Sept. 11, 2006

The DigestWhat’s Happening at KVCC

What’s below in this edition

Talking about 9/11 (Page 1 Managing people (Page 9) The ‘BRAIN’ (Pages 1-4) ‘Thief of Bagdad’ (Pages 9/10) Checkups for students (Page 4) Teaching globally (Pages 10/11) Traffic challenges (Pages 4/5) Concerts for kids (Page 11) Our welcomers (Pages 5/6) ‘BRAIN’ programs (P 11-13) Klezmer music (Pages 6/7) KVCC Foundation (P 13/14) E-CARS era (Pages 7/8) Historic homes (Page 14) State’s heritages (Page 8) And finally (Pages 14/15)

☻☻☻☻☻☻Commons hosts 9/11 dialogue

"Five Years Later," a drop-in dialogue about what happened in New York City on Sept. 11, 2001, and its lasting effects, is scheduled for Monday (Sept. 11) at Kalamazoo Valley Community College's Texas Township Campus.

Free and open to the public, the reflections on "9/11," the people who died that day in the twin towers of the World Trade Center, and what that catastrophe has wrought, will run from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

The round-table discussion involving faculty, students, staff and the public will be held in the Student Commons Forum.

‘BRAIN’ debuts at museum Sept. 30It’s about the size of a blue-ribbon head of cauliflower and looks like that

vegetable, but it’s the V-8 juice and garden salad of human organs. It’s the human brain, and what it is, how it works, what keeps it healthy, and the

disorders that affect it will be explained in an exhibit opening at the Kalamazoo Valley Museum on Sept. 30.

“BRAIN: The World Inside Your Head,” sponsored by Pfizer Inc and designed by Evergreen Exhibitions (formerly Clear Channel Exhibitions) in collaboration with the National Institutes of Health, is a free, interactive exhibition.

With a plethora of special events, programs and films for people of all ages, the nationally touring showcase will complete its downtown-Kalamazoo run Jan. 7.

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“BRAIN” made its debut at the Smithsonian Institution in July 2001. After its five-month stay in Washington, the exhibition was booked by museums in Portland, Atlanta, Cleveland, Indianapolis, New York City, Detroit, St. Louis, Kansas City, Boston, Dallas, Memphis, Raleigh and Mexico City.

The 5,000-square-foot display, designated for the museum’s third-floor Havirmill Special Exhibition Gallery, provides a hands-on, up-close look at the human body's most essential and fascinating organ by exploring its development, geography, functions and malfunctions.

Since more than 44 million adult Americans suffer from diagnosable brain disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease and anxiety each year and two-thirds of them receive no treatment, one of the exhibition’s prime objectives is to de-stigmatize these conditions through education.

Using virtual reality, video games, optical illusions and other interactive features at its score of stations, the exposition introduces visitors to some amazing facts:

● The brain is regarded as one of the most complex structures in the universe.● It contains as many neurons as there are stars in the Milky Way, which is

viewable in one of the museum’s planetarium shows.● The computer between each person’s ears never turns off or even rests in its

lifetime.● By age 4, a person’s “thinking cap” is full size.● While it is only 2 percent of a human’s weight, it consumes 20 percent of the

body’s fuel.● The brain doesn’t feel any pain.In addition to viewing the brains of humans and animals, visitors can “walk

through” a brain complete with neurons flying about and can explore a 19th-century lab when researchers began more intensive and extensive studies of the complex organ.

The “interactives” include launching an electrical signal down a neuron tunnel, stimulating memories through the sense of smell, deciphering optical illusions, “conducting” brain surgery, and playing a game filled with facts that boost one’s brainpower.

One of the objects in the exhibit is a replica of a human skull from around 1300 A.D. found in Cinco Cerros, Peru, with signs of cranial surgery. Another, on loan from the Smithsonian, is an epoxy cast of a triceratops’ brain cavity from an animal that lived around 70 million years ago.

In addition to outlining what is coming next in brain research, the exhibition sheds light on the realm of conditions from manic depression to bipolar disorder to schizophrenia, on the power of brain chemicals, and the organ’s role in dreaming and language development.

The interactives include:● “Synapse Pop” that shows how a synapse makes the connection between

neurons, the brain’s electrical-relay system. ● “Back and Forth,” a three-station platform that demonstrates how the brain

controls reflexes, autonomic functions and balance. ● “Neuron Sightings,” a microscopic view of real neurons from a variety of

species.

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● “Nightshift” is a video game showing how sleep "recharges" the human battery. While the body sleeps, the brain is doing memory, repair and growth work.

● “Wired” illustrates how an infant will not recognize himself/herself in a mirror until he/she is between 18 and 24 months old. This station also offers the chance to take apart a brain model and put it back together, bringing to light the five stages of brain development.

● “Brain Live!” uses electrodes to see real-time EEG measurements and simulated imaging of corresponding brain activity.

● “Unhinge-a-Brain” charts the evolution of the human brain and reveals many of its components, including the cortex, the site of thinking that helps to set humans apart from other animals.

● “Yesterday” is an encounter that shows, with the help of popcorn, grass and fire, how different senses produce different intensities of memory.

● In “Virtual Reality,” visitors can experience the "phantom limb syndrome," the sensation of feeling in an amputated or nonexistent limb.

● “Be a Brain Surgeon” offers the chance to wield a gamma-knife simulator to excise a brain tumor.

● “Hills or Craters” is an exercise showing how the brain interprets the world according to built-in biases.

● “A Hole in the Head” is the story of Phineas Gage, the iron rod that rocketed through his skull, and how he lived to tell about it.

“The goal of this innovative exhibit is to de-mystify brain disease and put to rest some of the negative stigmas associated with them,” said Dr. Joe Hammang, director of science policy and public affairs for Pfizer. “We also aim to open lines of communication within families dealing with any kind of brain disorder.”

According to a recent Pfizer survey, 38 percent of American adults said they have a family member with a brain-related disorder. To help caregivers communicate with children about these disorders, Pfizer, in conjunction with the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, has produced a guide, “Talking to Kids About Brain-Related Conditions.”

As with the exhibit, this free brochure helps families talk about these sensitive issues. Available in both English and Spanish, copies are available at the exhibit or can be downloaded at www.pfizer.com/brain.

"Whether we're talking about dyslexia or depression, Alzheimer's or anxiety disorders,” Hammang said, “it's important for people to know that brain-based conditions have a physical cause and that treatments are available. By talking openly and honestly in our families about these conditions, we can help remove the stigmas that have become associated with them."

According to the Pfizer survey, only 16 percent of parents said they have "very thoroughly discussed" mental illness with their children. That’s about one-fourth of the number of parents who have talked to them about alcohol use, drug abuse and sexual activity. “BRAIN” can prompt discussions that brain-based conditions can and should be treated like any other physical disease or condition.

Throughout its four-month stay in downtown Kalamazoo, the exhibition will be complemented by targeted programming for children of all ages, presentations for adult

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audiences, live entertainment, and showings of movies with both serious and comedic looks at the brain.

Are your students on the right track?Faculty, administrators and staff should be reminding students about the

upcoming opportunities to make certain that they are on the right track in pursuit of a degree, certificate or career path.

Under the guidance of Peggy Hohnke, a technician in a special project targeting degree completion in the KVCC Counseling Office, an “Are You on Track” initiative will be held Sept. 25-28 at three locations:

Texas Township Campus in the cafeteria: Monday, Sept. 25, from 5 to 7 p.m.; Tuesday, Sept. 26, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Wednesday, Sept. 27, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; and Thursday, Sept. 28, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Anna Whitten Hall in the lobby: Monday, Sept. 25, from 4 to 7 p.m.; Tuesday, Sept. 26, from 1 to 4 p.m.; and Thursday, Sept. 28, from 10 a.m. to noon.

Center for New Media in the lobby: Wednesday, Sept. 27, from 10 a.m. to noon.

Counseling staff will be available to help students identify their programs of study, whether they are taking the right classes to advance toward a degree in a chosen field of study, and how, if they are not, how they can get on the right path.

For more information, tap into this KVCC link: http://www.kvcc.edu/counsel/career/events.htmHohnke, who is based in Room 1344 on the Texas Township Campus and can be

reached at extension 4751, is also doing some of these assessments in the library’s computer lab. Information about those sessions is also available at that link.

Major highway projects impact routes to campusStudents, faculty and staff might have their get-to-campus travel routes affected

because of two major highway projects in the vicinity of the Texas Township Campus.The $68-million widening project on I-94 from west of U. S. 131 to east of

Oakland Drive has been launched with the first phase calling for median reconstruction and the installation of crossovers to maintain traffic through 2007.

Meanwhile, through Oct. 13, the repairing and painting of the Michigan Avenue overpass on U. S. 131 will close the bridge to traffic.

The I-94 project includes the reconstruction of the U. S. 131 interchange - including building four new bridge ramps - and the Oakland Drive configuration, as well as widening that 2.6-mile stretch of the interstate to add one lane in each direction. As part of the project, Oakland Drive in that vicinity will be widened to add a second left-turn lane from northbound Oakland to westbound I-94.

Also part of the blueprints are the addition of eye-appealing sound barriers adjacent to residential areas, along with new signs, traffic signals, pavement markings, drainage systems, and information-technology conduits.

Throughout the work, two lanes of traffic will be open in each direction. The occasional single-lane closures will take place in off-peak travel hours.

The various stages of the project will extend throughout 2007 and 2008. With restoration scheduled for early 2009. the entire project should be completed by that May.

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Regarding the Michigan Avenue overpass, there will be intermittent land closures on both north- and south-bound U.S. 131 traffic through mid-October, according to the Michigan Department of Transportation.

Starting Sept. 6, the entrance ramp connecting westbound Stadium Drive to northbound U. S. 131 and the exit ramp linking southbound U. S. 131 to westbound Stadium Drive were closed. Traffic is being redirected to the ramps at West Main Street.

Michigan Avenue traffic is being redirected down Drake Road to Stadium Drive and back up 11th Street.

KVCC’s smiling facesScores of KVCC folks stepped forward to staff welcome-back tables and provide

other opening-week services at both the Texas Township and Arcadia Commons campuses.

The ACC volunteers included Barbara Taraskiewicz, Barbara VanZandt, Brian Olson, Heidi Stevens-Ratti, Kevin Dockerty, Lisa Peet, Makida Cunningham, Nancy Woods, Nicole Newman, Ola Johnson, Ron Campbell, Steven Gerike, Valerie Jones, Pat Pallett, Jim Ratliff, Karen Matson, Grace Grant, Scott Eberstein, Don Chapman, Claudia Barbee, Mark Sloan, Jill Storm , Char Gibson, Isaac Turner, Anora Ackerson, Lesa Strausbaugh, Kris Bazali, Karen Thorngate, and Maggie Noteboom.

Kalamazoo Valley Museum staffers who served as downtown-campus welcomers were Donna Odom, Elspeth Inglis, Gail Kendall, Tom Dietz, Paula Metzner, Pat Norris, Annette Hoppenworth, Jay Gavan, Mary Fortney, and Elizabeth Barker.

Their counterparts at Texas Township included: Steve Doherty, Brenda Moncrief, Carol Orr, Colleen Olson, Cynthia Schauer,

Sherri Adams, Dan Mondoux, Dawn Pantaleo, Deb Bryant, Denise Baker, Karen Visser, Darlene Kohrman;

Doug Martin, Dwight Coblentz, Daniel Betancourt, Geof Crosslin, Helen Palleschi; Jackie Howlett, Jeff Donovan, Jennifer LaFrance, Jim Taylor;

Lauren Harkness, Terry Coburn, Kathy Anderson, Marylan Hightree, Muriel Hice, Mel VanAntwerp, Mike Collins, Theresa Hollowell, Michael McCall;

Diane Vandenberg, Nancy Taylor, Shequella White, Louise Wesseling, Nancy Vendeville, Pat Pojeta, Patricia Niewoonder, Ray Hendriksma, Rick Ives, Marilyn Schlack, Rod Albrecht, Erick Martin;

Steve Cannell, Sue Puckett, Candy Horton, Roxanne Bengelink, Sheila Eisenhauer, Stella Lambert, Sue Visser, Terry Hutchins, Theo Sypris, Tom Lentenbrink, Fred Toxopeus, Pat Conroy, and Tom Thinnes.

Doing their part of smiling and direction as part of the Cougar Connection in the Student Commons were:

Connie Edlund, Bob Vezeau, Steve Walman, Kate Ferraro, Su Cutler, Denise Morrison, Kim Grubka, John Stasiuk, Terry Reynolds, Teresa Fornoff, Gloria Larrieu;

Pantaleo, Larry Taylor, Rick Brill, Vendeville, Ann Lindsay, Tom Hughes, Daniel Cunningham, Chris Garrett, Chris Preston, Art Parker, Rita Fox, Karen Visser, Bob Post; J. P. Talwar, Moncrief, Rick Garthe, Sue Hollar, Stella Lambert, Bill Wangler;

Tom Keena, Lena Cool, Puckett, Natalie Patchell, Lisa Winch, Kandiah Balachandran, Anderson, Mike Tyson, Jean Snow, Jonnie Wilhite, Martin, Gloria

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Barton-Beery, Hendriksma, Charissa Oliphant, Howard Carpenter, Joe Brady, Mary Johnson, Robert Sutton, Keith Kroll, Rob Haight, Howlett, and Debbie Nelson.

According to Mike McCall, faculty and staff volunteers filled more than 140 hourly slots at the tables from 7:30 a.m. through 7 p.m. on both Monday and Tuesday on the Texas Township Campus. Many signed up for double duty as well as multiple sessions.

“Diane Vandenberg, myself, the rest of the staff and Mary Johnson want to thank everyone for their dedication and commitment to welcoming our students back to campus,” McCall said. “It is much appreciated by those organizing this event and appreciated even more by our students.”

Are you ready for a ‘klezmer koncert?’If the musical score from “Fiddler on the Roof” tickles your fancy, then the first

Thursday-night concert for adult audiences this fall at the Kalamazoo Valley Museum will be right down your tin-pan alley.

The Sept. 14 show features The Red Sea Pedestrians and its brand of klezmer music. Tickets for the 7:30 p.m. concert in the Mary Jane Stryker Theater are $5.

The year-old, Kalamazoo-based combo features Jay Gavan, Rachel Flanigan, Ira Cohen, Ian Gorman and Nathan Durham.

In their performance of traditional Jewish music as exemplified in the famed Broadway musical and their own original compositions,, they use an upright bass, clarinets, saxophones, mandolin, guitar, banjo, flute, trumpet, ukulele and their own voices.

Klezmer evolved from the Yiddish word for “musical instrument.” Around the 15th century, a tradition of secular, nonliturgical Jewish music was developed by musicians called “kleyzmorim” who drew on devotional traditions dating back to biblical times. The repertoire is largely dance songs for weddings and other celebrations.

It was not until the mid-20th century that the term “klezmer” was used to identify a musical genre.

“Typically,” Gavan said, “using the word ‘klezmer’ implies that the group has the sound of a Jewish wedding band with lots of clarinets and mandolins. The tunes are in minor keys and very Eastern European/Mediterranean sounding. That's mostly true with us, even though we are only about 1/10th Jewish. We just love the music style.

“Actually the band formed because we all knew each other from playing in other groups and realized that we had all written klezmer-sounding tunes independently and were performing them separately,” Gavan said. “Someone had the idea of starting this as a side project and it has actually become a favorite project for all of us.”

Many Jewish composers who have secured mainstream success, such as Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Copland and George Gershwin, were influenced by the klezmeric idioms heard during their youth. One example of that is Gershwin’s clarinet opening of his “Rhapsody in Blue.”

The “Music at the Museum” series for the rest of the calendar year features:♦ Oct. 12 – singers Drew Nelson and Allison Downey.♦ Nov. 2 – the Balkan jazz of The Goran Ivanovich Group.♦ Dec. 7 – the Americana music of The Corn Fed Girls.

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Downey is a professor of theater and creative arts education at Western Michigan University. She is regarded as a captivating performer and natural storyteller who weaves together heartfelt lyrics and melodic compositions into compelling narratives and image-rich songs, ranging from traditional folk to more whimsical pop songs, rocking love songs, social commentary, and melancholy laments.

Her material, performed at national and regional conferences, reflects a commitment to social causes, her work with juvenile offenders, global terrorism, and her travels to both cities and the wilderness.

She caught the performing bug at age 10, when she sang for President Jimmy Carter at the Kennedy Center and a year later at RFK Stadium.

Downey was raised in Washington, D. C., and moved from Austin in Texas to join the WMU faculty. She has performed throughout the United States, in Canada, Spain, Italy and Mexico. Downey is also a performing playwright with a one-woman show in which she portrays eight elderly characters as part of her repertoire. .

Nelson, a Grand Rapids resident, performs songs that are called “facile in poetry and tactile in tone. . .” They are “simple, direct expressions that extract spirit and soul from the jumble of modern life, and turn it into music.”

Nelson’s first album, “Immigrant Son,” is the culmination of his artistic efforts, a balance of his worldliness and small-town-America sensibilities. As a youth, he quietly rebelled against the strict, religious confines of his home by secretly listening to rock radio. He overcame his band teacher’s humbling criticism of his drumming skills by teaching himself to play guitar.

He escaped the quiet quaintness of his modest, conservative West Michigan hometown by joining the Navy and traveling to far corners of the world with his guitar on his back.

The itinerant lifestyle filled his notebook with ideas and, upon returning home, he found his voice in the small struggles and triumphs of daily life.

Nelson has performed from Alaska to Texas. As part of the Muskegon Summer Celebration concert series, he opened for Melissa Etheridge before an audience of 18,000.

For more information, contact Gavan at extension 7972.

VIP part of monitoring class attendanceElectronic Class Attendance Reports (E-CARS) are now part of the KVCC

teaching environment.Since federal financial-aid regulations prohibit payment of funds to students who

are not attending their classes, KVCC introduced an attendance-monitoring system in the fall of 1998. This system relies on faculty to report whether selected enrolled students (Federal Title IV financial-aid recipients) have demonstrated pursuit of class after registration (attendance). The mechanism used to report attendance has been a paper-formatted report called a “Class Attendance Report (CAR).”

“Has been” are the operative words, because the CAR has been replaced with an E-CAR (Electronic Class Attendance Report), according to Roger Miller.

In place for the fall semester, instead of a snail-mail delivered CARs, faculty will use the Valley Information Portal to access their E-CAR via the Internet.

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“This technological advancement will benefit all involved players,” Miller said. “The benefits include: more accurate and timely delivery, eliminates the missing-in-action potential, access is a click away, and quicker delivery of completed reports. These benefits will make for a more efficient monitoring system which in turn will benefit our students.”

All deans and faculty chairs have been briefed on this upgraded system. Printed information was delivered to each faculty mail box prior to the fall

semester. Generic attendance-monitoring procedures and E-CAR instructions are available through VIP under the Faculty Tab in the center column under the Job Aids channel.

“In addition,” he said, “semester-specific attendance-monitoring procedures and E-CAR instructions are available as links when you access your E-CAR via the Valley Information Portal.”

Questions regarding the upgraded system can be forwarded to Miller or Brenda VanderRoest in the Financial Aid Office at extensions 4257 or 4342, respectively.

State’s black, Latvian heritages in spotlightThe impact of two ethnic groups on Michigan, Kalamazoo’s musical heritage,

how the city was in the forefront of treating the mentally ill, and the Southwest Michigan version of “The Trail of Tears” are the first four topics in the Kalamazoo Valley Museum’s “Sunday Series” of programs about state and local history for the fall semester.

The 1:30 p.m. presentations, free and open to the public, are held in the museum’s Mary Jane Stryker Theater.

The opening session is set for Sept. 10 with a doubleheader look at African Americans and Latvians in Michigan.

Authors Lewis Walker and Benjamin Wilson, who have been faculty members at Western Michigan University, will discuss their research into the state’s black heritage.

They have written a book about the famed African-American resort in Michigan, Idlewild. Silvija Meija will then examine the contributions of the state’s Latvian communities.

This “Sunday Series” program is co-sponsored by the Michigan Humanities Council, the Michigan Museums Association, and the Michigan State University Press.

Here’s the rest of the schedule through December:● “And the Bands Played On: Kalamazoo’s Musical Heritage” on Sept. 17.● “The History of the Kalamazoo Insane Asylum” on Oct. 1.● “The Removal of the Potawatomi” on Oct. 8.● “Kalamazoo Cemeteries” on Oct. 29.● “The Things of History: Artifacts and Their Stories” on Nov. 12.● “Shopping in Kalamazoo in the 19th Century” on Dec. 3.All of these programs will be presented by Tom Dietz, the museum’s curator of

research. The second-half of the series will begin On Jan. 14 and run through the first week

of May.

Notre Dame management seminar at M-TEC

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The KVCC M-TEC is again partnering with the University of Notre DameMendoza College of Business to host a two-day seminar in developing supervisory and management skills on Oct. 2-3.

This program is for supervisors, managers and team leaders looking forpractical skills for dealing with day-to-day management challenges. It is also valuable for individuals with advancement potential and for entrepreneurs seeking to grow businesses.

Offered from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on that Monday and Tuesday, the presenters will be H. David Hayes and Paul J. Slaggert of the Mendoza College of Business.

An informative flyer can be downloaded at http://executive.nd.edu. CEUs and CPEs are available.

The cost is $995 including parking, meals and materials. To learn more about the program, its learning objectives and components, and to

register, call the M-TEC at 353-1253 or visit the website at www.mteckvcc.com.

Fairbanks flick opens fall film seriesFrom mid-September through the end of the calendar year, the Kalamazoo Valley

Museum will be showing a variety of classic motion pictures, epics from the silent-film era, movies targeted for children, and five-star, independent productions from the international scene.

They will be shown on weekends and Thursday evenings in the Mary Jane Stryker Theater, Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for students. However, tickets are $3 only for the Saturday-afternoon matinees targeted for families.

The silent films will be shown on Sundays at 3 p.m. The Hollywood classics are booked for Saturdays at 7 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. The matinees for families are set for 1 p.m. on Saturdays, while the foreign independents will be booked for 7:30 p.m. on Thursdays.

Here’s the fall-semester schedule:● Sept. 10: “The Thief of Bagdad” (1924) with Douglas Fairbanks.● Sept. 17: “Modern Times” (1936) with Charlie Chaplin.● Sept. 23: “Spirited Away,” a 2001 Japanese animated film about how a young

girl’s imagination help her cope with moving to a new town.● Sept. 23-24: “This Is Spinal Tap” (1984).● Sept. 28: “Aaltra” (Belgium).Fairbanks was an established star on Broadway when Hollywood called to take

advantage of his cheerful exuberance, moral courage, devil-may-care attitude, and physical agility. He became one of the big stars of the Silent Screen Era, especially when he married “America’s Sweetheart,” Mary Pickford in 1920. His stage-trained voice allowed him to make the transition to talkies, but age began to take a toll on his body and hairline. His final film was in 1934.

The coming of sound presented a problem for Chaplin, the essence of whose art was pantomime. He decided to ignore the technical phenomenon in 1931 by making “City Lights” without any dialogue Chaplin’s only concession to a sound track were effects and a musical score that he composed.

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Despite the flashback to the way things had been, “City Lights” was an unqualified commercial success. Five years passed before he repeated the same scenario in creating “Modern Times” some nine years after the dawning of the Sound Era.

Co-starring Paulette Goddard, it was the last incarnation of “The Little Tramp.” Under his direction, the film chronicled that an age of innocence was ending. It is a wonderful satire of the perils of what then passed for modern life.

Chaplin plays a factor worker who goes berserk, tries his hand at a variety of jobs, and befriends a homeless young woman portrayed by Goddard, his wife at the time. The humor is witty and wise, slapstick and visual. It is even regarded as being disarmingly romantic. The museum’s Saturday documentary series begins on Sept. 16 with part one of “Journey of Man: The Story on the Human Species.” Part two is Sept. 30.

On Oct. 7, the theme will shift to PBS productions that focus on the brain.On that day, “The Brain” episode from “Body Atlas” will be shown. From Oct. 21 through Dec. 9, segments of “The Secret Life of the Brain” will be

the big-screen attraction – Oct. 21, “Baby’s Brain: Wider Than the Sky”; Nov. 11, “Child’s Brain: Syllable from Sound”; Nov. 18, “Teenage Brain: A World of Their Own”; Dec. 2, “Adult Brain: To Think By Feeling”; and Dec. 9, “Aging Brain: Through Many Lives.” Each begins at 4 p.m.

The Sunday documentary series begins Sept. 24 with the first of six episodes of “Frontier House,” the PBS show about three 21st-century families who try to survive in Montana – circa 1880 – without modern conveniences. These are set to begin at 1:30 p.m.

Update on international educationThe KVCC-based Midwest Institute for International/Intercultural Education is

anticipating an academic year in 2006-07 as busy as last year’s entry.Directed by Theo Sypris, who heads the college’s program in international

studies, the institute staged its 13th annual conference last April at Schoolcraft College. Some 163 participants, representing institutions of higher education from throughout the Midwest, had 33 sessions to choose from in dialoguing about international and intercultural topics.

In June, 20 institute-affiliated faculty spent more than a month in western Russia to prepare the way for developing targeted curriculum modules. The 20-person contingent was able to experience that part of the former Soviet Union through the U.S. Department of Education’s Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad initiative. An $85,000 federal grant was complemented by $25,500 in funds provided by the instructors’ colleges.

The institute held the first of two week-long workshops on China in July that was attended by 15 instructors. A second is set for next August at KVCC. The 30 will be collaborating on China-related modules to infuse into a variety of courses. This project is being funded by a $180,000 National Endowment for the Humanities grant in collaboration with the University of Michigan.

The first of three workshops on global themes focused on environmental issues in August. The topic next July is languages and global communications, followed by one

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looking at international conflict and terrorism. That latter workshop will be held at KVCC Aug. 13-17.

The 45 faculty participants will be developing curriculum related to these three global themes. This multi-year project is co-sponsored by Michigan State University, the University of Illinois, and the University of Wisconsin.

Under Sypris’ leadership, the institute will be pursuing in the coming months a Title VI grant for envisioned projects through 2010, a National Endowment for the Humanities project to run through 2009, and Fulbright travel stipends to send faculty to India, Peru, Malaysia, China and Armenia/Georgia in the summer of 2007.

Performers target pre-schoolers, families

Entertainer Carrie Wilson will launch the Kalamazoo Valley Museum’s free series of Saturday concerts and performances for family audiences and pre-schoolers on Sept. 9, at 1 p.m.

As an international storyteller who will deliver creative and energetic tales from around the world, Wilson will perform in the Mary Jane Stryker Theater.

Limited seating in the Stryker Theater is on a first-come, first-served basis for these free presentations. A maximum of four tickets per household or group can be reserved the day before each performance by calling (269) 373-7990 or (800) 772-3370. Seats that are not occupied by 10 minutes before show time will be released to other guests.

On Oct. 7, ventriloquist Vikki Gasko will be in action for a pre-school audience at 10 a.m. and follow that up with her family show at 1 p.m.

Here are the remaining billings:

♫ Nov. 4 -- entertainer Louie and his bilingual concerts at 10 a.m. and again at 1 p.m.

♫ Nov. 11 – comedian O. J. Anderson at 1 p.m.

♫ Dec. 2 – vocalist Susan Harrison at 10 a.m. for preschoolers and 1 p.m. for families.

♫ Jan. 6 – mime and juggler Rob Reider at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.For more information about the performance series, contact Annette

Hoppenworth at the museum at extension 7955.

Museum slates special programs as part of ‘BRAIN’Beginning with opening day on Saturday, Sept. 30, a full complement of live

demonstrations, dramatic and musical performances, films for both children and adults, and hands-on activities for youngsters will highlight the four-month stay of “BRAIN: The World Inside Your Head” at the Kalamazoo Valley Museum.

“Brain Cabaret,” a 30-minute play that offers a fun overview by two actors of a person’s thinking machine, its main parts and functions, and how it works, will be part of

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the exhibition’s debut in Kalamazoo. The free performances for families and people of all ages are set for 1:30 and 2:30 p.m. in the Mary Jane Stryker Theater.

Another free attraction on Sept. 30 will be a chance to observe – or take part in -- the dissection of a sheep brain to explore its main parts and what each does. These will be performed from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

These dissection demonstrations will also be offered throughout the exhibit’s four-month run at the downtown-Kalamazoo museum on Saturdays at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., and on Sundays at 2:15 p.m.

Additional performances of “Brain Cabaret” are booked for these dates: Saturday, Nov. 18, at 1 and 2 p.m.; Friday, Nov. 24, at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.; and Saturday, Nov. 25, at 11 a.m.

As part of the stay of “BRAIN” in Kalamazoo through Jan. 7, films with brain-related storylines and targeted for both children and adult audiences will be shown in the Stryker Theater. However, there is a $3 fee for the Saturday-matinee showings and a $5 ticket for the weekend series.

Here’s the 1 p.m. Saturday schedule of movies based on how the brain uses imagination to enhance and filter each person’s environment:

● Sept. 23 (a week before the exhibit’s opening) – “Spirited Away,” a Japanese animated film about how a young girl’s imagination help her cope with moving to a new town.

● Oct. 21 – “Harvey,” one of James Stewart’s classic roles as Elwood P. Dowd who has a tall rabbit as a friend.

● Nov. 25 – “Fantasia,” the Disney classic that illustrates the effect music can have on the brain.

● Dec. 16 – “The Muppet Christmas Carol” about nightmares on Christmas Eve.The weekend films that augment “BRAIN” are aimed at an older audience with

showings set for 7 p.m. on Saturdays and 3 p.m. on Sundays. There are also special Sunday-only showings of classic silent films. Student tickets are $3.

The billings are:♦ Oct. 1: “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.”♦ Oct. 7-8: “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.”♦ Oct. 15: “The Golem.”♦ Oct. 28-29: “Young Frankenstein.”♦ Nov. 5: “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.”♦ Nov. 11-12: “Sunset Boulevard.”♦ Nov. 18-19: “8 ½.”♦ Nov. 26: “Metropolis.”♦ Dec. 2-3: “A Clockwork Orange.”♦ Dec. 16-17: “Vertigo.”Beginning on Oct. 7, the museum’s Saturday documentary series will shift to PBS

productions that focus on the brain.On that day, “The Brain” episode from “Body Atlas” will be shown. From Oct.

21 through Dec. 9, segments of “The Secret Life of the Brain” will be the big-screen attraction – Oct. 21, “Baby’s Brain: Wider Than the Sky”; Nov. 11, “Child’s Brain: Syllable from Sound”; Nov. 18, “Teenage Brain: A World of Their Own”; Dec. 2,

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“Adult Brain: To Think By Feeling”; and Dec. 9, “Aging Brain: Through Many Lives.” Each begins at 4 p.m.

The museum’s ongoing series of free Saturday concerts and musical performances for pre-schoolers and families will also feature artists who use the brain’s powers and mystique as entertainment tools.

Vikki Gasko, a ventriloquist and illusionist, will perform at 10 a.m. on Oct 7 for pre-schoolers and repeat her “Halloween Fun Time” act at 1 p.m. in the Stryker Theater. Entertainer Louie brings his bilingual musical talents to the Stryker stage for two shows – same times – on Nov. 4.

Comedian O. J. Anderson, who has trained circus clowns for 35 years and worked with “Sesame Street” performers, will bring his brand of humor dealing with the brain to the Stryker stage at 1 p.m. on Nov. 11.

On Oct. 1, Tom Dietz, curator of research and history at the museum, will focus his “Sunday Series” on “The History of the Kalamazoo Insane Asylum.” His free presentation is set for 1:30 p.m. in the Stryker Theater.

The museum’s 20th annual salute to the science of chemistry is set for Saturday, Oct. 14, from 1 to 4 p.m. The theme of “Chemistry Day 2006” is the chemicals found in the typical home, with some of the hands-on demonstrations by local chemists focusing on the effect they might have on personal health and brain functions.

The museum, the college’s adjacent Anna Whitten Hall, and the north block of the Kalamazoo Mall will be busy that day because scheduled to take part in this year’s Chemistry Day is retired Space Shuttle astronaut Rick Hieb.

The KVCC automotive-technology program will also be hosting a local observance of the national Alternative Fuel and Vehicle Odyssey Day. Set for 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., it will feature a free series of presentations about alternative-fuel technologies, displays of hybrids vehicles, and chances to drive the transportation modes of the future.

On Oct. 28, the museum will take part in the downtown’s celebration of a “Safe Halloween” from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. With a theme of “Optical Illusions and Animation,” the agenda will include free planetarium shows, a magician, and hands-on activities involving illusions for youngsters.

The Nov. 18 special program, “Music and Art,” explores how the right side and the left side of a person’s brain come into play in creating these forms of expression. Activities run from 1 to 4 p.m.

There is no admission charge to the museum, which is governed by KVCC..Located at 230 N. Rose St., the museum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday

through Friday, Saturday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., and from 1 to 5 p.m. on Sunday and holidays.

More information about events and activities is available at

www.kalamazoomuseum.org or (269) 373-7990. 3 new trustees for foundation board

A retired judge, a bank president and a Stryker executive have joined the Kalamazoo Valley Community College Foundation Board of Trustees.

The new members of the foundation’s 18-member governing board are:● Carolyn Williams, who retired in 2004 as probate judge in the Kalamazoo

County Circuit Court Family Division after 18 years on the bench. The former resident

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of Washington, D. C., received her law degree at the George Washington University Law Center. (The Sept. 4 edition of The Digest contained errors in Judge Williams’ experience.

● David Tomko, regional president of National City Bank for Southwest Michigan. He is a graduate of Western Michigan University.

● John Saunders, vice president of quality assurance, regulatory affairs and information systems for Stryker Instruments.

The trio replaces Ron Molitor, John Paul and James Cunniff. Molitor had completed three three-year terms, the mandatory length of service according to the foundation’s bylaws. The other two resigned because their jobs took them out of the community.

The carryover members are: Chairman Jeffrey Eckert; vice chairwoman Dawnanne Corbit; treasurer Charles Wattles; secretary Larry Leuth; Bill Hoenes; Albert Little; Ed Bernard; Catherine Metzler; Richard Olivanti; James Weber; Ann Carter; W. Ford Kieft III; Michele Marquardt; Jerry Miller; and Anna Whitten.Tour six of downtown Kalamazoo’s historic homes

The annual tour of some of downtown Kalamazoo’s historic homes is set for Saturday, Sept. 16, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

A fall function of the Stuart Area Restoration Association (SARA), the tour is open to the public. Tickets are $10 if purchased before the day of the event, according to SARA director Leslie Decker.

Ticket outlets are: Acorn, 125 S. Burdick Mall; Cork Lane Decorating Center, 1101 E. Cork St.; Douglas and Son Paints Inc., 231 W. Cedar St. and 5024 S. Westnedge Ave.; Epic Center, 359 Burdick Mall; Harding’s Market at 5161 W. Main St and in Richland at 800 Gull Road; Western Michigan University’s Miller Auditorium; Schafer’s Flowers Inc., 4315 W. Main St.; and the D & W Food Center at 525 Romence Road and 2103 Parkview Ave.

“This year’s tour will feature five private homes and one business located in a restored historic home,” Decker said. “The tour can start at any of the sites. The variety of design and decorating elements will be unique and memorable.” The third annual Park Place Art Fair will be held during the same time in South Westnedge Park. A special feature of will be a trio of performances by The Aerial Angels. Other music and other attractions will complement the artists' booths.

For more information, contact Decker at 344-7432 or check this website: www.stuart-historic.org.

And finally. . . Here is some new terminology to apply to workplace conditions: BLAMESTORMING: Sitting in a group, discussing why a deadline

was missed or a project failed, and who was responsible.SEAGULL MANAGER: A manager who flies in, makes a lot of

noise, deposits a mess, and then leaves.SALMON DAY: The experience of spending an entire day

swimmingupstream only to die in the end. CUBE FARM : An office filled with cubicles.

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PRAIRIE DOGGING: When someone yells or drops something loudly in acube farm, and people's heads pop up over the walls to see what's goingon. MOUSE POTATO: The on-line, wired generation's answer to the couchpotato.

SITCOMs: Single Income, Two Children, Oppressive Mortgage. WhatYuppie spouses get into when they have children and one of them stops workingto stay home with the kids.

STRESS PUPPY: A person who seems to thrive on being stressed out andwhiny.

SWIPEOUT: An ATM or credit card that has been rendered uselessbecause the magnetic strip is worn away from extensive use.

XEROX SUBSIDY: Euphemism for swiping free photocopies from one'sworkplace. IRRITAINMENT: Entertainment and media spectacles that are annoyingbut you find yourself unable to stop watching them, a la “Survivor” and “American Idol.” PERCUSSIVE MAINTENANCE: The fine art of whacking on anelectronic device to get it to work again. Often feel like doing this on your computer?

ADMINISPHERE: The rarefied organizational layers beginning justabove the rank and file. Decisions that fall from the adminisphere areoften profoundly inappropriate or irrelevant to the problems they weredesigned to solve. 404: Someone who's clueless. From the World Wide Web error message"404 Not Found," meaning that the requested site could not be located.

GENERICA: Features of the American landscape that are exactly thesame no matter where one is, such as fast-food joints, strip malls, desert communities, subdivisions, and episodes of “Survivor” and “American Idol.”

OHNOSECOND: That minuscule fraction of time in which you realizethat you've just made a BIG mistake. (Like after hitting ‘send’ on an e-mail by mistake).

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WOOFS: Well-Off Older Folks. ☻☻☻☻☻☻

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