FEBRUARY 3, 2011

IN THIS ISSUE

1. Mission Week kicks off with Sunday Mass; Farmer tickets available for simulcast

The Marquette community will celebrate Mission Week Feb. 6-11 beginning with Mission Week Mass at 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 6, at Church of the Gesu. Marquette President Robert A. Wild, S.J., will celebrate and be accompanied by Rev. Eric Hollas, O.S.B., regent at St. John’s University; and Rev. John Fitzgibbons, S.J., associate provost for faculty development, who will deliver the homily. The Liturgical Choir will help lead prayer in song. The Mass is sponsored by Campus Ministry and University Archives.

Regularly scheduled evening Masses at the Chapel of the Holy Family will be cancelled. The 8 and 10 p.m. Masses will return to their regular schedule Sunday, Feb. 13.

Although tickets are no longer available for the Mission Week Keynote Address by Dr. Paul Farmer at 4 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 10, tickets are available for the simulcast in the Weasler Auditorium. Tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis in the AMU Brooks Lounge from noon to 11:30 p.m. while supplies last. Farmer, who has helped revolutionize medical care to the poorest people on earth, will present “Imagine a More Just World: Partnering with the Poor.” A reception for all attendees will follow in the AMU Monaghan Ballroom. Marquette community members should e-mail their questions for Farmer by Monday, Feb. 7. The submitted questions may be discussed during the panel discussion with Farmer.  

Each February Marquette reflects on its Catholic, Jesuit identity during Mission Week. This year’s theme is “IMAGINEGOD.” The Marquette community will be invited throughout the week to explore their imagination and experience how music, art, poetry, scholarship and reflection contribute to our understanding of God and the world.

Watch for daily Mission Week News Briefs next week, Feb. 7-11, featuring Mission Week activities and daily prayers.

The complete schedule for Mission Week is available online.

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2. Saint John’s Bible, rare books featured throughout Mission Week

A Heritage Edition, or replica, of the Saint John’s Bible, a handwritten, hand-illuminated Bible, will be available for public viewing during Mission Week, Feb. 6–11. Its initial presentation is scheduled for the Mission Week Mass, at 4 p.m. Feb. 6, in Church of the Gesu.

Marquette will display the four volumes of the Heritage Edition of the St. John’s Bible in a special exhibit in the AMU rotunda from 7 a.m. to 11:45 p.m. Feb. 6–11.

The original Saint John’s Bible is a seven-volume, one-of-a-kind work housed at Saint John’s University in Collegeville, Minn. It was commissioned in 1998 by the university and its Benedictine monks and took 10 years to handwrite and illuminate.

Monday, Feb. 7, at 11:30 a.m., Rev. Eric Hollas, O.S.B., a regent from St. John’s University who was instrumental in initiating the St. John’s Bible project, will join Susan Wood, SCL, chair and professor of theology, and Matt Blessing, head of Marquette’s Special Collections and University Archives, in the AMU ballrooms to discuss the creation and importance of the St. John’s Bible. Father Hollas will also lead an evening of prayer and reflection with Scriptures being read from the St. John’s Bible Monday night at 7 p.m. in AMU Chapel of the Holy Family.

In conjunction with the St. James Bible exhibit, Raynor Memorial Libraries are hosting “Sacred and Spiritual Writings from the Rare Book Collection” through Saturday, Feb. 19. The exhibit, on the second floor of Raynor Library near the staircase, includes a 1483 gold-illuminated Bible by printer and goldsmith Anton Koberger, a 19th century manuscript Qur'an, an 1880 Catholic prayerbook in the Otchipwe Indian language, and spiritual works by Merton, Donne, Hopkins and more.

After Mission Week, the Heritage Edition — which includes the Pentateuch, Historical Books, Wisdom Books, Psalms, Prophets, Gospels and Acts, and Letters and Revelation — will be preserved and permanently displayed in the Prucha Archives Reading Room on the third floor of the Raynor Memorial Libraries. A different illumination will be presented each day. The university will purchase the remaining three volumes of the edition as they become available in 2011–12, according to Janice Welburn, dean of libraries.

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3. Teaching Excellence Award nominations due Monday

Nominations for Teaching Excellence Awards are due Monday, Feb. 7. Full-time faculty members may nominate up to three full-time faculty from any college or program.

Marquette University is blessed with many excellent teachers and in 1959 began a tradition of honoring full-time faculty members who are recognized by students and colleagues as extraordinary teachers. The award citation reads in part: “In recognition of demonstrated ability to inspire students to see the ideals of the University and to cause them to grow in knowledge and scholarship for the glory of God and the good of others.”

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4. Rev. David Tracy to present "Naming God: Event, Form, Fragment"

Rev. David Tracy, S.T.L., S.T.D., will present a Catholic intellectual tradition lecture, “Naming God: Event, Form, Fragment,” at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 7, in the AMU Monaghan Ballroom. Father Tracy is a Roman Catholic theologian, the Andrew Thomas Greeley and Grace McNichols Greeley Distinguished Service Professor (emeritus) of Catholic Studies, and professor of theology and the philosophy of religions in the University of Chicago Divinity School. He is the author of The Analogical Imagination: Christian Theology and the Culture of Pluralism.

This Mission Week program is sponsored by the offices of the Provost and Mission and Ministry.

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5. Alumna/best-selling author to discuss Arapaho spirituality

Margaret Coel, Jour ’60, will share how her study of Arapaho spirituality has informed her writing and life at “Finding Common Ground: Imagining Another Spiritual Path” at noon Tuesday, Feb. 8, in Johnston 104. Coel is a New York Times best-selling author of the acclaimed Wind River Mystery Series, set among the Arapahos on Wyoming’s Wind River Reservation.

This Mission Week program is sponsored by the Diederich College of Communication.

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6. Ojibwe performer to feature songs, flute and hoop dancing

Thirza Defoe, a performer from the Ojibwe and Oneida tribes of Wisconsin, will share her culture and its history through performance and presentation of social songs, traditional flute music, storytelling and hoop dancing at “Storytelling and Imagination: Performance and Narrative” at 2 p.m., 2:45 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 8, in Johnston 103.

This Mission Week program is sponsored by the Diederich College of Communication.

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7. Seven university groups to perform at Collage Concert

Marquette’s first Collage Concert will be held Tuesday, Feb. 8, at 4 p.m. in the AMU Monaghan Ballroom. Seven of the university’s instrumental and performing groups will perform for 10 minutes each, showcasing the wide variety of musical styles and genres that contribute to how we think about religious imagination. Refreshments will be served.

This Mission Week event is sponsored by the Office of Student Development.

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8. Faculty to share how they arrived at their academic focus

Dr. James Courtright, Dr. Allison Gerdes and Rev. Simon Harak, S.J., will share the paths they followed to their academic focus in a Mission Week “One Thing Led to Another,” Friday, Feb. 11, from noon to 1:30 p.m. in Raynor Beaumier Suites BC.

•  Courtright, professor of biological sciences, will present “Nature has great beauty and I was given admission to the great gallery of her creations”

• Gerdes, assistant professor of psychology, will present “When Missions Intersect”

• Father Harak, director of the Center for Peacemaking, will present “Journey to Non-Violence”

A free, light lunch will be served. RSVP to Jennie Schatzman, office coordinator. Walk-ins are also welcome. For more information contact Kathy Durben, director of project planning and development in the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs, at 8-5470; or Dr. Susan Mountin, director of Manresa for Faculty, at 8-3693.

The series is co-sponsored by the Office and Research and Sponsored Programs and Manresa for Faculty with the Center for Teaching and Learning.

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9. Senior speaker nominations due Feb. 7

Nominations for senior speaker — eligible seniors interested in speaking at graduation — are due Monday, Feb. 7. Contact MUSG for more information or to nominate a senior speaker.

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10. Applications for Metcalfe Chair and diversity grants available

The Office of the Provost is accepting applications for the Ralph H. Metcalfe Chair and the Marquette Excellence in Diversity Grants.

Named for Marquette alumnus Ralph H. Metcalfe, the Metcalfe Chair is a non-residential chair that brings an African American, Latina/o, or Native American scholar from any academic discipline taught at Marquette to campus for a three- to four-day visit. Chair holders are expected to give public lectures and interact with students and faculty. While proposals from all academic disciplines will be considered, applications for 2011/12 are particularly encouraged from the humanities, sciences and engineering. Two chairs are awarded each year. Proposals may request up to $5,000 per chair.

Up to six Marquette Excellence in Diversity Grants will be awarded to support diversity in the academic life of the university during the 2011-2012 academic year. Grants support a lecture or public presentation by diverse scholars, writers and visual or performing artists for the Marquette community. The purpose of the program is to disseminate knowledge of diverse cultures and communities through lectures, workshops, symposia and other forms of presentation within the university community. Priority will be given to projects that are multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary, planned through faculty/student collaborations, and engage faculty and students at Marquette over several days. Up to $2,500 may be requested in each proposal.

Proposals must be received in the Provost’s Office of Diversity (Zilber 454) by March 1, 2011.

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11. Nursing, biotechnology and electrical engineering hosting seminars

The College of Nursing will hold a forum Tuesday, Feb. 8, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:20 p.m. in the Clark Hall terrace. Dr. Margaret Bull, professor and director of the College of Nursing Ph.D. program, will present “Q & A session related to surviving Ph.D. education — issues, concerns, suggestions.”

The Environmental Biotechnology Research Group will host a seminar Tuesday, Feb. 8, from noon to 1 p.m. in Haggerty 494. Praful Aggarwal, teaching assistant in the Department of Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science, will present “Designing and Validating Taxa Specific PCR Primers and Molecular Probes.” The presentation is open to the public and is part of the Regional Biotechnology Research Group seminar series. For information about future presentations, contact Dr. Daniel Zitomer, professor of civil and environmental engineering.

Dr. Dan Ionel, chief scientist of electrical drives and controls at Vestas Technology R&D Americas, will present a Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering colloquium at 2 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 8, in Olin Engineering 120. Ionel will present “Renewable Energies Series (1): Wind Energy Technology.”

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12. Campus Ministry offering Eucharistic Adoration today

Campus Ministry is sponsoring Eucharistic Adoration today, Feb. 3, at 8 p.m. in the AMU Chapel of the Holy Family, for an hour of prayer and music. Attendees can stay for as much time as they would like. For more information, contact Emily Schumacher-Novak, assistant director of campus ministry, at 8-3058.

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13. Qdoba sales to benefit Hunger Clean-Up on Tuesday

Hunger Clean-Up is hosting a Qdoba Night Fundraiser on Tuesday, Feb. 8, from 5 p.m. to 9 pm. at Qdoba, at 16th and Wells. A portion of sales that evening will benefit this year’s event, which takes place April 16. Participants will need to bring inside the flier they will be given outside the door. E-mail for more information.

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14. Raynor Memorial Libraries winter newsletter now available

Raynor Memorial Libraries’ winter newsletter includes a roundup of significant acquisitions, new MARQCAT features, technology news, events and a description of the new digital media studio in Raynor.

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