President Al Bowman has appointed Professor of Biological Sciences Radheshyam K. Jayaswal and Professor of Psychology Glenn D. Reeder as Distinguished Professors effective August 16, 2008. The Distinguished Professor designation allows the University to honor faculty members of distinction and to demonstrate to the broader community that excellence is the foundation of the University. Reeder has earned a world-wide reputation for his scholarship in social psychology. Jayaswal's research in microbiology has attracted international distinction. “I congratulate Professors Jayaswal and Reeder on this honor,” said Dean Olson. “Both have made enormous contributions to the College and to ISU through their teaching, scholarship, and service.”

Norma Presmeg, Professor of Mathematics, will serve as the next Editor-in-Chief of Educational Studies in Mathematics. “This is one of the top international journals in mathematics education,” said George Seelinger, Chair of the Department of Mathematics. “Professor Presmeg is an exceptional teacher and scholar, and I know that she will do an outstanding job of editing this important publication.” Presmeg has served as one of five editors of the journal for several years. She will serve as Editor-Elect in 2008 and will become Editor-in-Chief in 2009. “I am excited about taking on the role of Editor-in-Chief,” said Presmeg. “I look forward to the challenges it will bring.” The journal is published by Springer, a major international publisher of scholarly works in science and business. “College of Arts and Sciences faculty are editing a number of  prestigious journals,” said Dean Olson, “And Professor Presmeg joins this ever-increasing elite group.”

This semester Professors Marjorie A. Jones and David L. Cedeño, Department of Chemistry, and Bone Scholar student Mark Wirtz visited Universidad de Caldas in Manizales, Colombia. Professors Jones and Cedeño were invited by the Director of Research and the Graduate Program in Chemistry at Universidad de Caldas to provide training in Biochemistry and Quantum Chemistry to their graduate students and faculty. Twenty graduate students and faculty attended short, intensive, specialized courses. Professor Jones emphasized practical laboratory applications of biochemical concepts. She was assisted by Mark Wirtz, who also served as a translator. Professor Cedeño emphasized the practical uses of quantum chemistry (spectroscopy and computational chemistry).

The December 14 issue of the Chronicle of Higher Education, the nation's premier weekly newspaper covering higher education in the United States and the rest of the world, contains a short article reporting on the College of Arts and Sciences' Dean's Award campaign. As reported in CASNews, a number of faculty and staff have made donations to the fund in honor of their pets. The College in turn has published photos of the pets on the Dean's Award website. The Chronicle reported on this innovative fund-raising technique. "We have raised a little over $7,000 for the fund thanks to the pets," said Dean Olson. "And we certainly hope more pet lovers will give to a worthy cause and honor their pets at the same time."  The Chronicle story can be viewed at the following address:

http://chronicle.com/temp/reprint.php?id=1hyybfdfxwtbnhs69c4wtbtkh6vyvqsw

The College of Arts and Sciences will host its annual holiday party on Friday, December 14, 2007, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the College Office suite, located in 141 Stevenson Hall. Food, drink, and an abundance of sweets and other snacks will be provided. The College holiday party has long been an ISU tradition and is a favorite of many in the entire ISU community. “This is my favorite time of year,” said Sandi Krumtinger, the College's budget officer. “The College party takes many hours of careful planning and preparation by a number of people, and we're happy to serve the ISU community.” All are invited to come and celebrate the holiday season with the College family!