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.

PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION EVENTS
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, 7:30 p.m.
Evening coffee house with spoken word poets; presented by Sigma Tau Delta to celebrate Women’s History Month; Madame Cadillac Building, Alumnae Hall; $5 and $3 at the door.

Friday, March 30, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
“Urban Leadership: Expressions of Legacy, Commitment to Progress;" academic symposium by faculty and students; free event.

Friday, April 13, 8:00 p.m.; Saturday, April 14, 2:00 & 8:00 p.m.; Sunday, April 15, 4:00 p.m.
"No Street Shoes;" annual Dance Department concert;  Marygrove College Theatre; ticketed event.

Thursday, April 12, 7:30 p.m.
Angela Dillard, associate professor at The Center for Afroamerican and African Studies, University of Michigan, discussing “True vs. False Religion: How Faith Mattered in Detroit’s Radical History;” Defining Detroit Lecture Series, sponsored by the Institute for Detroit Studies; Madame Cadillac Building, Alumnae Hall; free event.

Friday, April 20, 8:00 p.m.
Poet Marilyn Nelson; Contemporary American Authors Series; Madame Cadillac Building, Alumni Hall; free event.

Sunday, April 22, 4:00 p.m. 
"Sacred Traditions;" Marygrove College Chorale Concert; Liberal Arts Building, Sacred Heart Chapel; ticketed event.

Thursday, May 3 through May 15
Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) student degree show; opening reception, Thursday, May 3, 4:30 - 8:00 p.m. ; Liberal Arts Building, The Gallery; free event.

Saturday, May 5, 10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.

• Celebration of Mass and Missioning, 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.

Date to be announced
President’s Blue Ribbon Panel on Urban Leadership; by invitation
Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and mayors of other major U.S. urban centers conduct a lively, informative and important discussion about urban leadership.  The panel will be moderated by Dr. Michael Eric Dyson, Detroit native, radio commentator, and Avalon Foundation Professor in the Humanities and professor of religious studies at the University of Pennsylvania.

For more information, contact Renee Ahee at (313) 927-1446 or rahee@marygrove.edu

MARYGROVE COLLEGE HOSTS DR. ANGELA DILLARD ON
“‘TRUE VS. FALSE RELIGION’:  HOW FAITH MATTERED IN DETROIT’S RADICAL HISTORY” ON APRIL 12
Marygrove College will welcome Dr. Angela Dillard, associate professor at the Center for Afroamerican and African Studies, University of Michigan, to campus for a lecture and discussion on Thursday, April 12, 2007, at 7:30 p.m. in Alumnae Hall of the Madame Cadillac Building.

Dr. Dillard will discuss “True vs. False Religion:  How Faith Mattered in Detroit’s Radical History.”  The lecture based on her new book, Faith in The City: Preaching Radical Social Change in Detroit, coming out this spring from University of Michigan Press, is free and open to the public.  The book is “a milestone study of religion's place in Detroit's protest communities from the 1930s to the 1960s.”

Angela Dillard joined U of M in 2006 in the Residential College and the Center for Afroamerican and African Studies.  She had spent the prior ten years as associate professor in the Gallatin School of Individualized Study at New York University.

She holds a PhD and a Master of Arts in American Culture from U of M; an MA in Political Science from the New School for Social Research; and a BA in Justice, Morality and Constitutional Democracy from Michigan State University.

She is also the author of James Meredith, The ‘Conservative Turn’ and the Boundaries of the American Historical Imagination (in manuscript) and Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner Now?: Multicultural Conservatism in America (2002).  Dr. Dillard is a frequent media commentator, lecturer and author of several articles, book reviews and op-ed pieces.

This is a “Defining Detroit” event of Marygrove’s Institute for Detroit Studies, an interdisciplinary series of public exhibits, lectures, performances, readings and discussions that explore different aspects of Detroit life.  Previous presenters include Detroit poet laureate Naomi Long Madgett, novelist Joyce Carol Oates, historian Thomas Sugrue, poet Philip Levine, musical conductor and choirmaster Brazeal Dennard and poet Lawrence Joseph. 
 
The April 12th “Defining Detroit” lecture has been designated an Inaugural Event to commemorate the inauguration of Marygrove’s 8th president, Dr. David Fike.  This “Defining Detroit” lecture is made possible through the support of DaimlerChrysler, Comerica Bank, Harrison Technology Consulting, and Health Alliance Plan members of the Marygrove College Urban Leaders Circle.

For more information, contact Dr. Tom Klug at (313) 927-1520 or tklug@marygrove.edu.

FINAL PREPARATIONS FOR NCA VISIT
At an all-College meeting held on Tuesday, February 13, a robust crowd of Marygrove constituencies heard Johnesa Dimicks and Donald Levin, co-chairs of the accreditation project, discussed the findings of the self-study report and what work is still ahead.

The self-study highlighted four major strengths of the College:

1. The power of the College mission to help guide developments at every level of the institution.
2. The College’s ability to engage with and be responsive to its multiple constituencies.
3. The College’s equally impressive resilience in the face of the challenges that changing educational, economic and social conditions have posed to it.
4. The articulation of a vision of Urban Leadership that will provide a distinctive, compelling and historically faithful vision for the direction of the school in the coming years.

Two central areas of concern stood out:

1. The need to increase on-campus enrollment in both undergraduate and graduate programs, and further diversify funding sources to contribute to financial sustainability.
2. The need to further develop assessment procedures that encourage the reporting and analysis of programmatic and institutional assessment data that lead to active discussions by departments about program effectiveness in accomplishing desired student learning outcomes.

Ultimately, Marygrove looks toward the long term with a renewed sense of optimism. We believe the self-study proves that Marygrove College clearly meets the criteria set by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association and respectfully requests continuing accreditation.

The campus is awaiting the visit on March 26 – 28 of the NCA examination team.  Re-accreditation is critical to the future of the institution because it speaks to the high quality of the education Marygrove delivers.  It also allows our students to receive federal grants and other financial aid.  We are confident that the examiners will like what they see during their visit.  You can view the self-study report at www.marygrove.edu/nca

If you have comments or questions about the self-study process, contact Johnesa Dimicks at jdimicks@marygrove.edu or Dr. Donald Levin at dlevin@marygrove.edu.

MARYGROVE MUSTANGS WIN AT NATIONAL BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT
The Marygrove College men’s and women’s basketball teams took success to new heights this past week at their national college basketball tournament in Oklahoma.

In the women’s first game of the tournament, Karmen Byrd and Shanaye Davis scored 22 points each and the team shot 51% from the floor in the first half as they defeated eleventh-seeded New Hampshire Tech 80 to 50.  The Lady Mustangs have always won their first game of the tournament but then lost the second, so the round two game versus Robert Morris College was a big showdown.  In that game, Amanda DeGain, playing in her final season as a Lady Mustang, scored a season high of 24 points.  She hit 4 of 7 three shots and was perfect from the free-throw line, making 4 of 4.  Shanaye Davis, a sophomore from Clintondale High majoring in business, scored 22 points and went 6 of 7 from the free-throw line.  Shanaye was the heroine of the game, hitting a clutch basket with less than 30 seconds left to put Marygrove up by five points.  Marygrove beat Robert Morris 67 to 62 and advanced to the “Final Four.”

In the semi-final match-up, the Lady Mustangs faced Southern Virginia.  Marygrove played well, but unfortunately the Lady Knights pulled away in the last three minutes to win the game 75 to 63.  Karmen Byrd led the ‘Grove with 21 points, while senior forward Amanda DeGain added 14.  Playing the next day in the consolation bracket, Marygrove beat Northwest Christian 76 to 72, giving them third place in the tournament.  Junior Karmen Byrd was named to the all-tournament team.  The Lady Mustangs finished the season with 16 victories, the most in program history.

The Marygrove men’s team also had great success.  Their first round game in the tournament was against Concordia College – Selma.  Marygrove trailed Concordia throughout the game by as much as twelve points, but the Mustangs fought back to tie the game at the end and send it into overtime.  Marygrove won in overtime 77 to 70.  Sophomore point guard Anthony Acho scored 19 points, grabbed eight rebounds and had six assists to lead Marygrove’s comeback.  Senior guard Emuel Billings scored 17 points off of the bench, including a big three-point shot to tie the game at 58 with 40 seconds left in regulation.  Seniors Darryl Gay had 14 points and Marques Barton had 10, and senior Leon Mack was a defensive spark off the bench with 11 rebounds.

The Mustang men’s next game was the semi-final against defending champions Rhema Bible College.  Rhema started out red-hot, hitting 55% of their shots in the first half.  The Mustangs trailed by 18 points at halftime and could never pull closer than 11.  Marygrove lost 80 to 67.  Sophomore point guard Anthony Acho, who was selected to the all-tournament team, led the Mustangs in scoring with 17 points, and senior Donne Jones added 12 points off the bench.  The Mustang men lost to Rochester 85 to 70 in the consolation game, giving them fourth place in the tournament, also their best showing ever.

ALUMNI SPONSORED TRIPS TO SOUTH AFRICA AND SPAIN OFFERED IN 2008
Join Marygrove College alumni and friends as we explore the rich history, culture and traditions of Spain and South Africa.  Collette Vacations has once again been selected as the preferred vendor for these alumni-sponsored trips.  Trips offered through Collette Vacations include knowledgeable tour guides and accommodations that are historic, luxurious and unique to the region. 

Spectacular South Africa
March 27 – April 9, 2008
14 days – 20 meals
$4,099 – Includes roundtrip air from Detroit and double occupancy
Full details can be found here

Spain’s Classics
February 24 – March 4, 2008
10 days – 14 meals
$2,399- Includes roundtrip air from Detroit and double occupancy
Full details can be found here

SPECIAL DINNER AND WRITING CONTEST HONOR THE WORK OF MARILYN NELSON
Each year, the English and Modern Languages Department holds the Amy S. McCombs-Frederick P. Currier Writing Contest in conjunction with the Lecture Series. Marygrove students may submit critical or personal essays or creative writing that responds to the work of this year’s visiting writer, Marilyn Nelson, who will deliver the Bauder Contemporary American Authors Lecture in Alumnae Hall at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, April 20.

The contest was the idea of the late Frederick P. Currier, who first suggested that Marygrove hold the authors series. Mr. Currier and his wife Amy S. McCombs contributed prize money for the awards.

The contest is open only to Marygrove students enrolled in courses this semester. If you wish to enter, please pick up a contest flyer from the Writing Center (LA 005) or in the English Department (MC 259). Contest entries must be submitted to MC 261 by noon. on Thursday, April 5.

Plan to attend the Contemporary American Authors Lecture on April 20 when Marilyn Nelson will read from her award-winning work.  She is the author of 13 books of poetry, six of which are for children. 

You can get a memento of the series, which is in its 19th year.  T-shirts commemorating the occasion are available for only $15 from Laurie Kopack at (313) 927-1383 or lkopack@marygrove.edu.

You are also cordially invited to attend the VIP reception and special dinner in honor of Marilyn Nelson that begins at 5:00 p.m. Tickets are $75 and may e obtained by contacting Maureen Leonard at (313) 927-1308 or mleonard@marygrove.edu

Proceeds go to support the Authors Series.  The Contemporary American Authors Series is designated “An Inaugural Event.”

NEW ONLINE MAT CLASS SESSIONS STARTING SOON!
Marygrove’s innovative new online Masters in the Art of Teaching (MAT) program is starting three new cohorts of classes soon.  The three different online programs, which begin on May 7, are:

• MAT degree with a focus on elementary mathematics
• MAT degree with a focus on middle school mathematics
• MAT degree with a focus on elementary reading and literacy

Each program consists of ten sequential, cutting-edge courses, three semester hours each, for a total of 30 graduate credits. From the beginning to the end of the program, course work is designed for practical use in the classroom, with each course building upon the previous one to strengthen concepts and skills, and to increase teaching effectiveness. Because they are online, teachers can study when it is convenient for them.  Teachers can also collaborate “virtually” with online study teams or form groups for local, face-to-face meetings.  Complete details of the program are available on Marygrove’s Web site at www.marygrove.edu/onlineMAT/

Teachscape, Marygrove’s partner in the program, has an online survey that all teachers can take to learn what they want to see in a masters program.  Participants will get a $5 Starbucks gift certificate.  The survey is here.

STANTON & FRIENDS CONCERT AT MARYGROVE COLLEGE FRIDAY,  MARCH 16
Associate Professor and Composer-in-Residence Geoffrey Stanton bands together with friends and colleagues to present a memorable evening of eclectic music on Friday, March 16, at 7:30 p.m. in Marygrove College’s Sacred Heart Chapel.  An annual event, the program features electronics and projections and the historic chapel pipe organ performing works by Stanton, Bach, Handel, Mozart, Milhaud and Tatum.

Dr. Stanton will introduce a new song cycle that he set to the poetry of fellow faculty member, Dr. Donald Levin, an award-winning poet and writer.  Joining Dr. Stanton will be fellow faculty members Jacqueline Csurgai-Schmitt, piano; Victoria Bigelow, soprano; and Anthony McGlaun, tenor, as well as Gail Jennings on organ and Eugene Zenzen on cello.  Stanton and his friends are all known performers in the greater Detroit area. 

Geoffrey Stanton is an award-winning multi-genre composer for solo instruments and full orchestra and an active recitalist and clinician who plays the organ, piano and synthesizers.  He has performed in Germany and England as well as across the U.S. and has been in residence at the Tanglewood (Lenox, Massachusetts) and Aspen, Colorado, Music Festivals as well as the Atlantic Center for the Arts in New Smyrna Beach, Florida.

Drs. Stanton and Levin will give a pre-concert talk at 7:00 p.m.

The “Stanton and Friends” performance is free and open to the public.  For more information, please contact Dr. Stanton at (313) 927-1310 or gstanton@marygrove.edu.

MARYGROVE TO EXHIBIT AT OPPORTUNITY FAIR
In cooperation with Smooth Jazz radio 98.7, Marygrove College will be an exhibitor at the day-long 2007 Opportunity Fair on March 22nd at the Ford Community and Performing Arts Center in Dearborn.

With the Michigan job market as tough as it’s ever been, we wanted to make our outstanding educational offerings available to those who are being laid off, taking corporate buy-outs or looking for new career opportunities.  Marygrove can help those who need a bachelor’s degree to develop new skills and open new doors and those who want to advance with a master’s degree.  We also have non-credit skills assessment courses.

Marygrove joins respected companies and institutions like The UAW Ford Education Training Assistance Program, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Plummer-McInerney Private Wealth Management, Everest Institute and others. 

Renée Ahee of Marygrove’s Communications & Marketing Department will make a presentation on “Why a Four-Year Institution?  Why Marygrove?”

This Opportunity Fair is free and open to the public.  We invite you to top by our booth.

MARYGROVE COLLEGE’S INSTITUTE FOR ARTS INFUSED EDUCATION TO HOST ARTS-INFUSED EDUCATION TRAINING AUGUST 13 – 15, 2007
Marygrove College’s Institute for Arts Infused Education (IAIE) announces a three-day intensive training workshop for artists, principals, in-service and pre-service teachers August 13-15, 2007, on its campus in Detroit.  The IAIE has designed these training sessions as a means to support the growing field of arts integration into the K-12 core curriculum and providing professional development for those interested in and/or working in the field.

The intensive will have several areas of concentration:

1. Three of the major cultural arts organizations will partner with us to provide hands-on arts infused experiences. They include the Detroit Institute of Arts, Michigan Opera Theatre, and Matrix Theatre Company.
2. The Marygrove College Education Department will provide two workshops on brain-based education and the multiple intelligences.
3. Detroit-based research firm, SPEC Associates, will provide training on alternative assessment concepts and tools.

Marygrove College established the Institute for Arts-Infused Education in January 2006 to improve learning by kindergarten through 12th grade students. The Institute creates innovative models for teaching the core curriculum through the arts and promotes the systemic integration of the arts into the K through 12 core curriculum.

“Arts-infused education is not art education,” said Mary Lou Greene, Institute director.  “It’s using art to teach other core content areas.  It’s a methodology wherein teachers use all of the arts (visual arts, technology, drama, music and movement) and effectively touch all of the Multiple Intelligences in teaching reading, math, science, etc.”

For more information about the three-day intensive training sessions, please contact Mary Lou Greene, AIE director, at mgreene@marygrove.edu or 313-927-1853.  SBCEUs will be offered.

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.