Thursday, June 25, 2009

ECCE program to discuss cultural connections

The University of Illinois at Springfield will be hosting a program called “Bridging Across Cultures: Challenges and Opportunities” presented by Dr. Nithyakala Karuppaswamy on Wednesday, July 1, at 12 p.m. in Brookens Auditorium, located on the lower level of Brookens Library on the UIS campus.

The event is part of the Engaged Citizenship Common Experience (ECCE) Speaker Series at UIS.

The program will discuss why developing the skills of cross-cultural connection is not only recommended, but necessary to succeed in today’s global environment. Connecting across cultures involves understanding one’s own background, strengths and biases; being curious and learning about the others’ culture; and developing genuine connection by persisting in the face of obstacles. Karuppaswamy will address each of these steps by using cross-cultural connections between individuals from India and the U.S. as examples.

Karuppaswamy is an assistant professor of Human Development Counseling at UIS. Her areas of specialization include multicultural counseling, racial identity development, couples and family therapy, spirituality and the intersection of Western and Eastern worldviews in therapy.

For information about the ECCE Speaker Series, contact Kimberly Craig, series coordinator, at 206-6245 or e-mail speakerseries@uis.edu.

Theatre Program announced schedule for 2009-2010 season

The University of Illinois at Springfield’s Theatre Program has announced the schedule for the 2009-2010 season with productions that tell the stories of conflicted relationships.

The fall production is The Shape of Things by Neil LaBute. Set in a liberal arts college, in a conservative Midwestern town, four characters struggle to find their voice in matters of love and art. After a chance meeting in a museum, Evelyn and Adam become embroiled in an intense affair. Before long, Evelyn steers Adam toward a new appearance and character. The final, shocking exhibition reveals Evelyn’s true intentions and challenges our most deeply entrenched ideas about art and love.

UIS Assistant Professor of Theatre Eric Thibodeaux-Thompson will direct. Production dates are November 13-15 and 19-21. Open auditions will be held September 8-10, from 7 to 10 p.m. each day, in the Studio Theatre at UIS.

The spring production is The Runner Stumbles by Milan Stitt. The setting is in a remote northern Michigan parish in 1911, where a young nun, Sister Rita, mysteriously dies. Her superior, Father Rivard, is charged with the crime.

As the trial unfolds four years later, the story alternates between the past and the present, revealing a conflicted relationship between the young nun and the priest. Sister Rita tries to inject color and life into the rural, drab town, bringing more tension to the surface. Part-courtroom drama, part-memory play and part-romance, the play explores conflicts between duty to the church and duty to self, forbidden passions, and divisions between strict traditional morality and complex human emotions.

UIS Assistant Professor of Theatre Missy Thibodeaux-Thompson will direct. Productions dates are April 23-25 and April 29-May 1. Open auditions will be held on January 31-February 2.

Beginning with the fall 2009 production, evening curtain times will be changed to 7:30 p.m., instead of 8 p.m. as in the past. Sunday performances remain at 2 p.m.

For more information about auditions, the plays, or the Theatre Program at UIS, go to www.uis.edu/theatre .

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Emiquon to hold Walk and Talk lecture at Morton site

This month’s Emiquon Field Station Walk and Talk lecture will convene on Wednesday, July 1 at 6 p.m. at the Morton site to explore the excavations of the Morton Village. This is the second year of excavations at the Morton Village, a prehistoric Native American site that dates to about 1300 A.D. The excavations are a joint venture of Dickson Mounds Museum and Dr. Jodie O’Gorman of Michigan State University, with the cooperation of The Nature Conservancy.

The site is located on the west side of Illinois Route 78/97 0.4 miles south of the junction of Illinois Route 24 and 78/97, or if traveling from the south, at the top of the Illinois River bluff.

The Morton Village contains evidence of use by two groups that archaeologists refer to as Mississippian and Oneota. Natives of the Mississippian culture lived in the area for several centuries starting about 1000 A.D.; their living sites and cemeteries are common in the region around Dickson Mounds. Oneota is a cultural tradition centered in Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin and northern Illinois. However, in the last 25 years, several large villages and cemeteries belonging to the Oneota tradition have been identified in the area.

The research at Morton Village seeks to understand why Oneota groups expanded into the region, how they adapted to the new setting and the nature of the relationship between Oneota and Mississippian groups.

The excavations, which began on May 26 and will run through July 3, are being conducted by the Michigan State University Archaeological Field School and Dickson Mounds staff. The remains of several houses and numerous storage and cooking pits have been found as well as artifacts such as pottery, arrow points and stone hoes.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

UIS hosts Distance Credentialed Counselor Workshop

The University of Illinois at Springfield will host a Distance Credentialed Counselor (DCC) Workshop on Thursday, July 23, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday, July 24, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

ReadyMinds, a leader in distance counseling, will be offering this training under the authorization by the Center for Credentialing and Education, Inc., an affiliate of the National Board of Certified Counselors.

Counselors will experience hands-on training that can be applied effectively in their current work environment. The need for distance services is growing, and the workshop will provide professional enhancement to counselors who are engaging in more e-mail and telephone exchanges with their clients.

The workshop will cover such topics as establishing a counselor/client relationship via distance, determining counselor and client suitability to distance counseling and confidentiality strategies.
This workshop has been approved by the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC), and by the Human Services Education Council (HSEC), for up to 15 continuing education hours.

To attend the DCC training, participants must possess a master’s degree in counseling or an appropriately-related field from a regionally-accredited college or university. To also obtain the DCC Credential in addition to attending the DCC training, participants must have a master’s degree, be licensed to practice counseling or a related field in the state or country in which the candidate resides or works or be certified in good standing as a National Certified Counselor, and successfully complete the DCC Training Program and the DCC written Training Accountability Requirement document.

The training fee is $595 and includes the two-day training, all training materials and breakfast and lunch on both days. Licensed professional counselors and national certified counselors are eligible to receive a $150 discount. Contact Lisa Miller at lisa@readyminds.com or call (888) 225-8248 to receive this discount.

To register for the DCC training, go online to www.readyminds.com/dcclocations and click on the training site “University of Illinois at Springfield.” For more information about the DCC credential, visit www.cce-global.org or call (336) 482-2856.

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Dr. Peter Wenz to discuss political philosophies in the U.S. during ECCE presentation

Dr. Peter Wenz, University of Illinois at Springfield Emeritus Professor of Philosophy, will present a program called “How to Form Political Coalitions without Sacrificing Personal Integrity” on Tuesday, June 9, at 7 p.m. in Brookens Auditorium, located on the lower level of Brookens Library on the UIS campus.

Wenz’s presentation is part of the Engaged Citizenship Common Experience (ECCE) Speaker Series at UIS. The event is free and open to the public.

The program will examine the cultural and political division in the United States between the left wing and right wing. Wenz argues that Americans use 12 political philosophies in their thinking, not simply a dual, Republican/Democrat approach when analyzing political and controversial issues. His talk will illustrate this possibility with discussion of same-sex marriage, school vouchers, genetic engineering and other current issues.

Wenz retired from UIS in December 2004 after spending 28 years as a member of the Philosophy Department. He also had a one-third joint appointment to do research and writing in what was originally called the Center for Legal Studies, now called the Institute for Legal, Legislative, and Policy Studies.

Wenz is the author of six books, the most recent of which is titled Beyond Red and Blue: How Twelve Political Philosophies Shape American Debates. After his presentation, the UIS bookstore will be selling copies of the book, and Wenz will also do a book signing.

This program is the first of four ECCE presentations this month. Other events include a program called “V for Vendetta: A Discussion of Terrorism and Political Violence,” with a showing of the movie V for Vendetta and a discussion with Dr. Richard Gilman-Opalsky, on Monday, June 15 at 6 p.m. in Brookens Auditorium, and a program about the Southwind Park Project by Diane Mathis and Butch Elzea on Tuesday, June 23, at 2 p.m. in University Hall room 2008. Marc Miller will give a second program about the Southwind Park Project that will take place at the park on Friday, June 26, at 11 a.m., when community members and UIS students are invited to plant trees and gardens.

For information about any ECCE event, contact Kimberly Craig, series coordinator, at 206-6245 or e-mail speakerseries@uis.edu.