A Quarterly Newsletter

Dance artist Katie Diamond to perform at ETSU

Internationally renowned modern dance artist Katie Diamond will perform the works of legendary American modern dance choreographers José Limón and Anna Sokolow. Diamond’s performance is scheduled for Sunday, September 20, 2009, at 2:00 p.m. in the Bud Frank Theatre, Gilbreath Hall.

Diamond earned a bachelor of fine arts degree in dance performance and choreography from California Institute of the Arts in 2003, after spending a semester at London Contemporary Dance School on a full scholarship. In 2005, Diamond joined the Limón Dance Company, with which she has traveled nationally and internationally, and danced the works of Lar Lubovitch, Doris Humphrey, Anna Sokolow, Jirí Kylián, Jonathan Riedel, and Jose Limón.

During 2007, Diamond was delighted to join the cast of "The Moor's Pavane," Limón's signature piece, dancing the role of Desdemona. Diamond enjoys teaching Limón technique at the Limón Institute, as well as teaching ballet and reconstructing Limón works at the annual Limón Summer Workshop and various arts high schools and universities across the country.

Diamond’s early training included performing the works of George Balanchine with the Contra Costa Ballet and studying on scholarship at the Joffrey Ballet School, and dancing one season with the Albany Berkshire Ballet. Other than her work with the Limón Company, Diamond has enjoyed performing at Lincoln Center with the Metropolitan Opera Ballet and in projects with various independent artists including Patricia N. Nanon in Martha's Vineyard at The Yard. She also will be performing with the Mark Morris Dance Group this coming winter in Morris' critically acclaimed “The Hard Nut.” She spent three years working at Eliot Feld's Ballet Tech, and has a love for children, film, hiking, yoga, and studying the Spanish language.

The Diamond performance is sponsored by ETSU Mountain Movers Dance Company, Department of Theatre and Dance, and Women’s Resource Center. For more information, contact Mountain Movers Dance Company at 423-439-7043 or the Women’s Resource Center at 423-439-7847.

Some article contents adapted from California Institute of the Arts web site at http://calarts.edu/dance/notablealumni and from The Martha’s Vineyard TIMES web site at http://www.mvtimes.com/calendar/2007/06/28/dance_the_yard.php. Photo courtesy of Scott Groller, photographer.

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Tim Wise to speak at ETSU

Tim Wise is among the most prominent anti-racist writers and activists in the U.S., and has been called, “One of the most brilliant, articulate and courageous critics of white privilege in the nation,” by best-selling author and professor Michael Eric Dyson, of Georgetown University.

As part of the Think. Live. Respect. campaign, the East Tennessee State University Race Relations Dialogue Task Force will welcome prominent anti-racist activist, trainer, and educator Wise to campus for “But Some of My Best Friends and My President are Black! Challenging Racism in the Age of Obama,” on Tuesday, September 22, 2009, at 7:00 p.m. Location is the Martha Culp Auditorium, D.P. Culp University Center. The Wise lecture is free, but a ticket will be required. Information regarding ticket distribution is located at the end of the article.

Wise has spoken in 48 states, and on over 400 college campuses, including Harvard, Stanford, and the Law Schools at Yale and Columbia, and has spoken to community groups around the nation. He has also trained corporate, government, entertainment, military and law enforcement officials on methods for dismantling racism in their institutions.

Wise is the 2008 Oliver L. Brown Distinguished Visiting Scholar for Diversity Issues at Washburn University, in Topeka, Kansas, an honor named for the lead plaintiff in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision. During 2005, Wise served as an adjunct faculty member at the Smith College School for Social Work, in Northampton, Massachusetts, where he co-taught a master's level class on Racism in the U.S. In 2001, Wise trained journalists to eliminate racial bias in reporting, as a visiting faculty-in-residence at the Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Florida; in 2005 and 2006, Wise provided training on issues of racial privilege and institutional bias at the Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute (DEOMI), at Patrick Air Force Base.

Wise is the author of White Like Me: Reflections on Race from a Privileged Son, and Affirmative Action: Racial Preference in Black and White. A collection of his essays, Speaking Treason Fluently: Anti-Racist Reflections From an Angry White Male, was published in the fall of 2008, and his fourth book, Between Barack and a Hard Place: Race and Whiteness in the Age of Obama, was released in spring 2009. He has contributed chapters or essays to twenty books, and is one of several persons featured in White Men Challenging Racism: Thirty-Five Personal Stories, from Duke University Press. He received the 2001 British Diversity Award for best essay on race issues, and his writings have appeared in dozens of popular, professional and scholarly journals. Wise has been a guest on hundreds of radio and television programs, worldwide.

Wise obtained his bachelor of arts in political science from Tulane University, where his anti-apartheid work received global attention and the thanks of Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. He received training in methods for dismantling racism from the People's Institute for Survival and Beyond, in New Orleans. Wise and his wife Kristy are the proud parents of two daughters.

Tickets will be distributed in Atrium Booth 2 on the second floor of the D.P. Culp University Center. Distribution for students only will begin Tuesday and Wednesday, September 8-9, from 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Only one ticket will be distributed to each student, and an ETSU ID is required.

Faculty, staff, and students can obtain a ticket on Thursday and Friday, September 10-11, from 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Again, an ETSU ID is required and there will be a limit of one ticket per person.

Distribution will continue on September 15, 16, 17, and 18, for the general public, faculty, staff, and students. As many as four tickets per person will be available. Any remaining tickets will be released on Tuesday, September 22, from the Information Services Desk, second floor, D.P. Culp University Center beginning at 10:00 a.m. until the time of the lecture.

The event is sponsored by a number of ETSU colleges, departments and groups, including the Office of the President, College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Art and Design, Office of Housing and Residence Life, Department of Physical Therapy, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Division of Academic Affairs, Division of Health Sciences, Division of Student Affairs, ETSU 1000: University Seminar, Office of Equity and Diversity, Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life, Office of Multicultural Affairs, Honors College, Student Government Association B.U.C. Fund, Women’s Resource Center, and Women’s Studies Program. For more information, or to request special accommodations, call the Office of Student Affairs at 423-439-4210.

Some article contents adapted from Tim Wise web site at http://www.timwise.org/.

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Murray and Wheeler to conduct
personal enrichment workshops

Pam Murray, B.A., M.B.A., local artist and creative coach, returns to campus during Fall Semester 2009 to conduct a multi-part series entitled “Journey to the Soul through Collaging.” A dynamic, enjoyable, imaginative way to bring out and find out about the real you that is often lying dormant or buried just beneath the surface, themed collaging can bring out the Ah Ha! moments and awaken the deep-rooted self. Murray’s fall 2009 multi-part series will focus on purpose, soul/spirituality, and body/health themes.

Scheduled for Tuesday, September 15; Monday, September 21; Thursday, September 24; Wednesday, September 30; and Tuesday, October 6; all sessions will be held at the Women’s Resource Center, Ross Hall (formerly Panhellenic Hall), basement suite 2, at noon. Reservations are required. Participants registering for this multi-part series will select three dates from the schedule above. Then on Tuesday, October 13, the series culminates in a reflection and discussion session. All participants will meet on October 13. To reserve a space or should you need additional information, contact the Women’s Resource Center at 423-439-7847.

How would you like to get more out of life? How would you like to have your life exactly the way you want it? How would you like to be living more in harmony with all your relationships – with yourself, with others and with the world around you? Then join Kaleo Wheeler, C.M.P., for “The Whole-Hearted Woman.”

Wheeler, owner of HeartFull Connections, is guest speaker for an informal and interactive dialogue from the Hawaiian tradition. She will discuss issues relating to all areas of our life – personal, home, business and being more active and successful in your community. Drawing from a natural, gentle tradition that is about living in harmony with all your relationships and incorporates forgiveness, gratitude and blessing as a way of life, Wheeler will help you develop and enhance your life by sharing some straightforward and constructive ideas and techniques to begin to bring together all the pieces of your life to manage it and your relationships more simply and easily.

The Wheeler Personal Enrichment Seminar is scheduled for Tuesday, November 3, 2009, at noon. Location is the East Tennessee Room, D. P. Culp University Center. For more information, contact the Women’s Resource Center at 423-439-7847.

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Women’s Health Series – Fall 2009

Karen Feeley, D.C., of Wellness Way Chiropractic located in Blountville, Tenn., returns to the ETSU campus during Fall Semester 2009 as guest speaker for “How Sweet Is It Really?” Scheduled for Tuesday, October 27, 2009, at noon, location for the Feeley seminar is the East Tennessee Room, D.P. Culp University Center.

More than ever, people are consuming large amounts of sugar as part of their daily diet. But in excess, sugar can take its toll. So many people opt for artificial sweeteners — also referred to as sugar substitutes or low-calorie sweeteners — as a way to enjoy their favorite foods without as many calories. And we know that people with diabetes may use artificial sweeteners because they make food taste sweet without raising blood sugar levels. Feeley’s discussion will focus on the potential health risk of using artificial sweeteners, the importance of reducing or even eliminating sugar from your diet, and will cover alternative low glycemic sweeteners for those who experience sugar handling challenges.

For more information on the Feeley Women’s Health Series Lunch Break Seminar, contact the Women’s Resource Center at 423-439-7847.

 

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Saluting the Women of ETSU

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2009 Distinguished Faculty Awards

East Tennessee State University bestowed two of its highest honors upon Jamie Branam Kridler, Ph.D., and Amber E. Kinser, Ph.D., with the presentation of the 2009 Distinguished Faculty Awards for Teaching and Service on Friday, August 28, 2009. Both women were nominated and selected by their faculty peers and each received a medallion, a plaque and a $5,000 check during Faculty Convocation, an annual event that marks the beginning of the new academic year and fall semester.

Jamie Branam Kridler, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of Human Development and Learning within the Claudius G. Clemmer College of Education, received the Distinguished Faculty Award in Teaching. She also holds faculty status in the university’s Women’s Studies program.

An expert in family and community work, Kridler is especially known for her efforts in the prevention of youth violence, and she serves as a listed Rule 31 Family Mediator with the Administrative Offices of the Tennessee Supreme Court. As the result of domestic legislation that was implemented by the courts, families with minor children who are having difficulty resolving parenting issues must attend mediation. In her role as mediator, Kridler uses her knowledge to facilitate decision-making processes with these families.

Kridler’s recent teaching experiences include courses such as “Youth Violence: Intervention to Prevention,” “Child, Family, Community Relationships” and “Introduction to Women’s Studies.” One of the most frequently requested advisers in her current program, Kridler has revised a number of courses transferred from the former Department of Family and Consumer Sciences. She has modified or created several Human Development and Learning offerings and is program coordinator for “Foundations in Human Development and Learning,” the largest and most diverse program in the department.

Kridler received her Ph.D. in human ecology from The Ohio State University, both a master’s degree in textile science and a bachelor’s degree in design and merchandising from the University of Tennessee, and a diploma from the Bauder Fashion College in Atlanta.

Amber E. Kinser, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Department of Communication and director of Women’s Studies, received the Distinguished Faculty Award in Service.

Under Kinser’s leadership, ETSU’s Women’s Studies grew from “a struggling program with a handful of minors” in 2000 to a thriving unit boasting a Bachelor of Arts degree with 14 majors and 26 minors in the spring of 2009, with its first graduates receiving degrees in the 2008-09 academic year. Her nomination pointed out that Women’s Studies is an interdisciplinary effort, with Kinser “coordinating approximately 25 course offerings each year, almost all of which are housed in other units.”

Kinser also has worked extensively on campus-wide gender and diversity efforts, which led to her selection as a 2003 recipient of ETSU’s Patricia E. Robertson Diversity Leadership Award. She chaired the first ETSU Diversity Infusion Conference on Curriculum in 2008, served as a member of the Commission for Women Standing Committee and Commission for Women Recommendations Implementation Task Force, and worked as a Campus Diversity Educator.

Kinser was instrumental in developing the “Notable Women of ETSU” series, which honors key women at the university, allowing them “to share their areas of expertise and the journey that led them there.” Dr. Wilsie Bishop, ETSU vice president for Health Affairs and university chief operating officer, notes that the “Notable Women” series “has positively advanced the image and status of women on campus. . . . The significance of this series is that it goes beyond mere recognition by having these notable women lead a colloquium for the exchange of ideas, presentation of research, and sharing of goals and visions.”

Kinser’s other campus involvement includes membership on the Campus Advocates Against Sexual Violence advisory board, co-facilitating such programs as “Take Back the Night,” and coordinating Women’s History Month activities.

In her profession, Kinser has been an executive officer of the Organization for the Study of Communication, Language and Gender, which presented her with its 2004 Outstanding Teacher-Mentor Award, and a member of the National Women’s Studies Association, in which her involvement included service on the advisory and governing councils.

Kinser holds a B.A. in speech communication and an M.A. in human communication from the University of South Florida and a Ph.D. in human communication from Purdue University. Before coming to ETSU as an assistant professor in 1997, she was a visiting lecturer in communication at Indiana University-Kokomo.

Kinser is the editor of Mothering in the Third Wave (2008, Demeter Press) and the author of articles and book reviews published in numerous journals and anthologies. Her works in progress include a book, Motherhood and Feminism, which is projected for publication in the spring of 2010.

Article adapted from staff reports prepared by the Office of University Relations at East Tennessee State University at http://www.etsu.edu/etsu/news.asp.
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