Date: 2/9/00
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:
Reinhold Bubser, Chair, UNI Program of Study Committee, (319) 273-2725
James O'Connor, Office of Public Relations, (319) 273-2761
Vicki Grimes, Office of Public Relations, (319) 273-2761
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – The University of Northern Iowa's innovative electronic course planning system is on track to debut next fall.
Developed at UNI, the “Program of Study” is a cutting-edge computer system that UNI says not only will help students take some of the angst out of scheduling courses, but also will change the way this university, and presumably others, will tackle the task of course management in the future.
“The Program of Study will give incoming students the ability to not only see what courses they need to graduate in their major, but also the ability to plan when they want to take those classes,” explains Reinhold Bubser, chair of the UNI Program of Study (POS) committee. “This will allow students to better plan their progress toward a degree, and help the university more efficiently predict the demand for courses.”
This was the end result UNI President Robert Koob had in mind when he challenged the committee, in 1997, to design a customized system to meet the needs of both students and the institution.
According to Patti Rust, UNI associate registrar for student services and systems, the POS system provides tools to enhance the planning and advising process that are easily accessible from one location, the POS web site, http://www.uni.edu/pos. The site currently provides online access to degree requirements and individual student degree audits, including the capability to request hypothetical degree audits based on proposed major changes.
“Under the current plan, a pilot program will permit a target group of students, entering as freshmen for the fall of 2000, to feed into the system the courses they plan to take, and the semesters during which they plan to take them, for the duration of their study at UNI,” says Rust. “The data entered by students will be stored by the system and will then be compiled and made available to academic departments for use in the planning of course offerings.
“Today departments often struggle with estimating how many students will want to take a given course during a given session. The Program of Study system is designed to take the guesswork out of this process.”
As part of the search for solutions to some of the issues in program design, the POS technical team reviewed similar ventures by other institutions. Some resemble UNI's degree audit and others have as their goal to implement a planning system for a four-year academic program of studies. None are as flexible, interactive and comprehensive as the one under development at UNI.
Bubser says the UNI Program of Study is on the cutting-edge in terms of its extensive approach to course planning and demand measurement. It goes beyond offering registration online, giving students a credible “roadmap” for their entire degree program— a tool they don't have today.
Statistics show that many students change their majors, or may want to add another major or minor. The Program of Study helps students gauge the impact of those decisions by incorporating hypothetical degree audits for majors and minors. The program tells students what courses they would have to take and how much time (semesters), if any, the change would add to their studies.
Bubser says hypothetical major projection and other elements are among some of the features that set this program apart from those at other institutions.
Other key features of the program include easy access for students and advisors to obtain degree audits and calculate current GPAs. The program also allows academic advisors to easily check degree program requirements, revisions and curricular changes. And, it includes hot links to associated information such as course listings, course descriptions and department web sites.
UNI Information Technology Systems (ITS) is working on the software and related systems to ensure the many different components of this comprehensive program will interact as designed when it becomes operational later this year.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Jascenna Haislet-Carlson, Marketing Director/Theatre Publicist, (319) 273-6387
Vicki Grimes, Office of Public Relations, (319) 273-2761
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – Tim Kruse, a junior theatre major at the University of Northern Iowa, from Eldridge, won first prize at the David L. Thayer Lighting Design Workshop/Competition, held Jan. 21, during the annual regional Kennedy Center/American College Theatre (KC/ACTF) Festival in Sioux Falls, S.D.
Kruse's entry in the competition was a five-minute design for the musical piece “No Leaf Clover” by Metallica. Participants in the workshop/competition are required to design lighting for a three to five minute piece of music and submit supporting paperwork that explains their choices and details the work.
The David L. Thayer Lighting Design Workshop/Competition is an opportunity for undergraduate and graduate students in the seven-state region with an interest in lighting to share ideas and compete with peers in an adjudicated workshop at the regional festival. It is sponsored by KC/ACTF Region 5 and the United States Institute of Theatre Technology
Eleven other UNI theatre students attended the festival. They participated in the Irene Ryan Acting Competition and a design exhibition. Lisa Marie Parker, a senior theatre major from Adel, advanced to the semi-final round of the Irene Ryan competition.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Dennis Schmidt, UNI professor of accounting and VITA program coordinator, (319) 273-2968
Vicki Grimes, Office of Public Relations, (319) 273-2761
CEDAR FALLS Free income tax assistance is being offered again this year at the University of Northern Iowa through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. Senior accounting students provide the service.
The program begins Monday, Feb. 14, and will run through April 17, except during UNI's spring break the week of March 13. Sessions are scheduled from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. each Monday and Wednesday, in Room 224 of UNI's Curris Business Building, located near the corner of West 27th and Minnesota Streets.
VITA was established by the Internal Revenue Service to help people unable to afford professional tax assistance. “The program is popular with low-income individuals and families, college students, senior citizens and others who are on a tight budget,” said Dennis Schmidt, UNI accounting professor and program coordinator. The program also provides accounting students an experiential learning opportunity to work with people in actual income tax situations.
Forty-three accounting students are participating in the program. They will be available to answer questions and help fill out federal and Iowa tax forms. They have completed a one-semester comprehensive tax course, have received additional training and have access to a variety of federal and state reference materials.
Persons seeking tax assistance should bring their 1999 Federal and Iowa tax packets, wage and earnings statements (Form W-2) from all employers, interest statements from banks (Form 1099) and copies of last year's tax returns. If available, they should also bring social security numbers for themselves and any dependents, and any other relevant information concerning 1999 income and expenses. Tax forms will be available for those without packets.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Rachel Flint, assistant gallery director, Kamerick Art Building, (319) 273-6114
James O'Connor, Office of Public Relations, (319) 273-2761
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – The University of Northern Iowa (UNI) Gallery of Art will present “Five Capital Executions in China” by Zhi Lin; and “Enamels” by Sarah Perkins; in the Kamerick Art Building (KAB) on the UNI campus from Feb. 18 through March 5.
Chinese artist Zhi Lin's large-scale paintings and studies are a tool for cultural awareness and for social change. “Five Capital Executions in China” confronts the audience with brutal torture methods used in China from the Warring States Era (475 BC – 221 BC) through the present Communist Era. Traditional Chinese painting styles integrated with the Western method of representation deal with the duality of seemingly contradictory elements and references, which bind the horrific with aesthetic concepts of beauty.
Lin is an associate professor in painting at Southwest Missouri State University in Springfield, Mo. He will give a lecture on the “journey of the Chinese artist” on Friday, Feb. 18 at 6 p.m. in KAB 111. The opening reception will follow.
Integration also is the core concept that drives the work of Sarah Perkins. An artist from Springfield, Perkins combines the techniques of metalsmithing and enameling into various jewelry pieces and vessels. On a formal level, she strives to integrate form and surface, color, shape and line. The imagery developed in this manner refers to the natural world and its relationship to human culture. Perkins will be on campus Feb. 22 to give a workshop for UNI art students.
Gallery hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday through Thursday; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday; noon to
5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. For more information, call the UNI Gallery of Art at (319) 273-2077.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Brent Smith, Rider Hall resident assistant, (319) 273-4797
Cheryl Wheaton, Black Hawk County SAFE KIDS Coalition coordinator, (319) 291-2413
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa—Students living in Rider Hall at the University of Northern Iowa will be sponsoring a free child's car seat check-up at John Deery Lincoln-Mercury, 6823 University Ave., Cedar Falls, from 1 to 5 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 19. This event coincides with National SAFE KIDS Week.
Brent Smith, Shenandoah, saw a story on “Dateline NBC” concerning child safety seats and called the number that appeared on the screen to get the number of the regional coordinator. As a resident assistant at Rider Hall and an avid participant in community service programs, he is always trying to brainstorm ideas for areas in which the residents can volunteer. He said Rider Hall residents have a long-standing history as community volunteers.
According to information from the National SAFE KIDS Campaign, nearly 1,800 children die each year as motor vehicle passengers, and more than 305,000 are injured. They also estimate that 200 lives could be saved and 20,000 injuries could be prevented annually if all children age 4 and under were properly restrained.
John Deery Lincoln-Mercury will shut down its service garage for the event so that child safety seats can be inspected indoors and out of the cold. All inspectors are certified inspectors who will be able to answer questions about children's safety seats.
The car seat check-up is part of Safe Kids Buckle Up, a national program developed through a partnership with the National SAFE KIDS Campaign and General Motors to educate parents and caregivers about the importance of properly restraining children on every car ride.
The event is being sponsored by John Deery Lincoln-Mercury, the Black Hawk County Department of Health, the SAFE KIDS Coalition and the Rider Hall Senate. For more information, contact Smith at (319) 273-4797.
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