A Message from the Dean 
   
The fall semester has started with all of the energy and excitement that comes when our students are on campus engaged with faculty and staff in the dissemination and generation of knowledge. This is why we are here! And that sense of renewal, enthusiasm, and optimism is contagious and is what keeps us all coming back for more. It reminds me of when I was an undergraduate, and what a privilege it is to have that same feeling every year.
 
This fall has also been particularly fun-filled as we bring to fruition the modernization and expansion of the Creative Arts Center. Many areas are now complete - and stunning, by the way! - with a few other areas still in the finishing stages. We are celebrating the CAC completion with a number of year-long Destination Art events showcasing the CAC as a community destination for the arts with events geared toward each area's own community, donors, and friends.
 
The New Media Incubator held their official Open House last month, and we are so pleased with this collaboration between the Department of Communication and the Motion Pictures Program. The NMI is a collaborative, think-tank space for our creative media students, faculty, and community to engage in envisioning the media of the future. This fall will see Conversations@theINC which is a series of talks by visiting speakers from the local media, and Happenings@theINC which are special events where students can share their work and get feedback.
 
We were also excited to inaugurate the Robert and Elaine Stein Galleries in their new location with a champagne toast for our donors, friends, and community. I truly recommend a visit to this new space that displays our world-class contemporary art collection. The galleries now feature five airy, light-filled gallery spaces where visitors can enjoy rotating exhibitions and the permanent Stein Collection Gallery including works by Chagall, Gauguin, Renoir, Dali, Warhol, and Rothko. Coming in February the gallery will expand with the Sol LeWitt Installation.

 
Dean Emeritus Charles Taylor, Dean Kristin Sobolik,  
Mike Kolendo, Cindy Stein, Angelia Hopkins, President David Hopkins 

Upcoming Destination Art events include Dance Parties for our student and dorm population, ArtsFair for the younger set, and our Donor Appreciation Reception to be held in the Creative Arts Center in just a few weeks. I hope to see you at some of our events so you can help us celebrate!
KSO signature
Kristin Sobolik
Dean, College of Liberal Arts

CoLA Faculty and Staff Receive University Recognition

Congratulations to CoLA faculty and staff who have been honored with prestigious, University-level awards for their outstanding achievements! 

 
December Green 
Political Science 
Trustees' Award for Faculty Excellence 
Carol Loranger 
English 
Frederick A. White
Distinguished Professor of Professional Service Award
 
 
Christopher Oldstone-Moore 
History 
Presidential Award for
Outstanding Lecturer 
 
Sally Lamping 
English 
Outstanding Presidential Community Engagement Award 

ARTSGALA Internal Committee Receives Presidential Award

Kudos to the ARTSGALA Internal Committee for receiving the President's Award for Excellence for Outstanding Collaborative Unit.  ARTS GALA is a hugely successful, highly entertaining and awe-inspiring event that raises critical scholarship support for our amazing fine and performing arts students.  To date ARTSGALA has raised over $2.2 million for scholarships, and this success would not have been possible without the ARTSGALA Internal Committee.

Front row: Vicki Oleen, Nancy Patton, Dean Kristin Sobolik,  
Hank Dahlman, Julie Bertsos.  Back row: Lee Ann Bradfield,  
Jennie Buckwalter, Glen Cebulash, Stuart McDowell, Steve Aldredge,  
Randy Paul, Andrea Wall, Susan See, Linda Caron.  
Not pictured: Tess Cort és, Susan Paul  
  
CELIA Earns Kim Goldenberg Quest for Community Award
 
Congratulations to CELIA, our Center of Excellence in the Arts, for receiving this year's Kim Goldenberg Quest for Community Award, an honor given to the campus unit or organization that demonstrates commitment to and success in the enhancement of the campus climate for diversity. CELIA, with its thought-provoking programming that integrates humanities and social science research with the creative arts, is a wonderful choice for this award.  
 
Dean Kristin Sobolik, Shelley Goldenberg,
Former President Kim Goldenberg, Stephanie Dickey,
Carol Mejia-LaPerle, Sharon Lynette Jones, Hank Dahlman
 
Dean Kristin Sobolik Receives Women of Distinction Award

Kristin Sobolik was selected for a 2016 Women of Distinction award from the Girl Scouts of Western Ohio.  She was honored with a S.T.E.A.M. award for her leadership in promoting and advocating for the advancement and recognition of women in science, technology, engineering, arts and math careers.


Pictured left to right, the 2016 Women of Distinction: Cynthia Jackson-Hammond, Central State University; Kristin Sobolik, Wright State University; Jo Alice Blondin, Clark State Community College, Deborah Feldman, Dayton Children's Hospital.  Not pictured: Rita Kellar, Kellar Advisors, LLC.
 
CoLA Celebrates Its Outstanding Alumni

The College of Liberal Arts recognized 20 amazing graduates at its annual Outstanding Alumni Recognition Ceremony and Reunion on September 30. The honorees had the opportunity to reconnect with faculty and share their most memorable Wright State experiences. Past Outstanding Alumni honorees were also recognized. 
Ann Weisgarber Named Alumna of the Year

Ann Weisgarber, a 1976 graduate of Social Work, received the 2016 Alumna of the Year Award at this year's Alumni Achievement Awards Ceremony hosted by the Wright State Alumni Association.  When Ann enrolled at Wright State, there were only six buildings but the opportunities were boundless. She discovered liberal arts and majored in social work.  Many years later, inspired by a visit to Badlands National Park and remembering that a Wright State English Composition instructor told her she was a good writer, Ann wrote a novel about a ranch family in the Badlands. The Personal History of Rachel DuPree was nominated for several international awards, won prizes in the United States, and has been optioned for film. Ann's second novel, The Promise, has been published in eight languages and nominated for international and national prizes. Weisgarber credits her Wright State education with helping her excel as a novelist.

Wine Wizard Dean Emeritus Charles Taylor

Retired dean of CoLA Charles Taylor takes great comfort in his Ports, Bordeaux, Riojas and other fine European wines as he eases into the retirement years. But he is also tapping into his vast knowledge of wine and philosophy to do some work - producing stories for The World of Fine Wine, a prestigious journal published in England. "If you would have asked me when I retired if I expected to be writing, I'm pretty sure I would have said, 'No,'" said Taylor. "It just sort of came out. After I got started, I found I really enjoyed doing it."

Read more>> 

Honoring A Sister's Memory Through Scholarship

The Fish sisters - Gerry, Kathy, Betsy, and Sue - cut a high profile when they were at Wright State in the 1970s and were heavily involved in campus activities. The sisters would go on to graduate and make their mark in the world. But tragically, Gerry died in 2004 at age 55 after battling a rare form of cancer. Her three sisters decided to establish the Fish Sisters Legacy Scholarship dedicated to Gerry as part of a Wright State Alumni Association endowment program. Those in the immediate family of Wright State alumni - spouse, child, legal dependent, stepchild or grandchild - may apply to the endowment for tuition assistance. Kathy (Fish) Arquilla, who majored in sociology and currently serves on the CoLA Dean's Leadership Board, said Gerry had a big heart and especially loved working with the elderly. The sisters said establishing the scholarship in Gerry's name is a way for them to give back to the university that touched them deeply. 
 
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Story on Beards Hits CBS Sunday Morning

His book on the history of beards has made a big splash in the media. But the highlight for Christopher Oldstone-Moore came when a crew from CBS Sunday Morning appeared on his campus doorstep. The history senior lecturer and researcher spent several hours on June 13 being interviewed by a correspondent and producer of the show. His book - Of Beards and Men: The Revealing History of Facial Hair - grew out of his teaching and his desire to make his classes interesting, visual, and including cultural history. "Oftentimes, journalists, cultural commentators haven't really taken beards very seriously. You'll see trend pieces or fashion pieces about men with beards," said Anthony Laudate, producer of CBS Sunday Morning. "It was amazing to read the book and see Professor Oldstone-Moore really take beards seriously and dive in to the history of how men have worn their hair and really find significance in it."

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Handmade Lesson

It was a class project using 3-D printers to make artificial hands for children in need. But it was even more than that. The students were also learning how to gather information and then marry words, images, and sounds to communicate it. The special topic Digital Rhetoric class was taught by assistant professor of English and Communication Ashley Hall, who has been teaching writing for a number of years. She said her students became deeply and emotionally invested in the project. Scott Hannah, a senior mass communication major, helped build the hands, printing off different parts and then assembling the pieces with printed pins or screws. "It was definitely a process, and it did take time," said Hannah. "But it was also really exciting because we did this all for an amazing cause."

Read more>>  

Mark Your Calendar - Exciting Upcoming Events

Encountering Shakespeare - October 20-22, 2016
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Student Union

A conference on historical, cultural, textual, and virtual encounters. This event also features teaching workshops by the professional actors of Canada's Stratford Theatre Festival, the largest classical theatre repertoire in North America, and the Shakespeare Gala: An innovative soir
ée blending Shakespeare-inspired artistic encounters including opera, orchestra, period dancing, choral music, musical theatre, and dramatic performance.  Visit the website for more details.
 
The Sultans of Swing Flapper Ball - October 29, 2016
6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., Memorial Hall, Downtown Dayton

The Sultans of Swing Flapper Ball will be held at historic Memorial Hall in downtown Dayton. The capstone event to CELIA's year-long The Sultans of Swing: 100 Years of Baseball, Jazz, and Short Fiction project, this evening will feature music, dancing, and literary readings from the first decades of the Twentieth Century. Put on your best 1920s garb and plan to dance the Charleston and the Lindy, listen to jazz music, and hear Hughes, Lardner, and Parker, among other American writers from the period. Visit the website for more details. 

ArtsFair - December 3, 2016
9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., Creative Arts Center

ArtsFair is a fun and educational experience for art lovers of all ages, offering Wright State faculty, staff, students, retirees, graduates, and area families the chance to tap into their creative energy with our arts students and faculty. For just $5 per person, attendees will enjoy a light breakfast plus a full morning of arts entertainment, including hands-on, interactive learning experiences in a variety of fine and performing arts. For more information or to order your tickets online, visit our website.

ARTSGALA - April 8, 2017
6:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m., Creative Arts Center 

Please join us for the next ARTSGALA on April 8, 2017 as we celebrate the completion of the Creative Arts Center Modernization and Expansion with an amazing newly renovated Commons space and student performances that will inspire you!  All net proceeds from this event support much-needed arts scholarships.  For more information, visit our website

 


Barry Milligan
Outstanding Faculty Member

Nicole Richter
Outstanding Teaching Award

William Irvine
Outstanding Research Award

Hope Jennings
Outstanding Professional Service Award


Amy Hubbard
Outstanding Early Career Achievement Award


Andrew Strombeck
Outstanding Community Engagement Award


Christopher Oldstone-Moore
Outstanding Lecturer Award


Carin Benning
Outstanding Adjunct Award

Shirley Barber
Outstanding Staff Award





Mckenzie McQuown
President
Spanish


Joseph Panfile
Vice President
Public History


Tristina Allen
Public Administration


Caressa Brown
Urban Affairs


Thanh Dang
International Studies


Joann Houston
Crime & Justice Studies


Nick Lacey
Political Science


Mitchell Martini
International Studies


Emma Mattingly
Urban Affairs


Kayla Muncie
Social Science Education


David Person
Liberal Studies


Gabriel Riegle
Crime & Justice Studies


Elizabeth Sweeney
Social Work