News Archive

(03/29/07)

Miami Middletown to Host Transfer Fair

Representatives from 11 area colleges and universities will be at Miami University Middletown's Transfer Fair on Wednesday, April 4 to provide information and answer questions about their programs. The Transfer Fair will be held in Johnston Hall's main concourse from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. and from 5-7 p.m. The event will also provide information on relocation to Miami's Oxford Campus.

"The Transfer Fair is a good resource for former, current and even future students," said Miami Middletown Transfer Advisor Mike Hieber. "Will my credits transfer? What can I do with the classes I have taken? Where can I find the courses or major I'm looking for? You could get answers to all of those questions and more at the Transfer Fair in a quick, convenient way."

Institutions committed to attend to participate in one or both sessions include: Antioch, College of Mt. St. Joseph, Franklin University, Indiana University East, Indiana Wesleyan, Ohio State School of Allied Medical Professions, Thomas More College, University of Cincinnati - Allied Health Sciences and Applied Science, Wilmington College-Cincinnati, Wright State and Xavier.

For more information, call Michael Hieber at (513) 727-3440.

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(03/23/07)

Miami Middletown Art Exhibition to Feature Alumni, Other Artists

As part of its fortieth anniversary celebration, Miami University Middletown will present an alumni art exhibition beginning on March 24 and running until April 14.

The show will open at the Middletown Arts Center, 130 N. Verity Parkway on Saturday, March 24 and will remain there until Saturday, April 7. It will then move to Miami University Middletown, where it will remain until April 14.

"This show turned out to have more variety than I could have imagined," said Art Instructor Michael Hieber who organized the exhibition. "We have oils, acrylics, pastels, watercolors, mixed media, pottery, sculpture and even an artistic motorcycle, from alumni, students, every current studio art instructor at Miami Middletown and campus friends. The depth of artistic expression is remarkable."

The exhibition includes 87 pieces from 26 artists including: Andrew Au, Jessica Back, David Chris (D.C.) Banks, Joseph Barrish, Libby Capps, Dani Dameron, Tina Dreckman, Darren Haper, Neil Hartman, Joe Hedges, Mike Hieber, Neil Infalvi, Jennifer Purdum, Lisa Marino, Belinda Martindell, Frank Martindell, Tim Mullins, Mark Reek, Chris Reeves, Johnna Roark, Carrie Scherer, Jeff Schneider, Danielle Tippler, Gene Toennisson, Jean Vance and Mary-Anna Welch.

Exhibition hours at the Middletown Arts Center are 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. on Monday; 9 a.m. - 9 p.m. on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday; and 9 a.m. - 12 noon on Saturday. Parts of the exhibition continue at Miami Middletown's new Galleria art space in Johnston Hall from Monday, April 9 until Saturday, April 14. At Miami Middletown the exhibition may be viewed from 8 a.m. - 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. on Friday and 8 a.m. - noon on Saturday.

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(03/21/07)

Alexander Chosen For MaxiMUM Benefit Drawing

Britten Alexander has won the fall MaxiMUM Benefit drawing for a $50 gift card to the MUM bookstore. The Freshman from Troy is in the School of Fine Arts. Alexander is a Power Forward, #32 on the MUM ThunderHawk's Basketball team.

Alexander attended MaxiMUM Benefit sessions: Tips & Tricks for Library Use and Project Runway: Are you Ready to Take Off. In Tips and Tricks Alexander learned what creditable academic online sources are and how to effectively do research.

As a first year student, Project Runway showed Alexander how to make the transition from high school to college and what was expected from him as a college student. Both sessions helped Alexander get to know the MUM staff that can help him on his college journey.

Alexander plans to apply his gift card toward textbooks. He invites you to come support the ThunderHawk's Men's and Women's Basketball teams.

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(03/19/07)

Summer Employment and Internship Fair

Looking for summer employment? Stop by the Summer Employment & Internship Fair, 10 am - 2 pm, Tuesday, March 20 through Thursday, March 22 in the hallway of the Campus and Community Center. The following employers will be available: Abilities First on March 20; Office Depot on March 20, 21 and 22; FACS Group on March 22 and King's Island on March 22.

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(03/19/07)

Wild Carrot to Give Free Folk Concert at MUM

Miami Middletown began the Fantastic Free Fridays programs in the fall of 2000, offering free one-hour performances to schools in a five-county area. Since that time, more than 15,000 young people have had the opportunity to experience jazz and big band music, a marching band, theatre, opera, ballet and world music.

The spring performances will conclude with Ugly Duckling by Artreach Theatre(10 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. on April 20). A generous donation from the Bever family of Oxford is again helping to support the Fantastic Free Fridays program.

Fantastic Free Fridays performances are open to the public. Groups interested in attending performances should contact Susan Joyce, music faculty member at Miami University Middletown, at joyces@muohio.edu, or by voice mail at 727-3415.

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(03/12/07)

Nursing programs sends corrected letters

Miami University's department of nursing is sending out corrected letters and personal apologies to 244 students who received mixed-up letters in reply to their applications for admission to the nursing program.

Nursing chair Paulette Worcester learned Saturday that at least some letters went out with wrong names and addresses. She and an assistant went into the office and discovered a database error caused all letters to be addressed erroneously, though a small amount had not been sent.

Saturday and Sunday, Worcester and her assistant corrected the database and created new acceptance letters as well as letters of apology, both of which were sent in Monday's mail.

"I know this created confusion and was the source of angst while you waited to obtain the correct results. I sincerely apologize on behalf of the Department of Nursing," she said in the letter. Worcester provided her direct phone number and email to all applicants.

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(03/09/07)

Guerrilla Girls Swing Into Campus

The Guerrilla Girls, internationally known cultural activists, will stage a free performance at Miami University Middletown on Thursday, March 22 at 7 p.m. in Johnston Hall Room 142.

The Guerrilla Girls are women activists who fight for gender and racial equality. The members are artists, curators, art historians and others who have experienced discrimination in the world of art. Although the group's focus began with the art world, it has expanded to include film, theater and politics.

The Guerrilla girls have presented at more than 90 universities and museums in the U.S., Europe and South America. Articles about them have appeared in the New York Times, Vogue, Esquire, CBS, CNN, the New Yorker, Mother Jones and Art Forum. In the past 16 years they have created posters, billboards, and books including The Guerrilla Girls Bedside Companion to the History of Western Art.

Their performance at Miami Middletown, which is free and open to the public, will include skits, posters and audience participation. This event is sponsored by several student organizations on campus, including Art Club, Pandora's Box and Student Government.

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(03/06/07)

MUM to Host American Cancer Society Benefit Concert

Miami University Middletown's Relay for Life team will present a benefit concert at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 24 in the Dave Finkelman Auditorium.

The Second Annual Hope For Our Friends concert will include soloists Kip Moore, Mike McVey, Tyler Adams and Mira Smith, the First United Methodist Children's Choir, pianists Rod Nimtz and Jimmy Rogers, accoridon player Steven Conley, rock and roll with Sheffield and the United Voices of Middletown. Ticket prices are $8 for adult general admission and $5 for ages 5 through 12 and adults over 60. Children under age 5 are free. All proceeds will go to the American Cancer Society.

An area representative from the American Cancer Society will be at this event to talk to those interested about services offered in the area and how one can take part in the Relay for Life.

For more information, call (513) 727-3200. Miami Middletown is located at 4200 E. University Blvd.

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(03/06/07)

Co-ops, Internships Mix College and Work

Miami University Middletown students have been filling internship and co-op positions with a number of local companies, helping them make the transition from school to career.

Doug Cheek, a senior majoring in Mechanical Engineering Technology, has had an engineering research co-op position at a local manufacturing company since February 2006. Working part-time during the school year and full-time in the summer, he has been working on a materials property database that covers several manufacturing plants.

"When I was 36 I had one of those light bulb moments, where you know where you are working and what you are doing with your work life just isn't right. First I went to Sinclair, then I transferred to Miami Middletown and I haven't looked back.

"I'm very excited about the future. I want to eventually work for a research department, preferably in the steel industry. Ultimately, I would like to complete a master's degree so that I can teach at some point in the future. This co-op position has done so much to help me see what I want to do and how to get there."

Cheek is involved in the Middletown Chapter of Epsilon Pi Tau, the fraternity of engineering students.

Laura Richey, a senior majoring in journalism, was a production assistant at the Middletown Journal during fall semester 2006. John Lowery of Oxford was instrumental in helping her find the internship.

Working ten hours per week at the paper made her even surer of her decision to go into journalism.

"The real world experience that you get on an internship is invaluable," she said. "I learned to be more inquisitive. If you want to know something you've just got to ask and keep asking. I also learned a lot about being unbiased, which is hard sometimes. Working with the other reporters in the newsroom was fun. They were all very supportive."

Richey got her name on many stories, including the front page. Her personal favorite was a full-page story on cyclo-cross racing. She is now writing stories for The Miami Student and KAOS, Miami Middletown's student newspaper.

A co-op position at a local chemical company helped give Shanae Bond the experience that she needed to find a job when she graduated from Miami Middletown last year with an Associate Degree in Accounting Technology.

"Someone at the company went on maternity leave, so I jumped at the chance take a co-op position," she said. "My classes had prepared me very well. I came to work on time, did my best and asked questions. My co-workers there were very professional. It really taught me about the reality of accounting and helped me get my current job." Bond now works as an accounting specialist for the Unity Life Insurance Company in Cincinnati.

"I would definitely advise all students to do a co-op or internship if they can," said Bond. "It gives you experience and insight and helps you find out if you are suited for that kind of job." Bond is currently pursuing a Bachelor"s Degree in forensic accounting from Franklin University.

"These students were pro-active in pursuing the opportunities that they obtained," said Miami Middletown Director of Co-op, Internship and Placement Mira Smith. "The positions were not given to them. They had to compete by sending a resume and cover letter and going through an interview process.

"They were dedicated to the process, which lets me learn the level of commitment to their own success. I am then able to recommend them for various job and internship/co-op openings with confidence.

"They will not only have the benefit of the experience to build their resumes for their next job search, but will have gained the 'soft skill development' that will let them interact with professionals on both a formal and informal level and be confident in doing so. These students have represented themselves, Miami University Middletown, and their families with excellence and should be honored for their accomplishments."

Chris Heidtman, a sophomore majoring in computer and information technology, recently secured a co-op position with KEIR Educational Resources through open interview sessions on campus. "The CIT faculty was most helpful in allowing me to come in and speak to their classes about internship and co-op opportunities," said Smith. "A special thank you goes to Eric Luscaz and Donna Evans." Miami University Middletown currently has internship opportunities in graphic design, biological control, forest ecology, information management, journalism and sales.

For more information on internships at Miami Middletown, contact Mira Smith at (513) 727 3431, smithmt4@muohio.edu or visit www.mid.muohio.edu/career/.

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(03/01/07)

Promotion and Tenure Recipients Announced

Elizabeth V. Howard has been granted tenure and promoted to associate professor of computer and information technology.

Howard began her career at Miami in 1995 and was the first tenure-track faculty member hired for the newly created CIT department in 2001.

Howard has degrees in computer engineering and systems analysis and has experience in business and industry as a computer engineer.

During the 2005-2006 academic year, she received the School of Engineering and Applied Science's Arthur Olson Generational Teaching Excellence Award and was one of two recipients of the Miami University Middletown Excellence in Teaching Award. She also has received the Celebration of Teaching Award from the Greater Cincinnati Consortium of Colleges and Universities, and the Southwestern Ohio Council for Higher Education (SOCHE) Award for Faculty Excellence in Teaching.

Kevin Kittredge has been granted tenure and promoted to associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry.

He earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry in 1988 from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, where he did his undergraduate work; a master's in physical-organic chemistry from California State University at Fresno; and a Ph.D. from University of California at Santa Cruz.

After post-doctoral study at North Carolina State University, he started at Miami in 2001 and teaches organic chemistry. His research efforts are in synthesizing molecules that selectively sense metal ions when assembled into thin films and in developing experiments for undergraduate courses, particularly organic chemistry.

Carolyn Mason has been granted tenure and promoted to associate professor of nursing.

Mason earned a diploma from Highland School of Nursing in Oakland, Calif.; a bachelor's degree from California State University in Sonoma; and a master's in public health nursing from the University of Illinois.

She has 24 years of experience in nursing education, previously serving as director of the Nursing Resource Center in Middletown. She has administrative experience in staff development and patient education and clinical nursing experience in drug rehabilitation, clinics, home care, emergency room, medical surgical hospital nursing and long-term care.

Mason has published five book chapters and nine articles in scholarly journals. In addition, she has made presentations at 14 international and national public health meetings. She has received internal grants as well as more than $11,000 in donated computer programs and videotapes for the nursing department from Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins.

Mason's research interests include spiritual care in nursing and developing community partnerships and cultural diversity, with specific emphasis on helping faith-based agencies form partnerships with mental health agencies that care for the chronic mentally ill; issues of the chronic mentally ill that are parenting young children; and promoting cultural diversity experiences through international nursing.

Eric Melbye has been granted tenure and promoted to associate professor of English.

Melbye joined the English faculty on the Middletown campus in 2001. He received a master's degree from the University of Southern Mississippi's Center for Writers and a doctoral degree in creative writing from the University of Denver.

Pursuing his interests in creative writing pedagogy and community-based learning, Melbye teaches creative writing and serves as the faculty adviser for Illuminati, the Middletown campus' creative writing student organization and national award-winning literary journal, and as editor of Segue, an Internet venue that serves as an international literary journal and a pedagogical tool for classroom use. He also created the Community-Based Learning Initiative and is now leading the development of the Center for Community Engagement, which will support current community-based initiatives on the Middletown campus and develop a range of new pedagogical and service-oriented projects.

Melbye has published fiction and poetry in a variety of literary journals and has utilized his teaching and service activities as the subject for published essays on creative writing and community-based learning pedagogy.

John Tassoni has been promoted to professor of English.

A faculty member at Miami Middletown since 1994, he teaches undergraduate classes at the regional campus, where he co-founded its studio writing program in 1998, and he instructs graduate seminars in composition and rhetoric at Oxford.

Co-coordinator for Middletown's Center for Teaching and Learning, Tassoni has presented at or coordinated more than 40 events for the Middletown campus and surrounding community. He is faculty adviser for Rusty Nails, an organization of non-traditional students, and he serves on the board of directors for Jump Start, an after-school program through which he helps children in one of Middletown's public housing developments document their lives for community leaders.

Focusing his research on institutional critique, critical pedagogy, composition theory and basic writing, Tassoni has published 25 articles in books and scholarly journals and co-edited three collections of original essays that speak to the institutional and cultural impact of English studies.

He also has served as secretary for the Council of Writing Program Administrators, organized a national special interest group devoted to studio pedagogy and co-founded the scholarly journal Open Words: Access and English Studies.

Tassoni earned a Ph.D. from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 1992.

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