Welcome to Marygrove Minute -- the e-newsletter with the latest information on Marygrove College. We hope you enjoyed the updates from last month and we look to you for feedback. Your input is essential to the success of this effort to stay connected with our friends. We look forward to hearing from you at dpuhl@marygrove.edu.

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
Happy New Year! When we started the fall semester, I spoke of new beginnings, that Marygrove College had launched several new projects and programs, than new students had joined us, that there was someone new in the President’s office.  In keeping with that theme of newness, we welcome new students for the Winter semester; we embark on the new online Master’s in the Art of Teaching degree January 22nd; and we will welcome the visiting team from the Higher Learning Commission back to campus in March in our bid for renewed accreditation.

We will celebrate together Marygrove’s expression of legacy and its commitment to progress during the inauguration events planned for March, April and May.

All of these are new beginnings.  Marygrove is an institution that continuously renews itself but we never lose site of what makes us uniquely Marygrove:  our mission.  As I wish you health and happiness in the New Year on behalf of the faculty and staff, I assure you of our renewed dedication “to fostering Christian values, to educating students for diverse backgrounds, and to serving the people of Metropolitan Detroit and beyond.”

PROCESS FOR REVIEW OF URBAN LEADERSHIP IDEAS
The Marygrove College community, with much enthusiasm, has committed itself to pursue an exciting Strategic Vision of Urban Leadership.  Developed collaboratively with significant input and consensus from a wide variety of campus constituencies last year and approved by the Board of Trustees in May, 2006.  The College now seeks your help as we begin in earnest to build the programs and initiatives that will make this exciting vision a reality.

Since the adoption of the Urban Leadership vision, there have been many suggestions about programs and initiatives that the College should expand or initiate.  Marygrove has launched a formal process for soliciting and reviewing such ideas.  The goals of this process are to:

• Generate a wide range of viable ideas
• Involve/engage the campus community
• Encourage creative thinking
• Use people’s time efficiently
• Focus detailed planning resources

Your participation in this process and the ideas you generate will be critical to the ultimate success of the College’s strategy.  The first step in the process is for you to submit your ideas for consideration in these areas.

• Curricular—things that are part of students’ formal requirements for graduation such as courses, a new major, new general education requirements, etc.; or
• Co-curricular—structured experiences that are designed to develop students skills and understanding and that support the mission of the college such as leadership development workshops/trainings, service learning, specific internship experiences, student involvement in cultural events etc.; or
• Extra-curricular—institution-sponsored activities that are designed to enhance student experiences while at Marygrove and/or positively impact the broader community such as research/scholarship on current social/economic/political issues, conferences/workshops/cultural events, support for neighborhood development, etc.

Your input is so important.  If you’d like to share your ideas of how Marygrove can live out its vision of Urban Leadership, please contact Diane Puhl, director of Alumni Relations, at (313) 927-1443 or dpuhl@marygrove.edu.

ONLINE MASTER IN THE ART OF TEACHING DEGREES IN READING AND MATH NOW OFFERED!
Historically, Marygrove College has excelled at teacher education. Marygrove-trained teachers and administrators are found in school systems across the country and have educated generations of students. We are proud to now be leading the way in state-of-the-art online education for teachers. 

In partnership with Teachscape, one of the nation’s leading providers of professional development services for teachers, Marygrove will offer two exciting new degree programs that are totally online. The Master in the Art of Teaching with concentrations in Reading and Literacy, with the first cohort beginning January 22, 2007, Math, with the first cohort beginning in May 2007, and will offer teachers the opportunity to study, practice and reflect on skills based on the most recent educational research. Courses include unique video case studies that demonstrate best practices in real-life classrooms. The structure of the Master’s program allows working professionals to earn a Master’s degree in less than two years.

Outcomes from the programs are consistent with the Five Core Propositions of the National Board for Professional Teacher Standards; and incorporates standards set forth by the International Reading Association (IRA) and National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM).

Master in the Art of Teaching with a concentration in Reading and Literacy, Grades K-6
This program provides participants with a comprehensive knowledge base in the reading process and the instructional techniques that are most effective for teaching students to learn to read. The curriculum focuses on the structure of language and the five components of reading. Additional content includes specific research-based techniques for teaching reading skills and strategies, processes for utilizing curriculum effectively, methods for assessing reading progress in individuals and groups, and ideas for differentiating instruction for diverse learners.

In each course, experienced teachers and experts in the field demonstrate highly effective strategies for teaching reading. You will explore the research base surrounding a focus concept, view an example of the research in action, and have the opportunity to apply and reflect on what you have learned.

Master in the Art of Teaching with a concentration in Mathematics, Grades K-5
This program provides an opportunity for elementary teachers to assess their own conceptual understanding of fundamental mathematics and allows them to build their own content knowledge by moving from procedural to conceptual strategies in the areas of number and operations, measurement, geometry, algebra, and data analysis and probability. Through analysis of research, specialist commentaries, classroom examples and student work, teachers examine ways to develop mathematical fluency that leads to continued success in higher-level mathematics.

In each course, experienced teachers and experts in the field demonstrate highly effective strategies for teaching elementary mathematics. You will explore the research base surrounding key concepts, view examples of the research in action and have the opportunity to apply and reflect on what you have learned. At the beginning of each session, there is an overview to guide your work. At several points, you will have the opportunity to exchange ideas and share your work with colleagues.

For more information on our new online Master in the Art of Teaching degrees or to receive registration materials, please contact Stacey McNally toll free at 877-986-2794 or stacey.mcnally@marygrove.edu or visit www.marygrove.edu/onlineMAT.

MARYGROVE PREPARES FOR ACCREDITATION VISIT
Every ten years, Marygrove College is required conduct a careful, wide-ranging examination of our programs and procedures in order to maintain our accreditation from the Higher Learning Commission, part of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA), an association whose mission is to establish standards for institutions of higher learning and to ensure continuous improvement of programs.

The College is required to produce a report, called a “self-study,” that documents that examination. Since 2004, Marygrove College has been hard at work on this self-study and now the process is moving into its final stages as we prepare for our evaluation visit, scheduled for March 25-28, 2007.

We have been conducting our self-study according to five essential criteria that the NCA has established, comprising the core of the self-study report. Briefly, these are as follows:

Criterion One: Mission and Integrity. This section of the report will look at how well the organization operates with integrity to ensure the fulfillment of its mission through structures and processes that involve the board, administration, faculty, staff, and students.

Criterion Two: Preparing for the Future. This section of the report will look at how well the organization’s allocation of resources and processes for evaluation and planning demonstrate its capacity to fulfill its mission, improve the quality of its education, and respond to future challenges and opportunities.

Criterion Three: Student Learning and Effective Teaching. This section of the report looks at how well the organization provides evidence of student learning and teaching effectiveness that demonstrates it is fulfilling its educational mission.

Criterion Four: Acquisition, Discovery, and Application of Knowledge. This section of the report looks at how well the organization promotes a life of learning for its faculty, administration, staff, and students by fostering and supporting inquiry, creativity, practice, and social responsibility in ways consistent with its mission.

Criterion Five: Engagement and Service. This section of the report looks at how well the organization identifies its constituencies and serves them in ways both value, as identified by its mission.

You can read more about these on the accreditation page on the College web site at www.marygrove.edu/nca. This site also has updates and information about the accreditation project.

Receiving full accreditation is enormously important to us for two reasons. First, accreditation is the mark of a quality educational institution. And second, every institution in the United States must be accredited or students won’t receive federal financial aid such as Pell Grants and Work Study funding.

All members of the Marygrove community have an important stake in making sure we remain a quality educational institution.

What have we found so far in our self-study? Most importantly, we believe that Marygrove College clearly meets the criteria set by the Higher Learning Commission. With a dedicated, highly qualified Board of Trustees, administration, faculty, and staff, a compelling blueprint for its future in its vision of Urban Leadership, and an on-going commitment to continued improvement through enhancing and expanding our assessment program, we look to the future with cautious optimism. The institution understands its strengths, the challenges that face us, and the tasks we need to accomplish to help use prepare for the coming years.

For more information, contact Johnesa Dimicks at (313) 927-1565 or jdimicks@marygrove.edu or Dr. Donald Levin at (313) 927-1205 or dlevin@marygrove.edu, accreditation project co-chairs.

AN AUSPICIOUS OCCASION: THE INAUGURATION OF MARYGROVE'S 8TH PRESIDENT
This is the inaugural year for Dr. David J. Fike, Marygrove’s 8th president, and the College is celebrating in several ways that support his inauguration theme.  “Urban Leadership: Expressions of Legacy, Commitment to Progress” speaks to the rich, 101-year academic history of the institution and its commitment to achieving its strategic mission of Urban Leadership.

Marygrove’s legacy is manifested in the lives and contributions to society of the more than 34,000 graduates of its Bachelor’s and Master’s programs.

Its future progress is rooted in its commitment to Urban Leadership:  academic programs that prepare Marygrove students to take leadership roles in America’s urban centers as well as its role as an institutional leader in our own Detroit community.

Please plan to celebrate this momentous event in the history of Marygrove College and join us for all these Inaugural Events:

Friday, March 16: Marygrove College Celebrates Women’s History Month with An Evening Coffee House presented by Sigma Tau Delta English Honor Society
Friday, March 30: Academic Symposium by Faculty and Students
Friday-Sunday, April 13-15, No Street Shoes Annual Dance Department Concert featuring guest choreography by Pattie Obey, Gregory Robinson (Dayton Ballet), Sidra Bell (Dance New York), and Barbara Selinger (Detroit Dance Collective); Friday, Saturday, 8 p.m.; Sunday, 2 p.m., Marygrove College Theatre
Friday, April 20, 8 p.m.: Contemporary American Authors Series featuring Marilyn Nelson, Madame Cadillac Building, Alumni Hall
May 3-15: Bachelor of Fine Arts Student Degree Show; Opening Reception: 4:30–8 p.m., Liberal Arts Building, The Gallery
Thursday, May 3: Presidential Blue Ribbon Discussion on Urban Leadership
Saturday, May 5, 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m.: Inauguration; Celebration of Mass: 10:00 a.m., Liberal Arts Building, Sacred Heart Chapel; Brunch, 11:30 a.m., Madame Cadillac Building, Main Dining Room; Installation of the President, 1:30 p.m., Liberal Arts Building, Marygrove College Theatre; Reception, 2:30 p.m., Madame Cadillac Building, Alumni Hall.

For more information, please contact Renée Ahee, Communications & Marketing, (313) 927-1446 or rahee@marygrove.edu.

THE FIKES VISIT ALUMNI IN ARIZONA
Mary Martha Hoffman Douglas ‘48 hosted an Arizona alumni gathering for Dr. David J. Fike and Sylvia Rosales-Fike on Saturday, January 6. Eight alums were on hand to have lunch with the new president and the first lady.

While in Arizona, the Fikes also had a chance to visit with Anne N. Spagnuolo DeRose ’55 and her husband Paul DeRose and met up with Cheryl Ann Byers ’58 of Phoenix as well.
The Fikes were in Arizona for the Council of Independent Colleges Presidents Institute.

If you are interested in hosting an alumni gathering in your area, please contact Diane Puhl at (313) 927-1443.

President David Fike, Mary Martha Hoffman Douglas ’48 and Sylvia Rosales Fike	Paul DeRose, Anne Spagnuolo DeRose ‘55 and the Fikes.
Front: Anne Spagnuolo DeRose ’55, Mary Lou Mosher Timma ’48 and Elaine Cronin McGovern ‘53. Back: Dr. Fike, Virginia Burdick Skinner and Mary Martha Hoffman Douglas ’48.	Dorothy Sullivan Furie ’50, Betty Cassin ’64, Virginia Burdick Skinner ’67, Dr. Fike and Rosemary McFarlin Drewke ’49.

CLASS OF 1967 SUPPORTS URBAN LEADERSHIP BY SETTING $100,000 GOAL TO ENDOW SCHOLARSHIP
In honor of their 40th reunion on September 15, 2007, the Class of 1967 has begun a campaign to raise $100,000 to endow the Urban Leader Scholarship. This scholarship will be part of the Young Urban Leaders Fellowship Program, which will annually match eight carefully selected local high school students with Marygrove faculty, alumni and business and community leaders who will serve as leadership coaches and mentors.

Each of the students chosen through a rigorous application and selection process will automatically earn a $500 scholarship to Marygrove, an incentive designed to attract local youth who are demonstrating high levels of emerging passion and skills for leadership. The coaches and mentors will be expected to facilitate learning experiences that will help students develop their leadership skills and assume significant roles in their schools and communities. The year-long program will culminate with a formal presentation/essay/speech contest. The winner of the contest will be named the Young Urban Leader of the Year and will be awarded an additional $5,000 tuition scholarship to Marygrove. The student will receive the $5,000 scholarship each year for four years, contingent upon performance.

Virginia Burdick Skinner ’67, a member of the Leadership Committee for the campaign entitled 100 for 100: Leaders Supporting Leaders, said “the consensus of the group was that there could be no more meaningful way to celebrate our 40th reunion than to help support these promising Marygrove students. We acknowledge the need now more than ever for urban leaders with competence, compassion and commitment, ideals that are the hallmarks of a Marygrove education. We feel that extending this opportunity for such an education is a legacy that says we treasure what the College gave us and support the initiatives of the College today.” Ginny added that all of the Leadership Committee members have devoted considerable time calling and reconnecting with individual classmates as they encourage their support of the campaign. She hopes other classes will follow this lead, making such an effort part of their reunions.

For more information on the Young Urban Leaders Fellowship Program or to make a contribution to the Urban Leader Scholarship campaign, please contact Diane Puhl, director of Alumni Relations, at (313) 927-1443 or dpuhl@marygrove.edu.

DINNER/THEATER: MALICE AFORETHOUGHT: THE SWEET TRIALS
Written by Arthur Beer • Directed by David Regal

Marygrove College Theatre • Saturday, February 17, 2007 • Dinner 6:30 p.m. • Show 8:00

The Marygrove College Alumni Association Program Committee cordially invites you to enjoy the UDM Theater Company Production of Malice Aforethought: The Sweet Trials in the Marygrove Theatre. The evening will begin with dinner in Denk Chapman at 6:30 p.m. followed by the play at 8:00 p.m.

Malice Aforethought: The Sweet Trials,which was first produced by the UDM Theater Company 20 years ago, revolves around an incident in 1925. Dr. Ossian Sweet moved his family into a formerly all-white neighborhood on Detroit’s eastside.  A mob tried to force him out, and he, his family and friends defended themselves with gunfire. When a bystander was killed, all 11 people in the house were arrested, held without bail and charged with murder and conspiracy. Frank Murphy, later governor and FDR’s attorney general, was the judge. The ACLU, NAACP and the Urban League raised money for the defense, which was led by Clarence Darrow. The Sweet Trials are Michigan’s most famous legal landmark in the civil rights movement.

A highlight of the evening is Carl Marlinga, attorney and former Macomb County Prosecutor, who will speak on civil rights and the courts.

The cost of the event is $25 per person. Space is limited and reservations must be received no later than February 9, 2007. To make reservations, send a check made payable to Marygrove College, attention Diane Puhl, 8425 W. McNichols, Detroit, MI 48221-2599.  If you wish pay by credit card, contact Diane at (313) 927-1443.

POET MARILYN NELSON TO DELIVER 2007 BAUDER LECTURE
The Marygrove College English and Modern Languages Department is pleased to announce that poet Marilyn Nelson will be the nineteenth visiting author in its Contemporary American Authors Lecture Series. Ms. Nelson will deliver the Lillian and Donald Bauder Lecture on Friday, April 20, 2007, at 8 p.m. in the Madame Cadillac Building’s Alumnae Hall.

In her poems, Nelson probes her family history, records her struggles with religious faith, complicates our assumptions about race relations in the past and present, and grapples with the disturbing manifestations of evil in the contemporary world. A sure-handed poet, she writes in several different poetic forms including sonnets and sonnet sequences, ballads, villanelles, and free verse. Her major volumes of poetry include Mama’s Promises (1985), The Homeplace (1990), Magnificat (1994), The Fields of Praise: New and Selected Poems (1997), and The Cachoeira Tales and Other Poems (2005). Yusef Komunyakaa has written, “Rooted in the basic soil of redemptive imagination, the voices in Marilyn Nelson’s poems seek a lyrical foothold in our daily lives. Her words teach us how to praise ourselves by praising each other.” And Mark Doty says that “Nelson’s bold and sure poems long for heaven and— happily for us—continue a lifelong affair with the occasions of earth.”

Nelson’s books of poetry for young people—among them Carver: A Life in Poems and A Wreath for Emmett Till—have received high praise from critics and educators. About Carver, Herman Sutter writes, “The poems are simple, sincere, and sometimes so beautiful that they seem not works of artifice, but honest statements of pure, natural truths.” Kirkus Reviews calls A Wreath for Emmett Till “a towering achievement.” Publisher’s Weekly says, “For those readers who are ready to confront the evil and goodness of which human beings are capable, this wise book is both haunting and memorable.”

Marilyn Nelson is the author of thirteen books of poetry, six of which are written for children. Her work has received two Pushcart Prizes, two Coretta Scott King Book Awards, a Newbery Honor Award, the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, and the 1998 Poets’ Prize. She has been a finalist for the National Book Award and the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize. Nelson is professor emerita of English at the University of Connecticut and the former poet laureate of the state of Connecticut.

For more information about Marilyn Nelson’s April 20th appearance at Marygrove, please visit the CAALS Web site or call (313) 927-1383.

TOM HOLZER FORD SUPPORTS MARYGROVE ATHLETICS
Tom Holzer Ford of Farmington Hills, MI, is a friend of Marygrove’s Athletic Department.  Tom “Buzzy” Holzer said, “If you purchase or lease a car or truck with the dealership, mention that you are a supporter of Marygrove College as a alum, student, staff or simply a friend of the college, and we’ll forward a $200 donation to the College.  He made this offer at the Alumni Golf Scramble in September and continues to stand by their promise.

Tom Holzer Ford is located at 39300 W. 10 Mile Road (at Haggerty Road) in Farmington Hills, (248) 474-1234. If you have any questions, please contact Maureen Leonard, Institutional Advancement Coordinator at (313) 927-1308.

STUDENT GOVERNMENT REVIVED
Marygrove is proud that Student Government is reactivated and will again have an integral part in shaping the future of the College.

Student Government is the highest ranking student organization on college campuses as it is the official voice of the student body.  Dongelo Moore is Student Government president; Student Services Director Glenn Brooks is the student government advisor.

Student Government: Seated (l to r): Ashley Bailey, Dongelo Moore, Chantelle Chaney; Standing (l to r): Cierra Smith, Sarah Dutton, Glenn Brooks, advisor

ALPHA KAPPA ALPHA IS BACK
Marygrove is proud to announce, in conjunction with University of Detroit Mercy, the reactivation of Theta Tau Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., the first African-American Sorority.

It was founded at Howard University on January 15, 1908, and served as an inspiration for African-American women to achieve a higher status of scholarship and service during their collegiate experience.  Theta Tau Chapter has been in existence since 1972 at UDM; and Marygrove and UDM have jointly seen the success of the Theta Tau flourish on both campuses since 1992.  Ashley Bailey is chapter president and campus advisor is Melissa Samuels.

Alpha Kappa Alpha: seated (l to r): Chantelle Chaney, Ashley Bailey; Standing (l to r): Tanisha Mayfield, Habiba Adams, Melissa Samuels, advisor

THE BEAUTY OF MARYGROVE IN PICTURES
In 2003-2004, Marygrove participated in the extensive architectural history project, The Council of Independent Colleges Historic Campus Architecture Project (HCAP).

HCAP is the first national architecture and landscape database of independent college and university campuses. This project presents information about significant buildings, landscapes, campus plans, and heritage sites of American higher education and identifies sources for further research. The project's database web site launched early this past November. The web site is attractive, accessible and informative, with plenty of good photographs of some stunning buildings and Marygrove is included. To see the Marygrove section, just type our name in the Quicksearch box. There is text for each of the spaces included in our survey responses and the accompanying pictures can be enlarged if you wish to see detail. Check it out for yourself at www.cic.edu/hcap.

MARYGROVE COLLEGE DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARDS
The Marygrove College Distinguished Alumni Awards are honors bestowed by Marygrove College and the Marygrove College Alumni Association. These awards have been established to recognize and honor alumni who have distinguished themselves and their alma mater.

All Marygrove College alumni (those who have earned undergraduate or graduate degrees) are eligible for this award.  Self-nominations are encouraged. Alumni, family, friends, co-workers, faculty, staff and students may submit nominations.  The Alumni Association Advisory Council will review nominations and select the award recipients.

The Distinguished Alumni Awards celebrate the ideals of competence (the ability to understand and participate effectively in the promise of our evolving world), commitment (the capacity to care about and respect the worth and dignity of people), and compassion (the will to act responsibly based upon one’s beliefs and to contribute to the building of a more just and humane world), qualities that Marygrove has always tried to instill in its graduates. These awards honor graduates who have made significant contributions and demonstrated leadership in the following areas:

• professional, educational or artistic endeavors
• the community through government service and/or civic organizations (such as Lions Club, City Planning Commissions, government committees, etc.
• political action, social justice or volunteer activities in schools, hospitals, etc.
• Marygrove College

Based on the number of qualified applicants, up to seven awards will be given annually.  For one of these awards, special consideration will be given to alums who graduated within the last 15 years.  All nominations will remain on file and will be reconsidered the following year.

The Distinguished Alumni Awards will be presented on Friday, September 14, 2007, at a special recognition event during Homecoming weekend.

Please make your nomination using the form provided with this edition of Marygrove Minute and include the required documentation. Nominations are due no later than May 31, 2007.  You may also go to Distinguished Alumni Form.

HELP RECRUIT STUDENTS TO MARYGROVE AND THEY RECEIVE SPECIAL BENEFITS!
Alumni who care about the future of their alma mater can help the Marygrove Alumni Recruiting Students (MARS) committee and the Office of Admissions by identifying potential Marygrove students for the Winter 2007 class. If you refer a student to Marygrove, he or she will have the $25 application fee waived and, if admitted and enrolled, a $250 gift card for books will be awarded to be used at the College Bookstore.

You can become a very important member of our staff as a volunteer alumni admissions representative by telling others of your experiences at Marygrove College. Do not discount the value of your experience as an opportunity to help people choose wisely about the future of their education.

Please use the Alumni-Referred Admission Application and feel free to make copies. If you know someone who would make a good addition to the Marygrove student community, give him or her an application to fill out and send in. Remember to include your name and graduation year in the “Referred by” line below so we know whom to thank! If you have questions, email info@marygrove.edu or call the Office of Admissions at (313) 927-1240. Thank you in advance for your continued support and commitment to Marygrove College.