News Archive
Thursday, April 30 2009
News
Jackson
Jackson named ISU wrestling coach
Former Olympic gold medalist and two-time World Champion Kevin Jackson has been named Iowa State's head wrestling coach. Jackson captained the Cyclones' NCAA championship wrestling team in 1987.
Geoffroy outlines plans to handle cuts; Extension to restructure
ISU President Gregory Geoffroy outlined plans to handle a $38.3 million reduction in FY10 state appropriations to Iowa State during an April 30 Board of Regents meeting in Cedar Falls. An estimated $31.5 million in one-time federal stimulus dollars will help offset some of the budget reduction plans, temporarily. Cost-cutting measures will include eliminating some positions and leaving others vacant, increasing class sizes and closing some class sections, trimming journal and book budgets, reducing summer course offerings and restructuring ISU Extension. County Extension director positions and area director positions will be eliminated, and 20 regional positions will be created.
Geoffroy outlines budget plans | Budget presentation to the board (PowerPoint) | ISU Extension plans to restructure
Regents approve ISU faculty promotion, tenure list
Seventy one ISU faculty were on the list of promotion/tenure awards approved by the state Board of Regents April 30.
Summer commencement this August will be the last
Iowa State's last summer commencement ceremony will be held Aug. 8. Like many universities around the country, Iowa State will phase out the summer ceremony, which draws fewer graduates than the spring and fall ceremonies.
Nutrition and Wellness Research Center symposium to address vaccines, immunity
Research frontiers in vaccines and the immune system will be the focus of the third annual symposium by Iowa State University's Nutrition and Wellness Research Center (NWRC). Also sponsored by Iowa State's Office of Biotechnology, Plant Sciences Institute and Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc., the symposium is Monday-Tuesday, May 18-19, at the Gateway Hotel and Conference Center.
Pigs, people may soon eat their way to swine flu resistance, say ISU researchers
Iowa State University researchers are putting swine vaccines into the genetic makeup of corn, which may someday allow pigs and humans to get a swine flu vaccination simply by eating corn or corn products.
No flu at ISU; officials continue to monitor
Iowa State University officials continue to carefully monitor the spread of the contagious H1N1 virus, also known as swine flu. There are no confirmed cases in Iowa at this time, but the university is taking the situation seriously and encourages community members to take basic precautions to protect their health.
ISU study finds link between individual stress and teens being overweight or obese
A new Iowa State study of 1,011 adolescents (aged 10-15) and their mothers from low income families living in three cities found that increased levels of stress in adolescents are associated with a greater likelihood of them being overweight or obese. Led by Brenda Lohman, an assistant professor of human development and family studies, the study was posted online Monday by the Journal of Adolescent Health.
ISU officials monitor swine flu outbreak
In an April 27 press release, the Iowa Dept. of Public Health (IDPH) urges Iowans and health care providers to be on alert for swine influenza in humans. No cases of swine flu have been identified in Iowa; however, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has confirmed cases of the disease in several U.S. states.
'Dinosaurs and other Common Garden Pests' opens at Reiman Gardens May 1; special preview April 30
Full-scale dinosaur sculptures are part of a Reiman Gardens exhibit that runs May 1 through July 24. An April 30 preview party features live music and exhibit creator Guy Darrough.
ISU's solar decathlon team partners with DMACC program
Iowa State University's solar decathletes are teaming up with the Architectural Millwork Program at Des Moines Area Community College in Ankeny to build cabinetry for the Interlock House -- ISU's entry into the U.S. Department of Energy's 2009 Solar Decathlon competition. The DMACC class will donate labor and ISU will pay for materials for the kitchen and bedroom cabinetry.
ISU Dance Team takes 8th at nationals
Iowa State's Dance Team scored its highest-ever point total and best finish at a national dance competition at the recent NCA/NDA College National Competition in Daytona Beach, Fla.
Ceremony held for Raisbeck Endowed Dean position
ISU College of Business Dean Labh Hira was installed as the Raisbeck Endowed Dean in a ceremony held Friday, April 17, in the Memorial Union's Great Hall. The endowed dean position was established thanks to a $3 million commitment from Dave and Ellen Raisbeck from Shorewood, Minn.
Agriculture, statistics, chemistry and engineering grad programs rank high
Agricultural engineering, statistics and analytical chemistry are Iowa State University's top-ranked programs in the latest rankings of graduate programs by U.S. News & World Report magazine.
Iowa State class creates a memory care garden for Alzheimer's patients in Ackley
For the past three months, students in Bridget Belkacemi's landscape architecture studio class at Iowa State University worked with staff at the Presbyterian Village in Ackley to design and create a therapeutic garden for the facility's newest wing--the dementia care unit. Students carefully chose each element to elicit soothing memories of childhood in a German farming community in Iowa--from a clothesline and hand pump to corn plants and lilacs.
2008 graduate
Spring commencement is May 8-9
Spring commencement events are set for May 8-9. An anticipated 3,043 students will receive degrees from Iowa State at one of three ceremonies.
Relive Veishea 2009 through panoramas
Panoramas of the April 18 Veishea parade and activities on central campus allow viewers to zoom in close enough to see faces in the crowd.
Lovebirds
If you're a hopeless romantic, be sure to check out the spring 2009 issue of VISIONS magazine -- it's all about finding love at Iowa State. Also in this issue are features on golfer Tyler Swanson's amazing recovery following a near-fatal car accident and art professor Chuck Richards' latest literary adventure. VISIONS is published by the ISU Alumni Association.
In the news
Same-sex ruling belies the staid image of Iowa
The New York Times
"People may think of us some other way," said Paul Lasley, a sociologist at Iowa State University, "but in the main, it is tolerance -- not always support, but tolerance -- that has really been the weave and warp of Iowa culture."
Study finds some youths 'addicted' to video games
Washington Post
In what is described as the first nationally representative study in the United States on the subject, researcher Douglas Gentile of Iowa State University found that 8.5 percent of American youths ages 8 to 18 who play video games show multiple signs of behavioral addiction.