• Congratulations to Dave Anderson, professor of biology, whose proposal entitled “LTREB: Evolutionary Ecology of Seabird Reproductive Life Histories (DEB 0842199)” has been funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF).
• Congratulations to Mary Foskett, associate professor of religion, whose proposal entitled “Wake Forest University Humanities Institute” has been funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH).

As many of you are aware, after lengthy and extensive collaboration with many campus departments, the University has deployed a new procurement process that automates the way we acquire goods and services. This new process is based on an electronic procure-to-pay solution called Deacon Depot that eliminates the paper-based processes that are currently in use. The University is transitioning to Deacon Depot using a phased approach. If you are not currently using Deacon Depot, a representative from Procurement Services will be contacting you in the upcoming months to plan and schedule your transition. You can learn more about the improved procurement solution at the University website http://deacondepot.wfu.edu. Continue reading »

Fifteen Wake Forest students joined University President Nathan O. Hatch in the Reynolda Hall cafeteria, known on campus as “The Pit,” for an informal conversation on February 28. It is the president’s first official Pit sit. (On campus, a “Pit sit” is slang for a lengthy time chatting and socializing with friends in the Pit.)

Students talked with Dr. Hatch about campus construction, tuition and other Wake Forest community-related issues. In particular, students asked about the University’s master plan, which adds two North Campus residence halls to meet increased housing needs related to the three-year on-campus residency requirement. Hatch said, “College works better with more students on campus,” and expects the move to boost student morale.

“I thought the Pit sit was a great atmosphere to start a conversation,” said Nirali Vagadia, a first-year student. “We were able to express our concerns and vent some of our frustrations in an informal setting.”

“I think this is a nice forum, and that it’s really important for students to be heard,” said junior Bo Machayo. “I hope the event will continue and maybe become more frequent.”

While this may be Dr. Hatch’s first Pit sit with students, he is known for keeping his door open to student concerns. “I never turn down a student who makes an appointment to speak with me,” said Hatch.

– by Melissa McKeon (’12), Intern, Communications and External Relations

• Jarrod Atchison published the essay “Pedagogical Functions of the Annual Resolution in Contemporary Policy Debate: Reflections on the Controversy Outlined in the 3rd Developmental Conference,” along with Edward Panetta, in the ALTA volume Reasoned Argument and Social Change. Jarrod was also on the Editorial Board. Ed. Panetta is also a Wake Forest alum!
• Ananda Mitra spoke at the fourth annual Workshop on Intercultural Skills Enhancement (WISE), which is hosted by Wake Forest. He also gave a talk at the Byrum Center on service-learning opportunities in India.

Click the map to open a larger PDF version

With the start of construction on North Campus this week comes the need for a re-routing of pedestrian pathways back to the central part of campus.  As always, the administration is concerned for the comfort and safety of our students, faculty and staff as they travel across campus.  To ensure that those needs are met to the fullest extent possible during such a large project, two pedestrian pathways have been established to route pedestrians around the construction site.  Those two routes are highlighted on the pedestrian map [PDF].

On the west side of the project and marked in green, Allen Easley Drive will serve as one route to the main part of campus, allowing students with ADA needs access to sidewalks, paved surfaces and ramps.  Pedestrians may choose to access Lot Q and Scales at the mid-point of the road or continue to Wake Forest Road to access central campus.

On the east side of the project and marked in blue, a second pedestrian route made from gravel dust will be created to serve as a temporary road for pedestrian traffic along the northern and eastern edges of the project.  Although this eastern route will not be to ADA standards, it does provide a more direct route for pedestrians with destinations on the east of campus, such as Worrell Professional Center.  Once this eastern route is established, the current sidewalk access from Polo Hall to Lot Q will be closed until the end of the project.

To ensure safe pathways, a blue light emergency phone is being installed immediately north of the project site, as well as additional lighting to the eastern edge of the site. Recent lighting updates along Allen Easley Drive are believed to be sufficient for any pedestrian traffic and safety along this route.

We are excited about the new residence hall construction as a realization of one part of the University’s master plan, but understand the inconvenience that comes with progress.  If you have any concerns regarding pathways, lighting or other project issues, please email Jim Alty, Associate Vice President for Facilities and Campus Services, at altyj@wfu.edu.

The School of Advance Research (SAR), Santa Fe and the Society for Applied Anthropology (SfAA) have selected the proposal Artisan Production and the World Market: Collaborating in Theory, Methods, Practice for its 2012 biannual short seminar and SfAA’s 2013 Plenary Session.

Co-organized by Jeanne Simonelli (Wake Forest), June Nash (CUNY) and Katherine O’Donnell (Hartwick College), the goal of this two-day seminar is to provide anthropologists and scholars from related disciplines with the opportunity to address critical human problems and social issues through the application of anthropological insights and methods. The outcome of the seminar will be twofold: 1) a plenary session at the annual meeting of the Society for Applied Anthropology and 2) an edited volume to be submitted to SAR Press for publication in its Advanced Seminar Series. Continue reading »

Enhancements require changes to parking

The construction of two new residence halls on north campus, which will provide much needed space to accommodate the University’s new three-year residency requirement, will contribute to an even more vibrant campus community and extend the reach of campus to the north.

The construction, scheduled to begin in late February to meet an August 2013 deadline, will result in the permanent reduction of 350 spaces primarily used by residential and commuter students, as well as faculty and staff. The construction zone includes the northern section of Lot Q and the entire Lot R-2.

To help explore creative solutions to manage the loss of these parking spaces, representatives from student, faculty and staff groups met with Jim Alty, Chief Facilities Officer, and Alex Crist, Parking and Transportation Manager, on February 17 to brainstorm short and long-term ideas. Additional meetings with campus representatives are in the works.

“We are doing our best to ensure that we face these parking challenges together,” said Jim Alty, chief facilities officer. “We are meeting with groups including the Faculty Senate, Student Government and the Staff Advisory Council to seek input, create an ongoing conversation about parking and develop creative solutions to our challenges.” Continue reading »

Here are some questions and answers regarding the parking challenges created by the construction of new residence halls on North Campus. To read the main story about the changes, which includes links to maps, click here. Continue reading »

Maya Angelou says she looks forward to the time when Black History Month won’t be needed.

“You hope that the time will come when it won’t be necessary, when there won’t be racial prejudices or sexual prejudices,” said Angelou, a noted activist, author and poet who lives in Winston-Salem and is the Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest.

But great change takes time, she said, “so we have the work cut out to do what we can to make our country more than it is today. It will be necessary to have a Black History Month until the playing field is leveled, until black history and Latino history are all part of the history, period.”

Angelou is frequently asked to participate in programs related to Black History Month. This year, she will discuss the civil-rights era in a new hour-long radio program airing in syndication on more than 200 radio stations across the country.

In the Winston-Salem area, the program, entitled “Maya Angelou’s Black History Month Special,” will air at 3 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 28, on WFDD (88.5).

Read more from the Winston-Salem Journal article »
Find out more about the show on mayaangelouonpublicradio.com »

“Fellows and Friends,” a new lunch series for faculty hosted by the Institute for Public Engagement is the brainchild of associate director Norma May Isakow. The second in the series, “Engaged Teaching in a Global Context,” took place Tuesday, Feb. 28, from 11 a.m.-noon in Reynolda Hall, Room 301.

“Every engaged teaching course is about illuminating the human condition,” says Isakow. “If you, as a teacher, can create a course that grows out of a connection you have seen between a community need and your own discipline then you are making students part of the world in both a macro and a micro sense.”

“Civically engaged learning can be life changing learning,” says Isakow. “I know this first hand. That’s why I want students to have these kinds of experiences.” Continue reading »