Stories this week at WFU

RISING HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS STUDY SCIENCE, MATH AT WFU — More than 60 rising high school students from the Forsyth County school system are taking part in the two-week SciMax Student Enrichment Institute at Wake Forest. The program started June 13 and runs through June 24. During the institute, students will participate in fun science and math experiments, hear from locals working in science and math related fields and learn how to develop a strong college application package. The program is funded by the National Science Foundation and organized in partnership by Wake Forest and the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools. It brings rising high school students, who have been nominated by their middle school teachers, to the university in an effort to prepare them for the rigors of high school science and math courses, while also increasing their enjoyment of science and math. This year the students will build bridges out of spaghetti noodles, learn about the gas laws by doing experiments on balloons and aluminum cans and learn about math by analyzing the stock market.

Contact: Jacob McConnico, mcconnjn@wfu.edu or 336-758-5237.

 

WFU WORKSHOP EXAMINES AMERICAN INDIANS IN THE CAROLINAS — Three influential American Indian elders and educators from North Carolina will lead a free, public workshop from 2 to 5 p.m. today at Wake Forest University. The workshop, titled “A Different Vocation: Preserving and Revitalizing American Indian Communities in the Carolinas,” will be held at the university’s Museum of Anthropology. The event offers an introduction to contemporary issues affecting American Indian communities in the Carolinas. Participants will be introduced to the history and present status of North Carolina’s eight tribal nations and the Catawba Nation in South Carolina. Leaders for the event include Barbara Locklear, a Lumbee cultural educator and traditional storyteller; Arnold “Tsa’ne Do’se” Richardson, a Haliwa-Saponi gourd carver, sculptor and renowned flutist and composer of traditional and contemporary American Indian music; and Rosa Winfree, a retired Lumbee community educator, past chair of the Lumbee Tribal Council, past chair of the board of directors for Catching the Dream National Indian Scholarship Fund and the North Carolina Indian Cultural Center, and founder of American Indian Women Inc. Members of the media are invited to attend, and workshop leaders will be available for interviews. For additional information about the workshop, call the Museum of Anthropology at 336-758-5282.

Contact: Jacob McConnico, mcconnjn@wfu.edu or 336-758-5237.

 

FATHERS AND DAUGHTERS EXPERT AVAILABLE AT WFU — Linda Nielsen, professor of education at Wake Forest, is featured in a nationally distributed television program on fathers and daughters. The program, “Fathers and Daughters: Journey of the Heart,” is scheduled to air at 6:30 p.m. June 19 on UNC-TV. It is also scheduled to air on stations across the country. Nielsen, author of “Embracing Your Father: How to Build the Relationship You’ve Always Wanted with Your Dad,” has taught a class on fathers and daughters at Wake Forest for more than 10 years. In her book, she offers practical advice for adult daughters regarding how to develop closer ties to their fathers. “No matter how old you and your father are now, getting to know each other on a more personal, more emotionally intimate level will deepen your bond,” she said. “For example, have your dad choose 10 pictures of himself throughout different periods of his life. Then spend several hours alone with him looking them over and encouraging him to tell you stories about his life.”

Contact: Kevin Cox, coxkp@wfu.edu or 336-758-5237.

 

FOREIGN LANGUAGE IMMERSION CAMPS — Elementary school students can “travel” to Louisiana and Guatemala in Winston-Salem’s only foreign language immersion camp for children. The camp runs June 13-17. Led by Mary Lynn Redmond, professor of education and director of foreign language education at Wake Forest, the camp helps children develop French and Spanish language skills. “The children can easily make connections because they have to use the language to communicate in all that they do each day,” Redmond said. The camp is held from 9 a.m. to noon at Redeemer School, 1046 Miller St. On Friday, one group of students will “visit” a Guatemalan market to purchase authentic items using only Spanish to communicate and the other group will hold a Mardi Gras parade while speaking only in French. “The teachers blend the academic components of learning the language they use for the ‘trip’ with arts and crafts and music,” Redmond said.

Contact: Jacob McConnico, mcconnjn@wfu.edu or 336-758-5237.

 

WFU STUDENTS WORK FOR ‘CHANGE’ IN WINSTON-SALEM — Five Wake Forest students are spending the summer interning with Communities Helping All Neighbors Gain Empowerment (CHANGE), a Winston-Salem community development group. The students are working through the Freedom Summer Project 2005, an internship program sponsored by the Third Reconstruction Institute, which is affiliated with the Industrial Areas Foundation (IAF). The program commemorates the 1964 Freedom Summer, a project of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and other civil rights groups that brought student and non-student volunteers to Mississippi in an effort to work on voter registration campaigns and advance the cause of the civil rights movement in the South. One additional Wake Forest student is working with Raleigh Organizing for Action & Results (ROAR), a Raleigh group similar to CHANGE. The student interns are available for interviews.

Contact: Jacob McConnico, mcconnjn@wfu.edu or 336-758-5237.

 

GAMES PEOPLE PLAYED FIRST IN ASIA — Many of the most common games in the United States found their way here from other parts of the world. “Asian Games: The Art of Contest,” an exhibit open now through August 16 at Wake Forest’s Museum of Anthropology, highlights the importance of Asia as a source of many games, including chess, backgammon, Parcheesi, playing cards and polo. The exhibit features four categories of games: chance; strategy; memory and matching; and power and dexterity. Card games, board games and ball games are included. The exhibit is structured to suggest the impact of particular games and the cultural values of players. In conjunction with the exhibit, the Museum of Anthropology will host Family Day, featuring games that originated in Asia and refreshments from 1 to 4 p.m. July 9. Admission to the exhibit and Family Day is free.

Contact: Maggie Barrett, barretmb@wfu.edu or 336-758-5237.

 

EUROPEAN YOUTH TO VISIT WFU, STUDY CIVIL RIGHTS — Starting July 1, students and teachers from Albania, Bulgaria, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania and Serbia will come to Wake Forest to learn, explore and experience American culture and politics. This is the fifth year that Wake Forest will be one of only two universities in the nation to host the Southeast European Youth Leadership Institute (SEEYLI). The program, funded by the U.S. Department of State and the Open Society Institute, is designed to help participants identify challenges and opportunities for developing and supporting civil societies in their native countries. While in Winston-Salem, participants will take classes at Wake Forest on a variety of civil rights topics, as well as experience American social and cultural activities ranging from stays with local families, to a Winston-Salem Warthogs baseball game. The visit will wrap up with an International Debate Festival, culminating in a public debate. High school students in the Winston-Salem area are invited to attend the classes and the International Debate Festival, free of charge. Registration is required.

Contact: Maggie Barrett, barretmb@wfu.edu or 336-758-5237.

Categories: Arts & Culture, Community, Events, Student