The employee wellness nurse will in the lobby of the Schroeder Family School of Business Building TODAY - Monday, Feb. 24 - from 1 - 3 p.m.

Commencement Central for May graduates is being held on Tuesday, February 25 from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. outside the UE Bookstore. ALL May graduates should attend either of these dates. It only takes a few minutes to finalize your graduation plans. You will meet with the Registrar's Office, Alumni Affairs, Career Services and the Bookstore. This is a one stop easy event. You will also be able to purchase your cap and gown and/or order graduation announcements. Please mark these dates on your calendar and be sure to attend!

Students who have received Federal Direct Loans while attending UE and plan to graduate, withdraw or transfer, are mandated by federal regulations to attend an Exit Counseling session. The Office of Financial Aid will hold three sessions this semester, the first being Monday, February 24, at 1:00 p.m. in Hyde Hall Room 126. You must arrive on time and bring the names, addresses and phone numbers of 2 people who you will remain in contact with after leaving UE, plus a next of kin at a different address than yours. Session will last approximately 30 minutes.

The UE Wind Ensemble will present its Winter Concert in Neu Chapel this Tuesday, February 25, at 7:30 p.m. Assistant Professor of Low Brass and Director of Bands Ken Steinsultz will lead the ensemble in a performance of works from the Romantic and Modern eras. Highlights will include a performance of Richard Wagner’s Trauersinfonie, a piece penned in honor of German composer Carl Maria von Weber that consists of transcriptions of various numbers from Weber’s opera, Euryanthe. Consortium Instructor of Oboe Dr. Elizabeth Robertson will also join the ensemble for a performance of Spanish composer Ferrer Ferran’s El Bosque Mágico. The concert is free and open to the public.

Department of Music students Chelsea Masolak (trumpet) and Sara Graham (flute) will offer a joint Senior Recital in Wheeler Concert Hall this Sunday, March 2, at 1:00 p.m. Chelsea is a student of Professor Timothy Zifer, and Sara is a student of Consortium Instructor Cara Dailey. This event will be followed by the Senior Recital of violinist Kaitlin Emmert, a student of Professor Carol Dallinger. The recitals are in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Bachelor of Music in Music Therapy degree and are free and open to the public.
 

Would you like to see the Evansville Icemen play against the Cincinnati Cyclones on February 28? Student Detours will be selling discounted goal seat tickets on Tuesday, February 25 and Wednesday, February 26 from Noon to 1 PM in Ridgway Univrersity Center. Tickets will sell for $14 each. Don't miss out on this sweet deal!
 

An Institute Speaker Series event with Paul Jones ’71, Executive Chairman, A.O. Smith Corporation, will be co-hosted by the Schroeder School of Business and the College of Engineering and Computer Science on Tuesday, March 4.  Jones will speak on Doing Business in China and India, a CEO’s Perspective at a student forum in the Ridgway University Center Room 252 on Tuesday, March 4 from 2:45 – 3:45 p.m.  This event will count towards the ACES Passport Program for business majors.

From humble beginnings in a small mid-western town to leader of a successful global company, Paul Jones will share the story of his leadership journey as he remade A.O. Smith Corporation and successfully took its value proposition of innovation to two of the largest emerging economies on the globe.  The forum is free and open to the entire campus community; those interested in attending are encouraged to RSVP here.

Jones joined A.O. Smith in January 2004 as president and COO.  Prior to this, he held executive positions at U.S. Can Company, Greenfield Industries Inc., and General Electric where he successfully progressed through the ranks for 19 years.   Jones graduated from the University of Evansville with a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering in 1971 and serves on the University Board of Trustees.
 

All members of the campus and local community are encouraged to attend I-House: China. I-House features a different international student each week sharing their story of life in their country. Attendees will learn about culture, lifestyle, food, and so much more. Bring your friends to enjoy the presentation this Wednesday at 7pm on the 2nd floor of Ridgway University Center in the Class of 1959 Gallery.

On February 28, AOII's philanthropy Survival of the Fittest benefiting Juvenile Arthritis will be taking place at 7 p.m. in Eykamp Hall, Ridgway University Center. Tickets are $6 the week of and $8 at the door. Tickets will be sold during lunch and dinner on February 26 and 27, in Ridgway University Center, and at the door before the event.

Take part in the UE campus scavenger hunt on Tuesday, February 25. Every 2 hours starting at 8am @UEYoungAlum will tweet a clue about a space on campus named for a donor. In that space will be a Philanthropy Week Star with how much that space cost and the donor the spaced is named for. Visit that space and take photo and tweet back to @UEYoungAlum using #DoGood4UE. Prizes will be awarded throughout the day to participants.

FYS is currently accepting applications for teaching interns for Fall 2014. FYS 499 is a 3 credit hour teaching internship that will provide select students the opportunity to assist in the instruction of First-Year Seminar courses.

Teaching Interns (TIs) will work under the supervision of FYS faculty, working closely with them in and out of the classroom. TIs will attend FYS classes and model good academic behavior, help to facilitate discussion, work one-on-one with students on writing, and serve as a peer mentor and tutor to FYS students and a liaison between FYS faculty and students.

Interested students should contact Dr. Valerie Stein at vs9@evansville.edu for more information and an application.

The UE Bookstore will be starting the return process of unsold books soon. If you still need a textbook for the term please stop by the Bookstore and purchase it. If for some reason you need a book but can't purchase it at this time the Bookstore will be happy to hold a textbook for you for a period of time. Please contact the Bookstore if you need this done or if you have any questions.

Applications for the nomination of SGA president, vice president, senior trustee, and Academic Fund Board chairperson are open now until March 7th at 5:00 PM. Applications are available in the Center for Student Engagement. Email questions to Shaun Sizemore at ss485.

The February 2014 Pcard cycle ends February 21. Cardholders may finish reconciling transactions and print the February cycle statement on February 23 or before the GL upload on February 28.

Good News! Enterprise Holdings (Enterprise Rent-A-Car, National Rent-A-Car and Alamo Rent-A-Car), one of UE’s preferred rental vehicle providers, has recently announced a change in their driver age requirements. Effective immediately, UE drivers must be 21 yrs. of age or older to drive an Enterprise Holdings rental on a business related trip. This is a positive change that standardizes the age requirement to 21 replacing a previous 25 yrs. old driver requirement on non-standard vehicle rentals. For your convenience, the "Enterprise Holdings Quick Reference Guide" has been updated on the Travel website on AceLink. For questions, contact Kim Winsett in the Office of Administrative Services at extension 2940 or kw83.

The University of Evansville Alumni Association initiated the fellowship program in 1972 to encourage faculty research and scholarly activity and to provide another avenue of funding for such efforts besides that provided by the University. This program, known as ARSAF, is funded entirely by gifts from alumni. Approximately $15,000.00 is awarded annually.

The application deadline for funds for the 2014-2015 fiscal year is 5 p.m. on April 1. More details and the online application can be found at http://acelink.evansville.edu/Areas/AcademicAffairs/arsafApplication.cfm. Questions? Contact alumni@evansville.edu or extension 2586.
 

The office of Counseling Services would like to inform the campus of a community sponsored event pertaining to anxiety. There will be a free seminar presented by Jim Karns, LCSW, which will address different types of anxiety disorders, symptoms, and treatment options on February 26 at 7 p.m. at  Central Library, Browning Room.

For additional information, call 436-4352 or 426-2640 or call Counseling Services at 488-2663.

Smokefree Communities will award 3 prize packages for Indiana residents who are tobacco-free during March.  Email your name, phone number, email address, zip code, type of tobacco product used and for how long to quitnowcontest@hotmail.com to register.  The registration deadline is Feb. 28.

Anyone, regardless of state of residence, who wants assistance with quitting should call 1-800-QuitNow.  Most states provide counseling and some help with stop smoking aids/products.  Many services are free.

For more information, visit www.smokefreecommunities.com.  The flier outside Human Resources also has the prize packages listed.

The Philanthropy Video Contest starts February 24 with the winner announced on February 28.

To participate entrants to the contest must submit a Vine video featuring "Aces Spirit", as defined through thanking our UE donors. They must share the Vine video adding #DoGood4UE and sharing with @UEyoungalum. The top 3 videos will receive $100 to $25 prizes. An entrant may enter an unlimited number of entries during the promotional period (Feb 24-27).

ENTRY GUIDELINES AND REQUIREMENTS:
Each entry:
Must be in English;

Must not contain material that violates or infringes another's rights, including, but not limited to, privacy, publicity or intellectual property rights, including copyright infringement, or legal or moral rights of any third party, living or deceased;

Must not disparage University, Administrator or any other person or party affiliated with the promotion and administration of this Promotion;

 Must not contain, facilitate, reference, or use material that is fraudulent, inappropriate, indecent, lewd, pornographic, obscene, hateful, tortious, defamatory, slanderous or libelous;

Must not contain any viruses, spyware, malware, or other malicious components that are designed to harm the functionality of a computer in any way;

Must not contain, facilitate, reference, or use material that promotes bigotry, racism, hatred or harm against any group or individual or promotes discrimination based on race, gender, ethnicity, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation, political orientation, citizenship, ancestry, marital status, or age

For questions contact annualgiving@evansville.edu or call 812-488-2377.

Last weekend Assistant Professor of Philosophy Derek Jones presented "Locating the Self-Organized Agent: From Autonomy to Embedded Normativity" at the 2014 Midsouth Philosophy conference at Rhodes College and "Mental Illness and our Sense of Agency" at the 10th PGSA Conference on Mental Illness and Power at the University of Memphis.

Computer science major Jawad AlDhalemi was awarded the James M. Hall Jr. 2013 Outstanding Engineering Student award. He was selected by the Dean of the College of Engineering & Computer Science as the most outstanding student at junior class standing based on scholastic achievement, extra-curricular activities, character, responsibility, attitude and potential for professional growth. Congratulations Jawad!

Associate Professor of English Mark Cirino has been named a Contributing Editor to the Hemingway Letters Project. He will assist in the production of forthcoming volumes and will assume a leading role in the writing and editing responsibilities for the volume covering 1948-1951, spanning the writing and publication of Hemingway’s novel set in Venice, Across the River and into the Trees.

Headquartered at The Pennsylvania State University under General Editor Sandra Spanier, The Hemingway Letters Project is producing a comprehensive scholarly edition of the author’s some 6,000 letters, approximately 85 percent of them never before published. Cambridge University Press is publishing the series in a projected seventeen volumes.

The Hemingway Letters Project is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities and has been designated a We, the People project, “a special recognition by the NEH for model projects that advance the study, teaching, and understanding of American history and culture.” Pulitzer Prize winning historian A. Scott Berg has referred to these volumes as “a literary treasure trove.”

Volume 1 was published in 2011 and Volume 2 in 2013. Cambridge University Press expects Volume 3 to be published in 2015.

Cirino is the co-program director of the 16th biennial Hemingway conference, to be held in Venice in June. Two forthcoming books, Reading Hemingway’s Across the River and into the Trees and Imagining Spain: 21st-Century Essays on Hemingway and the Spanish World (co-edited with Mark P. Ott) will be published in 2015 by Kent State University Press.

For the latest updates, visit https://www.facebook.com/HemingwayLetters

Follow the Hemingway Letters Project on Twitter at: @HemingwayLetter

University of Evansville junior Natasha James earned wins in both singles and doubles action, but Murray State proved to be a tough squad as they came away from Tri-State Athletic Club with a 6-1 win on Saturday night.

James teamed up with Kelsey Costales to earn an 8-7 doubles win over Eleonore Tchakarova and Verginie Tchakarova before taking the win in flight two singles over Carla Suga, 6-2, 6-1.

Murray State was able to take flights two and three en route to the doubles point. Andrea Eskauriatza and Erin Patton defeated Marina Moreno and Andjela Brguljan, 8-6, while Suga and partner Megan Blue topped Marketa Trousilova and Mina Milovic, 8-6.

Singles play saw Eskauriatza defeat Trousilova in the top flight, 6-3, 6-3. In the third spot, E. Tchakarova got past Moreno in two sets, 6-0, 6-1. Blue stopped Costales in the fourth spot, 6-1, 6-3 while V. Tchakarova earned a win over Milovic in the fifth group, 6-0, 6-3. In the sixth slot, Patton took a victory over Brguljan in two sets, 6-2, 6-4.

Evansville will be back on the road for a pair of matches next weekend, beginning with a trip to Austin Peay for a 4 p.m. match on Friday. After an off day Saturday, the Aces trek to Indianapolis for a 10 a.m. match at IUPUI on Sunday

The leading rebounder in the Missouri Valley Conference added to his numbers as Egidijus Mockevicius posted 11 more caroms to go along with 19 points, but Anthony Beane posted 22 as Southern Illinois dealt the Purple Aces a 61-56 loss on Saturday evening at the Ford Center.

Mockevicius posted his fifth double-double in six games while tying his career-high with points. Blake Simmons also had a strong outing, posting 11 points, including three triples for the Aces (11-18, 4-12 MVC). Beane led all players with 22 points on a 8-of-18 shooting night. Desmar Jackson added 15 while going a perfect 8-8 in the win.

The 3's were falling early on for the Salukis (12-17, 8-8 MVC) as they registered the first six points of the contest. Beane nailed a trey in the opening possession before Tyler Smithpeters added one of his own to give SIU an early 6-0 lead. Egidijus Mockevicius got the Aces on the board with a dunk at the 3 minute mark, but Sean O'Brien quickly made it a 3-4 start from long range to give Southern Illinois a 9-3 advantage.

Evansville would get within four points at 13-9 before the Salukis went on a 12-2 run as they opened up their largest lead of the game at 25-11 inside of eight minutes remaining in the period. The Aces went 0-4 from the field over that stretch while committing four turnovers.

Just as the first part of the half belonged to the Salukis, the final seven minutes saw UE make its run. Evansville finished the half on a 12-4 run to trail by just six, 29-23, at halftime. Mockevicius was the Aces' top scorer in the frame, going 4-5 for nine points with five rebounds.

Out of the break, the Aces kept the rally going. Beane started the half with five quick points as the Saluki lead reached nine once again, 36-27. From there, UE charged back, going on a 12-1 run while hitting six out of ten shots to take their first lead of the day at 39-37. Blake Simmons tied it up with his first triple of the day before Mockevicius hit his sixth shot of the night to give Evansville its first advantage of the contest.

SIU and UE swapped the lead over the next seven minutes with no team leading by more than two. That changed outside of the 5 minute mark as Bola Olaniyan knocked down a free throw before Beane hit his eight shot of the night to give the Salukis a 52-47 edge.

Mockevicius struck again in the final minutes as a layup brought UE within just one at 52-51, but Desmar Jackson calmly stepped to the line and hit all four free throw attempts with just over a minute left as the Saluki lead reached 56-51. Simmons got the Aces three points closer with a triple inside of the final minute.

He got the job done on the inbound, stealing the ball and giving UE a chance to tie it up or take the lead. Unfortunately, a turnover on the inbound pass led to two more SIU points before they would go on to take the 61-56 victory. Jackson went a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe in the final 1:20 of the game to seal the win.

Led by Olaniyan’s 11 boards, the Salukis finished with a 45-26 advantage on the boards. The Aces shot 44.2% for the night while holding SIU to 35.8%.

A great weekend of action created for a memorable couple of days for those affiliated with UE. Friday afternoon saw the Jim Byers Pathway to Excellence unveiled before Saturday morning featured the UE Athletics Hall of Fame banquet with seven new members receiving their enshrinement. At halftime of tonight's game, Scott Haffner became the sixth Ace overall and the first of the Division I era to have his jersey retired.

The Aces will complete their home slate on Tuesday against Drake with tip set for 7:05 p.m. at the Ford Center. UE's regular season wraps up next weekend with a trip to Loyola on March 1 for a 3 p.m. game.
 

Former University of Evansville Athletics Director and Coach Jim Byers was honored on Friday with the dedication of the “Jim Byers Pathway to Excellence”.

Well over 100 were in attendance including Byers’ former players, staff, friends and current UE personnel and student-athletes. The pathway connects the front of the Carson Center to the Fifth Third Basketball Practice Facility. Plaques in honor of him are placed at each entrance to the path.

Byers was shocked by the announcement, which was kept as a surprise until the event, which took place at noon on Friday.

“Overwhelmed is the best word I can use to describe my feelings,” Byers said. “I have been blessed through the years with my career of 33 years at UE. I worked with so many great staff members, coaches and student-athletes and am grateful to every one of them for what they have done for me.”

A project that has been in the making for several months was started by one of Byers’ former players – Roger Mason. Through his work and that of the UE staff, donations were garnered from over 80 people that included those who he coached and worked with throughout his career.

UE President Dr. Thomas A. Kazee spoke at the event along with Athletics Director John Stanley, Mason and Coach Marty Simmons. Following the speakers, Rev. Mark Sirnic of the Bethlehem United Church of Christ blessed the pathway. All echoed the sentiments of what Byers’ 33 years meant to the university.

“Jim was one of the first people that I met at the University when I arrived; you could see just how much he meant to everyone and we are proud to be able to honor him today,” Kazee said.

Stanley, who took over as the AD in 2007, said that Byers has played a pivotal role in assisting him whenever asked. “Jim is such an asset to myself and the University,” he said. “We are very thankful for everything he has done and are proud to dedicate this pathway.”

Byers’ career at UE began as the football coach. Between 1966 and 1977, he won 51 games, more than any other coach in program history. Beginning in 1977, he took over as the AD, a position he held until 1997. He helped in the forming of four conferences in his time as an administrator while also guiding the Purple Aces into the Missouri Valley Conference.

His leadership was never more evident than the time following the plane crash on December 13, 1977. His guidance helped to those affected by the accident to heal and rebuild the program to great heights in a short time.

Simmons commented on how much his leadership continues to be pivotal to his program to this day. “Coach Byers stops by the office every week; it is a pleasure to be able to speak with him and get his advice, his contributions to the University and athletics department are immeasurable,” Simmons stated.

One of those whom Byers gave a chance to was Jim Crews. Byers chose him to succeed Dick Walters as the head basketball coach at UE and Crews is forever grateful to the impact that Byers made on him going forward. A note from Crews was read at the dedication and perhaps no part of that better symbolizes what Byers has done for so many people.

“Even though I did not play for you, I consider you my coach,” Crews said.