1. Family Weekend concerts and Mass featured this weekend

Marquette’s Family Weekend celebration will include a Saturday Mass and Sunday concert.

Campus Ministry is sponsoring the Mass on Saturday, Oct. 2, at 4:30 p.m. at the Church of the Gesu, celebrated by Rev. Fred Zagone, S.J., assistant to the vice president in University Advancement. Campus Ministry will also hold Masses on Sunday, Oct. 3, at 4 p.m. at the Church of the Gesu and at 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. in the AMU Chapel of the Holy Family. For more information, contact Emily Schumacher-Novak, assistant director of campus ministry, at 8-3058.

The Marquette University Chorus will perform a concert Saturday, Oct. 2, at 3 p.m. in the Weasler Auditorium. The concert will include performances by the MU Chorus, Men's and Women's Choirs, Chamber Choir and the MUsical Staff, featuring folk songs, sacred music and contemporary choral pieces.

The Marquette University Bands will perform a concert Sunday, Oct. 3, at noon in Westowne Square. The concert will include performances by the Marquette Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band and will feature marches, show tunes and movie music. In the event of rain, the concert will be held in the Varsity Theatre.

2. National Research Council releases data; 11 Marquette programs included

The National Research Council this week released its first assessment of doctoral programs nationwide in more than a decade. The massive data collection involved 222 universities and included 11 Marquette doctoral programs — in biological sciences, biomedical engineering, chemistry, electrical and computer engineering, mechanical engineering, clinical psychology, counseling psychology, English, history, philosophy and religious studies. This was the first time Marquette participated in the NRC study.

The study, which is available online, does not include exact rankings for programs but, instead, provides two illustrative ranking ranges based on 20 different variables, including faculty publications, percent of faculty with grants, faculty honors and awards, number of PhDs, faculty and student diversity, median time to degree and percent of graduates with definite employment or postdoctoral plans.

Dr. Jeanne Hossenlopp, vice provost for research and dean of the Graduate School, noted that data were collected in 2007, using statistics from the 2005-06 academic year. “The initial data collection was helpful in surfacing a number of issues Marquette needed to address as we focused on graduate education and research,” she said. “Since that time we’ve made a number of improvements that are not reflected in the NRC data, including increases in external funding awards and the provision of health insurance for graduate assistants, one of the variables used by NRC to assess student support and performance.”

Hossenlopp said a number of Marquette’s graduate programs scored well in terms of student support and outcomes, while others showed research activity rankings in the mid-range to upper half of the scale, noteworthy given that Marquette’s programs generally compete with significantly larger and better-resourced departments.

Deans, department chairs and the directors of graduate studies have received comprehensive data for their programs. “We need to look at the data, as well as current performance, to determine where we have opportunities to improve,” said Provost John Pauly. “This comprehensive study also gives individual departments the opportunity to compare the strengths and weaknesses of their programs with peer programs nationwide.”

3. Dr. Joseph Green named director of EOP

Dr. Joseph Green, director of TRIO Programs at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, has been named director of Marquette’s Educational Opportunity Program. As director, Green will oversee daily operations of the EOP, an academic program that assists low-income and first-generation students, whose parents do not have a baccalaureate degree, to succeed in higher education. Some 1,708 EOP students have graduated from the EOP program since it began 41 years ago and hundreds of other EOP pre-college and McNair students have been assisted by the program. Green will begin at Marquette on Monday, Oct. 11.

“Dr. Green brings to Marquette a wealth of experience working with TRIO program students and parents and enhancing individual students’ potential for success in higher education,” said Anne Deahl, associate vice provost for academic support programs. “He also brings a warmth and vitality to his new role, and great enthusiasm to carry on the legacy of Marquette’s EOP.”

Green has served at NC-Chapel Hill since 2006. Prior to that, he directed TRIO programs at the University of Central Florida, North Carolina A&T University and Bowie State University in Bowie, Md. He has also served as an adjunct assistant professor of political science at each of those institutions. He received his Ph.D. in political science from Howard University in 2003, and his master’s degree in counseling psychology in 1995 and his bachelor’s in sociology in 1990 from Bowie State.

4. City Year CEO to host discussion on education tomorrow

College of Education Dean Bill Henk will moderate a discussion on service and education with City Year Co-Founder and CEO Michael Brown tomorrow, Oct. 1, at noon in the Weasler Auditorium.

City Year is an educational nonprofit that places young adults in high-need schools for a year to tutor and mentor students, especially those that exhibit risk factors associated with dropping out. The organization, which is part of AmeriCorps, was founded in Boston in 1988 and now operates in 20 domestic cities and two international sites. Milwaukee launched the program this year with 60 corps members serving in six Milwaukee Public Schools.

Friday’s discussion with Brown will focus on the national service movement, the high school drop-out crisis and the work of City Year across the nation and in Milwaukee. For his work at City Year, Brown has been awarded several distinctions and was named one of America’s Best Leaders by US News and World Report.

The event is free and open to the public. No RSVP is needed.

5. Caribbean studies conference to be held Oct. 7-9; Cuban film and panel scheduled

The Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures and the journal Caribe will host an International Conference on Caribbean Studies, “Looking to the Caribbean: Film and Literature,” Oct. 7-9 at Marquette. The conference will feature guest artists Iván Acosta, a film director (Amigos) and playwright (El Super) best-known for fiction that reflects his experiences as a Cuban exile; Matías Montes Huidobro, a Cuban novelist, poet, playwright and critic; and Leandro Soto, a painter and performance artist. Marquette community members can attend for free all panel discussions and the Saturday play, Los Acosados, de Matías Montes Huidobro, from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in Straz Tower Theatre.

Rosa and the Executioner of the Fiend, a film about the Cuban Revolution presented in English with Spanish subtitles, will be shown on Wednesday, Oct. 6, at 6 p.m. in Lalumiere 176. A panel discussion with director Iván Acosta and critic Rolando Morelli will follow. The event is supported with a Mellon Grant and sponsored by the Helen Way Klingler College of Arts and Sciences, journal Caribe and the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures.

For more information, contact Dr. Armando Gonzalez-Perez, professor of Spanish, at 8-7264.

6. Saturday workshop to cover Latino community issues

The Latin American Student Organization will hold its fourth annual Latino Solidarity Day: Sembrando Nuestras Raices to appreciate where Latinos have come from, where they are and where they are going as a people.

It will host a workshop for all students Saturday, Oct. 2, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in AMU 305 and 313 with professionals from the Milwaukee community presenting on topics such as health care, education, domestic violence and what can be done for the Latino community.

7. Nurse-managed health centers to be discussed

Dr. Thomas Mackey, director of health services at the University of Texas Health Science Center School of Nursing, will present “Nurse Managed Health Centers: Opportunity and Value” at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 5, in AMU 163. Mackey, who has many years of experience running successful nurse-managed health centers and is a nationally recognized expert in this area, will speak about the entrepreneurial aspects of nurse-managed health centers.

The program is sponsored by the College of Nursing.

8. Heck and Essenberg to address role of money in political campaigns

Jay Heck, executive director of Common Cause Wisconsin, and Rick Esenberg, professor of law, will discuss the role of money in political campaigns Tuesday, Oct. 5. The “On the Issues with Mike Gousha” discussion will take place at 12:15 p.m. in Eckstein Hall.

9. "Creating a Vision of a Post-Racial World" to be discussed

Anita Price Baird, director of the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Office for Racial Justice, will present “Creating a Vision of a Post-Racial World” at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 6, in the Eckstein Hall Appellate Courtroom. Baird wrote a reflective essay about the painting Madonna and Child-Boundless Love for the book Holiness and the Feminine Spirit: The Art of Janet McKenzie. The painting is included in the Haggerty’s current exhibition of Janet McKenzie’s work.

A reception at the Haggerty Museum of Art will follow. The program is free and open to the public.

The program is offered in conjunction with the museum’s The Black Panthers Making Sense of History and Holiness and the Feminine Spirit Paintings by Janet McKenzie exhibitions.

10. Author to discuss how personal experiences result in fiction

Dr. Ron Hansen, Gerard Manley Hopkins Professor of Creative Writing at Santa Clara University and author of Atticus, will present “Making Things Up,” at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 7, in Eckstein Hall.

Hansen will explore his own imaginative and creative process in the creation of fiction. Artists take the characters, cues and quandaries of their lived experience and create new narratives out of the mix. Hansen will discuss how an author must mix facts with fiction, tell "lies" to tell a deeper truth, or make up what is missing to complete the story.

The program, which will be followed by a Q&A session and reception, is sponsored by the offices of Mission and Ministry and the Provost.

11. Habitat for Humanity hosting events to support housing issues

Marquette’s Habitat for Humanity chapter will host a number of events Oct. 4-9 for “Act! Speak! Build! Week,” with Monday, Oct. 4, designated by the United Nations to be World Habitat Day. The purpose of this day is to bring attention to the global state of living and to work toward adequate housing for all people

Sunday, Oct. 3, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. — bowling at the Annex, $1 per game

Monday, Oct. 4, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. — $.25 to “Sign a Stud” that will be used in an actual HFH house, at the Raynor Library flagpole

Monday, Oct. 4, 7:30 p.m. — $5 entrance to watch Marquette students perform in a variety of song and comedy acts at Open Mic Night in the Weasler Auditorium

Wednesday, Oct. 6, 6:30 p.m. — panel discussion about Milwaukee housing with Melissa Herguth, development director at Milwaukee Habitat; Rafael Garcia, director of YMCA Community Development Center; and Mike Soika, executive director of YMCA Urban Campus, in AMU Ballroom D

Thursday, Oct. 7, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. — bake sale under the Raynor Memorial Libraries bridge

12. Department of Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science holding colloquium

The Department of Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science will hold a colloquium tomorrow, Oct. 1, at 4 p.m. in Cudahy 401. Dr. John Borg, associate professor of mechanical engineering, will present “A Comparison of Two- and Three-Dimensional Multi-Scale Simulations as Applied to the Compaction of Porous Heterogeneous Materials.”

13. Free group fitness classes offered tomorrow

The Department of Recreational Sports will offer free group fitness classes tomorrow, Oct. 1.

The classes are free to members:

• Turbo Kick at 1 p.m. at the Rec Center
• Spin at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. at the Rec Center
• Zumba at 3 p.m. at the Rec Plex
• 4 p.m. Jazz Dance at the Rec Center

Call 8-6979 for more information.

14. Ski trip deposits due Sunday

The Avalanche Outdoors Club is hosting a trip to Big Sky Ski Resort in Big Sky, Mont., Jan. 7-15. The trip costs $535 (plus optional $99 bus fare — or participants can arrange their own transportation) and includes six nights at Big Horn Condominiums, a four-day life pass ($309 value), discounted ski and snowboard rentals, a free Ying Yang Twins concert and Rockstar-sponsored events. Trip space is limited. Deposits are due Sunday, Oct. 3.

For more information contact Josh Yeung at 651-206-8429 or David Moyer at 262-443-1065.

15. Barefoot soccer tournament to be hosted by Watumishi

Watumishi is hosting its third annual Kick for Kenya three-on-three Barefoot Soccer Tournament, Wednesday, Oct. 6, at 5 p.m., at Valley Fields. All proceeds benefit the construction of Watumishi's Library Learning Center in Voi, Kenya.

Register online by Monday, Oct. 4. Cost is $50 for teams ordering shirts and $30 for teams not ordering. For more information contact Patrick Duffey.

16. Dodgeball tournament culminates Domestic Violence Awareness week

Alpha Chi Omega Sorority will host its second annual Dodge Domestic Violence dodgeball tournament, Thursday, Oct. 7, from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Annex. Registration begins at 6:15 p.m.

Cost is $15 per team of six or seven players, or $10 per team if participants preregister online. The tournament will be the culminating event in Domestic Violence Awareness week and all proceeds will benefit the Sojourner Family Peace Center.

Contact Audrey Wayne for more information.