CAS CONNECT 2014

elcome, alumni and friends, to the 2014 Arts & Sciences magazine. I’ll highlight a few achievements here from this past year — but you’ll need to visit the college and its faculty to really learn what we’ve been accomplishing! Oklahoma and our nation have a critical shortage of science and math teachers, so we are doing our part to help address this shortage. In partnership with the College of Education, A&S has launched OSUTeach with a $1.45 million grant from the National Math and Science Initiative and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Led by Kristen Baum (zoology) and Steve Marks (aviation), OSUTeach provides our science and math graduates the opportunity to simultaneously earn certification in secondary teaching. These students are immersed in classroom teaching opportunities from their freshman year and are professionally mentored by some of the state’s top-performing teachers. You can learn more at OSUTEACH.OKSTATE.EDU . This will put some of our best students on track for a teaching career, and in turn, they will teach science and math to our future Cowboys and Cowgirls. Our dedication to students was further validated by a second grant from the Hughes Institute. Don French (zoology) will lead project funded by a $1.5 million grant to provide an undergraduate research track for students in life science majors at Oklahoma State University. This initiative will introduce students to research programs as early as their freshman year, properly preparing them for research, teaching or health-related careers, or simply for making 21st-century decisions in any career that will depend on STEM skills. While these programs will further elevate the profile of our college, we already have faculty and students who were recognized regionally and nationally. I only have the space to provide examples from two of our 24 depart- ments: In the Department of Music, Thomas Lanners received the 2014 Distinguished Teacher Award from the Oklahoma Music Teachers Association, while the OSU FROM THE Dean’s Office PHIL SHOCKLEY / UNIVERSITY MARKETING trumpet ensemble (undergraduate students Cleon Chai, Nick Doutrich, Tyler Murray, Matt Register and Natalie Upton) won the National Trumpet Competition. In the Department of Chemistry, Allen Apblett was named the 2014 Oklahoma Chemist by the American Chemical Society, and Richard Bunce received the Oklahoma Medal for Excellence in College/University Teaching from the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence. Imagine — each department has examples just like these! Currently, the arts and arts programs are undergo- ing a transformation at Oklahoma State. Last year, the OSU Museum of Art debuted in its new home at the Postal Plaza Gallery in the heart of Stillwater. We are formally entering a campaign to expand the visibility of the arts on campus, which will include a new perform- ing arts center, a new home for the Department of Music and a completely renovated facility for the Department of Theatre. The arts at OSU will never have looked — or sounded — so good! Over the next few pages, please continue to enjoy with me the College of Arts & Sciences’ journey to distinction. Best Wishes W BRET S. DANILOWICZ DEAN, COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES