Nominees for 2009 faculty elections are invited to use this space to post statements concerning their nominations for faculty committees or other elected positions. This is purely voluntary and is intended primarily as a means for newer faculty to introduce themselves to the wider faculty prior to the election (although any faculty nominee should feel free to post a statement). This space is not intended as a Q & A forum.
On the first line, please post your name, department, and the committee or position for which you are running. Follow that with your brief statement.
Cheers!
The Nominating & Balloting Committee
Scott Coykendall, Evelyn Stiller, & Mark Turski
P.S. The current list of nominees follows.
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| Academic Affairs Committee (meets 3rd Mondays 3:45-5:15 and 4th Fridays 2:30-4:30) |
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| Athletic Council (meets 1st Mondays at 2:30) |
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| Roger Blake | Samuel Brickley |
| Lynn V. Johson | William Kietzman |
| Bryon Middlekauff | Wendy J. Palmquist |
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Curriculum Committee
(meets 3rd Fridays at 2:30)
| Bonnie Bechard | Christian Bisson |
| Karolyn Kinane | Vedran Lelas |
| Nick Sevigney | Lisa Spradley |
| Francis M. Williams | Eun-Ho Yo |
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Faculty Welfare Committee
(2nd and 4th Friday from 2:30-4:30)
| John Downs | Mark Fischler |
| William Kietzman | Zhizhang Shen |
| Roxana Wright |
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Frost School Council
(meets 2nd Tuesdays at 3:30)
| Terri Dautcher | William Kietzman |
| Christian Roberson |
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General Education Committee
(meets 2nd and 4th Mondays at 2:30)
| Chris Chabot | Joel Funk |
| Wilson Garcia | Elliott Gruner |
| Jong-Yoon Kim | Christian Roberson |
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Grievance Resolution Committee
| William Kietzman | Christian Roberson |
| Zhizhang Shen | Anil Waghe |
| James Whiting |
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Planning/Budgeting Leadership Committee
| Marcia Schmidt Blaine | Trent Boggess |
| William Kietzman | Cynthia Vascak |
| Anil Waghe | |
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Observers to Student Senate
Eric Cintron
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Representative to the PAT Senate
Lourdes Avilés
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Representative to the Board of Trustees
Tom Driscoll
Phil Lonergan
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Representative to the Board of Trustees’ Financial Affairs Committee
No nominee
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Faculty Speaker Elect
Scott Coykendall
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Dr. Whitney Howarth
History, Department of Social Sciences
Nominee for Academic Affairs Committee
I am excited to be a nominee for the Academic Affairs Committee because I am dedicated to improving advising support services and academic standards at PSU. This is my fifth year at PSU and my first run for a principal policy making committee. I believe that my student-oriented pedagogy, and my commitment to developing programs that support faculty in their efforts to improve academic standards in their disciplines, make me an excellent candidate for this position. As a member of the President’s Commission on Diversity and the Women’s Studies Council, I believe there is a strong connection between academia and diversity-related categories such as race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, age, physical ability, and learning styles. My personal interest in these areas will prove very useful if I am elected to this committee because the AAC plays an important role in creating academic support services for various under-represented groups, as well as working with the Admissions office to recruit and retain diverse populations of students. Lastly, I believe that my passion for advising, my continual growth as an advisor, and my willingness to engage in reflective practice on this front (and in my teaching) make me a strong candidate for election to this committee. I hope you will consider electing me so that I may make a difference. I look forward to undertaking this important work with compassionate heart and open mind.
Thank you
Elliott Gruner
English Department
Nominee for General Education
I’m very excited about rejoining the General Education Committee because I want to make our program more effective and transparent. This is my second year at PSU. I direct Composition and have taught our First Year Seminar. I have experience with general education work at four other universities. I served on the General Education Committee here last spring as a semester replacement and actively participated in several discussions dedicated to assessment challenges. Assessment is, I think, our most pressing need, and I have experience designing, resourcing, administering, and analyzing large-scale assessments. I’d like to contribute that experience to the continuing work of the Committee We might also explore opportunities to improve the program through better integration of existing offerings. I’ve tried to do this already through working on synergies between Composition and First Year Seminar, two foundation courses for our current program. I think we should talk more often–and not just when we are debating a friendly or unfriendly proposal–about General Education so that we all can better understand, support, and contribute to what we are offering.
Marcia Schmidt Blaine
Social Science Department – History
Nominee for the Planning and Budgeting Leadership Group (the PBLG)
Having been involved in faculty governance for the last several years, I have become intrigued with the impact of long-term planning on the health of the University. I have served on the various faculty groups: Executive Council, the Subcommittee on Governance, Academic Standards Committee, Goverance Implementation Task Force, the Steering Committee, University Leadership Group, Extended Cabinet, and as Speaker-Elect and Speaker. I believe that my service will help me act as a conduit for faculty concerns to the PBLG. If elected, I look forward to serving the faculty and acting as their voice on the PBLG.