Academics
ROTC gets new commanding officer
The Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program at USD has a new commanding officer. Lt. Col. Michelle Bunkers, a USD alumna, took the reins from Capt. Jerry Zevecke this August. Zevecke became the interim commanding officer after Lt. Col. Ross Nelson was selected to be a battalion commander at Fort Rucker in Alabama. Bunkers is originally from Dell […]
English Department adopts literary press to publish work
When Duncan Barlow first read Philip Sidney’s “Astrophil and Stella,” it was heartbreak that captured his attention. Years later, he kept the sequence of English sonnets about unrequited love in mind when he began his own “sacrificial art” — a literary press. “I always saw (Astrophil) as this oddly heroic character. I knew even before launching the […]
OSU professor presents research on climate change
Ed Brook was asked to play devil’s advocate to his own climate change research at the 17th Lifto Amundson Lecture, presented by the University of South Dakota’s Phi Beta Kappa Society April 19. “Look at this data as if you were a climate change denier,” professor Mary Pat Bierle said. “Could you tell us what […]
Entrepreneurs strive to create next “big thing”
Michael Helgerson is after the next “big thing” in technology. The 31 year-old Vermillion native and senior business major said his new idea could revolutionize the way college students interact with universities. QUICKcampus or QUICKclass, a smart device platform, would provide indoor directions and information regarding news, student events, athletic events and student organizations via […]
Healer’s Art course offers reprieve, life skills
One class offered at the University of South Dakota’s Sanford School of Medicine does not cover traditional material. It begins with meditation. The Healer’s Art is an elective course for first-year medical students. Patty Peters, the course director, said the class offers a reprieve from students’ everyday coursework. “The reason we do it is at […]
Law students hear from U.S. District Judge about ethics
U.S. District Judge Curtis Collier, from Chattanooga, Tenn., gave a lecture at the University of South Dakota April 14 on the importance of integrity. “The talk demonstrates how lawyers committed to the profession, that is ones with integrity, can affect change not only in the law, but also in our society,” Collier said. Collier highlighted […]
VIDEO: Conference puts women and gender issues at forefront
Graduate students Haley Schwenk and Elise Hocking presented their results from research regarding college students’ attitudes toward workers requesting paternity and maternity leave during the Biennial Women and Gender Research Conference April 9. Their results showed something few audience members expected. College students considered women who request maternity leave as more dominant, and men who requested paternity […]
Language department chair draws from West Point, ballet experiences to teach students
Three months after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Laura Vidler couldn’t shake off the urge to serve her country in some way. She didn’t come from a military background and didn’t know if she had what it took to be in the military, but she knew she had to contribute to her devastated country one way […]
Administrators explain reason for class on Easter Monday
Unlike high school students or even some college students in the region, University of South Dakota students were in class on Easter Monday, or April 6. Jim Moran, USD provost and vice president for academic affairs, said classes are held on Easter Monday because it is not recognized as a religious holiday. “There is this […]
Published faculty write about array of topics, use books as learning tools
From reggae reference books to a cat memoir, professors at the University of South Dakota are publishing books on a variety of topics. USD professors are required to publish their own work, whether it be in the form of a scholarly article or a fiction novel. David Moskowitz, a music professor, has written four books […]