April 15, 2010
The book, “How to Achieve a Heaven on Earth” is an anthology of 80 original essays and 21 reprints of articles and speeches. Presidents Obama and Bush as well as Tony Blair and a host of notables and ordinary people with extraordinary things to say make up the book. As Tony Blair said in his speech concerning faith and peace, “Idealism becomes the new realism.” That theme runs throughout the whole book. It is a book of goals, obstacles, means and faith.
One on-line review (Reading at the Beach.com) said, “Everyone who cares about the state of the world should take the time to read this book.”
April 13, 2010
Arlington, Va.- Susan S. Morris was recently selected as the Department of Defense Education Activity’s (DoDEA) Teacher of the Year for 2010.
Morris teaches Social Studies and Advancement via Individual Determination (AVID) to 7th and 8th grade students, at Boeblingen Elementary and Middle School in the Heidelberg District. She also taught at DoDEA’s Kaiserslautern and Patch American High Schools.
Prior to coming to DoDEA, Morris taught 8th grade American History and 7th grade World Geography at F.B. Leon Guerrero Middle School in Yigo, Guam; 11th and 12th grade American Government at George Washington High School in Mangilao, Guam; and 10th grade International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) Geography, 7th grade Language Arts, and 8th grade Literature and Social Studies at Verdala International School in St. Andrew’s, Malta.
The Teacher of the Year program recognizes teachers for their dedication and contributions to the lives of military dependent children. The program also allows and encourages teachers to be educational leaders. Teachers selected as a Teacher of the Year promote the teaching profession and work with educational officials to enhance educational quality for students.
Dr. Shirley Miles, DoDEA Director, praised Morris for the support and dedication that she shows her students both in and out of the classroom.
“Ms. Morris is a dedicated teacher that genuinely cares for the well-being of her students. The support that she shows on a day-to-day basis is crucial to students who may be coping with a parent who is deployed,” she said.
Morris’ principal, Dale M. Moore praised her leadership qualities and ability to be a strong role model for her students and fellow peers.
“Susan is a natural leader and demonstrates this skill in a variety of ways at our school, acting as a role model not only for our students but for teachers as well,” said Moore. “She is not afraid to take on an extra challenge and eagerly takes them on if there is a demonstrated benefit for our students.”
Frank Roehl, Superintendent for the Heidelberg District, DoDEA Europe, also recognized Morris for her exceptional teaching ability and her willingness to connect with her students.
“Susan actively demonstrates a total commitment in support of her students’ academic growth as well as their social and emotional development,” he said. “This caring supportive attitude is not lost on her students who return her enthusiasm for learning and personalize her modelling of positive citizenship and service.”
The process to find the DoDEA teacher of the year begins with the nomination of a candidate by a parent, the school’s Parent-Teacher-Student Organization (PTSO), a colleague or a student. The nominees complete application packets that are submitted to their District Office. A panel selected by the District superintendent decides the District Teacher of the Year. Another panel at DoDEA headquarters selects the Teacher of the Year from the District Teachers of the year. The DoDEA Teacher of the Year goes on to compete in the National Teacher of the Year competition. The DoDEA Teacher of the year will also have the opportunity to do a sabbatical semester where they devise a project that will be beneficial to teachers and students.
Morris graduated from the University of Georgia with a Bachelors of Science in Education with a concentration in history, geography, Asian studies and political science; and a Masters of Education with a concentration in Curriculum Development and Asian Studies.
In the classroom she works with her students towards defined goals and standards, focuses on each individual student’s learning, and uses multiple techniques and assessments to reach those goals. Morris is an active mentor to her students and her support extends beyond the classroom.
Building strong student-teacher relationships and allowing students to believe in their abilities and trust in their success is Morris’ key to success in the classroom.
February 10, 2010
Athens, Ga. – Three Academy Award winners and several film industry veterans will be special guests at Robert Osborne’s Classic Film Festival, Thursday through Sunday, March 25-28, at The Classic Center in Athens. The festival is an annual nonprofit event of the University of Georgia Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication.
Actors Marshall Bell, Corey Feldman, Cloris Leachman and Caren Marsh-Doll will join authors John Bengtson and Eddie Muller, producers Gray Frederickson, Fred Roos and Leon Vitali, and Turner Classic Movies’ vice president Tom Brown as special guests.
Marshall Bell has acted in both television and film for more than 25 years, including a role as an emotionally distant father in Stand by Me, which will be shown on Friday, March 26, at 4 p.m. Joining him will be Corey Feldman whose film career includes Gremlins, The Goonies, and his breakout role in Stand by Me.
Cloris Leachman’s career includes a long history of roles in television and film including the Mary Tyler Moore Show and an Oscar-winning performance in The Last Picture Show. In addition to her Oscar, she has eight primetime Emmys and one daytime Emmy to her credit. She played the role of Agnes in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid which will be shown on Friday, March 26, at 8 p.m.
A professional dancer and actress, Caren Marsh-Doll, served as the Judy Garland’s stand-in for Sunday’s 2 p.m. matinee, The Wizard of Oz. She also worked with Garland on the Hollywood musicals Babes in Arms and Girl Crazy. She is the author of Hollywood’s Babe—Dancing Through Oz.
John Bengtson is the author of the critically acclaimed series of books, Silent Traces: Discovering Early Hollywood Through the Films of Charlie Chaplin, and its Buster Keaton counterpart, Silent Echoes. He will be the featured guest for the film festival’s first silent film screening, Steamboat Bill, Jr. on Saturday, March 27 at 4 p.m. The screening will also feature a special live music accompaniment by local band, Kenosha Kid.
Eddie Muller is founder and president of the Film Noir Foundation and has been instrumental in rescuing America’s noir heritage by restoring and preserving (with the UCLA Film & Television Archive) nearly lost classics. He will share his knowledge of film noir at the Friday, 1 p.m. screening of Double Indemnity.
Gray Frederickson and Fred Roos have long associations with Francis Ford Coppola, having worked with him on The Godfather, Apocalypse Now and this year’s festival selection, The Godfather II, for which they won an Academy Award. The pair will discuss the film on Saturday, March 27 at 8 p.m.
Hollywood veteran Leon Vitali worked with legendary producer/director Stanley Kubrick in a variety of roles on four of his films including The Shining, the festival’s midnight film on Friday, March 26.
Alfred Hitchcock’s classic To Catch a Thief will open the festival on Thursday, March 25. Turner Classic Movies’ Tom Brown will host the evening and discuss the film. Brown oversees all original programming at TCM which includes the Emmy nominated, Cary Grant: A Class Apart.
Guests will appear on stage after screenings for a candid discussion with hosts Osborne and members of the audience. Guests present on Saturday morning March 27, will form a panel and discuss “Social Change: How Film Reflects and Inspires a Shift in the Collective Cultural Climate – Propaganda or Art?” with Osborne. The panel discussion is free, open to all and will take place at 10 a.m. at The Classic Center Theater.
The movie lineup for the festival includes To Catch a Thief, Double Indemnity, Stand by Me, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Shining, All About Eve, Steamboat Bill, Jr., The Godfather II and The Wizard of Oz.
For the four-day festival, the 2,000-seat Classic Center theater will be transformed into a world-class movie palace with the installation of a motion picture screen and state-of-the-art 35mm projection and sound systems.
“It’s an exciting adventure to see these films the way they were meant to be seen,” said Osborne. “The big screen gives a different dimension and vitality to these extraordinary films.”
Festival tickets can be purchased separately or as a package at The Classic Center box office, online at http://www.classiccenter.com, or by calling 800/918-6393. A variety of pass options are available. Ticket prices are $10 per individual film. Students and UGA Alumni Association members can purchase individual film tickets for $8 with valid identification. Special $5 tickets for children 12 and under will be available at the box office the day of the show for Sunday’s showing of The Wizard of Oz.
Tickets for the festival’s opening reception at Hotel Indigo are available at www.therialtoroom.com. For more information on the festival, see www.robertosbornefilmfestival.com. Note that the guest list is always subject to change.
Established in 1915, the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication offers undergraduate majors in advertising, broadcast news, magazines, newspapers, public relations, publication management and telecommunication arts. The college offers two graduate degrees, and is home to WNEG-TV, the Knight Chair in Health and Medical Journalism and the Peabody Awards, internationally recognized as one of the most prestigious prizes for excellence in electronic media. For more information, see www.grady.uga.edu.
February 10, 2010
Washington , D.C. – Husch Blackwell Sanders is pleased to announce it has significantly expanded its Government Contracts practice with the addition of seven partners in the firm’s Washington, D.C., office. Six of the attorneys were formerly partners at Wickwire Gavin, which merged with Akerman Senterfitt in 2006. The seventh attorney was a partner at Holland & Knight.
“This team of attorneys brings a phenomenal opportunity to the firm’s clients to do more business with the federal government,” said the firm’s Co-Chairman David A. Fenley. “With the addition of these partners, Husch Blackwell has become one of the premier providers of full service government contract representation for firms within the Am Law100.”
Steven M. Kupka, Managing Partner of the firm’s D.C. office, added, “Our Washington, D.C., office continues to grow to meet clients’ needs, with 17 attorneys now based here. Partner and leader of our Government Contracts practice Walter A.I. Wilson joined us in 2009, and we’re excited to expand our sphere of influence thanks to the impressive depth of our Government Contracts practice.”
Government Contracts attorneys represent domestic and international clients in all areas of federal supply, service and construction contracts and all phases of government contracting, including bid protests, compliance with federal laws and regulations, Defense Contract Audit Agency audits, compliance audits, Federal Supply Schedule procurements, contract administration, change order negotiations, and claims and disputes.
Brian P. Waagner focuses his practice on the resolution of claims and disputes arising from public and private construction projects. He represents owners, contractors, subcontractors, sureties and design professionals in all aspects of the preparation, prosecution and defense of claims, including fraud and False Claims Act issues. In addition to his bench and jury trial experience in state and federal courts and the boards of contract appeals, Waagner represents many clients in alternative dispute resolution proceedings such as arbitration and mediation.
Waagner earned his J.D. from Cornell Law School (1994), where he was Managing Editor of the Cornell Journal of Law and Public Policy. He earned his A.B. from the University of Georgia (1990), where he was Phi Beta Kappa.
February 9, 2010
A message from UGA Beyond Coal:
There is a coal plant on campus and we want to break our dependence so we’re reaching out to alumni to sign our petition.
Using coal contributes to air and water pollution, along with high asthma and autism rates. Our power plant emits toxic air pollutants such as lead and arsenic. Soot can trigger heart attacks and strokes, cause irregular heartbeat, and lead to premature death.
We’re working with the whole UGA community to encourage our administration to venture away from coal. Alumni are an integral part of our community and we want to reach out to give you a chance to voice your opinions.
Click here for our online petition.
