A message from the Dean: Start strong, finish strong
COVID-19 disrupted traditional learning; moved classes 100% online
What can be said about an academic year that started strong with an incoming class of 1,000 students, and ended with no face-to-face classes, vacant buildings and classrooms? There’s only one word: pandemic. From March 13 through the end of the spring semester, COVID-19 changed the way the University, the country and the world did things.
Although the world has changed abruptly, the faculty, staff and students in the College of Arts and Sciences and at BGSU worked diligently and quickly to adjust to a 100% online learning environment and virtual-only face-to-face interactions. Students accepted the new reality and forged ahead through the rest of the semester.
Resourcefulness and persistence have prevailed.
We are hard at work now, preparing a new semester of learning and research under these new conditions. Some innovative faculty have focused on research that can impact the coronavirus outbreak. National Science Foundation (NSF) grants for COVID-19 research were awarded to Dr. Xiaohong Tan, chemistry, and sociology faculty members Drs. Peggy Giordano, Monica Longmore and Wendy Manning. The Departments of History and English received a National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) CARES grant to explore teaching methods in response to the COVID-19 crisis. While other faculty are working to improve learning for underrepresented and first-generation students and provide opportunities for meaningful discussions about race and social justice. Additionally, the University is working to engage the community on these issues.
Take time to look through this digital magazine, to read about the topics and research that express the essence of the College of Arts and Sciences at BGSU. As you can imagine, this academic year provided even more credence to the value of the mission of the College of Arts and Sciences: To prepare our students for sustainable careers by equipping them with deep knowledge over a range of subjects and producing well-rounded, flexible thinkers who are able to deal with complexity and change; and to create new knowledge to enhance the communities we serve.
Thank you for supporting the College, our students, faculty and staff.
Stay safe and healthy,
Raymond A. Craig, Ph.D.
Dean
Follow me on Twitter
@DeanRayCraig
Animated environmental messages
Real-world skills contribute to public good
Digital arts students had real-world experiences working with environmental organizations to create animated messages.
Change theme central to theatre/film season
Online learning changes season and teaching methods
The storyline during the spring semester for the Department of Theatre and Film centered around change. Dealing with the impact of COVID-19 shutting down the end of the season to moving to 100% online learning, students, faculty and staff managed to find successes in the new reality.
Visitors experienced the magic of ArtsX
Annual event features artistic works of all kinds
Hundreds of visitors participate each year in BGSU ArtsX, hosted by all of the arts units on campus: School of Art, Creative Writing, College of Musical Arts, Theatre and Film and Dance.
Water quality and the arts
Where science and the arts collide
Water quality was a topic that transcended the arts and sciences at BGSU during Fall 2019, when the Art Galleries director hosted events about water quality including an art exhibition, a poster and art presentation by students, and a panel of water quality experts.
BGSU encourages Census 2020 participation
Data collections vital to sociologists, demographers
Counting people as part of the 2020 Census is important for BGSU, and more specifically for faculty and student research as it relates to demography, population science, and sociology to ensure accurate data is available for research.
Career advice in the midst of a pandemic
History Department chair urges 2020 graduates to focus on the big picture
Amílcar Challú, chair of the BGSU Department of History, suggests recent graduates, alumni and future graduates focus on the big picture when it comes to job searching during a pandemic.
Givens Fellowship aids students’ journeys to the other side of the world
Two students learn more about themselves by exploring other cultures
Two students who received the prestigious Stuart R. Givens Memorial Fellowship used the experience to broaden their perspectives and knowledge about topics that interested them.
Students empowered to turn values into action
Social Justice Learning Community students connect classes with social issues
Students in any major at BGSU can join the Finding Your Voice in Social Justice Learning Community and learn to turn their values into action-oriented results.
BGSU christens new research vessel, 'RV Ziggy'
Generous donation advances Lake Erie research capabilities
Alumni Patrick L. and Debra Scheetz Ryan and the Ryan Family Foundation funded the purchase of a research vessel to explore in-depth the water quality of Lake Erie.
Kevin McCluney part of $780,000 NSF grant study
Researchers study connections among temporary wetlands in the Great Plains
The BGSU biology lab of Dr. Kevin McCluney received a National Science Foundation grant to study connections among temporary wetlands in the Great Plains.
High school students gain real-world lab experience
Previous PICNICS student is co-author on published article
Area high school students gain a real-world experience as they get to work in a BGSU lab with graduate students and faculty members to undertake their own research opportunities.
Shining a light on research
Promising combinations of photoresponsive materials may offer new discoveries
The lab of Dr. Alexis Ostrowski is making positive strides in research of photoresponsive materials that use metal coordination.
A year of accomplishments
2019-20 highlights of faculty, staff and student accomplishments
From research and scholarship to service and public good, the College of Arts and Sciences faculty, staff and students have recorded many successes during the past academic year.
Updated: 06/15/2022 04:38PM