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(10/21/05 4:46am)
The intimacy of a small group of four people gathered to watch a movie is not just something for friends to organize -- the University also sponsors events like these. Such a gathering occurred Wednesday at La Casa Latino Cultural Center in a viewing of "Mar Adentro" ("The Sea Inside").\n"It's not just entertainment," said Lillian Casillas, director of La Casa. For the center, movies serve as a way to learn about Latino culture. \nLa Casa has had a film series for the past two years. It chooses the movies to represent different parts of Latin America, Latin Americans and Spaniards while exploring social issues.\nCasillas receives a lot of input for the movies shown, but she makes the final decisions.\nShe chose "Mar Adentro" because of its awards (it won an Academy Award for Best Foreign Film) and public recognition of the star and director. \nJavier Bardem is the star of the film. Bardem is the first Spanish actor ever to be nominated for an Academy Award for his role in "Before Night Falls."\nDirector Alejandro Amenábar's past credits include "The Others" and "Abre los Ojos," the film on which Vanilla Sky was based.\nThe film is based on the true story of Ramon Sampedro, who was left quadriplegic after an accident. Sampedro spent 30 years battling the Spanish government, trying to obtain the legal right to his assisted suicide.\n"Mar Adentro" focuses on Sampedro's legal battle and his relationships with two women. One relationship is with a female lawyer who supports his cause, and the other is with a female neighbor who wants him to live.\nLa Casa employee junior Joel Hernandez enjoyed the movie.\n"It makes me think a lot about where people stand (on the issue of euthanasia)," he said. "It makes me sad that the health department makes people's decisions for them."\nAlfonso Gerbolini attended the screening and felt very connected to the film.\n"It makes you feel like you are with him -- you're in the room," Gerbolini said.\nHis friend, Daniel Sudijanto, felt somewhat differently.\n"I think it's very depressing. He can't get what he wants," Sudijanto said, referring to Sampedro's desire for a dignified death.\nHowever, the film series is only one aspect of La Casa's outreach program. The center also plays host to cooking lessons, guest speakers and various cultural games. Through its film series, it has also created a film library, which encompasses a broad range of genres and nations. \nFuture presentations broaden the scope of movies in Spanish. Puerto Rican Discovery Day falls on Nov. 19, so that month's movie will focus on Puerto Rico. Movies in the spring will be about Afro-Latinos and Asian Latinos. At La Casa, they try to build bridges to other cultures whenever they can. Some of their events are co-sponsored with other IU organizations, further displaying La Casa's goal to be an active part of IU's society.\nFreshman Cynthia Solorzano, works at La Casa. She said she enjoys the social aspect the center provides.\n"Through La Casa I've met people outside the dorms," she said.\nHernandez felt very similar about La Casa's community environment.\n"Everybody's really friendly here -- like a family. It really is like your house," he said.\nThe film series takes place at 7 p.m. on the third Wednesday of every month. For more information, call La Casa at 855-0174 or visit La Casa at 715 E. Seventh St.
(10/17/05 4:59am)
A group of twenty students turned out for the Students for Global Democracy 12K Worldwide Walk for Democracy in Belarus Saturday afternoon in Brown County. \n"We have a decent (sized) group, but I feel like the people we have here are really dedicated and focused on the cause which is far more important than just numbers that have turned out," said student Rachel Becker, the group's unofficial secretary.\nThe weather was agreeable for a walk through Brown County State Park -- sunny, breezy and 68 degrees. A little more than thirty minutes from campus, the walk started and ended at Ogle Lake.\nThe group's main focus for organizing the walk was to show solidarity with the people of Belarus while also raising awareness about the current political situation. \nBelarus is often called "Europe's last dictatorship." The group walked 12 kilometers to represent the number of years the current authoritarian president, Alexander Lukashenko will have been in power at the time of the next election.\nWalks were also held across the United States and in Ghana, Poland, South Africa, Taiwan and Turkey. Pictures from the various events are being sent to independent Belarusian media and groups supporting democracy there.\n"People ... will see pictures of us and be inspired," said the group's president and founder, student Charlie Szrom.\nAfter 45 minutes of walking up a steep hill, the group, wearing shirts with the slogan "United for a Free Belarus" in Belarusian, took a break and allowed the stragglers to catch up.\n"Wow, democracy is tough," said Szrom, a former Indiana Daily Student columnist.\nBecker, also serving as the group's resident cheerleader asked "are we ready to march on troops?"\nShe and Juwon Lee, a SFGD group member, also composed a chant for the event. \n"United for Belarus, Lukashanko's gonna lose, democracy and freedom for all, dictatorships are gonna fall," they chanted, trying to get the group to join in with them.\nLee, a student from Seoul, South Korea is a new member of the group.\n"I sort of wanted to give more to society," she said of her choice to join the group. "Democracy is a really good thing."\nShe wanted to participate in the walk because she said it's an active way to support the cause.\n"We're not just sitting down, we're actually going out physically experiencing what we believe in ... and with the pictures (that get sent to Belarus) we're showing really strong emotional support for the Belarusian dissidents," Lee said.\nAfter nearly three hours of walking through the woods the group disbanded, with Szrom thanking each participant individually.
(10/14/05 4:52am)
IU Students for Global Democracy will hold its Worldwide Walk for Democracy in Belarus Saturday in Brown County. Money raised will go to groups directly contributing to democratizing Belarus, a part of the former Soviet Union. \nParticipants of the walk will meet in the circle of the Indiana Memorial Union at 11:30 a.m. and then carpool to Brown County State Park. They will then walk 12 kilometers to represent the 12 years the current president will have been in power at the time of the next election.\nOften called "Europe's last dictatorship," Belarus held its first presidential elections in 1994. The elected president, Alexander Lukashenko, has been in office ever since.\nStudents for Global Democracy, the walk's sponsor, is a worldwide organization with local beginnings. Started by IU junior Charlie Szrom in the winter of 2004, there are now chapters at Stanford and Berkeley, in Chicago, Ann Arbor, Mich., Irvine, Calif., Ontario and Kathmandu, Nepal. \n"I wanted to change the world for the better, like most people do," Szrom said. "I wanted to deal with the root of the problem (by encouraging democracy) ... I thought that would be how my time would be best spent."\nAs for the group's decision to focus on Belarus, Szrom, a former Indiana Daily Student columnist, cited his semester spent in Poland last year. Being so close to Belarus, he was able to meet with Belarusians opposed to their government. He was also able to follow the Ukraine's Orange Revolution.\nThe walk is titled "worldwide" because there are walks also organized for this weekend in 13 other locations around the world, including countries without chapters. Ghana, Poland, South Africa, Taiwan and Turkey are all supporting efforts to raise awareness and funds for Belarus. \nSzrom mostly wants to focus on solidarity as opposed to fund raising because, he said, "it's our strong point as students." \nHowever, donations are accepted and the proceeds from the sale of $15 T-shirts are donated as well.\n"When you're in Belarus and you might lose your job for what you believe in... It's pretty lonely," he said.\nPictures of the walk will be sent to Web sites and various Belarusian contacts to maintain an active dialogue.\nThe group is non-partisan and supports non-violent, pro-democratic efforts by students living in countries without democracy, Szrom said.\nSzrom said the group encourages people who did not previously sign up to come out and help the cause. There is no required fee, but donations are accepted.
(06/30/05 4:51am)
A student response system, otherwise known as "clickers," are a new tool for learning in a large classroom setting. The clickers, which look similar to TV remotes, are used for answering questions in large lecture halls. Students can answer surveys, take quizzes, or manage attendance using them. IU already has several professors who have used them in the past and many more who want to have them better established on campus.\nIn April of 2004, The New York Times interviewed IU professor Melissa Wilde regarding her use of clickers in her lectures. As a sociology professor, she found them very useful to anonymously gather very personal information such as income, religion, political affiliation, and then use that as a springboard for productive class discussion.\n"For 20 or 30 minutes, they got really fired up," Wilde said. "Basically I get them doing sociology on themselves," she added.\nProponents argue that clickers create a more active learning environment, one where students are more engaged. They also feel that assessment of student knowledge and understanding is better defined and quickly achieved with this system.\nProfessor Caty Pilachowski used them in the spring of 2004 for her Introduction to Astronomy lecture with 225 students. She feels it's difficult to engage the students in a big lecture hall because the course is so mathematical and the department doesn't have the AIs in order to have labs.\n"It adds excitement to the course," she said.\nAlthough, she added, "I didn't find this to be as useful as I'd like ... But these issues can be resolved."\nOne such issue is that often times the clickers won't register that an answer had been submitted. They were infrared, like remotes, and couldn't handle a large volume of clickers at once. There are now radio frequency systems, which fix this problem.\nStudents purchase clickers and then register them with a code that is given to them along with the clicker. The professor then downloads their information to his or her system and the clicker can only be used with systems that accompany the registration.\nThe cost of the clicker is $15 with a $15 registration fee per semester of use.\nBiology professor Susan Hengeveld used the clickers in the fall of 2004 and will use them once again this coming fall semester. She made use of them in her Evolution and Diversity lecture of nearly 300 students. \n"I had no problems," she said. She asked questions as part of her everyday teaching strategy. "(It) gave me a lot of feedback on whether the students are understanding the material." Asking the questions and then later looking at the percentage of votes also gave her a good idea which ones we're good questions.\n"It breaks up the lecture. With 300 students it's hard to have a discussion," Hengeveld said.\n"It gives me a mechanism to ask concept-oriented questions ... which gives them exposure to questions that will be on the test."\nHengeveld is, however, going to put a new statement in her syllabus for next semester that states, "Anyone who is caught with two remotes will be turned in for academic misconduct." She has not personally experienced a problem with this but a friend of hers who teaches at Purdue has had numerous problems. \nShe also used this system to take attendance in order to help grade with pluses and minuses at the end of a semester. This method made her attendance "astronomical," something that would not have been possible in her situation, a large lecture course without help from AIs. She felt she taught better and the overall class average was higher compared to the previous semester.\nJoan Middendorf of Instructional Support Services said she's considering using the clickers.\n"We're really just beginning to figure out whether or not to adopt them based on research," she said. "We're starting to ask deeper, more sophisticated questions (regarding whether or not to adopt this into the curriculum)."\nShe added that the technology doesn't actually matter that much, it's what professors do with it that is important. Middendorf would like to have professors decide to get the systems to help address problem areas, not just because they're fun.\nThe Information Technology Policy Office (ITPO) and the Administration are currently talking about the possibility of adopting the clicker system. The bookstore will also start discussing this option early next month.\nSupporters on campus hope to see the selection of a vendor by the fall and begin the first phase of standard implementation by the spring of 2006.
(06/23/05 12:47am)
Music lovers can hear jazz, rock, country, blues, and world music every Tuesday at People's Park as part of the Tuesday Lunch Concert Series.\nEvery Tuesday from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. until September 27 a different band or solo artist will be performing at the park located at the intersection of Kirkwood Ave. and Dunn St.\nDavid Desante, sound technician for the Bloomington Parks and Recreation Department, works every concert, helping the musicians sound their best. Desante gave his opinion on the concert series' benefits to the community.\n"I feel it's important to get people exposed to different kinds of music," he said. "There's local talent that should and needs to be heard," Desante added.\nThat's exactly what happened this Tuesday, just like every Tuesday this summer. Local band Acousta Kats covered songs ranging from The Soggy Bottom Boys (the fictional band from the film "O Brother, Where Art Thou?") to John Mellencamp. The park was full of young people, families, retirees, all tapping their feet and eating their lunches.\nNext week's artists will be of the jazz persuasion. Andy Cobine and Danny Deckard Duo will perform at 11:30.\nFor those unfamiliar with the park, it is a quarter acre and contains benches, checker tables, murals, mosaic tiles and concrete sculptures. It has been a part of the Bloomington community since 1974. Located across from Kilroy's and next to The Bicycle Garage, the park is easily accessible from both campus and downtown.\nFor a complete schedule of events or for more information visit http://bloomington.in.gov/parks.
(06/23/05 12:45am)
Tonight PBS will ask us, "How good is higher education in America today?" They wonder if our educational experiences in colleges and universities actually measure up to our hopes and dreams of what they would be, and more importantly what we need our experiences to be.\nThe special in depth documentary report, Declining by Degrees: Higher Education at Risk, examines this idea by looking through the eyes of students, parents, professors, and college administrators. They do this by looking at four schools, all representing an archetypal learning environment. They are: a private liberal college, a major state university, a regional public university and a community college.\nIt is PBS' stance that Declining by Degrees comes "in the midst of a growing national concern about quality, fueled in part by an increasing preoccupation with college rankings, grade inflation, declining academic standards, and overall concerns about the quality and readiness of America's workforce." \nThey also note that today nearly a dozen countries have a higher percentage of youth in college, a major change from recent years.\nThe program is a production of Learning Matters, Inc. and Peabody Award Winning correspondent John Merrow. Merrow, a former teacher, heads the not-for-profit organization, which for the past ten years has been producing reports about American education. \nFollowing 30 students and teachers, the program attempts to document the journey of higher education from applying to graduating, including the all-important first year. \nMike Morefield, a student at the University of Arizona and one of the students profiled, described his freshman experience for the program.\n"It's like somebody comes along with a pin right after high school, pops your bubble, picks you up, throws you naked in some college, and you've got to figure it out," Morefield said. \nThe show makes it a point to mention that 1,200 of Morefield's classmates were not able to "figure it out" and did not return for sophomore year.\nAnd PBS is not just going to raise questions without offering up valid solutions. Going well beyond the program, Merrow and former president of Trinity College Richard Hersh have compiled a book of essays focusing on the core problems in the world of today's educational systems and also numerous plans for improving the situation. The book also includes a forward by Tom Wolfe.\nIU faculty member George Kuh was also interviewed for his views on education. Kuh gave his own personal insight to Merrow's documentary.\n"Merrow paints a rather negative picture of current trends in undergraduate education. I see the glass as half full rather than half empty, however."\nKuh then applied the program's views to IU in particular.\n"There are a lot of new and exciting developments in education, especially for freshmen, and IU is doing a large number of those. I don't want people to walk away from the program feeling that no one is making efforts to successfully deal with the challenges posed to education," Kuh added. \nThere is also an accompanying Web site launched by Learning Matters, Inc., www.decliningbydegrees.org.\nAlong with Merrow's reporting, PBS also uses a team of highly accomplished commentators, including Lee Shulman, president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching; Frank Deford, senior writer with Sports Illustrated; and Lara Couturier, director of research with The Futures Project: Policy for Higher Education in a Changing World, among other scholars. \nMajor funding for the program was provided by Indianapolis based Lumina Foundation for Education. Other contributors include the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the Park Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Christian A. Johnson Endeavor Foundation and the Spencer Foundation.\nThe program will air tonight at 9 p.m. on PBS (WTIU).
(06/13/05 12:59am)
Melinda Williams first turned to art for therapeutic value. Now, she is not only doing what she loves but also making a profit.\nThis was evident at her exhibit reception last Friday in the Textillery Gallery of the Buskirk-Chumley Theater where she showed her artwork, which includes drawings and dolls. \nShe has drawn for seven years and has only been making dolls for the past two and a half years. However, she has already been published in Art Doll Quarterly, a nationally published magazine. \nHer most popular dolls are her healing dolls. She uses specific colors and herbal preparations when making them. The chosen herbs are used as stuffing.\nGuests seemed to greatly appreciate the work behind the artwork. Comments like "There's so much detail" were repeated throughout the evening. \nWilliams' dolls are commissioned for graduation and holiday gifts but she has also done several for health related reasons. For example, a woman with tuberculosis purchased a healing doll, and the combination of milk thistle, dandelions, and burdock root even accompanied her to the hospital. \nWilliams has done commissioned work for people as far as Arizona and Florida. Williams said that one healing doll could easily take up to one month for her to finish.\nHowever, when completing a doll she feels like she's on a mission.\nOne such doll is Mr. Tallisman, a healing doll on stool, 2005, selling for $875. She wrote his descriptive story:\n"Fearful of the unknown and cautious of all he meets, Mr. Tallisman is well equipped to face any negative that may cross his path. Highly superstitious, he wears the evil eye and tiny mirrors to ward off evil. He gains protections, luck, and guidance from such things as nature's stones, animal totems, religious symbols, and chains. While he might find comfort in these small tokens, he must be mindful of the power he gives to outside forces, he is filled with herbs that restore his personal energy, provide courage to face the unknown and award him with faith that will see him through any obstacle."\nFor Williams, a normal day can be working all day at the Franklin Cornucopia health food store in nearby Franklin then going home to work until around midnight in her studio.\nShe admits to having a dark side and first began making her dolls based on her interest in Voodoo dolls. Often times her dolls take on their own life and she is surprised at how they turn out.\nShe summed up the importance of her work by saying, "I see my drawings as an invitation to look at life from different perspectives."\nAbout her dolls, she said, "These dolls serve to give encouragement in overcoming any detail of life that may block us from moving forward."\nWilliams's work will be displayed from June 2 to June 29. The Buskirk-Chumley Textillery Gallery is open every day from noon to 5 pm. For more information visit www.buskirkchumley.org.
(06/06/05 12:38am)
The art, the plants, the food, the wine, the music...\nFriday night's Art and Garden Exhibit at the Bloomington Hospitality House had it all. And that's exactly how Kerry DeLaney, in his second year at the Hospitality House, envisioned it when he organized the event. \n"We began the art shows to create closer ties with the community," DeLaney said.\nThe event is a joint effort between the recreational therapist and the horticultural therapist.\n"Recreational therapy is more than just activities," DeLaney said.\nThis event proved that to be true. DeLaney also noted that all residents who are able to come out do so and greatly enjoy the goings on. The majority of the people there were family members of the residents and DeLaney feels this is a great way for them to be involved and enjoy themselves too.\nThe artwork displayed was that of the Bloomington Watercolor Society. Marilyn Martin, president and founder of the society, feels this event is important.\n"It supports the arts and creativity and shows residents what's going on outside the nursing home," she said.\n45 paintings were displayed, mostly of natural scenes. \nThe plants were also a large part of the evening. With pots of aloe vera, strawberry, and basil the event had a variety for sale. All are grown by the residents at the center.\nThe menu du jour was made up of what appeared to be atypical nursing home food, but DeLaney gave assurance that the food typified a normal meal at this nursing home. There were spinach and chicken wraps, cheesecake, and flavored coffees -- not to mention the wine. Oliver Winery provided not only free samples, but also free glasses of wine. \nOliver Winery's Susan Chestnut said "the residents look forward to (the event)." \nShe feels the evening helps to add culture to the home.\n"It's wonderful to support the center," said, Karin Rowe, also from Oliver Winery. "Oliver Winery is very interested in the community." \nThe residents seemed to be equally interested in them, or at least what they had to offer. They had several people say, "Bring me what you had last year."\nThe mood was completed further with a classical violinist. \nThis was the third art exhibit at the Hospitality House and they are trying to have three or four per year. All events are free and the general public is welcomed. \nPlants can be bought at the Hospitality House located at 1100 S. Curry Pike. For more information call 339-1657.\nOliver Winery is open for tastings seven days a week and conducts tours Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Call 876-5800 for more information.\nThe Bloomington Watercolor Society meets the first Sunday of each month. For more information contact the John Waldron Art Center at 334-3100.
(04/26/05 4:39am)
While studying abroad in Seville, Spain, I learned a lot about not only Spanish culture but also my culture and myself. Through this experience, I now know how important it is to be able to view life from another world perspective. In doing so I feel more able to look at my country and government more objectively (or less subjectively). My first and strongest lesson was how much we as Americans consume compared to the Spanish, and it's not like they don't shop or like to take long showers. We're all very interconnected, especially the United States and Western Europe. And despite many differences, Spain and the United States have a lot in common. Although it's not as available, technology is becoming increasingly important in Spanish culture; Spaniards listen to a lot of our music and watch more of our movies than their own. We place a lot of importance on higher education ... the list could go on and on.\nThat being said, let me now mention some things that are quite different because during this semester I've learned a lot about my likes, dislikes and American dependencies. For example, after walking 45 minutes each way to class every day, I know now how very dependent I am on my car. Despite living in Spain for a semester, I have found I am very partial to American food. Not that Spanish food is bad ... it's just not that good. Oh, and how nice it is to walk down a street clear of dog poop! And after watching some television that is even more mindless than some of our worst, I know how very entertaining American television can be. Never having had the dorm experience, I can now appreciate how silly and important being young is, but one semester of last-minute plans and going out every weekend is enough for me! Something I'll miss right away about living in Spain is how much easier it is to tune out annoying chatter when it's not in your native language. Along with that, I learned how very difficult it is to truly express yourself in another language, especially when talking about something like politics or literature, which they do oh-so-often.\nSocially, I got a lot more practice making friends, I tried more independence on for size, I learned what it's like to live with people who aren't exactly nurturing, (i.e. people different from my parents), I learned how to deal with occasional solitude, and I gained the reinforced insight to know who and what is really important to me back at home -- mostly my family and school.\nFrom Spanish culture, I learned the benefits of living life at a slower pace, but I'm now ready to speed back up and start getting more accomplished on a daily basis and making longer to-do lists. However, one of the first things on this list is to spend some quality time with my new best friend, TiVo, a television system that lets you record one program live, pause it and pick it up where you left off. And I can't wait to walk down a street, sharing my exciting adventures with a friend, all the while not looking down for dog poop.
(03/01/05 4:38am)
Looking ahead to studying abroad, I expected to learn more about my country through the eyes of others, and I also expected to learn more about myself as a person. What I didn't expect was to learn about myself as an American. \nSure, I identified myself as an American because I appreciated my country and because that's where I lived, but now I'm learning that I'm really inherently American. Having never lived outside of the United States before, I used to pretentiously consider myself significantly different from the average American. Now I see I not only have many things in common with the Spanish, I'm also a flaming "Yankee," as some so fondly refer to us here.\nI find myself missing ideologies such as efficiency. Everyday things take longer here, but there's no legitimate reason. Professors pass out all papers individually, no "take one and pass it down" here, folks. Buying class packets can take quite a while because they don't even have them ready. You ask for them and they copy them for you while you wait! \nI'm not mad while I'm waiting for these things. I find it humorous. Oh, and stores open at 10 a.m or 11 a.m. -- or whenever they want. One of my first experiences here was trying to go to a restaurant someone recommended only to find it was closed for the week for "personal rest." Then, of course, the stores are closed for siesta, which begins at 1:30 or 2 in the afternoon, and lasts until 5 p.m. when they re-open until 9 p.m. or so. \nI also miss quantity. Everything in Europe is so small -- again, not something that I'm uncomfortable with, but it takes adjustment. I used to consider myself a fairly reasonable consumer and didn't buy as much as the typical American. But what I have found is that a reasonable consumer in the United States is considered a "shopaholic" in Spain. I miss stocking up on things. I miss Target and Sam's Club. I don't think I'm buying much here, but when it takes so much effort to actually get it, I feel like I'm buying stuff all the time. \nSomething which also automatically labels me as an American is discussing politics with the Spanish. I'm getting used to talking about socialists and communists without picturing the devil. That's a tough one because it's an ingrained American value.\nIf I did want to go all out displaying my patriotism I've definitely figured out how to do so. Carry a JanSport backpack, wear a North Face jacket, New Balance shoes, jeans and a T-shirt, add a baseball cap and top it all off with an iPod and no one will bother speaking Spanish to you. More than half of my American classmates fit this description or at least a watered-down version of it. Oh, and I almost forgot, eating while walking is a good clue that you're an American, too. \nWhile becoming more acclimated to Spanish culture I'm also becoming more comfortable and aware of my own culture. I feel more American than I ever have in my life ... in Spain!
