October 2011

Around Campus

University of North Florida named among top 100 ‘coolest’ green schools
By Joanna Norris

The University of North Florida was ranked in the top 100 “Coolest Schools” by Sierra magazine, the award-winning magazine of the Sierra Club, America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, for its “green” endeavors on campus.

 

Each year, Sierra magazine ranks America’s most environmentally-progressive colleges and universities according to their environmental practices, green initiatives and caliber of sustainability-oriented education in its annual “Coolest Schools” issue.

 

 “Making the Sierra Club 100 Coolest Schools list is an important first for UNF,” said Dr. Radha Pyati, director of UNF’s Environmental Center. “We have worked hard at making our campus more environmentally sustainable, and this kind of recognition among our peers tells us that we are a valuable part of a critical global movement.”

 

In March, Sierra magazine sent a 12-page comprehensive questionnaire to more than 900 four-year undergraduate colleges and universities across the United States. Researchers for the magazine then scored and ranked the surveys voluntarily submitted by participating schools. The questions on the survey centered on environmental goals and achievements, with priority given to achievements. Its 10 categories included energy supply, efficiency, food, academics, purchasing, transportation, waste management, administration, financial investments and other initiatives.

 

“This is significant recognition for all the hard work to reduce the University’s energy and water consumption, reduce our waste and increase our recycling as well as striving to reduce our overall expenses associated with those reductions and our carbon footprint, while keeping our students informed about environmental sustainability and providing experiential, transformational programs for students,” said April Moore, UNF Environmental Center program director.

 

UNF’s environmental and sustainability programs and projects touch on virtually every aspect of student, staff or faculty life. The University’s Grounds and Refuse/Recycling staff have recognized a 40 percent reduction in irrigation water use over the last five years as the campus has grown and simultaneously endured two years of drought. UNF has also increased the number of recycling bins, reorganized the recycling staff and implemented weekly recycling collection at each campus office. Additionally, the University has converted to green cleaning products.

 

The University’s Social Sciences Building was the first LEED- (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified “green” building in Northeast Florida, with President John Delaney’s commitment that all future buildings constructed on campus will be “green.” The Student Union and the College of Education and Human Services buildings are both Gold-certified, while the Osprey Fountains, Brooks College of Health addition and Parking Services building are all Silver-certified. The LEED™ Green Building Rating System is a voluntary third-party rating system where credits are earned for satisfying specified “green” building criteria.

 

In the academic arena, UNF offers several environmental studies courses, including an Environmental Studies minor; Civil Engineering with an environmental track, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology track, Coastal Biology track and a Coastal Environmental track. The Thomas G. Carpenter Library, a resource open to the public, has developed digital commons, which is a digital representation of research, scholarly output and special collections of faculty and students. It offers electronic journals and is constantly obtaining more e-books.

 

Most recently, the Environmental Center has published a Commuting Preferences Survey Report. Working with Parking Services has led UNF closer to establishing a ride-share program, exploring bicycle path options, and looking at establishing improved mass transit opportunities for the campus community, outside of the campus shuttle service. UNF’s Physical Facilities department has also begun a project to implement softening of the chiller water to reduce the University’s domestic water usage by 15 million gallons a year and has installed building retrofits, looking to save potentially up to 10 percent of the energy usage per building, once the work is completed.

 

The UNF Environmental Center was founded in 2004. Its mission is to establish, develop and support cross-disciplinary education and research related to the environment. The Center fosters programs for students, faculty and staff to pursue environmental activities through academics, research and extracurricular activities. The Center conducts and supports campus infrastructural projects involving sustainability and the campus’s natural environment.

 

This latest recognition comes on the heels of UNF receiving seven other national designations, including No. 19 Best Buy College, Best College in America and Best College in the South, all by Forbes Magazine; Best College in the Southeast, Best Value Public College and a top “Green” College by Princeton Review; and a Military Friendly School.

Around Campus

Annual University convocation highlights goals for the year and distinguished professor
By Matt Coleman

President John A. Delaney touched on a number of different key issues for the University of North Florida’s continued development Sept. 2 during his annual State of the University address.

 

The bulk of his speech, however, focused on two major points — the continued need for campus civility and perseverance in the midst of an ongoing state budget shortfall for higher education. 

 

Delaney stressed the importance of working together and promoting the academic improvement of students and the campus as a whole. He said UNF’s small class sizes and tremendous level of student-teacher interaction, two unique aspects that haven’t changed even in the midst of a massive state budget crunch, are testaments to a truly community-oriented campus and should be fostered by all faculty and staff.

 

“We’re all in this together,” Delaney said.

 

He also discussed the ongoing budget turmoil in the Florida Legislature, a hardship that has adversely impacted many schools in the State University System in the form of jobs cuts and freezes.

 

He said UNF has managed to escape lay offs and other worst-case scenarios through judicious budgeting. Financial times might be lean, but he said the addition of two news Flagship programs — Music and Nutrition and Dietetics — and a host of on-campus building projects paint a clear picture of the campus’ bright future. And UNF’s recent run of national awards from Forbes Magazine and The Princeton Review clearly place the University among the upper echelon of higher-education institutions in the country.

 

“Things are heading in the right direction,” he said.

 

Evidence of that came shortly after Delaney’s address when he took the time to honor some campus professors for their outstanding work over the course of the year.

 

One of those honorees, 2011 Distinguished Professor Dr. Thomas Pekarek, delivered an emotionally charged speech about his early years and his family’s unyielding support of his intellectual curiosity ­— a driving force behind his love for academic and his eventual place here at UNF.

 

Pekarek shared childhood anecdotes from his years spent on his Grandparents’ farm, a hardscrabble existence tempered by callous-inducing manual labor. He said they worked tirelessly and rarely took vacations, a work ethic that he admired from an early age.

 

His father took a different path, electing to pursue his Ph.D. in geology, while still maintaining the same dogged work ethic of those who came before.

 

Pekarek said that sacrifice and that discipline is what he’s tried to instill in his own children, along with the many students who’ve passed through his physics classes.  He knows first-hand the value of sweat equity and sees that as the driving force behind greatness, whether that’s in academia or on a small, isolated farm.

 

He wrapped his speech up by posing a question to the assembled faculty and staff.

 

“As professors at a university, we place ourselves around literally thousands of students over the years that we can share our gifts with,” he said. “But how do we teach our students to sacrifice? How do we teach our students to develop self-discipline? How do we teach our students to sharpen their training into the nuances of their chosen discipline? How do we teach our students to really excel? 

 

Isn’t this the essence of what we are trying to do?"

Around Campus

Take a minute to learn more about UNF academics and faculty
By Matt Coleman

University of North Florida professors have an incredible influence in the region. They’re fixtures on local and state media, and their research is held in high regard by other academics, civic groups and political leaders.

 

Now, radio listeners across the country are getting an earful of what UNF has to offer.

 

The University’s professors have become regular guests on The Academic Minute, an educationally focused radio segment produced by WAMC in Albany, NY, a National Public Radio member station. The show features an array of academics from dozens of schools from across the country. They are invited to discuss the unique aspects of their research and present academia in a light-hearted and easily palatable format for casual radio listeners. The program airs every weekday and is run multiple times during the day on about 50 different member stations across the National Public Radio spectrum — traversing the continent from California to Canada.

 

Dr. Elizabeth Furdell, a UNF history professor and author of six different academic texts on medical history, was a guest in early September. She was on for only a few minutes, but she said she likely reached a far larger audience through the segment than through her books.

 

“It’s terrific for academics because we don't always have that broad of an audience, especially when you do something as esoteric as medical history,” Furdell said. “You sometimes focus only on your own field and can become respected as an expert, but the field doesn’t reach out too far. This presents us the opportunity to get our research out there to listeners who otherwise wouldn’t be exposed to it. I probably got the attention of more people through Academic Minute than anything I’ve done. It’s fitting that it came together because of a UNF connection.”

 

That connection is Brad Cornelius, an associate producer at WAMC and a UNF history graduate. Cornelius, an undergraduate and graduate student of Furdell’s, came calling soon after the Academic Minute’s first segment ran in July 2010. He was tasked with tracking down academics who were able to condense their intense and heavily footnoted academic works into a bite-sized, radio-friendly format. And because of the station’s location in New York, he was looking for a little geographical diversity in his lineup of participating universities.

 

“It came together great when I took the job,” Corenlius said. “I was looking for new schools we hadn’t touched, and because I had connections and knew professors at UNF, I knew I wanted the University to do some segments. Dr. Furdell immediately came to mind.”

 

Cornelius said UNF’s focus on hands-on and transformational learning helped shape him into a media professional with a diverse skillset. And when he had the opportunity to promote UNF to a national audience, he was glad to pay it back.

 

So far, two other UNF professors — Dr. Jennifer Wesely, an associate professor from the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, and Dr. Katie Monnin, an assistant professor of literacy — have had guest spots. Cornelius said he’s already looking forward to the next UNF-centered segment.

 

Furdell said her spot on Academic Minute is a testament to the benefit of keeping track of students once they leave the protective confines of campus.

 

“I try and keep tabs on a lot of my grads, especially those, like Brad, who took undergrad and grad classes,” Furdell said. “And that helped set up this terrific opportunity. I’ll take any chance I can to introduce a lay audience to my research. Too often, there’s a separation between scholarship and general citizens. But this does away with that barrier, and it’s a great program for UNF to be involved in.”

 

More information on The Academic Minute, along with full lists of contributing institutions and the program’s more than 50 member stations, is available online at http://www.wamc.org/academic-minute.html .

Around Campus

UNF staff members ride to remember 9/11 heroes
By Cathy Cole

Most people remember where they were at 8:46 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001, or at least they can recall what they were doing and who they were with when they first learned a passenger plane had struck the World Trade Center.

 

From that moment on, Americans were forever changed. And as the 10th anniversary of that fateful day approached, plans were made to remember those who had fallen. Four members of the University of North Florida community were no exception.

 

University Police Chief John Dean, University Assistant Police Chief Mark Richardson, University Police Officer Terry Moon and Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs Dr. Lucy Croft marked the anniversary by participating in the “Let’s Roll: 9-11 Memorial Ride” Sunday, Sept. 11.

 

“We rode in University Police Department bicycle uniforms to represent UNF,” said Chief John Dean. “We felt it was important to be a part of this ride not only as individuals, but as representatives of our department and our University. We were all affected that day, every American. This is one way to pay our respects.”

 

The memorial ride, organized by Mike Scarborough of Bicycles, Etc. in Mandarin, was a way to show support for those who gave their lives and for those who are still affected by the tragedy today. There was no registration fee and no minimum fundraising goal for the riders. Anyone who wanted to rode along with them.

 

“It was nice to represent law enforcement at a time when people are remembering the sacrifice others made on behalf of our country,” Richardson said.

 

At the time of the attacks on America, Richardson was the commanding officer of the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office aviation wing.

 

“This helps us all do something positive on the anniversary of the attacks.”

 

“I think it is important to do something to mark this solemn anniversary,” Croft said. “I was very moved and was touched personally that day. I had a classmate who died in the attacks. He was a senior in high school when I was a freshman. We both played on the soccer team, and we became close friends.”

 

Croft was overseas that morning. She and her family were returning home from London after a cousin’s wedding.

 

“I was on a plane at Gatwick airport when we found out,” she said. “I remember a real sense of sorrow and loss and fear that afternoon.”

 

She and her family had to stay in London for several days when all air travel in the United States was halted. She and her family attended a service at Westminster Abbey to mourn the loss of life.

 

“There were thousands and thousand of people outside the Abbey where the ceremony was being broadcast, and we formed a real bond that day,” she remembered. “We stood right next to someone who had lost his brother. I remember having a conversation with him and mourning his loss with him.”

 

Croft said the memorial bike ride was the perfect way for her to spend the 10th anniversary of the terror attacks. “Riding brings me so much joy,” she said before the event. “And it gives me hope. I know the ride is going to be a very emotional one in many ways, but I do feel it will be hopeful for many of us — reaffirming that there is life after tragedy.”

Around Campus

Chally honored as inspiration to students, community
By Matt Coleman

Inspiration comes easily to Dr. Pam Chally.

 

As dean of the University of North Florida’s Brooks College of Health, Chally need only walk outside her office to interact with scores of experienced health-care professionals, dedicated professors and bright, driven students.

 

“It’s not hard to get motivated in this environment because there’s a level of caring here at UNF — from the faculty, staff, students and the community in which they operate — that is such a driving force behind my work,” Chally said. “That’s why it was an honor to be considered an inspiration to them.”

 

Chally received the Celebration of Nurses Inspiration Award at HealthSource Magazine's June 21 Celebration of Nurses event at EverBank Field.

 

AJ Beson, the magazine’s publisher, said Chally was considered for the award because she has spent the better part of the past two decades crafting UNF’s nursing program into one of the best in the state — and one of UNF’s most vibrant flagships.

 

“The ideal candidate for the Inspiration Award is someone who has served in the field of nursing for several years, someone who works day in and day out in the trenches and someone who helps and inspires others,” Beson said. “We feel Dr. Chally exemplifies all of these qualities. Her effective, approachable and compassionate leadership is evident when you speak with her colleagues, students, peers and members of the broader community who know her. Many say there is an immediate connection, and she conveys a vested interest in your wellbeing as a person. She is the type of person who takes caring beyond a basic level and seems to strive to create a lasting bond with each individual she encounters.”

 

A steering committee of local nursing executives selected Chally for the award due to her more than 30 years in the nursing field. But it wasn’t all about her experience. Her desire to still work in the trenches every day for the sake of the patient made her a perfect candidate for the Inspiration Award.

 

Chally oversees the administration of the departments of Clinical and Applied Movement Sciences, Nutrition and Dietetics, Public Health, School of Nursing, Center for Global Health and Medical Diplomacy as well as the Center for Aging Research.  

 

She has received numerous other awards, including the EVE award for Education, UNF Distinguished Professor, Desmond Tutu Peace and Reconciliation Award, the Transformational Leadership and Collaborative Engagement Award and was honored as a “Woman of Influence” by the Jacksonville Business Journal.   

 

The accolades are nice, Chally said. But she sees the fruits of her labor every day in the faces of the students and future health-care professionals who filter through the Brooks College of Health.

 

“In some respects, this is an award for all nurses who work here,” Chally said. “At UNF, we do a great job of inspiring our students and the patients who we care for in the community, so I was very honored to be chosen for this recognition.”

 

But Chally said her role in directing the nursing program is only a piece of the total education experience for students. She said the quality of education offered by UNF is directly augmented with the help of multiple community health-care partners.

 

“Our students wouldn't begin to get the quality of education they receive here if they didn't have the opportunity to work for all the health care organizations in the city,” she said. “That includes hospitals, long-term care operations, community centers and everything in between. That’s why they’re so successful, and that’s an inspiration to me."

Around Campus

UPD receives another Homeland Security Grant
By Cathy Cole

The University Police Department was recently awarded another Department of Homeland Security grant.

 

The $167,000 grant will allow the University of North Florida UPD to replace two communication consoles in the main dispatch area of the campus police station. The current consoles have been in place for more than 10 years. The technology was old and needed replacing in order to come up to the same level as other area law-enforcement agencies, said Chief John Dean. The new technology will allow dispatchers to communicate quickly and more efficiently with officers on campus and in the community.

 

“We are very pleased that we were awarded funds again this year,” Dean said. “In these tough economic times, grants help us to continue to meet the needs of those we serve at UNF and in Jacksonville.”

 

The money actually is from a federal Justice Assistant Grant (JAG) through the Department of Homeland Security. Lieutenant Crystal Serrano, manager of police communications, wrote the grant for the department.

 

“The grant will give us the funds needed to upgrade,” Serrano said. “It will also allow us to upgrade the point-to-point tower at Kernan Boulevard and help communication with the city [of Jacksonville].”

 

The tower is a communications repeater that allows the UPD to communicate directly with the City in the event of an emergency and allow real-time transmissions between the entities.

 

The funding will become available this month, and Serrano said the work should start in mid-November. If all goes according to plan, the upgrades should be complete early next year.

 

Last year, the UPD was awarded a $120,000 grant from the Department of Homeland Security to upgrade its communication equipment in the University’s Mobile Command Center. The Mobile Command Unit is used where ever and whenever it is needed and helps the UPD not only take charge of situation on campus, but allows officers to communicate with the Jacksonville Fire Department, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and the Beach Police Department in real-time.

 

Both grants allow the UPD to communicate more effectively and make use of all resources at its disposal.     

 

“We want to make sure we are not caught short and we have what we need to do our job and keep this campus and students safe,” Dean said.

Around Campus

Resio hopes to engineer a bright future for Institute
By Matt Coleman

One of the University of North Florida’s most high-profile, recent faculty hirings has been Dr. Don Resio, a seasoned engineering and oceanography researcher who will serve as director of the Taylor Engineering Research Institute. He’ll also be teaching ocean engineering classes for the College of Computing, Engineering and Construction.

 

 A former research scientist for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Waterways Experiment Center, Resio is a well-regarded expert in the engineering and oceanographic world with multiple awards and scholarly publications to his name. In addition to his UNF duties, Resio is on the United Nations Joint Commission on Oceanography and Marine Meteorology and serves as co-chair of the steering committee for the United Nations Coastal Inundation and Flooding Demonstration Project.

 

 Resio spoke with the UNF Marketing and Publications Department to discuss his plans for the Taylor Engineering Research Institute and his more than 30 years in environmental science.

 

What can we expect from the Taylor Engineering Research Institute in the coming years?  

The first thing, right off the bat, is bringing in research projects and grants and pairing them with UNF professors who would be compatible. I’ve been in Jacksonville for just a while, but I can really tell that the city has a rich diversity of coastal and water resources that are ripe for engineering projects and research. So that’s at the front of my agenda — getting more access to research and figuring out how we can tailor that to the University and the University’s faculty. And through that pursuit of research, we’ll engage more students.

 

UNF students have a huge opportunity compared to other state schools to really get in the lab and out in the field with their professors and engage in viable research. There aren’t as many barriers to student research here. And I want to facilitate that hands-on learning by tracking down more research opportunities, grants and funding for research.

 

How will you pursue your goal of boosting research through the Taylor Institute?  

I want to, first and foremost, act as a kind of liaison between the faculty and the grant providers. After working in the engineering and oceanographic fields for decades, I’ve developed many contacts who can help guide me and the faculty in pursuit of additional research opportunities. The campus has done a fantastic job of being engaged in the local community and being a vital part of research that goes on in the region. But my background is more national. I’ve worked on projects across the country and worked with people at the top of their fields across the country. Hopefully, I’ll be able to get those people interested in engaging some UNF faculty for larger, national research projects. I already have a few potentials lined up. But I’ll be going through my contacts all the time looking for ways UNF can build its research portfolio.

 

Also, not to toot my own horn, but I’ve published a number of papers and done a lot of scholarly research, so I can help coach some of the younger faculty on ways they can approach their research and make it easier to score funding and grants through that. But, based on a few preliminary conversations, it doesn’t seems like I’ll need to help too much. There are a number of very driven faculty members who won’t need too much help.
 

Around Campus

‘Outcasts United’ brings together UNF freshman
By Matt Coleman

Most of them are strangers.

 

But soon they’ll be working together, learning together and likely living together.

 

The soon-to-be freshmen congregating around the University of North Florida Green might not know it, but they share some common traits with the war-stricken refugees profiled in this year’s UNF Reads! novel, “Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman's Quest to Make a Difference.”

 

UNF’s natural beauty might be far removed from the refugee camp that serves as the setting for this year’s reading program selection. But the book’s author, New York Times journalist Warren St. John, believes many freshmen experience some of the same triumphs and hardships of the protagonists in his story.

 

“The book works in the context of freshman reading programs because of the thematic similarity to what happened in this town and the whole experience of a new, diverse group of people showing up on campus and making up the freshman class,” St. John said. “They are showing up in a community that’s already somewhat established. Some older residents might show some hesitance around the newcomers and their identity in the community. But the thing I try to emphasize to incoming students is that there aren't a lot of opportunities in your life to create a community from scratch. That’s what makes freshman year one of the most unique opportunities in anyone’s life.”

 

“Outcasts United” is set in Clarkston, Ga. in the ‘90s. The milquetoast Southern town was flipped upside down when it was turned into a resettlement center for refugees from war zones in Liberia, Congo, Sudan, Iraq and Afghanistan. As the new settlers learned to deal with their foreign surrounding and neighbors, an American-educated Jordanian woman named Luma Mufleh took it upon herself to unite the youth of the village through a soccer team that came to be known as the Fugees — short for refugees.

 

Dr. Jeff Coker, the dean of Undergraduate Studies, said the “Outcasts United” story hits all the right notes for a featured text in UNF’s freshman reading program.

 

“The shared struggles of a new community — that’s a perfect motif to introduce to freshman looking to get acclimated to campus,” he said. “And that’s the message we’re trying to portray through UNF Reads! It tells them they’re all in this together.”

 

The UNF Reads! Program, established in 2008, has primarily two goals — to introduce first-year students to the academic environment and the UNF campus community through summer reading and to give them a hands-on learning opportunity to get involved in the broader campus and potentially kickstart a common conversation with someone else who read the book.

 

“That’s why we encourage everyone — not just freshman but faculty and staff as well — to read the book,” Coker said. “It helps to foster a common on-campus dialogue that gives newcomers and long-time campus members the chance to interact through relating a shared experience.”

 

Multiple sections of freshman writing courses will use “Outcasts United” in class for developing critical-thinking and analytical-writing skills, Coker said. The program kicked off during Week of Welcome with a host of book-related events, such as a group book discussion and a meet-the-author event with St. John.

 

The journalist and novelist has been involved in about 40 different book programs at universities and community colleges from across the country, but he said he’s honored that his text was chosen as the narrative catalyst for many on-campus discussions between faculty, staff and new students at UNF.

 

He does, however, feel just a little bit guilty.

 

“There’s a part of me that feels a little badly that these hard-working high school grads who should be out enjoying their summers have to wake up and read my book,” he said with a chuckle. “ A little bit of me identifies with that, and I feel their pain. But I’m glad they’re reading the story. I think it’s a good one.”

 

Past UNF Reads! Books

 

2010-11 book, "Rock, Paper, Scissors" Game Theory in Everyday Life," by Len Fisher

 

2009-10 book, "A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future," by David Pink

 

2008-09 book, "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything," by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner

Around Campus

UNF instrumental in student’s television appearance
By Cathy Cole

A last-minute conversation with a friend led UNF senior Jermaine Reynolds to compete in a signing competition broadcast on national television.

 

“One of my friends told me about ‘Karaoke Battle, USA’ at the last minute,” the 26-year-old said. “The contest is a four-step process, and the first step is winning a contest in your home region. So, just a day before the Jacksonville contest, I decided to enter.”

 

Reynolds, a music education major who plays the euphonium (similar to a tuba), took the North Florida contest handily with his renditions of Simon and Garfunkels’ “Bridge over Trouble Waters” and “Heaven” by Los Lonely Boys. The top prize was a trip to New York to compete against 30 regional winners from the eastern part of the United States for the title of East Region Karaoke King. The whirlwind weekend of competitions were taped for airing in early September.

 

“The contest is a bit like ‘American Idol,’” the Alachua native said. “Except in this case, the audience does not get to judge. Only the actual judges can vote someone forward.”

 

The judges on “Karaoke Battle, USA” are Carnie Wilson, a member of Wilson Phillips — a ’90s girl band — and daughter of Beach Boy Brian Wilson; Joe Levy, a music journalist from Rolling Stone magazine and Brian Scott, a former winner of “Karaoke Battle, USA.” Joey Fatone, a member of boy band N’Sync, hosts the show.

 

Reynolds did well. The judges gave him very positive feedback on his performance of “Sweet Home, Alabama,” though he did not advance in the competition. The top four males and four females from each of the four regions — north, south, east and west — will face off for the titles of King and Queen of Karaoke in Los Angeles later this fall.

 

But a national television appearance on ABC television in front of 2.9 million viewers isn’t bad for a guy who has been singing since age 5 when he started in his church choir. “I was actually the most nervous I have ever been in my life,” Reynolds said. “I knew I was going to be on national TV. I was actually shaking before I went on stage.”

 

And that rarely happens to a man who has been performing in choirs and bands for the past 21 years. It was the contestant interview that actually calmed him down before he took the stage. He was so calm that he cracked a joke before he started singing and got the audience laughing with him.

 

“Then, once the music kicked in, I calmed right down,” he said. “And I started to just sing. The audience was really getting into it. It was really surreal. It made me feel like a star for a few minutes.”

 

Though he enjoyed his time in the spotlight, Reynolds said he was happy to get back to Jacksonville and the UNF campus.

 

“That was one of the toughest weekends of my life,” he said. “I didn’t get much sleep or rest. I was pretty stressed out. I was eager to get back and focus on school.”

 

Though singing is his main passion, the euphonium is a close second. He picked the difficult instrument up in high school, which took him down this educational path. His education here on campus has played a huge role in his successes on stage and in performances. He credits his time at UNF with teaching him how to prepare fully for a performance and how to control nerves and anxiety.

 

“I know how to prepare,” he said. “And I know how not to embarrass myself.”

 

Reynolds is looking forward to graduation this year and the chance to use his UNF education to help others.

 

“I would like to be a band director or a chorus teacher for a high school,” he said. “I would love to stay in this area. I learned a great deal at UNF, and I would like to pass it on. I also learned a lot from this competition that I think others might benefit from. The one lesson I truly took away is that just because you lose, it does not mean you aren’t the best. You just have to try.”

Around Campus

Project Atrium: Gustavo Godoy comes to MOCA
By Carl Holman

The Museum of Contemporary Art Jacksonville, a cultural resource of the University of North Florida, will present its second “Project Atrium” series with a dramatic, and interactive piece by Los Angeles sculptor Gustavo Godoy.

 

The exhibition will be on display from Saturday, Nov. 19, to Sunday, March 11, 2012. Godoy will conduct a lecture about his work and his artistic process at 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 19, at the museum, 333 North Laura Street.

 

Godoy was born in Ontario, Calif. in 1974 to a Mexican-American family who immigrated to the United States via Tijuana. His melding of art and construction are the product of his dual education. Godoy graduated from UCLA in 2001 with a degree in architecture and urban design, and later with an M.F.A. from Vermont College. However, Godoy learned early on from his parents to make the most of the materials around him, and the adaptability and ingenuity he witnessed as a child have remained integral parts of his process and aesthetic. He prides himself on being “scrappy,” committed to reusing, recycling, and harnessing found and discarded materials to create works that transcend their modest origins, while celebrating their inherent beauty and functionality.

 

The sculpture he’ll unveil on the First Coast was commissioned specifically for MOCA’s Atrium and will utilize the unique proportions of the gallery, expanding to fill its 40-foot depth and four-story heights. As the artist is presently at work on the piece — one that will be unveiled in the Atrium before a single photo is snapped — several of his previous projects have hinted at the style of his upcoming MOCA installation.

 

Many of his past works have been made from found materials — plywood, two-by-fours, Plexiglas, house paint, fluorescent light bulbs, mesh, blue painter’s tape and vinyl — that are whipped into tempestuous, gravity-defying pieces that resemble spectacular representations of a construction site’s secret inner life. Godoy also utilizes artificial lights to illuminate angles and cast shadows that intensify or augment aspects of his sculptures.

 

“Gustavo Godoy eschews typical sculptural practices, which really makes the experience of his work a rich one,” said Dr. Marcelle Polednik, director of MOCA. “Three-dimensional, sculptural works, particularly in the context of museum exhibitions, are typically off limits for physical interaction. Gustavo’s sculptures are interactive environments that encourage a childhood playful sense of wonder and discovery. It will be fun to walk around it, explore the piece itself and how the work changes the space of the Atrium.”

 

Godoy has had solo exhibitions at Honor Fraser, Prism and The Happy Lion — all in Los Angeles, He has also participated in group exhibitions at Sea Line Gallery (Los Angeles, Calif.); Barbara Davis Gallery (Houston, Tex.); OHWOW (Miami, Fla.); Centre d'art contemporain du Parc Saint Léger (Pougues-les-Eaux, France); Mexico Arte Contemporaneo (Mexico City, Mexico); and 1708 Gallery (Richmond, Va.).

 

“Project Atrium,” MOCA’s bold new series, features site-specific and site-sensitive installations by emerging and mid-career artists. The unique placement, dimensions and scale of MOCA’s Atrium Gallery provide a compelling challenge to the chosen artist — a call to reinvention and active collaboration with the architecture of the museum on a monumental scale.

 

The Project Atrium series is sponsored by Agility Press; Arbus Magazine; The Boeing Company; The City of Jacksonville; Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville; Driver, McAfee, Peek & Hawthorne, P.L.; Folio Weekly; Omni Hotels & Resorts; and WJCT Public Broadcasting.

 

For more information about Project Atrium and its related activities, visit www.mocajacksonville.org or call MOCA at (904) 366-6911.

Around Campus

Scholarship bequest puts campaign over $100 million
By Dan Dundon

A remarkable Jacksonville couple has made it possible for future generations of University of North Florida music, visual arts and business students to pursue their college degrees with the financial support of need-based scholarships.

 

The University was notified recently that Lu Ann Bear wrote into her will a bequest for $800,000 to create the Lu Ann and Doran Weinstein Memorial Scholarship Fund. The 81-year-old died in May. Her bequest generates about $34,000 a year in need-based scholarships.

 

The bequest is also significant because it pushed The Power of Transformation campaign over the $100-million mark, just a few notches below the total goal of $110 million. The campaign is dedicated to making Transformational Learning Opportunities available to all students. The three scholarship funds will help achieve that goal, said Pierre Allaire, vice president of Institutional Advancement.

 

“The generosity of this couple exemplifies the commitment to higher education we see in our community,” he said. “We are grateful for the gift and are thrilled with the prospect of assisting more students in obtaining an education at UNF.”

 

 The Jacksonville couple occasionally attended music programs at UNF and had a deep appreciation for the value of higher education in the community, according to their granddaughter, Jacksonville resident Robyn Moore.

 

"My grandfather loved university and college campuses,” Moore said.
“The couple traveled extensively and wherever they went, he would insist on visiting the nearby universities.”

 

When Weinstein, a successful business executive, died in 1995, the terms of his will were carried over to Lu Ann Bear’s will, Moore said. The will divided their bequest according to their areas of interest — business for Weinstein and visual arts and music for Bear.

 

Bear was born in Louisville and moved to Jacksonville in 1981 after she married Weinstein. Moore said her grandmother left behind a very successful career in advertising and as an accomplished portrait painter. After moving to Jacksonville, she built a studio and devoted much of her spare time to crafting clay pots that were sold throughout the area.

 

Weinstein was born in Montgomery, Ala. and graduated from the University of Alabama. After college, he joined the Navy and served during World War II. He was cited for his bravery in rescuing a crewmember from the USS Coolidge after it hit a mine and began sinking, Moore said. In a separate incident, he was a crew member on a transport plane attached to the South Pacific Air Transport Command and risked his life to deliver needed supplies to troops on Georgia Island. The plane was unarmed and came under intense anti-aircraft fire. He was awarded the Air Medal from the Secretary of the Navy for his service.

 

After the war, Weinstein entered private business. He was an officer and director of the Tampa Shipbuilding Corp. and held a number of business positions in Washington, New York and Louisville.

 

He met Bear, an art instructor, in Kentucky. According to Moore, her grandfather’s first wife was one of Bear’s students. When both Bear and Weinstein were widowed, they married in 1981. Weinstein was president of Daylight Industries in Jacksonville at the time of his retirement.

 

Moore fondly recalls the loving relationship between her grandfather and grandmother.

 

“I remember the way his eyes would light up when he would look at my grandmother,” she said. “He had a deep respect for women and would always stand when a woman came into or left the room — even in the last months of his life when he was dying of brain cancer. He was a gentleman in the truest sense of the word.”

 

After Weinstein died in 1995, Bear married Jack I. Bear, who also preceded her in death.

 

Moore said her grandfather was extremely fond of quoting a speech by Polonius in Shakespeare’s Hamlet:

This above all: to thine own self be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.

 

Moore added her grandmother followed that advice throughout her life.

“In my grandmother’s last weeks, she often reminded me of my grandfather’s creed — ‘Always do the right thing; even if it hurts you personally,’” she said.

 

That philosophy is apparent in the bequest that will help countless students from future generations to share in the same love their benefactors had for education and learning.

Around Campus

Healthy Osprey: Exercise to control cholesterol

 This is the first column in the new monthly feature, Healthy Osprey. Each month, a new health and wellness topic will be explored to help faculty and staff become healthier Ospreys.  

 

You hear about cholesterol every day. Commercials are aimed at lowering it through a certain food or drug. Countless news stories are devoted to it, and many products in the grocery store are marketed toward lowering it. But just what is cholesterol, and why do you want it to be low?

 

Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance that occurs naturally in your body. Your body needs cholesterol to work properly, but too much in your blood causes plaque, which can stick to the walls of your arteries or block them, raising the risk of heart attack or stroke.

 

There are no signs or symptoms of high cholesterol. Cholesterol levels must be detected with a blood test. Men ages 35 and older and women 45 and older should be checked yearly and more often if current levels are high or other risk factors are present. High cholesterol is usually caused by heredity or by eating a diet rich in fats. Cholesterol can be lowered naturally by exercising more and eating more fruits and vegetables.

 

To improve your cholesterol, exercise regularly. Losing just 5 to 10 pounds can help to lower cholesterol levels. Studies show that a heart healthy plan — combining a healthy diet and physical fitness can decrease LDL (bad cholesterol) levels by 5 to 10 percent. Thirty minutes of exercise per day is a good rule of thumb.

To get more movement into your day, try riding a bike with family or friends, walking your dog, playing a favorite sport, taking up a new activity, gardening or taking walks to places you enjoy like the beach or an upbeat stroll through the zoo.

 

The more you move, the better you will feel and the more you will help to lower your cholesterol levels.

  

Healthy Osprey is a new feature in Inside, designed to provide solid advice on how to become more healthy at work and at home. Shelly Purser, director of Health Promotions, and Mike Kennedy, assistant director of Health Promotions, will write a different article each month that will focus on some aspect of health and wellness. Healthy Osprey is a collaboration of students, faculty and staff working together to foster a University community that embraces the development of a healthy body, mind and spirit. The purpose of the Healthy Osprey initiative is to assess and respond to the needs of the UNF community to create and maintain a healthy environment, which will enhance the holistic student experience. For more information, or for any questions you might have, contact Purser at spurser@unf.edu. Read the entire newsletter at click here.  

Briefs

Call for nominations for the 2011-2012 Outstanding Undergraduate and Graduate Teaching Awards

Nominations will be accepted beginning Monday, Oct. 3, 2011 for the 2011-2012 Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Awards and Outstanding Graduate Teaching Award.

 

Guidelines for the awards are located on the UNF Faculty Association website click here. 

 

Nominations can be downloaded at the same site. Please look for Online Forms.

 

They can also be sent via e-mail to facassn1@unf.edu, or delivered to the Faculty Association Office in Building 10, Room 1120.

 

The nomination deadline is 5 p.m., Friday, Oct. 14.

Ask UNF

Are dietary supplements necessary and safe?

A dietary supplement is a product taken by mouth that contains a dietary ingredient intended to supplement the diet and may include vitamins, minerals, herbs or other botanicals, amino acids and substances such as enzymes, organ tissues, glandulars and metabolites. Dr. Judy Rodriguez, chair of the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics Flagship Program, discusses supplements, their safety and whether they’re necessary in our diet.

 

What are some things I should consider before taking dietary supplements?  

It’s important to remember that dietary supplements are only meant to be . They’re included under the general umbrella of foods, not drugs, so they don’t have to be tested for safety prior to being put in the market as drugs do. The manufacturer is responsible for ensuring dietary supplement products are safe before putting it on the market. Once a product is on the market, however, the FDA can recall it if it’s shown to be unsafe.

  

Should everyone take a supplement? 

It isn’t necessary for everyone to take a supplement, but it’s necessary to make healthy food choices. A multivitamin or specific supplement may be useful for persons who are on a calorie-restricted diet, such as vegetarians. It’s also important for women who are trying to get pregnant or are pregnant or breastfeeding, post-menopausal, at risk for osteoporosis, have had digestive tract surgery or have a specific medical condition (such as lactose intolerance, chronic diarrhea or a specific food allergy). Consult a physician and registered dietitian to find out which supplement is most appropriate for you.

  

Are all natural supplements safe? 

No. Consumer Reports has identified some hazardous supplements, including androstenedione (or andro, used by athletes for body-building); aristolochic acid (used in Chinese medicine for eczema and backaches); bitter orange and germander (used for weight loss); chaparral (used as a cancer cure); and comfrey (a green tea for stomach ulcers). Other dangerous supplements are kava kava and skullcap (used for anxiety); lobelia (popular for asthma and bronchitis); organ/glandular extracts (used to treat hepatitis C and other ailments); pennyroyal oil (used as an insect repellent and sometimes ingested for other ailments); and yohimbe (referred to as a men’s aphrodisiac). The hazardous side effects depend on the supplement and dose but may include abdominal tenderness, difficulty breathing, convulsions, rapid heart rates, heartbeat irregularities, heart attacks, blood pressure changes, nerve damage, irreversible abnormal liver function or damage liver, kidney failure and even death.

 

What things should I consider if I want to take a supplement? 

You should consider whether it might be more effective to improve your overall dietary behaviors if you are in one of the categories listed above. You might also want to consider the costs of additional supplements if you are taking other medications that may contraindicate the consumption of the supplement and the time and efforts required to take the supplement. Before adding a supplement to your diet, it is always wise to consult a physician and registered dietitian.

 

Where can I get information about supplements?  

To find a local registered dietitian, go to hwww.eatrightjax.org/ and the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine at http://nccam.nih.gov/ for information about different supplements.

 

Ask UNF uses the expertise of faculty and staff at the University and runs monthly in The Florida Times-Union. If you have a question about this topic, contact Dr. Judy Rodriguez at jrodrigu@unf.edu.  

Get to Know

Name: Heather Adams Kenney

Department:  Brooks College of Health

Job title: Director, Academic Advising

 

What do you do? I direct the office of Academic Advising for the college. We oversee all advising for upper-level and graduate students in the Brooks College of Health. We help to guide and support students in their pursuit of a degree through developmental advising.
 

 

Years at UNF: It will be three years in January

 

Tell us about your family:  I have a great family!  My husband, Tim, is a district math coach for Duval County Public Schools and teaches as an adjunct for the College of Education at UNF. We have two kids: Riley is 5-years-old and Will is turning 3-years-old. Most of my extended family is still up in Pennsylvania and around the state of Florida.

 

If you could choose any other career, what would it be and why? Chef. I wish I had a talent to cook wonderful food.  I am at awe at people who can cook. 



 

What would you like to do when you retire? Travel.  I have always wanted to learn about different cultures and people.  I also love the beach, so I would love to be somewhere close to it.   
 


 

What is your favorite thing about working at UNF? The students! They make me want to come to work every day. I consider UNF my second family. 



 

If you were not working at UNF, what would you be doing? Working somewhere within higher education. I love working on college campuses.

 

What is your favorite way to blow an hour? Having a quiet hour with no interruptions on the beach reading a book.  



 

What was the best money you ever spent? My college career —although I am still paying for it — was one of the best investments I have made for myself and my family. 



 

What is the proudest/happiest moment of your life? Although my work is important to me, my family comes first. I love being a mom, so I would say having my children.  



 

What was the first concert you ever attended? My first concert was in college. I went to go see No Doubt. I think I am dating myself. 


 

What person had the greatest impact on your life? There have been many. But I would say my father is one of the top people. He was a single parent for a good portion of my younger life. He gave me very strong values and taught me to never give up. 
 


 

What are you most passionate about? Education! How do we educate our young people in and outside the classroom to make them strong citizens. 
 


 

Who is the most famous person you ever met? I got to meet Dr. Jill Biden this past May at the White House. She is an amazing person. 


What do you hope to accomplish that you have not done yet? Finish my Ed.D program this academic year!  



Faculty & Staff

 Brooks College of Health 

  

Clinical and Applied Movement Sciences:Corinne Meisel had her poster presentation, “Normative Values for Physical Measures in Youth Through Collegiate Female Competitive Swimmers,” accepted for the American Physical Therapy Association Combined Sections Meeting next February in Chicago.

 

Dr. Shana Harrington will be featured for a platform presentation for her work “Risk Factors Associated with Shoulder Pain in High School and Division 1 Female Swimmers” at the same meeting.

 

Nursing: Dr. Irma B. Ancheta was accepted to the nationwide competitive NIH/NINR Summer Genetics Institute (SGI) Program for 2011. The purpose of the SGI is to provide participants with a foundation in molecular genetics appropriate for use in research and clinical practice; increase the research capability among graduate students and faculty and to develop and expand clinical practice in genetics among clinicians.

 

Drs. Catherine
Christie and Jan Meires had their peer-reviewed article, “Contemporary Approaches to Adult Obesity Treatment” published in The Nurse Practitioner.

 

Coggin College of Business 

  

Marketing and Logistics: Dr. Ronald Adams presented “Religious Expression in the Workplace and Customer Contact: Where do Retailers Draw the Line?” at the European Institute of Retailing and Services Studies (EIRASS) annual conference in San Diego, Calif., in mid-July. 

 

Accounting and Finance: Dr. Jeffrey Michelman, Victoria Gorman (B.B.A. graduate) and student Greg Trompeter recently published, “Computer Leasing Fraud at CIT Group, Inc.,” in Issues in Accounting Education.

 

Management: Dr. Lakshmi Goel, along with co-authors Iris Junglas, Blake Ives and Norman Johnson had an article published in Decision Support Systems titled “Decision-Making In-Socio and In-Situ: Facilitation In Virtual Worlds.”  

 

College of Arts and Sciences 

 

Mathematics and Statistics: Drs. Mahbubur Rahman and James Gleaton made a joint presentation at the 2011 Joint Statistical Meetings, Miami, Fla.

 

Dr. Raluca Dumitru was an invited speaker at the 2011 International Conference on Theory and Applications in Mathematics in Alba Iulia, Romania.

 

Music: Dr. Gary Smart, a presidential professor of Music, released a CD on the Albany Records entitled “Blossoms”  and features Smart’s solo piano improvisations.

 

Drs. Nick Curry, acello professor, and Cara Tasher, director of choral activities and soprano, performed in two different concert tours of Europe. They played in the English Chaplaincy, Istanbul; Barcelona, Spain; Paris, France; and Pussigny, France.

 

Dr. Guy Yehuda performed a solo recital at the Dame Myra Hess chamber series in Chicago. He served as guest professor in January and February at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University and the University of Virginia. Yehuda also taught master classes during the summer at the Orford Festival in Quebec and performed a solo recital in Los Angeles at the International Clarinet Association convention. 

 

Michelle Amato has been hired as the on-call, sub vocalist for “La Nouba,” the Cirque du Soleil show in Orlando. She also performed a concert for The Blowing Rock Jazz Society, North Carolina.

Politcal Science and Public Administration: Dr. Michael Binder had a book chapter published: “How GAVEL Changed Politics in Colorado‟s General Assembly” (with Vladimir Kogan and Thad Kousser) in “State of Change: Colorado Politics in the 21st Century,” published by the University of Colorado Press.

Psychology: Dr. Juliana Leding published an article entitled, “Need for Cognition and False Recall” in Personality and Individual Differences, a scientific journal.

 

Dr. Susana Urbina published a chapter entitled, “Tests of Intelligence” in The Cambridge Handbook of Intelligence.  

 

Sociology and Anthropology: Dr. Gordon F.M. Rakita published an essay entitled “Bias and Science: the Gould-Morton Controversy” in the Society for Archaeological Sciences Bulletin.

 

College of Computing, Construction and Engineering 

  

Construction Management: Drs. J. David Lambert and Pat Welsh received a $10,000 from SECOORA for a SECOOR Florida Education and Outreach Hub and continued UNF water quality buoy research. Lambert also gave an invited presentation, “Introducing the Jacksonville Green Map Initiative,” at the Plenary session of the Annual Jacksonville Environmental Symposium sponsored by the City of Jacksonville (COJ) Environmental Protection Board in August.  

 

School of Engineering: Drs. Chris Brown, L. Hansen-Brown and Richard Conte published their paper, “Engaging Millennial College-Age Science and Engineering Students Through Experiential Learning Communities” in the Journal of Applied Global Research.

 

School of Computing: Drs. Sanjay P. Ahuja and A. Patel published their paper, “Enterprise Service Bus: A Performance Evaluation,” in the Communications and Network Journal.

 

College of Education and Human Service 

  

Department of Childhood Education: Dr. Stacy Keller recently had her article, “Make 'em want to be there!,” published in Teaching Children Mathematics Journal. She also was recently appointed as professor in residence at the new Professional Development School at Kings Trail Elementary.

 

Dr. Chris Weber and Wendy A. Behrens presented “Case Studies to Enhance Professional Development in Gifted Education” at the 19th biennial World Council for Gifted and Talented Children International Conference in Prague, Czech Republic. Weber also presented with co-author, Dr. Gillian Eriksson, “A 3-tiered Comprehensive Approach to Providing Online Training and Certification to Gifted Teachers” at the same conference.

  

Dr. Katie Monnin appears in Katie's Korner, a video segment for Action News Jacksonville where she suggests how students can transition from summer reading to reading for school. The link is here — http://www.fox30jax.com/content/topstories/story/Katies-Korner/OOz7fb50kEuD7kTP4hqAdQ.cspx 

  

Academic Advising: Dr. John Kemppainen spoke at the recent installation of Dr. Cary F. Fraser as the fourth president of the University of Belize. Kemppainen represented President John A. Delaney, the University of North Florida and the Consortium for Belize Educational Cooperation. The installation took place on the University of Belize campus in Belmopan, Belize and was attended by the Governor General of Belize, Sir Colville Young; the Honorable Patrick Faber, Minister of Education and Youth in Belize; other Cabinet members; the University of Belize Board of Trustees; the Diplomatic Corp, the Administrative and Academic officers of the University of Belize; all faculty and staff as well as students and friends. Kemppainen also recently conducted a back-to-school workshop for the entire instructional staff at Gwen Liz High School in Belize City, Belize. His topic covered important issues to consider in effective classroom management and well as tips on the construction of assessment instruments to measure learning outcomes.

Dateline

Milestone anniversaries 

Congratulations to the following employees who will celebrate a milestone anniversary at UNF in October:

  

25 years 

Catherine Johnson, Administrative Assistant, Florida Institute of Education

 

10 years 

Irma Hall,Assistant Director of Research Program Services, Sociology and Anthropology

Luisa Rodriguez, Grants Specialist, Exceptional Student and Deaf Education

 

Five years 

Maria Atilano,Senior Library Services Associate, Thomas G. Carpenter Library

Michael Biagini,Director of Financial Systems, Financial Systems Department 

Paula Michael Dass,Coordinator Career Development Services, Career Services

Rabena Johnson,Office Manager, Center for Community-Based Learning

Ki Kwok,Applications Programmer, Enterprise Systems

Margaret Meadows, Director of Development, College of Arts and Sciences

Abbe Moody, Coordinator of Academic Support Services, Undergraduate and International Programs

Heather Samorisky, Coordinator of Administrative Services, Center for Global Health and Medical Diplomacy

 

Welcome 

The following employees were either hired by UNF or were promoted from OPS positions from mid-August to mid-September:

Keith Battles, Senior Custodial Worker, Physical Facilities

Jane Braglia, Coordinator, English Language Program

Leandra Bruzzone, Coordinator, Admissions

Jessica Caywood, Coordinator, Admissions

Matthew Deeg, Coordinator, Fraternity and Sorority Life

Rachel Dobbs, Senior Library Services Associate, Thomas G. Carpenter Library

Derek Fraser, Staff Interpreter, Auxiliary Learning Aids

Cindy Singleton, Custodial Worker, Physical Facilities

Joyce Smith, Office Assistant, Academic Center for Excellence

Leah Stevens, Program Assistant, Enrollment Services

Tamiko Williams, Custodial Worker, Physical Facilities

  

Goodbye 

Heartfelt well wishes in their new endeavors for the following employees, who left UNF from mid-August to mid-September:

Renee Anderson, Executive Secretary, Enrollment Services

Marianne Beaton, Senior Custodial Worker, Physical Facilities

Sharon Crutchfield, Office Manager, Honors Program

Sandra Cummings, Director, Human Resources 

Virdell Hayden, Maintenance Mechanic, Physical Facilities 

Kimberly Matthews, Athletic Business Manager, Intercollegiate Athletics

Christopher Neglia, Groundskeeper, Physical Facilities 

Michael Ramsey Smith, Associate Professor, Foundations and Secondary Education

Sashi Rizal, Custodial Worker, Physical Facilities

Randall Robinson, Divisional Budget Officer, Student Affairs 

Michael Townsend, Law Enforcement Sergeant, University Police Department

Good Question

Q: From Cindy Harper, executive secretary, Counseling Center — What is the small building on stilts they are erecting behind the Fine Arts Center parking garage?  

 

A: From Zak Ovadia, director, Campus Planning, Design and Construction — This structure is a bat house. UNF has numerous bat colonies that have been roosting in buildings, creating potentially hazardous conditions because of their droppings. This bat house is designed to the specifications of Bat Conservation International and with the guidance of the Fly By Night Organization, both not-for-profit organizations focusing on the preservation of bats. There are other bat houses on campus, but this is by far the largest.

 

Q: From Timothy Cheney, assistant director, Center for Community Initiatives — What is the name of the vine growing on the trees near the Kernan entrance, and can it be removed? 

 

A: From Chuck Hubbuch, assistant director, Physical Facilities — Grounds has planted no vines near the Kernan entrance of campus. The question must refer to the native grape and Virginia creeper vines. These are natural components of local woodlands, especially along the forest edge. They feed native wildlife with their fruits and their tangled branches offer hiding and nesting places. Large woody vines like these can even help tie the trees together and reduce tree falls during windstorms. Generally, Grounds does not try to cultivate the campus natural areas. Our hands are full with the landscaped parts of campus.

 

Employees who have UNF-related questions they would like to have answered in the next issue of Inside are encouraged to send them to goodquestion@unf.edu. Submitted questions will be considered for publication in the "Good Question" column, which is designed to help inform the campus community about relevant issues. When submitting questions, please include your name, department and job title, which will be included if your question is selected. The submission deadline is the 15th of each month. For more information, contact Cathy Cole at cathy.cole@unf.edu. 

Sponsored Research

The Office of Research and Sponsored Programs has announced the following grants and contracts:

Dr. Timothy Robinson (International Center), “Arabic Translation Project,” Florida State College at Jacksonville, $1,742

 

Dr. Cheryl Fountain (Florida Institute of Education), “CROP: Jacksonville Precollegiate Connections, 2011-2012,” Florida Department of Education, $28,998

 

Dr. Janice Donaldson (Small Business Development Center), “The Procurement Technical Assistance Center, 2011-2012,” University of West Florida/U.S. Defense Logistics Agency, $116,234

 

Dr. Chris Brown (Engineering), “Implementation Assistance for FDEP Grant S-0271 Cedar River Outfall BMP Effectiveness Monitoring Program,” CDM, Inc. /City of Jacksonville, $18,972

 

Drs. J. David Lambert (Construction Management) and Patrick Welsh (Engineering), “UNF Component of SECOORA IOOS Proposal (E&O and Buoy),” Southeast Coastal Ocean Observing Regional Association/National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, $1,000

 

Dr. N. Mike Jackson (Engineering), “Planning, Design and Testing of Pavement Materials with the FDOT Accelerated Pavement Testing Program,” Florida Department of Transportation, $250,294

 

Dr. Don Resio (Engineering), “Independent Technical Review of the South Texas Plant Units 3 & 4 Storm Surge Analysis,” U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, $11,088

 

Dr. James Gelsleichter (Biology), “Cooperative Atlantic States Shark Pupping and Nursery (COASTSPAN) Survey of North Florida Waters – Continuation,” National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, $5,000

 

Dr. Courtney Hackney (Biology), “Everglades Peat Loss Study Technical Report,” Taylor Engineering, Inc./ U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, $29,500

 

Dr. Lori Lange (Psychology), “U-PACE Psychology Course,” University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee/Society for the Teaching of Psychology, $24,648

 

Dr. Rebecca Marcon (Center for Applied Research in Child and Adolescent Development), “School Readiness Evaluation for the Clay/Nassau/Baker/Bradford School Readiness Coalition and Episcopal Children's Services,” Episcopal Children's Services, $7,794

 

Dr. Jeffry Will (Center for Community Initiatives):

·      “An Evaluation of Three Interconception Health Programs in Florida," March of Dimes, $35,000

·      “Health Start/Magnolia Infant Mortality Reduction Project 2011-2012,” Northeast Florida Healthy Start Coalition/Health Resources and Services Administration, $92,370

The Goods

Pork

When most people think of lean meats, they think of chicken or turkey. However, there are lean cuts of other meats such as beef and pork that compare favorably. Dr. Catherine Christie, associate dean of the Brooks College of Health and professor in the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics Flagship Program, discusses myths and facts about what cuts of pork carry the best nutritional value, why its nutritional profile might surprise you and how to safely cook and handle pork.

 

Myth: All pork is high in fat and should be avoided.  

Fact: Actually, pork tenderloin compares similarly to skinless chicken breast in fat content. A 3-ounce cooked serving of pork tenderloin has 120 calories and 3 grams of total fat, 1 gram of saturated fat and 52 grams of cholesterol. A 3-ounce skinless chicken breast has 139 calories, 3 grams of total fat, 0.9 grams of saturated fat and 73 mg of cholesterol. If you are trying to lower calories and fat even further, fish is a good option. Three ounces of cod has a lower score with 89 calories, .7 grams of fat, .1 grams of saturated fat and 40 mg of cholesterol. Cuts of pork with the most healthy nutrition profiles include pork chops, pork loin roasts, Canadian bacon and pork tenderloin. Of course, that is before cooking with added fat or other ingredients that would change the profile.

 

Myth: Pork doesn’t contain significant amounts of vitamins or minerals.  

Fact: Pork is considered an excellent source of the B vitamins thiamin, niacin, riboflavin and vitamin B-6 as well as protein and phosphorus and is a good source of zinc and potassium. Pork also contains iron that, for women of child-bearing age, is sometimes difficult to meet dietary requirements.  

 

Myth: Pork must be cooked at very high temperatures to be safe. 

Fact: Because pork is leaner than it was 15 years ago — on average 16 percent lower in fat and 27 percent lower in saturated fat — it is easy to overcook. Most pork cuts need to be cooked to 145 degrees Fahrenheit followed by a 3-minute rest time. Ground pork, like other ground meat, needs to be cooked to 160 degrees Fahrenheit. Using a simple meat thermometer is the best way to prevent over or undercooking meat.

 

Myth: Pork is the only meat that may contain a parasite called trichinosis. 

Fact: Trichinosis is a parasitic disease caused by humans or animals eating raw or undercooked pork, wild game or rodents. Because of current feeding standards and practices in pork production, trichinosis has become extremely rare in the United States. If the parasite was present in meat, it would be killed at cooking temperatures above 140 degrees Fahrenheit. So, with the recommended cooking temperature for pork at 145 degrees Fahrenheit, there is no risk of the parasite surviving.

 

Myth: Eating pork is relatively new and is one of the least widely eaten meats in the world.  

  

Fact: Pork is one of the most widely consumed meats, accounting for about 38 percent of meat production worldwide, with Europe leading China in per-capita consumption. The pig is one of the oldest forms of livestock, with reports that domestication occurred as early as 5000 BC. A type of ham from Italy — prosciutto — may be a new taste for some.

 

Prosciutto and Cantaloupe 

1 ripe cantaloupe

16 thin slices of prosciutto, about 8 ounces (from the deli section of many grocery stores)

 

1.   Cut cantaloupe in half, remove outer rind, remove seeds and slice into 16 wedges.

2.   Wrap each wedge of melon with a slice of prosciutto.

Serves four. One serving is four slices of cantaloupe and 2 ounces prosciutto.

Nutrition analysis per serving:

Calories: 110 calories

Protein: 7 grams

Carbohydrate: 16 grams

Fat: 2 grams

Fiber: 2 grams

Sodium: 513 milligrams

 

The Goods is a monthly column about food myths and facts by faculty members in the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics Flagship Program and runs in The Florida Times-Union’s “Taste” section. Have a question about pork? Contact Dr. Catherine Christie at c.christie@unf.edu.