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After nearly 40 years of growth, the Department of Fine Arts, which survived an early period of holding classes in a maintenance garage on the edge of campus, is now ready to expand again and demonstrate the quality of work its students are producing. Fine arts, a part of the School of Arts & Letters, became two academic units — the Department of Visual Arts and the Department of Performing Arts — in March. The renovation of West Main Hall this past summer and a subsequent move by the majority of the visual arts courses to that building preceded the split and helped to further define the strong programming within the fine arts department. "Both sides — the visual arts and the performing arts — are growing so quickly and there are different needs," Dr. Pam Sachant, the department head for visual arts, said. "There is some overlap, but there are also very distinct needs. We needed to be independent at this point." The newly formed Department of Visual Arts, which has 155 art and art education majors, will first add a minor in graphic design, expected to start in August pending Board of Regents approval. Faculty members also are writing grants to fund projects ranging from mobile art studios to documentaries. Applying for program accreditation through the National Association of Schools of Art and Design, developing a graphic design shop to bring work experience to students and creating an art advisory board for community collaboration are all on the horizon. Sachant recognizes the importance of continuing the vision started by Bob Owens, North Georgia's art pioneer and first department head. Sachant plans to sharpen the curriculum of many programs Owens fostered in the 1970s, including art marketing, studio art and art education, which will now be taught exclusively in the department. An art fund was started by Hal and Elizabeth Rhodes through the NGCSU Foundation before Owens' death in 2004 in hopes of endowing a faculty position in his name. "We still consider a major part of our mission a continuation of what Bob Owens began, a respect for the heritage of this region, and our commitment to teaching students to be skilled in their art and to be prepared for the broader profession," Sachant said.
While faculty members in the visual arts are harnessing their new creative energy, their counterparts in the new Department of Performing Arts are also making ambitious plans. Andy David, department head, is proposing the inclusion of a number of non-Western music courses for the 85 music and music education majors and new music courses for the core curriculum in an effort to bring the department more in line with other professional music programs. A new Master of Music degree program is slated to start summer semester, after BOR approval, and a consultant from the National Association of Schools of Music will visit in May to begin the department's work toward full accreditation. "I'm committed specifically to increase offerings in non-Western music," David said. "With the study and nature of music in the 21st century, a music education that includes only traditional Western music isn't adequate." The department also plans to enhance the student experience by catering to its core music and vocal groups. Performing arts will place an emphasis on seeking increased public and private funding for musical tours and other performance opportunities in and outside Georgia. "When we tour, it provides an educational, cultural and esthetical experience," Dr. John Broman, director of choral activities, said. "We are in the teaching business and [touring] helps us accomplish what we set out to do as teachers. Performing is an important part to the total growth of the student." The expansion in the arts is not in name alone, as new renovated learning spaces have boosted morale and become second homes for art students to produce their best work. The Nix Mountain Cultural Center is becoming a dedicated facility for performing artists and the hallways of West Main Hall's second floor, lined with paintings, textiles and various mixed-media art, showcase the work of the art majors who have taken up residence there. This semester marks the beginning of a new chapter for the
university's burgeoning art community, energized with the same spirit possessed
by those willing to learn in a vacant garage, and ready to inspire a future
generation of artists.
New opportunities for leadership development among faculty and staff are taking place this semester through various workshops and Coffee Talks, informal gatherings focused on community building and increased leadership dialogue. As part of a continuing initiative to enhance the university's leadership curriculum, the workshops and seminars focus on faculty development and allow teaching faculty an opportunity to more fully integrate defined leadership components or projects in their courses. The activities also serve to engage a wider cross section of the professional campus community so that members may identify their role in the university's Leadership Initiative. Many of the activities have taken place through the Center of Teaching and Learning Excellence, which has become a resource for helping develop an education process that centers on the roles and dynamics of leadership. Dr. Michele Hill, a professor of psychology and lead faculty member in developing the university's leadership curriculum, presented one of CTLE's most recent seminars, which focused on teambuilding and the process of identifying and managing interpersonal dynamics, a central component in building effective teams. Part of teambuilding, Hill said, is creating a sense of belonging where "individuals develop a niche or fill a space that's useful, mistakes are okay, communication is open and things can change." One of the highlights of the seminar was when Hill introduced the Keirsey personality profile, which allows individuals to get an introspective look at their personality type and how it influences group dynamics. "For me, creating a culture that embraces leadership includes teambuilding, mediation training, conflict resolution, personality profiling, triaging crises in the moment, facilitating dialogues and a host of other activities," Hill said. "They are all related to leadership, and the word isn't just thrown around." For Hill's work, leadership development has real implications. She is at the forefront in developing leadership components for the core curriculum and establishing student leadership roles that can sustain the core courses that all undergraduates must take. She is the program director of this year's Regional Leadership Conference, taking place April 2-4. Another recent seminar called Invisible Rules, from researcher Pat Heim, focused on how some social norms are perceived differently between men and women. Attendants learned that unspoken rules about what is considered appropriate adult behavior sometimes exist between the sexes, and the discussion attempted to identify these rules. "The purpose was to give people an awareness of the differences in genders, ones that we're not necessarily aware of," Jane O'Gorman, director of Continuing Education and Coffee Talk presenter, said. "Awareness can bring change and better communication." Dr. Larry Berneking presented a fundamental topic in leadership development — mentoring educational leaders. Berneking, the graduate program coordinator for Teacher Education, discussed the roles of mentors and their essential nature in facilitating successful organizations. In quoting Jim Collins' book, "From Good to Great," Berneking said that the most successful organizations train people to step into leadership roles. "Educational leaders in any school feel pressure because they are pulled in so many different directions," Berneking said. Mentors have to be willing to be in a relationship where they are vested in the professional development of those they are mentoring, he said. Berneking was part of a Board of Regents and Georgia Performance Standards Commission team that designed new guidelines for the selection of mentors for educational leadership certification programs. With the new rules being implemented in September, teachers will now have mentors that are approved by their school superintendents in order to facilitate better leadership development in the public education system. The next leadership seminar will be Dr. Mark Jordan's "Full Range Leadership Model." The professor of management will explain what tools leaders need to help their employees move from resistance or compliance to internalization of the organization mission and vision. Other opportunities for leadership training and discussion at North Georgia are available this semester through the CTLE and a continuing Coffee Talk series, which is open to the entire campus community. For more information, contact the CTLE at 706-864-1862 or go online to apache.northgeorgia.edu/ctle for a full schedule of seminars and workshops.
Don't
you wish you had a V8?
Just-in-Time teaching promotes
active learning The JiTT method involves a three-step process to promote active learning and conceptual understanding by first introducing the concepts to students through the text, then compelling the students to critically reflect on the material and write about the concepts in their own words. The class discussion that follows helps the students to eradicate their previous misconceptions and learn how to apply the concepts to a group problem to see how the concept is useful in real life, outside of the classroom. To learn more about employing this technique in your classes, join Dr. Sarah Formica, of the physics department, for two sessions scheduled in the Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence this week. The first is March 26, 3-4:30 p.m.; the second is March 27, 2-3:30 p.m.
At 6 that
evening, the panel, comprised of
career U.S. Army officers, will
hold an open forum in the Gloria
Shott Performance Hall. As part
of the forum, which is open to
the entire campus and the
community, the panel will
introduce four topics and engage
in discussion and a
question-and-answer session with
the audience.
Choral
groups return from UK, local
concerts planned
Senior Class
BBQ
—
April 8
Legislative Update highlights budget
news
July 4
Holiday change
Summer
schedule, ADP conversion to impact
summer paydates
North
Georgia group explores AT
North Georgia students spend break presenting
math research at BYU
Nisbet and Crunkleton, who
worked under the advisement of Dr. Brad Bailey,
presented "Cutting Numbers and Vertex Attrition of
Simple Connected Graphs." Peck and Prill, who worked
under the advisement of Dr. John Holliday, presented
"Clustering Coefficients of Graphs and a New Model
for the Clustering Coefficient." In addition to presenting their own research, the students attended informative and entertaining invited addresses, including one on Sudoku puzzles and another on symmetry and art in mathematics. The students also attended a panel on graduate school and enjoyed presentations on topics of mathematical biology, applied math, knot theory, and more.
During their one of their
longer breaks, the students hiked to the "Y", a
large stone and concrete Y placed on the side of a
mountain near Provo. The hike to the "Y" was one of
several opportunities the students had to interact
with other undergraduates engaged in research at
institutions across the country.
Photo: North Georgia students — Josh Crunkleton,
Dusti Nisbet and Amanda Peck — hiked to the "Y"
while attending a math and undergraduate research
conference held at BYU during spring break.
North Georgia faculty receive DOE grant
Gooden joins institutional research staff
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