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GROUNDBREAKING CEREMONY JUNE 28 FOR RIVER CAMPUS TERRACE PROJECT CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo., June 1, 2001 - A groundbreaking ceremony is planned for June 28 for the River Campus Terrace project, which will signal the first phase of work on the future site of the School of Visual and Performing Arts. The ceremony is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at the River Campus, with refreshments slated to begin at 5 p.m. The public is invited. The start of the River Campus Terrace project comes after the Southeast Missouri State University Board of Regents in May accepted $260,000 in grant funding from the Missouri Department of Transportation, earmarked for the terrace project on the grounds overlooking the Mississippi River. The grant was written in consultation with staff from the City of Cape Girardeau. As provided in the grant, the funding will be used for site work, development of a picnic area, parking and continuation of a hiking/biking trail, which eventually will surround the City of Cape Girardeau. "We are delighted to be part of the city's long-range plan to develop the hiking/biking trail for Cape Girardeau," said Donald Dickerson, president of the board. "This is only one of many facets of the project that will draw people to the River Campus." The River Campus is on the site of the former St. Vincent's College and Seminary and was purchased by the Southeast Missouri University Foundation with the assistance of a gift from B.W. Harrison of Cape Girardeau. The grant funding, accompanied by some matching funds of $65,000 from Southeast, will allow work to begin on the lower level of the River Campus site. According to Dr. Pauline Fox, vice president for administration and enrollment management at Southeast, the receipt of these funds is an important beginning to the River Campus project. "The design phase of work is scheduled to begin this summer with actual work possible in the spring of 2002. All work will be consistent with the architectural design of the overall River Campus project," she said. CRISP BEC OFFERING COURSE FOR SECONDARY EDUCATION MAJORS
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo., May 25, 2001 - The Harry L. Crisp Bootheel Education Center in Malden, Mo., will offer a course for secondary education majors.
SE272 Teaching Reading in Secondary School will be taught on Wednesday evenings from 6 to 7:50 p.m. SE272 provides students with a variety of methods and materials for improving reading skills at the secondary level.
The on-site instructor will be Liz Fish. Students interested in taking this course should contact Lisa Webb at (573) 276-4577 or (888) 213-4601. Space is limited to 20 students.
SOUTHEAST @ BUSCH 2001 SCHEDULED FOR JUNE 16
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo., June 1, 2001 - Tickets remain on sale for Southeast @ Busch 2001 scheduled for June 16 when the St. Louis Cardinals take on the Chicago White Sox.
Southeast friends and alumni will be seated in sections 320-336 in the upper deck along the first baseline. Southeast @ Busch will be an excellent opportunity to see former Southeast Missouri State baseball star Kerry Robinson in action.
Southeast @ Busch Stadium 2001 is being sponsored by the Southeast Alumni Association in partnership with the Southeast Missourian.
A pre-game party is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. on Sverdrup Terraces, located just across the street from Busch Stadium. The game begins at noon.
Game tickets are $17 for adults, $15 for dues paying members of the Southeast Alumni Association and $9 for children ages four to 15. Cost of the pre-game party is $5 for adults. Children three and under are free. Transportation to St. Louis via a chartered bus is available for $18 per person.
T-shirts for Southeast Day at Busch Stadium are $10. Checks should be made payable to Southeast Missouri State University.
Sponsors for the event are Custom Screen Printing, Coca-Cola, Little Debbie, Maevers Management, Pepsi-Cola, River Eagle Distributing and Schnucks.
To order tickets or for more information, call Alumni Services at (573) 651-5159 or email alumni@semo.edu.
SOUTHEAST TO HOST STATE FINE ARTS CONFERENCE
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo., June 1, 2001 - Southeast Missouri State University will host the Missouri State Fine Arts Conference, “Integrating the Arts into Curriculum”, June 17-June 21.
The conference, which is co-sponsored by the Goals 2000: Fine Arts Grant and Southeast Missouri State University, will expose classroom teachers, arts specialists and school administrators to current research, newly developed teaching methods and innovative practices for integrating the arts into the school curriculum.
Guest speakers and presenters will include: Gary Dulabaum, songwriter, professional musician, and former elementary classroom teacher from Vermont; Kim Abler, art curriculum specialist for the Milwaukee Public Schools, Milwaukee, Wis., and recipient of numerous national awards for leadership in arts integration; Norree Boyd, executive director of the Missouri Arts Council; Craig Rector, Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education; Dr. Shirley Stennis-Williams, dean, College of Education, Southeast Missouri State University; Dr. Eleanor Duff, chair, Department of Elementary, Early, and Special Education, Southeast Missouri State University; Dr. Dan Steska, superintendent, Cape Girardeau Public Schools; and Dr. Barb Kohlfeld, principal, Blanchard Elementary School, Cape Girardeau.
According to Dr. Ann Porter Gifford, associate professor of elementary, early and special education and co-director of the grant, and Dr. Robert Gifford, professor of music and middle and secondary education and co-director of the grant, the fine arts are a vital part of the solution to current issues of student retention, the assistance of at-risk students and the development of each child’s full potential.
In 1996, collaboration between Southeast’s College of Education and the Cape Girardeau Public Schools began a process placing the University and Cape Public Schools in a leadership position within the area of fine arts education throughout the State of Missouri. Through the Goals 2000: Fine Arts Grant, training for future elementary classroom teachers has been modified to include arts integration; area schools also have begun to revise curricula, reflecting the advantages found in learning with arts integration.
The grant has allowed for various workshops, 12 graduate classes for educators and administrators from 30 area school districts, and development of an arts integration class for future elementary education majors studying at Southeast.
National authorities, authors and arts specialists have joined with Southeast faculty and Cape Girardeau Public Schools’ administrators and teachers to work with University pre-service education classes and more than 10,000 area elementary school children.
For more information contact the Goals 2000: Fine Arts office at (573) 986-6760 or log onto www2.semo.edu/goals2000finearts.
BOND, EMERSON ANNOUNCE AWARD CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo., June 2, 2001 - Southeast Missouri State University has been awarded a $2.6 million federal grant to be used for architectural and consulting services in planning for the development of a Regional Museum at the River Campus.
The announcement was made today by U.S. Sen. Christopher “Kit” Bond and U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson.
Senator Bond said, “The $2.6 million that Congresswoman Emerson and I were able to secure will go toward the preservation and reuse of St. Vincent Seminary, a historical landmark in Missouri. There are still issues on the local level that must be addressed, but it is important to preserve Missouri's landmarks and history for future generations.”
And according to Representative Emerson, “I am very pleased that, working together, we have been able to make this funding a reality for the Southeast Missouri State University River Campus. The River Campus will serve as a major catalyst for bringing about educational, cultural and economic stimulus that is critical to enhancing a blighted area of Cape Girardeau. I am confident that the funding will aid Southeast Missouri State University in performing the tasks essential to the success of this project.”
The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) awarded the national leadership three-year grant for museums to Southeast. The grant comes after Southeast officials submitted a proposal to IMLS in April and an IMLS grant officer visited the River Campus in May. This project is supported by a congressionally directed grant administered by the IMLS. The grant period begins Aug. 1 and extends through July 31, 2004.
Dr. Kenneth W. Dobbins, president of Southeast Missouri State University, praised Emerson and Bond for their work in securing the federal grant for this project.
“On behalf of all current and future students of Southeast, I would like to express our sincere gratitude to Sen. Bond and Rep. Emerson for their work in convincing their colleagues to support this important project,” Dobbins said. “We think it is important to bring these dollars back to Missouri, and to put them to work in enhancing educational and cultural opportunities for our students and residents from throughout the region. ”
Dr. Dale F. Nitzschke, chancellor for development of the River Campus and the School of Polytechnic Studies at Southeast Missouri State University, added, “Senator Bond and Congresswoman Emerson worked beautifully together in helping Southeast secure this special earmark. They have been so supportive of this project that will serve as a regional attraction, drawing students and citizens from near and far for many, many years to come.”
Dr. Stanley Grand, director of the University Museum, says the funds will be used for architectural and consulting services for the new Regional Museum.
In the first year, a museum consulting firm will be hired to conduct a major study of the museum’s operations and needs. The consultants will meet with various community and University groups to determine the allocation of resources, including exhibition space within the new museum. After the first year, an architect will be hired to draw up preliminary plans for the Regional Museum. The architect will design the new structure, its furnishings, display cases, fixtures, materials and equipment. The consultant will provide expertise and assistance throughout the architectural and engineering design phases.
Under the grant, during the first year, consultants will study the museum’s mission and collections to determine if they are “in sync,” Grand said. He added that perhaps the mission or the collections may need to be refined so the collections project a focused message.
“We will look at what we have, what is our mission and what do we need to obtain?” Grand said, adding that the first year will involve “an intensive analysis of ourselves and our needs. After determining that, we can give the architect a clear mandate.
“It is important to plan for the museum and its collections first, before you plan for the building, so you don’t get the cart before the horse,” he said.
Currently, the museum has a three-part mission that focuses on collections representing three general areas - archaeology, regional history and fine arts.
The museum’s archaeological holdings contain approximately 6,000 Mississippian-era objects. These vessels, bowls and other pottery pieces together are considered to form one of the outstanding collections of its type. Consisting of objects excavated primarily by Thomas Beckwith from a limited number of sites on his farm outside of Charleston, Mo., in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the Beckwith Collection is comprehensive and complete, qualities not found in other collections, Grand said. The pottery is augmented with a fine collection of projectile points of various pre-Columbian periods.
The history collections have a strong military emphasis, Grand said, adding that the new facility will allow for the museum to expand on its regional history focus.
“We will be able to do it better, more comprehensively and more ambitiously,” he said.
The fine art collection has strengths in a number of areas, including the Houck Statuary Collection, which consists of more than 40 pieces, which were originally shown at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair as part of the German national exhibit.
Grand says the grant also will allow for consultants to study the museum’s outreach services and draw up plans for programs in regional schools and community sites that are both supportable and sustainable.
In addition to consulting and architectural services, the grant will allow the University to purchase equipment, fixtures and supplies for the museum - including earthquake resistant display cases -- and to hire personnel, including a curator with an anthropology background, a museum educator and a museum preparator. The new staff members will assist existing staff provide expanded services, Grand said.
The museum educator will initiate regional outreach initiatives and will work with elementary and high school teachers to schedule visits of a “Museum Mobile,” in which components of the collections will be taken out into regional schools. The museum preparator, like a skilled carpenter, will install and build the museum exhibitions.
The new Regional Museum will replace the current University Museum, which has existed in its present location in Memorial Hall since 1976. The new museum is anticipated to be an architecturally unique and significant structure that will attract people from throughout the community and the surrounding region.
“We have an unparalleled site at the River Campus, overlooking the River and the Emerson Memorial Bridge,” Grand said. “This will be the first thing you see when you come off the bridge. This will be a gem on the hill and will serve to bring people off the highway.”
Grand said the grant “provides a new impetus to the River Campus project. This breathes new life into the project and really moves it forward.”
He added, “Senator Bond and Congresswoman Emerson have shown a tremendous amount of confidence in the leadership here at Southeast to see this through. My goal is to have a world-class museum. This is a marvelous opportunity and is very exciting.”
SOUTHEAST ANNOUNCES DEFERRAL OF ADMISSIONS CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo., June 4, 2001 -- Due to increased interest in Southeast Missouri State University by high school seniors and improved retention rates among current students, Southeast has decided that applications received after June 22 from prospective first-time full-time beginning freshmen for admission to the Cape Girardeau campus will be considered only for the Spring Semester of 2002.
The decision was made today during a teleconference meeting of the University’s Board of Regents.
Even with this limited deferral, Southeast expects to enroll between 1,575 and 1,600 new freshmen for the Fall semester, which is the highest number in several decades and an increase from last year’s 1,542.
It is estimated that the deferral will affect approximately 75 to 100 students based on the University’s experience with late enrollments in previous years. For those prospective freshmen students who apply after June 22, the University will work with these prospective students, so they can begin their college careers this fall at one of the area higher education centers or at a
community college. Then, these students can make an easy transition to the Southeast campus in January, University officials said. A special orientation program will be scheduled during the fall semester for deferred students who intend to come to Southeast in spring 2002.
The deferral does not apply to students who wish to take courses at the area higher education centers in Malden, Sikeston, Kennett, and Perryville, University officials said. It does not apply to prospective freshmen whose applications have already been received by the Admissions Office and are still being processed. In addition, the deferral does not apply to full-time transfer students or other students who wish to attend on a part-time basis. It will not affect any freshmen applications filed on or before June 22 -- only those applications filed after June 22.
The decision to defer late applicants until the Spring Semester was based on the University’s enrollment management objectives, which include the goals of providing quality services to all students and maximizing their chances for academic success. The Southeast enrollment management plan states that the University’s intention is to enroll “an optimal number of students,” and that enrollment management includes “recruiting and retaining students, fostering their academic success, and providing quality programs, course offerings and financial support.”
Although housing availability is a factor in the decision to defer late applicants, the University cited availability of faculty, classrooms, classes appropriate for beginning freshmen, and student academic support services as reasons for deferring some admissions from fall to spring. Enrollment in the spring semester is typically 200 to 400 less than in the fall, thus easing the pressure on housing, class availability, and student academic support services, University officials said.
Sustained enrollment growth over the past three years, especially in the numbers of beginning freshmen, has meant that campus housing will be fully occupied for fall 2001, with overall enrollment expected to exceed 9,000 for the first time since 1985. The Southeast residence hall system can comfortably accommodate approximately 2,330 students - the number which is considered the “strategic number of beds.” It is anticipated that all of these beds will be occupied in the fall, and the University is planning to construct a new 300-bed residence facility, scheduled for opening in fall 2002.
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