Day of Diversity
As part of the university's commitment to promote cultural sensitivity, tolerance and non-violence on campus, as well as a greater understanding in the greater community, students, faculty and staff are invited to join together on Diversity Day, Wednesday, March 15, to celebrate the richness of our many cultures and to affirm our commitment to tolerance, goodwill and mutual support.
Dr. Carlos Cortes, professor emeritus of history at University of California, Riverside, and an expert in multicultural education, will open the Day of Diversity with a keynote speech on "Multicultural Education for Non-Violence, Tolerance and Community" at 9 a.m. in the University Student Union. His speech will be followed by interactive open forums, 10:15 a.m. to noon, for students, faculty and staff on "Identity Issues on a Diverse Campus" and "Biracial/Multicultural Students and Education Equity." The day will conclude with forums in the afternoon on "Instructional Practices for Cultural Diversity" and "Bridging the Gap between Fraternities/Sororities and Ethnic Clubs and Organizations."
Because more than 66 percent of our students are minorities, we hope faculty will use the day as an opportunity to discuss and incorporate issues of race, non-violence and cultural sensitivity into their classes and encourage student participation. Anyone interested in obtaining more information about this event should contact Dr. Jeanette Mann, special assistant to the president for equity and diversity, at ext. 2077.
Faculty Poster and Creative Activities Fair
In an effort to increase campus awareness of the innovative and creative research and scholarship being conducted at Cal State Northridge, the university has established the bi-annual Faculty Poster and Creative Activities Fair. The specific goal of the fair is to provide recognition for faculty research and creative activity, facilitate communication and collaboration among faculty on campus, and nurture the growth of research and creative activities here.
I am pleased to report that 51 faculty from 19 departments displayed their work at this year's fair, which was held in the USU Grand Salon Feb. 16 and 17. The guest speaker for the event was Dr. Alexander Astin, director of the UCLA Higher Education Research Institute, and a national authority on undergraduate student outcomes. Dr. Astin spoke on "Excellence and Equity in the State University," and was well received by the CSUN community.
I would like to congratulate the organizers and participants of the fair for taking the time to share their work with their colleagues and students on campus We hope even more faculty will participate in future fairs.
Weather Impact on Reconstruction Projects
Due to the recent series of rainstorms, many on campus have no doubt wondered what effect they will have on our reconstruction projects. While some project delay due to bad weather is routinely built into construction schedules, I have been informed the severity and frequency of our recent storms will likely result in several of our projects being delayed beyond their scheduled completion dates.
The Oviatt stairs project, for example, was scheduled to be completed by March 1, but the continuing rains have had a direct impact on the project. With approximately three weeks worth of work remaining to complete the project, we are now looking to April before it will be completed. Similarly, the Oviatt exterior work and site work, including the landscaping, will be delayed beyond the planned completion date of April 1. The interior work on the Oviatt Library Wings reconstruction project has been affected to a lesser degree, but the reoccupation of the wings is still scheduled to occur in April. The Health and Human Development/University Technology Building and the Administration Building projects also have been affected to a minor degree, but we anticipate them to be completed close to schedule in September.
Both the Art and Design Center (ADC) expansion and the Arts, Media, and Communication (AMC) Building schedules have been impacted by the weather to a greater degree. Although our campus construction management team is working hard with the contractors to find ways to recover the time lost on these projects, we expect their completion dates to be delayed by at least a month. The current planned completion date for ADC is the end of August. That date will probably have to be moved to the end of September. For the AMC project, the current completion date of January 2001 will probably slip to February 2001.
Please be assured that our construction management team's efforts continue to be focused on providing our campus with quality buildings that meet our needs as soon as possible. I am grateful for everyone's patience.
Digital Print Forums
As part of its goal to provide high quality, state-of-the-art reprographics services to the campus, Reprographics/QuickCopies has purchased a new Xerox DocuTech digital printing system that will offer a new level of reproduction quality, but also give users an opportunity to submit their documents entirely via the Internet. I also understand the new service provides the same price as standard photocopies.
To advise campus users about the features and benefits this new digital printing system offers, Reprographics/QuickCopies will hold two Digital Print Forums in the Santa Clarita Room in the USU on Thursday, March 23. There will be a one-hour session in the morning at 10 a.m. and another at 2 p.m. The purpose of the forum is to introduce the equipment and inform the campus of the quality and service upgrades the networked digital equipment will provide for the campus. Reprographics/QuickCopies also will host an Open House in Engineering 2151, where the DocuTech system is located, to allow the campus community to watch the equipment in operation and see firsthand the process and quality of the output. The open house is scheduled for Friday, March 31, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
In April, two workshops will be held to show users how easy and convenient it is to submit documents to the digital printer directly from their desktop computer. The training will take place at a computer lab to be announced later.
My thanks to Reprographics/Quickcopies for making high quality reprographics technology available to the campus community. Anyone with questions about the system or the forums should contact Ms. Mary Hanson, manager of Reprographics/Quickcopies, at ext. 2898.
Achievements
- Continuing its tradition of award-winning reporting, broadcast journalism students at KCSN News have won three first place statewide awards in the professional competition of the Associated Press Television Radio Association in Division Two. This involves public radio stations throughout California and Nevada.
The student journalists who received first place awards are Mr. Ken Hallinan for Best Serious Feature for his story, "Street Vendors in North Hills"; Ms. Mimi Kite for Best Documentary/Special Programming for her report on "Teenage Pregnancy"; and Mr. Chuck Francey for Best Sports Reporting for his "John Burrell Basketball Profile."
KCSN News also was selected as a finalist for Best News Broadcast More than 15 Minutes. The winner of this category will be selected later this month at the APTRA Awards Convention.
My congratulations to the students and the KCSN News Director, Mr. Keith S. Goldstein, for these achievements. And best wishes for success at the convention later this month!
- As this From the President's Deskwent to press, both the men¹s and women¹s basketball teams had begun post-season play and were competing in the Big Sky Conference championship tournament. Both teams, I am proud to report, had won their first-round games and had advanced to the second round. Coverage of both teams¹ games is being provided by KCSN (88.5 FM).
Winning the conference championship, of course, also means an automatic berth in the NCAA finals field of 64 teams. Last season, the women's team made their first appearance in the NCAA championship finals as the Big Sky champion.
By the time this is distributed, the results of the tournament will be known. Regardless of the outcome, I would like to congratulate the student athletes and their coaches for another outstanding season. Both teams continued to build on the tradition of winning that has been established in men's and women's basketball at Cal State Northridge and brought increasing respect to the program. We should be all proud of what they accomplished this season.
Louanne Kennedy
Interim President
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Interim President Louanne Kennedy