Palgrave-Macmillan recently published “Preservation and National Belonging in Eastern Germany: Heritage Fetishism and Redeeming Germanness,” by Jason James, associate professor of anthropology. The book explores the ways in which everyday citizens grapple with a difficult past through heritage. It seeks to shed new light on the everyday politics of heritage and memory by highlighting the dynamics of longing, fantasy, fetishism, and local performance.
Weight Watchers @ Work Session Begins 10/17
Wanna lose a few pounds and gain a new perspective? Come to Weight Watchers at Work.
We are starting a new session next week (Oct. 17), and we need YOU! This is a perfect time to jump in. It is confidential and non-threatening. You will find a collegial, friendly, funny and supportive group of people – and I guarantee it will change your outlook (not to mention your looks!).
I have been a part of Weight Watchers at Work since its inception several years ago. It has become such a part of my life, I can’t imagine not having it. However, if we don’t get 20 sign-ups by next week, Weight Watchers will discontinue our At Work program. That would be devastating to many of us, who have started looking forward to our Wednesday noon sessions. No – we do not always eagerly anticipate the standing-on-the-scales part. We yearn for the camaraderie. Through WW at Work, I have gotten to know colleagues that I never would have had the pleasure of meeting. On this weight loss journey, we have shared victories and disappointments, as well as tons of lessons and tips and laughs. When I return to the office, I feel comfortable going to these folks with questions or concerns about University business.
And the bonus is that I have kept my weight in check! It’s a no-brainer. We get a discounted rate plus access to eTools, which enhances and simplifies the whole program. Plus, because the University’s winter break falls during the next session, we get additional weeks for free. And the best news of all is that full-time employees are reimbursed for half the cost of the program.
The holidays are approaching and so are those added pounds – SEVEN on average! Come join us so that we will begin enjoying your company while seeing less of you!
If you’re interested, contact Pam Taggert at x1018 or ptaggert@umw.edu.
— Anna B. Billingsley
Chad Murphy is Featured Guest on NPR
Chad Murphy, assistant professor of political science, was a featured guest on National Public Radio during the October 6th segment “Does Early Voting Prompt Hasty Choices?”
Murphy’s op-ed “The Sooner People Vote, the Better” appeared in USA Today on Sunday, Sept. 30.
Matthew Johnson Publishes Article on History News Network
Matthew Johnson, James Farmer Postdoctoral Fellow in Civil Rights and Social Justice, published the article “Affirmative Action’s Unlikely Allies” on George Mason University’s History News Network. The History News Network publishes op-eds by prominent historians each week.
Stephen Farnsworth Reaches an International Audience
Stephen Farnsworth, professor of political science and director of the Center for Leadership and Media Studies, discusses the importance of voter registrations to the presidential election in “Obama Steps Up App War to Woo Wavering Voters.” The article appears in the Wednesday, Oct. 10 issue of The Times of London.
Farnsworth also was a featured guest on National Public Radio during the segment “Virginia Senate Candidates Square Off in Debate” on Tuesday, Oct. 9.
A Bittersweet Farewell
My name is Cathy Finn-Derecki and I have had the privilege of working at UMW for the past 12 years, most of the time in the capacity of managing our public web presence. Other opportunities beckon, and it’s time I move on to a position closer to home in Charlottesville. I leave with a full heart and enormous gratitude for what was given to me here. The people here had faith in me, guided me and followed along with me on a ride that was truly exciting, creative, at times infuriating, but never, ever boring.
UMW gave my life a new direction that I had not anticipated when I first arrived. As John Lennon says, “Life is what happens to you when you’re busy making other plans.” No phrase defines my life at Mary Washington more succinctly than that. And the life that has happened here, for me, is far beyond any plans I could have hatched.
Thank you, UMW, for giving me a home. Keep up with my steady stream of unsolicited opinions as I move out of UMW Blogs and into my new domain, http://transparentuniversity.org. Twitter: http://twitter.com/@saracup, Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/cathy.finnderecki.
One parting thought: If I could change the UMW tagline in one way, it would be this: “Where great minds get to play.” When work is play, you truly have something to be grateful for.
Smoke House Wednesday Lunches
Eagle Dining is offering a new “Smoke House” menu every Wednesday for lunch in the Faculty and Staff Dining Room at Seacobeck. We’ll be offering delicious dishes like Pulled Barbecued Pork, Beef Brisket, Collard Greens and Mac & Cheese….all slow-smoked to perfection by our chefs. Smoke House Wednesdays will begin on October 17. Lunch is served 11:30 AM – 1:30 PM. Please join us!
Mathematics Students Present at JMU
Three UMW mathematics majors, Morgan Brown, Peter Slattery, and Andrew Cole, traveled to the Shenandoah Undergraduate Mathematics and Statistics conference – SUMS at JMU on Saturday, Sept. 29. The students presented their work completed under the direction of Dr. Leo Lee. Morgan gave a talk “How to Win Every Time” and Peter presented his poster “The Wave Equation in One Dimension”.
Chris Kilmartin is Featured Guest at DSLCC, 10/24
Christopher Kilmartin, professor of psychology, will present three sessions at Dabney S. Lancaster Community College (DSLCC) on Wednesday, Oct. 24 in observance of Domestic Violence Awareness Month. He will present “Guy-Fi: The Fictions that Rule Men’s Lives,” a hybrid storytelling, lecture and multimedia presentation, from 9:15 to 10:15 a.m. at the Rockbridge Regional Center in Buena Vista and from 11:50 a.m. to 1 p.m. at DSLCC’s Moomaw Center in Clifton Forge.
Kilmartin will perform “Crimes Against Nature,” his original solo performance piece, from 6 to 7 p.m. at DSLCC’s Moomaw Center.
In addition to the three presentations open to the public, he will speak during classroom visits with DSLCC students enrolled in the practical nursing and massage therapy programs.
For more information, visit http://dslcc.edu/.
Dave Toth & Collaborators Win Grants
At the end of September, Assistant Professor of Computer Science Dave Toth and his colleagues from Merrimack College, Jimmy Franco (Chemistry) and Charlotte Berkes (Biology), were awarded two grants of supercomputing time to search for drugs to cure histoplasmosis and inhibit HIV. Their research team was awarded a total of 1,818,365 hours of compute time on the 40th fastest computer in the world, worth about $148,778. Toth will use the Ranger supercomputer at the Texas Advanced Computing Center to conduct virtual screens of millions of molecules to find the best leads. Franco and Berkes will then test the best leads in their labs to determine how effective they are and try to devise better molecules based on the structure of the most effective molecules. The granting entity, the NSF-funded organization known as the Extreme Science and Engineering Discovery Environment (XSEDE), awards grants of compute time to scientists, engineers, social scientists, and humanists for computationally intensive research.