Category Archives: administrative

Extra Credit Opportunity: Apple Day Convocation

The annual “Apple Day Convocation” will be celebrated on Thursday, March 1, 2012, in the McCray Recital Hall. This year’s speaker will be Mr. Arthur Edwin “Ed” McKechnie III, Chair of the Kansas Board of Regents. Ed is also the Executive Vice President for Strategic Development and the Chief Commercial Officer for Watco Companies, Inc. in Pittsburg. A PSU graduate, Mr. McKechnie earned a B.A. in Communications in 1986.

Schedule Adjustment Again

My apologies again for my absence. I have revised the schedule (again), this time using the catch-up day for the next test. I’ll do my best to get through the material efficiently this week, so that we have some time to talk about the test beforehand.

The good news, I suppose, is that you’ve got an extra weekend to work on the Document Homework.

I will have the tests to give back Wednesday, and I will post comments about the grades and suggestions for improving next time.

Class cancelled: Schedule Shifts

Sorry about cancelling class: Just not healthy enough to handle it.

I’ve shifted the readings and assignments back a day for the next few weeks: I’m using the catch-up/review day for Test 3 as my sick day. This means that Test 2, the document homework, the book assignments for Eating History, are all pushed back one class. You can see the full details on the course schedule page

Something like a study guide

You can find some exemplars of good work from previous semesters here and here. You can also see a comparison of good answers with the textbook sidebar definitions, if you’re thinking of memorizing those short definitions (hint: it’s not a good idea!)

I grade the individual questions on a 4-point scale: 4=A, 3=B, etc. I then total those up and, taking the highest grade in the class as 100%, convert them back to a 4-point scale letter grade with pluses and minuses. I record that grade (on a hundred point scale, so F is still worth more than zero) as your grade on the test.

World History Since 1500

  • The main course page can be found in the header links above, or here. This will have the current schedule, including any changes, links to resources like the syllabus (also available through the Past Syllabi tab above), my Powerpoint Slides when relelvant, and assignment handouts.
  • Your first homework, in addition to starting the reading in Spence and the document collection, is to complete the Student Information Form and email it to me before class on Friday.

Extra Credit Opportunity: Kansas Poets

The Distinguished Visiting Writer Series at Pittsburg State University will host a reading featuring twelve Kansas poets at 7 p.m., on Dec. 8, in the Governor’s Room of PSU’s Overman Student Center. This reading is part of a twenty-city reading tour to commemorate the publication of Begin Again: 150 Kansas Poems. The reading is free and open to the public.

Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg, Poet Laureate of Kansas, organized the book publication and the reading tour. The project, which celebrates the Kansas Sesquicentennial, began in April, National Poetry Month, with poets submitting work that related to Kansas. Mirriam-Goldberg says the collection represents a diverse group of poets and perspectives: “This book is a wonderful compilation of poetry across Kansas, bringing together over 90 poets from all over and beyond the state to share the beauty, mystery, surprises, quirks and stories of Kansas.”

Kansas has a rich history of regional writing which includes such notable poets as William Stafford, James Tate, Langston Hughes, and Gwendolyn Brooks. An unusual number of poets have connections to Pittsburg. In fact, according to Laura Washburn, director of creative writing at PSU, “The literary prowess of this region may be one of its best-kept secrets.” Of the 93 poets included in Begin Again, twelve of them have connections to Pittsburg and PSU. “Pittsburg has a lot to be proud of in this anthology,” Washburn said. Published poets who are included in the anthology but who will not be at the reading are Eric Dutton who was born in Pittsburg and received his master’s from PSU, and Pamela Yenser who also received her master’s at PSU.

Reading Thursday are Laura Lee Washburn, Iris Wilkinson, Lorraine Achey, Roland Sodowsky, Stephen Meats, Daniele Cunningham, Olive L. Sullivan, Rick Nichols, Al Ortolani, Max Yoho, Melissa Fite, Allison Berry, and Ronda Miller.

This will be the fourth event in the annual Distinguished Visiting Writer series, which brings nationally acclaimed authors, poets and writers to PSU. The DVW is sponsored by the English department and the Student Fee Council. Information about the Kansas 150 tour is available at the Poet Laureate’s website http://150kansaspoems.wordpress.com/.

Extra Credit Opportunity: December PSU jazz concert

Here is your official invitation to the December PSU jazz concert. It is at 7:30 PM on December 1 at Memorial Auditorium (503 N. Pine in Pittsburg). This is a free concert and features two of our PSU colleagues, Mrs. Stella Hastings and Dr. Russell Jones. The concert has something for everyone form jazz standards to classic pieces like Secret Love, Georgia, and Tea for Two. There are works from the Basie, Kenton, and Les Hooper libraries and even a new work from the British rock band Radiohead. We hope to see you there.