Kendall Center NewsletterSeptember 1, 2022

What's new in the Kendall Center

After a year as the Kendall Center Director, we say good bye and a huge thank you to Ruth Lin! The new Kendall Center DIrector is Pamela Conners. The Kendall Center is happy to welcome Maddalena Marinari as the new Faculty Associate of Research, Scholarship and Creativity (RSC). Continuing Faculty Associates include Patricia English and Dan Moos as the Excellence in Teaching Faculty Associates, David Stamps as the New Faculty Programming Faculty Associate, Esther Wang as the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Faculty Associate, and Martin Lang remains the Community Engaged Learning Faculty Associate. 

Sabbatical Re-Entry Lunch

There will be a lunch and meeting for those faculty returning from Sabbatical on Friday, September 9 from Noon to 2 p.m. in the St Peter Room.

Faculty Social

All faculty are invited to the Faculty Social on Friday, September 9 from 4:30 to 6 p.m. in the Anderson Hall Atruim. Refreshments provided. 

Creative Writing Retreats in September 

Locate your sources, charge your batteries, and sharpen your pencils! The Kendall Center will host a series of monthly writing retreats aimed toward new faculty, but all faculty are welcome. Interested faculty can sign up for a full day – 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. - devoted to writing in the Konfersrum on September 11 and 25. We’ll provide lunch, you provide the inspiration. Please email Cathy Blaukat (cblaukat@gac.edu) to sign up and get a coupon for free lunch at Marketplace.

New Faculty Orientation Session: Checking In

Join us on Thursday, September 15 for a New Faculty Orientation Session. Topic: Checking‐in. An open‐ended opportunity for new faculty to get to know each other, share their experiences in the first week, and have questions answered in a supportive environment. What are your intentions for the semester and how might your goals be reached? Grab your lunch coupon from David Stamps and then head over to the St Peter Room, 12:30 to 1:20 p.m.

Teachers Talking: Nobel

Please join us on Thursday, September 15 for Teachers Talking. Topic: Nobel Conference 2022: Supporting student mental health . Nobel Co-Chairs, Marie Walker (Psychological Science), Angelique Dwyer (MLLC, Spanish and LALACS), Hannah Godbout (Director, Counseling Center), and Lisa Heldke (Philosophy, Gender, Women and Sexuality Studies, and Director in Nobel Conference) will provide insight into the 2022 conference "Mental Health (IN)Equity and Young People." Program is from 2:30 pm to 3:30pm. Snacks/beverages provided (Marketplace coupons), then meet in the St Peter Room. For a full list of sessions please visit the Kendall Center webpage under Teachers Talking.

Kendall Center Trivia Night

4th (not-quite) Annual Kendall Center Trivia Night! On Friday, September 16, 4:30pm give your brain a break from classes and revel in the fun as you compete with your fellow faculty for the world's most prestigious prizes: Pens! Socks! A Trophy! Come with a team of up to 5 people or join one when you arrive. Special questions will feature fun facts about GAC faculty members, so now's the time to strike up a conversation and dig all the skeletons out of their closets! Trivia will take place in the Interpretive Center with oodles of not-so-trivial refreshments! Trivia hosts: Whitney Dirks and Annalise Rivas.

Faculty Writing Retreats at Gustavus and ASI 

The Kendall Center is hosting monthly Writing Retreats at Gustavus and at American Swedish Institute (ASI). September Writing Retreats will be held on Saturday, September 17th at at Gustavus (Konferensrum) and American Swedish Institute, Mpls ($15 toward lunch). Faculty can participate in a full day 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. devoted to writing. We’ll provide lunch. Please visit the Kendall Center website for upcoming dates and info. Please email Cathy Blaukat (cblaukat@gac.edu) to sign up.

New Faculty Orientation Session

Join us on Thursday, September 22 for a New Faculty Orientation Session. Topic: Grading: Policies and Rubrics. How might we grade assignments strategically? We can save time while giving students valuable feedback. We will also discuss the nuts and bolts of grading policies in general. A variety of assignment types are discussed. Facilitator: Sarah Ruble, Associate Provost & Dean of Academic Programs and Accreditation and Professor of Religion. Grab your lunch coupon from David Stamps and then head over to the St Peter Room, 12:30 to 1:20 p.m.

Advisor Development Workshop

Join faculty on Thursday, September 22 from 9:00 to 10:00 AM in the President's Dining Room (PDR) for a workshop on: Advising First-Generation Students. What should advisors know about advising first-generation college students? Join us to learn more! Register here! Sponsored by the Academic Support Center and the Kendall Center.

New Faculty Creative Writing Days

Join colleagues for day of writing on campus, in the Konferensrum starting at 9 am to 5 pm. Lunch provided. Upcoming dates are September 11 and September 25, 2022. For the rest of the monthly days, please visit out website.

Faculty Shop Talk - Matthew Panciera

Matt Panciera (Associate Professor in Classical Studies) will present at Faculty Shop Talk on Friday, September 23. His talk “The Most Remarkable Epitaph of the Ancient Roman Freedwoman, Allia Potestas” will be presented at 4:30 p.m. in the Interpretive Center. Feel free to arrive any time after 4:15 p.m. The abstract for this and future talks may be viewed on the Kendall Center website.

2 Day Faculty Writing Retreat at Mt Olivet

The Kendall Center is sponsoring a Writing Retreat for faculty on Friday October 14 and 15, 2022 at Mount Olivet Conference and Retreat Center in Farmington, MN. This is a great opportunity to focus on your writing. The retreat is open to all faculty. The Kendall Center covers the cost of the retreat which is for a single room. Please RSVP to Cathy Blaukat to sign up.

Faculty Shop Talk - Presenter Needed

The Kendall Center is looking for a faculty presenter for the October 28th session. Also, if you would like to present at a Shop Talk next year, please contact Cathy Blaukat so that your name can be added to the list of future presenters. Remember, any type of research, scholarship, or creativity is appropriate for presentation at a Shop Talk as long as the majority of what is presented represents the presenter’s own work. Work in progress presentations are fine. Thank you for your support of the Shop Talk series, both past and present.

Nobel Conference FREE Book for Faculty

The Kendall Center is pleased to offer faculty and staff the book, The Vanishing Half, in connection to this fall's Nobel Conference. The Vanishing Half is a story about identity, race, discrimination and the long-term effects of trauma. Estelle and Desiree are light-skinned Black identical twins growing up in a small Southern town. They run away from home as teenagers to escape the limitations of their upbringing and the trauma they experienced. As they grow older, Desiree returns to her home with a daughter much darker skinned than herself and Estelle passes for White, leaving her Black identity behind. Their differing responses to their identities lead them to different communities, relationships and opportunities. The story of the twins and the intersection of the lives of their young adult daughters reveal the impact that White privilege has on these women who look the same but have taken different life paths. Email Cathy Blaukat (cblaukat@gustavus.edu) and a copy will be placed in your campus mailbox.

Calendars

If you didnt' receive a 2022-2023 Kendall Center printed calendar in your campus mail box or would like another one, please send an email request to Cathy Blaukat and one will be placed in campus mail for you!