Happy Friday folks, on this first day of February. Amazing, right? January is done. We start the shortest month of the year. The days are getting longer.
Hey, cool stuff to share with you this week.
Meara just received a $34,000 grant from CSU’s Center for Healthy Aging to promote innovative research on aging and well-being.
Eric and a group of graduate and undergraduate students (including in alpha order Jordin, Ph.D.; Allison, MA; Hannah Hurlbut, Undergraduate Honors Student; Henry, MA Student; and Claudia Perez, Undergraduate Honors Student) are the The Intercultural Communication Competency (ICC) Workshop Team. The team will present a workshop Dr. Jessica Davis’ Course in HORT/LAND 496; 3 credits; Horticulture & Design Community Engagement. Cool stuff!
I have a new essay out. Well, is an essay that was started in 2011 really new? Anyway, here are the details: Brian L. Ott and Greg Dickinson, “Redefining Rhetoric: Why Matter Matters” Berlin Journal of Critical Theory. I will be honest. Feels weird to toot my own horn. So, let me get the rest of the horn tooting done with. My co-authored book with Brian The Twitter Presidency: Donald J. Trump and the Politics of White Rage (Routledge, 2019) is available for e-readers and you can order a hard copy from Amazon which will be shipped February 11. It is WAY too expensive at over $50 for 37,000 words. The good news is the Kindle version will only set you back $25. If you are thinking of buying the book, don’t. Donate that money to the ACLU, SPLC, or Colorado Immigration Rights Coalition. Just saying. If it matters, I will be donating all royalties from the book (so, like, $6) to one of these organizations.
I have attached the list of presentations at WSCA. Thanks, Lisabeth, for collating this.
You will see that something like seventeen of our community members will be presenting at the conference with two of us presenting on top paper panels.
And that we will be hosting a Grad Open House table Friday 3:45-5:00. I will be there, and I am hoping a number of the rest of you will be as well.
Then our department’s reception on Saturday night 7:00-9:00 in the Compass Room. Go to the Utah party for free drinks. Come to our party for good conversation and free food!
By now you know that Cara Finnegan and Kevin Barge will be here Sunday and Monday. You know as well that the department is hosting a happy hour at Equinox 4:30-6:30 (see attached agenda and the revised six year review document). And several have you have told me that is the time of the Super Bowl. As I like to say: we all have to make choices!
Here is another cool choice you can make. Join ACT for a screening of TransMilitary at the Lyric February 7, 6:30 pm. This is the launch of ACT Year Round series. We will show the film, of course, and have a conversation with folks who can speak directly to transgender issues in the military. A hauntingly relevant film and conversation with the recent Supreme Court decision.
Many of you have turned in annual evaluation materials. Committees are hard at work reading the materials with an eye to providing constructive feedback.
I want to think you all for putting those materials together. I know what a pain it is to do this. I have to do the same and have attached my documents to this email.
Faculty and staff you will soon receive an email from Eliza with a link to a Qualtrics survey to evaluate my performance for this past year. I am looking forward to learning from you how I can be a better chair and to set meaningful goals for the rest of CY 19.
I think that is what’s on my mind for this week. A mercifully short email for this week!
I hope all of you have a wonderful weekend. I foresee some bread baking, some hanging with friends and colleagues at a variety of events. And some petting of Panda.