March 2012 Archives

Thursday, April 5
11:30-12:45 p.m.
124 Sparks

The Paterno Fellows Program is cosponsoring an informal conversation with historian Jeff Ogbar on Thursday, April 5, 11:30-12:45 in 124 Sparks.  Lunch will be provided and the conversation is limited to the first 25 people who sign up, so Paterno Fellows should please send your RSVPs ASAP to Barbara Edwards (bae1@psu.edu).  Reserve your place now.

Jeff Ogbar was born in Chicago and raised in Los Angeles. A graduate of Morehouse College, he earned his MA ('93) and Ph.D. ('97) in U.S. History with a minor in African studies from Indiana University. Since 1997 he has taught at the University of Connecticut's Department of History.

Dr. Ogbar studies black nationalism and radical social protest. He has developed courses, lectured and published articles on subjects as varied as Pan-Africanism, African American Catholics, civil rights struggles, black nationalism and hip-hop. With the help of a fellowship from Harvard's W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for Afro-American Research, he completed work on his book Black Power:  Radical Politics and African-American Identity (Johns Hopkins University Press.

Jeffrey Ogbar will also lecture on the theme "Future Bound: How Will Historians Remember Today's Hip-Hop Generation?" on April 4 at 3:30pm in 251 Willard.

Hello everyone!

Last time we gave you some updates on our future plans for the PSU's efforts with PCA America's Pinwheels for Prevention program.

Today we have some good news: we have our HUB tables booked now!  We will be at HUB table #8 from 11:00am - 2:00pm on:

• Tuesday, April 3rd
• Wednesday, April 4th
• Monday, April 16th
• Tuesday, April 17th

So mark your calendars!

You can buy a pinwheel for yourself or donate it to the garden for $2.  We would, of course, accept any other donations as well. 

Remember, all proceeds go to child abuse prevention!

Also, look for our Facebook event and join today for more updates!

Any questions?  Want to get involved?  Contact: psupinwheels@gmail.com

The first class of Paterno Fellows--the amazing "pioneer class"--will be honored at a special reception at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, May 5, the day of graduation.  All graduating Fellows are expected to come, and parents and family members will be invited too--as well as faculty advisers and thesis supervisors, university (and Schreyer Honors College) administrators, and other honored guests. 

Full details will be distributed in April. But graduating Fellows should know that Mrs. Sue Paterno is expected to attend in order to offer her congratulations, that the ceremony will also include comments from a Paterno Fellow (to be selected), and that Fellows will receive a special gift in recognition of their achievements.  The ceremony will take place on the lawn between Sparks Building and Burrowes Building, in front of the library.

Graduating Fellows should watch for a short questionnaire asking them to verify information to be included in the reception program.

Since the Paterno Fellows Program is a co-sponsor of Sarah Vowell's visit to Penn State on April 9, there are three opportunities to interact with her while she's here.

1.  Her formal talk will be at 7:30 p.m. on April 9 in 117 HUB Auditorium.  See this announcement: SarahVowell.pdf

2.  She will meet with a small group of undergraduates who have joined her "Book Club" at 2:30.  Watch this space for more details.

3.  She will have dinner with a very small group of eight students in the Gilpin Room of the Nittany Lion Inn Dining Room at 5 pm on April 9.  The first three students who contact me will be chosen for this opportunity--write to me at jls25@psu.edu.

Sarah Vowell is an essayist, humorist, and social commentator (and the voice of Violet in The Incredibles!).  For over a decade she was a regular contributor to features on NPR's "This American Life" series, and now she's written five books on American history and culture.  The latest is Unfamiliar Fishes. 

We have two important changes to the ECC program!

The required components have been streamlined to give students more flexibility in creating their ECC e-portfolios. Check out the new required component descriptions.

We also have a slick new tech support page to help you create e-portfolios on Blogger, Wordpress, and Weebly. If you need extra help, you can visit that page to contact our "techie," who can talk you through your questions.

This semester's deadline for submitting your ECC e-portfolio is Monday, March 26. Please check in with your ECC advisor or check out the the ECC website for more information on portfolio submission.

If you haven't signed-up yet for the ECC, you should! Just visit the ECC website and complete the sign-up form. You'll soon be paired with a designated ECC advisor who will coach you through the process. The best times for Paterno Fellows to earn the ECC are spring semester of junior year or fall semester of senior year.

Hello everyone

I wanted to give an update on the Pinwheels for Prevention program that the College of the Liberal Arts and Paterno Fellows Program are organizing for the spring.

Thank you

A few weeks ago, we had sent out a memo announcing the program.

Thank you all for a great response!  So far, we have over 17 student volunteers for the program.  If you are still looking to volunteer, we could still use your help - the more the merrier.  If you would like to get more info on volunteering, please e-mail us at psupinwheels@gmail.com.

Our Next Moves

During the last week of March, we will be handing out flyers with dates of when we will be selling the Pinwheels.  We hope to be in the HUB during the first week of April to sell the pinwheels.  Check back this week for final selling dates.

Remember, you can buy a pinwheel for $2 and either keep it yourself, or donate it to the Pinwheels Garden we will be creating for our concluding event on April 18th outside Sparks Building.

If you would like to purchase a pinwheel or donate to the program and do not want to wait until we are in the HUB, you can e-mail psupinwheels@gmail.com or stop by 5 Sparks Building.

Once again, we ask for your continued support of this program as the Spring marches on.  Without a doubt, one of the great things I've learned here so far at Penn State is the tremendous good that a united community can do.  While we may not raise $10.6 million, we can still join together in order to help underprivileged children.  After all, it's still FTK just in a slightly different way.

Thanks again and enjoy the weather!

Sean Dooling

Thursday, March 29
11:30-12:45 p.m.
124 Sparks

The Paterno Fellows Program is cosponsoring an informal conversation with poet and multidisciplinary artist Frank Walker on Thursday, March 29, 11:30-12:45 in 124 Sparks.  Lunch will be provided and the conversation is limited to the first 25 people who sign up, so Paterno Fellows should please send your RSVPs ASAP to Barbara Edwards (bae1@psu.edu).  Reserve your place now.

Frank Walker is on the faculty of the University of Kentucky.  A founding member of the Affrilachian Poets, he is the author of four poetry collections: When Winter Come: the Ascension of York; Black Box; Buffalo Dance: the Journey of York (winner of the 35th Annual Lillian Smith Book Award); and Affrilachia.

He will also offer a public presentation of his work on Wednesday, March 28, at 3:30 in 113 Carnegie.

Frank Walker's poems have been converted into a stage production by the University of Kentucky Theatre department and widely anthologized in numerous collections.  He was the first Kentucky writer to be featured on NPR's This I Believe, and he has appeared on television in PBS's GED Connection Series, Writing: Getting Ideas on Paper. He also co-produced a video documentary, Coal Black Voices: the History of the Affrilachian Poets, which received the 2002-2003 Jesse Stuart Award. And his visual art is in the private collections of Spike Lee, Opal Palmer Adisa, Morris FX Jeff, and Bill and Camille Cosby.

Walker regularly teaches in writing programs like Fishtrap in Oregon and SplitRock at the University of Minnesota; and is the proud editor and publisher of PLUCK!, the new Journal of Affrilachian Art & Culture.