Expertise & Excellence

Slideshow: Pamplin Society welcomes seven new members

Emily — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 19:35:44 +0000

The Pamplin Society of Fellows formally inducted seven new members in a ceremony on October 20th. This year’s inductees (Rebecca Fitch, Riley Johnson, Dieterich Lawson, Emily Nguyen, Lili Pill-Kahan, Leah Scott-Zechlin, and Alex Simon) joined the ranks of 21 students, more than 70 alumni, and four endowed professors. Membership is extended to seven students each year as they begin their second year at the College.

Click to view photographs

Members of the Society demonstrate the characteristics outlined by Dr. Robert B. Pamplin, the Society’s founder: an exceptional blend of intellectual talent, dedication to the welfare of one’s community, the habit of physical fitness, and personal integrity. The Society includes members with a diversity of achievements, talents, majors and geographic representation.

The student Fellows determine, plan, and implement a number of programs that the Society sponsors to enhance the co-curricular educational environment of the College. Upon graduation from Lewis & Clark, fellows maintain their membership for life.

Law Student Nick Kahl wins District 49 House race

tspeel — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 23:58:39 +0000

Law student Nick Kahl attributes his win in the District 49 House race to voter outreach. Kahl, who took in 56% of the votes against his opponent John Nelsen, was not very surprised with his victory: “We ran an aggressive grassroots campaign. I’ve knocked on, I’d say, 14,000 doors. The amount of voter outreach – that was the difference-maker.” Although Kahl was pleased with his win, he stresses that he wants to make a difference in his community first and foremost by revitalizing the sense of pride in Rockwood that he was so used to as a child growing up.

The Gresham Outlook (Gresham, Ore.) Kahl ready to fight for East County in Salem

Media Alert: OPB documentary featuring Mitch Reyes premieres November 17

Emily — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 23:31:53 +0000

The Lewis & Clark Expedition was a pivotal moment in American history. But the story of York, a slave to William Clark and comrade on this journey, has been obscured by omission and stereotype. “Searching for York,” a film produced for Oregon Public Broadcasting’s Oregon Experience, paints a portrait of this unofficial member of the Corps of Discovery as it discusses the ways in which history is written.

Assistant Professor of Communication Mitch Reyes contributes his expertise in the field of public memory to the program.

The documentary debuts on OPB on November 17th at 9:00 p.m. “Searching for York” will be re-broadcast on Wednesday the 19th at 3:00 a.m. and Sunday the 23rd at 1:00 p.m.

Click the image to view a trailer at OPB’s website.

Professor of Economics Eban Goodstein prepares for new climate-change teach-in

tspeel — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 22:57:43 +0000

Professor of Economics Eban Goodstein is working to create another global warming teach-in, called the National Teach-In on Global Warming Solutions, on February 5. Goodstein organized Focus the Nation, a nationwide dialog about climate change, last January; his new project will concentrate on the climate change policies put in place within President-Elect Barack Obama’s first 100 days in office. Goodstein is optimistic that this project will draw large crowds the way Focus the Nation did, which included 1,900 participating colleges and groups. “This is a time for young people to engage with political leaders in Washington and basically spend a day learning, and take that learning to decision makers,” said Goodstein.

The Chronicle of Higher Education (Arlington, Va.) Professor Who Organized Climate-Change Project Plans Another Teach-In

Alum Andrew Saunderson scores dream job

tspeel — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 19:36:39 +0000

For alum Andrew Saunderson B.A. ‘08, life after graduation has been anything but ordinary. After being recruited to Lewis & Clark to play baseball in 2004, Saunderson discovered where his passions lay: in film-making. As a communications major, Saunderson took a documentary form class his senior year and was immediately hooked. When director Brian Lindstrom gave a presentation to his class, Saunderson asked him about any possible job opportunities or internships. The rest is history.

Andrew served as the production assistant for Alien Boy, a feature length documentary about Portland resident James Chasse, who died in September 2006 while in police custody. Alien Boy will premiere at film festivals in the Spring of 2009.

Lewis & Clark faculty share election expertise

tspeel — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 21:02:03 +0000

Throughout the election season, members of the Lewis & Clark faculty offered their expert analyses of various political races. Weighing issues of race, culture, and history, faculty members have studied the presidential race, as well as congressional races and ballot measures.

Explore this interactive map to learn more about Lewis & Clark faculty members’ contributions to the national political discourse in various media outlets throughout the spring, summer, and fall. The map provides links to full-text versions of more than 30 articles citing Lewis & Clark faculty experts that appeared in newspapers from Detroit to Denver, Washington, D.C. to Seattle, and throughout the Portland metro area.

Recent updates include:

Robert Klonoff, dean of the law school, in the National Law Journal, November 6

Cynthia Cosgrave, teacher education instructor, in Beaverton Valley Times, October 23

Faculty members featured:

*John Callahan, Morgan S. Odell professor of humanities

*Cynthia Cosgrave, teacher education instructor

*Robert Eisinger, associate professor of political science

*Alejandra Favela, assistant professor of education

*Steven Hunt, professor of communication

*James Huffman, Erskine Wood Sr. professor of law

*Robert Klonoff, dean of the law school

*Robert Miller, professor of law

Law school dean addresses “Obama effect” on public interest law

jodih — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 18:41:39 +0000

Robert Klonoff, dean of the law school, spoke with the National Law Journal about how the next administration under President-elect Obama might effect the field of public interest law. Public interest law is the practice of law pursued on behalf of both individuals and causes that are not typically served by the for-profit-bar. Public interest lawyers can serve the public by working for civil legal services organizations, non-profit organizations, public defense organizations, prosecutors offices, government agencies and lobbying for non-profit organizations.Lewis & Clark Law School graduates enter public interest careers at a rate that is more than three times the national average. In 2007, the law school had the fifth highest percentage of graduates entering public interest law careers.

National Law Journal The latest ‘Barack effect’: new interest among law students in government, public interest jobs

Jim Proctor stresses that “going green” is not enough

tspeel — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 18:57:23 +0000

Jim Proctor, professor and director of environmental studies, is concerned that most colleges do not address sustainability in its fullest definition. Although many colleges focus on ecology, they have failed to address social and economic issues in regards to “going green.” According the the United Nation’s Brundtland Commission report from 1983, true sustainability is composed of all three aspects, not just ecology. “I’m actually at a point where I’m confused where we ought to go — we at Lewis & Clark and we in the larger education community. If it’s just about green campuses, that’s not at all what sustainability was envisioned to be,” Proctor said. He points out that without the social and economic legs, true sustainability cannot be achieved.

The Oregonian (Portland, Ore.) Colleges in Oregon get high grades for green

Law alum Kim McCoy featured on Animal Planet series

tspeel — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 23:00:31 +0000

Kim McCoy , a 2007 alumna of the law school, is the Executive Director of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and one of the subjects in the upcoming television series “Whale Wars” on Animal Planet.

Deeply committed to the defense and conservation of animals worldwide, McCoy served as editor-in-chief of the internationally acclaimed Animal Law Review while she was a law student. She also interned with the International Environmental Law Project and worked on animal rights issues.

The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society uses innovative direct-action tactics to investigate, document, research, and enforce laws, treaties, resolutions, and regulations established to protect ocean wildlife and their habitats worldwide.

“Whale Wars,” a controversial mini-series that worked with Sea Shepherd, showcases the group’s interference with a Japanese whaling expedition in order to protect the greatest treasure of the seas: the great whales.

“Whale Wars” begins November 7 at 9 p.m. on Animal Planet. Learn more about Kim online.

Video: Alum vies for national animation prize; voting closes Tuesday, Oct. 28

Emily — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 22:52:30 +0000

Adan Vielma CAS ’08 is a finalist in a national animation competition, and viewers can vote for his film from 8:00 p.m. Monday, October 27 through 8:00 p.m. Tuesday, October 28.

Vielma’s short, “Go Nuts Animation,” was named one of 29 finalists in the Nicktoons Network Animation Festival, which features the best animated shorts films from around the globe.

Each day in October, the Nicktoons website features a different short for which visitors can vote. At the end of the month, the video with the most votes will win the Viewer’s Choice Award. To vote for Vielma’s video, visit the Nicktoons website by Tuesday, October 28.

Vielma, who won a different national video competition last year, put more than 30 hours of work into the two-minute submission. “Go Nuts Animation” takes a fun look at college life, following a student who spends a fortune decking out his dorm room.

“What differentiates my work, and what probably made it stand out to the contest judges, has to be its complexity,” Vielma said. “Each minute of my animation is filled with ten minutes of entertainment; one view is just not enough. I added so many details and filled even the smallest of corners. It has to be that attention to detail and sense of humor that the judges appreciated.”

Currently in its fifth year, the Nicktoons Network Animation Festival is the largest event of its kind in North America. The Festival gives finalists like Vielma exciting opportunities to present their work on a national stage, giving animators access to television and Internet audiences and offering cash and prizes for winners.

“Having just graduated from Lewis & Clark, I’m finding so many directions to take my education,” Vielma said. “Animation and video work are two directions I’m pursuing right now, and they’ve brought me personal enjoyment and public recognition. I’m really happy with what I’ve been doing, but I’m always looking forward to new challenges and projects.”

Education Professor Zaher Wahab contributes expertise to Winter Soldier forum

tspeel — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 18:38:21 +0000

Zaher Wahab, professor of education:

Wahab contributed his expertise on the situation in Afghanistan as part of the Winter Soldier Northwest forum this month, an event held at First Unitarian Church in Portland. Winter Soldier hearings have been convened across the country to give U.S. veterans an opportunity to testify about their military service. In addition, panels of scholars, veterans, journalists, and other specialists give context to the testimony.

The panel discussion in which Wahab participated was titled, “Eyewitness Accounts of War: Local Soldiers, their Families, Iraqis and Afghans Testify on the Human Cost of War.”

“The average family [in Afghanistan] lives on one dollar per day,” Wahab said at the forum. “Two million people are seriously mentally ill, 70 percent of Afghanis are traumatized.”

Wahab splits his time between Lewis & Clark and Afghanistan, devoting six months of service each year to the Afghan Ministry of Higher Education. He is dedicated to helping normalize conditions in Afghanistan, and he believes “quality, equal and universal education is the key to establishing peace, security, democracy, harmony, and a healthy, stable economy in Afghanistan.”

Read more about Wahab and the Winter Soldier event online.

Animal law experts from around the world convene at law school

jodih — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 23:11:47 +0000

Close to 250 animal law experts and advocates from around the world convened at Lewis & Clark Law School on Oct. 17-19 for the 16th Annual Animal Law Conference to discuss the interconnections between animal law and a broad array of issues such as religion, farming, environmentalism, and homeland security. The event was sponsored by the Center for Animal Law Studies in collaboration with the Animal League Defense Fund.

Mark Hawthorne, animal rights advocate, blogger, and author of Striking at the Roots: A Practical Guide to Animal Activism, writes: The panel that made the biggest impression on me had to do with the state of animal law in China, which is to say none at all. Presented by Paul Littlefair of RSPCA International and Amanda Whitfort, who teaches law at the University of Hong Kong, the session covered the legal and cultural hurdles animal advocates must overcome in Asia….

Read his blog about the conference.

Autumn’s gecko research extends its global reach

tspeel — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 22:31:03 +0000

Kellar Autumn, associate professor of biology:

With coverage this month in Scientific American and New Scientist, as well as several international newspapers, Autumn’s research has extended its global reach. On Saturday, October 25, Autumn will be featured on an episode of Weird Connections on The Science Channel.

Autumn’s research has already crisscrossed the globe, appearing on five continents in hundreds of newspapers, journals, books, television programs, and Internet articles. Recently, Autumn’s research has been used as a stepping stone in the invention of a strong and sticky adhesive similar to a gecko’s feet, discovered by researchers at U.C. Berkeley. Explore this interactive map of some major media placements from recent years to discover the international impact of Autumn’s work.

Lochner and Scalettar publish work on neuromodulators

tspeel — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 21:58:03 +0000

Dr. Robert B. Pamplin, Jr., Professor of Science and Biochemistry Janis Lochner and Professor of Physics Bethe Scalettar:

Lochner and Scalettar coauthored a study on the postsynaptic colocalization of neuromodulatory proteins with five undergraduate students (Conor Jacobs ‘09, Mariya Chavarha ‘08, Kevin McAllister ‘08, Erika Spangler ‘07, Linnaea Schuttner ‘06) that was featured on the cover of the September issue of Developmental Neurobiology. Titled “Efficient Copackaging and Cotransport Yields Postsynaptic Colocalization of Neuromodulators Associated with Synaptic Plasticity,” their collaborative work shows how the proteins studied are known to enhance synaptic communication in the hippocampus. This research was supported by grants awarded by the National Institutes of Health and by the Rogers Summer Research Program.

Developmental Neurobiology publishes research primarily on development and plasticity in the nervous system, with an emphasis on experimental work.

Read more about Lochner and Scalettar’s collaborative research in The Chronicle.

Associate Dean Janet Bixby publishes book on her qualitative research

tspeel — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 21:57:58 +0000

Janet Bixby, associate dean of the Graduate School of Education and Counseling:

“Educating Democratic Citizens in Troubled Times: Qualitative Studies of Current Efforts” (SUNY Press, 2008), a new book by Bixby, will be published in November. This book offers a groundbreaking examination of citizenship education programs that serve contemporary youth in schools and communities across the United States. These programs include social studies classes and curricula, school governance, and community-based education perspectives of educators and youth involved in these civic education efforts. The contributors offer rich analyses of how mainstream and alternative programs are envisioned and enacted, and the most important factors that shape them. A variety of theoretical lenses and qualitative methodologies are used, including ethnography, focus group interviews, and content analyses of textbooks.