Inspiring Minds for a Century!

The college’s centennial steering committee held its first meeting in September and is forming subcommittees to work on event planning, fundraising, history, communications, and awards for the college’s 2005–06 centennial celebration.

Steering committee members include co-chairs Harlan and Ruth Hansen and Mary Endorf along with representatives from the college’s six departments, three collegewide centers, dean’s office staff, students, donors, alumni, and community partners. Harlan Hansen is an emeritus professor of curriculum and instruction; Ruth Hansen is a retired school administrator; and Mary Endorf also is a retired K–12 administrator and an active alumna.

The centennial theme—Inspiring Minds for a Century—was chosen through an internal college contest. Jane Couperus, a graduate student in the Institute of Child Development who received a Ph.D. this past spring, created the winning entry.

The college invites all alumni and emeriti faculty and staff to share your memories, stories, photos, and memorabilia with the college’s centennial steering committee to help enrich the history and celebration of this milestone event. Please contact Peggy Rader, rader004@umn.edu or 612-626-8782, or Raleigh Kaminsky, kamin003@umn.edu or 612-626-1601, with any materials you would be willing to share.

Anyone interested in volunteering for any of the subcommittees can call the college’s development and alumni relations office at 612-626-1601.

The college at the fair

The College of Education and Human Development made its fourth appearance in the University of Minnesota building at the Minnesota State Fair and it was the best yet.

Above, Aaron Doering, instructor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction and part of the Arctic Transect 2004 team, introduces teammate Beacon to admiring Fair-goers. Right, young visitors to the college booth read about the polar expedition on a special computer display. Far right, two boys befriend retired Polar Husky, Choko. Read more about the expedition and the college’s role in it and see more photos from the fair at www.education.umn.edu/adventure.

Saturday Scholars

Quizzes, midterms, final exams and those infamous blue books. Not your fondest memories of being a student? Erase those memories and create new ones by attending Alumni College— A Learning Odyssey on October 30. Join alumni and friends for a day of informal learning on campus. Hear lectures from the college’s distinguished faculty, have lunch with Dean Steven Yussen, and go on a tour of the University’s Archives Center.
This year’s lectures cover hot topics in education and have relevance whether you’re a practicing educational professional or one who is retired. We will award 4.5 CEUs (continuing education units) to teachers who attend.

Registration is in progress now and seats are filling up fast. Cost is $25 for UMAA members and $30 for nonmembers. “Tuition” includes a continental breakfast, class materials, and luncheon. An educational bargain!
For registration information contact Ms. Raleigh Kaminsky, alumni relations director of the college, at 612-626-1601 or download a registration form at www.education.umn.edu/alum.

Topics and presenters:
"Two languages are better than one: Language learning for all in Minnesota public schools"
 Martha Bigelow, assistant professor, curriculum and instruction

"Strength-train your brain with games"
 Carla Tabourne, associate professor, kinesiology

"Raising student achievement through cooperative learning"
 Roger Johnson and David W. Johnson, professors in curriculum and instruction and educational psychology

"Point of law: Searching students without suspicion in K-12 schools"
 Scott McLeod, assistant professor, educational policy and administration

"Pearls of wisdom: The PIRLS 2001 international study of fourth-grade reading achievement"
 Steven Yussen, dean

"The big picture: The importance of art education"
 Faith Clover, lecturer, curriculum and instruction

"Who are the kids in the middle? Characteristics of middle-school-aged students"
Lynn Scearcy, coordinator, educational policy and administration

 "Online lessons from the Arctic Transect 2004 expedition"
Aaron Doering, lecturer, curriculum and instruction

"Prevention and early intervention programs: Why it's no longer enough to be effective"
Trisha Beuhring, research associate, Institute on Community Integration

"Economic globalization: Preparing for careers of the future"
Sherri Turner, assistant professor, educational psychology

Linking up with emeriti faculty: Jack Merwin

Florida has become as much a family affair as a winter home for Jack Merwin, a 32-year educational psychology professor and former dean of the college. Merwin, who retired in 1991, and his wife Dottie, spend six months a year in the same Fort Myers community as his sister.

“She was here first,” Merwin says. “I came down for a visit (in 1997), found a place and bought it. Now my brother has bought a home here, too. It will be the first time we’ve lived near one another since I went into the service in 1943.”

Merwin remarried in 1997, two years after losing his first wife Betty to cancer. He and Betty had celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary three months before her death. “We met in first grade and started dating in high school,” remembers Merwin, who spent six years helping Betty cope with her illness and has continued that spirit of caring through his volunteer work.

Whether he’s at his winter haven or his St. Paul summer home—a houseboat docked year-round on the Mississippi River—Merwin has been found providing for someone in need: lending a hand at the Courage Center; assisting stroke victims with therapeutic pool work; driving the elderly to medical appointments; and delivering Meals on Wheels. Merwin also has found time to serve as an usher at the Ted Mann Concert Hall and as a juror for the Law School’s mock trials.

At 79, he shows no signs of slowing down, especially when it comes to travel. The Merwins often visit their daughters in Oregon and Colorado, and use timeshares to see the U.S. and the world: France, England, and the Caribbean being recent destinations. “Dottie wants to take me to Israel, and I’d like to take her to China. And we’d both like to see Italy.” Merwin says. “We will now be doing that next spring. Our health is good, so we want to do and see as much as we can.”

When Minnesota is shivering down and digging out, Merwin swings on Florida’s golf links, swims in his community’s pool, and attends Minnesota Twins spring training games. “We’re five miles from the Gulf of Mexico and five miles from the Twins,” he says.

Of course, with brother and sister close by, family is vital to Merwin. His homes are always open to a multitude of friends and family—including several grandchildren and even a seven-year-old great-grandson.

“Wow, having my daughter become a grandmother,” says Merwin, smile as bright as a Gulf Coast sunset. “That was a little hard to take.”

—Scott Holter

Scholarship star

Julia Conkel

Scholarship/Fellowship: The Melissa Sullivan Endowed Fellowship Fund for Children and Families, established in 2003 by John and Judy Sullivan, Branden Sullivan, and Megan Nightingale in memory of Melissa Sullivan, an M.A. graduate of the college’s counseling and student personnel psychology program. Conkel is the first recipient.

Amount and purpose: This graduate fellowship of $10,000 supports a student in educational psychology, child psychology, or special education, who is studying counseling and wants to work with children and families, in his or her practicum year.

Degree: M.A. student, educational psychology: counseling and student personnel psychology (CSPP)

Expected graduation: 2005

Hometown: Glencoe, Minn.

Goals: Intends to pursue a Ph.D. in counseling psychology and have a career in teaching and counseling

Recipient says: “The scholarship was a great opportunity within our program. I really liked that it was geared toward CSPP students working with children and families. It has really allowed me to focus on my practicum and to learn and develop my counseling skills, without all those other financial worries.”