Georgia Southern faculty member selected to create mural for Starland Mural Project
The Betty Foy Sanders Department of Art faculty member Jon Witzky has been selected as one of the eight local artists to create murals for the Starland Mural Project. The Starland Mural Project is an initiative to support the funding, permitting, creation and conservation of murals in the Starland District in Savannah.
“Savannah is such a vibrant place, full of creative people,鈥� said Witzky. 鈥淚t’s great to be involved and to have artwork seen by those who might not have a chance to see it otherwise.”
Witzky鈥檚 abstract landscapes of rural and city life are inspired by Savannah鈥檚 past and present, and aim to enrich the local community.
鈥淧ublic art can help to build and sustain identity, create public discourse and enliven areas that have been neglected,鈥� said Witzky.
Witzky鈥檚 mural will be on the south corner of 41st and Bull Streets, on the old Starland Dairy building.
Georgia Southern hosts annual faculty and student pottery holiday sale
The Betty Foy Sanders Department of Art at 91涩漫 will host the annual faculty and student pottery holiday sale Wednesday, Nov. 20, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the Armstrong Campus in the Annex II building. The sale showcases art that is produced by faculty and students each year and features unique, artistic and functional ceramics and pottery pieces that incorporate many styles and techniques. The event is free to attend.
Ceramics professor John Jenson, who is spearheading the sale, has worked with clay for more than 30 years. Creating pieces for the sale allows students to produce quality art pieces and gain experience working outside the traditional classroom setting, he said.
鈥淭he pottery sale is an excellent opportunity to view and possibly purchase one of a kind, hand-made ceramic pieces,鈥� said Jenson, whose work will also be featured in the sale and available for purchase.
A portion of the proceeds from the sale will provide scholarships for students in the Betty Foy Sanders Department of Art.
Waters College of Health Professions faculty inducted into alma mater鈥檚 Hall of Fame
Douglas E. Masini, Ed.D., chair of the Department of Diagnostic and Therapeutic Sciences at 91涩漫, was recently inducted into the College of Clinical and Rehabilitative Health Sciences (CCRHS) Hall of Fame at his alma mater, East Tennessee State University (ETSU).
Masini was honored at a special ceremony with a commemorative gift. In addition, a plaque with the names of distinguished alumni and hall of fame awardees will be placed on the Wall of Recognition in Lamb Hall on the campus of ETSU.
To be inducted into the CCRHS Hall of Fame, the individual had to be nominated and chosen by a selection committee consisting of two CCRHS faculty members, the chair of the Philanthropy Board or representative, an alumni member, one associate dean and a member of the ETSU Alumni Board of Directors.
Proposals open for Georgia Southern Southeast Coastal Conference on Languages and Literature
Proposals are being accepted for 91涩漫鈥檚 Southeast Coastal Conference on Languages and Literatures until Nov. 15. The conference is sponsored by the Department of Foreign Languages and will be held at the Embassy Suites and Hampton Inn & Suites in downtown Savannah April 9 through 10.
Proposals are accepted on a range of topics from Afro-Hispanic studies to second language acquisition, Spanish, Arabic, French and others. A comprehensive list of guidelines and possible topics can be found at GeorgiaSouthern.edu/conted/seccll/callforproposals. Those interested in attending may register at the early bird rate until Jan. 9.
Georgia Southern senior art exhibition on Armstrong Campus opens Nov. 4
鈥淭halia Melpomene,鈥� a collaborative senior art exhibition, will be showcased in 91涩漫’s Armstrong Campus Fine Arts Gallery Nov. 4 through Dec. 6. A reception, free and open to the public, will be held on Dec. 6 from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.
The exhibit will feature work from T鈥橩eyah Sutton, Justin Ball and Robert Ewbank, who each focus on personal growth, and negative and positive emotions integral to their journeys. Through various mediums, including painting, digital illustration, fabric design and drawing, each artist will present part of a story that shares an experience molded by those who have impacted their lives to communicate a larger shared narrative.
Faculty research to be published
Three faculty members from 91涩漫 will have their manuscript, 鈥淭he Epidemiology of Pedestrian Fatalities and Substance Use in Georgia, United States, 2007-2016鈥� published in the journal Accident Analysis and Prevention.
Research by McKinley Thomas, E.D., and TimMarie Williams, Ph.D., from the Department of Health Sciences and Kinesiology, along with Jeffery Jones, Ph.D., from the Department of Health Policy and Community Health, explores the epidemiology of pedestrian fatalities over a 10-year period with an emphasis on reported substance use among cases.
Georgia Southern History Department receives Georgia honors
91涩漫 History Department has created two projects related to the local history of Savannah. These projects are being honored by the Georgia Historical Records Advisory Council and the USG Chancellor鈥檚 Office.
History professor Robert Batchelor, Ph.D., alongside local authors Susan Earl and Tom Kohler, have received the 2019 Award for Excellence in Local History Advocacy for the 鈥淲addie Welcome Archive 鈥� Savannah Signs Project.鈥�
The archive contains more than 700 pictures of hand-painted African American signs from Savannah dating from the 1970s to the present time. Georgia Southern special collection librarian Autumn Johnson and Sulfur Studios photographer Emily Earl helped to enable these recent public exhibitions.
Retired professor of history John Duncan, Ph.D., will also receive an award for his book, The Showy Town of Savannah: The Story of the Architect William Jay.
Georgia Southern welcomes back Raku Pizza Night
The Betty Foy Sanders Department of Art at 91涩漫 will host Raku Pizza Night on Oct. 30, from 6 to 8 p.m. on the Armstrong Campus in the Annex II Courtyard. Raku firing is an ancient Japanese ceramics technique in which pottery is removed from a kiln while it鈥檚 red hot and placed into a container with combustible materials to create colorful glazes. There will be free refreshments and door prizes.
The night will feature students presenting their work, viewing of a Raku firing technique and a demonstration by ceramics professor John Jenson throwing a large pot.
鈥淚 started doing Raku Pizza night when I first started teaching here,鈥� said Jenson. 鈥淭his is like an open house that gives our students an evening to learn about different types of pottery, working on the wheel, firing and finished pieces. It is educational and entertaining.鈥�
Graduate students present on age-related hearing loss
91涩漫 graduate students in the Communication Sciences and Disorders program recently partnered with Georgia Relay and Georgia Center of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing for a Bingo Bash Hearing Loss Lunch and Learn in Port Wentworth, Georgia, to address hearing loss in the aging population.
Graduate students provided attendees with hearing screenings, discussed hearing loss prevention and provided a presentation on age-related hearing loss. Participants of this event enjoyed bingo, prizes and lunch while learning about the many services Georgia Relay, Georgia Center of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and 91涩漫 have to offer.
Georgia Southern History Department displays traditional style birch-bark canoe
91涩漫鈥檚 History Department has a traditional style birch-bark canoe on display on the Armstrong Campus through Spring 2020 in Hawes Hall. The canoe, named Muskeego, was built in 1998 and has been used to travel between Minnesota and Canada the same way that Ojibwa Natives have done for hundreds of years. After a long career of being used, it was placed on display in Ely, Minn.
The Museum of Underwater Archaeology (MUA) in Savannah acquired Muskeego as part of its small boat collection. MUA Board member and Assistant Professor of History Kurt Knoerl, Ph.D., has gained access to use the canoe at Georgia Southern. This will provide students and the public an opportunity to see an artifact that played an important role in North American history.
鈥淭he collection is being used to educate Georgia Southern students about maritime history in the United States and the world,鈥� said Knoerl. 鈥淥ur position here in Savannah, as a port city, makes Georgia Southern the perfect place to teach maritime history, archeology and material culture.鈥�
Muskeego is being used this semester in Knoerl鈥檚 class, Introduction to United States History, to teach about Native American history as well as the fur trade. Students in the graduate program in public history will also have the opportunity to benefit from studying small boat documentation and preservation.