It was a busy and blustery week. My video blog highlights the many guest lectures we hosted, an inspiring performance by Destiny Africa, our second Communi-Tea of the semester and much more. I look forward to seeing our SHU families on campus for our annual Family Weekend which will be jam-packed with events and activities.
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October 2018
President Petillo's Blog: October 19, 2018
It officially feels like autumn on campus. Some foliage is taking more time to change than others, but we certainly welcome the cool temperatures.
Congratulations to the speech-language pathology (SLP) program, which underwent a successful site visit for accreditation by the Council of Academic Accreditation in audiology and SLP this week. The site visitors not only reviewed the application, but examined a wide range of documents prepared for them, toured the Center for Healthcare Education and met with faculty members, students, community partners and senior staff to verify that all standards are understood and consistently adhered to. The site visit team congratulated the SLP program on the quality of its faculty, the innovation of its curriculum and the scope of its interprofessional educational opportunities, which it cited as a national model. Kudos to Rhea Paul, program director; Patricia Walker, dean of the College of Health Professions; and the staff and faculty for making this a successful visit.
The Farrington College of Education hosted “STEMtastic: An Elementary and Middle School STEM Extravaganza,” organized by education professor Bonnie Maur in partnership with the Connecticut Science Teachers Association and the Connecticut Science Supervisors Association last weekend. Teachers from school districts throughout Fairfield County joined forces with preservice teachers currently taking classes as both undergrad and graduate students along with elementary students who participate in our Horizons program to learn science, technology, engineering and math concepts as they relate to each other through a variety of inquiry-based learning experiences.
We were visited by an array of guest speakers and lecturers this week. The Farrington College of Education and the Department of Mathematics cohosted activist and author Abe Markman who spoke about social justice and his personal story on Monday. Later in the evening, students, faculty and staff gathered in the Edgerton to hear former *NSYNC member Lance Bass talk candidly about his life in a boy band, his time preparing for space exploration and his most recent creative projects. At the Center for Healthcare Education on Monday, we watched a live stream of Rita Charon, founder of Narrative Medicine, who presented the National Endowment for the Humanities’ 2018 Jefferson Lecture in the Humanities titled “To See the Suffering: The Humanities Have What Medicine Needs.” Guest speaker Stephen Pope of Boston College questioned whether love brings happiness at an event on Wednesday. The Cybersecurity Colloquia Series and Owl Cyber Defense presented the lecture “The Lock is the Key” with speaker Scott Coleman whose talk covered data diode cybersecurity.
Guitar Fest was Tuesday and Wednesday and, as always, it was an entertaining showcase. We heard the music of classical guitarist Terry Pazmiño as well as the Joe Carter Trio, which features our very own professor Joe Carter on guitar, bassist Harvie S and drummer Graciliano Zambonin.
The Farrington College of Education invited the community to get to know its faculty a little better during a pizza lunch with professors on Wednesday. Food does a good job of bringing people together.
Computer science professor Tolga Kaya welcomed students, faculty and staff to print T-shirts on manhole covers outside of Linda’s yesterday. Art professor Nathan Lewis instructed students on the technique at this creative event.
We are hosting graduate open houses Saturday and Sunday. Please give a warm welcome to the many young professionals looking to get their master’s and doctorate degrees at SHU.
Looking for something to do this weekend? SHU’s film and television master of fine arts program is partnering with the Ridgefield Independent Film Festival to celebrate independent films from around the world. For more information, click here. SHU’s choral programs present “Sing Out! A Concert Against Bullying Then and Now” on Saturday in the UC Auditorium. The concert tells the stories of those who have struggled with bullying. Student performers will share personal stories as well.
Today our field hockey team plays LIU Brooklyn at 7, and they battle Quinnipiac at 5 on Sunday. Our women’s ice hockey team faces Saint Anselm today at 7 and again tomorrow at 4 at Shelton’s Sports Center of Connecticut. Our men’s ice hockey team battles Providence tomorrow at 7 at the Webster Bank Arena. Our women’s soccer team plays Robert Morris at noon on Sunday, followed by the men’s soccer game against Bryant at 3. Go Pioneers!
Check out my social media pages for the latest SHU events.
Have a great weekend!
President Petillo’s Blog: October 12, 2018
We welcomed 1,300 guests to our Homecoming events last weekend, and it was a pleasure to see staff, faculty, students and alumni come together to celebrate SHU. I hope everyone had a great time.
Hundreds of potential Pioneers and their families visited campus on Monday for our second Open House of the semester. The weather held up as we showed groups around our facilities and answered their many questions.
Once again a packed house for Open House. Welcome future Pioneers. pic.twitter.com/VsNbbhgnKS
— Dr. P (@SHUprez) October 8, 2018
While students were off on Tuesday, faculty gathered for a day of professional development at another successful Faculty Institute. The institute’s theme, “Artificial Intelligence – Applications and Implications” allowed for many interesting workshop sessions and discussions.
Athletic Director Bobby Valentine participated in the New York City Columbus Day Parade on Monday as a past grand marshal. Our own SHU Band marched as well. The event celebrated Italian-American culture.
Board of Regents, faculty and staff from our Luxembourg campus visited SHU for a few days this week. The group attended the Faculty Institute, toured buildings and enjoyed nearby attractions. We hope they enjoyed their time here.
Representatives from colleges across New England came to SHU on Tuesday for the New England Association for College Admission Counseling Regional College Fair at the Pitt Center. This is the seventh year we have hosted the event, which allows high school students to get a glimpse of the many higher education institutions available to them.
We heard a number of enlightening discussions this week. Professor Grace Guo presented her paper “Self-Concept Orientation and Organizational Identification: A Mediated Relationship,” at the Jack Welch College of Business Sabbatical Presentation on Wednesday. Later on Wednesday, we heard Professors Gary Rose and Michael W. Higgins debate whether religion should have a place in the public forum. Dave Zirin, sports writer, Doug Glanville, author and former MLB player, and Howard Bryant, ESPN senior writer, were on campus Thursday to discuss “Sports, Race and the Media.”
The annual SHU Wellness & Health Fair was yesterday in the UC Auditorium. I hope our staff and faculty took advantage of the giveaways and health tips. Thanks to everyone who worked so hard to put such a great event together.
Faculty stopped by the Martire Center for the reception of The Center for Excellence and Innovation in Teaching. Open houses were held yesterday and today.
In recognition of the time and effort SHU’s Public Safety Department put into making the Countering Violent Extremism training a success, the FBI New Haven Field Office presented the group with a plaque this week. Great work.
Looking for something to do this weekend? It is your last chance to see the Theatre Arts Program production of As Bees in Honey Drown.
Our women’s soccer team faces Wagner today at 2. Our men’s ice hockey team plays Northeastern at the Webster Bank Arena at 7 tonight and again tomorrow at 7. Our women’s volleyball team battles Saint Francis U at 6 and faces Robert Morris tomorrow at 4. Our women’s rugby team plays New England tomorrow at 1. Let’s get out there and cheer them on! Good luck to all our student-athletes playing home and away.
Remember, tickets are still available to see Lance Bass at the Edgerton Center on Monday. Also on Monday, Rita Charon, founder of narrative medicine, will present “To See the Suffering: The Humanities Have What Medicine Needs.”
Catch up on the latest SHU happenings on my social media feed.
Have a great weekend.
President Petillo's Blog: October 5, 2018
It has been an interesting week that started with a power outage. Thank you to everyone for handling it so well and especially to our emergency personnel and staff for making sure students were safe.
Two teams of SHU faculty and staff ran in the Bigelow Tea Community Challenge 5K on Sunday. One team took first place and the other took third place. Professor “Jack” Jiang came in seventh overall with an astonishing pace of 6:17 per mile. It was the 23rd year track coach Christian Morrison provided support and student volunteers for the event.
Bigelow Challenge
SHU signed a memorandum of understanding this week with Pandit Deendayal Petroleum University (PDPU) in India that will enable students from PDPU to participate in a 2+2 undergraduate agreement. This builds on an earlier agreement signed in 2016 that led to the creation of both the Media Production Media Literacy and the Institute of Global Business Management summer programs within the School of Communication, Media & the Arts and the Jack Welch College of Business respectively. Since the inception of the programs, SHU has welcomed approximately 150 PDPU students to our summer programs and has reciprocated by sending a number of undergraduates to winter intersession programs at PDPU.
PDPU MOU signing
We heard from several faculty members on some fascinating topics at the College of Arts & Sciences 2018 Conference on Wednesday in University Commons. The CASCon event showcased the research work of our faculty from many disciplines. It seeks to emphasize the interdisciplinary nature of faculty scholarship and reaffirm the College’s commitment to undergraduate research.
CASCon
Students attended the annual Career Expo & Undergraduate Major Fair on Wednesday, and last week Jack Welch College of Business students attended the Finance & Accounting Career Forum. It was great seeing so many students invested in their futures and speaking with representatives from a number of companies.
Career Expo & Undergraduate Major Fair
Finance & Accounting Career Forum - Photos by Gina Esposito '22
The School of Communication, Media & the Arts opened a student photography exhibit on Thursday at the Martire Business & Communications Center SCMA suite on the second floor. The exhibit features the work of students Erica Condon and Eric Torrens.
Photos by Erica Condon and Eric Torrens
Health science students had the opportunity to learn about health interventions through policy change from the nonprofit organization RESULTS at an information session on Thursday. It’s great that our students are interested in advocating and giving voices to the less fortunate.
RESULTS presentation
Enjoy the many events going on during Homecoming weekend. The weather forecast is looking good, and I know our football team is excited to play Penn tomorrow afternoon. Our women’s hockey team plays Post today at 4 at the Sports Center of Connecticut in Shelton. Good luck to all our student-athletes playing home and away. Go Pioneers!
Please give a warm and friendly welcome to the many families and potential students who will be visiting campus on Monday for our second open house of the semester.
Be sure to follow me on social media for my take on the great things our students our doing.
Have a wonderful weekend.