These oaks and hackber-ries represent a small fraction of the trees that add character and beauty to K-State’s cam-pus. Although many trees are bare by late November, for the campus facilities staff this is an active time of year.

“Late fall is the best time of year to plant trees,” said Jackie Toburen, assistant di-rector of facilities services in charge of grounds. “The trees have become dormant, and they aren’t putting any energy

into producing and maintain-ing leaves, which makes it much easier for the tree to be-gin putting down roots.”

By the end of this year, off- campus contractors and K-State grounds crew will have planted more than 150 trees, a considerable increase over the annual average of 25.

“With the Jardine and Beach Museum expansion projects, there have been a lot

more trees planted than nor-mal,” Toburen said.

The newly revamped Jar-dine Apartment Complex took 115 trees, Durland Plaza required 35, and two were planted north of Ahearn Field House. A memorial tree went in east of the Campus Creek Complex.

“When it comes to planting new trees, we try to focus on areas where we’ve had to take

out trees,” said John Woods, director of facilities services.

About 20 trees each year are removed because of con-struction or because they’ve died or become diseased, Woods said.

“Right now we have some mature pine trees that keep dying, so we have to take them out and replace them,”

It is one of K-State photo-

graphic services’ most-requested images: Anderson Hall framed by bursts of orange, red and yellow, the trees putting on a final fall show be-fore winter sends them into skeletal dormancy.

k-statementFor Kansas State University faculty and staff

on campus December - January

Dec. 13Ladies Night at the BeachThe Beach Museum of Art is sponsoring “Arts Above the Arch: Ladies Night” from 6:30-9 p.m. at the museum. There will be a tour of the “Paths to the Press” exhibit, a chance to make holiday cards using the white-line printmaking technique, along with dessert and gift bags. Cost is $10 per person; reservations are required. Call 532-7718.

Technology trainingThe program “Introduction to Cas-cading Style Sheets,” will be from 1:30-3:30 p.m., 202 Fairchild Hall. Visit http://main.itac.ksu.edu/train-ing/enroll/css.html to enroll.

Dec. 14Military band concertThe 1st Infantry Division Band Holiday Concert will be at 7 p.m., McCain Auditorium. Tickets are free and may be picked up at the auditorium or requested by calling 532-6428.

Last day for Nelly DonThis is the last day to see the “Nelly Don: Dresses that Worked for Women,” exhibit, William T. Kemper Art Gallery, K-State Student Union.

Dec. 16Last day for exhibitsThis is the last day for patrons to view two exhibits at the Beach Museum: “Paths to the Press: Printmaking and American Wom-en Artists, 1910-1960” and “Let Me Show You The World: The Sewn Drawings of China Marks.”

Today the museum is open from noon to 5 p.m.

Dec. 18Web page training“Working with CSS in Dream-weaver MX” will be offered from 1:30-3:30 p.m., 202 Fairchild Hall. Registration is required for the free event. Contact ITAC, 532-4918.

Jan. 9Classified Senate meetingThe Classified Senate meeting will be at 12:25 p.m., Staterooms 1 and 2, K-State Student Union.

Jan. 13Faculty Senate meetingThe meeting will be 3:30 p.m., Big 12 Room, K-State Student Union.

Professors named fellowsSeveral K-State professors have been

elevated to the grade of fellow by their re-spective professional associations.

Subbaratnam Muthukrishnan, univer-sity distinguished professor of biochem-istry, and Barbara Valent, university dis-tinguished professor of plant pathology, have been named fellows of the Ameri-can Association for the Advancement of Science.

Ruth Dyer, associate provost and professor of computer and electrical en-gineering, is among 295 senior members of the Institute of Electrical and Electron-ics Engineers to be elevated to the grade of fellow effective Jan. 1. Dyer has be-longed to the IEEE since 1986.

The American Association for the Ad-vancement of Science cited Muthukrish-nan for his contributions to plant and insect molecular biology, particularly for studies on plant pathogenesis proteins and insect chitin metabolism. His labora-tories examine the organization and func-tions of genes involved in the synthesis and turnover of the chitin in the exoskel-eton of the red flour beetle.

Valent has been named a fellow for her contributions to the understanding of plant-microbe interactions, particularly in defining the mechanisms of fungal patho-genesis.

She pioneered and developed rice blast disease as an easily manipulated model system to understand how plants and fungi interact to lead to disease or re-sistance. She was first to clone and study both fungus and rice genes that deter-mine the outcome of this interaction.

As associate provost since 2004, Dyer has overseen K-State’s offices of planning and analysis, assessment, and summer school. She also coordinates the university’s mentoring program for wom-en and minorities in the sciences and engineering, and she coordinates aca-demic initiatives with the Kansas Board of Regents. As investigator for university-wide research projects, Dyer has been involved in numerous ongoing grants and proposals for engagement and outreach.

Dozens of trees are planted each year, adding character to campusAn affirmation of beauty

Dec. 13, 2007 Vol. 30, No. 11

opportunitiesClassified• A list of employment opportunities is posted at http://www.k-state.edu/hr/• A recording of classified job opportunities is available 24 hours a day on the Employ-ment Information Line, 532-6271.• For additional information, call 532-6277 or visit the Division of Human Resources at 103 Edwards Hall. Applications are accepted 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays.

Unclassified• A complete listing of vacancies can be seen at http://www.k-state.edu/affact/• For additional information, call the office of affirmative action at 532-6220 or visit 214 Anderson Hall.

oh, by the way...

2008 Teaching Retreat Jan. 15The 2008 Teaching Retreat will take place Tuesday, Jan. 15, K-State Student Union. This year’s format will focus on advising for faculty members, advisers and administrators.

To help retreat organizers know how many people to plan for, registration is requested. There is no registration fee or charge for the buffet lunch. To register or for a schedule of the retreat’s events, visit http://www.ksu.edu/catl/facultyexchange.htm

Upcoming university holidaysDec. 24, 25 and 31 and Jan. 1 are university holidays. The uni-

versity will be closed.

Employee orientation program Jan. 14The Division of Human Resources will sponsor employee orienta-

tion from 8:30-10:30 a.m. for classified staff and from 9:30-11:30 a.m. for unclassified staff and faculty on Jan. 14, 103 Edwards Hall. The program is designed to welcome and orient new faculty and staff to K-State. Enrollment is required. Call 532-6277.

Van operator training Jan. 14The Division of Facilities will offer van operator training from 1:30-

3:30 p.m. Jan. 14, 213 K-State Student Union. The National Safety Council training is conducted for all operators and potential drivers of motor pool vans operated by K-State staff, faculty and students. The training is required for all operators. To register, fill out the form at http://www.k-state.edu/facilities/depts/resources/signup.html

Continuing Education workshopsThe Division of Continuing Education will host two workshops

starting Jan. 14. A facilitation workshop for the Institute for Civic Dis-course and Democracy will take place Jan. 14-16 at the Alumni Cen-ter, and an eight-hour Hazwoper Refresher Course will hone hazard-ous-waste handling skills Jan. 14. For information, call 532-5569.

points of pride

Continuing education organization honors K-State

The Association for Continuing Education awarded its 2007 Distinguished Credit Award to K-State’s comparative food and agriculture systems course, AGEC 710. The class is offered through the K-State department of agricultural economics and the Division of Continuing Education.

The association also honored K-State with its Creative Use of Technology Award for the ExpanSIS student information sys-tem. ExpanSIS is a multi-institutional student information system developed jointly by the Institute for Academic Alliances and the K-State office of mediated education.

4

k-statement is published semimonthly for the faculty and staff of Kansas State University. The next issue of K-Statement is Jan. 17, 2008. Submit items by noon Jan. 7, 2008. Published by: K-State Media Relations, Kansas State University, 9 Anderson Hall, Manhattan, KS 66506-0117. Phone: 532-6415 Fax: 532-6418 E-mail: media@k-state.edu Web:www.k-state.edu/media K-Statement editor: Jessica Grant Coordinator: Julie Fosberg.

he said.The new pines are a dis-

ease-resistant hybrid, Toburen said.

Cleanup is another concern for facilities staff, who have worked with Charles Barden, an associate professor of hor-ticulture, forestry and recre-ation, to plant male cotton-wood seedlings.

“They don’t produce the white cotton puffs,” Toburen said. “We’re trying those out on campus to see how they do.”

K-State relies on landscape architects from facilities plan-ning to decide which species of tree will be planted where, Toburen said.

Whatever the species, most trees to be planted come from local nurseries or Kansas con-tractors.

But anyone can contribute to the tree population, Woods said. (See story above.)

Buying a “memorial” tree allows a person to choose the species and the plaque to ac-company it. “We call it a me-morial, but people don’t have to participate in the program just when someone is de-ceased,” Woods said. “We’ve had people donate trees for graduation memorials or to honor retirement.”

Since 1978 about 300 trees and shrubs have been donated to campus. ✦✦

Anyone can buy a memo-rial tree or shrub for cam-pus, said Dea Brokesh, a landscape architect with facilities planning, but there are guidelines:

* Plantings must meet minimum size require-ments.

* Facilities planning must approve the species and location.

* If the donor wishes to guarantee replacement of a damaged plant, a per-petual maintenance fund costs 25 percent of the

planting’s original retail price.

* A commemorative plaque costs about $150, which includes replace-ment of a damaged plaque.

For more information, call facilities planning, 532-

6377.

An affirmation of beauty continued

Dan McGee (left), plant science technician with facilities and grounds, and Mark Fronce, senior maintenance and repair technician, plant a Canada red cherry tree north of Ackert Hall.

Continued on back

A tree of your own

Robert J. Sawyer, a science fiction author whose work has won Hugo and Nebula awards, signs a copy of his book after speaking at the dedication of K-Stateʼs David J. Williams III Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Collection. The collection is on display from 8 a.m.-6 p.m. weekdays through Dec. 31 in the fifth-floor gallery of Hale Library. The exhibit has more than 100 items by writers such as H.P. Lovecraft, Isaac Asimov, Anne Rice, Stephen King, Clark Ashton Smith, Jack Vance and L. Sprague de Camp.

K-State professor teaches Noontime Yoga for fitness, repose

It’s unusual to think of a K-State professor wanting to teach at KU, but perhaps

it’s even more unusual when KU stands for Kabul Univer-sity in Afghanistan.

A faculty member in the College of Veterinary Medi-cine recently returned from KU, where he helped train faculty and students in veteri-nary science.

David Hodgson, associ-ate professor in anesthesiol-ogy, left June 20 and returned Nov. 16, using a grant through the United States Agency for International Develop-ment. During that period, he e-mailed weekly updates to the staff and educated readers about the many challenges he faced.

“My main goal was to try to make a difference every day,” he said. “I worked diligently to try and help their veteri-nary students develop skills to make a diagnosis rather than treating the first symptom they see without further con-sideration.”

Some of the challenges were due to a shortage of drugs, supplies and equip-

ment. Hodgson also overcame cultural differences, language barriers and issues of personal safety and security due to Tal-iban activity around Kabul. In the veterinary clinic, Hodgson assisted in the treatment of fe-ral dogs, sheep, cattle, horses and cats.

Upon hearing about the shortage of supplies, K-State faculty, staff and donors sent items to him in Afghanistan. Hodgson related his discovery of these donations in a mes-sage in August.

“I received a box of vari-ous supplies from K-State to-day,” he wrote. “It was almost like opening a Christmas pres-ent when I was a child. I am thankful to now have gauze to tie in an endotracheal tube, caps for the IV catheters that we have never used and a box of adhesive tape. These are a major step forward for the KU clinic. I will now train faculty and students to place an IV catheter properly. Un-til this time we have had only one roll of adhesive tape. The items provided by K-State make a big difference in our potential activities.”

The College of Veterinary Medicine threw a “welcome back” party for Hodgson when he returned. He expressed his gratitude for the supplies, sup-port and encouragement dur-ing his time in Afghanistan and then presented a slide show to demonstrate the con-ditions at KU.

Although he’s glad to be home, Hodgson said he may consider returning to KU next spring or summer through the USAID program.

“I tried to lay the founda-tion for sustained progress and improvement in the KU clinic and in the Faculty of Veteri-nary Science,” Hodgson said. “I hope I stimulated a dream for the future that is not going back to the ‘way it was’ be-fore the wars, but to become something much better.

“Sustainability and build-ing capacity are important concepts that I embrace, but the delivery and long-term realization of these goals will take continued effort by many people from outside Af-ghanistan. Kabul University needs our support for years to come.” ✦✦

plaudits

Winslow named Jarvis ChairWilliam “Chip” Winslow has been selected as the 2007-2008 Jar-

vis Chair of Landscape Architecture in the Col-lege of Architecture, Planning and Design.

According to Dan Donelin, professor and head of K-State’s department of landscape ar-chitecture and regional and community planning, this is the third year the $10,000 annual stipend has been awarded to a faculty member.

“Tenured faculty members applied for the award by submitting a portfolio that included a syllabus for a course taught during the fall or spring semester of the previous year, the instruc-tor’s student evaluation summary for the course being submitted, evidence of scholarship and a

statement as to scholarly contributions to landscape architecture during the previous year,” Donelin said.

“The award recipient is selected by a blind jury composed of two faculty members from another nationally accredited landscape ar-chitecture program and a faculty member from a non-design back-ground,” Donelin said.

Combatives team turns K-State training into trophy

Fort Riley soldiers trained by Kansas State University instruc-tors brought home accolades from the recent All-Army Combatives Championship in Fort Benning, Ga., including an all-Army champion in the 140-pound weight class.

The Fort Riley team finished second overall in competition with 35 other teams representing every major unit in the Army, according to Arthur DeGroat, director of military affairs at K-State. One solider won his weight class, one soldier placed third in his weight class, and two others placed fourth.

The soldiers trained at K-State for eight weeks beforehand, earn-ing two undergraduate credits in the process.

Faculty, students write award-winning paperA group of faculty and students from K-State at Salina’s depart-

ment of engineering technology recently won first place for their in-terdisciplinary project paper at the American Society for Engineering Education’s midwest regional conference in Wichita.

Students and faculty in electronic and computer engineering tech-nology and mechanical engineering technology partnered to write the paper, “Building the Largest Cantenna in Kansas: An Interdisciplinary Collaboration between Engineering Technology Programs.”

The can-shaped antenna was designed by electronic and com-puter engineering technology students working under the supervision of Saeed Khan, associate professor of engineering technology. Greg Spaulding, associate professor of engineering technology, led me-chanical engineering technology students in building the antenna.

Chip WinslowProfessor lends expertise to Kabul

noteworthyup close

Clinical SciencesMike Apley presented “In-terpretation of Susceptibil-ity Testing in Food Ani-mals: What Does ‘Resistant’ Mean?” and “Pharmacody-namics and Clinical Trials: What is Behind Food Animal Antimicrobial Regimens?” Ohio State University, Oct. 26, Columbus.

Apley also presented “An-cillary Therapy in Food Ani-mal Infectious Disease: What Should (and Shouldn’t) We be Doing?” “Analgesia for Food Animals,” “Putting it all Together in Protocols for your Clients,” “Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing with an Emphasis on Food Animals,” “Antimicrobial Drug Groups in Food Animals” and “Anti-microbials and Resistance,” Central Veterinary Conference West, Oct. 23, San Diego.

EnglishDonna Potts presented “Sea-mus Heaney’s ‘Casualty’ as Pastoral Elegy,” Midwest American Conference for Irish Studies, Oct. 19, Kansas City, Mo.

Potts also served on the cre-ative non-fiction panel “Lives of Irish Poets” for the same conference, Oct. 20.

✦✦✦Han Yu presented “Resist

Fallouts from International Technical Communication Development and Realize Sus-tainable Growth in the Global Economy,” at the Council for Programs in Technical and Scientific Communication, Oct. 12, Greenville, N.C.

FinanceThe following K-State faculty members presented at the Fi-nancial Management 2007 annual meeting, Oct. 17-20, Orlando, Fla.:

Xuanjuan (Jane) Chen and colleagues, “How Does Back-ground Risk Affect Invest-ment Risk-taking? Evidence from Insurers’ Corporate

Bond Portfolios” and “Riding the Post Earnings Announce-ment Drift: Evidence from Mutual Funds.”

Chen also chaired the ses-sion “Information from Ana-lysts & Blogs.”

Chairat Chuwonganant and colleague, “Transpar-ency, Liquidity Aggregation, and Market Quality: Evidence from SuperMontage.”

Sukesh Patro and col-leagues, “Management Earn-ings Forecast: Evidence on Post-Guidance Drift.”

Institute for Academic AlliancesDana Reinert and colleagues presented “Without Borders: Managing Multi-Institution Collaborative Online Pro-grams,” Western Cooperative for Educational Telecommu-nications 19th annual confer-ence, E-Learning in Higher Education: Making Good on the Promises, Nov. 9, Atlanta.

Multiple departmentsMike Bradshaw, family stud-ies and human services; Mary Lou Peter-Blecha, communi-cations; and Mary Knapp, agronomy; presented “Prepar-ing the Public for Natural and Manmade Disasters,” Exten-sion Disaster Education meet-ing, Nov. 8, Hilo, Hawaii.

A slow journey to relaxation

Calming music filters out of the makeshift studio, drowning out the sounds of tennis shoes

squeaking on the basketball court be-low.

In the humid little room in Ahearn Gymnasium, about a dozen students bend and stretch, practicing yoga un-der the direction of Sue Brown, K-State professor of biology.

Brown, who has been an instructor for the Noontime Yoga program for several years, says it’s a great way to stay fit and de-stress.

“Some days are stressful, and yoga gives me a chance to relax and repro-gram,” Brown said. “With yoga you learn about your muscles and breath-ing techniques. And when practicing, it really helps you focus on the here and now, and not on all of the other things that may cause stress.”

Brown was introduced to yoga while a graduate student in the 1980s, but at the time, it didn’t interest her.

“It seemed complicated and hard to do,” she said.

Fast-forward 25 years, and Brown was ready to give yoga another shot. She began attending Noontime Yoga sessions in 2002 and eventually worked up the confidence to try in-structing others.

“C.P. Ward really inspired me to be-come an instructor,” she said. Ward is a Manhattan resident who still teaches Noontime Yoga.

Brown also credits Diane Knox, K-State assistant in kinesiology; Em-ily Ragan, K-State graduate student in biochemistry; and Manhattan resi-dent Carol Gould with inspiring her to teach yoga.

“Emily and I took instructor classes together to become certified to teach, and the other three women were vol-unteering their time instructing, and

I loved the way they taught,” Brown said. “In yoga you try to emulate your yoga master, and that’s what I try to do when I teach.”

With the semester winding to a close and stress mounting, Brown said Noontime Yoga instructors have be-gun working with poses that are good for relaxation.

Anyone can attend any of the five weekday sessions, and you don’t have to be in great shape to participate, Brown said.

“You just have to be able to stand up or sit down,” Brown said. “Many of the people who attend were advised by their doctors to try yoga, and we mix all levels.

“We don’t do power yoga. What we do is meant to warm and stretch the muscles and build a balance of strength and flexibility.”

It may seem like Brown is increas-ing her own stress levels by adding yoga instruction to her teaching, pub-lishing and researching, but she says it’s all about having a plan.

“You have to stay organized,” she said. “But I feel better when I do yoga, and it allows me a break in the middle of the day.”

Not only does yoga teach you to listen to your own body, but it also can help you become more attuned to others, she said.

“I get the chance to meet new peo-ple and have new experiences through instructing.”

Noontime Yoga began in 2002. In addition to Ragan, Brown and Ward, Dave Mitchell, laboratory education technician for the College of Archi-tecture Planning and Design, also teaches the sessions. ✦✦

Sue Brown, professor of biology, teaches two sessions of Noontime Yoga and says itʼs a great way to relieve stress and maintain fitness.Noontime Yoga classes meet from noon to 1 p.m. each weekday in Room 302, Ahearn Gymnasium.

2 3

Dave Krishock, grain science and industry, presented “Wheat Quality Update from a Bakerʼs Perspective” at the Lal-lemand Innovations in Baking Seminar at the International Baking Industry Exposition, Oct. 6, Orlando, Fla.

Dave Hodgson (center), associate professor of anesthesi-ology in the College of Veteri-nary Medicine, teaches a group of Kabul University veterinary medicine students how to give a cow an epidural. Hodgson spent five months in Afghanistan working at Kabul University as part of a USAID grant.