Dear Colleagues,

May 2022 saw the end of an unusual and eventful semester. When the semester began in January, the nation and the campus were reeling from the spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19. Most classes began meeting remotely. We soon transitioned to face-to-face learning, with face masks required. Later in the semester, as the number of COVID cases declined dramatically, masks became optional in most campus spaces. By April, lectures, musical and theatrical performances, and other events returned to campus.

The easing of mask requirements and the resumption of events reflect a significant reduction in the public health threat posed by COVID. Vaccines have protected us from serious illness and prevented countless deaths, and newly developed treatments have eased symptoms. 

Read Dean Leonard's full letter.

When CAS senior Samantha Gallatin, of Machesney Park, came to SIUE, she wanted to become a secondary education biology teacher.

After joining the GEOPATHS Scholars Program, however, her interests shifted toward geography, and she became inspired in pursuing a career as a researcher and professor at the collegiate level. The GEOPATHS Scholars Program is funded by the National Science Foundation and is designed to increase awareness of geoscience careers.

Gallatin was also recognized by The Lincoln Academy of Illinois as a 2021 Student Laureate during the 47th annual Lincoln Academy Student Laureate ceremony, which was held virtually on November 10, 2021.

Read the article.

SIUE students are among the recipients of the 2022 SIU System Distinguished Student Service Awards. Awardees were honored during the SIU System Board of Trustees meeting held Thursday, April 28.

Emily Love is a graduate student in the Department of Sociology. She is a graduate research assistant for the TIME (Toward an Inclusive Model of Excellence) team where she assists with workshops, speaker events and policy changes regarding equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) issues for faculty. Love’s commitment to EDI extends into cross-institutional collaborative work, such as the building of the Advocates and Allies program at SIUE. She has launched a series of interactive theater workshops to demonstrate the faculty experience in a creative way.

Read the article.

Each semester, SIUE’s Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (URCA) program recognizes outstanding faculty mentors and student researchers through four awards.

• The URCA Creative Activities Mentor of the Semester Award was presented to Rodrick Whetstone, MFA, assistant professor in the Department of Art and Design. 
  
• The Research Assistant of the Semester Award was presented to Natalie Karibian, a junior in the Department of Biological Sciences.
  
• The Creative Activities Assistant of the Semester Award was presented to Alex Okenfuss, a junior studying in the Department of Art and Design.

Read the article. 

Segue is a 30 minute radio program airing on WSIE 88.7 The Sound on Sundays at 9 a.m. and is hosted by Kevin Leonard, PhD, CAS dean. This show features interviews showcasing campus and community leaders and discussions about issues and ideas on the SIUE campus and within the College of Arts and Sciences.

Some recent guests include: 

• Lane Forsman, assistant professor in the Department of Social Work
• Tom Anderson, assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences
• Alan Black, assistant professor in the Department of Geography and Geographic Information Sciences

Listen live at siue.edu/wsie. 
Listen to past episodes at siue.edu/segue.

Do you have any neat projects, important research, department updates, and/or student news/awards/projects? If so and you'd like the story to be featured in a future publication, CAS news, and/or social media, please submit it via email for consideration: cascommunications@siue.edu