Expertise & Excellence » student

Student earns scholarship for commitment to global engagement

Emily — Thu, 21 May 2009 21:51:52 +0000

Senior Mahmood Khan’s insights on the value of international education earned him first place in the LewerMark “Make Your Mark” scholarship program.

Khan, a computer science and mathematics major, was born in Afghanistan, but he moved to Pakistan with his family in 1992 after the fall of the Soviet-backed regime. In his scholarship entry, Khan described the experience of living as a refugee and observing his parents break down barriers between the Afghan and Pakistani communities through education.

Khan’s devotion to education inspired him to study languages and computers, and eventually earned him a position with Mercy Corps, an international humanitarian aid organization based in Portland. After traveling widely as a field system administrator for Mercy Corps, Khan decided to pursue a college education.

At Lewis & Clark, Khan has continued his study of technology, while still working part-time for Mercy Corps.

“Because of his extensive international education, talents and skills, life experiences, international perspectives, and passionate commitment to help others, Mahmood will most certainly make a difference in our world,” said Carolyn Locke, administrative coordinator for the International Students and Scholars Office and Khan’s sponsor for the scholarship competition.

Khan plans to pursue a post-graduate degree in computer science and mathematics, with the ultimate goal of integrating his studies and his relief work to increase awareness of global humanitarian need.

“I believe that my study in those fields will help me prepare for my goal of teaching and promoting the use of technology in poor countries in more creative and affordable ways,” he wrote. “I hope that one day I will be able to use technology to make more people aware of the extreme hardships that exist in our world and also to make it more accessible and easier for those willing to help to reach those in need.”

Read Khan’s essay and learn more about LewerMark online.

Alum earns Pulitzer nomination

tspeel — Fri, 15 May 2009 20:48:49 +0000

Alum Matt Wuerker ‘79 was one of three finalists for the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for editorial cartooning. Wuerker, a political cartoonist and illustrator for the Politico, has appeared in numerous newspapers statewide for the past 25 years. On his natural attraction to political cartoons, Wuerker said, “It’s a small niche, this place where political opinion and art get to mix in the editorial pages of the nation’s newspapers. Where else do you get to be a combination of Dr. Seuss and Noam Chomsky?”

Professor, alum earn top honor for collaborative research

Jodi Heintz — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 17:55:34 +0000

Political science professor Todd Lochner and Rhett Tatum ‘06, along with fellow researcher and political scientist Dorie Apollonio, were recognized by the editorial board of Regulation & Governance for their joint article, Wheat from Chaff: Third Party Monitoring and FEC Enforcement Actions.

Regulation & Governance, a journal devoted to the study of regulation and governance by political scientists, lawyers, historians, anthropologists, and economists, named Wheat from Chaff the best article published in the 2007-2008 volumes of the journal.

In their article, Lochner, Apollonio, and Tatum test the widely held expectation that regulators can more effectively target serious violations when they have a broader array of sanctioning options in their enforcement arsenal. To test this theoretical expectation, Lochner, Apollonio, and Tatum analyze enforcement actions at the U.S. Federal Election Commission (FEC) during the period when the FEC received an expansion in its sanctioning options. What they find runs counter to expectations: the FEC was not better able to focus on the most serious violations after receiving a broader array of sanctions. Lochner, Apollonio, and Tatum suggest that simply expanding sanctioning options, without also expanding monitoring resources, is not sufficient to enable regulators to prioritize their enforcement efforts toward the most serious problems.

Todd Lochner teaches undergraduate courses in constitutional law, civil liberties, and political science. He also teaches a joint undergraduate-law school course on election law at Lewis & Clark Law School, where he is a research fellow. Rhett Tatum is currently a student at the Georgetown University Law Center where he is studying election law.

Read their winning paper.

Two Overseas Juniors head to Strasbourg to discuss Obama’s presidency

tspeel — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 23:51:55 +0000

Parasa Chanramy (’10) and Jeanette Valleau (’10) were among over 60 students and speakers from North America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa, who gathered recently for a three-day conference in Strasbourg, France, to discuss whether or not President Obama would make a difference in US - European relations. Chanramy and Valleau have been studying with the Foundation for International Education (FIE) in London and were awarded fellowships from FIE and Lewis & Clark to attend the conference.

Following the Opening Plenary Lecture by Dr. Stephen Ryan, of the University of Ulster in Northern Ireland, on the topic “Will Illusion Breed Disillusion? Obama, Europe and Global Politics,” students participated in discussions on the future of US foreign policy, the new president’s challenges in the Middle East, and the impact President Obama might have on NATO as it celebrates the 60th anniversary of its founding.

Lewis & Clark Overseas and Off Campus Programs aim to enhance on-campus curricula and provide unique academic and experiential opportunities abroad. With programs in Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Latin America, and North America, these overseas opportunities send over 260 students abroad annually. To learn more about Lewis & Clark Overseas and Off Campus Programs, click here.

Law alum advocates on behalf of low-income community

tspeel — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 23:47:21 +0000

As Director of the Washington Attorney General’s Public Counsel Division, Lewis & Clark Law School alum Simon ffitch believes that heat and light are essential services for people, whether or not they are behind on their bills. ffitch’s dedication to working on behalf of people from low-income communities, including a recent appeal to a request by a local utility company to raise customers’ taxes, earned him some media attention. “We think it’s important, especially during this economy, that there’s not one extra penny taken from people’s budgets,” ffitch said.

ffitch is not alone in his commitment to public service as a professional career. More than one out of every three graduates of Lewis & Clark Law School chooses to work in the area of public interest law.

The Spokesman-Review (Spokane, Wash.) Simon ffitch acts as ratepayers’ representative

Law student receives scholarship from NorthWest Indian Bar Association

tspeel — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 21:26:13 +0000

Lewis & Clark Law School student Michelle Watchman is one of 13 law students to receive a scholarship from the NorthWest Indian Bar Association. NIBA is a non-profit organization aiming to represent the education and welfare of Native American attorneys. Watchman, a member of the Tlingit and Navajo tribes, said that law school would not have been possible without the scholarship assistance from her tribe and NIBA.

“The impacts of this scholarship extend beyond myself and my educational personal educational pursuit,” Watchman said. “The impacts will be felt by my people and the Native community at large. Upon graduation, I hope to not only give back to my community but also inspire future generations of Native youth to pursue their educational dreams.”

Read more about Watchman and her involvement in Native American law.

Alum to speak on cyborg anthropology

tspeel — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 23:59:32 +0000

In May, Amber Case ‘08 will present “An Introduction to Cyborg Anthropology” at WebVisions 2009, an annual conference on the future of technology, web design, social media and new commerce in the Northwest. Case will explore data visualization and marketing in the online ecosystem during her session on May 22. Since graduating last year, Case founded CyborgCamp, a self-described “unconference” on the future of humans and technology, and keeps a blog at Nerdabout.com.

Case believes that new social roles have developed due to our use of technology. “How we interact with machines and technology in many ways defines who we are,” she said. “Cyborg Anthropology is a lens with which to understand what’s happening to us in a world mediated by dynamic objects, processes and change.”

Students contribute to study on Oregon’s dying trees

tspeel — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 00:06:59 +0000

Ecological data collection conducted by undergraduate students during a College Outdoors trip has been included in a Science journal paper titled “Widespread Increase of Tree Mortality Rates in the Western United States.” The paper discusses the mortality rate of trees in the Pacific Northwest and southern British Columbia. Studies show that the rate of tree death in this area has doubled in only 17 years. This can partially be attributed to the fact that temperatures have risen over one degree Fahrenheit over the past 30 years, leading to droughts and an abundance of insects and disease. Their research contributions on the changing dynamics of western forests has recently drawn the attention of a number of high-profile national and international media outlets.

Lewis & Clark students have collected data for the Franklin lab every August since 2006 as part of the Environmental Service Project. Alum and 2006 Break Away trip leader Brian Erickson ‘06 said, “We returned to plots that were established 30-plus years previously and remeasured every five to 10 years to provide an ongoing image of forest dynamics over time. The students collected high-quality data, worked extremely hard, learned a lot, and had a good time in the process.”

New York Times (New York, NY) Environment Blamed in Western Tree Deaths

Seattle Times (Seattle, Wash.) Regional warming hurting NW forests, study says

BBC News (London, UK) Climate shift ‘killing US trees’

Video: Sophomore featured in Project Happiness documentary

tspeel — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 00:49:13 +0000

For sophomore John-Nuriel Vissell, the key to happiness lies in doing what you love. During Vissell’s senior year at Mount Madonna School in Watsonville, California, his Values Education class was offered a challenging opportunity to evaluate the concept of happiness with two other schools from India and Nigeria. Selected by Project Happiness, a non-profit group inspired by the Dalai Lama’s book “The Ethics for the New Millennium,” these three groups were filmed for an entire school year while interacting with each other through the internet and eventually meeting in India on a trip to visit the Dalai Lama.

For Vissell, this experience was life changing. After his group asked the Dalai Lama how to obtain lasting happiness, Vissell noted, “He sat silent for a while, then responded, ‘Well, I don’t know.’ It was the perfect answer. This was the pinnacle of our work on this project. We ascended the mountain and as soon as we met with him on the summit, he sort of brought us back down to where we started.”

Santa Cruz Sentenial (Santa Cruz, Calif.) Spreading ‘Happiness’ worldwide - one young person at a time

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

NCVLI wins two grants from the U.S. Department of Justice

tspeel — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 20:26:08 +0000

In October, the National Crime Victim Law Institute, an organization that advances crime victims’ rights, was awarded two two-year grants from the U.S. Department of Justice. First, NCVLI received a multi-million dollar grant from the Office for Victims of Crime. Most of the funding will pass through to NCVLI’s nationwide network of 8 pro bono legal clinics serving crime victims and to establish up to 4 new clinics. In addition, these funds will continue NCVLI’s amicus curiae work, legal technical assistance to attorneys and advocates, training and education, newsletter, and the annual Law & Litigation Conference.

Second, NCVLI was awarded a 2 year grant of $150,000 by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) to focus on the rights of victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, and/or dating violence. This grant will allow NCVLI to provide training and legal technical assistance to OVW grantees across the nation. NCVLI will partner with the American Bar Association Commission on Domestic Violence and the Victims Rights Law Center on many of the trainings.

NCVLI promotes balance and fairness in the justice system through crime-victim-centered legal advocacy, education, and resource sharing. NCVLI also provides legal technical assistance to attorneys and advocates of victims and educates lawyers, judges, law students, victims’ advocates, the law enforcement community, and the public about victims’ rights.

Professor of French Nicole Aas-Rouxparis and student present at international conference

tspeel — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 23:22:36 +0000

Nicole Aas-Rouxparis, professor of French:

In July, Aas-Rouxparis and Krista Sarin CAS ‘08 co-presented a paper titled “Identity, Commitment or Nomadism in Assia Djebar’s La Disparition de la langue française” at the International Congress of Francophone Studies held in Limoges, France.

Their paper topic was based on the theme from Aas-Rouxparis’ French 450 spring 2008 seminar, “Identity and Commitment in French/Francophone Literature,” and analyzed Algerian author Assia Djebar’s 2004 novel, “La Disparition de la langue francaise.”

Sarin will spend the next year in Lille, France as a Language Assistant before moving on to graduate school.

Lewis & Clark hosts American Physical Society conference

tspeel — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 19:57:43 +0000

In May, Lewis & Clark hosted the 10th Annual Meeting of the Northwest Section of the American Physical Society (APS). Thomas Olsen, associate professor of physics, served as local organizing chair and host of this conference. Olsen gave a presentation titled “Characterization and Control of Chaos” and was elected secretary-treasurer of the APS Northwest Section by members.

President Thomas Hochstettler opened the conference with remarks on science research and teaching in the context of the liberal arts. Dean of the College Julio de Paula opened the final day of the conference with a review of the history of science research at Lewis & Clark. Professor of Physics Herschel Snodgrass presented his paper titled “Large-Scale Convection and the Solar Activity Cycle.”

Graduating senior Christina Ketchum shared her paper on “Correlating Vertical Velocities of Ionized Interstellar Medium To Star Formation Rates In Nearby Face-On Spiral Galaxies,” which was a collaborative effort with Associate Professor of Physics Stephen Tufte. Tufte chaired the sessions on astrophysics and biophysics with Professor of Physics Bethe Scalettar. Scalettar presented a paper at the session titled “Elucidating Molecular Events Underlying Learning with Fluorescence Microscopy,” the product of joint research undertaken with graduating senior Mariya Chavarha and Janis Lochner, Dr. Robert B. Pamplin, Jr. Professor of Science. Graduating senior Adam Kowalski and junior Shelley Zhao each presented a poster at the APS conference.

Environmental studies major journeys beyond college

tspeel — Sat, 10 May 2008 16:36:42 +0000

Environmental Studies major Meagan Nuss is the focus of a feature on the graduating senior’s journey toward “something bigger.” Read more here.