Volume 53, Number 32   May 8, 2006         

Brosnahan to receive honorary degree
Trial lawyer James Brosnahan, a senior partner at San Francisco-based Morrison and Foerster, will receive an honorary doctor of law from the CSU at SF State's May 27 Commencement.

Brosnahan is one of the nation's most respected and recognized trial lawyers, with expertise in civil and criminal trial work. Although he has represented some of the largest and most powerful organizations in the nation, he has also devoted himself to serving the poorest and least fortunate Americans. In 1977, as president of the Bar Association of San Francisco, Brosnahan established the Volunteer Legal Services Program, which provides free legal aid for traditionally underserved Bay Area residents. In 2004 the program provided more than $10 million worth of pro bono legal assistance.

"James Brosnahan embodies the values of community engagement that we hope to strengthen in our students," President Robert A. Corrigan said. "As exemplified by his long and distinguished legal career, he has been committed to social justice and equity. His mission in life resonates deeply with our own commitment to both civil and human rights."

Brosnahan has taken on some of the nation's most controversial cases. In 1992 he served as an associate member of the Office of Independent Counsel, which prosecuted Caspar Weinberger in the Iran-Contra case. Recently Brosnahan stepped forward to represent John Walker Lindh, the young American charged with fighting with the Taliban in Afghanistan. Brosnahan's many awards and accolades include 2001 Trial Lawyer of the Year from the American Board of Trial Advocates.

Tuesday, May 9: Bert Brouwer, dean of University of Alabama at Birmingham's School of Arts and Humanities, from 3:30 to 5 p.m. in Coppola Theatre of the Fine Arts building.

Wednesday, May 17: John Laughton, dean of University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth's College of Visual and Performing Arts, from 3:30 to 5 p.m. in Knuth Hall of the Creative Arts building.

Peter Biella, associate professor of anthropology, and Greta Snider, assistant professor of cinema, were awarded $7,000 to support and develop their course Visual Anthropology I and II (Anth/Cine 595-596).

Meredith Wampler, associate professor of physical therapy, and Grace Yoo, assistant professor of Asian American studies, were awarded $4,000 toward the development of a course that will address both the physical and psychological needs of African American breast cancer victims.

Vivian Chavez, assistant professor of health education, was awarded $4,000 for release time toward drafting a book titled "Making the News: Youth Radio and Education" in conjunction with the Berkeley-based organization, Youth Radio.

Connie Ulasewicz, associate professor of consumer and family studies, and Richard McCline, associate professor of management, were awarded $7,000 toward the development of a cross-disciplinary course on socially responsible management.

Joaquin Alvarado -- democratizing media production
Joaquin Alvarado's work days begin at 6 a.m. every morning and end well after 9 p.m. In between he races to meetings with educational leaders, technology execs and government officials. "I just try not to be late," he said.

As the founding director of SF State's Institute for Next Generation Internet (INGI), Alvarado's networking has brought the University powerful allies in its efforts to use emerging computer technology to improve education, employment opportunities and economic development throughout the Bay Area. ...

Online elections for University-wide committees
Elections for University-wide committess are now taking place online at: www.sfsu.edu/senatevote

Voting closes at midnight Friday, May 12.

Position statements from the nominess can be read online at:
www.sfsu.edu/~senate/nominate

For details, contact the Academic Senate Office at senate@sfsu.edu or at ext. 8-1264.

Honor retiring faculty
Faculty and staff are invited to honor retiring faculty at the annual Rites of Passage celebration held from 4 to 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 23, at the Towers Conference Center.

General education forum
The Academic Senate and General Education Council invite faculty to participate in an online forum to discuss the current structure of general education and the future of general education and University-wide graduation requirements. The information collected will be included in the General Education Council's self-study and used to help inform the upcoming review of University-wide baccalaureate graduation requirements.

The forum can be found on the Academic Senate Web site: www.sfsu.edu/~senate

Responses should be made by 5 p.m. Saturday, May 15.

Summer and fall textbook orders
The SFSU Bookstore textbook department is processing orders for summer and fall semesters. Faculty who still need to turn in textbook and reader requests should do so at their earliest convenience. Textbook orders may be submitted online at: http://facultytext.sfsubookstore.com

Class reader orders may be submitted online at: http://sfsubookstore.com/catalog/cpo.php

The earlier a book order is turned in, the better chance the department has of buying back used books from students at the end of the semester. This benefit allows students to sell back books that will be used again the following semester and get up to 50 percent of what they paid for the book. Buy-back dates for this semester are May 15-20 and May 22-26.

Civic engagement workshop
The Office of Community Service Learning and California Campus Compact invite faculty to a workshop on civic engagement from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday, June 6, in Suite 750 of the Pacific Plaza, 2001 Junipero Serra Blvd., Daly City.

The workshop will cover a combination of topics such as envisioning engagement and integration of civic engagement activities into courses. With each topic, faculty will have an opportunity to learn about tools and resources that can be used and adapted for their specific curriculum.

Speakers include:

Jackie Schmidt-Posner, director of public service education at Stanford University and director of the Public Service Scholars Program, a program for students wishing to connect public service with their academic work and research interests through an honors thesis.

Karin Cotterman, director of the Service Learning Program at the Haas Center for Public Service, Stanford University. Cotterman is responsible for providing leadership, direction and strategy for all Haas Center service-learning activities related to course and community-based research and teaches a service-learning pedagogy course at Stanford's School of Education.

Breakfast and lunch will be provided. There is a fee of $20 for non-SFSU registrants.

For details, contact Justin Chandra at jnchan@sfsu.edu or visit: www.sfsu.edu/~ocsl/

Pacific symphony tickets discount
The SFSU Student Marketing Association is offering to the campus community a 50 percent discount on single tickets for the Pacific Chamber Symphony's spring concert series. The dates and locations are as follows:

• Pleasanton: Wednesday, May 17. For tickets, call (925) 484-9783.
• Napa: Saturday, May 20. For tickets, call (707) 226-7372.
• Lafayette: Sunday, May 21. For tickets, call (510) 352-3945.
• San Francisco: Tuesday, May 23. For tickets, call (415) 292-1233.

To receive the discount, provide the promotional code SFSU-MA.

For details on venue locations and programs, visit: www.pacificchambersymphony.org

Summer fitness
FitnessPlus, the faculty and staff fitness and wellness program, will offer summer swim, yoga, weight training and cardio classes in the early morning, at noon, and after work. Classes begin June 12. For details and to register, contact FitnessPlus at www.sfsu.edu/~fitplus or fitplus@sfsu.edu or ext. 8-7572.

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Last modified May 8, 2006, by the Office of Public Affairs & Publications