Academic Life

As teachers and scholars, the faculty in the international studies program is aware that the educational objectives of any institution of higher learning are pursued through careful intellectual development and awareness. The free flow of ideas in a community like Ferrum is salient, and both faculty and students must accede vigorously to such a norm. The faculty sees it as its immediate responsibility to advance a global educational experience which complements the college's tradition of liberal learning. The international studies program strongly promotes the idea that the education of students must be inspired by constructive intellectual inquiry, and a worldview influenced by a fervent desire to impart a humanistic value to the search for knowledge. Obviously, the courses in the program have over the years increased the responsibility of the faculty to teach students how to engage material and also how to think globally. The idea of cultivating active learners through global experiences reveals intimately the full magic of the connection between searching and finding a meaning to some important facets to human existence. The international studies program exposes its students to varied theoretical and conceptual tools relevant to the complexities of a changing world.

Studying global issues in a rural community in Virginia offers a real unique opportunity and excitement to a campus culture of learning. The program promotes the idea that the mixture of tradition and modernity enriches the texture and fabric of academic learning at Ferrum College. The rural setting offers a learning and living laboratory conducive to a careful examination of parochialism, indigenization and globalization. The underlying assumption is that this approach to global education not only defies the practice of some students to develop a myopic view of international affairs, but it stresses a ground-level approach to the development of informed and enlightened global citizens.

The international studies program continues to promote the Model United Nations as important to the learning experience of students. The idea of bringing knowledge alive is a trade mark of the Model UN and the annual event continues to draw students from other academic disciplines. It offers the students a great opportunity to research and find solutions to pressing global issues. Students in international studies are given the opportunity every spring to put into practice many of the theoretical knowledge acquired from their classroom experiences.

The development of the Great Political Conversation Series with the support of the Adult Education program at Ferrum College encourages community leaders and ordinary citizens to engage in a wide variety of global issues. The purpose of the conversation series is to draw members of the surrounding local communities into a relationship with the academic community at Ferrum College. These programs target everyone willing to participate in roundtable discussion on interesting, controversial and stimulating issues. The ultimate goal is to pursue the discovery of knowledge and understanding in a disarming environment that sharpens participants’ awareness of the nature and consequences of political happenings. The participants are encouraged to question and challenge vigorously the role of political institutions, citizens and other actors relevant to the international environment.

The students in international studies will continue to play a leadership role in the production of The Passport. To our alumni, the growth of the program should be seen as a devotion of the faculty to the kind of global education that you have come to expect from Ferrum College. To prospective students, we hope you see the opportunity to study international studies at Ferrum as an exciting adventure that will be filled with meaningful challenges.

Dr. Frédéric Belle Torimiro
Coordinator, International Studies Program
P.O. Box 2298, Ferrum College
Ferrum, VA 24088
(540) 365-4404
ftorimiro@ferrum.edu

The Political Science program since 1987 remains one of the strongest academic offerings of Ferrum College. The overall reputation of the program is based on the rigor of the courses, the high levels of expectation, graduation rate, and the number of students who have completed successfully or are currently pursuing post-graduate education. The program continues to maintain a tradition of excellence while it strives to produce students who understand the intrinsic value of reasoned discourse and the essence of cross-cultural experiences. Political Science majors have come to expect not only demanding classes but also academic learning that hones their analytical, critical and oral skills. The students now understand that the totality of their learning experience is one marked by a high culture of service.

PROGRAM MISSION STATEMENT
The Political Science program is committed to developing the complete student who can easily function in a local or global community. The program expects students to reflect on their role in the global community as participants and human beings. The emphasis placed on skills development, self-awareness, ethical responsibility and cultural understanding is an acknowledgement of the program’s devotion to the substantive reasons and benefits of the Ferrum College experience.

The Political Science program also understands the logic of students engaged in experiential and community-based learning. By emphasizing service learning, the program encourages its students to combine critical citizenship, reasoning and effective social transformation. It recognizes that it must expose its students to a liberal learning environment that promotes specific foundational civic skills and community building.

The tradition of excellence in the program was highlighted last year with the establishment of a chapter of Pi Sigma Alpha at Ferrum College. This political science national honor society was founded in 1920 at the University of Texas. It is intended to recognize students in political science, public administration and international studies who have excelled academically. The initiation of six students and two faculty members last spring into Alpha Beta Pi (our chapter’s name) was carried out in the Founders room and officiated by Dr. Ed Lynch, Chair and Professor of Political Science at Hollins University. The ceremony was also supported by the presence of Dr. Jennifer Braaten and faculty members from the Division and History, Political Science and the Arts.

In terms of our course listings, PSC 306: Politics and Human Rights will be offered for the third time in Fall 2005 with the support of appropriate technology. It should continue to attract students concerned about rights issues and the essence of their moral obligations and humanity. We also see it as a course that may inspire advocacy while at the same time promoting reasoned discourse. The inaugural offering of PSC 207: Special Issues is taking place this spring semester. It is anticipated that the wide variety of issues covered this semester will subsequently give way to a narrower topical approach. Of course, the primary goal of the course is to introduce students by their sophomore year to the importance of active learning by engaging in profound intellectual inquiry.

The program still strongly believes that the culture of active learning can be enhanced greatly through service learning. Students in political science are encouraged to understand that classroom learning and practical experience are interrelated and relevant to the core value of community building and responsible citizenship. The program has just purchased, with the support of the Technology initiative program, several webcams which will be used to facilitate the communication between the students and the community partners. The majors taking PSC 299: Citizenship and Service Learning also developed a program last fall for at risk youth in the Rocky Mount area. The idea of Camp Ferrum has mushroomed into a community relations endeavor which will be organized every semester.

The Political Science program will continue to promote the use of appropriate and effective technology in teaching and learning. It works on the basic premise that technology for technology sake does not ensure student success. Notwithstanding, the faculty in the program will continue to explore ways in which technology can be used to increase active learning and to strengthen faculty-student collaborations. Students in political science recognize the importance of technology in the age of globalization and realize that it can be a useful tool in bridging cultural and generational divides.

The development of the Great Political Conversation Series with the support of the Adult Education program at Ferrum College encourages community leaders and ordinary citizens to engage in a wide variety of political issues. The purpose of the conversation series is to draw members of the surrounding local communities into a relationship with the academic community at Ferrum College. These programs target everyone willing to participate in roundtable discussion on interesting, controversial and stimulating issues. The ultimate goal is to pursue the discovery of knowledge and understanding in a disarming environment that sharpens participants’ awareness of the nature and consequences of political happenings. The participants are encouraged to question and challenge vigorously the role of institutions, citizens and other actors relevant to political discourse.

The Political Science program is primarily responsible for establishing the Post- Graduate Information and Testing Center. The Center is equipped with computers that will be used by the students in the program, in the division, and college-wide to prepare for the LSAT, GRE and GMAT. The Center is sometimes being used by students who need to make up tests in a setting with few distractions. We believe that it would be appropriate to have a make-up test environment that is not detrimental to the performance or success of our students.

The students in political science will continue to play a major role in the production of The Passport. To our alumni, the growth of the program should be seen as a commitment of the faculty to make you proud of your experiences at Ferrum College. To prospective students, we hope you see the opportunity to study political science at Ferrum as a journey that will be filled with meaningful challenges and excitement.

Dr. Frédéric Belle Torimiro
Coordinator, Political Science Program
P.O. Box 2298, Ferrum College
Ferrum, VA 24088
(540) 365-4404
ftorimiro@ferrum.edu

Dr. Milton Rowan
Dr. Milton Rowan, program coordinator and Division Chair for the History Department, has just returned from a semester over in London. Over in London he taught two different classes on U.S.-British Relations at Imperial College alongside other American professors. Since returning to Ferrum he has had to adjust from the fast-paced lifestyle that London offered him last semester. While he was sad to leave London, he is excited about the future of the History Department, “We have a lot of good students in both the History and Social Studies departments right now. I am also excited about the scholarly activity taking place within the faculty, such as published work and new course development. The future of these departments looks very promising.”

Dr. Richard Smith
Dr. Richard Smith, Professor of History, has been extremely busy over this past year. He has spent extensive amount of time trying to finish up his book, Ahmad al-Mansur: A Sixteenth Century Moroccan Sultan. He began the research for this book in 2001, and is now going through the revision process. After working 10 hours a day over Christmas Break, including Christmas and New Years Eve, he was able to send in the latest revision of the book right before Spring Break. When asked about the process of writing a book on an ancient historical figure he said, “I like to deal with limited sources that Ancient History offers. In the case of Ahmad al-Mansur I found one source that was written by a man who was paid to write good things about the Sultan. So, of course, I have to search through its biased intentions to find out the truth. I really enjoy that challenge.”

Besides finalizing his book, Dr. Smith is also working with a company out in California that produces reference books for libraries. This company has two series, Great Events and Great Lives in History. Both series are multi-volume and specialized by centuries. So far Dr. Smith has written 12 essays for them, including three this spring. Each essay has to be roughly 1500 words. His essays focus on North and West Africa, especially in the 15th, 16th, and 17th, centuries. However, his latest essay was on 19th century West African explorers, which he admitted was one of the few areas he considered himself an expert on regarding the 19th century in West Africa.

Dr. Michael Trochim
Dr. Michael Trochim, Professor of History, has been extremely busy this semester gearing up for his Civil War Tour that will take place after commencement. Besides setting up this class he is also busy putting together a course focused on the school’s proposed 3-week program. This course is focused on revising old historical documents to a more modern-day format that will be more understandable for students of all ages. Besides spending his time developing new courses for the History department he is also the consulting historian for Children’s Historical Investigation Leading to Discovery, which is an academic historical program directed towards 4th and 5th graders.

Dr. Daniel Woods
Dr. Dan Woods, Professor of History, has provided the entire Ferrum community with great inspiration over the past year. In July of this past summer Dr. Woods’s life was almost taken from him as he had to undergo open heart surgery. After the surgery Dr. Woods had to endure countless hours of medical tests and rehab. Even under these conditions and numerous prescriptions he was on, Dr. Woods exemplified his love for teaching by returning for the fall semester. It has been a long, slow process for Dr. Woods, but the Associate Pastor at Martinsville Church of God seems very optimistic with upcoming projects dated for this summer and into the next school year.

Dr. Woods is scheduled to write two articles for an Encyclopedia regarding the history of Pentecostalism. The first article focuses on the first person to preach Pentecostalism in the south, while the second article is on the first Pentecostal missionary to China. Due to Dr. Woods’s insight and knowledge on the history of Pentecostalism, he has been given the great privilege to participate in the Centennial of the Azusa St. revival at Los Angeles Coliseum in April 2006. At this revival, Dr. Woods will be contributing an article to be sold in a collection of volumes on the history and legacy of the revival, which took place in 1906.

Dr. Woods is also working on two book manuscripts which he believes will keep him occupied for the next four years or so. The first manuscript is an expansion of his dissertation which entails the visionary experience during the early years of Pentecostalism in the Appalachian area. The second manuscript is based on the impact that the railroad had towards the emergence of Evangelicalism, such as the opportunity to travel around the nation at a much faster pace.

It is a pleasure to report that the Dramatic and Theatre Arts Department has been doing many exciting things this year. During the first semester Dr. Stephenson headed a multi-college production of The Nativity that was funded by The Appalachian College Association. There was a reprise of The Nativity that featured Ferrum College drama majors and folks from the community. Dr. Stephenson is to be commended for his efforts to export the essence of the college motto, “Not Self, but Others.”

The Ferrum College Drama Department also presented an evening of thought provoking one-act plays produced by the combined talents of the Play Production and Directing classes. The first play was Jumping, a comedy-drama about suicide that was directed by Tiffany Tucker. The second production, The Orphan Train was about throw-away kids and was directed by Ashley White. Third in the series was Florence, a biting serio-comedy about racism and bigotry directed by Marie Willis-St. Clair. The final performance of the night was Sister Mary Ignatius Tells All, a dark, dark, surreal comedy-drama about hypocrisy and child abuse that was directed by Nicole Sanderson.

Of course, the Jack Tales Traveling Theatre Troupe has been busy entertaining children and adults through three decades. Professor Stephenson has also formulated plans to tour and perform with the Jack Tales through the first part of the summer. It was necessary to take this approach to accommodate the extensive building and renovation that has already begun and will continue through the summer into the fall.

Senior drama majors, Brooke Gill and Ashley White, wrote and mounted two successful senior seminar productions. The productions were the capstones of their college careers. Ms. Gill brought Mama Cass Elliot to the stage in her production that entertained with flamboyant episodes from the heyday of the Mamas and the Papas. Ashley White took on the challenging role of Susan Strasburg. She painted an interesting picture of a talented actress who was often tortured even in her success.

This spring the Drama Department mounted a production of the Pulitzer Prize winning play, Wit. This play was ably performed by the dedicated drama majors. The production challenged the actors to achieve new aesthetic standards. The cast and crew developed roles and accomplished design and technical duties that stretched their talents and abilities.

The students and faculty in the Drama Department are looking forward to and planning the next season of exciting productions. The fall production will be Amahl and the Night Visitors and will be a joint effort between the Drama and Music Departments.

The many student accomplishments in performance have served to showcase the talents and creativity that is only possible when an ensemble works together for the common purposes of entertaining and challenging audiences. Schoolfield Hall comes alive in the creative learning atmosphere that is engendered when the students are totally committed to the philosophy and methods of the program.

Assistant Professor of Art, Ms. Nancy Hart, is a fresh face here at Ferrum College,

having just been employed after the sudden departure of Professor Ed Gloria. Even though she’s new to the faculty, she still finds time to pursue her first love, art. Currently she has entered her own artwork in various competitions around the globe. She has submitted work to a competition of book arts in England as well as collage work in a show in Lithuania. She herself will be traveling abroad this summer to Italy to do research on the drawings and paintings of the masters. Some of her stops include Pompeii, Rome, and the city of Turin.

Phi Alpha Theta is a National History Honors Society that has been at Ferrum for about twelve years. These top students are eligible for scholarships, participate in conferences, and get to well a Phi Alpha Theta cord at their graduation. In order to become a member of Phi Alpha Theta a student must have 18 hours of history completed, a 3.2 GPA in history, and a 3.0 cumulative GPA. This year’s initiation and Dinner will be held on April 7th and there will be eight new students joining this elite society. The students are: Cassandra Barney, Matt Brantley, Ryan Cornett, Sue Ellen Harrison, Scottie Hilton, Justin Hoges (graduated in Dec.), Scott Spitzer, and Michele Walling. These eight students have exemplified great scholarly work throughout their academic careers here at Ferrum. Besides these eight students, members of the Dean’s List in History, Political Science, Social Studies, and International Studies will also be honored at the April 7th banquet. Congratulations to all of these students for a job well done!

The Wildlife Club is a reinstated club on campus this Spring of 2005. The club holds several events, the most recent of which was the Groundhog Grill-out, an educational cookout held to celebrate Groundhog’s Day. The Wildlife Club also has a couple of projects going on around campus including a Wildlife Food Plot to attract wildlife to the area, as well as a TSI or Timber Stand Improvement Plot. The Wildlife Club also participates in activities in conjunction with the Ferrum Nature Society.