Campus News and Notes
Administration
Houghton College President, Shirley A. Mullen has been named one of Christianity Today’s “50 Women You Should Know” for her outstanding role in shaping the evangelical church culture. In addition to President Mullen’s photo appearing on the cover of the October 2012 issue of CT, she was one of 16 women highlighted with an additional photograph and a longer article.
Advancement
For the first time in Houghton College history, the Student Scholarship Fund has met and exceeded its goal of raising $1 million. “Each and every dollar raised for the Student Scholarship Fund goes directly to students and equips us to recruit and retain students who will be forever changed by their Houghton experience,” said Director of Development Pamela Witter.
Athletics
Houghton officially broke ground this past summer on the first phase of a multi-million dollar athletic complex made possible by the $12 million donation by Houghton alumna Kim (Kerr ’91) Pegula and her husband, Terry Pegula. Burke Field was resurfaced with artificial turf in time for the first women’s soccer game of the season against Hiram College on August 31, 2012. Construction of the baseball and softball stadiums is currently under way. Learn more at: www.houghton.edu/kerr-pegula-athletic-complex
The NCAA Division III Management Council officially endorsed the Membership Committee’s recommendation to move Houghton College into provisional membership status effective September 1, 2012. As a provisional member, Houghton is required to be compliant with all NCAA Division III legislation and must begin to meet a number of requirements in 2012-2013 and throughout the four-year process.
Business and Economics
In April of 2012, 30 business and accounting students in the Student Consulting Group traveled to the corporate headquarters of Paychex, a Fortune 1000 company in Rochester, N.Y., to present their research findings after a three-month study of the company and its strategy. CFO Efrain Rivera '78 commended the Houghton students for producing results he would expect from graduate-level students. He also noted that Houghton's recommendations aligned with what a world-renowned consulting firm recently recommended to Paychex.
Greatbatch School of Music
The Houghton College Choir, directed by Associate Professor of Choral Conducting Brandon Johnson, traveled to South Korea this past Mayterm, making their first tour in an Asian nation. The students participated in master classes with renowned Korean choral directors and performed in a wide variety of venues, including concert halls, cultural centers, universities, and churches around the country.
The Houghton College Philharmonia and College Choir, with special guests from the Alfred University Music Department, performed the 1812 Overture to conclude the 5th annual Civil War Reenactment in Angelica, N.Y., on September 23, 2012. The concert was performed in the circle of churches in Angelica, with the ringing of church bells from the belfries and cannons in the background. Thousands attended the weekend event co-sponsored this year by Houghton College, the Allegany County Chamber of Commerce and Time Warner Cable.
Mark Hijleh, associate dean for academic affairs and professor of music, saw the publication of his new book, Towards a Global Music Theory: Practical Concepts and Methods for the Analysis of Music Across Human Cultures, by Ashgate Publishers in August. The book proposes a number of analytical concepts that can assist musicians with understanding the expressive powers of music freely intermixed from many cultural sources. Some of these methods have been in use in the Houghton music theory curriculum for the past several years.
Natural Sciences and Mathematics
Houghton students and faculty from the disciplines of biology, physics, chemistry, mathematics, and computer science conducted collaborative research this summer for the sixth Summer Research Institute, directed by Wei Hu, professor of mathematics and computer science and the S.R.I program director. Topics of study included “Spam Detection on Twitter,” “Properties of Thin Metal Films,” “Dark Matter Halo Formation,” “Synthesis of Biodegradable Glycopolymers,” “Insect Development,” “Inertial Confinement Fusion,” and “Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells.”
Jun-Koo Park, assistant professor of applied mathematics, has been selected as a 2012-2013 Project NexT (New Experiences in Teaching) Fellow. Project NexT is a national professional development program of the Mathematical Association of America for new or recent Ph.D.s in the mathematical sciences. Park joined the faculty this past fall.
Recreation/Physical Education
Thomas Kettelkamp, professor of recreation and physical education and chair of the department of leisure studies, spent last semester in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, as a visiting professor at the Universidad Evangelica Boliviana. He was sponsored by a Fulbright award from the U.S. Embassy in La Paz to focus on global health, specifically with the Department of Health Sciences at U.E.B. While in Bolivia, Kettelkamp taught workshops in basic research methodology as well as healthcare research and programming, worked with the Department of Health Sciences to design a master’s degree in public/community health, and also was instrumental in designing the first International Congress for the Investigation of Non-Communicable Diseases in Poor Areas of Bolivia. He will be going back in May 2013 to work with the U.E.B. on creating national norms in obesity and cardiovascular disease rates throughout the country.
Service
On Saturday, October 27, about 350 Houghton students converged on locations throughout Allegany County, participating in Make a Difference Day, the largest national community service day in America. They joined students from Alfred State College and Alfred University, united under the guidance of Leadership Allegany in order to impact the community. Students and other locals united while wielding rakes, paintbrushes, rags, and hands eager to serve. These volunteers met needs presented by individuals, nonprofits, and churches at over 65 locations around the county.
