News Archive

(11/21/07)

Miami Middletown to Host Blood Drive

Miami University Middletown will host a blood drive from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 13 in Johnston Hall, Room 142. Donors must be at least 17 and 110 pounds, be in good general health and must bring a photo I.D. with their full name. For information on donor eligibility, www.cbccts.org, call (800) 388-4483 or email canidonate@cbccts.org. Miami Middletown is at 4200 E. University Blvd.

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(11/16/07)

Miami University Honored for Excellence in Online Teaching and Learning

Miami University has received a 2007 Sloan-C Effective Practice Award from the Sloan Consortium, an association of more than 1,200 higher ed institutions and organizations engaged in online learning.

The award is for the university's Center of Online Learning's "Using Quality Matters to Guide Online Course Development," which had been selected as Sloan-C's Effective Practice of the Month for October.

"Quality online education continues to show vigor and strength. Every year we see advances in the important matters of quality, scale and breadth within this still fledgling community" says Frank Mayadas, President of Sloan-C. "The individuals and institutions honored this year are as before, exceptional, and we honor them for demonstrating exceptional leadership in advancing online education along these dimensions."

Miami University's winning practice involved using Quality Matters, a standards-based rubric originally developed by MarylandOnline, to guide online course development.

"Building quality assurance into the online course development process assists in the efficient creation of high quality courses," said Miami's winning entry. "At Miami University we have adapted the research based QM standards to build quality into new online courses and courses undergoing revision. Using a team approach to course development, the QM standards are integrated throughout the course development process through the use of a variety of resources."

The Miami team that developed the award-winning entry was led by Miami University Middletown Educational Technology Coordinator Andrea Han and Center of Online Learning Director Janet Hurn, assisted by Miami University Instructional Design and Technology Specialist Brenda Boyd, Associate Professor of Mathematics and Statistics Amy Fisher, Professor of Psychology Beth Uhler and Associate Professor of Nursing Jean Vanderbeek.

The award was presented at the 13th Sloan-C International Conference on Online Learning held last week in Orlando.

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(11/16/07)

Symphonic Band Holiday Concert December 2 at MUM

The Southwestern Ohio Symphonic Band will perform its annual free holiday concert at Miami University Middletown on Sunday, December 2 at 2:30 pm in the Dave Finkelman Auditorium.

The concert will open the band's 40th season and celebrate the bands founder, William Stiehl, retired Middletown City Schools Fine Arts Director. Stiehl will be the featured special guest conductor and lead the band in Leroy Anderson's Christmas Festival.

The band, conducted by Chris Brandenburg since 1984, will play Second Suite in F by Gustav Holst, Horse and Buggy by Leroy Anderson, Christmas Showcase by Ed Howard, and a holiday favorite - Leroy Anderson's Sleigh Ride. The concert will feature Dan Nichols conducting Old Comrades by Carl Teike. Other selections include Exaltations and Spine of the Devil.

Special guest soloist will be Middletown native Peter Norton, who serves as bass trombonist for the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. Norton is a former student of Stiehl's who played in the Middletown High School band and Southwestern Ohio Symphonic band while in high school. Norton will perform the Rimsky Korsakov Concerto for Trombone and Military Band.

The Southwestern Ohio Symphonic Band currently features 90 musicians. Director Chris Brandenburg is the retired Band Director at Lakota West High School and former Coordinator of Instrumental Music for the Lakota School District.

This event is free and open to the public. Donations to the band will be received at a reception following the concert. Miami University Middletown is located at 4200 E. University Blvd.

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(11/13/07)

Grant Project Talks to Teens About Environmental Health Risks

Arlyne (Mickey) Sarquis, professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Miami University Middletown, received a $535,512 Science Education Partnership Award (SEPA) from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to educate teens and their families about environmental health risks. Today (Nov. 13) NIH awarded more than $9 million dollars of grant monies for the purpose of engaging students and the public in health sciences.

Sarquis is one of 10 national recipients whose projects encourage scientific investigation through hands-on activities. Sarquis' SEPA grant provides funding for the second phase of HealthRICH: Health Risk, Information, and Choices, a project she developed in collaboration with Mary Beth Genter at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center Division of Toxicology.

In phase one of the project, Sarquis and her team at the Center for Chemistry Education developed print materials and web resources for young teen and family programming. She also held training programs, developed supporting materials, and held informal education events for young teens and their families. A Web site also was created: www.terrificscience.org/healthrich/

The second phase will result in the national distribution of HealthRICH materials to teachers for classroom use and to establish after-school science and health clubs across the country. The materials include health information on topics such as hand washing, indoor air pollution, skin tanning and bleaching, reading labels on household products and drinking water and are available through the project website. According to Sarquis, academies for teachers are already scheduled for this fall and spring: "Teachers will gain exciting new ideas for engaging their students in thought-provoking, hands-on science activities, leading teens to make more informed, healthy choices in their daily lives." See www.terrificscience.org/courses/ for details.

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(11/08/07)

November 12-16 is Scholarship Blitz Week

Continuing Student Scholarship Blitz program to be held November 12-16 in Johnston Hall Lobby. Come pick up your scholarship applications!

Personal in-depth sessions will take place on November 13 -15 from 12 -1 pm in RM 137 of the Campus and Community Center. Topics to be presented are steps to apply, filing for Federal Student Aid, writing the scholarship essay and other scholarship options.

"Three out of four full-time students at Miami Middletown are currently receiving financial aid of some kind," said MUM Director of Admission and Financial Aid Stacey Adams. "It is an area that all current and potential students should investigate, whether they plan on attending Miami University or another institution. This workshop is a quick and easy way to get started."

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(11/06/07)

MUM Citizens' Advisory Cancelled

The Miami University Middletown Citizens' Advisory Council meeting previously scheduled for noon on Friday, Nov. 9 has been cancelled. The next meeting of this group will be held on Jan. 7, 2008.

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(11/02/07)

Regional campuses partner with financial training center

Miami University's Business Technology Department (BTE) will accept certain American Institute of Banking (AIB) courses administered by the Tri-State Center for Financial Training (CFT) - toward degrees and certificates offered by the University, BTE Chair Ted Light announced today. Tri-State CFT is a local AIB training provider.

The agreement is part of a workforce development effort between the two organizations that can be described as "teller to degree." It includes bank teller training through the University's Continuing Education program, and credit for AIB courses taken through the CFT that lead to a BTE degree or banking certificate from Miami.

The BTE associate degree program is in place and administered on Miami's regional campuses in Hamilton and Middletown; the certificate program is currently being developed.

The agreement takes affect immediately.

"With this new agreement, an individual could start as a bank teller with Continuing Education training, and progress toward a BTE certificate in banking and a BTE associate degree through a combination of AIB and Miami courses," Light said.

Up to15 hours (five courses) of AIB courses will be accepted and only grades of C or better will transfer. CFT students can apply for admission to either of Miami's regional campuses in Hamilton and Middletown.

AIB courses that will be accepted for corresponding BTE course credit include: Analyzing Financial Statements, Commercial Lending, Consumer Lending, Economics for Bankers, Financial Accounting, General Accounting, Introduction to Mortgage Lending, Law & Banking Applications, Law & Banking Principles, Marketing Financial Services, Money & Banking and Principles of Banking.

More information is available at www.muohio.edu/bte and www.tristatecft.org.

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(11/02/07)

Native Dance Ensemble to Perform on November 9

The Kevin Locke Native Dance Ensemble will be performing as part of Miami Middletown's Artist and Lecture Series at the Dave Finkelman Auditorium on the campus beginning at 8 pm on Friday, November 9.

The Ensemble has been performing for the past five years, including appearing at the opening of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, and the World Culture Open at Lincoln Center sponsored by the United Nations.

The ensemble represents the Plains nations of Lakota, Anishinabe, and Comanche, the southeastern Choctaw tribe, and the Woodlands Nations of Ojibwe and Oneida. Truly a one-of-a-kind group, the ensemble offers a rich variety of American Indian traditions and aesthetics in dance, instrumentals, songs, storytelling, sign language, and audience interaction.

This is a powerful contemporary artistic interpretation of the original spirit inside the American Indian traditions of music and dance. Each dance and music selection is placed in narrative context, wrapping these art forms in their historical context, bringing meaning and spirit to that which the audience sees onstage.

Tickets are $20 for the general public, $15 for senior citizens, $10 for students (K through college) and are on sale at the Miami Middletown Cashier's Office in Johnston Hall. For more information call (513) 529-3200 or toll free 1-86-MIAMI-MID.

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