faculty

faculty

Reacting to the Past: Frederick Douglass, Slavery, and the Constitution

Reacting to the Past: Frederick Douglass, Slavery, and the Constitution

Sue McFadden
Imagine becoming another person, a slave-owning person of property and family obligations, a man caught in the history of African-slavery in 1845 America. The role is troublesome and discomforting. The gender change is less difficult than the character’s obligation of being a slave owner. The opportunity to imagine was provided in a Reacting to the Past Workshop hosted by Assistant Professor of History Justin Carroll. Participants received selected readings, character role-sheets, and character goals. The information directed the game play and role-playing decisions based on “debate” at three meetings. The workshop provided IU East faculty and students a lively method of student engagement and interactive game participation. The interaction and character immersion is a valuable experience for participants. My character’s … Continued
Building a Student-Friendly Course

Building a Student-Friendly Course

, books, Library Resources, Library Services, Matt Dilworth
Summer may be a welcome respite for students, but it rarely is for faculty! Research, writing articles, attending professional conferences, preparing new programs and courses – a professor’s job is never done. The library has always been a great tool for professors in teaching their classes. It’s a place to send students to broaden their understanding, and find books and journals that support their arguments. But it can be an asset right from the beginning, in the planning phase of new courses. Most classes require a lot of material. This is sensible – students have to be exposed to a lot of ideas and perspectives, after all. It follows that they would need to read the work of a lot … Continued
New Faculty research interests interest us!

New Faculty research interests interest us!

, Frances Yates, Matt Dilworth
We often think about our professors as teachers. They are the authorities in their subjects who know (or know how to find) the right answer. But knowledge doesn’t end when you graduate, whether that’s with a Bachelor’s, Master’s, or Doctorate degree. Our professors are lifelong learners. They continually research, then share their findings with colleagues, through conference presentations and publications. Our faculty are intellectually curious people, and we were interested to find out about the research interests of new faculty. Katherine Miller, assistant professor of anthropology, has research interests in Mesoamerican bioarchaeology (particularly the biological remains of the Maya people), odontometry, biodistance analysis, and biogeochemical analysis; social relationships like kinship, identity, and sociopolitical interaction; and behaviors including cultural body modifications, … Continued
The Library Show with Heidi Huff

The Library Show with Heidi Huff

, Heidi Huff 0 Comments
Last year I had the opportunity to see the Late Show with David Letterman. He’s a Hoosier ya know (http://www.in.gov/visitindiana/about/famous.aspx).   We were instructed to clap when the APPLAUSE sign lit up, act like he was the funniest person we’d ever met, and be quiet at all other times, including: don’t leave your seat, don’t shout out, and don’t chew gum.  So you see, after doing my primary research I’m now qualified to present to you my own version of the Top Ten List (so this is what would be called a “secondary source,” right? Right!).   Feel free to clap, or boo, to leave your seat, shout out, or chew gum!  I can’t see you from here.