VICE PROVOST AND DEAN ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT
John J. Cahir, vice provost and dean for undergraduate education and professor of meteorology, has announced his intention to retire from the University effective Sept. 1, 2002. Cahir has had a distinguished career dating back to 1965 that has focused on providing the best educational opportunities for students. Over the years, he helped shape the weather forecasting abilities of thousands of students, contributing to the University’s reputation as one of the premier meteorology programs in the world. “John has been a champion for excellence in teaching and learning at Penn State, a tireless advocate for students--both graduate and undergraduate --and an innovative leader in developing new ways to engage students and faculty in interactive and collaborative forms of education,” said Rodney A. Erickson, executive vice president and provost. “He also has contributed greatly in helping low-income, first-generation students, undecided majors and students in interdisciplinary studies to achieve their educational goals. His contributions and leadership on many successful teams to improve advising, teaching, classroom facilities and assessments of various kinds are immeasurable.” For the full story, visit http://www.psu.edu/ur/archives/intercom_2001/Nov29/cahir.html.
PARTNERSHIP DELIVERS EDUCATION TO DELIVERERS
Although many people might look forward to sleeping in instead, students at the Penn State Fayette-United Parcel Service (UPS) site in New Stanton show up for work two hours early in order to earn a business management certificate through a new program. The southwestern Pennsylvania campus is expanding beyond its traditional borders to meet the needs of a busy community with off-site locations. The partnership with UPS features courses in accounting, business law, leadership and human resource management, as well as computer and basic general education courses that can also support Penn State two- and four-year degree programs. The full story by Melanie Thomas appears in the latest Penn State Outreach; earlier issues are online at http://www.outreach.psu.edu/News/Magazine/.
DISPATCH FROM ANTARCTICA: A LONG WAY TO SUPPER
Note: A team of Penn State geoscientists, along with colleagues from Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Alabama, has embarked on a project to take the true measure of Antarctica. Over the next month, the 15-member TAMSEIS (Transantarctic Mountain Seismic Experiment) team will be installing seismic stations across the icy desert, to better understand the crust and mantle beneath the mountains. This article is the second of a series of installments about the expedition’s progress by John Pollack.ATOP THE DARWIN GLACIER, Antarctica--Our chopper swung in fast and low, and we all scanned the massive ice field that spread beneath us like a white sea. “It’s supposed to be right here,” the pilot said, his voice crackling through the headset inside our helmets. “I’ll make another pass.” The target of our search was critical--a buried cache with the fuel we needed to make it home to McMurdo Station, some 250 miles to the north. Find it, and we could be eating a hot supper within hours. Miss it, and a long day in the field could suddenly become a whole lot longer.
The full dispatch is online at http://www.rps.psu.edu/antarctica/dispatch02.html. For more information about the expedition, which will be featured in a future issue of Research Penn State, visit http://www.rps.psu.edu/antarctica/.
HOBBIES AND SPORTS CONNECT TO GRADES AND BEHAVIOR
The way a 10-year-old child spends his or her free time is closely related to how well adjusted that child is now, and will be in two years, a recent study reveals. Devoting more free time to structured and supervised activities--such as hobbies and sports--appears to enhance a child’s academic, emotional and behavioral development. Spending more time playing outdoors and hanging out, in contrast, appear to detract from development. These findings, reported in the December issue of Child Development, come from a Penn State team including Susan M. McHale and Ann C. Crouter, both professors of human development and family studies, and Corinna Tucker, who earned her doctorate at the University. They monitored 198 children and found that those who spent more time at hobbies were less likely to report symptoms of depression at age 10, while those more engaged in sports tended to report fewer symptoms of depression at age 12. The full story from the Health Behavior News Service is posted at http://www.cfah.org/hbns/newsrelease/freetime11-19-01.cfm.
BOOK COMMEMORATES PATERNO'S ACCOMPLISHMENTS
A new book, published by the Barash Group of State College, in cooperation with Joe Paterno and Penn State Intercollegiate Athletics, chronicles Paterno’s 36 years as Penn State’s football head coach, leading up to his recent 324th career victory, which made him the NCAA Division I-A career leader. “324: Joe Paterno Special Commemorative Edition,” features a foreword by former President George H. W. Bush, stories and commentary about Paterno from a variety of sources, a story about Sue Paterno; and stories on Penn State’s National Championship seasons of 1982 and 1986 and the unbeaten squad of 1994. For more information, visit http://www.GoPSUsports.com/pressreleases/pressrelease.cfm?anncid=1896.
WORLD WAR I CHRISTMAS TRUCE FOCUS OF BOOK, SHOWS
Stanley Weintraub, Penn State professor emeritus of arts and humanities, will give a brief talk and conduct signings for his newest book, “Silent Night: The Remarkable Christmas Truce of 1914,” at 1 p.m. Friday, Nov. 30, at the Penn State Bookstore on the University Park campus. The public is invited to the event. C-Span, a national cable TV channel, will videotape the talk for later broadcast. “Silent Night,” published by The Free Press of New York, recounts how World War I English, Belgian, French and German soldiers, covered in mud and living in lice-infested trenches in Flanders, spontaneously laid down their arms, sang carols, played soccer and shared food, tobacco and souvenirs such as uniform buttons, to the dismay of their generals. Weintraub also is scheduled to appear in a taped interview on The History Channel’s “This Week in History,” which will air an episode on the truce on Dec. 17. The Penn State Bookstore is on the Web at http://www.bkstore.com/psu/.