The observance of Hispanic Heritage Month was initiated by Congresss in 1968 with the purpose of celebrating the diverse culture, tradition, and invaluable contributions of Hispanic and Latino people in the United States.

Movies, arts, food, round-table discussions, literary readings, and music are some of the activities planned at Southern Arkansas University through October 15 to celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month.

“We are very excited to continue to celebrate the Hispanic Heritage month on our campus,” said Dr. Elba D. Birmingham-Pokorny, professor of Spanish and organizer and coordinator of the Hispanic Heritage Month Celebrations at SAU. “We have a lot of wonderful activities planned throughout the month that we think the students and community will enjoy. We are hoping that this program will give people from the community as well as high school students the opportunity to come to the SAU campus and be introduced to the Hispanic culture.”

The celebration kicked-off on Thursday, September 25, with a panel discussion. The topic of the dicussion was “The Hispanic Presence in Arkansas: Challenges and Benefits.” The program was held at Wilson 327 and Dr. Birmingham-Pokorny served as the moderator. Panelists included: Dr. Val Cantú, Vicepresident of Academic Affairs and Student Services at South Arkansas Community College; Janet Derrickson, Spanish teacher at Emerson and Taylor High Schools; Dr. Roger Guevara, Director of Urban Renewal Zone at SAU; Cynthia Reyna, Executive Director, Foundation at South Arkansas Community College; Susana Peláez, retired nurse and Sandra Cotton, Preacher in Camden.

Other events include a Literary Reading from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, October 9 in Wilson 327 in which students from various levels: elementary, intermediate, and advanced Spanish will participate. A “Sampling of Spanish, Latin American, and Caribbean Cuisines” will be held for Spanish majors only from noon to 2 p.m. on Friday, October 3 in Wilson 327. Students will be introduced to the diversity of the Spanish culture vis-à-vis the tasting of a variety of dishes from Spain, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Ecuador, and Panamá.

On Sunday, October 12, a group of students will be attending a field trip to Centennary College’s Musuem, to view Emilio Amero’s Exhibit and attend a lecture given by Ariel Zuñiga over “The Works of Emilio Amero”.

For more information about Hispanic Heritage Month celebrations at SAU, contact Dr. Birmingham-Pokorny at (870) 235-4206.

Elcia Olivo provided this report.

The lecture is free and open to the public. The audience is also welcomed to attend a reception for Dr. Gabaccia in the Salon B in the Reynolds Center following the lecture.

Dr. Gabaccia is professor of history and director of the Immigration History Research Center at the University of Minnesota.

She is the author of numerous books and articles on immigrant life in the U.S. and Italian migration around the world, including From the Other Side: Women, Gender and Immigrant Life in the United States (Indiana University Press, 1994) and Italy’s Many Diasporas (Routledge, 2000). She has also written about food, culture, and migration in We Are What We Eat: Ethnic Food and the Making of Americans (Harvard University Press, 1998). Reviewers have praised her work for revealing how the immigrant experience shaped American culture.

The lecture is sponsored by the History, Political Science, and Geography Department at Southern Arkansas University and is part of the Organization of American Historians Distinguished Lecture Program.

Dr. Robert Walz taught history at SAU from 1958 to 1987 and was recognized as a leading scholar of Arkansas history. The Walz Lectureship was established in 1995 with a bequest from the estate of Mrs. Curtistine A. Walz, in honor of her husband’s long service to the university.

To register send an email to epkardas@saumag.edu and use “GRE Registration: as the subject line. A limited number of spaces are available and the registration deadline is noon Friday, September 26.

Dr. Chrisanne Christensen, a professor in the behavioral and social sciences department, said this opportunity is a rare one that should be taken advantage of for students who are interested in getting into a competitive graduate program.

“The test is free and students will have the scores returned to them,” Christensen said. “It would be a great opportunity to find out what their strengths and weaknesses will be on the test.”

The offerings were approved this summer by the Arkansas Department of Education, according to Dr. Lynne Belcher, a professor of English at SAU who will be teaching the courses. Belcher, whose doctoral work was in the area of teaching English as a Second Language, said the courses are designed to help educate graduate and undergraduate students on the methods of teaching a new language as well as how to help students get through issues such as culture shock, which is common among people from other countries.

“I am happy to be able to use some of my experience and knowledge to help area students,” Belcher said. “This program will prepare educators to handle having non-native English speakers in their classes. Teaching English to those who don’t speak it as their first languages is very different from any other kind of teaching. The first thing teachers usually will encounter is culture shock, especially for young children who didn’t have any choice sometimes in leaving their home countries.”

Belcher said her first experience with teaching international students was in 1978 with Vietnamese refugees. Addressing the cultural differences is the first step in helping people become comfortable enough to begin learning another language, she said.

“When you work with internationals, you have to be able to see your culture through other eyes, Belcher said. “One can’t learn a second language if he or she rejects a culture.”

Besides showing teachers how to approach people from other cultures, the TESOL courses will also help teachers understand how students learn a second language and how it differs from learning a first language and how to assess what their students have learned in terms of reading and writing, speaking and listening. It also will provide a practicum of all teaching strategies involved in TESOL courses.

For more information about the courses, call the office of Liberal and Performing Arts at 870-235-4200. Interested students may also call Dr. Elizabeth Davis, 870-235-4212 (ehdavis@saumag.edu) or Dr. Lynne Belcher, 870-235-4213 (lrbelcher@saumag.edu ) or visit www.saumag.edu.

The first ceremony begins at 11 a.m. for the School of Graduate Studies, with a 1 p.m. ceremony following for graduates from the College of Business, the College of Education, the College of Liberal and Performing Arts and the College of Science and Technology.

The speaker for this year’s graduation will be Arkansas State Representative Bruce Maloch of Emerson. Since 1986, Maloch has been with Farmers Bank & Trust and currently serves as regional president and chief operating officer and is a member of the bank’s board of directors.

Maloch received a B.B.A. in business agriculture from Southern Arkansas University in 1980 and a Juris Doctor degree with honors from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock School of Law. While at SAU, Bruce served as president of the Student Government Association and later served as president of the SAU Alumni Association.

Community and governmental affairs have long been a part of Maloch’s interests. He served 10 years on the Columbia County Quorum Court, has served as president of the Magnolia-Columbia County Chamber of Commerce, Columbia County Bar Association and the Group 4 Arkansas Bankers Association for Southwest Arkansas. He is a member of the Magnolia Economic Development Corporation and serves on the Magnolia Airport Commission. Maloch is current chairman of the Arkansas FFA Foundation and has long been active in Arkansas Farm Bureau and Arkansas Cattlemen’s Association activities. He is an auctioneer and donates his services for charitable events throughout the area. In 1997, Maloch received the Outstanding Young Alumni award for Southern Arkansas University.

Maloch and his wife, Martha, live on a farm south of Magnolia where they raise registered Brangus cattle. Martha is a retired educator from the Emerson-Taylor School District. They have three children, Ryan, Lauren, and Victoria; a son-in-law, Scotty Covington and daughter-in-law, Amy; and granddaughters Reese Covington and Marley Kate Maloch. The Maloch’s are members of First Baptist Church of Magnolia where Bruce is an adult Sunday school teacher.

The SAU Office of Alumni Relations will sponsor a reception for all graduates from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Blue and Gold room. For more information regarding commencement exercises at SAU, call the Office of the Registrar at 870-235-4031.

The play, by Joseph Kesselring, is a black comedy about two elderly spinsters who poison lonely old men who stay with them as boarders will be offered at 7 p.m. on May 23 and May 24 and at 2 p.m. on May 25.

Tickets are $5 and on sale at the Cosmopolitan Ladies Club and Gallery and at the door before each performance. For more information, call Janet Rider-Babbit, president of Magnolia Arts at 235-9896.

“A Journey Home” by Marci Wilson

The Brinson Fine Arts Gallery is pleased to present “A Journey Home,” by Marci Wilson, a senior fine art major at Southern Arkansas University. Through the use of photography Marci takes the viewer down a journey that exists along HWY 82.

The photographic documentation has been a semester long process of capturing the weekend road trips that Marci travels. They are 16×20 digital photographs displayed in chronological order.

Marci uses the effects of light to show changes of the mood in nature. Most of the compositions show a fading of light or sunset. This represents not only the end of another day but also a chance at a new start. The composition of each photograph also stands as symbol of life. “No matter the direction of my destination the road never gets old. There are places along the road that have caught my attention and in an odd way parallel with life.” The subject matter are landmarks that sit along HWY 82. However, the landmarks have become symbols of time, human emotion, and a beauty that changes with the seasons. In efforts to bring to life the everyday objects that often go un-noticed, Marci also brings these pieces together to tell an intimate personal story.

“Senior Exhibition” by Maryam Ahsan Baig

The Brinson Fine Arts Gallery is pleased to present “ Senior Exhibition,” a show of recent work by Maryam Ahsan Baig. The basic structural unit behind her work is the use of color, line work, and organic forms. Printing intaglio on fabric and adding acrylic glazes/ watercolor to each piece created these mixed media pieces.

This compilation of work consists of prints with various compositions, each with their own unique image -yet resemble another in the style and execution. One of the most appealing aspects of these works to Baig was the fact that with one intaglio plate, she can create a different piece with every print. Depth was added to these works by adding light glazes washes of acrylic and watercolors. As it is evident in these pieces, Baig’s work is largely figurative. The basic drive behind these works is the beauty and the organic shape the curves of a female figures embody, can be tied to other forms in nature. The images remain rather abstract that result in an organic image of a landscape. The series is more about the technique and the various compositions.

“Senior Exhibition” by Charlene Kirkpatrick

The Brinson Fine Art Gallery at Southern Arkansas University is pleased to present the “Senior Exhibition,” a show of recent work by four separate artists including Charlene Kirkpatrick. The basic structural unit of Charlene Kirkpatrick’s work is focused on the effects of smoking among the human anatomy. Created by gluing, drawing, and painting smoking ads and pictures onto canvas, it exists as the common foundation for a perfect composition depicting how smoking affects the human body.

The painted-drawn pieces that are the basis of these structures are depicting human figures being comforted but yet pulled down by something unrecognizable. The natural elements that are in cigarettes such as: sugar, chocolate, and honey are some of the elements that are applied to each piece. Charlene Kirkpatrick’s motivation comes from the topic of cancer and has been narrowed down due to smoking being one of the number one causes of cancer today. Like others, she holds a personal interest to the subject. Her grandfather died when she was nine from cancer due to smoking. This has led her to the subject of layers among people and nature. She believes a person’s layers are divided by their social standing and their well-being. She believes strongly in speaking her mind as a woman and as a person who also suffers from a health issue.

Charlene Kirkpatrick’s work is increasingly present at Southern Arkansas University. Her work can be seen around Brinson Fine Art Department and at a few businesses in Magnolia Arkansas. Charlene has been selected the past three years to serve as president of Pivot Point; Southern Arkansas University’s art and design organization. Charlene was also selected this year as a recipient of a full performance scholarship at Southern Arkansas University.

For more information, contact Scotland Stout at (870) 235-4241.

Twelve students participated in the Festival, entering a total of 18 videos in five different categories. The categories were: commercial, motion graphic, narrative, documentary and music video. Students from SAU, John Brown University, and area high schools participated, but in the end, Southern Arkansas University Students rose to the top.

Heard’s experimental music video titled “Let Go” won the grand prize of $300. Second place, $200, and the McNeill Family Prize for Best Documentary Film worth $100 went to Jameson Sheppard of John Brown University for his film, “Rush,” a documentary following the progress of two teens in dirt track racing. Third place and $100 went to Matt Taylor of SAU for his motion graphic “Celestial Prison.” Matt also received the People’s Choice Award for his narrative film, “Unscripted,” an improvisational horror film set in downtown Magnolia. “Yellow Rock,” a documentary by Gina Caylor of Fayetteville High School, won Honorable Mention.

Judges for the festival were David Murphy, SAU Theatre and Mass Communications department chair, Daehwan Cho, assistant professor of digital media, and Aaron Street, director of the SAU Communications Center.

Plans are already in the works for the festival to take place again next year sometime in April. For more information, contact Daehwan Cho at 870-235-4260.

“The Closeline Project” is a traveling exhibit of approximately 300 hand decorated items of clothing, each representing a life lost due to domestic violence in Arkansas over the past 10 years.

“April is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, so we were pleased to be able to schedule this exhibit to visit Magnolia and SAU,” said Deborah Wilson, SAU psychology instructor. “An average of 30 Arkansans are killed each year from domestic violence. This exhibit helps to remember the victims while raising awareness about domestic violence.”

The display includes a shirt remembering Brittany Pater of Magnolia. Pater’s story and the stories of the other victims are hanging with their respective shirt on display.

Wilson recalled her first viewing of the exhibit, and described it as a “powerful, unforgettable display.”
The event really hit home for her when she discovered a shirt representing a woman she knew. “It brought up a lot of emotion. I stood there thinking about her and what she went through,” said Wilson.

The exhibit is sponsored by the Arkansas Coalition Against Domestic Violence (ACADV) and the Women’s Crisis Center in Camden. It is free and open to the public.

SAU students and faculty will be assisting in arranging and repacking the display both days. “We are actively involved in the issues we teach [in the psychology department at SAU],” said Dr. Chrisanne Christensen, psychology professor. “That is really important to us.”

The initiation will be celebrated at the Wilson Building, room 327. The ceremony will be conducted and sponsored by Dr. Elba D. Birmingham-Pokorny, professor of Spanish. Sigma Delta Pi is the largest foreign-language honor society in existence, the only one devoted exclusively to students of Spanish in four-year colleges and universities, and one of only three foreign language societies accredited as members of the Association of College Honor Societies.

The following students will be inducted into Sigma Delta Pi Mayumi Abe of Japan, Christi Albrecht of Monticello, Ark., Holly Ball of Emerson, Ark., Morgan Collier of Mesquite, Texas, Laquita Houston of Wilmot, Ark., Katie McWilliams of Emerson, Ark., Elcia Olivo of Bay City, Texas, Gitanjali Shrestha of Nepal and Wendy White of El Dorado, Ark. Also to be inducted as special members are Dr. Yonghu Dai, associate Spanish professor, Dr. Elizabeth Davis, chair of the SAU Department of English and Foreign Languages, and Dr. Juping Wang, assistant Spanish professor. Ms. Danielle Danci will assist in the ceremony.

Sigma Delta Pi was established on November 14, 1919, at the University of California in Berkeley. Its symbol is the royal seal of Ferdinand and Isabella, king and queen of Castile, Leon, and Aragon. The society’s colors are red and gold, and its flower is the red carnation. In order to qualify for admission, students must have minimum grade of 3.0 on a scale of 4.0 in all Spanish courses.

The purposes of Delta Sigma Pi are to honor and encourage excellent students of Spanish language, literature, and culture; to honor those who create awareness within the English-speaking community of Hispanic contributions to modern culture; and to foster friendly relations between Hispanic and English speakers.

There are more than 430 chapters of Sigma Delta Pi at American colleges and universities. The society sponsors grants, cultural activities, scholarships, state and regional symposia, and other activities to support the study of Hispanic languages, literature and culture.