Students hold Halloween makeup workshop

The “Off University Drive Players”, a new student organization on the UIS campus recently held a Halloween makeup workshop to share theatre tricks.

“The goal for the Halloween workshop is to create a good cute monster so people can learn how to do this on their own” said member “Lucy Black”.

Black says it’s best to practice what you’re going to do in advance, so you know how long it will take and what techniques to use. It’s also important to make sure you buy the right type of makeup. Theatre and Halloween makeup usually require several layers that you don’t use day to day.

The club was formed to educated students on campus about theatre. They take trips to different plays and hold workshops like this one.

“Our goal is to further the entire theatre experience for any and all UIS students,” said Black.

Environmental Studies faculty member to speak at International Day of Climate Action event

Dr. Stefano Longo, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies, will be speaking at an International Day of Climate Action event in Springfield. It will take place on October 24, 2009 at 11:30 a.m. on the Old State Capitol plaza.

Springfield, along with others cities in 111 countries, is trying to attract awareness to the severity of the issue of climate change. Dr. Longo will address this from the perspective of social change and environmental justice.

Dr. Longo has only been a member of the UIS faculty for a couple of months, but has taken an active role in the community. He recently provided the local PBS station with an introduction to the new Ken Burns documentary on U.S. National Parks.

For more information on International Day of Climate Action in Springfield visit: http://sites.google.com/site/springfield350/home

UIS continues Lincoln Legacy

The University of Illinois Springfield continues its dominance as a leading institution in the study of the life of President Abraham Lincoln. The 2009 Lincoln Legacy Lecture series was held on October 15, 2009 focusing on “Lincoln and the Environment”.

Dr. Mark Fiege, associate professor of History at Colorado State University, Ft. Collins talked about how Lincoln’s views on the environment were shaped by his time on the farm working outdoors in Illinois. Dr. Fiege is the author of a book on the environmental history of the United States that is forthcoming from the University of Washington Press in its Weyerhaeuser Environmental Series.
Fiege met with a group of UIS students before his lecture to answer their questions about Lincoln.

“We’ve had a long history of top notch Lincoln scholars here and this just continues that,” said UIS History Club President Matt Parbs.

The Legacy Lecture was moderated by Dr. Michael Burlingame, professor of History and Naomi B. Lynn Distinguished Chair in Lincoln Studies at UIS. Burlingame taught History at Connecticut College for over 30 years before accepting the appointment at UIS this year. His recent two-volume biography, Abraham Lincoln: A Life (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008) has been described as the definitive study.

“I’m deeply honored to hold the Lynn Distinguished Chair in Lincoln Studies and I hope I can live up to the high standards set by my predecessor,” said Burlingame.

Burlingame travels all around the world speaking about the life of our 16th president, but plans to return to Springfield to study at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum.

Watch the entire Legacy Lecture in the Video on Demand section

UIS Adjunct Assistant Professor has work published in national journal

Dr. Boria Sax, Adjunct Assistant Professor of Philosophy at UIS, is having his article “The Magic of Animals: English Animal Familiars in the Perspective of Folklore” published in the next issue of The Journal Anthrozoos.

In the article he argues that witch trials profoundly changed human-animal relations in England and ultimately the world by demonizing the animal sages, guides, and protectors that fill traditional fairy tales, thus depriving animals of intrinsic worth so they could be either humanized as pets or brutalized as livestock. The article sheds new light on some of the most beloved fairy tales such as "The Frog Prince" and "Puss in Boots."

Sax teaches an online course at UIS entitled "Animals in Human Society", which won a national award from the Humane Society for the "best new course" of 2007.

The article will be published in both digital and print format with release expected in early to mid-November.

For more information visit Sax’s website at http://www.boriasax.com

UIS Economics Associate Professor appears on international radio program

Dr. Baker Siddiquee, economics faculty at UIS, was one of the four panelists on the Voice of America (VOA-Bangla)’s hour-long international call in show on the “Prospects of Investment in Bangladesh,” transmitted world-wide on October 8, 2009 from Washington, D.C.

The program is recorded in Bengali and can be listened here: http://www.voanews.com/bangla/2009-10-08-voa1.cfm.

The other three panelists were Ambassador Dr. A.K. Abdul Momen, Permanent Representative of Bangladesh in the United Nations; Mr. Ahmedus Samad Chowdhury, JP, Founder Director, British-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce & Industries in London and Chairman, 'S' TV Channel, London, UK; and Mr. Waliur Rahman Bhuiyan, President, Foreign Investors' Chamber of Commerce & Industries in Bangladesh & Managing Director, Bangladesh Oxygen Limited, Dhaka.