New year will bring new growth 
ENGAGE YOUR STRENGTHS | COMMUNITY | FUTURE AT UNIVERSITY COLLEGE 


The song talks about this being "the most wonderful time of the year." Of course, this week is a wonderful week as we celebrate the fall semester graduates. In my final Commencement ceremony as Dean of University College, I will be welcoming 20 Integrative Studies graduates into the ranks of alumni. It is one of many moments this week that are bittersweet as I transition from University College to the new Honors College. I want to thank everyone for the cards and gifts yesterday. The sentiments expressed mean more to me than you know. As I looked around the room, I could not help thinking, "What an amazing group of people I have had the privilege of working with." Thank you for a most wonderful time as your Dean.
Graduate degree gaining national media attention for innovation 
The first graduate course is more than a year away, but the recently approved M.S. in First-Year Studies is gaining national media attention. Insight into Diversity published a short article about the innovative degree program in its December issue, and the National Journal asked program director Stephanie Foote to write an article for its latest issue. Click here to read "A Studied Effort to Ease College Transitions."

First-Year and Transition Studies also gained national media recognition for KSU 1111 when Change magazine featured Ken Hill and the globally focused first-year seminar in its recent article on AASCU's Global Engagement Initiative.
INTS alumna featured in KSU Magazine
Flora Lowe-Rockett, a summer semester graduate from the Integrative Studies program, is featured in the latest issue of the university's premiere publication, KSU Magazine. The "alumni profile" summarizes Lowe-Rockett's career at the United Nations before returning to school six years ago to complete her degree.The article highlights Lowe-Rockett's position with Volunteer KSU (VKSU) and her decision to pursue a second degree in culinary sustainability and hospitality. Click here to read the profile.
Girl Talk learning communities raise needed funds for Indian women's shelter
Students in the two "Girl Talk" themed learning communities raised almost $900 for the Sneha Women's Shelter in Calcutta, India, this semester as part of their service project. They presented the check to Sucheta Rawal of the Go Eat Give Foundation at the Girl Talk Capstone Event, held Dec. 7.

Each fall the learning communities faculty work collaboratively to design assignments and service opportunities to allow KSU students to learn more about gender roles in other countries. This fall students learned about several challenges faced by women in India.

Gail Scott from psychology, Jeannie Parker-Beard from English, Cathy Bradford and Hillary Steiner were pleased with their students' accomplishments.
Mosholder, Larsen receive CETL grant
Richard Mosholder is teaming up with Carolee Larsen and Charles Winn from history to empirically investigate problem-based learning within a learning communities structure as part of an $8,000 Incentive Funding for Research & Creative Activity grant. The Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL) grant will allow the faculty to continue their research on the effectiveness of problem-based instruction within learning communities to "enable students to think beyond Piaget's formal operational level," explained Mosholder. They plan to compare the learning communities structure with a General Education history course that will also utilize problem-based learning and three General Education history sections taught traditionally. Initial results are anticipated in late 2014.
Faculty continue publication successes 
Hillary Steiner collaborated with Michelle Dean from chemistry and her First-Year and Transition Studies colleagues Stephanie Foote and Ruth Goldfine to publish "Applying TLC (a Targeted Learning Community) to Transform Teaching and Learning in Science" in the latest issue of Learning Communities Research and Practice. Click here to download the full article.

Debbie Smith also continued her collaborative research success, serving as second author on a co-authored article with Deborah Roebuck and Terr El Haddaoui that appears in the December issue of Advancing Women in Leadership. The title of the article is "Cross-Generational Perspectives on Work-Life Balance and its Impact on Women's Opportunities for Leadership in the Workplace."
KSU to collaborate with Kansai University
Stephanie Foote and Deborah Mixson-Brookshire will serve as primary researchers in a collaborative project with Kansai University of International Studies in Miki City, Japan. An official Agreement for Academic Cooperation was signed earlier this year to "promote and facilitate the advancement of learning through international exchange and cooperation in research, teaching and service."

Yasuo Sakamoto, Kansai's vice president for international relations, and Ayuko Tanaka, director of first-year education department, will be working closely with Foote and Mixson-Brookshire. This agreement is yet another example of University College's commitment to global learning and collaborative research.
Sunny Pradhan to graduate with IS degree
University College's Technology Support Specialist Sunny Pradhan graduates this week with a bachelor's degree in information systems. He is already investigating graduate programs and has no plans to leave his position, which is a joint appointment between the college and Information Technology Services.

Pradhan will walk across the stage during the Friday morning Commencement ceremony.
December 2013
National Media Attention
INTS Alumni Profile
Girl Talk Assists Indian Women's Shelter
CETL Incentive Grant
Spotlight on Scholarship
Partnership with Japanese University
Sunny Pradhan to Graduate
Quick Links
College meeting set for Jan. 7
The University College community will kick off spring semester at the Jan. 7 opening-of-the-semester meeting.

Breakfast will be served at 8:30 a.m. in the Leadership Room. The meeting will begin at 9 a.m. and conclude at 11 a.m.
First-Year Academic Extravaganza large success
The University Rooms were filled to capacity as more than 300 learning communities students gave poster presentations, demonstrations, theatrical performances, original works of art, multi-media presentations and speeches at the first First-Year Academic Extravaganza.

The TPS communities won the student award for integrative learning while the "Global Challenges and You" community won the best global learning award. The "Leading Ladies: You've Got What It Takes!" community received the award for strategies for academic success. Students from the "Get Engaged" community focused on HHS majors won the campus and community connections award for their project related to child abuse prevention. Students from the emergency preparedness communities won the life skills award for their wellness project.

Faculty awards and "people's choice" awards were also announced at the event, which will be repeated next year.
Scott to join Smith at national colloquium on leadership
Heather Scott will be joining Debbie Smith at the "Advancing Theories of Women and Leadership" academic colloquium hosted at Utah Valley University in May.

Scott and Smith are two of only 40 participants invited to participate in this intensive experience designed to propel research on issues such as identity theory and second-generation gender bias.

The colloquium grew out of the women's affinity group in the International Leadership Association.
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE
Kennesaw State University | 1000 Chastain Road, MB #2401, Kennesaw, Georgia  30144-5591

Dr. Ralph J. Rascati, Dean
p: 770/499/3550 | f: 770/499/3464 | e: uc@kennesaw.edu