February 2009

War Eagle and welcome to
eCommons, the
electronic version of
Auburn Commons.

Here's a look at what is happening this month:

After a national search, Auburn University President Jay Gogue has announced that Mary Ellen Mazey is the university's choice for Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs. She was approved by the Auburn Board of Trustees at its Jan. 29 meeting.

Mazey has an extensive background in teaching and administration, most recently as dean of the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences at West Virginia University.

"Dr. Mazey brings to Auburn a vision and experience in higher education administration that will serve the university well in the coming years," said Gogue. "Her expertise in the area of strategic planning will help us achieve the ambitious goals we have laid out for our future."

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The Alabama Senate Confirmations Committee is tentatively scheduled to consider the nomination of Raymond J. Harbert of Birmingham for an at-large position on the Auburn Board of Trustees on March 4th.

Harbert was selected on February 13th by the Auburn University Trustee Selection Committee to fill the seat previously held by Earlon McWhorter of Anniston. The office of Gov. Bob Riley, who is president of the Auburn Board, sent the Harbert selection to the Alabama Senate. Nominations to the Auburn Board require Senate confirmation.

Harbert is chairman and chief executive officer of Harbert Management Corp. He graduated from Auburn in 1982 with a bachelor’s degree in industrial management.

A class of more than 50 Auburn University students enrolled in the Executive MBA program have reached out to help a school in Texas whose building was left uninhabitable by September's Hurricane Ike.

The idea originated with Auburn EMBA student Kristie Barton, a distribution manager for Mississippi Power, who understood the urgent needs of those in Texas in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike because of her own experience with Hurricane Katrina. Barton's plan of action began with identifying Sims Elementary School in Bridge City, Texas, as being in need of financial help. She and her fellow students then formed the Auburn EMBA Class of 2010 Hurricane Relief Fund, which so far has raised $3,405 for their adopted school.

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Auburn mathematics students benefit from Fulbright classroom instruction

Since 1946, Fulbright scholars have crossed the oceans to participate in the international education exchange program designed primarily to enhance lecturing and advanced research on the hosts' campuses. Auburn University's College of Sciences and Mathematics has the unusual benefit of not only hosting Fulbright scholar Cristina Fernandez of Spain for her research on coding theory, but also of welcoming her teaching skills in the classroom.

"Having Dr. Fernandez offer an honors calculus course in the college is a rare opportunity for our freshmen to not only learn in a cross-cultural setting, but to experience an internationally acclaimed and talented professor in the classroom," said Dean Stewart Schneller.

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Auburn University fisheries professor Rex Dunham, true to his school's land-grant mission, conducts research with the goal of helping catfish farmers and local communities sustain their way of life.

"The goal is to serve the entire catfish farming industry and local communities," said Dunham, who recently won Auburn's Creative Research and Scholarship Award. "In addition to helping the farms in rural west Alabama, research helps the processing plants, which employ a lot of people, and there is an indirect impact on the local businesses. These include tractor parts suppliers, restaurants, any type of local shop. Hopefully, the impact of that research helps make that way of life sustainable."

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The Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art at Auburn University is offering an opportunity, through membership in the 1072 Society, for patrons to help shape the future of the museum's permanent collection.

With their contributions of $1,072, members of the 1072 Society will do more than promote the growth of the collection. They will also build on efforts begun 60 years ago, with the purchase of thirty-six works of original art at a price of $1,072, to establish an art museum in the Auburn community. Those works, the "Advancing American Art" collection, were installed in the Jule Collins Smith Museum when it opened in 2003 as part of the museum's permanent collection.

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A prominent design journal has recognized the Auburn University College of Architecture, Design and Construction, naming the college as one of its partner schools. "Places: Forum of Design for the Public Realm" recently expanded its group of six partner schools to 10, adding Auburn University to its highly prestigious group which includes the University of California, Berkeley, MIT and the Georgia Institute of Technology.

The 10 partner schools each provide a representative to serve on the editorial advisory board for the journal, which features writings from fields in design, the arts and social sciences. "We are honored to have been asked to join the group of 10 nationally prominent partner universities who provide guidance and support to 'Places,'" said CADC Dean Dan Bennett. "This journal is the premier forum for 'Design for the Public Realm' through discussions of multiple voices from a variety of design disciplines. This recognition is further evidence of the expanding reputation of our college and its influence upon design and construction education at a national level."

Karen Rogers, associate dean for external affairs in the college, will represent Auburn on the board, which is responsible for developing content and overseeing the quality of the journal. The board meets several times a year to plan, review and update editorial calendars, and to guide the editorial and peer-review processes, working closely with the Board of Directors of the Design History Foundation in long-range and strategic planning for the journal.

"To be asked to serve as one of the partner schools is a great honor for Auburn University," Rogers said. "It is also an important recognition of the strength of the CADC and its programs."

The CADC offers degree programs in Architecture, Interior Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Community Planning, Building Science, Industrial Design, Graphic Design and Design-Build. The components of the CADC are annually regarded and ranked nationally among the best in their respective disciplines for quality of education and quality of students.

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