faculty

Kalama-Raptors

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It’s no surprise that Associate Professor of Economics Chuck Stull, like most of his faculty colleagues, has a wide-ranging liberal arts-ish curiosity and sense of wonder. His biology and ornithology interests were piqued recently by a successful Red-Tailed Hawk predation of a Quad squirrel, which Stull managed to capture on camera.

In late December, the Kalamazoo Gazette carried an article about a Snowy Owl taking residence at the Battle Creek/Kalamazoo International Airport. Turns out, this year is an irruption of Snowy Owls, one of the largest on record. Often, Snowy Owls will take up residence near airports, which remind them of their tundra hunting grounds. The owl at the Kalamazoo airport died, most likely of starvation. Such an occurrence is sad, but not surprising. Up to 70 percent of the raptor offspring perish during their first winter—many from starvation. The hawk Professor Stull photographed may have better luck if he or she keeps in mind the campus’ squirrel-stocked Quad.

Professor Dorrien Delivers Speech on Economics, Ethics, and Democracy

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Professor Emeritus of Economics Phil Thomas enjoys his retirement in Northport, Michigan. He also keeps Kalamazoo College informed of events that may be of interest to K alumni in northern Michigan. One such event is Northport Trinity Church’s eighth annual Peace Lecture, which this year features former Kalamazoo College Professor of Religion Gary Dorrien (who currently teaches at Union Theological Seminary and Columbia University).

Dorrien will speak on Saturday evening, June 2, at 7 PM, and on Sunday morning, June 3, at 11 AM. The theme of his talks will be “Economic Crisis, Social Ethics, and Economic Democracy.” Dorrien is the author of 14 books and some 250 articles that range across the fields of ethics, social theory, theology, philosophy, politics, and history.

Tan Earns Lucasse Lectureship

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Kalamazoo College Psychology Professor Siu-Lan Tan holds her book in front of a blackboard
Photo Credit: Rachel Leider ’15

By Rachel Leider ’15

Siu-Lan Tan, associate professor of psychology, has earned Kalamazoo College’s highest annual honor for classroom teaching, the Florence J. Lucasse Lectureship for Excellence in Teaching.

The “Lucasse,” was established in 1979 in honor of Florence J. Lucasse, Class of 1910, in response to the major unrestricted endowment gift she bequeathed to the College in her will. In addition to the Lectureship, a Florence J. Lucasse Fellowship for Excellence in Scholarship is also awarded. Andrew Mozina, associate professor of English, holds the current Lucasse Fellowship.

Tan was taken aback by her award: “I think the world of my colleagues and students, and knowing that they nominated and supported me for this was overwhelming. I immediately teared up, as I felt it deeply.”

President Eileen Wilson-Oyelaran expressed her admiration for Tan as she presented the award during the fall quarter all-campus gathering in Dalton Theatre on Sept. 20. “Professor Tan often extends students’ experiences beyond the classroom, and these service-learning experiences transform their learning, making concepts that may have once seemed dissonant in class become consonant in practice.”

Born in Indonesia, Tan grew up in Hong Kong where she taught music. After moving to California, she earned a B.A. degree in music at Pacific Union College and taught music for several years. Later, she became interested in psychology and earned both Master’s and Ph.D. degrees in psychology at Georgetown University.

Teaching at Kalamazoo College since 1998, Tan offers courses in developmental psychology, creativity, and the psychology of music. In 2010, she co-authored the textbook The Psychology of Music: From Sound to Significance.

Per Lucasse tradition, Tan will speak to students, faculty, staff, and quests about her work at a spring 2012 lecture.

Congratulations, Dr. Tan!

Science Grant Benefits Breast Cancer Research

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Professor Furchak at Dow with four chemistry majors
Professor Furchak in the Dow Science Building with Kalamazoo chemistry majors (l-r) Vinay Sharma ’12, Lydia Manger ’13, Eric Glanz ’13, and Amy Ong ’11

Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Assistant Professor of Chemistry Jennifer R. Furchak has received a 2011 Cottrell College Science Award from the Research Corporation for Science Advancement. She will use the $35,000 award to further her work into the development of a multiplexed assay for the analysis of breast cancer metastasis.

“The potential impact of this work in detection and understanding of breast cancer metastasis lies in improvements in simplicity, accuracy, and speed over current methods, which could allow for improved patient treatment and prognoses,” she said. “Ultimately, additional sample throughput will result in better understanding of disease progression.”

According to Furchak, five student researchers at “K” have worked on this project thus far. It’s been the foundation for three completed Senior Independent Projects, and another is in progress this summer. Furchak’s grant is one of 48 Cottrell grants this year totaling $1.8 million and intended to support early career scientists at liberal arts colleges and primarily undergraduate universities.

Undergraduate students must be involved in the research in meaningful ways. Founded in 1912, Research Corporation for Science Advancement is the second-oldest foundation in the United States and the oldest foundation for science advancement.

Professor Emeritus Publishes in Revue Bénédictine

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John Wickstrom, professor emeritus of history, will have an article published by Revue Bénédictine in 2013. It is titled “Claiming St. Maurus of Glanfeuil: an 11th-Century Sermon from Fossés.”

John is also the 2012 Moritz Lecturer at Kalamazoo College. His talk, “Picturing the Saints: What Medieval Illuminations Can Tell us About History,” will be delivered on Wednesday, April 4, at 7 P.M. in Dewing Hall Room 103. The event is free and open to the public.

Professor Barclay Lectures on West Berlin in the Context of Postwar History

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David Barclay, the Margaret and Roger Scholten Professor of International Studies, delivered a lecture titled “Island City, Cold War City: West Berlin in the Context of Postwar History, 1948-1994” at his undergraduate alma mater, the University of Florida.

The presentation was based on his current book project: a general history of West Berlin from the time of the city’s division (1948) to the withdrawal of Russian and Allied troops (1994).

The history of West Berlin—a unique creation of the Cold War, like the two German states themselves—has largely been overlooked.

Barclay’s lecture drew on extensive interviews and years of archival research and argued that, in the wake of the well-known “spatial turn” of the 1990s and thereafter, West Berlin’s role in the history of the Cold War can be understood in terms of that truncated city’s function as political space, symbolic space, and cultural space. Moreover, its history can be divided into two parts: an “heroic” phase from 1948 to 1971-72 and a phase of “abnormal normality” from 1972 to 1989.

Professor Baker Named to Athletic Hall of Fame

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Ed Baker, former Kalamazoo College football coach and physical education professor, has been named to the Athletic Hall of Fame at Haverford High School in Havertown, Pennsylvania, west of Philadelphia.

He was athletic director at Haverford from 1959 to 1967 and head football coach from 1958 to 1966. He won three league titles as football coach, leading the 1961 and 1965 teams to undefeated Inter-Ac Championship seasons and an 18-game win streak from 1964 to 1966.

Ed was named Philadelphia Coach of the Year in 1961. During his coaching tenure, 21 players made First Team All Inter-Ac; four achieved All-City status. He is credited with starting the lacrosse program at Haverford School, and coached the team to an overall record of 39-21-1. During his tenure as athletic director, the “Fords” had 28 Inter-Ac championship teams.

Coach Baker was appointed head football coach and head track coach at Kalamazoo College in 1967. In his final football game in 1989, he led the Hornets to its first victory over Hope College in 20 years!

Professor Jeanne Hess on her Book, “Sportuality: Finding Joy in the Games”

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Jeanne Hess, professor of physical education and head coach of volleyball, has written Sportuality: Finding Joy in the Games, a book that examines how people can attain peace, understanding, and joy through sports.

Hess has coached volleyball and taught at “K” for 28 years. She said Sportuality can help readers redefine words traditionally associated with sports—competition, victory, sacrifice, education community, spirit, humor, holiness, and more.

“I have a deep belief in the power of athletics to shape and sustain us toward a more positive and peaceful ideal,” she said, “Whether you are an athlete, coach, parent, official, or fan, I believe seeking the larger purpose of play is critical to transforming sport within our culture.”

Using a journal and questions for self-reflection—called a “box score” and “time-out”—readers can reflect upon and create their own spiritual sports, or “sportual,” stories. These stories, according to Hess, ultimately can lead readers to joy, increased awareness, and a renewed commitment to engage in positive competition.

Hess said part of her inspiration for writing the book came out of a self-study curriculum called “A Course in Miracles” that aims to assist its readers in achieving spiritual transformation, and by the words of author, lecturer, and spiritual teacher Marianne Williamson.

“But I’ve also been inspired by more than 30 years worth of teams, colleagues in teaching and coaching, my students, and my family,” which includes two sons who have both played for Division I university baseball programs and in the Detroit Tigers minor league organization.

Jeanne Hess ranks in the top 30 NCAA Division III coaches with the most wins. She earned her 500th career volleyball victory at Kalamazoo in 2011. Published by Balboa Press, a division of Hay House, Sportuality is available from the Kalamazoo College Bookstore, Balboa Press (www.balboapress.com), Barnes and Noble (www.barnesandnoble.com) and on Amazon (www.amazon.com).

Jeanne Hess with her book
Professor Jeanne Hess, pictured with her book “Sportuality: Finding Joy in the Games”

“K” Art Professor Exhibits Sculptures in Bellevue Art Museum

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Sarah Lindley, Associate Professor of Art, will participate in three upcoming art shows.

Lindley and her husband, sculptor Norwood Viviano, are among 35 artists invited to exhibit in “Push Play: The 2012 NCECA Invitational” to be held Jan. 19 through June 17 at the Bellevue Art Museum in Seattle, Wash., in conjunction with the 46th Annual Conference of The National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts, taking place March 26 through 31 in Seattle.

Their work is also included in the show “Tracing Lines,” a multi-faceted exhibition involving photographic works, paintings, and sculptures held Jan. 10 through March 24 at the Ohio State University Urban Arts Space in Columbus.

Lindley will exhibit her own sculptures as one of seven artists working in a variety of media participating in “Acts of Recognition” held Feb. 20 through March 17 at Kendall College of Art and Design of Ferris State University in Grand Rapids.

“We Were Googled!”

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Study co-authors Kelly Usakoski, Jeff Bartz and Nic West.
Study co-authors (l-r): Kelly Usakoski, Jeff Bartz; and Nic West.

Or—alternate headline: “How to Ruin a Spring Break.” Though Professor of Chemistry Jeff Bartz quickly notes that the ruination was sweet indeed, given that it led to the publication of a paper in the The Journal of Chemical Physics (September 7, 2011) on which he and two students—Nic West ’12and Kelly Usakoski ’14—are co-authors.

The story begins last spring break when Bartz was getting ready for the start of a new term. Scientists in the department of chemistry at Texas A&M wanted to do an experiment on molecular imaging, and to start they did a literature search seeking similar experiments. In that search they discovered an abstract of experimental work West had presented in June 2010 at the 65th International Symposium on Molecular Spectroscopy at the Ohio State University.

They contacted Kalamazoo College—“We’d been Googled!” laughs Bartz.

Thus began a research collaboration on further imaging experimentation that culminated in this month’s publication of “A method for the determination of speed-dependent semi-classical vector correlations form sliced image anisotropies.” The paper involves work that Usakoski performed in Bartz’ lab during spring quarter 2011.

In addition to his on-campus contributions to the partnership last spring, West also traveled in the summer to A&M’s College Station campus and conducted related work that is the basis of his Senior Individualized Project. And Bartz “lost” a spring break to the start-up of the “K” and A&M research collaboration. “It was well worth it,” he says. Pictured are the study’s three Kalamazoo College co-authors (l-r): Kelly Usakoski, who is considering declaring her major in either chemistry or physics this year; Jeff Bartz; and Nic West, a chemistry and physics double major.