AU Graduate School 5 by Auburn University Graduate School

Graduate School S P R I N G

2 0 1 2

A Caring Profession

James Hairston on why he loves being a nurse

Designing Creativity A New Chapter Water Resources and Planning for the Future

CONTENTS 4

Message from the Dean

A Presidential Perspective

New at the Graduate School

The Year of East Asia

A New Chapter

A Caring Profession

Designing Creativity

London Experience 2011

Water Resources and Planning for the Future

Post-Graduate Studies at Auburn University

Tips for Applying to Graduate School

Areas of Study

Auburn, Alabama

Graduate School as an Investment

Applied Economics PhD

Graduate Student Council

The Gift of Excellence

Graduate School Staff

Upcoming Events

Publication Team Editors George Flowers, Dean George Crandell, Associate Dean Jessica Nelson, Managing Editor Design, Photo, and Production: Office of Communications and Marketing staff â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Al Eiland, Mary Huddleston, Jeff Etheridge, Melissa Humble, and Pam Kirby Download this Auburn Graduate School publication online at grad.auburn.edu Auburn University Graduate School 106 Hargis Hall, Auburn, AL 36849 Phone (334) 844-2125 Fax (334) 844-4348 Postmaster, please send address changes to 106 Hargis Hall, Auburn, AL 36849-5122. Contents 2012 by the Auburn University Graduate School, all rights reserved.

Message from the Dean

Dr. George Flowers As technology speeds change throughout the globe, a graduate degree is increasingly necessary. Graduate degree holders are not only more competitive in the job market, but have the knowledge and skills to shape the future. We at Auburn University are charged with making a positive difference in people’s lives as part of our land-grant mission. You’ll find that this spirit of service, combined with academic rigor and a quest for knowledge, permeate the Auburn campus. Lieutenant-Colonel Richard Bell, PhD, who is serving as an Army analyst in Afghanistan, developed a statistical method that could help provide more accurate analysis to decision makers in the armed forces. Navideh Noori’s interest in water resources is spurred by the desire to help people plan for the future – with climate and landscape changes, many cities are facing unprecedented flooding. James Hairston works daily to ensure the health and comfort of our veterans, while pursuing a master’s degree in nursing education. Finally, Zhan Zhang brings together form and function in Industrial Design with a mission to design products that are useful in people’s everyday lives. These are just a few of the outstanding students pursuing graduate study at Auburn University. Please join me in supporting their scholarly and creative efforts that have the potential to make a positive difference in all of our lives.

A Presidential Perspective

Dr. Jay Gogue

Reports show that a graduate-educated workforce is critical for the U.S. to maintain its economic competitiveness in the world. At the same time, we see that advanced academic credentials are increasingly needed for many jobs in today’s knowledge economy. One report projects 18 percent more jobs will require a master’s degree and 17 percent more will require a doctoral degree through 2018. Those trends are expected to continue. Long gone are the days of my grandfather when a high school diploma literally guaranteed a job for life. Auburn’s graduate programs prepare you to think critically and develop solutions to the complex problems of today’s globally competitive environment. On top of quality academics, out-of-classroom experiences enrich learning and growth. For some, it’s the dedicated professors who go the extra mile. For others, it’s international exposure or the chance to develop vital connections in business, industry, government and academia. Gaining hands-on experience is yet another opportunity that contributes to a comprehensive graduate education. While it differs from one individual to the next, the common denominator is numerous possibilities beyond the classroom to excel, experience, and engage. We are confident that is what you too will find at Auburn.

New at the Graduate School In Fall of 2011, less than a year after renovations of the Graduate School premises in historic Hargis Hall, the Graduate School offices were temporarily relocated due to fire and water damage from a small fire in the tower. Currently the Graduate School is operating in the basement of Langdon Hall just next door, between Hargis and Samford Hall. We hope to be back in our permanent home sometime in mid-2012. The Graduate School has seen some curriculum changes recently, including new Graduate Certificates in fields such as Nursing Education, Global Hospitality, and Elections Administration, among others. Other graduate certificate offerings are in development as we adapt to the changing market landscape of graduate education. Other initiatives include ongoing efforts to secure graduate student housing, provide networking opportunities, recruit top notch graduate students, and to recognize superior scholarship with various awards. We hope that 2012 will bring continued growth and development of the graduate community at Auburn University.

Top Rankings

Auburn is included in a distinctive group of 18 universities designated as Land, Sea, and Space Grants and receives many accolades from accrediting agencies and ranking publications. • Auburn has been ranked among the top 50 public universities in the U.S. for 19 consecutive years, ranking 36th in the 2012 edition of U.S. News & World Report. • Modern Healthcare ranked the College of Business as the 16th best graduate school and 5th among MBA programs for physician-executives. • College of Education’s Rehabilitation Counseling Program ranked 17 in U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Graduate Schools,” 2010 edition. • College of Education’s Department of Kinesiology doctoral program nationally ranked 28 by the American Academy of Kinesiology and Physical Education, 2010 edition. • Aerospace Engineering ranked 34 in U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Graduate Schools,” 2012. • Industrial Systems Engineering ranked 21 in U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Graduate Schools,” 2012. • The College of Liberal Arts’ Audiology program ranked 45 in U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Graduate Schools,” 2012. • Auburn University has been named by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance as one of the top 100 Best Values in Public Colleges for 2011-12 • Distance education graduate programs in Auburn University’s College of Education and Samuel Ginn College of Engineering were named honor roll programs in U.S. News & World Report’s Top Online Education Program rankings. • A comprehensive list is available at www.auburn.edu/rankings.

The Year of East Asia at Auburn 2012 will be the “Year of East Asia” at Auburn University through a new program initiated by the Office of International Programs (OIP). The “Year of East Asia” will feature cultural programming throughout the year designed to bring international experiences to Auburn University students. As it becomes increasingly important to have a global understanding, experiences like these become a vital part of a university education. OIP hopes that this will be a recurring event, with each year featuring special programming with a different regional focus. East Asia was a natural choice for the first year due in part to its rising influence and prominent place on the global stage. Furthermore, several academic partnerships are already in place with schools in China, Vietnam, and South Korea, and a large number of AU international students and alumni hail from that part of the world. This will be a way to highlight those ties and engage members of the Auburn Family based in East Asia. There are also more than 50 companies based in Asia that operate within one hour of Auburn. These companies and their employees are members of the Auburn community - what better way to welcome them? Spring events were kicked off with a Lunar New Year celebration for presidents and CEOs of local Asian-owned businesses, followed by a dinner at the home of Jay and Susie Gouge. This will be followed up by film, lecture, and cooking series throughout the year. The Asian film series will be screened at the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Art, and will be open to the public. The cooking series will be hosted in conjunction with the Hotel and Restaurant Management program at the Auburn University Hotel and Conference Center, and will bring talented chefs from high profile restaurants and hotels across Asia to teach classes on Asian cooking. Headlining the lecture series will be Kim Phuc Phan Thi, who was thrust into fame as a child when she was famously photographed after the bombing of her village during the Vietnam War. The graphic war photo was notorious, and eventually led to her advocacy for the victims of war - especially children. The Office of International Programs hopes to engage all of the Auburn Family in an international experience here at home. 7

A New Chapter Lieutenant Colonel Bell is beginning a new chapter, but as he wraps up his doctoral degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering, he definitely feels as though he is closing the book on his time as a student.

When Lieutenant Colonel Richard C. Bell, PhD spoke to us, he was on the eve of his wedding to his high school crush, and weeks out from deployment to ISAF – International Security Assistance Force – in Afghanistan. “This is a story book ending,” he says. It might be more accurate to say that Lieutenant Colonel Bell is beginning a new chapter, but as he wraps up his doctoral degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering, he definitely feels as though he is closing the book on his time as a student. One of the things that makes it feel so serendipitous is the sense of coming full circle. Bell began his academic and military career simultaneously with an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point. As a high school student in Wetumpka, Alabama, Bell sought nominations from local and state representatives, including Senator Richard Shelby – the man who eventually provided the nomination that took Bell to West Point. “And that’s awesome, because – you can see where I’m going with this - Auburn University’s Industrial and Systems Engineering is in none other than the Shelby Center for Engineering Technology,” he says. “I just thought that was the neatest thing.” Bell is an operations research systems analyst with the US Army’s Functional Area 49, the branch of the Army that is responsible for analysis of every conceivable aspect of

Army operations – budget, personnel, combat statistics – you name it. The US Army is funding his doctoral degree, and he will incur a six year service obligation for his degree. He doesn’t mind though. “I would not be retiring any time soon anyway. I owe the army six more years, and that is perfectly fine with me, because I love what I do.” Bell has done a lot of different things within the Army, including ranger school, leading platoons, and teaching statistics at West Point. He became an operations research systems analyst after he left West Point, spending two years with the Center for Army Analysis in

Virginia. Seven months of that was spent in Iraq, which was influential in determining the direction of his dissertation research. In Iraq he was assigned to the Multinational Corps Iraq, the organization that was responsible for the waging of the Iraq war. Reporting to Lt. General Odierno, Bell’s main focus was attack and casualty trends. This means all aspects of fighting – the number of attacks on US troops, Iraqi security forces, or Iraqi civilians. “We tracked those as one way to measure the – basically how things were going, how volatile the situation was,” he says. They also tracked and analyzed the resulting deaths and injuries resulting from these attacks. Though it seems like grim work, he found it rewarding, he says, because his work was useful. He and another analyst also handled requests for information from various external organizations, such as news outlets. The first time that they received a request from a White House speech writer, they were slightly incredulous. “We kind of looked at each other and chuckled a little bit,” he says. “You really think the president is going to use this?” Later, they were listening to a radio broadcast by then President George W. Bush there in Iraq, and heard him quote the very specific number they had provided. “It was awesome,” he says. “It made us feel so important that the president just used our number.” At the most basic level, the question they

were always trying to answer is “When is a change really a change?” Congress was especially interested in that question at the time, as they tried to assess the effectiveness of the strategy popularly known as “the surge.” Bell elaborates, “You know, if we see the number of weekly attacks against coalition forces drop say three or four weeks in a row. Can we pull out the trumpets and say see, it’s working? Or is that a natural variation in the data?” One of the many tools they used to try and answer these questions were control charts. Control charts are used to determine the normal range of variation in a given scenario. Bell cites an example of the speed limit. Few people go exactly the speed limit, so you would expect variation if you were monitoring passing cars on College Street. However, someone going 100 miles per hour – or 2 miles per hour – would certainly be out of the range of normal. But it’s not always that easy to spot the outliers. This sticky problem spurred his interest in the field of quality control, which ultimately led to his dissertation research at Auburn. When Bell began at Auburn, he knew that he needed to narrow down his research area immediately. The Army gives doctoral students only three years in which to complete their degree, so he couldn’t afford to spend a year chasing down a dissertation topic. After conversations with his advisor, Dr. Saeed Magsoodloo, he did not yet have a topic that he was satisfied with, and so he began looking outside the department for other faculty with similar interests. He found Dr. Allison Jones-Farmer in the College of Business, and “it was literally a perfect match.” Although it took a little convincing on his part, Dr. Jones-Farmer had been turning over a particular problem for some time, but hadn’t yet begun to work on it. “She basically handed me her topic on a silver platter, and it was a topic that really struck a chord with me,” he says. The purpose of a quality control application is to monitor a process - in his department, they would typically be talking about a manufacturing process. He illustrates, “Say we’re manufacturing ball bearings. Those ball bearings should have a certain diameter, a certain mass, a certain hardness.” How can a manufacturer be sure the ball bearings

produced meet specifications? Naturally, a sample would have to be tested, and then they would have to plot the data on a control chart. The control chart would show upper and lower limits of where those measurements can fall and still be considered a good batch of ball bearings. This is the easy part. The hard part is figuring out exactly where those upper and lower limits are in a way that’s broadly applicable. Bell explains that in quality control literature, certain parts of the problem have been traditionally assumed away. For example, most existing control charts assume that the data is normally distributed, which means that when plotted, the data would look like a symmetrical bell curve. While normally distributed data are easier to analyze, things rarely happen that neatly in real life. In addition, theorists typically assume that an initial sample has already been analyzed to determine what data is usable and set control limits. They then address the “phase two” part of quality control, which is monitoring an ongoing process. Phase One, which actually sets control limits, is an inherently stickier problem, Bell

says. However, Dr. Jones-Farmer developed a method to solve phase one - in univariate. In that problem, you would only have one set of characteristics to monitor - like the mass of our ball bearings. But what to do when you need to set limits for multiple qualities? Obviously, people have been producing ball bearings for a long time without solving this problem, so something must have been done, but there has never been a scientifically sound method to deal with it. And when the problem is not ball bearings but human lives and information that can influence the waging of a war, the stakes become higher, and his intense interest in the problem becomes clear. One of the remarkable things about Bell’s work is that he brought together expertise from three different departments. Dr. Nedret Billor from Mathematics and Statistics specializes in analyzing multi-dimensional data sets, which proved to be the key to this problem of analyzing multivariate data. If you are trying to put data on a chart, one or two dimensions can be plotted easily on an x/y axis. The human eye is pretty good at visualizing patterns in one or two dimensions. But with multi-dimensional, or multivariate

data, there is no simple way to visualize the complex patterns. There is also no easy way to distinguish unusual observations. Both Drs. Billor and Jones-Farmer had studied the use of data depth, a method that gives a measure of how unusual one multidimensional object is compared to the others. In essence, data depth can be used to rank multidimensional observations from the least to the most unusual. Bell was able to combine the concept of data depth with Dr. Jones-Farmer’s univariate control chart method to write lines and lines of MATLAB code which make up his multivariate control chart. If it sounds easy, you are mistaken. But what is important is that he has developed a chart that people can use to help solve multivariate quality control problems. The most popular existing chart, Hotelling’s T-squared, requires normally distributed data. In real life, most things are just not normal. Bell has demonstrated through simulations that his chart does a better job of telling which data points are expected and which are unusual. In other words, who is driving responsibly and who is going 100 mph in a 35 mph zone. Lt. – Col. Bell already presented preliminary results at one of the major technical conferences hosted by the American Statistical Association. He was encouraged by the attention and interest generated by leaders in the field. When Bell chose Auburn, it was a matter of the best fit. It was close to his family, had an excellent program, and he was welcomed from his first visit to campus. In addition, he felt confident that the degree would be achievable within the three years he was given to finish it. But it was more than just an equation; Bell says, “I became an Auburn man from the moment I set foot on this campus.” He has already recommended Auburn for others in Functional Area 49, citing the warm atmosphere, military-friendly community, and excellent academics. “I couldn’t have asked for a better committee,” he says. In fact, he finds it hard to stop saying how much he has enjoyed the experience. To all of this, add a national championship in his final year, and a wedding following his graduation. Bell says simply “It does not get any better.”

In South Korea, Shim’s home country, students must begin to narrow down a career field in the second year of high school or earlier. Students pick from three career paths: liberal arts, sciences and math, or the art, music, and sports track. Although one teacher urged her toward the arts, she lacked confidence in that area, and opted instead for the math and sciences track. Now she thinks this is a good decision for her field, because it allows her to be a generalist, and to be able to work from many different skill sets. “I think that the reason I chose the clothing and textile science was because it includes everything,” she says. “To

understand the garments, and people wearing the garments, I have to understand the psychology…and I also need to understand design and the science of the fabric or construction of the garments.” She doesn’t just like fashion, she studies it from all angles. Of her first years of college, majoring in clothing and textile science, Soo In says, “I took so many classes. I just did my best to find my way about what I really want.” This approach left her with two minors and a broad range of knowledge about the apparel industry, and she followed with a master’s in the same discipline. Through all of this she had never really entertained the idea of studying abroad. However, after her master’s degree, Soo In worked for a fashion forecasting company.

A Wise Investment

“

I had the privilege of calling Auburn home during

graduate school because of the generosity of private donors. The Lila White Graduate Fellowship allowed me to pursue a Master of Accountancy while earning real-world experience as an accountant for Auburn’s Honors College. My experience working in the Honors College helped me hone accounting skills and also develop personally and professionally. I am incredibly grateful for the education Auburn afforded me and to the private supporters, like

”

Lila, who made it possible for me to obtain it.

Sarah Beth Hadzor, Homewood, AL Masters of Accountancy, 2011

A Caring Profession: James Hairston on why he loves being a nurse By Jessica Nelson

With a stressful job, graduate coursework, and two teenage sons, it is lucky that James Hairston knows how to keep a level head.

When he speaks, James Hairston’s voice is gentle and deliberate, as though he has all the time in the world to tell his story. It is easy to imagine him keeping his cool in tough situations, which is exactly what is required of him every day on the job. James works in the Emergency Room at the VA hospital in Montgomery, where things can get pretty hectic. In addition, he is a graduate student in the Nursing master’s program, run jointly through Auburn University and Auburn Montgomery. And if that weren’t enough, he has his hands full with two teenage sons. When he graduated from Sidney Lanier High School in Montgomery, James was unsure of the direction he wanted to take with his life. He was interested in the medical field, but was hesitant to commit to the medical school path before knowing if it was a good fit. Instead, he joined the LPN program at Trenholm State Technical College with his sister, thinking he would get his feet wet. What he found was that he loved it. “Once I started the program and learned more about the nursing field – it was just so broad and you can just work in so many areas,” he says. He

was immediately drawn to the flexibility and options that a nursing degree provides. “If I wanted to be in pediatrics now, I could do that for a couple of years, or if I wanted to go into neuro, I could just bounce around if I wanted to. I didn’t see that kind of flexibility for a doctor.” As a child in a military family, James had to learn to adjust. He concedes that his background might have a role in his choice of a career that offered that kind of flexibility. Although he was less mobile than some military kids, spending most of his childhood in Montgomery, he did spend his eleventh grade year in San Vito, Italy when his mom was stationed there. “I can appreciate it more now,” he says. Although he went under protest, he says, “I’m glad I can look back on it and say I did it. Not that I had a choice!” His sister left the program, but James finished and worked as an LPN for eleven years, while earning an associate’s degree through Troy University for part of that time. For all of that time, he was working at Father Purcell Memorial, a long-term care facility for children with special needs. James says a lot of his colleagues don’t understand his work there,

because they find it emotionally challenging. “I absolutely loved working with those kids. That’s what really drove me into nursing,” he says. “But I had to realize that they didn’t know anything was wrong with them, and we were really the only family some of them had. It just really drew me in.” For almost his entire career, James has been simultaneously advancing his education. In 2005 he finished at Troy and took the board exams for his Registered Nurse license, and then headed right back into another degree program, this time at Auburn Montgomery. The EARN program at Auburn Montgomery allows Registered Nurses to transition from RN to a bachelor’s degree (BSN), and was an ideal fit for James. At the time it was a hybrid program, with a lot of online assignments but certain scheduled meeting times for class discussion. Around the same time, James transitioned to the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit at Baptist South, which was an entirely different experience. Then, after completing his Bachelor’s in 2008, James transitioned again to the emergency department at the Montgomery Veteran’s Administration Hospital. “Thus far,” he says, “I’ve enjoyed each change. I can pull from here and pull from there, the experience I’ve gained.” He pulled once again from his military background when he moved from the private sector to working for the federal government. “I think it helped me adjust better,” he says. “Some colleagues from the private sector have trouble adjusting to such structure.” He, however, found the transition easy. Furthermore, he has always placed a premium value on education, and he likes that the Federal government seems to as well. “With the Federal government, they really reward you for education,” he says. Advancement is contingent on education, and there is financial support to encourage and help employees, which he is now taking advantage of. He says that when he made the decision as a young man to stick with nursing, he always intended to work toward a master’s degree. “My plan was to go back and teach. I always wanted to go into nursing education, which I’m doing now. That was my goal when I first started, and now I’m reaching that level.” He says that really, it’s all about paying it forward. He loved his instructors at Trenholm State who convinced him to stick with nursing, and now he tries to do the same for others. “I

meet so many people, the nursing assistants and the LPNs, and I always try to encourage them to go back to school.” Because he has always been in the minority as a male in the field, he tries to give extra encouragement to men. “I try to let them see that it will open so many doors for them.” He notes that throughout the course of his nursing education, he has not yet had a male instructor – so he himself will one day fill that gap. James is unfailingly enthusiastic about all of his past instructors, but says that the instructors at Auburn Montgomery were the reason he

ended up with Auburn again for his graduate degree. Although both programs are online, the lines of communication have always been open, something the program works hard to ensure. “When you’re taking an online program, where you don’t have that face-to-face, you need to know you can still get in contact with them,” he explains. “You have enough stress! If you can’t get in touch with the instructor with questions – that was a big factor in my choice.” And he is not joking about the stress. With the economy still struggling, he has seen workloads increase for nurses at the VA just in the time he has been there. There are large numbers of veterans because of military engagements, and the downturn in the economy has meant that many patients who might otherwise have had private insurance are instead coming to the VA. “We are understaffed on a consistent basis,” he says, “but the job still has to be done.” Nurses hold patients’ lives in their hands every day. It is a heavy burden for some, he says, but he wouldn’t have it any other way. “Patients just appreciate you so much for the small things you do to help them, and I really love that. And I don’t see where I can get that kind of fulfillment out of anything else that I could do.” 13

Designing Creativity By Jessica Nelson

Creativity: you can’t fake it, you can’t force it, and you can’t always control where it goes. However, Zhan Zhang in the Auburn University Department of Industrial Design wondered if there was a way to facilitate creativity in the workplace, especially for people in inherently creative professions.

Working with designers as her subjects, Zhang’s thesis project was to produce a suite of office furniture that will nurture creativity among design professionals. “Right now,” she says, “creativity has been emphasized a lot everywhere.” However, when she began considering the question she only found literature about management or psychology – there was no design-oriented research. “I feel that human beings cannot overcome physical environment,” she says. “So I think there is a need if we can facilitate creativity just by physical environment. That’s why I’m beginning to explore how we can do that.” When she began thinking about the project, she was perfectly placed to begin asking questions – a twelve month internship with behemoth furniture designer Herman Miller. Her internship was quite fortuitous, because her chief function was design research – “we called it the fuzzy front end,” she says. Because the possibilities are really infinite, design research begins in this nebulous state and begins to crystallize based on the designers’ ideas and research. She was heavily involved in the testing and research phase of getting a product to market – a set of power outlets that could be retrofitted to airport furniture. Design research requires a sharp eye, Zhang says, with hours of painstakingly detailed description. When the product prototype was produced, the interns spent an entire day in observation; from the first flight of the day to the last. They recorded every detail of how travelers interacted with the piece – how long they say, when they sat, how they used the outlets – and this data was used to refine the design. Then they headed back to the airport for another day of observation; Zhang says she spent six long days in the airport during this process. All of this research helped her hone her investigative skills, and ultimately led to her thesis project. With the assistance of the director of design facilitation at Herman Miller, she conducted an in-depth qualitative survey with 25 successful designers to assess their working habits. “I used designers as subjects because designers live their life in a creative industry. People expect them to be creative. So for me, it’s easier to control the variables.” After her interviews and some research, she first developed a set of ten guidelines for

facilitating creativity in the workplace. She then designed office furniture that would provide fuel for imaginative thinking, based on her findings. The first six of these are the most pertinent to her project, and are the guidelines she herself culled from interviews and observation: facilitating collaboration, stimulating the senses, accommodating control over the personal zone, embracing change, allowing good energy flow, and encouraging playfulness and fun. Zhang sets out a set of fragile looking model furniture, cradling each piece carefully. She designed all the pieces and then constructed them in 1/8 scale, complete with tiny hinges and sometimes moving parts. The first piece she talks about is a training table – a very basic looking table at first – that actually has a whiteboard surface and can swing up to a vertical position for display and collaboration. “It’s like a physical Wikipedia,” she says. “You see the result instantly and everyone can contribute. So I use it as a medium for swarm information sharing.” This table also has an extendable pin board, which can serve as a collaboration site as stimulate the senses. “This is another way of saying presenting information in the environment,” she explains, “visual, acoustic, tactile.” Designers seem to find inspiration from visual stimuli like patterns, colors, and images. A pinboard allows for a collaborative display where designers could post their own

ideas or things they find interesting. In this way, one piece facilitates collaboration, stimulates the senses, and also embraces change. Most of Zhang’s furniture can be changed or manipulated like this, allowing them to address more than one of her creativity principles. Chairs can be flipped and used as stools. What appears to be a display shelf can be dismantled into component chairs and a table. A room divider used to create a personal zone would be sold in modular units and arranged according to individual preference. No piece of her design has only one purpose or function. The piece she likes most is a table and bench combination with ultimate versatility. A designer could sit at either of the lower two levels, or even on the floor. The top level, at bar height, can be used with stools as a collaboration zone. Any of the changes can be made easily, so the employee can embrace change and also exercise control over her personal zone. Also, the lower levels swivel in so that they can nest under each other for better storage. For Zhang, good design always starts with a problem. Everyone loves beautiful things, she says, but what is interesting to her is finding a way to solve a problem or fill a need – with style. For Zhang, simply producing a lovely image or form is not enough, though her work is always graceful and attractive. She wants to know that 15

the things she designs are useful to people in the real world. It’s one of the things she loves, she says, about the AU Industrial Design graduate program. In addition to a heavy emphasis on the process of design – “how you explore the problems, how you do the research, and then kind of brainstorming and diving down,” she loves the emphasis on function first. “I have friends in some other design schools, “she says, “that are more concerned with beautiful features, beautiful forms. But we can design something that we can make, something that can benefit others.” Furthermore, the department emphasizes an in-depth knowledge of the manufacturing process, which gives AU industrial designers an edge in creating their designs. Knowing how things are made helps them create designs that work in the real world. But don’t be fooled – Zhang’s designs are beautiful and often elegant, like a chair she designed for the Design Emphasis 2010 16

competition. Although she was a newcomer to furniture design, her wooden chair with long flowing lines earned her a finalist spot in the national competition. Although Zhang had never worked with furniture before coming to Auburn, it was instant love, and she’s clearly a natural. She had only been in Michigan for her internship for a month when she had to fly back to Auburn to accompany her chair design to the contest in Atlanta. That was when she realized how deeply attached she was to Auburn after only one year of classes. “Before I left, I was so excited!” she exclaims. “I can’t reasonably describe. It’s just like coming home.” Zhang’s home is in Nanjing, China, where she earned her bachelor’s degree and got her first opportunity to explore the world. She was among the very first group of exchange students to Taiwan in her junior year, and she loved the way new surroundings challenged her to broaden her perspective. “There is

a certain way how you do innovation and stimulate your creativity, and I learned that in Taiwan,” she says. “Without new perspective, without change, I don’t think anyone can be creative.” It was this experience in part which prompted her to look for a graduate school in the United States – that, and the fact that she had already studied English. “I don’t want to learn a third language!” she says with a laugh, “So I think America is good.” Zhang is wrapping up her time in the US and already has plans for after graduation – a job in Shanghai. She has an offer from a university there, and is excited about teaching the next generation of Chinese design students. One of the things she learned from Auburn University, she says, is that “I really appreciate a lot of help from others. You can imagine at first, a very shy Chinese girl coming here, but everyone helps me. All these professors they help me, hold by their hearts, and I was so touched.” It is this spirit that she wants to take back with her and share with her future students. There has been some interest from her mentor at Herman Miller in her thesis project, so she will by no means be abandoning her own designs when she takes up her new role as instructor. “Nothing for me can compare when you have your hands really making something. That’s what I love about design.”

London Experience 2011 For several years, Dr. Paula Backscheider has been taking doctoral students abroad through a unique program she calls the London Experience. Dr. Backscheider is an Eminent Scholar in the Department of English, specializing in British Literature. Through her own experiences, she has learned to navigate the immense resources available through British archives, and passes on this experience to her doctoral students. When there are about 5 – 7 students who are ready to begin working on their dissertation, Dr. Backscheider plans an extensive journey into the belly of various London archives. At each stop students were treated to behind the scenes access and special instruction on the resources available there. “If you’re in British or even Anglophone Literature, it’s just – it’s our lab,” she says. “It’s our essential source.” She feels that for these doctoral students, who will go on to be educators and researchers themselves, this kind of firsthand experience with their subject matter is vital. “To some extent, to be good teachers you have to see things. You can see that George Eliot could see the Thames from the window where she worked.” The entire trip lasted four weeks – two weeks as a group and then two weeks of indi-

vidual work. Together the group visited the Guildhall Library, the National Archives, the London Metropolitan Archives, the British Library, the Victoria and Albert Museum, Oxford University, and the National Portrait Gallery Archives. They also had a one-day individual scouting trip, when each group member made an individual visit to a venue and reported back to the group. After that introduction, each student spent an additional two weeks visiting the repositories that were most useful to their own research. Because these archives are so vast, many of the materials were rarely – if ever – studied by researchers. One student who was exploring the lives of British women who had lived in India found a personal journal/sketchbook from one of her subjects that was completely uncatalogued. Many of the students came away with enough material for two or three major projects, Dr. Backscheider says. “It’s a real investment in their future.” It is almost impossible for a person who has not explored a true archive to really conceive of the amount of information they contain. Dr. Backscheider illustrates: “There are nine million documents in the national archive. The records would stretch from here to the moon 28 times.” So, aside from the precious source

material, almost as invaluable for the students is just the cultural capital of knowing how to really use the archives best to find what is useful in that sea of information. Since the students do not receive university credit for the trip, funding is always an issue. However, through a combination of grants and supplements from Dr. Backscheider’s own research fund, the trips this year were fully funded. The grants came from the Office of International Programs, the Office of the Vice President for research, and Dissertation Research Awards from the Graduate School. Dr. Backscheider says of her own contribution to each student, “Because if you won’t invest in your own students, how can you expect anyone else to?” It is an investment that can return profit not only in the students’ academic work, but in the lives of the their own future students. Dr. Backscheider often hears from past London Experience participants who now lead their own trips for undergraduate students, based principally on the experience they had. The London Experience is a perfect example of the usefulness of an international experience for a student – they bring home not just an experience, but knowledge that can be useful throughout their career.

Water Resources and Planning for the Future By Jessica Nelson

When Navideh Noori talks about her interest in water resources and climate change, she emphasizes that she is not interested in the political aspects of the hot button topic. While politicians can argue over the why and wherefore, what she wants to know is what it all means for real people. Navideh is currently a research assistant, working with Dr. Latif Kalin in the department of Forestry. Although she, like Dr. Kalin, has a background in Civil Engineering, she has found a home in the School of Forestry and Wildlife Science. Their current research project focuses on the 8-mile creek watershed area in Pritchard, near Mobile, Alabama. Navideh has been using field observations as well as extensive simulations to track rainfall and streamflow data for the last year. Working with faculty in Biosystems Engineering and Landscape Architecture, they aim to predict flood prone areas by studying the impact of land use changes on streamflow. In other words, as cities put down more concrete or other impervious land cover and expand development, where does this increase the risk of flooding,

and how can a city plan for that possibility? The research provides both specific information for Pritchard city managers and a blueprint for other cities that need to answer these questions. To begin to answer this question, the team had to pull information from a variety of sources. Navideh scrolls through a series of charts, graphs, and images that her group presented to city managers in Pritchard. Much of the information used to establish context came from data collected by the US Geological Survey (USGS). The USGS provides resources for researchers, including a vast collection of flow data as well as the National Land Cover Database from the USGS website, which is a series of land use maps. Land use maps give a graphic representation of what is on every foot of land. There are classifications not just for forest but for what kind of forest (Evergreen? Deciduous?). There are 15 different classifications of land use, and Navideh uses this information to determine how changes in imperviousness and land use affect how much water is flowing through local streams at a given time.

Utilizing rainfall and streamflow data to model rainfall runoff, Navideh generated a flow hydrograph, which plots the stream flow at key points in the watershed. The big question is when hard surfaces like asphalt or concrete cover all the land, where does all that water go when it canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be absorbed? These are the conditions that can often lead to flash flooding. Simulation is often a scientistâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best friend, but there is a lot of work that goes into ensuring that the simulations can be relied upon. With the land use maps and rainfall data, Navideh generated flow hydrographs for major rainfall events. The graphs show, for key points in the watershed, how much water can be expected to be flowing in the streams. Then she compared her results to observed streamflow data to check the accuracy of her models. When she was satisfied that her method consistently yielded strong results, she began to consider the future. The most recent USGS map was from 2006, so the team had to painstakingly update the land use to show current conditions, with corresponding flow hydrographs. 19

The team has already presented their findings to city managers in Pritchard, and held workshops to discuss the ways that these findings can be used to plan development that will minimize future flooding. Although Navideh has yet to narrow down her dissertation research, she has a long standing interest in water resources. Before the current research project with Dr. Kalin, she completed her Master’s research on flooding as well in her native Iran. There, instead of urbanization, she studied the potential impact of climate change on floodplains in southern Iran. She studied 30 years of daily rainfall data for the region, and then generated models of future rainfall events to predict flooding. She picked this area because “Because close to that river, people live. They have agricultural fields, and they work there.” The area, she says, is typically warm and dry, but seasonal rains can be very intense, and when there is major flooding, there is often loss of life or livelihood. Although established communities cannot pick up and move, Navideh hopes the knowledge of where the dangers lie with regard to flooding can help lessen the impact of severe floods. “For sure,” she says, “we study something to help make it better, or make life better.” Her work was published in an academic journal, and she also was able to contribute a chapter to her advisor’s book on water resources. While she attended the University of Tehran in Iran’s capital city, Navideh is from a smaller city called Lahijan in the north of Iran, which is known for its beauty. One of a small but growing number of Iranian students at Auburn, she concedes that it is easier for Iranian students now than in the past to study in the US, though that did not prevent a lot of effort in order to be here. In order to receive her immigration 20

documents, a family friend actually had to pick up the necessary paperwork from Auburn, then personally transport them to Iran and mail them when he arrived in the country. It was nerve wracking, she says, but she felt that the US was the best destination for someone in her field to expand her education. And, she says simply, “I try to do my best all my life.” Like many students who study abroad, Navideh misses her friends and her family – especially her father. She says, remembering him, “He always was my biggest supporter in all aspects of my life and academic career.” It is difficult, she says, when students are only awarded single-entry visas like she was. This means that she must complete her entire doctoral degree without returning home for a visit. It is fortunate, then, that she feels comfortable in Auburn. Navideh first stepped foot on the Auburn campus in January of 2011, just days before Auburn won the college football National

Championship. After the win she joined the crowd at Toomer’s Corner, enjoying the celebration and comeraderie even though she had just arrived. She adds that in Auburn, especially her department, “People are really supportive. They care about you.” She has also enjoyed recreational activities sponsored by the Graduate School that encourage international students to get to know one another and learn more about US people and culture. “It’s good to have the opportunity to talk to different people, to know their ideas, how they live,” she says. Navideh feels like her options are still open wide for the future. Though water resource is a large and diverse field, she says that it is always possible to do something innovative and new – and that interests her a lot. “There are lots of problems,” she says. “It would be good to solve one of them.”

A Wise Investment

Top 15 countries represented by international student population:

“

Pursuing a graduate degree in Aerospace Engineering

immediately after my undergraduate degree was definitely a wise investment. Having a graduate degree made available a number of highly technical positions that I would have not been qualified for with only an undergraduate degree. In addition to expanding my job opportunities, my degree gave me more control over my career path. The short term - and more importantly the long term - benefits of a graduate degree far outweigh the negative of delaying starting work. I highly recommend pursuing a graduate degree to anyone. Now that I’ve been working in the aerospace industry for a few years, I’ve decided to pursue a doctoral degree in aerospace engineering via

”

distance education at Auburn to further specialize in my field. Zach Hall, Huntsville, AL PhD, Aerospace Engineering

China India South Korea Turkey Taiwan Nepal Nigeria Thailand Brazil Sri Lanka Canada Bangladesh Kenya Colombia United Kingdom

PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS

General Admission Requirements Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university Official transcripts of all undergraduate and graduate coursework from each school previously attended GRE or GMAT (if required by program of interest) Complete the online application. Application fee: $50 for domestic students, $60 for international students Three letters of recommendation (to be sent to your department)

Graduate Education: A Wise Investment An Auburn University graduate degree can help you achieve your goals for the future. Alumni with a graduate degree stand out to potential employers and exhibit the advantage of a global education. Nationally, the projected number of job openings increases with the level of education, as does the level of potential earnings. In the state of Alabama, where many graduates choose to remain after graduation, the projected earnings reflect the national forecasts.

Additional Requirements for International Students TOEFL Scores: 550 on the paper TOEFL (pBT), 213 on the computer TOEFL (cBT), and 79 on the internet TOEFL (iBT)-minimum of 16 in each section, or a 6.5 Overall Band Score on the IELTS Proof of ability to finance graduate studies, if accepted All documents and fees should be submitted at least 45 days (domestic students) or 90 days (international students) prior to the desired date of enrollment.

Resources for International Students

Office of International Education International Orientation Document processing International Student English Center Free English language tutoring for enrolled international students International Student Organizations Social support Airport pickup for new students

Apply Online at grad.auburn.edu Admissions to any graduate degree program is granted by the dean of the Graduate School upon the recommendation of the department of proposed study. Deadlines are listed in the Auburn University Bulletin (www.auburn. edu/bulletin). However, most academic units make admission decisions several months in advance. Thus, applicants should check with the department to which they seek admission to determine when materials should be submitted.

Contact Us Auburn University Graduate School 106 Hargis Hall Auburn, AL 36849-5122 334-844-4700 e-mail: gradadm@auburn.edu

Distance Education Auburn University is committed to addressing the needs of the modern student. The educational opportunities you will find through the Distance Education program meet the same exacting standards as do on-campus offerings. Courses are carefully designed by Auburn faculty with the aid of distance education professionals who assist in the development of instructional materials, academic resources, technical support systems, telecommunications, and student services. In addition to the opportunities listed below, numerous Independent Learning and Professional Development courses are offered through Distance Education. College of Agriculture

The College of Engineering

Masters Degrees:

• Agronomy and Soils

• Aerospace Engineering • Chemical

College of Business

• Civil

Masters Degrees:

• Industrial/Systems

• Accounting

• Material

• Business Administration

• Mechanical

• Information Systems

• Computer Science & Software

• Management • Executive MBA • Physician’s Executive MBA

Engineering program College of Human Sciences

Masters Degrees:

• Business Education

• Food Science Nutrition with

• Foreign Language Education

special emphasis in Hotel/

• Music Education

Restaurant Management

• Special Education

Letters of Recommendation

Select writers who know you well, who can comment on your potential as a researcher and a scholar. Choose writers who can also speak to your goals, your motivation, and your commitment to graduate study. Even better, if possible, select individuals who are known to the people at the institution where you are applying.

Personal Statements

Convince your audience that you have what it takes to succeed in graduate school. Provide evidence that you are motivated and eager to learn. Show that you are familiar with the program to which you are applying and that you are a good fit. Proofread: typographical errors and grammatical mistakes can undermine your best efforts.

• Dual MBA/MISE degree

The College of Education

• Rehabilitation Counseling

Tips For Applying To Graduate School

General Advice

Take the GRE early, in case you want to take it again. If possible, gain undergraduate research experience. Apply as early as possible, and confirm your department’s priority deadline.

Graduate Certficate: • TESL/TEFL

PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS

Areas of Study College of Agriculture

Samuel Ginn College of Engineering

Public Administration and Public Policy

Aerospace Engineering

Spanish

Agronomy and Soils

Biosystems Engineering

Technical and Professional Communication

Animal Sciences

Chemical Engineering

Applied Economics (Interdepartmental)

Civil Engineering

Biosystems Engineering (Interdepartmental)

Computer Science and Software Engineering

Nursing

Entomology and Plant Pathology

Electrical and Computer Engineering

Fisheries and Allied Aquacultures

Industrial and Systems Engineering

Harrison School of Pharmacy

Horticulture

Materials Engineering

Poultry Science (Food Science Option)

Mechanical Engineering

Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology

College of Architecture, Design, and Construction

Polymer and Fiber Engineering

Building Construction

School of Forestry and Wildlife Services

Community Planning

Forestry

Integrated Design and Construction

Forest Economics

Industrial Design

Natural Resources

Landscape Architecture

Urban Forestry

Real Estate Development

Wildlife Sciences

College of Business

College of Human Sciences

Business Administration

Consumer Affairs

Accountancy

Human Development and Family Studies

Finance Management & Management Information Systems

Integrated Textile and Apparel Science

Real Estate Development (Interdepartmental)

Nutrition, Dietetics, and Hotel Management

College of Education

College of Liberal Arts

Curriculum and Teaching

Audiology, Doctor of Audiology Clinical Degree

Educational Foundations, Leadership, and Technology

Communication

Kinesiology

Economics

Special Education, Rehabilitation, and Counseling/School Psychology

English

Sports Management (Minor)

Psychology

Communication Disorders

History Public Administration

Sociology

School of Nursing

Pharmacal Sciences Pharmacy Care Systems

College of Sciences and Mathematics Biological Sciences Cellular and Molecular Biosciences Chemistry and Biochemistry Geology/Geography Mathematics and Statistics Physics

College of Veterinary Medicine Anatomy, Physiology and Pharmacology Biomedical Sciences Clinical Sciences Pathobiology For an extensive list of specific programs or program advisor contact information, please visit the Graduate School Web site www.grad.auburn.edu.

Auburn, Alabama For southern charm with collegiate vigor, consider Auburn. This diamond on the eastern Alabama plains has a population of just under 50,000 and is home to Auburn University. On football Saturdays, when die-hard fans arrive in droves to cheer their beloved Tigers, Auburn swells to the state’s fifth-most-populous city. And as Auburn’s largest employer, the university also plays a starring role in the local economy. With mild winters and hot summers, the city offers no shortage of outdoor recreation opportunities. Find a nice hiking trail in the 696-acre Chewacla State Park before cooling off with an afternoon swim. Take a stroll through the Donald E. Davis Arboretum, located on the Auburn University campus. Golfers can head to nearby Grand National golf course and wend their way through the state along the beautiful Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail. “Once you have been there, you just want to come back,” says John Cannon, president of SunBelt Golf Corp., which manages the trail.* *Source: Best Places to Live 2009 by Luke Mullins, U.S. News & World Report, June 8, 2009

City of Auburn: Best Places to Live 2009 According to U.S. News & World Report, “In selecting our Best Places to Live for 2009, we looked for affordable communities that have strong economies and plenty of fun things to do.” 25

GRADUATE EDUCATION IS AN INVESTMENT

Having an Advanced Degree means Higher Pay & Prosperity Average Annual Earnings of Adults 25 or Older in the United States during 2009 All

$46,600 $128,600

Professional degree Doctoral degree

$103,400

Master’s degree

$74,200 $58,800

Bachelor’s degree Associate’s degree

$41,500

Some college, no degree

$38,600

High school diploma or GED

$32,800

Some high school, no diplmoma

$24,300

Less than 9th grade

$19,800 SREB Factbook 2011, p. 67

Holders of Advanced Degrees will be in high demand in the next 5 years Projected Increase of Job Openings by Education or Training in the United States from 2006 until 2016 All

10%

Doctoral Degree Professional Degree

19%

Master’s Degree

19%

Associate’s Degree

19%

Bachelor’s Degree + Work Experience

17%

Bachelor’s Degree

17%

Postsecondary Vocational Certificate Work Experience or on-the-job Training

SREB Factbook 2009, p. 94

22%

Projected Earnings Differential for Alabama MS and Doctoral Graduates during 2009-2010 Degree

Total Degrees

Projected Lifetime Earnings Differential

MS + Post MS

8,313

$3.3 Billion

Doctoral

1,584

$1.6 Billion Total: $4.9 Billion

If 64% of these 2009-2010 graduates remain in Alabama after graduation it would mean that $3.1 billion more would be earned in and spent in the state of Alabama.

14% 10% Data on Degree Completeions 2009-2010 taken from the Alabama Commission on Higher Education and includes graduates of public and private universities

PROGRAM HIGHLIGHT

Applied Economics PhD The PhD in Applied Economics is an interdisciplinary degree program involving faculty from the Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, Department of Economics, and School of Forestry. Courses include resource and environmental economics, applied production economics, demand analysis, international economics, and other electives. Students must pass a preliminary exam on microeconomics, macroeconomics, and econometrics. There is an oral exam in the field of specialization and proposed dissertation topic plus final oral dissertation defense. Highlights Faculty members work closely with students in small classes. Graduates move to careers in academics, industry, and government First year core courses count toward an MS emphasis on application and policy. Areas of Concentration resource economics international economics market analysis production analysis statistics

A Wise Investment

“

Graduate education is a tool that raises your own marketable value. It educates you to better help and contribute to your society. It prepares you to make a difference in the world. Auburn, just like the color, is not too red or too yellow, and is a sparkling place for education and living.

”

Xuan Dong, Qingdao, China PhD, Poultry Science

Graduate Student Council This spring will see a change to the annual Graduate Scholars Forum and Graduate Scholars Symposium, two of the most important events of the year for Auburn University graduate students. For over twenty years, The Graduate Scholars Forum, sponsored by the Graduate Student Council, has served as both a training ground for graduate students interested in presenting their work at academic conferences and a reward for excellence in research and scholarship. In 2011, an additional event was added in order to give participants a more formal experience.

Finalists from the Graduate Scholars Forum were selected to compete for cash prizes at the Graduate Scholars Symposium. This year, the Graduate Scholars Symposium will take place in coordination with Research Week 2012, a campuswide research event spanning four days. After presenting at the Graduate Scholars Forum Feb. 28 – Mar. 1, finalists will present their work on Monday, April 2, at the Auburn University Hotel and Conference Center, where graduate students will have the opportunity to participate in a grant-writing seminar on

Steven Clontz, President Steven Clontz is currently researching topological games for a PhD in mathematics at Auburn University and is a graduate teaching assistant in the Department of Mathematics. Originally from Huntsville, Ala., Clontz received his BS and MS in mathematics from Auburn in 2008 and 2010, respectively. He is also an Eagle Scout and course director for Greater Alabama Council National Youth Leadership Training BSA camp. Prior to being elected as GSC president for 2011-12, Clontz served as GSC webmaster in 2010-11.

Manuj Ahuja, Vice President Manuj Ahuja is a doctoral candidate within the Department of Pharmacal Sciences at Auburn University. He earned his bachelor’s degree in pharmacy in 2005 and a master of science in 2007 in pharmacology from Panjab University in India. He served Heron Health Pvt. Ltd. for more than a year in India as an executive associate (October 2007 to December 2008). Pursuing his dream of a research career in biological sciences, he joined the reputed Harrison School of Pharmacy in 2009 as a graduate student. He has published three research articles in peer-reviewed journals and is an active member of the Society of Toxicology and Society for Neuroscience. He is currently working on the development of novel drugs for the memory impairment in age- and developmentalrelated neurodegenerative disorders.

Wednesday. Undergraduate and faculty forums will also take place during Research Week. The synergy from campus-wide participation is expected to bring a new level of recognition to graduate students who compete in the Graduate Scholars Symposium on April 2, while preserving the open door tradition of the Graduate Scholars Forum. Please visit http://ocm.auburn.edu/ research_week/ for more information about Research Week 2012. The GSC is grateful to the following companies for supporting the Graduate Scholars Forum and Graduate Scholars Symposium in 2011:

Vivek Ahuja, Secretary Vivek Ahuja is a doctoral candidate with the Department of Aerospace Engineering. He obtained a master’s degree in aerospace engineering from Auburn in 2008 and a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Pune University in India in 2007. He is an active writer for international defense journals and strategic think tanks and has numerous publications to his name in the field of military research and history. He is a member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the Tripoli Rocketry Association, and the Indian Student Association. He is currently working with the Department of Aerospace Engineering in the field of advanced missile dynamics and control and high-speed aero-propulsive optimization methodology development.

Brittny Mathies, Executive Vice President Brittny Mathies will serve as the 2011-12 executive vice president of the Graduate Student Council. Originally from New Orleans, La., she is currently completing requirements for her PhD in educational psychology. She earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Mississippi State in 2002 and a master’s degree in human development and family studies in 2005 from the University of Alabama. Brittny has worked with children of all ages and especially enjoys working with at-risk students and their families. Brittny became involved with the GSC during her first semester of graduate school at Auburn, serving as a representative for her department in 2007-08. She served as GSC vice president during the following year, and has served as executive vice president since fall 2009.

The Gift of Excellence Auburn’s Strategic Plan emphasizes the importance of expanding graduate education by increasing the number of students supported by fellowships, engaging in research partnerships and growing the graduate student body. Auburn recognizes the integral role that graduate education plays in our increasingly knowledge-based economy, and we are committed to the continual enhancement of our programs. One way we are doing this is through the Graduate Education Development Council, a diverse group of professionals who promote graduate education on and off Auburn’s campus. The council is designed to reflect the breadth of interests found within the graduate programs themselves, unified by the single goal of advancing academics at Auburn. We are pleased to announce the inaugural members of the council. Al Cook is a 1978 Auburn graduate who recently retired from his post as Director of Economic Development for the city of Opelika, Alabama. Billie Crannell received a Bachelor’s degree and Ph.D. from Auburn and serves as Director for Professional Practice and Development at East Alabama Medical Center in Opelika, AL. Emily Farrell completed her undergraduate and graduate work at Auburn and works for PricewaterhouseCoopers LLC as a Senior Associate in the Assurance practice in Atlanta, GA. Ron Harris received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Auburn and is currently the president of Krebs Architecture & Engineering in Birmingham, AL. Curtis Liles earned his Bachelor’s degree from Auburn and is a co-founder of Birmingham law firm Liles & Rushin, LLC, where he focuses on federal and state taxation. Meaghan Weir earned a Bachelor’s and Master’s from Auburn and now serves the university as the student employment and internship coordinator. For more information on the Graduate Education Development Council or to learn how you can support graduate education, please contact Hank Galbreath at 334-844-1431 or hank.galbreath@auburn.edu.

A Wise Investment

“

TThe Charles Barkley Foundation gift will allow

the College of Education to host talented undergraduate students from regional historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the 2nd annual COE Summer Research Bridge: Future Scholars Program. This six-week immersive experience provides structured faculty mentorship, graduate-level academic preparation, and meaningful research, teaching, service and/or outreach opportunities. The program has benefitted the COE and consequently Auburn University by exposing highly qualified students from traditionally underrepresented groups to Auburn University’s

”

diverse graduate academic opportunities.

Jared Russell College of Education’s interim Director of Student Development and Associate Professor in the Department of Kinesiology

Graduate School Staff

George Flowers Dean

George Crandell Associate Dean

Richard Alverson Director of Information Technology alverro@auburn.edu

Deborah Bledsoe Insurance Coordinator dir0007@auburn.edu

Minnie Bryant Receptionist/Admissions Processing gradadm@auburn.edu

Donna Childers Matriculation and Program Specialist; Academic Evaluator of Theses dct0002@auburn.edu

Jessica Corbett International Admissions Processing jac0033@auburn.edu

Hank Galbreath Director of Development galbrdh@auburn.edu

Clint Lovelace Recruiting, Academic Evaluator of Theses and Dissertations jcl0014@auburn.edu

Jennifer Lovelace Domestic Admissions Processing jml0006@auburn.edu

Anna McBee Development Graduate Assistant mcbeeam@auburn.edu

Theresa Morgan Director of Graduate Admissions morgatk@auburn.edu

Jessica Nelson Director of Communications jsn0002@auburn.edu

Katie Patterson Residency Advisor/ Admissions Process ing pattekl@auburn.edu

Sherry Ray Director of Matriculation (Last names M-Z) raysher@auburn.edu

Julie Reece Executive Assistant/ Business Manager reeceju@auburn.edu

Christy Tanner Development Coordinator cmt0007@auburn.edu

Leonard Vining Special Projects Coordinator vininjl@auburn.edu

Upcoming Events Feb. 24: Write Fest for graduate students 1-4 pm, RBD Library Learning Commons. Set goals - Learn strategies for staying productive - Meet others working on graduate-level writing projects - Get feedback from Miller Writing Center Consultants. Light refeshments provided. Write Fest is free. No registration required. https://fp.auburn.edu/writing/ writingworkshops.aspx

A Wise Investment

Feb. 28- March 1: Graduate Scholars Forum All day, Student Center. Various rooms. March 9: Write Fest for graduate students 1-4 pm, RBD Library Learning Commons. See Feb. 24 description for details. March 20: New Horizons Lecture: Cynthia Tucker 2 pm, Langdon Hall Auditorium. Reception following. March 22: Colloquium Noon, Student Center Ballroom. All graduate students invited. Topic TBA March 30: Write Fest for graduate students 1-4 pm, RBD Library Learning Commons. See Feb. 24 description for details. April 2-6: Research Week 2012 AU Hotel and Conference Center. http://ocm.auburn.edu/research_week April 12: Kim Phuc Phan Thi Lecture Time TBA, The Hotel at Auburn University and Dixon Conference Center April 13: Write Fest for graduate students 1-4 pm, RBD Library Learning Commons. See Feb. 24 description for details. April 19: Colloquium Noon, Student Center Ballroom. All graduate students invited. Topic TBA

â&#x20AC;&#x153;

Pursuing a graduate degree in community planning at Auburn University is one of the wisest professional choices I have made. While my undergraduate degree challenged me to be creative, the graduate program has challenged me to be a visionary. As a result, I feel that I am prepared not only for a successful, professional career, but also to orchestrate meaningful change for communities anyway. In completing the curriculum for the masters of community planning degree, I have learned so much about myself, and more importantly I have discovered a career that I can be passionate about. I could not afford to forego this investment, for it is worth every penny.

â&#x20AC;?

Jocelyn Poe, Jackson, MS Masters of Community Planning

Research Week 2012

Research and Creative Scholarship www.auburn.edu/researchweek In partnership with Auburn University Montgomery, Auburn University Libraries, and Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art at Auburn University.

ÂŠ March 2012. Auburn University Office of Communications and Marketing. Auburn University is an equal opportunity educational institution/employer.