The deadline for Student Commencement Speaker submissions is being extended.

As the University continues to navigate challenges related to the global pandemic, the Student Commencement Speaker Committee has decided to extend the date of the competition for the Senior Keynote Address. The Committee acknowledges that the disruptions of the last week have been particularly disappointing to those of you at the end of your college experience. Yet we realize, too, that many of you have found wisdom and inspiration in these difficult moments. Many of you may want to reflect on these weeks as a part of a keynote address, and we want to ensure that you have the time to do so. We remain committed to selecting a keynote speaker from the class of 2020, ensuring that your voice is heard.

When next steps regarding Spring 2020 Commencement have been determined, the Committee will provide information regarding the updated process. The Senior Keynote Address has been an especially meaningful moment during Commencement, and we look forward to celebrating that moment during the University of Evansville 162nd Commencement.

We need your help! Aces Haven is a student established resource center that features a fully stocked food pantry, personal hygiene items, and various articles of clothing. Additionally, we have established an electronic food pantry that allows us to transfer donated Ace Bucks. We have some students still on campus and off campus who need our help in the days ahead. Currently open 10am to 1pm, Monday - Friday. Items can be left outside of Neu Chapel at the east door.

Through March 27th, our office will continue to process checks and payroll in accordance with our regular schedule with one exception.  There will not be a check run on Thursday, March 26th.  Please review the following information regarding the submission of documentation for processing.

Accounts Payable 
• Vouchers submitted by 5:00 pm on Monday (with all departmental approvals) will be paid in the Tuesday or Thursday check run of that week. 
• During this time, vouchers and invoices can be emailed as a PDF or delivered to the Office of Accounting & Audit. 
• Original receipts are required (as always) before we can process a reimbursement. 

Payroll
• Timecards/timesheets need to be submitted by Saturday, March 14th at midnight.
• Supervisors will need to approve the timecards/timesheets by noon on Monday, March 16th. 

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Information

Nominations are now being accepted for consideration of The Howard S. Rosenblatt “Dean of Students Leadership Awards.” These awards will be presented at the 27th Annual Leadership Awards Reception scheduled for April 22, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. Invitations will be prepared by the Center for Student Engagement.

Awards are presented in the following categories:

• Student Organization Advisor of the Year
• Student Organization of the Year
• Student Leader of the Year

Over 80% of UE students participate in at least one student organization or program. These organizations are successful because of the commitment of the student leaders and the advisors who give freely of their time and support. The recipients of these awards are selected based on their commitment to the University of Evansville as well as the development and success of their efforts within their chosen student organization.

The deadline for nominations is March 27, 2020. Submit your nomination.

If you have any questions, please contact the Vice President for Student Affairs/Dean of Students office at 812-488-2500 or cb131@evansville.edu.

Thank you in advance for celebrating our student leaders’ achievements!

Carleen Barnes
cb131@evansville.edu

The Center for the Advancement of Learning is offering the online workshop “Navigating Generational Differences in the Work Place” free to UE faculty and staff. This workshop will be facilitated by Tad Dickel, PhD, on Tuesday, March 31, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Many employers are trying to navigate three to four different generations working in their organizations. This workshop will introduce characteristics and differences of Traditionalists, Baby Boomers, Generation X, and Millennials. Participants will learn about the unique perspectives of each generation that lead to conflict. A process will be introduced for multi-generational teams to work through these conflicts to get better results.

To register, please email Cindy Felts at cf128@evansville.edu by Thursday, March 26.

Cindy Felts
cf128@evansville.edu

Get the Health Care You Need—When You Need It

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and World Health Organization (WHO) are actively monitoring the outbreak of the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19), which has infected thousands of people worldwide.

At Meritain Health®, we are focused on the health and safety of our members. That’s why Meritain Health takes steps to plan on your behalf. We’re here to help.

Fill your prescriptions

If you need to replace your medication or request a refill, that’s okay. Simply call the Customer Service number of your pharmacy plan to speak with a representative. The phone number of your pharmacy plan is listed on your member ID card.

What to do if you’ve lost your ID card

Taking care of yourself and your family’s safety is your number one concern. And if you’ve left home without your health care ID card, that’s OK. You can call 1.888.324.5789 to speak with a Customer Service representative with questions and for more information.

Get the medical care you need

If you need urgent or emergency care but are away from home, you can always visit an urgent care center or hospital no matter where you are*. And when you need non-urgent care, you can visit your online meritain.com account to search for a provider in your network. It’s available to you around the clock—24 hours a day.

Additionally, Aetna has opened its Resources for Living services, regardless of whether or not you already have this service as part of your benefits plan. You can call 1.833.327.2386 for any questions or concerns you may have.

Find answers to your health care questions

If you have other questions, need help finding a provider, or just need help using your health care benefits away from home, we’re here for you. Simply call Meritain Health Customer Service using the phone number on your member ID card. You can also call 1.888.324.5789 for assistance.

* Applicable plan terms apply.

www.meritain.com

The in-person Federal Loan Repayment Counseling sessions scheduled for 4/30 and 5/8 have been cancelled. The Office of Student Financial Services will communicate directly with graduating students via their UE email with the necessary information during the next few weeks.

Amy Sowders
as560@evansville.edu

From the comforts of your home, join Megan Sicard on Monday (3/23) at 5:00 pm for yoga on Facebook live. Go to the University of Evansville Fitness Center Facebook page to join in. More details will be posted on the Facebook page. Our goal is to keep you engaged.

Lori Adams
la87@evansville.edu

Have you been reconciling your Pcard transactions as they post in SDG2? Transactions usually post within 24 to 48 hrs after a purchase. Once a transaction posts in SDG2 it is ready to be reconciled by adding the expense description and the account number including the appropriate object code. The March cycle will be ending at midnight on 3/23/2020. The March cycle report may be ran on 3/25/2020 until the the SDG2 lock-out occurs on March 30 for the General Ledger upload.

For questions contact the Office of Administrative Services at extension 2941.

Kim Winsett
kw83@evansville.edu

The Department of Philosophy and Religion is offering a one-credit course this Fall (2020) on “Plato’s Virtues” that addresses Plato’s take on key virtues, their centrality in ancient Greek life, and their applicability today.

Since the Greek virtues are pertinent to the lives and rituals of our Greek campus communities and in order to promote our chapter houses as places of living and learning, the course will be held in the SigEp formal room on Thursdays at 2:45. (Time may be adjusted with permission of those enrolled to a more suitable time if necessary.)

Even though the course may be especially pertinent to students in Greek Life, the course is open to all UE students and will also be of interest to those who enjoy the study of ancient Greek life and culture.

However, seating is limited. If you are interested in tentatively reserving a seat in advance of registration, please contact the instructor, Dr. Beavers, for details at tb2@evansville.edu.

A full description follows.

PHIL 459.3 – Plato’s Virtues – 1 credit – Thursdays @ 2:45

This seminar explores several of Plato’s shorter works on the nature of virtue along with selections from the Republic. Texts will include the Lysis, which asks about friendship, the Laches, which asks about courage, and the Charmides, which asks about moderation. Other virtues to be considered here include honor, wisdom, and justice. Among issues to be considered in this study, we will address how these virtues fit into the ancient Greek social sphere, their contemporary meanings, and to what extent they remain marks of good character today.

This seminar is geared toward those who are interested in campus Greek Life and/or ancient Greek philosophy and culture. It is also pertinent to those pursuing majors and minors in ethics and social change.

Anthony Beavers
tb2@evansville.edu

Are you interested in taking a non-majors biology course with a lab this summer to fulfill one of your scientific literacy general education requirements? Then take BIOL 100 D01 – Fundamentals of Biology during Summer I (May 18 to June 19). Please contact Dale Edwards (de3) for more details.

Dale Edwards
de3@evansville.edu

Dr. Harmon, assistant professor of physics, and Richard Gerst, senior physics/math major, were scheduled to give talks at the American Physical Society's (APS) March Meeting in Denver, CO during the first week of March. Unfortunately the conference was cancelled. Their presentations were made public on the APS abstract in lieu of live presentation.

The work by Richard was conducted last summer and over the course of the last two semesters thanks to UExplore. Richard studied how electrons move through organic semiconductors and focused on how their spin (internal magnetism of an electron) changed while they moved. A large portion of the work was to develop and improve simulations of the phenomena. Richard's contributed presentation slides, "Simulating Spin Relaxation in Organic Semiconductors", can be found at http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/MAR20/Session/A11.3.

The presentation by Dr. Harmon, "Magnetoresistance Measurements as an Alternative to Magnetic Resonance Methods for Studying Paramagnetic Defects", dealt with a new technique to explore defects in materials. The technique is an alternative to magnetic resonance (e.g. MRI or EPR) that offers several advantages when studying defects in electronic devices (like transistors). Dr. Harmon's invited presentation slides and talk can be found at http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/MAR20/Session/S19.3.

Nicholas Harmon
nh140@evansville.edu

As UE continues to implement a variety of measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, campus mail, packages and In-House supply orders will be handled differently as of Friday, March 13, 2020, until normal operations resume:
• Distribution Services will “hold” mail, packages, and in-house supply orders for campus buildings (i.e. academic buildings) that are “closed” (locked). However, departmental representatives working in closed buildings may pick-up their mail/packages/supply orders from Distribution Services, anytime between 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday – Friday.

• Distribution Services will deliver mail, packages, and in-house supply orders to “open” (not locked) campus buildings (i.e. Olmsted and Igleheart).

For questions, email Distributionservices@evansville.edu

Kim Winsett
kw83@evansville.edu

The University of Evansville Alumni Association recognizes an Outstanding Teacher for exemplary instruction and student support at Spring Commencement. UE administrators, faculty, staff, student and alumni may nominate a faculty member who exemplifies the award’s criteria for outstanding teaching effectiveness that inspires the intellectual development of students.

Please use the link below to nominate a faculty member for the auspicious occasion.
https://www.evansville.edu/alumni/outstandingteacher.cfm

Full-time faculty who have taught in the classroom at UE for two years or more and hold the rank of lecturer, instructor, assistant professor, associate professor or professor are eligible for nomination. Past award recipients include: Dr. Margaret Stevenson, 2015; Dr. M. Kevin Gray, 2016; Dr. Mary Ellen Wylie, 2017; Dr. Tony Beavers, 2018 and Dr. Atefeh Yazdanparast, 2019.

The deadline to submit a nomination is Monday, March 23, 2020, at 5 pm. For questions, contact Tracey Folden at tf91@evansville.edu.

Tracey Folden
tf91@Evansville.edu

Due to the campus precautions for COVID-19, the bookstore will be closed until March 30th. Online ordering is still available and we will be fulfilling those orders are we come in.

We apologize for the inconvenience this may cause, but please contact us by email, bookstore@evansville.edu, if you are in need of anything.

Please stay safe and we'll see you after the closure with our newly renovated store!

Becky Lamont
sm8342@bncollege.com

If you are a Masters or Doctoral grad who still needs to order your cap/gown/hood, you have until March 27th to do so by email. Please email us at sm8342@bncollege.com with you name, your degree, phone number, best email, and height.

Your prepackaged regalia will arrive in mid- to late April, and we will be sending out an email blast to everyone who has ordered. You will pay the time of pick-up.

Becky Lamont
sm8342@bncollege.com

Don’t wait until you graduate – make a difference now! Check out the list of ChangeLab courses available for the Fall semester. For more information, visit evansville.edu/changelab.

Cindy Kelley
ck116@evansville.edu

Dr. David Murphy's paper, entitled "Underground Knowledge: Estimating the Impacts of Soil Information Transfers through Experimental Auctions" has been accepted for publication at the American Journal of Agricultural Economics, an A* rated economics journal. The paper explores the topic of soil degradation, a serious problem in many developing countries, which often necessitates the use of fertilizers to improve crop yields. However, smallholder farmers usually do not have sufficient information about their soil nutrient levels to make profit-maximizing decisions about fertilizer usage. In this paper, Murphy conducted two-round experimental auctions to determine whether providing information and fertilizer recommendations from inexpensive soil testing kits to farmers in western Kenya affected their behavior and ability to optimize their input choices. We auctioned organic and inorganic agricultural inputs, dividing farmers into information treatments. We find that providing soil information has significant effects on farmers’ willingness to pay for inputs. We then use Monte Carlo simulations to show that there is potential for high net benefits to farmers from individualized soil tests. These results suggest that soil testing can be a cost-effective method to increase food security in the region.

David Murphy
dm283@evansville.edu