “Southeastern collaborates with institutions in the Louisiana Community and Technical College System (LCTCS) as we work cooperatively to advance the success of higher education students. Doing so addresses important workforce development needs for the state and is in the best interest of students.”
     “Our partnership with Nunez provides more avenues for community college students to achieve their dreams of furthering their education. It also provides opportunities for students who may not have otherwise considered completing a bachelor’s degree,” said Antoinette Phillips, dean of the Southeastern College of Business.
     She said students will take 60 credit hours at Nunez, which include most of their general education coursework, including math, English, science, social studies, humanities and basic business administration. Their remaining 60 hours at Southeastern will focus primarily on business coursework under one of the college’s departmental programs. Southeastern offers business degrees in the departments of accounting and finance, management and business administration, and marketing and supply chain management.

 

Southeastern Hall demolitionFAREWELL, SOUTHEASTERN HALL
A Southeastern student pauses to watch the demolition in progress of the university’s Southeastern Hall, located at the intersection of North Oak and West Dakota streets. Constructed in 1948, Southeastern Hall has served as a dormitory and most recently as faculty offices and the Center for Student Excellence, which has been moved to the new Student Union. The site is being cleared in preparation for construction of the new Computer Science and Industrial Technology Building.

Teaching and Learning news
The Department of Teaching and Learning was well-represented at the 49th Annual Louisiana Early Childhood Association Conference.  

     The student-led Louisiana Early Childhood Association (SLAECA) of Southeastern sent 13 students and two advisers to Alexandria for the conference, where they not only learned valuable professional information and leadership skills, but also walked away with some top honors.

     Lauren Rose was awarded the Jeanne Gilley Graduate Scholarship. Angelle Roddy walked away with the Jane Herrin Mini Grant, which will fund a creative educational project in her new classroom. Lindsay Colligan accepted the Almanda Anderson Scholarship for undergraduates.

     SLAECA would like to thank the Southern Early Childhood Association and our Student Government Association for generously funding our travel expenses and registration fees.

CONFERENCE PARTICIPANTS - Pictured are those in attendance, front row, from left, Dr. Debra Jo Hailey, Maddison Hutches, Anne Rudesill, Sarah Powell, Brittany Jefferson, Courtney Hutchinson, Lauren Rose, and Dr. Stacy Garcia. Back row, from left, are Samantha Cooke, Paige Imbragguglio, D’Ashia Johnson, Lindsay Colligan, Sydney McPherson, Angelle Roddy, and Kayleigh Odor.

Teaching and Learning

'The Soldier's Story' to be presented Nov. 23

The musical drama “The Soldier’s Story” will be presented at Southeastern on Monday, Nov. 23, at 7:30 p.m. The performance is scheduled in Pottle Music Recital Hall and is free to the public.
     “The Soldier’s Story” is an updated and reimagined musical drama based on Igor Stravinsky’s “L’Histoire du Soldat,” a Russian folktale. In the original script, a post-World War I Russian soldier is returning home to marry his sweetheart. On the way, the devil makes him an offer to give him a book that will tell him the future in exchange for the soldier’s violin.  
     Robert Jahncke wrote this reimagined script based on a more modern version of the story.  As Terrance Mahady, composer and producer, explains “This script tells of a soldier musician, a Zydeco fiddler from Thibodaux, who joined the Marines to pay off student debt.”  
     The drama continues with the soldier taking an emergency leave from fighting in Afganistan after his mother becomes ill. The devil offers to give him a tricked out guitar and instant fame in exchange for the soldier’s electric fiddle.
     The production is performed by Prodigal Players, a Northshore-based musical theatre company formed by Mahady, a Southeastern graduate and former percussion instructor. Cast members include Mahady, Julie Generes, Luke Halpern, Bill Larsen Ruffin, B.J. Perez, III, and Jennifer Pulling of New Orleans; Ashley Krieger and Brina Bourliea of Slidell, Robert Jahncke of Covington; Erik Morales of Miami; and Melany Linder Graham of Los Angeles.
A Soldier's Story
SOUTHEASTERN HOSTS SOLDIER’S STORY -- The musical drama “The Soldier’s Story” will be presented at Southeastern on Monday, Nov. 23, at 7:30 p.m.  The performance is scheduled in the Pottle Music Recital Hall and is free and open to the public.  Pictured from left are Luke Halpern, Ashley Krieger, and Bill Larsen Ruffin.

ByLion takes a break
ByLion will not be published next week due to the Thanksgiving break. The next issue will be published on Monday, Nov. 30.

David Armand

Southeastern writer to do readings, book signings 
A Southeastern writer, David Armand, will present two readings from his new novel The Gorge on Thursday, Nov. 19.
     The English instructor and author will do a reading and book signing that day at Southeastern’s bookstore from 1 to 3 p.m.; another reading and signing will follow at the Hammond Regional Arts Center, 217 E. Thomas Street from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Both events are free and open to the public.
     In addition to the recently published novel The Gorge, Armand has written Harlow and the award-wining novel The Pugilist’s Wife. He also has seen his first book of poetry recently published; titled The Deep Woods, the book focuses on his memories of youth and his family life.

Southeastern Channel named best in the nation
For the second straight year, the Southeastern television station has been named first in the nation by College Broadcasters, Inc. at the 2015 National Student Production Awards held recently in Minneapolis.
     The Southeastern Channel has now won National Finalist recognition 11 times for productions ranked in the top four in the nation.
     “Save Water,” a public service announcement produced by Southeastern senior Kristen Roussel of Hester, was named the country’s best at the awards ceremony. The production won first place in the Best Video Public Service Announcement category.  
     This year there were 897 entries in the competition from universities across the country.
     Last year the Southeastern Channel won first place in the nation for a student documentary, “McCrea 1971: Louisiana’s Forgotten Rock Festival”, produced by history students Nicholas Brilleaux and Scott Caro.
     Along with Roussel’s winning PSA, the Southeastern Channel was named a 2015 National Finalist as one of the top four in the country for Best Video Promo. The winning promotional spot was for the student sportscast, “The Big Game,” produced by senior Danielle Shearer of Hammond.
     “It’s a great honor for our students to be recognized as best in the nation for the second straight year,” said Channel General Manager Rick Settoon.  “Kristen and Danielle are incredibly creative and talented, and they work hard to produce a very high standard of quality.  Their spots look professionally-produced. You’d never know they were made by students.”
     Roussel’s “Save Water” PSA is about water conservation and its effect on the environment and ecosystem.
     “Some people don’t realize how much water they use on a daily basis,” Roussel said. “Washing clothes only with a full load, taking showers instead of baths, and turning off the water when brushing your teeth are all ways that we can save water.”  
     Roussel and Shearer are communication majors who produced the spots for an advanced video production course in the Electronic Media concentration of the Department of Languages and Communication.
     “Studying at the Southeastern Channel has helped me learn the importance of camera angles, lighting and timely editing,” Roussel said.  “I incorporated a lot of what I learned into filming and editing my PSA.”

Southeastern ChannelFIRST IN THE NATION- For the second straight year, the Southeastern Channel has been named first in the nation by College Broadcasters, Inc. at the National Student Production awards.  The channel also won first place in the “Public Service Announcement” category and National Finalist recognition as one of the top four in the country for “Best Video Promo.”  Pictured, from left, are Rick Settoon, Channel general manager; Kristen Roussel of Hester, first-place national winner for her PSA; Danielle Shearer of Hammond, national finalist for her promo; and Steve Zaffuto, Southeastern Channel operations manager and advanced video production instructor.

Southeastern students collaborate on rare book exhibit
A new exhibit showcasing rare books and documents from Southeastern’s archives and other sources has opened in the Sims Memorial Library.
    Housed in the Center for Southeast Louisiana Studies on the library’s third floor, the exhibit was curated by the center’s student workers and will remain open in the viewing area at least into next semester, said center Director Samuel Hyde.
    Titled “History Revealed through Rare Books and Documents: The Emergence of Printing, Bookbinding, and the Challenges of War Time Publishing,” the exhibit also portrays the process of book binding and fabrication over the years. Special panels on history, law, philosophy and religion are featured.
    The exhibit contents include rare handwritten documents from the 1700s, examples of some of the first bound books, Civil War era newspapers, letters to presidents, and some 300-year-old books. Panels also display information on the early construction of books and various papers used in the printing process.
    “Occasionally we enjoy the opportunity of displaying some of the rarest documents and publications included in the Southeastern Archives,” Hyde explained. “In this exhibit, our own holdings have been augmented by the impressive collections of former English instructor Paul Crawford, retired appeals court Judge Jimmy Kuhn and select items from the Cate/Graham family.
    Hyde attributed the bulk of the work on preparing the exhibit to his student staff: graduate research assistants Nicholas Heyd of Covington and Chase Tomlin of Slidell; graduate assistant Megan Arledge of Walker, and undergraduate psychology student Faith Allen of Ponchatoula.
    “The collections at Southeastern have true historic value, but unfortunately because of space they are rarely displayed publically,” said Heyd.
    Heyd did the initial arrangements of the works on display aided by Arledge. “I chipped in on the arrangements and provided some general tips on the display,” Arledge said.
    Allen, now in her second year working at the center, said she has learned a lot working in the archives. “I now know better how to work with an exhibit, which is valuable information to know,” she said.
    “Our student workers designed and implemented this exhibit, focusing on items that are certain to fascinate history buffs and fans of the written word,” said Hyde. “They have produced an exhibit that is certain to entertain and educate both scholars and the general public.”
    The Center for Southeast Louisiana Studies is located on the third floor of the library. The Center is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m on Friday. Call 549-2151 for information.

Book exhibit

RARE DOCUMENTS, BOOKS ON EXHIBIT – Southeastern graduate assistant Nicholas Heyd of Covington examines one of the rare books in an exhibit sponsored by the Center for Southeast Louisiana Studies on the third floor of the Sims Memorial Library. With him are graduate student Megan Arledge of Walker and Faith Allen, a sophomore from Ponchatoula.

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

C. Roy Blackwood (Columbia Theatre for the Performing Arts/Fanfare, Fine and Performing Arts) chairs the Louisiana Presenter’s Network and serves on the Board of the Louisiana Partnership for the Arts. Last week Blackwood attended a board meeting in Natchitoches, La. and presented a session for the LPN at the state wide convention Nov. 4. Blackwood also chairs the Gulf States Presenter’s Network.

     Dr. C. Denelle Cowart (English) presented a paper titled “Field Day and Le Theatre ‘Cadien: A Comparison of Mission and Message” at the annual meeting of the South Central Modern Language Association, held Oct. 31-Nov. 3 in Nashville, Tenn. Dr. Cowart co-wrote the paper with Albert Camp, an instructor at LSU who has a Ph.D. in French Linguistics.

     At the 41st annual meeting of the Mid-South Sociological Association in Lafayette, held Oct. 21 - 24, Dr. John Boulahanis (Sociology and Criminal Justice) presented “Getting Away with Murder: A Comparison of Exceptionally Cleared and Open Homicide Cases in Chicago,” and Dr. Michael Bisciglia (Sociology and Criminal Justice) presented “Within Ethnicity Segregation: The Relationship between Interethnic Segregation on Rates of Hispanic Homicide.” Both papers were featured as part of a panel on homicide studies, which was organized and chaired by Dr. Boulahanis.

     Past and present graduate students of Southeastern’s Applied Sociology program presented their research at the Annual Conference of the Association for Humanist Sociology in Portland, Ore., Oct. 21 - 25. Paul Strickland spoke on “Better Food for a Better Future,” Jarrett Aucoin presented “Rethinking Globalization after Cuba,” and Ashton Herron discussed “Participatory Research in a University Community Garden.” Former Applied Sociology student Emily McDonald, who is currently pursuing a Ph.D. at George Mason University, presented “An Exploratory Study of Evangelical Short-Term Mission Trips.” In addition, Dr. Marc Settembrino (Sociology) presented his paper “The Matrix of Vulnerability: Understanding Hazards, Risk, and Systems of Oppression.” Lastly, Rebecca Hensley (Sociology) served as a critic on an author-meets-critics panel focused on David R. Dietrich’s book “Rebellious Conservatives.” Hensley, currently President-Elect of the Association for Humanist Sociology, also presented “A Letter to My Generation: Power, Oppression, and Agency from the Perspective of Generation Y,” as part of a panel on new approaches to teaching sociology. 

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